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Return to Krondor is a classic in the role-playing genre, just as much fun now as it was 10 years ago. This is a single player game with one main character and four additonal characters under the player's control, each with some ability to develop personalities based on the player's choices. Your main character is James, the thief-turned-squire; as the game progresses he will be accompanied by a warrior, a cleric, and 2 mages. The mages' functions tend to overlap, though they are skilled in different magic schools initially. The game is created after Raymond Feist's Midkemia series, and the story-line (and characters) of the game follow his plot fairly accurately, so don't expect too much leverage in you choices, but there are enough to allow you to feel you've created your own persona's and have affected the story-line to a small degree in the direction you want to (certain pieces of the game will be triggered by the player's choices for his character's actions). After a certain point in the game, the "group" will be split into 2 seperate-yet-parallel story lines, with the main character & story-line being far more in depth than the secondary. Sierra could have used a bit more development on that second story line to keep it interesting, otherwise it's more of a detour that you tend to want to hurry through, to get back to the main point of the game. There are dozens of non-playing characters to interact with, and speaking with them is a must, otherwise you will not discover how to proceed throughout the game. The world is large enough and detailed enough to keep you entertained, though, by today's standards it's dated and relatively small. The graphics, again by today's standards, are a bit square-ish and chunky, but still acceptable, and at the time of it's release it was state of the art. Voice acting is superb, and the story line, while linear, is engaging and open enough to allow you some free reign and character development. Encounters are a good mix of random and scripted. Turn based battles are leveled, and tend to be balanced, though at times the action can be a bit slow. You are allowed to explore each chapter however you wish, and travel to any location you wish within that chapter, but you cannot advance until you complete the required tasks, nor can you return once you've left that chapter. 12 chapters which are automatically triggered once the player meets the requirements, and can be a bit frustrating if you aren't expecting it to happen... once the new chapter begins, there's no going back without a saved game, so fair warning: if you get some really cool equipment, SAVE ON THE SPOT. There's also puzzles, mysteries, and sub-plots within each chapter, and your characters are diverse with different functions. I dug my copy out a few months ago to see if I wanted to keep it in my library, and it turned out to be just as entertaining in 2008 as it was in 1998 when it was released. Short, but fun... In fact, I enjoy it enough I'm replacing my copy that broke tonight when I dropped the CD (oops), didn't even hesitate to order a new one. All in all, it's definitely a game I recommend, and one I will keep in my library for many years to come.Read full review
Technology has come a long way since Return to Krondor, a game I first played on a Compaq PIII with 266 MHz, Win 98 and 512 MB RAM. Then, the game taxed my system. Now, well don't make me laugh! RtK runs just fine on Vista using compatibility mode for Win 98 or ME and with 256 colors, if you run as administrator. The graphics look great for 1998, outdated though they are today. The point of this RPG is to tell a story of adventure of five heroes in a world of swords and sorcery. The heroes face a variety of challenges and quests along the way, with fully-voiced dialogue and turn-by-turn combat. The combat engine runs very much like an automated pen & pencil game, with the player only deciding how to equip and who to attack. RtK featured innovations later carried forward - an alchemy system now seen in the Oblivion series and the much-maligned Two Worlds - as well as old-school character classes and special skills based on those abilities. For example, only mages could use magic, while only warriors could use axes and thieves could use lockpicks. The lockpicking puzzles were an added element of fun - trying to figure out the locks to various treasure items without triggering the poison- or firetraps. If you're looking for killer graphics and first-person action, you'll be bored. If you want an immersive and enjoyable story, you may very well enjoy Return to Krondor.Read full review
Been wanting a copy of this wonderful game for ages, highly recommended. Was around when this game was new and thought it looked spectacular for it's time. Played the demo when I was a kid and found the gameplay to be just as awesome. Give it a go!
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: New
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
Great game in the series! Love it!
Verified purchase: Yes | Condition: Pre-owned
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