Return to Krondor

The Good
Return to Krondor is the official sequel to Betrayal at Krondor. It is set in the same universe and introduces some recurrent characters. Concerning gameplay, it is quite different from its predecessor in several core issues, with only a few characteristics having been carried through.

The tactical combat returns while eliminating separate battle screens in favor of seamless transition between exploration and battles. I liked this change and generally found combat the most pleasing aspect of the game. It does rely too much on initiative, which also has a positive side: a well-trained, well-coordinated party can wipe out the opponents very quickly, while taking too much time to act will usually result in complete devastation. Encumbrance plays a role in the characters' mobility, which is a nice realistic touch.

The magic system is rather interesting. The game's two mages can specialize in four disciplines, each revealing more and more spells as you invest points into them. There is a wide variety of supportive and offensive spells, some of which suit the game's tactical battles very well and include variables such as area effects, positioning, etc. There is also a fully developed alchemy system allowing you to collect recipes and brew your own potions.

There is a large amount of items to be found in the game, and micro-management of inventory has certainly not been dumbed-down. In fact, there is more weapon and equipment variety, with separate pieces for arm and leg protection and more weapon types. The introduction of thief and priest classes is certainly a welcome addition to Krondor's meager selection of warriors and mages. The lockpicking mini-game is pretty cool as well.

The game does try to compensate for its linearity with some side quests, most of which, sadly, occur in locations you'll have to visit anyway several times according to the dictation of the main plot. Once the world map finally opens to you, however, you can opt to go to a few places you are not required to visit in order to complete the game. This is a far cry from what we have seen in the first Krondor or in its true spiritual successor Betrayal in Antara, but at least it's something.

Although I fiercely protest against the game's choice of engine, I can't deny that some of the background graphics have a certain cozy warmth and feeling of mystery to them. Particularly the areas outside of the city are well-done, such as the haunted temple or the spooky path to the sunken ship.

The Bad
People talk about a certain "RPG crisis" in the mid-nineties that prompted the so-called "RPG Renaissance" - rapid advances in technology and subsequent changes in the player's mentality, resulting in the lack of direction and well-developed concepts, reduction of gameplay features, watered-down systems, and so on. While I do not agree with this generalization, Return to Krondor could serve as an excellent example of those problems. Betrayal in Antara might have struggled to find its place during those tough times, but it's nothing compared to the absence of design guidance in the "true" sequel to the classic RPG. It might be a blood relative, but Antara is a much more faithful adopted child.

Return to Krondor is stuck in a void, unable either to make independent decisions or at least apply the old formula to its deficiencies. First and foremost, it doesn't understand what made Betrayal at Krondor great. It wasn't the story - if an RPG lives and dies because of its story something is very wrong with the concept of what makes RPGs in general great. The old Krondor excelled, above all, in merging dramatic elements of game design - story, writing, etc., with open-ended gameplay. That game immersed you not thanks to its brilliant writing per se, but because of how it blended writing with exploration. Return to Krondor, on the other hand, is a completely different game: it is scripted, and that's it. It is, in fact, much closer to Japanese RPGs, only without their goofy warmth and cinematic direction.

There is hardly any exploration in Return to Krondor. Yes, there are optional areas, but they are accessed by clicking on locations rather than physically moving through an interconnected world. Now, some great RPGs managed to create the feeling of open-ended exploration even with that system, but Return to Krondor is not one of them: it is rigid, sometimes aggravatingly linear, and - worst of all - irritatingly stingy with material. Did you like all those side quests in other RPGs? Well, go and play those, because in Return to Krondor the side quests are triggered by going to the very same areas you've already visited in a different chapter. There are no NPCs wandering the streets that may just give you some task. There are no places you can just go to because you feel like it. Your hand is being firmly held and you go only where the designers want you to go.

The game's terrible pacing is partly to blame. What should have been a brief prologue is stretched to almost the half of the game - during the first five chapters out of eleven or so you are confined to one city. And I'm not talking about a city like Athkatla in Baldur's Gate II, its streets and houses bursting with activity, quest-givers, potential companions, and what not. In Return to Krondor you cannot enter any house except pitiful identically-looking shops, tiny abandoned rooms, or wherever the main quests sends you to. Compare it to the wealth of towns and people in the first game or in Antara. And imagine that you have to spend a very large portion in the game in this city, without any possibility to leave it, re-visiting the same small, narrow, featureless districts over and over again, treading the same streets, doing nothing but running around and triggering plot-advancing events.

The game uses pre-rendered backgrounds, "dynamic" camera and 3D models with tank controls. While this type of graphic presentation may be suitable to survival horror games with their deliberately small worlds, where diverse camera angles and detailed visuals do contribute to tension and atmosphere, it is a disastrous choice for an RPG. It robs the game world of all its arguments for seamlessness. While other RPGs went out of their ways to try and create an illusion of uninterrupted exploration by the player, even when this was not technically possible, Return to Krondor does just the opposite: it burns the only bridge connecting it to atmospheric, immersive world design. It is also one of the worst examples of this style - the camera turns and swirls and jerks mercilessly after just a few steps, making every area a mishmash of awkwardly captured still shots and navigation an excruciating experience: I remember running in circles everywhere simply because "forward" becomes "back" with head-spinning speed. The game does little to make us want to stay in its world in the first place, but with this awful engine it simply pushes us out.

Return to Krondor is far from perfect in other aspects as well. Character development is quite unbalanced: you'll max out all the important attributes very early in the game without any effort, and spend the rest of the game increasing stats that have no noticeable effect on the character. Harder difficulties only makes it more clear that initiative in combat pretty much determines its outcome: ergo, with maxed-out initiative you'll be able to win most battles in a few seconds. Like the first Krondor, the game has an annoying tendency of splitting up and re-arranging your party by itself. Erratic pacing, overscripting, and restrictions imposed on exploration all contribute to the lack of flexibility and purpose in character development.

Lastly, in terms of writing and storytelling I found the game clearly inferior to both its predecessor and Betrayal in Antara. For those who likes reading text in games there are bad news: with the exception of a few notes and letters, there is no text in Return to Krondor. Conversations are all voiced, and there are no subtitles. There are no descriptions or comments or anything that made older games so charming. Voice acting is mediocre, and for a game that relies on scripted events so much, Return to Krondor sorely lacks cinematic direction. There is no camera work during cutscenes, musical cues, and other dramatic touches that made similarly scripted games like Final Fantasy fun. There is little emotionality, no plot twists, and the entire story is pretty much set in stone from the very first important event: track down the instantly-recognized villain and prevent him from doing something bad.

The Bottom Line
I did my best to try and like Return to Krondor, and I admit it has interesting sides. However, it is hard to deny that this game is not only a disappointing sequel to the great classic, but also a disappointing role-playing game in general. You may want to check it out for nostalgic reasons, but do not delude yourself: with all its references to its predecessor, Return to Krondor has little to do with it in what matters most - design philosophy.

The Good
Return to Krondor has been sitting on my shelf for years. I had tried to play it a long while back, but for some reason didn't get very far and quit. I decided to try it again in 2004 with my new Windows XP P4 system and the last patch applied. And I'm glad I did!

Installation and gameplay was flawless. You are prompted to insert the second disc only at a certain plot point, and since the story is linear, you'll keep the same CD in your drive for great lengths of time (unless you restore an earlier save). The 59-page manual is well written and leaves out just enough so some of the gameplay surprises aren't ruined. Saving and loading is easy and you can name your saved games, although with too small a number of letters for my taste.

While I was playing, my non-game-player husband would peak in on me off and on, especially when he noticed that I had turned up the volume. He'd take a look at the screen and make random comments or ask questions. Here are a few of the dialog exchanges I recall which will give you a feel of what RtK was like:

"The music is great - Listen to those violins!", he said. "You can tell it was made by Sierra.", I answered.
(Ain't it the truth! Sierra had a knack for contracting great musicians for their games. Oh how I miss them sometimes.)

"That game looks different than the last RPG you played. No races or stuff to choose." To which I commented, "They're preset in this one."
(All characters are predestined so you don't need to worry about roles, races, professions etc. You can choose how their skills are divided so the gameplay leans towards your preference - Fighting, Balanced or Mage. They call it "Game Focus". I chose the Balanced for my first time through .. and the Easy setting.)

He commented, with a smirk on his face, "He runs funny .. like he's got a log between his legs!" [snicker, snicker] Grinning, I answered, "Hey .. maybe he does! He really doesn't move around very well, does he."
(Running does look pretty silly. Movement overall is rather clunky throughout. In some screens, though, it's possible to change the camera angle which helps tremendously - especially in very small rooms or while in combat. Using the arrow keys is necessary in some tight areas where a mouse click is not adequate.)

"What're ya doin' now?", he'd ask. "Trying to figure out how to unlock this trapped chest.", I said. And then, "Oops! That didn't go very well ... I guess I'd better restore and try that again!"
(The "bookmark" Quick Save and Quick Load rescued me often. It really didn't take long too figure out "reflex" lockpicking. Piece 'a cake! Reflex lockpicking, versus "Dice Roll" (based on luck and attributes), is something you choose in the beginning.)

"This is a long game. I thought you'd be finished by now!" I replied, "No, I'm not finished yet! I've just started Chapter 3. Now I can do all sorts of cool stuff - like use all that alchemy equipment to mix up my own potions. But first I have to learn the recipes and get all of the ingredients."
(The strong variations of some potions - like Healing - can only be found by making your own. The process is so realistic that I can imagine what it would've been like to actually be a mage. The drawback is that you have to lug around all of the heavy, space-hogging equipment everywhere - that is, if you want to make something on the road.)

And later, during a battle sequence, he commented, "Why is everybody all bunched up together? Can't you spread them out?" To which I replied, "I have to wait for their turn. And that'll take awhile."
(Most of the time, James and his party are arranged in a triangular fashion when the battle first begins. There are limits as to where each person can move on the screen, and that takes a few "turns" to accomplish. If you can't get close enough to an enemy to use a close combat weapon, you may need to end the turn without accomplishing a darned thing.)

"Why can't she cast a spell now?", he remarked while watching me work out battle strategy. To that I told him, "Well, she'll have to drop her weapon first .. and then I'll need to remember to find it on the ground!"
(This part was stupid. Mages & priests should be able to cast spells even while armed with a weapon. Or, at least, drop it into their backpack - not on the ground.)

How often have you gone through a long game, such as this one, defeated the last, most powerful enemy and gotten a crappy ending? An ending that left you saying ... "Is that all there is?" Without giving too much away, I'll tell you that Return to Krondor's ending is one of the best I've ever seen!! There are dying words, expressions of pain and anguish .. plus a lover's last kiss, conversations amongst the heroes, congratulations and accolades from their lord. And ... after the credits finish, a final scene! (T'would have even made Lord British envious!)

The Bad
Specific actions on the player's part trigger advancements in the story. If you've cheated (by referring to a guide) and know where those are, you can speed up your game (or slow it down). Or, if you don't know where they are, you might end a "chapter" earlier than you should - with characters too wimpy to beat even a rookie brigand. Luckily the start of each chapter is "auto-saved" if you make that mistake.

The graphics are in keeping with a 1998 game, in a no frills sort of way. As you can see from some of the screenshots here on MobyGames, the characters are blocky (no fingers in the hands, for instance - reminiscent of the Elder Scrolls game Redguard, coincidentally released the same year). Krondor and the outlying territories are depicted nicely albeit simply. During the portions leading to the "end game" I did notice some pixel overlap in several screens. Characters seemed to walk -through- the other on-screen graphics, in other words. (The animations in the cut-scenes are pretty darned good, however.)

While inventory is fairly easy to use, there are some inconsistencies relating to design. Some "like" objects (i.e. flasks and alchemy ingredients) are grouped into one slot, while potions and scrolls that are alike take up individual slots. New additions to inventory go into the first available slot, but their positions change when you look later. The player cannot permanently change their arrangement, but that's okay.

It was disconcerting not being able to rest or cast spells during Chapters 1 and 2. You are attempting to build up your experience and equipment (money) during these crucial first chapters, so I do not understand the reasoning behind this.

In many other games, enemies -and oodles of them- abound and you don't need to go looking for them .. they either just appear or come looking for you. Not so in RtK. Most encounters in this game are randomized .. and you must seek them out in various places (mostly inside buildings in the beginning at least). I really didn't dislike this element, but it really is unique.

The Bottom Line
Some have said that RtK has too much Quest for Glory in it to be called a real RPG. For diehard AD&D gamers that may be true because this game has a distinctively different flavor to it.

But, it is decidedly not a QfG game! There's plenty of story, yes, but combat and spellcasting are the primary facets of gameplay. Only one "puzzle" exists and it was a hit-and-miss logic type puzzle, but there are no other "adventure" aspects (unless you count questing). Also absent is "action" - no jumping or swimming - which I consider a plus.

I heartily recommend Return to Krondor as a good RPG and worth playing - mostly because the ending is one of the best I've ever experienced.

The Good
1998 was quite a year for the CRPG (Computer Role Playing Game). Baldur's Gate as well as Return To Krondor were released. These two epic CRPGS would usher in a new age of CRPG goodness. Of those two aforementioned games, RTK was by far the better. Indeed the long awaited sequel to 1996's epic Betrayal at Krondor.

RTK is far more linear than its processor, but still a most excellent game. There are some similarities of course, to BAK, such as an epic story based in Midkemia, co-written by bestselling fantasy author Raymond E. Feist. The combat system is also similar, it's basically a turn based tactical system, and to use the vernacular it rocks. A unique "bonus" system, randomly grants either the hero's or villain’s a round bonus, such as Hero's Refreshed, or Villain’s Rally.

As mentioned the game play is linear, explore, combat, explore some more. Though there are some fun side quests to undertake and to break up the otherwise linear game play.

The story of course is excellent; it truly feels like you are part of one of Mr. Feist's tales. And in true fantasy novel fashion a simple task leads the hero's into a terrible plot that endangers the Kingdom of the Isles and the very Gods!

The music and sound have to be seen to believed. The epic score is up to if not surpassing most Hollywood movies. The voice work and sound effects are also high-quality.(Some of the voice actors you may even recognize from other games and TV. shows)

The Graphics are (still) amazing. With the inhabitants of Midkemia done in polygons, while the locales are done with down right awe inspiring pre-rendered backdrops.

Nice cinematics are also sprinkled throughout. The game is short (25 hrs 1st time) but for those few hours you will be addicted. And when it's over you will swear that you have visited Midkemia, and had a hand in an epic adventure.

The Bad
The ending while excellent implies a sequel, which I fear will never see the light of day, perhaps in book form?

Not for novice CRPGers.

The Bottom Line
One of the best CRPGs ever made; if you missed it what's the excuse? The game can be found (eBay, Amazon) for under $20. And even new computers can run it with no trouble. I just played through it again on my new PC that is less than six months old.

Fans of rpgs, fantasy, and books will enjoy this one. If you are a Feist fan you owe it to yourself to play this game!

The Good
To say what is good about the game is a tough one, because everything in the game is a perfect blend of a superb RPG. The graphics are excellent, with a touch of a Quest for Glory game play. The music is definitely original (and you can save it for your personal use) and you gotta love battle mode.

The Bad
Although I do call this an excellent game, the faults of the game are much easier to remember than the good stuff.

The game lacks originality, just another extension of your typical Quest for Glory and similiar RPG's. The isn't enough random encounters, it kinda funny playing an RPG where you have to find your enemies. I do recall the fabulous days of AD&D where "too many" enemies was never enough.

Unfortunately in this game if you follow the game plot to strictly you'd end up finishing the game "too" quickly, so it is advised to take as long as possible in playing the game.

It was kinda disappointing that the game play was different from Betrayal at Krondor, where you were expecting the "Doom" type view (what do you call that..?) but the battle mode didn't change that much so it really doesn't matter.

Despite the bad stuff I said about the game, its still a "Best-Buy" in my book.

The Bottom Line
RPG priority 1.