Posted on: August 22, 2012

Onipolice

Games: 873 Reviews: 8

Not your typical adventure game

I'm not going to say that this series isn't good; it is. However, it is very different from your typical adventure game in that it plays more like a simulation instead of a puzzle-solving game. In order to play this game successfully, you will need to check the manual often while playing. It simply is not possible to beat this game without doing so (mainly you'll be looking up police procedures and violation codes). Most of the "puzzles" consist of not forgetting how to act like an officer as opposed to using your wits. That said, there is an undeniable charm to this series that raises it above a straight police simulator. The writing is believable and interesting, with only a few annoying moments. Essentially this is best for those who'd like to play an adventure game with a great story, but don't mind a real-world setting as opposed to a fantastic one. Like most people, there is a particular complaint I have with this package: It includes the Police Quest 1 vga version, but not the original (though from a story standpoint, this is unimportant).

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Posted on: January 21, 2011

brendano

Verified owner

Games: 564 Reviews: 8

Step Behind the Badge

Further proof that Sierra was always looking for new directions to push the adventure genre, Police Quest ends up as a shining example of the best the company had to offer. The series was originally designed by Jim Walls, a retired California highway patrol officer. The stories and situations (based on Mr. Walls real life) come off as very realistic as a direct result and, with the exception of a few 80s cop drama moments, will serve to make you emotionally invested in the character of Sonny Bonds. Throughout the game you will have to adhere to strict police procedure in order to get the highest possible score in the game. In some cases it will be required to get through the scene. Compared to other Sierra games it's very easy to complete these titles without help from a walkthrough, you just have to use common sense. Sierra's flair for photo-realistic graphics is also on full display (in PQ4's case, quite literally) showing that the company was always ahead of the curb despite technical limitations. If anything keeps this series from getting five stars it's that the quality started to wane in PQ3 and Jim Walls departure before PQ4 made that title almost unrecognizable when compared to the others. Both the third and fourth installment are a little heavy handed when asking the player to strictly follow procedure and it can come at the expense of fun. However, all four titles deserve to be played and their stories will keep you gripped to the edge of your seat. This is a must buy.

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Posted on: May 14, 2022

mnietek

Verified owner

Games: 549 Reviews: 80

True classics but not for everyone

Well, Sierra's adventure games are, on the one hand, really quite big and sophisticated for its times but on the other - they can be very frustrating. Especially - the "classic" versions - for a non-native english speaker. So the first PQ games in the series can be hard to complete due to "technical" difficulty. Parts 3 and 4 are a bit easier control-wise but of course the gfx resolution (especially in PQ4 with the digitized photos) pixel-hunting can be troublesome especially that you don't get any tooltips. And finally - while most of the game is really well-thought, seriously themed and so on, some elements are more like from a Larry or even Monkey Island style adventure game. To be honest, I'm not sure if they are show-stoppers though since I must admit after some point I finished the games with walkthrough because of that (drumstick and mirror, seriously?). And one thing that you may or may not like - contrary to many adventure games, in Sierra's ones you don't have to do everything to complete the game. I understand that, especially in case of a police game, it's "realistic" - you don't have to talk with everyone and have gather all the tiny details as long as you have your main evidence but for a game it leaves you with a sense of... lack of fulfillment. So Sierra's adventures in general and PQ in particular are worth at least to be tried in order to see milestones in games history. (I know that King's Quest was before PQ but somehow I find the police theme of these games more accessible). But they might not get to be your favourite adventures.

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Posted on: August 8, 2024

LordofDaggerfall

Verified owner

Games: 100 Reviews: 3

I LOVE Police Quest

Obviously some of the best retro experiences out there this game was instrumental in my childhood. You play as Sonny Bonds, a good-hearted small town detective doing his best to keep the crime at bay. On the surface it might seem like a hokey prospect, but its actually a really deep experience with some really fun and surprising plot developments and mechanics. I love this game so much, I did a complete end to end walkthrough of the game available here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F69KQh3J2B8&list=PLjWXnEUfc63PTKxzViN1ErBXCXoPClumo&pp=iAQB Check it out and play along! You'll have a lot of fun I promise, Sierra Rocks!

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Posted on: October 6, 2015

cbingham

Verified owner

Games: 49 Reviews: 18

A solid series of games

"Police Quest" is a series of adventure games much like Sierra's other "Quest" games of the late 80's and early 90's. In this series, you play as a police officer and you solve puzzles based on police procedures earned in the manual. These games teach you what real life as a cop is like. Some police training programs actually use these games as training materials for new cops so they can learn the ropes the safe way and be prepared for real life as a cop. I like the series. I feel like I learn much about police work from these games. That said, it is the least popular of Sierra's most well known series of adventure games (King's Quest, Space Quest, Leisure Suit Larry, Quest For Glory) and it is my least favorite of these series. The other 4 series have at least one near-perfect game. There is not a single near-perfect game in the "Police Quest" series. Thankfully this game has the remake of "Police Quest 1" which is much better than the original (better graphics, better sound, better music, better driving system, no text parser, and you can skip the gambling). However, the driving gets old, and skipping the gambling forfeits points which is a shame because adventure games shouldn't be based on luck. "Police Quest 2" has great backgrounds for its time and I LOVE the music. "Police Quest 2" still has one of the best soundtracks ever created, quite a feat considering how old this game is. However, some of the puzzles in this game are impossibly hard without a hint book, partly because of the text parser. For example, how's anybody supposed to know what to do at the shooting range? Who would think to type "adjust gun?" And even knowing that it's a pain to try to figure out, and if you don't figure it out you get stuck later. Twice. "Police Quest 3" is a good game, but some parts of it are quite mean. The driving system is bad. Worse yet, this game has the most asinine way to make a game unwinnable I have ever seen. "Police Quest 4" is just terrible.

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