King's Bounty
Encyclopedia
King's Bounty is a turn-based fantasy computer and video game designed by Jon Van Caneghem
of New World Computing
in 1990. The game follows the player's character, a hero of King Maximus, appointed with the job of retrieving the Sceptre of Order from the forces of chaos, led by Arech Dragonbreath. King's Bounty is notably considered the forerunner of the Heroes of Might and Magic
series of games.
A Mega Drive/Genesis
port was developed and released in North America on February 21, 1991 with a multitude of graphical changes. The gameplay was also modified to incorporate real time
overworld
exploration.
In 2008, a spiritual sequel titled King's Bounty: The Legend
was released.
and his army across the four continents, acquiring up to 25 pieces of a map revealing the hidden location to the Sceptre of Order before King Maximus dies. Various details of this task are left to player's discretion, allowing for flexible gameplay. For instance, not all the scattered map sections are required; if the player is able to correctly determine the location of the sceptre's burial spot before acquiring all 25 map pieces, the game is won. If the sceptre is not recovered before King Maximus dies (varies depending on difficulty setting), the game ends in defeat.
The hero is given a weekly commission
from the king to track down 17 villain
s across the 4 continents. With each defeat of the progressively stronger villain's army, the character claims (along with the reward money for the "King's Bounty" on that villain) another piece of the map revealing the sceptre's burial location. Along the way, numerous treasure chests are encountered scattered across the map. Some of these chests represent various events that increase the hero's inherent abilities, such as magical
strength or weekly income; others may contain one of eight artifacts, which themselves provide a piece of the map, in addition to conferring their own unique powers.
The location of the sceptre, the artifacts and which castles the villains inhabit are all randomized each game, adding to its replayability.
of forces at a captured castle, if his costs exceed his income for too long, and he runs out of money, his army will abandon him.
Furthermore, each of the various army units have either a positive, neutral, or negative predisposition towards other. An army composed of creatures that "dislike" each other lowers their "morale", making them much less effective in combat. Conversely, recruiting creatures which share a positive predisposition towards each other increases their morale. Assembling an "ideal" army is another open-ended aspect of the game.
of the hero. This rank determines in part what troops the hero may recruit, and more importantly, the strength of the hero's attributes.
The main attributes that determine hero ability are:
an occupied castle or engaging a wandering army on the main map. Combat turns are simple, with the player's army moving first, followed by the opponent's. Armies are stack-based, with any one stack taking up one square on the battlefield. Stacks can represent anything from one cavalry
unit to thousands of peasants.
The game features a multitude of usable troop types, many of which are medieval or mythological
in nature. Each unit type has various stats such as HP, attack power, and movement points. Troop types are designated into groups A through E; using troops from different groups can affect the morale of each troop. Some types have special abilities:
The number of units of a particular troop that can be in the player's army is limited by the player's leadership stats. Troops can be recruited from various dwellings found throughout the overworld. With the exception of the types found exclusively at Maximus' castle, troops are found in limited numbers in their dwellings. When a dwelling is depleted of units, it will not be repopulated until the next astrological week of that troop type (for instance, Week of the Druid
).
representing armies underwent redesign. Mouse support was also added making most parts of the screen interactive.
. Armies on the overworld
now move on their own and automatically engage the hero. This makes the game arguably more difficult, as a careful player of the DOS version could often maneuver past several wandering armies at a time without being successfully engaged. Also affected is the game's time limit. Although it has become harsher, it is somewhat balanced by the fact that trekking across desert squares no longer takes 1 day, and changing continents no longer ends the week.
Gone from this version of King's Bounty are all keyboard controls and hero naming capabilities.
appearing similar though featuring different gameplay.
(the Might and Magic series
being the basis for the storyline), both of which were published by New World Computing and designed by Jon Van Caneghem
. Among the many similarities, an emphasis on hero development and combat style are especially prominent in both. In the introduction to the player manual of Heroes III
, van Caneghem credits King's Bounty as the precursor to Heroes of Might and Magic. King's Bounty is included in some HOMM anthologies, including the Heroes of Might and Magic Compendium and Heroes of Might and Magic Millennium Edition. The anthology versions also provide a native executable for Windows, though not fully supported in Windows NT
-based operating systems.
The 2001
PlayStation 2
title Heroes of Might and Magic: Quest for the Dragon Bone Staff
is an enhanced remake
of King's Bounty made by 3DO
.
purchased the property rights to the King's Bounty franchise and attached the name to a title being developed by Katauri Interactive, a small company located in Vladivostok
. Prior to the name change, the game's working title was Battle Lord. The game was published in 2008 as King's Bounty: The Legend
.
Also, there exists an unofficial fan sequel usually called "King's Bounty 2" developed in 1992. The game was developed by Russian-speaking programmer signed by his initials as "SP" (Russian: СП), and therefore all the text in the game is in Russian, and the messages often feature Russia-specific folklore. There exists no English version.
released a King's Bounty boardgame in 1991. Like its computer game counterpart, the object of the game is to catch villains in a fantasy setting. However, other features differ, the villains' names are different and three designers, not including Van Caneghem, are credited for the creation of the game. However, the cover of both the computer game and the boardgame versions are the same, implying some connection between the two.
#166 by Jager McConnell in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 3 out of 5 stars. The Lessers reviewed the Sega Genesis version of the game in Dragon #175, also giving that version of the game 3 out of 5 stars. The Lessers reviewed the PC/MS-DOS version of the game in 1992 in Dragon #187, again giving that version of the game 3 stars.
Retroactively, the game was reviewed by Sega-16.com, who - in consideration of its influence on the Heroes of Might and Magic
series - gave it a perfect 10.0 score.
Jon Van Caneghem
Jon Van Caneghem is an American video game director, designer and producer. He is best known for launching development studio New World Computing in 1983, making his design debut in 1986 with Might and Magic Book One: The Secret of the Inner Sanctum...
of New World Computing
New World Computing
New World Computing, Inc. was an American computer game developer and publisher founded in 1984 by Jon Van Caneghem, his wife, Michaela Van Caneghem, and Mark Caldwell. It was best known for its work on the Might and Magic computer role-playing game series and its spin-offs, especially Heroes of...
in 1990. The game follows the player's character, a hero of King Maximus, appointed with the job of retrieving the Sceptre of Order from the forces of chaos, led by Arech Dragonbreath. King's Bounty is notably considered the forerunner of the Heroes of Might and Magic
Heroes of Might and Magic
Heroes of Might and Magic is a series of video games originally created and developed by Jon Van Caneghem through New World Computing. As part of the Might and Magic franchise, the series changed ownership when NWC was acquired by 3DO and again when 3DO closed down and sold the rights to Ubisoft...
series of games.
A Mega Drive/Genesis
Sega Mega Drive
The Sega Genesis is a fourth-generation video game console developed and produced by Sega. It was originally released in Japan in 1988 as , then in North America in 1989 as Sega Genesis, and in Europe, Australia and other PAL regions in 1990 as Mega Drive. The reason for the two names is that...
port was developed and released in North America on February 21, 1991 with a multitude of graphical changes. The gameplay was also modified to incorporate real time
Real-time strategy
Real-time strategy is a sub-genre of strategy video game which does not progress incrementally in turns. Brett Sperry is credited with coining the term to market Dune II....
overworld
Overworld
An overworld is, in a broad sense, an area within a video game that interconnects all its levels or locations. They are mostly common in role-playing games, though this does not exclude other video game genres....
exploration.
In 2008, a spiritual sequel titled King's Bounty: The Legend
King's Bounty: The Legend
King's Bounty: The Legend is a 2008 video game, based on the King's Bounty property that was developed 18 years earlier by New World Computing...
was released.
Objectives
The player leads the heroHero
A hero , in Greek mythology and folklore, was originally a demigod, their cult being one of the most distinctive features of ancient Greek religion...
and his army across the four continents, acquiring up to 25 pieces of a map revealing the hidden location to the Sceptre of Order before King Maximus dies. Various details of this task are left to player's discretion, allowing for flexible gameplay. For instance, not all the scattered map sections are required; if the player is able to correctly determine the location of the sceptre's burial spot before acquiring all 25 map pieces, the game is won. If the sceptre is not recovered before King Maximus dies (varies depending on difficulty setting), the game ends in defeat.
The hero is given a weekly commission
Contract
A contract is an agreement entered into by two parties or more with the intention of creating a legal obligation, which may have elements in writing. Contracts can be made orally. The remedy for breach of contract can be "damages" or compensation of money. In equity, the remedy can be specific...
from the king to track down 17 villain
Villain
A villain is an "evil" character in a story, whether a historical narrative or, especially, a work of fiction. The villain usually is the antagonist, the character who tends to have a negative effect on other characters...
s across the 4 continents. With each defeat of the progressively stronger villain's army, the character claims (along with the reward money for the "King's Bounty" on that villain) another piece of the map revealing the sceptre's burial location. Along the way, numerous treasure chests are encountered scattered across the map. Some of these chests represent various events that increase the hero's inherent abilities, such as magical
Magic (paranormal)
Magic is the claimed art of manipulating aspects of reality either by supernatural means or through knowledge of occult laws unknown to science. It is in contrast to science, in that science does not accept anything not subject to either direct or indirect observation, and subject to logical...
strength or weekly income; others may contain one of eight artifacts, which themselves provide a piece of the map, in addition to conferring their own unique powers.
The location of the sceptre, the artifacts and which castles the villains inhabit are all randomized each game, adding to its replayability.
Asset management
As the player explores, he encounters various types of creatures native to the different continents, some of which are able to be recruited. Most of these creatures are significant upgrades from the normal human forces available to the player at the King's castle, and are required to defeat the tougher villain armies. However, as their strength increases, so does the amount of gold required to retain them, which must be paid weekly. Although the player's commission can be raised in a variety of ways, such as maintaining a garrisonGarrison
Garrison is the collective term for a body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it, but now often simply using it as a home base....
of forces at a captured castle, if his costs exceed his income for too long, and he runs out of money, his army will abandon him.
Furthermore, each of the various army units have either a positive, neutral, or negative predisposition towards other. An army composed of creatures that "dislike" each other lowers their "morale", making them much less effective in combat. Conversely, recruiting creatures which share a positive predisposition towards each other increases their morale. Assembling an "ideal" army is another open-ended aspect of the game.
Heroes
King's Bounty features four selectable hero classes; Barbarian, Knight, Paladin, and Sorceress. Each class varies in magical ability, starting troop power, natural leadership ability, and Commissions (income per week). As the king's bounty is collected on more villains, the king may increase the rankRanking
A ranking is a relationship between a set of items such that, for any two items, the first is either 'ranked higher than', 'ranked lower than' or 'ranked equal to' the second....
of the hero. This rank determines in part what troops the hero may recruit, and more importantly, the strength of the hero's attributes.
The main attributes that determine hero ability are:
- Leadership - This number determines the maximum stack size of armies. If the hit point value of any army exceeds this number, those units are considered out of control and will attack the nearest troop, including the player's armies, during the next battle. However, since out-of-control armies are overly powerful, they can be toyed with, e.g. by teleporting it to the middle of the enemy's forces.
- Commission - This is simply the amount of income awarded to the character at the end of each week.
- Spell power - This number is used by the game when determining the quality of any spell cast. Some spells (mostly overworld spells) always work the same way, regardless of spell power.
- Maximum spells - This determines the maximum number of spells the hero may know at any one time.
Combat and troops
Combat in King's Bounty occurs when siegingSiege
A siege is a military blockade of a city or fortress with the intent of conquering by attrition or assault. The term derives from sedere, Latin for "to sit". Generally speaking, siege warfare is a form of constant, low intensity conflict characterized by one party holding a strong, static...
an occupied castle or engaging a wandering army on the main map. Combat turns are simple, with the player's army moving first, followed by the opponent's. Armies are stack-based, with any one stack taking up one square on the battlefield. Stacks can represent anything from one cavalry
Cavalry
Cavalry or horsemen were soldiers or warriors who fought mounted on horseback. Cavalry were historically the third oldest and the most mobile of the combat arms...
unit to thousands of peasants.
The game features a multitude of usable troop types, many of which are medieval or mythological
Mythology
The term mythology can refer either to the study of myths, or to a body or collection of myths. As examples, comparative mythology is the study of connections between myths from different cultures, whereas Greek mythology is the body of myths from ancient Greece...
in nature. Each unit type has various stats such as HP, attack power, and movement points. Troop types are designated into groups A through E; using troops from different groups can affect the morale of each troop. Some types have special abilities:
- Orcs, Archers, Elves, Giants, Druids and Archmages have ranged attacks
- Dragons, Demons, Vampires and Archmages can fly
- Dragons are immune to magic (including the magic attacks of Druids and Archmages). They also cannot be harmed by Peasants.
- Demons can occasionally slay half of an enemy stack's number in a single attack
- Ghosts increase their numbers when killing enemies (it is possible for their numbers to increase beyond the player's leadership value, causing the Ghosts to become out of control)
- Vampires can regenerate their numbers by attacking enemies, although unlike Ghosts they cannot increase their numbers beyond the original number of Vampires
- Trolls regenerate to full health at the end of each turn of battle, although dead Trolls do not revive.
The number of units of a particular troop that can be in the player's army is limited by the player's leadership stats. Troops can be recruited from various dwellings found throughout the overworld. With the exception of the types found exclusively at Maximus' castle, troops are found in limited numbers in their dwellings. When a dwelling is depleted of units, it will not be repopulated until the next astrological week of that troop type (for instance, Week of the Druid
Druid
A druid was a member of the priestly class in Britain, Ireland, and Gaul, and possibly other parts of Celtic western Europe, during the Iron Age....
).
Amiga
The game's graphics were completely redone (by Bonita Long-Hemsath and Kenneth L. Mayfield). The hair and skin color of many characters were changed, and many of the spritesSprite (computer graphics)
In computer graphics, a sprite is a two-dimensional image or animation that is integrated into a larger scene...
representing armies underwent redesign. Mouse support was also added making most parts of the screen interactive.
Gameplay changes
The Mega Drive/Genesis port of King's Bounty is notably different from the PC version of the game, the most obvious change being the move into the realm of real timeReal-time strategy
Real-time strategy is a sub-genre of strategy video game which does not progress incrementally in turns. Brett Sperry is credited with coining the term to market Dune II....
. Armies on the overworld
Overworld
An overworld is, in a broad sense, an area within a video game that interconnects all its levels or locations. They are mostly common in role-playing games, though this does not exclude other video game genres....
now move on their own and automatically engage the hero. This makes the game arguably more difficult, as a careful player of the DOS version could often maneuver past several wandering armies at a time without being successfully engaged. Also affected is the game's time limit. Although it has become harsher, it is somewhat balanced by the fact that trekking across desert squares no longer takes 1 day, and changing continents no longer ends the week.
Gone from this version of King's Bounty are all keyboard controls and hero naming capabilities.
Graphical changes
The game uses the same improved graphic set Amiga version had. As a minor change, wandering armies are now displayed according to their most powerful stack, as opposed to the generic stacks of the DOS version that corresponded to the current continent. Nevertheless, the graphics remain trademark New World Computing, with other games like The Faery Tale AdventureThe Faery Tale Adventure
The Faery Tale Adventure is a 1987 role-playing video game by MicroIllusions.-Story:The game is based around the quest of three brothers to retrieve the talisman stolen by the forces of evil and return it to their home village Holm...
appearing similar though featuring different gameplay.
King's Bounty and Heroes of Might and Magic
King's Bounty is widely considered to be the precursor for much of the gameplay in the Heroes of Might and Magic seriesHeroes of Might and Magic
Heroes of Might and Magic is a series of video games originally created and developed by Jon Van Caneghem through New World Computing. As part of the Might and Magic franchise, the series changed ownership when NWC was acquired by 3DO and again when 3DO closed down and sold the rights to Ubisoft...
(the Might and Magic series
Might and Magic
Might and Magic is a series of role-playing video games from New World Computing, which in 1996 became a subsidiary of The 3DO Company...
being the basis for the storyline), both of which were published by New World Computing and designed by Jon Van Caneghem
Jon Van Caneghem
Jon Van Caneghem is an American video game director, designer and producer. He is best known for launching development studio New World Computing in 1983, making his design debut in 1986 with Might and Magic Book One: The Secret of the Inner Sanctum...
. Among the many similarities, an emphasis on hero development and combat style are especially prominent in both. In the introduction to the player manual of Heroes III
Heroes of Might and Magic III: The Restoration of Erathia
Heroes of Might and Magic III: The Restoration of Erathia is a turn-based strategy game developed by Jon Van Caneghem through New World Computing for Microsoft Windows and released by the 3DO Company in 1999. An Apple Macintosh port was released by 3DO, and a Linux port was released by Loki...
, van Caneghem credits King's Bounty as the precursor to Heroes of Might and Magic. King's Bounty is included in some HOMM anthologies, including the Heroes of Might and Magic Compendium and Heroes of Might and Magic Millennium Edition. The anthology versions also provide a native executable for Windows, though not fully supported in Windows NT
Windows NT
Windows NT is a family of operating systems produced by Microsoft, the first version of which was released in July 1993. It was a powerful high-level-language-based, processor-independent, multiprocessing, multiuser operating system with features comparable to Unix. It was intended to complement...
-based operating systems.
The 2001
2001 in video gaming
-Events:* Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences hosts the 4th Annual Interactive Achievement Awards; inducts John Carmack of id Software to the AIAS Hall of Fame...
PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
title Heroes of Might and Magic: Quest for the Dragon Bone Staff
Heroes of Might and Magic: Quest for the Dragon Bone Staff
Heroes of Might and Magic: Quest for the Dragon Bone Staff is a 2001 video game released on the PlayStation 2. Though 3DO did not advertise it as such, the game is an enhanced remake of King's Bounty. It is primarily a graphics enhancement and it appears that little of the text has actually changed...
is an enhanced remake
Enhanced remake
A video game remake is a game closely adapted from an earlier title, usually for the purpose of modernizing a game for newer hardware and contemporary audiences. Typically, a remake shares essentially the same title, fundamental gameplay concepts, and story elements of the original game...
of King's Bounty made by 3DO
The 3DO Company
The 3DO Company , also known as 3DO , was a video game company...
.
Successor
In 2007, the Russian game publisher 1C Company1C Company
1C Company is one of the largest independent Russian software developers and publishers. Its headquarters are in Moscow, Russia. It is best known outside of the former Soviet Union as a video game developer whose presence has come to dominate events like the KRI, and whose products have begun to...
purchased the property rights to the King's Bounty franchise and attached the name to a title being developed by Katauri Interactive, a small company located in Vladivostok
Vladivostok
The city is located in the southern extremity of Muravyov-Amursky Peninsula, which is about 30 km long and approximately 12 km wide.The highest point is Mount Kholodilnik, the height of which is 257 m...
. Prior to the name change, the game's working title was Battle Lord. The game was published in 2008 as King's Bounty: The Legend
King's Bounty: The Legend
King's Bounty: The Legend is a 2008 video game, based on the King's Bounty property that was developed 18 years earlier by New World Computing...
.
Also, there exists an unofficial fan sequel usually called "King's Bounty 2" developed in 1992. The game was developed by Russian-speaking programmer signed by his initials as "SP" (Russian: СП), and therefore all the text in the game is in Russian, and the messages often feature Russia-specific folklore. There exists no English version.
King's Bounty boardgame
Task Force GamesTask Force Games
Task Force Games was a game company started in 1979 by Allen Eldridge and Stephen Cole. Mr. Cole left the company in the early 1980's, but continued to design the company's best selling Star Fleet Battles game. Mr. Eldridge sold the company to New World Computing in 1988...
released a King's Bounty boardgame in 1991. Like its computer game counterpart, the object of the game is to catch villains in a fantasy setting. However, other features differ, the villains' names are different and three designers, not including Van Caneghem, are credited for the creation of the game. However, the cover of both the computer game and the boardgame versions are the same, implying some connection between the two.
Reception
The game was reviewed in 1991 in DragonDragon (magazine)
Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
#166 by Jager McConnell in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 3 out of 5 stars. The Lessers reviewed the Sega Genesis version of the game in Dragon #175, also giving that version of the game 3 out of 5 stars. The Lessers reviewed the PC/MS-DOS version of the game in 1992 in Dragon #187, again giving that version of the game 3 stars.
Retroactively, the game was reviewed by Sega-16.com, who - in consideration of its influence on the Heroes of Might and Magic
Heroes of Might and Magic
Heroes of Might and Magic is a series of video games originally created and developed by Jon Van Caneghem through New World Computing. As part of the Might and Magic franchise, the series changed ownership when NWC was acquired by 3DO and again when 3DO closed down and sold the rights to Ubisoft...
series - gave it a perfect 10.0 score.
External links
- RPG Classics King's Bounty Shrine.
- King's Bounty at Sega-16.com