I loved the first chapter in King's Quest's 2015 reboot. From the story pacing, to the voice acting, to the gameplay, it was all spot-on despite being a new take on the franchise. Which means I was incredibly eager to start digging into The Odd Gentlemen's King's Quest Chapter 2: Rubble Without A Cause as soon as it was released. Unfortunately, while still fun and entertaining, Chapter 2 doesn't quite manage to capture the charm and excitement of the first entry.
For Chapter 2, we see the now King Graham starting to rule the kingdom of Daventry to limited success. It seems there's a goblin problem that just isn't going away, along with all the other nonsense and pointless measures the royal knights continue proposing. In a quick enough time, Graham has been kidnapped by the pesky goblins (along with pretty much the rest of the town) and is being held prisoner underground.
This is one of Chapter 2's biggest downfalls. One of the things I loved most about the first chapter of King's Quest is that there was a sense of exploration. Players had many different environments and buildings to explore around Daventry. Chapter 2 is spent almost exclusively down in this goblin prison. Expect to have to backtrack multiple times to complete the puzzles down here.
Speaking of puzzles, it was interesting to see King's Quest Chapter 2 up the difficulty a bit with the main puzzle of breaking out. Choice didn't seem that consequential in the first chapter, but it becomes very evident going through the story of Chapter 2 what will happen if you choose one thing over another. Graham becomes the only person responsible for feeding the various townspeople stuck underground, and with each passing day, more people start slipping towards death. If you don't do things correctly, you can have most of the town killed off by hunger and sickness.
While this certainly adds pressure to the gaming situation, it is also a great narrative device. The conundrum players are thrown into forces them to have to evaluate the situation like Graham himself. Who gets to live off the limited resources you have? Who can be sacrificed to help the kingdom? It's all pretty heavy stuff, considering the light tone of the rest of the game.
Unfortunately, the overarching story of old King Graham talking to his granddaughter isn't as engaging this time around. The emphasis on the granddaughter plot is definitely less than in the first chapter, and is also less interesting. Instead of training for a fencing tournament, Gwendolyn is scared of a thunderstorm and can't sleep. There's also something to do with rats in her bedroom. Of course, the voice acting hasn't changed at all since the last chapter, so you can still expect incredible performances from all the actors here.
Probably the most glaring issue with King's Quest Chapter 2 is that it felt rushed out. There were a few tech hiccups I encountered, like spotty transitions between scenes, or one cutscene that featured characters running into a wall. Nothing was as glaring as a game-crashing bug or anything like that, but some more time to polish up Rubble Without A Cause would have definitely helped.
Overall, King's Quest Chapter 2: Rubble Without A Cause is a fun continuation of the rebooted King's Quest storyline featuring some puzzles made all the more difficult knowing that (virtual) lives are on the line. While the story isn't as strong as the first chapter, and the repeated single location isn't as awe-inspiring as the sights seen in the first chapter, there are still plenty of great moments worth your time to play through at least once. Also, with an ending that teases the third chapter, it seems some interesting things are about to happen with those we thought were once friends.
So what do you think? Will you be playing King's Quest Chapter 2 now that it has been released? Are you planning on waiting until all of the chapters for King's Quest have been released? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
