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The new King's Quest: Canon or no?

Started by Rock Knight, November 21, 2014, 03:51:50 PM

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Rock Knight

How do you view, thus far, from what we know of it, the new KQ game? Do you view it as canon (basically, as an official continuation of the series), or as something more like a spin-off; simply a game with the KQ label slapped on it?

Numbers

If it retcons important story elements, like how KQ7 retconned Edgar's backstory, then it's non-canon in my book. If it instead serves as a proper jumping-off point for a new series of modern games, then it may be considered canon, depending on how well it pulls it off. If it's more or less a spin-off like MoE...then it is what it is, a spin-off. We don't have enough details of the plot yet, other than the fact that a considerable amount of time has passed since MoE.
I have no mouth, and I must scream.

stika

I'm guessing it's more of a reboot. Most likely there are now two official continuities, the Sierra On-Line one and the Odd Gentleman one.

I'm guessing it'd be pretty similar to DC comics' multiverse.

JDHJANUS

I personally consider the game to be a canon game, in the sense that it is a King's Quest game published by Sierra. Then again, I also consider Mask of Eternity and King's Quest VII to be just as much canon as King's Quest I or VI. The Odd Gentlemen have stated that they are wanting to stay true to the original story and mythos of King's Quest, so I don't expect there to be any particular discrepancies in the plot, but it's too hard to say at this point.

If, from what we understand, Graham is telling his granddaughter stories of when he was younger, and the game will play out throughout different time frames around the main games, I think it would be perfectly feasible to insert stories of adventures that Graham went on between KQI and II, or KQII and III, or King's Quest IV and V, etc. The games are a bit unclear as to the exact time frame between each game. Kings' Quest II is set 1 year after King's Quest I according to the manual storybook. It's unclear as to how long passed between the time Graham and Valanice got married and when Alexander and Rosella were born. Then you have 17 years before King's Quest III actually happens. King's Quest IV is set immediately after King's Quest III, and takes place in 24 hours.

King's Quest V is again set at some intermediate time after King's Quest IV (perhaps a year or so?), and King's Quest VI is generally thought to be set a few months after that. King's Quest VII is (I'm guessing) set a few years after that (Wow...Valanice went gray fast), as Rosella is still pretty young looking. MOE is arguably set sometime after that, as Graham is significantly aged in that game. I presume the frame story (if it's set up like that) for the new King's Queest game is set even further after that, as the little bit of concept art shows a very old Graham with a Santa Claus beard.

Whatever the case, there's obviously room to put the Odd Gentlemen's flashbacks (if indeed it is set up like that) in between the original KQ games without messing around with the established backstory in the games, so I'm hoping that we see something similar to how Doctor Who was rebooted in 2005, but still kept all of the mythos and background of the original series from the 60's to  the 80's without making it to where you had to see the entire series to know what was going on. :)

Talk to you later!

JDHJANUS
Josh
Please tell me the answer. Is fate unchangeable? Even at his most powerless, man's existence is never without meaning. - Suikoden's Intro

DreamFan

Quote from: JDHJANUS on November 25, 2014, 01:41:50 PM
King's Quest V is again set at some intermediate time after King's Quest IV (perhaps a year or so?), and King's Quest VI is generally thought to be set a few months after that. King's Quest VII is (I'm guessing) set a few years after that (Wow...Valanice went gray fast), as Rosella is still pretty young looking.

If I'm not mistaken, Alexander is 18 in King's Quest VI. Valanice says in the opening of King's Quest VII that Rosella is almost 20 years old, which I always assumed meant she was 19. I never knew some people don't even consider the last two games canon.

JDHJANUS

Ah! I didn't realize that. That puts a lot better time frame on the series then!

So, we have KQI as the beginning point in the timeline.

KQII is set 1 year afterwards per the storybook manual.

KQIII is set almost 18 years after Alexander and Rosella are born, as it is mentioned that Alexander is getting near his 18th birthday. There's no real evidence to say how much time elapsed between Graham's & Valanice's wedding and the birth of the twins.

KQIV is set immediately after KQIII (as Graham collapses following KQIII's ending).

If Alexander is 18 in KQVI, and KQVI is set a few months after KQV, then that means that KQV is actually set within a year (at most) from KQIV.

Then, KQVII skips (almost) 2 years as Rosella (and obviously Alexander) would be almost 20 (wonder what caused Valanice to go gray so quickly?)

I'm guessing then that MOE is set a few years after that. Since the game does not specifically address any of the previous games, as has very little to do with the Royal Family of Daventry, it's hard to place the exact time that it's set.

Talk to you later!

JDHJANUS
Josh
Please tell me the answer. Is fate unchangeable? Even at his most powerless, man's existence is never without meaning. - Suikoden's Intro

Rock Knight

Quote from: JDHJANUS on November 25, 2014, 01:41:50 PM
he games are a bit unclear as to the exact time frame between each game. Kings' Quest II is set 1 year after King's Quest I according to the manual storybook. It's unclear as to how long passed between the time Graham and Valanice got married and when Alexander and Rosella were born. Then you have 17 years before King's Quest III actually happens. King's Quest IV is set immediately after King's Quest III, and takes place in 24 hours.

King's Quest V is again set at some intermediate time after King's Quest IV (perhaps a year or so?), and King's Quest VI is generally thought to be set a few months after that. King's Quest VII is (I'm guessing) set a few years after that (Wow...Valanice went gray fast) as Rosella is still pretty young looking.

KQ2 is set a year after KQ1.

KQ3 is set 17 years after KQ2.

KQ4 is set the same day as KQ3

KQ5 is set exactly a year after KQ4

KQ6 is set only six months after KQ5. Alexander is pining after Cassima three months, and it takes him three more months to sail to the Green Isles.

KQ7 is set less than a year after KQ6. How do I know? Because in the intro, Valanice states that Rosella is "nearly 20 years old." Let's see. They were rapidly approaching age 18 in KQ3/4. KQ5 takes place a year after KQ4, making them 19. KQ6 takes place only months later, so they're still 19. KQ7 is no longer than a few months after KQ6.

Numbers

...and MoE takes place in an alternate dimension where solving your problems by whacking them with swords is nothing out of the ordinary.

I don't mind MoE, but I still poke fun at how bizarre it is.
I have no mouth, and I must scream.

stika

I think the problem with MOE is mostly a marketing one. Sierra should have made it clear it was a spin-off. The box needed to say "ACTION RPG" in a big, visible font.

JDHJANUS

Another interesting discovery that I found over the weekend. In the Official Hint Book for King's Quest VII (the one written by Lorelei Shannon and published by Sierra), the introduction, which covers the previous six games, states that Graham was 19 years old at the time for Quest for the Crown. Now that we have his age, we can (theoretically) determine how old he is using Rock Knight's timeline as mentioned above.

King's Quest I - 19
King's Quest II - 20
King's Quest III - 37 (I guess everything happening to his kingdom caused him to go gray really fast)
King's Quest IV - 37
King's Quest V - 38
King's Quest VI - 38-39
King's Quest VII - 40
Mask of Eternity - mid to late 40's, I'm guessing... Maybe 50's...
King's Quest 2015 - I'm guessing the frame story will be set with Graham in possibly his 70's-80's.

Thoughts?

Talk to you later!

JDHJANUS
Josh
Please tell me the answer. Is fate unchangeable? Even at his most powerless, man's existence is never without meaning. - Suikoden's Intro

Numbers

And then, as with the fourth Indiana Jones movie, we will all be faced with the harsh reality that the adventurer we grew up with is now very, very old.
I have no mouth, and I must scream.

stika

Quote from: JDHJANUS on December 01, 2014, 09:34:08 AM
Another interesting discovery that I found over the weekend. In the Official Hint Book for King's Quest VII (the one written by Lorelei Shannon and published by Sierra), the introduction, which covers the previous six games, states that Graham was 19 years old at the time for Quest for the Crown. Now that we have his age, we can (theoretically) determine how old he is using Rock Knight's timeline as mentioned above.

King's Quest I - 19
King's Quest II - 20
King's Quest III - 37 (I guess everything happening to his kingdom caused him to go gray really fast)
King's Quest IV - 37
King's Quest V - 38
King's Quest VI - 38-39
King's Quest VII - 40
Mask of Eternity - mid to late 40's, I'm guessing... Maybe 50's...
King's Quest 2015 - I'm guessing the frame story will be set with Graham in possibly his 70's-80's.

Thoughts?

Talk to you later!

JDHJANUS
Josh
Huh, I'm surprised he's so young to be honest but I suppose it makes sense. I honestly had no idea. In fact I just may do a Nostalgia post based on this info the future :P

GrahamRocks!

I knew he was 19 already. I don't really blame him going gray at 37, given Daventry's a wreck in that game and he and Valanice are giving into despair.

Numbers

King Graham: the Steve Martin of adventure game heroes.
I have no mouth, and I must scream.

Bludshot

KQ canon has always been a wonky thing to begin with, then MOE came along and added a new load of confusion to the pile.
Deep Thoughts with Connor Mac Lyrr
"Alack! The heads do not die!"

Numbers

Quote from: Bludshot on December 31, 2014, 01:47:53 PM
KQ canon has always been a wonky thing to begin with, then MOE came along and added a new load of confusion to the pile.

OMG no it didnt u dont understand it make perfect sense lol #noob
I have no mouth, and I must scream.

GrahamRocks!


Bludshot

When Graham dies he should be subjected to death screens in Ooga Booga, the Land of the Dead, and the Dimension of Death.
Deep Thoughts with Connor Mac Lyrr
"Alack! The heads do not die!"

Numbers

And then he will be addressed by Samhain, the Boogeyman, and Azrael who will all finish each other's sentences, but when it's the Boogeyman's turn he'll just cackle loudly and smack his lips, and Samhain and Azrael will be forced to carry on the conversation simultaneously and it'll be up to the player to find out what the hell they're even saying over each other.

And then in the background, you'll see the skeletons from the Dimension of Death wielding their maces like an athlete wields the Olympic torch, charging in to kill you a second time, while the Headless Horseman accidentally tramples most of them, and then they get brought before Azrael and Samhain but get stopped by another skeleton who dances onto the scene, asking them for a ticket...

King's Quest is f*cked up, man.
I have no mouth, and I must scream.

stika

Isn't it obvious that the real timeline in King's Quest is the one where he gets sent to Police Quest?