Is there any reason to play Swordquest?

[Jinks]

no worst games ever made!!! and et got a bad name?!! and there was this glitchy garbage called swordquest.. nice title screen tho. contest who knew???comic book?? I knew lots of people with ataris and never seen or heard of the comic book or anyone ever playing this game.. i do remember laughing at it and thinking it sucks then putting in missle command or asteroids or pacman you know an actual game and playing the hell outa them!! and yeah they all ruled. we were hicks with no idea what the acade games looked like atari 2600 brought it all ... Run and tell that home boy!!

Edited September 27, 2012 by Jinks

[shadow460]

IMO, the value of Swordquest is in the comic book and perhaps the artwork. ET was a good game, Swordquest was not. The mini games are kinda fun, but having to beat them over and over and over again is just nonsense.

 

don't get me started on Fireworld.

[Blacklight]

The Swordquest carts need to be taken out to the Arizona desert. The ET carts should be dug up and distributes. The hole should be filled with the Swordquest shite! There was NOTHING about that game the even remotely felt like a quest.

[Godzilla]

I really enjoyed the games back in the day, taken at face value with the comics; as a kid, I found them very deep, rewarding and lengthy. I had a lot of fun figuring them out and beating them all on my own. Would I go back and do it again? Dunno.

[schuwalker]

I really enjoyed the games back in the day, taken at face value with the comics; as a kid, I found them very deep, rewarding and lengthy. I had a lot of fun figuring them out and beating them all on my own. Would I go back and do it again? Dunno.

 

You actually 'beat' these bitd? My hat's off to you....

Edited September 29, 2012 by schuwalker

[StanJr]

Look, Swordquest wasn't great, but it beats the entire Mythicon library to a pulp, so it could be worse. Let's not get too crazy. Again, the box art, comic books, and instruction manuals are top notch and really well done, the games are not terrible, but the lack of an actual reward or sensical in game objectives is the only major failing of the series. Plus, the industry learned a really good lesson: never develop a full on game that is only meant to be a contest entry form. Bad idea. Video games were still new, so I can forgive.

[cybercylon]

I never really played these but was thinking of trying them just to see if I could "solve" them. Do they have any playability? Especially 30 years later with no prize incentive?

 

No not really... unless you like watching grass grow or enjoy sticking pencils in your ears.

[Torr]

..what? can't hear you...

..I've got these pencils in my ears you see...

 

[+Random Terrain]

No not really... unless you like watching grass grow or enjoy sticking pencils in your ears.

..what? can't hear you...

..I've got these pencils in my ears you see...

 

 

Better than beans, I guess:

 

www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZw7lWd1btQ

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZw7lWd1btQ

[Mxyzptlk]

I never really played these but was thinking of trying them just to see if I could "solve" them. Do they have any playability? Especially 30 years later with no prize incentive?

No.

[Philflound]

I played this back then, but I actually never fully enjoyed it and never got close to beating the game. I'm looking at the solution since I never did before to see what items go in what rooms. It doesn't seem to have any rhyme or reason. Was it just a random thing just testing and putting items in rooms until you got a clue? If so, I don't see how this can be called an early RPG. Also, when the contest was designed, was the game changed and the contestants had to put new random objects in the rooms and do the same thing? I can't see this being done quickly.

 

Phil

[Torr]

It is completely random. Like picking numbers on a lottery ticket.

Some people were bound to be 'lucky' enough with enough playthroughs to eventually try enough permutations they would get the clue numbers needed.

 

Here in Canada we have Lotto 6/49. You pick 6 numbers out of 49. If your numbers are picked you win Millions of dollars. The odds of picking the RIGHT six numbers is INCREDIBLY low. Same as this game, if you put the right Items in the right rooms you win, but the odds are putting the right items in the right rooms is also INCREDIBLY low.

They wanted the odds of winning to be like 1 in 10 million or more cause they didn't want to hand out tons of prizes. Only a few, well, one per game to be exact. It was a lottery ticket disguised as a game.

 

As well, In Swordquest's defense, I'm sure playing Swordquest has to at least be a LITTLE more fun than picking 6 numbers and then waiting to see if your right once a week. Well... at least back in the day when you had a chance at winning big prizes.

Today, playing Swordquest is like playing Slot Machine or Casino on the VCS. Even if you're lucky enough to win big, you don't win anything in real life. But at least you get the accomplishment of feeling luck was on your side. Sure you can say there was strategy this and tactics that, but gambling is gambling is gambling. It's all luck.

 

EDIT: There are people who buy a couple lottery tickets a week and have done so every week since god knows when and have never or may never win. But they keep trying. If Atari was still offering prizes for beating these games (assuming walkthroughs and such were never released) there would definitely be at least a few people out there still trying to 'win' the game to 'win' the big prizes.

It was a good idea but not followed through very well... If every cart had it's own solution so people couldn't copy from friends or hint/tips in magazines and whoever was the FIRST to 'win' their cart there could still be people today trying to win the big prizes (assuming someone hadn't already won) if Atari was still offering them. Humanity loves gambling for some reason.

Edited October 2, 2012 by Torr

[+Random Terrain]

As well, In Swordquest's defense, I'm sure playing Swordquest has to at least be a LITTLE more fun than picking 6 numbers and then waiting to see if your right once a week.

 

People who gamble by buying lottery tickets can just pay their money and wait. They don't have to play poorly done arcade game rip-offs, get frustrated, then rip out their hair or kick a puppy or drown a baby in a bathtub.

[Unbeliever]

I don't have this series in my collection...I would imagine it would be quite expensive to get a complete copy of each one. Were there three games in this series or four? Was there supposed to be four but they only produced three? Questions questions....

 

I played this as a kid, but it never held my attention long enough to actually beat it. I was more into the instant gratification games such as Space Invaders and Asteroids.