King's Quest VIII: Mask of Eternity

King's Quest: Mask of Eternity, was released in 1998, it is the eighth and final official computer adventure game in the famous King's Quest series. It is the only game in the series where the main character is not King Graham or a member of his family (though Roberta previously had tried to trick people into thinking Gwydion was not a member of the family which worked too well, as she received letters from people that hadn't completed the game and were upset at her change in direction for the series).

The game is described as KQ8 in the King's Quest Collection 2, Roberta William's Anthology, and in issues of Interaction Magazine. However, it is the only game to not be given roman numerals or a number on the box artwork, title screen or the material packed in with it (other than a sticker on the outside of the shrink wrap describing it as the eighth game of the series).

The Story
Above the kingdom of Daventry is the Realm of the Sun, where magical beings called the Archons guard the Mask of Eternity. Their chief (Lucreto) turns evil and shatters the Mask into pieces. Daventry's inhabitants turn to stone and the land sickens.

Connor, a common tanner, is protected from the blight because a Mask shard fell on his feet. Connor is then appointed by a wizard to travel through different lands and collect all the Mask pieces, eventually arriving in the Realm of the Sun where he must repair the Mask and bring life back to his land.

Official Game Description
In a time long ago, magic and myth is embodied in every living creature roaming the world. Unicorns graze in forest meadows, wizards concoct mystical spells and kings and queens manage thriving kingdoms. In the kingdom of Daventry, inhabitants enjoy peace and prosperity under the rule of the majestic King Graham. But one day, the kingdom's serenity turns to disorder. An evil being takes up quarters in the sacred sanctity of the Mask of Eternity - the global icon of truth, light and order. With arms thrust upward, he summons a dark spell. The skies darken and bolts of lightning converge on the temple. With a powerful burst, the mask explodes into pieces that fall to the world below.

Meanwhile, in Daventry, a young townsperson named Connor is about to become the most important person in the world's history. As the Mask of Eternity rains down on the land, one piece lands at Connor's feet. Just as he picks it up, the supernatural spell reaches ground. In a flash, every inhabitant of the beloved kingdom turns to stone. That is, every inhabitant but one. With the sacred mask piece in hand, Connor is somehow protected from the consequences of the omen.

Playing the role of Connor, you must gather strength and courage and set out on the ultimate quest: reseat the Mask of Eternity and restore law, light and order to your world. Only then can global order be restored!

Journeying beyond Daventry, you will visit otherworldly realms filled with unimaginable characters, brain-twisting tests of courage and incredible challenges. But the spread of evil has created an extra challenge - dark creatures roaming free across the land are ready for a fight. It'll take perfect marksmanship and a sharp sword to keep these from ending your quest!

Key Features
Millions of fans have been drawn to the world of Daventry since designer Roberta Williams first introduced the King's Quest series over a decade ago. Providing the ultimate interactive storytelling experience, the series has received global acclaim for pushing gameplay technology past the limits of traditional adventure game design to deliver an ever-more interactive, expansive and innovate experience.


 * Revolutionary 3D action engine gives you complete freedom of movement.
 * Experience all seven worlds through either a 1st or 3rd person point of view
 * Real-time combat! Heft your broad-sword and mete out punishment in a purely medieval manner.
 * Intricate mental challenges require you to use your mind as well as your might.

Complete Camera Control
Unlike traditional 2D adventure games of the past, Mask of Eternity Mask allows you to peek around any corner, push and pull objects, open doors, wade into rivers and lakes and even fight with other characters. But make no mistake, Mask of Eternity is not a shoot-em-up game. On the contrary, Mask of Eternity's gorgeous, open environment allows you to live the unfolding story, even if you need to fight your way past evil characters to advance the story.

Easy-to-use Interface
Sierra's newly-designed game interface makes exploring and controlling your character a breeze. An on-screen cursor, carried over from traditional adventure game engines, allows you to 'point and click' to retrieve objects, open doors and use weapons on evil creatures. An alternate mouse click changes the angle of the "camera" looking over Connor's shoulder. And if you really feel like getting into Connor's head, one keystroke switches the game from third to first person perspective. In third person, the camera moves with Connor and you watch as he walks runs and fights. In first person, you view the world through Connor's eyes.

Real-time Combat
So what's this you hear about combat? Mask of Eternity's 3D virtual world is filled with living characters, both good and bad. And since you control Connor's every step and jump, you also control use of his hand and range weapons as well. But don't worry - you don't need to learn special skills to survive your battles. We've created a combat system that is easy to learn and use. With a combination of keystrokes and the mouse, you will have complete control over Connor's actions during battle.

Mind-bending Puzzles
Combat is a certainly a fun new twist on 3D adventure gaming, but it's the puzzles that will twist your brain in delight! Mask of Eternity's game environment allows for thought-provoking puzzles that are not possible in 2D adventure games. You'll love the new puzzle styles!

Reception
There was a mixed response to the game, although most reviews tended to be positive, with the majority of ratings 70% or higher, some reviews dipped as low as 10%.

King's Quest: Mask of Eternity was released to generally positive, but mixed reviews,. However, it sold comparatively well to other adventure games at the time; for example, it outsold Grim Fandango 2 to 1. , and was the best selling King's Quest game. However, the adventure game genre as a whole was not successful in comparison to other video games at the time, which effectively bringing about the end of the King's Quest series.

Behind the scenes
"Oh gosh, My favorites are...obviously the latest one I just did, I gotta mention that one, King's Quest: Mask of Eternity. Beyond that, Phantasmagoria, I really just enjoyed working on that. King's Quest V, King's Quest 4, and The Colonel's Bequest. If I had to name any of them those would be them." -Roberta Williams

Although not described as KQ8 in the released game (other than being described as the eighth title in the series on a sticker placed on shrink wrap), a folder in the King's Quest Collection 2 contained a preview video for the game that was entitled, KQ8AVI.

The combat was inserted into the game partially inspired by the sword fighting at the end of KQ6 between Alexander and Abdul Alhazred.

Roberta Williams is listed as the writer and main designer for the game in the credits. Mark Seibert is listed as producer, director, co-designer. They are both listed as voice directors and voice casting. Roberta, Mark and Cheryl Sweeney worked on the documentation for the game. However, her level of influence over the game is unclear as Ken Williams (Sierra CEO from 1979 to 1996) has stated that "The game became a mish mash of different people's good ideas, but clearly not a Roberta game. There even was a period where Sierra wanted to release the game, and Roberta wouldn't allow her name on it. After a bunch of negotiation and changes to the product, to mosey it back towards what she designed, it finally did release." So it remains unclear just how much influence Roberta had over Mask of Eternity, however seems that finalized product was moved back towards what she designed. More details and quotes from Roberta herself, can be found in Mask of Eternity Development, which shed more light on the design process and her involvement can be found in the game. In the talkspot interviews, for example, she mentions that she wrote the script and dialogue for the game, and she discusses the process she went through to write the final script.

Its interesting to note that similarly KQ1 SCI was apparently mainly the product of Josh Mandel's influence he was not only the producer for the game (he also rewrote and expanded the script). At the time Roberta was too busy making King's Quest V to finish the game herself. Josh says Roberta played his finished game, and had asked that he remove a humorous ending he had inserted into to the game which she felt was inappropriate, see The Royal Scribe. It's also said that in the case of KQ6, that although Roberta and Jane Jensen are listed as the writers in the credits, Jane Jensen is listed as having being the one behind the "Text & Diologue"--she apparently did most of the writing for that story--Roberta was not even able to recall that the Black Cloak Society had made it into the released version of the game; She only recalled the idea coming up briefly during the early phase of KQ6's development. There are also comments from Lorelei Shannon that suggests she did most of the dialogue and development for KQ7, as Roberta was busy working on Phantasmagoria at the time (In fact, Roberta is in the end credits of the game not listed as the writer of the game--The game is listed as being written solely by Shannon, and that the game is ''based on characters created by Roberta Williams.") Roberta's name also comes third on the list of directors in the game booklet, with Shannon and Andy Hoyos ahead of her, and her name comes second behind Shannon's as "Designer" in the same booklet, again suggesting that KQ7 was more a Lorelei Shannon game. So there has been debate on how much influence Roberta actually had on those games as well.

The game's dialogue is written in a more conservative style rather than the modern English style of King's Quest VII: The Princeless Bride. According to Mark Seibert, Graham's voice was chosen in order to have a member of the Screen Actors Guild, and although he doesn't remember exactly, he thinks it was likely changed to make it more consistent with the accent chosen for Connor. Roberta was also the designer, and also in charge of voice casting, and voice directing along with Mark Seibert. A point of trivia is that a few characters in previous games including the Fairy Godmother (KQ1AGI) and Elf (KQ1 SCI) used limited amount of old english, "Ye best be careful..." . Graham and Rosella both spoke in old Englis in Hoyle I as well, see Graham quotes (Hoyle I) and Rosella quotes (Hoyle I).

In this game Connor visits Dimension of Death rather than the Land of the Dead shown in King's Quest VI. However, as noted in the manual for King's Quest 6, Guidebook to the Land of the Green Isles, the Land of the Dead is a legend specific only to the Green Isles. Derek Karlavaegen was the first outsider to learn of the legend when he traveled to the islands. According to the legend, It is the place where Green Islanders believe they go when they die. They journey to Samhain (Death) to be judged and end up in the Sea of Souls in preparation for the next stage of the afterlife. Whereas according to Mask of Eternity's Manual, the Dimension of Death is specific to Daventry's legends. It is a kind of limbo ruled by Azriel where souls are judged before being moved to their rightful afterlife.

According to the game's producer Mark Seibert, "Roberta's point of view was that the Dimension of Death was not the under world (KQ6). It was a unique and different place." Thus both places are considered separate locations. Although at least at one point during development the land was called the Realm of the Dead, and the river was called the River Styx.

The title Mask of Eternity may be allusion to the title of the poem by Percy Bysshe Shelley, The Masque of Anarchy (anarchy being a major theme in Mask of Eternity). It is the second game in the series (after Quest for the Crown) that does not directly spoof a common idiom, unlike most of the games of the series, where titles and sayings such as "Romancing the Stone", "Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder", "Here Today, Gone Tomorrow", "The Perils of Pauline", and "The Princess Bride" were changed to parodies such as "Romancing the Throne", "Absence Makes the Heart Go Yonder!", "Heir Today, Gone Tomorrow", "The Perils of Rosella", and "The Princeless Bride". Quest for the Crown, may be a reference to "Quest for the Grail".

Technical Support
The game can be played its its native Glide support with the use of a Glide Wrapper. There are still areas that lock up however, and require multiple attempts to get past often by lowering the graphics, or turning off certain effects, or switching in and out of first person/third person mode.