Fame Quest was developed and published by BrainGames in 1984 for the Commodore 64 and ZX Spectrum. I played Fame Quest on a Commodore 64 emulator, and it took me a little over 2 hours to beat. The game was easy, but I found it had a certain charm and I enjoyed the time I spent with it.
You begin the game as a Grade 1 knight, and you leave the safety of the castle to explore the surrounding landscape. Your goal in exploring this 9 x 14 landscape is to earn fame points which, in turn, increase your fame. There is a certain threshold of fame points that you have to earn in order to move from a Grade 1 knight to a Grade 2. Your ultimate goal is to achieve Grade 10 status and with each level the number of fame points that you need to acquire increases.
There is no character creation to start the game, nor do you have the ability to name your character. The 9 x 14 map is a simple affair consisting of woods, homes, dark castles, and unknown areas represented by question marks. As you wander the countryside, you’ll encounter maidens in distress, pious monks, wandering old men, and both good and nefarious knights.
The knights that you encounter are not necessarily evil. It is wise to choose to talk to them first to determine their alignment. There are some who are friendly, others who will challenge you competitively, and also black knights who want to carve your heart out. If you slay a friendly knight, you can lose fame points rather than gain them.
Once you have earned enough fame points you can then make your way back to the castle and make demands for a new knight grade. If you made the appointed threshold of fame points, then you are granted the new grade. You can also have your sword sharpened and your shield hardened while you’re there. Once you achieve Grade 5 or higher, you’ll probably have enough gold to purchase a horse and then a lance. This will greatly improve your combat skills. In combat, you’ll then have the choice to fight by sword or on horseback with your lance.
The game has some simple animation sequences to represent the combat. I particularly like the charging horses and clashing lances. Each time you choose your equipment in combat your weapons will appear upon your person in a portrait.
There are two major foes that you’ll have to overcome: a demon and a dragon. You will likely not be able to defeat either one of these opponents until you are Grade 7 or higher, so I suggest running from them. In most cases when you flee you will lose a couple of fame points which is better than the alternative. Each time you lose in combat it lowers your strength which is a hidden attribute. If you lose more than a few times you will perish. You achieve quite a few fame points for slaying a demon or a dragon and will encounter more than one of each once you are Grade 9 and 10.
There is a lot of morality at play here in the game. There are several instances where you encounter medieval peasants who will ask you questions. If you answer truthfully you are awarded with a couple of fame points. If you are deceitful, you will lose fame points. You can lose fame points by losing combat, running away, and being deceitful.
Once you achieve Grade 10 you are awarded with the screen shown above. The game was actually remade in 2006 by John Adams . I will probably get to it when I’m 82.
The game may have been quick and easy, but I had a very positive time with it. I had never heard of this game before, and I always take pleasure in the fact that this is always a journey of discovery.
Next up on the docket is Forest of Doom.
Until next time…