Heroine's Quest: The Herald of Ragnarok

I played it a few years ago and immensely enjoyed it as a fan of classic P&C adventures and RPGs; without having played the main inspiration "Heros Quest" before. The cold, nordic atmosphere combined with gorgeous pixelart and a beautiful icy-blue colour palette for the UI really captivated me and I had a lot of joy exploring this rather vast world. The dialogue writing was surprisingly silly many times, I did expect a more serious story, but I didn't mind it since it was still rather entertaining. Overall, it's free, go get it! I would even recommend it if it had a price.

If you liked Quest for Glory, you will like this game. This is a retro-styled adventure/RPG set in what appears to be Scandinavia during the Viking era. You will encounter creatures in the woods such as frost giants and draugr, and there are many other references to Norse mythology. This game is very similar to Quest for Glory 4, with towns where the player can acquire new quests and supplies as well as wilderness areas, which for most of the game must be traversed one screen at a time. Here the hero will randomly encounter monsters, which they can choose to either flee or fight in a simple combat interface. The combat and puzzles vary somewhat depending on which of the three classes the player chooses - warrior, sorceress or rogue. This game is very impressive visually, with pixelated wintery graphics similar to Quest for Glory 3 or 4. The dialogue is presented in animated portraits and text boxes similar to those used in the Sierra games, except that both they and everything else in the interface are designed to fit with the theme of a world covered in snow and ice. The dedication to atmosphere here is impressive; even some of the music sounds icy, and the need to avoid frostbite is an interesting game dynamic I had not seen in other titles. One of the strongest points of the game is the writing, both in the narration and the dialogue. Characters have their own distinct personalities, dramatic voice acting, and in some cases idiosyncratic use of language. One character speaks entirely in questions, another refers to himself in the third person, while yet another reverses the usual order of subject and predicate. My personal favorite was the aged wizard Aurvandel, who speaks in a parody of redundant scholarly writing. There are issues I do not have space to go into here concerning baffling quests, a shortage of in-game hints, and aspects of the game that seem unbalanced. However, overall this is one of the most interesting games I have played in a long time.

Unfortunately I am not the person to handle its combat controls. If it was turn-based it will be another story, but it is not and it makes the game unplayable for me. Still a good game tho

Dive deeply into Heroine's Quest to discover a multi-faceted adventure that will test your courage and cunning. Explore the frozen northlands of Midgard, aid or rob its inhabitants, fight battles, solve puzzles, and fulfill your destiny any way you choose.

If you ever enjoyed playing the Kings Quest series from Sierra on the PC-DOS platform, you must certainly try this advenure game. Fantastic storyline within the norse mythology, amazing soundtracks and dialogs. beautiful art and drawings. Personally the best adventure game i have ever played yet.