Quest for Glory 2: Trial by Fire

Following On From last issue's interview with the guys behind Broken Sword 2.5, we came across this little number, a faithful remake of (sadly defunct) Sierra's second Quest for Glory game. AGD Interactive have made a habit of turning Sierra's old parser-based adventures into VGA glories, doing King's Quest 1 and 2 over six years ago. They're back with another remake in tow, this time of the second Quest for Glory game, a series that might not be familiar to many of you.

Quest for Glory was one of Sierra's stalwart titles in the '80s and early '90s, utilising the same adventure game mechanics as their other Quest games (Space Quest, King's Quest) but adding a layer of role-playing onto that wholesome core. Players could choose between three traditional types of character - fighter, mage, thief - with extra abilities available to customise your choice. Each Quest for Glory game was set in a different fantasy setting, with this second game being based primarily on the Arabian Nights.

AGD have tried to fix problems with the original game, while striving to remain faithful to its concepts. For example, certain puzzles could only be completed at certain times on certain days, leading many players to get stuck in an unwinnable situation. AGD have eliminated this as much as possible, so it shouldn't be as arduous a task playing this remake as it was the original.

There's also a rudimentary combat system to go alongside the RPG elements, which Quest for Glory was famous for back in the day. What AGD's efforts signal is the potential for remaking classic adventure games in this way. The possibilities are exciting to old school adventure fans, especially if some ofthe text-based ones that captured our hearts, like Space Quest II and III, are adapted. We can but hope that other devs follow AGD's lead and go down the remake path.