King's Bounty Collector's Edition: The Legend of the Knight

In ancient times, when the trees were large and the resolution of the monitors was small, the magical company New World Computing in its electronic-alchemical laboratory was born out of the game Might and Magic: Book I. Many new computer entertainment enthusiasts immediately liked the newborn. In just a year, the sequel was reprinted - Might and Magic: Book II. Gates to Another World. The number of fans of the series multiplied. And they all looked forward to the release of the third part. But instead, after another 12 months, baby King's Bounty was born. Probably worth mentioning that this significant event occurred in 1990.

The child was unusual. It seems to be not a strategy, but on the other hand, not exactly an RPG, although taken together reminded both of them. Initially, the player was offered a choice of hero. It was possible to assume the appearance of a noble knight dressed in metal armor or a brave paladin carrying light. Less intelligent people preferred to be a barbarian armed with non-child-sized axes. Well, for dessert, we got a sorceress, whose dress impressed with the depth of the cut and excited our youthful consciousness.


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Each of the characters had unique features that influenced the style of combat. But no matter what character you choose, the plot always evolved the same way - our protagonist entered the service of the king, who gave us the task to find and return the legendary artifact. The location of the magic thing was marked on the map, which in turn was divided into several parts. Parts went to the various villains with whom we were to meet. It is clear that before getting to the scum, our character had to go in a rather large and exciting adventure.

One of the important details was the fact that the game worked on a super-powerful calculator Search. This prototype of a computer with 256 kilobytes of memory and a floppy disk drive like a tractor, was one of the few digital units available to the USSR population. True, the problem remained with the little-known for many English. But she was ultimately resolved.

In 1992, and maybe in 1993 (as usual, the story is full of errors and inaccuracies), programmer Sergey Prokofiev from the glorious city of Kharkov, secretly from the unsuspecting New World Computing, creates a sequel. The main feature of King's Bounty 2 is that it knows Russian perfectly. Perhaps this is what causes its wide popularity in one sixth of world sushi. The game has been changed graphics, as well as new features. In particular, trade in cities with various items. New monsters and new types of magic were created. And the chief hero became so powerful that he could cut his way through the woods and rocks. The Ukrainian Lefty planned that his development would become even larger than the original. The game was supposed to consist of two parts. But the plans were not given to be accomplished, and the second part was never seen by anyone.

Years later

And now the time machine takes us to the twenty-first century. Who would have thought that the King's Bounty trademark would go to the Russian company 1C ?! But the most important thing is not this, but the fact that 1C made an extremely wise decision to entrust the development of the game to the guys from the office with the cosmic name Katauri. You are well acquainted with them. On the conscience of these guys are many hours and days taken out of our lives by "Space Rangers" and "Space Rangers 2".

It is curious that the Catauri workshop on the development of electronic time killers is ... guess where? In the city of Vladivostok! It's almost on another planet, where the turbolets of the Russian railways will carry us, for example, from the Moscow headquarters of Igrotron to the place of arrival for a whole week, take it into our head to visit the Far Eastern game makers. And we then thought that in those parts there were only gangsters led by mayors with funny nicknames like Winnie the Pooh.

Sympathy

It should be immediately noted that King's Bounty from the first screenshots appeared in the network caused us great sympathy, which not only did not disappear after becoming acquainted with the game, but only became even greater. Probably this is what allowed us to turn a blind eye to various shortcomings and bugs in the game (which, of course, will eventually be corrected with patches). It seems that Katauri has an indulgence for all occasions in front of the players. What can I say - well done!

Box

So, in our hands the gift edition of the game. The box is completely classic. Nothing inventive or unusual. In such programs they were selling 10 and 15 and even 20 years ago - pretty printing put on a stiffness frame made of pressed cardboard. An autopsy revealed that they were hiding inside: a black CD with the game itself in a transparent plastic slim box, a deck of playing cards with the characters of the game, documentation, a black T-shirt with the game logo and a registration card (did anyone use this thing once in their life? )

Mike was surprised by the cheap, crookedly cut paper tag with the “XL” printed on the printer. I wonder in which Chinese dungeon is it made? There is an assumption that this product of the textile industry will not survive even a few washes. So wear protective clothing that will support the cult of the game, we will be very careful.

But a small thirty-six page book of the user's manual was printed in color, which is good news. Rather rare exception from the black-and-white rule taken in use by the majority of publishers.

Playing cards is a good souvenir. It is a pity that they are only 16 characters of the game, depicting aces, kings, queens and jacks. It would be possible to place the remaining 20 orcs with elves and various undead instead of the standard numerals, worms, crosses and pikes.

Spring call

What has changed in 18 years? Actually, there is little. And this is probably correct. Otherwise, King's Bounty would not be King's Bounty at all, but some other kind of game. Katauri handles her inheritance with care.

We still enter the service of King George as a treasure hunter and still carry out his assignments. All the same at the beginning of the game you need to choose a hero. True, this time there are only three candidates - the Warrior on the Pinto, the Paladin on the White Horse and the Magician on the Black Horse. Each of them has their own skills and characteristics.

A warrior relies on large armies and can summon Spirits of Fury that live in a magical box. In addition, he can carry the most different junk, as he has two slots for weapons and regalia. This fighter has the ability to accumulate such intangible, but no less valuable, properties of leadership and rage. The guy does not like to make a fuss with the enemy and is always ready to use brute physical force.

The magician does not lead the darkness of the heavily armed people. After graduating from the vocational school of wizards, he prefers to stand at the maximum distance from the enemy and ideally not to make physical contact with him at all. Leadership goes to the background, giving way to the intellect and the ability to quickly replenish mana right in battle. With it easier to find the language units sorcerers, ready packs to join his army.

Paladin is sawn into two parts and put together two previous heroes. He is always happy to personally punch his opponent with a hand-clenched fist, but he does not shy away from magic either. Having passed the courses of political information in the army, it can persuade to convince the enemy to switch to his side. In addition, he can always accumulate a stash in the form of two reserve units. The fetishist loves being hung with regalia and artifacts from head to foot. Well, he also has the cutest avatar.

In addition to the already mentioned parameters of Rage, Mana, Intellect and Leadership, our heroes still possess units of Defense and Attack, which they grow from level to level. And each hero has three groups of Strength, Spirit and Magic, which include 12 skills each. Only 36 skills. She still accounting in which you have to scrupulously understand. And they say that games are fun ...

1C Accounting

But the character is selected. The game begins. For those who have been in suspended animation for the past few decades, and King's Bounty is his first RPG game, you shouldn’t worry and gnaw on his armor. It is for these comrades that the game begins with training and an explanation of what is what. Of course, it’s not as detailed as we would like, but we don’t have a younger kindergarten group here, you will understand.

Get acquainted with the job log. Being guided by it, we will direct the hooves of our mount, ship's keel or airship basket in one direction or another. Some tasks may consist of several parts that open to us alternately. Forgetting the promises that have been generously distributed to all the needy characters in a game is very simple. So the magazine is a very useful thing in which you should look more often.

And what is this dangling from the side? This is a book of spells! Why so empty? Everything is very simple. We are not socialism here. So it hopes for state assistance is not necessary. All scrolls of spells are purchased from magicians for blood, in the literal sense of the word, money earned.

The same goes for the troops. In the magical country, unlike ours, military reform has long been carried out and the army is all contractual. For each combat unit has to otslyunivlivat. On the stage of the theater of the fighting, of course, they will not let us out without pants at all. Some what pocket money is given initially. That’s what we’ll spend on our first few militarized units.

But even if you are a scion of the Sultan of Bahrain, born the most beloved wife in his harem and the money from your pockets is gushing like your father’s oil, it doesn’t mean that your army will be strong and numerous. Scoundrels contract soldiers agree to join the troops in a limited number. Their number directly depends on the Leadership parameter. It is precisely this that should be built up with all our might by all available means. The stronger the unit, the more leadership it requires and the higher the cost.

It soon becomes clear that under the mask of the game hides the most powerful simulator of future accountants and economists. We got a special artifact and now the monatki in your use are not sold for a quarter of the price, but a bit more expensive. Ditch powerful ghosts, deciding to measure their strength with the enemy monster, and there are nowhere to take new ones. After all, the reserves of units in each individual building or castle are limited. The same applies to the magic scrolls, they are finite and require a careful attitude. Bought an amulet, whose price exceeds the annual income of many African countries and left without a livelihood.

It comes to the fact that in some places we are offered to avoid trouble for a certain amount. Pay the ferryman and he will transport us to the other side, bypassing poisonous swamp creatures. Buy a cow to fertilize the soil and will not need to destroy the queen of predatory thorns. So being wealthy here you can be considered to a certain extent a diplomat and a pacifist.

But the creators and this was not enough. They decided to further tinker with the model of the world by introducing the concept of the “cell of society” into it. Yes, comrades, you can get married in the game and even (just don’t ask by what method) to have up to four children! As soon as you find the other half, you and your army will become more comfortable to a certain extent. It will be possible to carry on yourself more equipment and items. Well, if the constricted get tired, then you can always get rid of it. Just remember that a divorce case is expensive. Leaving, the former darling takes with him part of the belongings and money. What do you want? Say thank you, that child support does not need to pay.

Noble rogues

It is not known to anyone who sold their souls to the Kathauri team, but the game looks devilishly beautiful! Here everything is fabulous and toy, brightly iridescent and incessantly pleasing the eye. As Karabas Barabas would say: - This is just a holiday of some kind!

The step-by-step battles taking place on the rasseflennaya field of the arena are wonderful! The magical flashes and explosions are very impressive, and the animation of all the characters does not cause any complaints. We jump along the path and dive into the thick of the mysterious forest. The game immediately changes the lighting and a bright sunny day turns into magic, pierced with rare arrows of twilight rays. And look at this water! How do you like the surface of the sea? It looks like this somewhere in either Barbados or Majorca. Extravaganza!

When the director Quentin Tarantino, in one of his interviews, said that bad artists borrow and good ones steal. So, Katauri, without a twinge of conscience, stole everything that was possible from everyone. Look at the screenshots. Do they happen to remind you of a certain Blizzard game Warcraft III? And frontal collisions of armies make you suspiciously squint on the shelf, where in the specially designated place are the fifth Heroes of Might and Magic, created by the glorious company Nival. Of course, all the games listed, as discussed now by King's Bounty, are to some extent close in spirit, but not to the same extent. Who would have thought that having great and terrible things for the Great and Terrible is the best, can you create your own so not secondary and almost flawless game?

Now we are pressing our ear to the system unit of our computer. Hear how rumbles? This is the engine of the "Blood Magic". This unit was licensed for installation under the hood of our ward. Now I understand where this liveliness of the game kinematics character comes from.

Rusish fiction and music

Now in almost any bookstore a ton of fantastic-fantasy paper produced by Russian writers is dumped on us right from the entrance. It differs in unpretentious syllable, clumsy jokes, perfectly flat and often primitive characters, as well as a great dislike for logic and generally literary value close to zero.

When King's Bounty began to erupt in the dialogues something resembling the style of the above editions, it became terribly offensive. Will the part really spoil the game that is so good in all respects? But then another magic happened. We, the warlike aesthetes, waving a small volume of Vladimir Nabokov over his head, with an eternally protruding edge of a starched kerchief and a butterfly around his neck, have ceased to warp.

Yes, unfortunately in the Russian developer circles Tima Schaefer has not yet been discovered. Do not do in our country, "Secrets of Monkey Island" and "Broken Swords", brilliant diamond cutting of texts and images. Instead, a solid, not to dinner will be remembered, Sergey Lukyanenko. However, King's Bounty is not at all killing or korezhit. In the game, everything is so toy and unreal that the dialogues are perceived accordingly. In some places it even seems that such a game cannot be spoiled even by Daria Dontsova.

Well, those who show off a lot with their Nabokov should be sent to jackals to the shelves with foreign games. Correct comrades? Right.

Much the same goes for music. What are you listening to there? Michael Nyman, Pink Floyd, Burke, Sigur Ros? Turn off immediately! We should be led into battle by the standard tunes number 5, 12 and 4. And when nothing threatens and everything is in order, then songs number 6 and 8 sound.

No, don't get it wrong, the music itself is not bad. But the only thing I want to say about her is that it was clearly not written by Danny Elfman. Wait, we don't confuse anything? We're not talking about the Fable game right now. Exactly what are we doing? Perfectly normal standard tunes number 5, 12, 4, 6 and 8. Listen every day for a long time and you get used to them.

Come on, quiet! You will listen. What is it? Wow, it turns out there is even something like a female vocal.

Royal reward

No matter how we find fault with the game, reproaching it for minor deficiencies, we must admit that it is undoubtedly one of the best games ever made in our country. The excellent work of the Katauri company, for which she spent four years of hard work.

Fussing in the King's Bounty sandbox, in constant balancing of strengths and opportunities, leapfrogging events, looping opponents arrogantly standing in our way, erasing white spots on the map, acquiring new features and levels seem to be wonderful and exciting activities.

Outside the window dawns again. The clock shows five in the morning, and we still have not overcome the giant turtle. Ugliness, but it's time to go to sleep. But so want a little more to extend the moments of the game. Perhaps for someone, they will be one of the best feelings in their games. And about King's Bounty will be remembered and 10 and 20 years later