An unlikely hero.
There are a ton of games coming out this time of year. So it takes something special to really stand out among the pack. The idea of combining an open-world RPG with a vibrant world and some hack and slash combat sounds like a recipe for success. This is exactly what A Knight’s Quest attempts to achieve. Players assume the role of a clumsy hero named Rusty who sets out on a familiar quest to save his kingdom while also collecting poo. Yes it is weird, but it has its heart in the right place. Sadly, navigation and mechanics issues keep this one from being truly special.
If I had to make an elevator pitch about what this game is it would be simple: Ocarina of Time with comedic dialogue and rough edges. It is always clear when a game wears its inspiration on its sleeve. From the overworld feeling akin to Hyrule Field to the puzzles involving acquired items, A Knight’s Quest knows what it wants to be. Rusty is an unlikely hero that wears headphones and is kind of the joke of the kingdom. No one expects him to be a hero, and truly he is not. This adventure spans massive areas with specific dungeons and feels familiar enough to keep me interested as it goes on.
MSRP: $24.99
Platforms: XB1 (reviewed), PS4, Switch, PC
Price I’d Pay: $19.99
The world of A Knight’s Quest is colorful and full of interesting characters and enemies. It does its best job of trying to be humorous, with goofy adjectives for a lot of the dialogue and item descriptions. While it can be clever, it oftentimes comes off as trying too hard to be humorous. I didn’t need to know that the item I picked up was in fact bodacious. If it was subdued it might work better, but every single thing in the game feels the need to put these adjectives in my face. Every item is some form of awesome or gnarly and Rusty is constantly attempting to be the lovable goof that he simply never achieves.
There are three main pieces to A Knight’s Quest and, while familiar, each one feels undercooked. The combat is akin to the lock-on method seen in countless third-person action games. Rusty has his sword and shield, can parry attacks, and perform special actions that he acquires throughout the game. While serviceable it never feels tight and responsive. Locking onto an enemy is simple enough, but as I started attacking, Rusty would move around them and out of place. This led to me swinging at air in a lot of situations. It feels loose and thus more complicated than it truly needed to be.
Next up is the platforming. Again this feels half-baked. Rusty can move around but jumping never feels tight. He can pull himself up on a ledge, but half the time if I didn’t land right where it wanted me to, I would fall. This is exacerbated by the fact that large sections of the world require backtracking and platforming through some tough areas. It isn’t necessarily hard, it is just tedious and frustrating to climb all the way to the top of where I thought I needed to go, only to miss one platform and have to start over…again.
This leads to the third and biggest problem, the exploration. The world of A Knight’s Quest is massive. Areas are large and open with multiple paths to take. This would normally be fine, but the game acted like it wanted me to get lost. I spent over 30 minutes attempting to find the second dungeon only to realize I was going the wrong route. Dungeons are also sometimes not evident. I went into the first one and realized I was halfway through it before I even knew I was in it. They don’t feel unique, just like part of the overworld. The map doesn’t help either. It offers up a grand overview with very few details to go on. The compass is haphazard at best, and while I love exploring, eventually I just want to get to my destination without getting lost for 30 minutes every single time.
Visually this game is a rollercoaster. There are sections that are absolutely stunning while others are mired in mediocrity. The performance also leaves much to be desired. I ran into several glitches that impeded progress and framerate drops that soured the overall look. The music is also all over the place. The opening level felt like a montage out of Commando, while a scene later in the game has some horns playing that make it feel almost like a late-night adult feature. It is a strange mix of weird and uncomfortable.
A Knight’s Quest has moments of brilliance. I wanted to love it a lot more than I did. I feel like this template could truly be something special to fill a void these other consoles have without a proper Zelda clone. Still, it finds ways to annoy me at every turn. Fix the exploration, backtracking, and mechanical glitches and it could be something special. As it is now it is just another title that will get lost in the sea of games hitting this time of year.
Review copy of game provided by publisher.
