Quest for Glory III: Wages of War
A hybrid adventure/RPG set in the savannahs of Fricana.
Quest for Glory III: Wages of War, a hybrid adventure and role-playing game, came out for MS-DOS in 1992 as the third title in the Quest for Glory series and a direct follow-up to Trial by Fire. While the prior game set up a return for the villain Ad Avis, the Coles decided against a much darker story to attract new players. Instead, this installment only hints at Ad Avis, saving his plot for the fourth game, Shadows of Darkness. It later got a Windows-compatible re-release on Steam.
Quick Facts
- Developer
- Sierra On-Line
- Producer
- Tammy Dargan
- Director
- Lori Ann Cole
- Designer
- Corey Cole; Lori Ann Cole
- Programmer
- Oliver Brelsford
- Artist
- Andy Hoyos
- Composer
- Rudy Helm
- Series
- Quest for Glory
Facts from the source article.
Plot
Rakeesh the Paladin takes the Hero, the Prince of Shapeir, along with Uhura and her son Simba to his home, the town of Tarna in Fricana. This land of jungle and savannah draws from central African ecosystems and is the home of Liontaurs, creatures that are half-human and half-lion. The Liontaur city of Tarna teeters on the edge of conflict between the Simbani tribe, Uhura's people, and the Leopardmen. Each tribe holds a sacred relic stolen from the other and refuses to return it first. The Hero must stop the war and then defeat a demon that might be unleashed. After gaining membership in both tribes, he leads them against the demon wizard, only to vanish into darkness once the battle ends.
Gameplay
The game offers three standard character classes: Warrior, Magic User, and Thief, with a hidden Paladin class available. A character who proved honorable enough in the previous game can be imported as a Paladin, but any saved character of any class can be imported as a Paladin, preserving all skills acquired earlier. This allows cross-class characters, such as a Paladin using magic-user spells without penalties. The Fighter class is favored, with access to the Trials of Simbani quests. Magic-Users face hostility and have a sidequest to create a magical staff and challenge the leopardman shaman. Thieves are relegated to two class-specific incidents. Unlike the first two games, Quest for Glory III features an overworld screen where cities and landmarks are shown in miniature, replacing interconnected screens. Travel across the overworld involves random encounters with enemies, which the player must defeat or escape. Time passes rapidly during travel, and the stealthy Thief is less prone to encounters. Some random encounters are non-hostile or silly, such as the Awful Waffle Walker and Arne the Aardvark.
Development
The game was created using Sierra's SCI1 engine and was the first in the series to use the VGA graphics engine, which would be used for the next game. Instead of a text parser, the mouse and point-and-click interface served as the main input. According to Corey Cole, Lori Cole handled 90% of the design work while also supervising the VGA remake of Quest for Glory: So You Want to Be a Hero. A programming oversight makes it impossible to achieve a perfect score, and an early glitch can make the game unwinnable if a key event is missed. The development budget was $750,000.
Reception
The changes introduced in this installment, particularly the point-and-click interface replacing the text parser, received mixed reactions from fans. The game is regarded mostly as a pedestrian effort. Computer Gaming World praised the exotic backdrop and sumptuous VGA graphics and soundtrack, calling it an excellent product. Dragon gave the game 5 out of 5 stars in 1993. Jim Trunzo in White Wolf rated it 4 out of 5, noting improvements in art, music, and interface. In 1994, PC Gamer US named it the 28th best computer game ever, praising its tightly woven plot, graphics, and soundtrack. PC Mag's Neil J. Rubenking considered it a perfect blend of roleplaying and adventure gaming. Michael Baker for RPGamer gave it 3 out of 5, criticizing the combat system and feeling the VGA graphics were less well utilized than the EGA graphics of the previous entry. Richard Cobbet of PC Gamer called the title a bit of a filler game.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who developed Quest for Glory III: Wages of War?
Quest for Glory III: Wages of War was developed by Sierra On-Line.
When was Quest for Glory III: Wages of War released?
Quest for Glory III: Wages of War was released in August 1992.
Who directed Quest for Glory III: Wages of War?
Quest for Glory III: Wages of War was directed by Lori Ann Cole.
Who designed Quest for Glory III: Wages of War?
Quest for Glory III: Wages of War was designed by Corey Cole and Lori Ann Cole.
More in Sierra Entertainment Games of the 1990s
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