Legend of Kyrandia, The Download (1992 Adventure Game)

The Legend of Kyrandia was the first in a trilogy of adventures from Westwood. In this game you play the role of Brandon, grandson of Kallak - a wizard of the realm of Kyrandia. Malcolm, a psychotic jester imprisoned in the past by Kallak, has broken free and wishes to take over the land as well as lay down his revenge. He turns Kallak into stone leaving him with only his eyes, so that Kallak is not denied his tears for Kyrandia's sake.

This is where Brandon steps in; returning home shortly afterwards only to find that his grandfather has been turned into stone, Brandon is being told by a messenger from the Realm of the Land that he has been chosen to embark on a journey that will rid this realm of Malcolm and his evil.

You have a goal now, and you have a quest to prove yourself not only a hero, but a worthy heir to the crown and ultimately of becoming a king.

Throughout your journey you'll collect many items which will be same size in your inventory as on screen, and will even look the same (not like in LucasArts' games) and you'll learn how to master magic. Available spells include disappearing, healing yourself, summoning ice upon fire and shifting into a wisp.

Note that CD version of this game contains full speech: the main character, Brandon is voice-acted by Joseph D. Kucan who we all know as Kane in Westwood's later Command & Conquer series.

Legend of Kyrandia is perhaps not a very well-known game, but it deserves all the praise it can get. As you can see from the screenshots, the game takes place in a fairy-tale setting. The mystical atmosphere makes you feel as though there are magical, unseen things lurking around every corner.

The story revolves around an evil character called Malcolm. He has stolen a powerful artefact and declared himself the ruler of Kyrandia. Of course, you are there to stop his diabolical scheme! However, it will not be simple. You will have to take a lot of things into account, and each of your actions will have an effect on the world of Kyrandia.

Your task will be to journey across Kyrandia and collect artefacts that are required to enter the castle. Then you must acquire another powerful artefact that will enable you to fight Malcolm, the evil court jester. During your journey, you will meet various characters - magical beings, wizards, dragons, and other life forms - both real and imaginary, that will keep the game interesting. You have a challenging set of tasks ahead of you, so don't expect to complete this game very quickly.

The graphics are simply stunning. The scenery is breathtaking and completely immerses you in the game. The music comes as another good surprise, as it follows the story perfectly. Not only that, it is also one of the most interesting and wonderful game soundtracks that I've heard in a long time.

So, let's recapitulate what we've said so far: good gameplay, interesting story, breathtaking graphics and beautiful music! Sounds just about perfect. However, nothing can be perfect, and this game has its drawbacks.

First of all, it gets very confusing from time to time. In the later stages of the game, you will often find yourself puzzled as to what you're supposed to do next. Also, the game offers a feature that I don't like in adventure games, and that is dying. Therefore, you should save often and be careful what you do. Taking that into consideration, I have to deduct one point from the final mark, which will be a solid 4. This game is highly recommended, and I hope you'll enjoy playing it! Have fun!

Part of The Legend of Kyrandia Trilogy

This awesome game is the first in the Kyrandia trilogy. Kyrandia is a magic island which is a home for many creatures and magic users. in the game you role Brandon, who was chosen to save kyrandia from the evil jester Malcolm, who escaped from the prison and used his powerful magics to turn to stone the people in Kyrandia, and was accused of murdering the king. Now you must discover magics, and solve mysteries to stop Malcolm.

The game has well done graphics and good music and a very good story. If you like this game, continue playing the other parts.

How to run this game on modern Windows PC?

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