Lock's Quest

Last updated
Lock's Quest
Lock's Quest.jpg
Developer(s) 5th Cell
Digital Continue (Remaster)
Publisher(s) THQ
THQ Nordic (Remaster)
Director(s) Jeremiah Slaczka
Designer(s) Jeremiah Slaczka
Composer(s) David J Franco
Platform(s)
ReleaseNintendo DS
  • NA: September 8, 2008
  • AU: September 25, 2008
  • EU: September 26, 2008
  • JP: February 19, 2009
Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One
  • WW: May 30, 2017
Genre(s) Real-time strategy, Tower defense
Mode(s) Single-player, multiplayer

Lock's Quest is a real-time strategy tower defense video game developed by 5th Cell and published by THQ. It is 5th Cell's second Nintendo DS game. It was released in North America on September 8, 2008, in Europe on September 26, 2008 and in Australia on September 25, 2008. [1]

Contents

On January 6, 2017, the German game ratings board Unterhaltungssoftware Selbstkontrolle (USK) rated Lock's Quest for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC which indicated that the publisher was developing a port for the game. [2] and on 16 February 2017, THQ Nordic officially announced that they were developing a remaster for Lock's Quest scheduled for May 2017 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC with development by Digital Continue. [3] [4]

Gameplay

Lock's Quest is a real-time strategy game, incorporating tower defense gameplay elements. The battlefield, viewed from an isometric perspective, is displayed on the DS's bottom screen. Combat is divided into two phases, Build and Battle. During the Build phase, the player has a limited amount of time and resources to construct defenses, which consist of walls, towers, cannons, machines, and traps. Once the Build phase ends, the Battle phase begins. [5]

Plot

The game is set in a kingdom, built using a mysterious substance known as Source. The builders of this kingdom, the Archineers, studied source in an attempt to better understand its properties. The greatest archineer was Agonius, who discovered a truly remarkable property of source - that it can emulate life. Agonius started creating lifelike beings from the source, but the King, who understood the dangers of this, demanded that Agonius halt his work. Agonius refused, and so was banished from the kingdom.

Seeking vengeance upon the King, Agonius assumed the mantle of Lord Agony and created a clockwork army with the intent of destroying the kingdom. A war ensued, with heavy casualties on both sides. Eventually, two kingdom archineers, Kenan and Jacob, infiltrated Agony's fortress. The exact nature of the events that happened therein are not revealed until the end of the game - all that is known, at first, is that Agony was defeated, and Jacob was missing, presumed dead. Kenan, now a hero, took up the position of Chief Archineer.

The game itself begins some years after the events above. Lock is a young man living in a coastal village, along with his sister, Emi, and grandfather, Tobias. When this village (and indeed the entire kingdom) is attacked by a new army of clockworks, under a new Lord Agony, Lock enlists as an archineer and helps to fight the clockworks. After a long time, the Kingdom force prevails and the new Agony is defeated. At the climax of the plot, it is revealed that the new Lord Agony is none other than Jacob. Long ago, when Jacob reached Agonius' chamber, he found Agonius a frail and broken man. He also found the young Lock, who was himself clockwork, the greatest creation of Agonius. Jacob took Lock and raised him as a human, under the guise of Tobias. He created Emi, who is also clockwork, and the village in which Lock was raised.

At the end of the game, the King tells Lock that, despite being clockwork, he was truly alive, because Agonius had given Lock his soul. Conversely, Jacob could not bring himself to sacrifice his soul in order to give Emi true life, and so, in time, Emi would simply crumble to dust.

However, it is implied that Jacob, repentant and sorrowful for having waged war on the Kingdom, did eventually do so at Lock's request, and the final scene of the game is Lock and Emi playing tag on the beach.

Development

THQ announced the development of Lock's Quest on April 1, 2008 in a press release. [6] In a preview of the game on April 2, 2008, IGN wrote of their experience of the game, "We're still early on in Lock's Quest, but it has the potential to be one of the top strategy games on DS before all is said and done." [7] In July, at the San Diego Comic Convention, THQ debuted a promotional mini-comic based on the universe of the game entitled Lock's Quest: A Source of Hope - Volume 1 drawn by Edison Yan. [8] IGN awarded Lock's Quest its "Best Strategy Game" award for the Nintendo DS at E3 2008. [9]

Reception

Lock's Quest was well received by most critics. IGN praised most aspects of the game, writing, "Lock's Quest is by far one of the most original, inspired, and entertaining experiences we've had on DS this year.", receiving an Editors' Choice Award and DS Game of the Month for September. [1] [17] [18] 1UP.com criticized the un-skippable cut scenes, but said it "succeeds as both a love letter to, and an evolution of, the tower-defense genre." [12] Nintendo World Report said Lock's Quest was "just a few design tweaks away from being a fantastic game.", claiming that it is "definitely disappointing in light of all its great assets and originality." [16] GameZone called it "unique" and "perfectly suited for the DS". [15] GameDaily praised the story, gameplay, graphics and music, and called it "an excellent game." [19] GameSpot praised the "lengthy single-player campaign, exciting multiplayer, and addictive gameplay." [14] Eurogamer criticized the battle phase of combat and the enemy artificial intelligence, while praising the "excellent graphics and repetitive but gripping gameplay." [13] It was a nominee for two Nintendo DS-specific awards from IGN for their 2008 video game awards, including Best Strategy Game [20] and Best New IP. [21] GameSpot nominated it for Best Game No One Played. [22]

Related Research Articles

2006 saw the release of many sequels and prequels in video games, prominently including Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories, New Super Mario Bros., Sonic the Hedgehog, and The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, alongside many prominent new releases including Bully, Company of Heroes, Dead Rising, Gears of War, Just Cause, Lost Planet: Extreme Condition, Ōkami, Prey, Resistance: Fall of Man, Saints Row, and Thrillville. Two new home consoles were released during the year: Nintendo's Wii and Sony's PlayStation 3.

<i>SpongeBob SquarePants: The Yellow Avenger</i> 2005 video game

SpongeBob SquarePants: The Yellow Avenger is a SpongeBob video game developed by Tantalus Media and published by THQ for Nintendo DS and PlayStation Portable. It is the first SpongeBob game to be released on both consoles.

<i>Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy</i> 2006 video game

Lego Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy is a Lego-themed action-adventure game developed by Traveller's Tales and published by LucasArts and TT Games Publishing. It was released on 11 September 2006. Part of the Lego Star Wars series, it is based on the Star Wars science fiction media franchise and Lego Group's Lego Star Wars toy line. It follows the events of the Star Wars films A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi. The game allows players to assume the roles of over 50 Lego versions of characters from the film series; customized characters can also be created. Camera movement was improved from its predecessor Lego Star Wars: The Video Game and the concept of "vehicle levels" was explored more thoroughly. The game was revealed at American International Toy Fair. Promotions for the game were set up at chain stores across the United States.

<i>Cars</i> (video game) 2006 video game

Cars is a 2006 adventure racing game published by THQ. The game is based on the 2006 film of the same name. It was released for the PlayStation 2, GameCube, Xbox, Microsoft Windows, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo DS, and PlayStation Portable in June 2006, with versions for the Xbox 360 and Wii released later that year. The Wii version includes functionality geared towards its Wii Remote controller and was a launch game for the system.

syn Sophia, Inc., formerly AKI Corporation and The Man Breeze, is an independent video game development studio located in Kichijōji, Tokyo, Japan, founded on June 19, 1995. The company is best known for its popular wrestling games in the late 1990s and early-mid-2000s, starting with the release of Virtual Pro-Wrestling in 1996. The title was the first entry in the Virtual Pro Wrestling series.

<i>Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords</i> 2007 video game

Puzzle Quest: Challenge of the Warlords is a puzzle video game designed by Steve Fawkner for Australian game developer Infinite Interactive and published by D3 Publisher in 2007. The game combines role-playing with tile-matching elements. Taking place in a high fantasy setting, the player moves his or her character around the game's world and encounters monsters and other enemies to fight so as to gain experience and acquire treasure as in a typical role-playing game. Combat takes place on a board similar to Bejeweled, and by making matches of colored gems, the combatants can cause damage to their opponents, cast spells, or perform other abilities that affect the flow of the game.

<i>Pinball Hall of Fame: The Williams Collection</i> 2008 video game

Pinball Hall of Fame: The Williams Collection is a pinball video game developed by FarSight Studios and published by Crave Entertainment for Wii, PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, Xbox 360, and Nintendo 3DS. Players play on a variety of classic virtual pinball machines from Williams Electronics' history. The Williams Collection follows the previous title, Pinball Hall of Fame: The Gottlieb Collection.

<i>De Blob</i> 2008 video game

De Blob is a puzzle-platform game. Players explore and liberate an alien city from the evil, monochromatic INKT Corporation that has taken over the city and outlawed all color and fun from daily life. Playing as Blob, players embark on a quest to re-animate the fictional Chroma City and free it from the INKT Corporation by splattering buildings, landmarks, and citizens with color.

<i>Lego Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures</i> 2008 video game

Lego Indiana Jones: The Original Adventures is a Lego-themed action-adventure video game developed by Traveller's Tales and published by LucasArts. The game allows players to recreate moments from the first three Indiana Jones films: Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981), Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984), and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989). It features the same cooperative play mode as seen in the Lego Star Wars video games, although it is restricted to local console play. The game was released on 3 June 2008 in the United States and Canada and 6 June in Europe. This game is based on the Lego Indiana Jones toy line. The Mac OS X version of the game was released on 4 December by Feral Interactive.

<i>Viva Piñata: Pocket Paradise</i> 2008 video game

Viva Piñata: Pocket Paradise is a life simulation game developed by Rare, for the Nintendo DS video game console and based on Viva Piñata. Released days after Viva Piñata: Trouble in Paradise for the Xbox 360 in the fall of 2008, Pocket Paradise was developed by Rare's handheld team, as opposed to Viva Piñata: Party Animals and the PC version of the original game, which were developed by separate third-party developers. It was the final game Rare ever developed for a Nintendo system, as well as currently the final game in the series.

<i>WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009</i> 2008 professional wrestling video game

WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2009 is a professional wrestling video game developed by Yuke's and published by THQ for the PlayStation 3, PlayStation 2, PlayStation Portable, Wii, and Xbox 360 video game consoles, with TOSE overseeing development for the Nintendo DS version. The game was first released on November 9, 2008 in North America. It is the tenth overall installment in the video game series based on the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) promotion, and the fifth game under the SmackDown vs. Raw name, named after the promotion's Raw and SmackDown brands. It is the sequel to 2007's SmackDown vs. Raw 2008 and the second game to feature the promotion's ECW brand.

<i>N+</i> 2008 video game

N+ is the console and handheld version of the Adobe Flash game N, which was developed by Metanet Software. N+ for Xbox Live Arcade was developed by Slick Entertainment and published by Metanet Software. Unique versions of the game were also ported separately to the PlayStation Portable and Nintendo DS by developers SilverBirch Studios and Atari. Metanet Software licensed their N IP for this deal, provided single player level design for both versions, and consulted on the project.

<i>WALL-E</i> (video game) 2008 movie video game

WALL-E is a platform video game developed by Heavy Iron Studios and published by THQ, based on the 2008 film of the same name.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeremiah Slaczka</span> Video game developer

Jeremiah A. Slaczka, also known by his nickname Miah, is an American video game designer/creative director and co-founder of 5th Cell, a video game developer in Bellevue, Washington. He is best known for being the concept creator and Director of Scribblenauts as well as the million-seller hit video game Drawn to Life and 5th Cell's critically acclaimed Lock's Quest, all for the Nintendo DS. Slaczka is credited as the Director, Lead Designer, Story Writer, Original Concept Creator and Art Director for both Drawn to Life and Lock's Quest.

<i>WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2010</i> 2009 professional wrestling video game

WWE SmackDown vs. Raw 2010 is a professional wrestling video game developed by Yuke's and published by THQ for PlayStation 2 (PS2), PlayStation 3 (PS3), PlayStation Portable (PSP), Wii, Nintendo DS, Xbox 360, and iOS. It was released worldwide in October 2009, with the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions for Japan in January 2010. TOSE oversaw the development for the Nintendo DS version, which was the last installment to be released for the handheld. 2010 was also the first installment to be released as an iPhone app, launching on App Store on December 23 the same year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">5th Cell</span> Video game company

5th Cell is an independently owned American video game developer founded in 2003 as 5th Cell Media, LLC. led by Jeremiah Slaczka and Marius Falhbusch. The company is most well known for creating the Drawn to Life and Scribblenauts series.

<i>De Blob 2</i> 2011 video game

De Blob 2 is a platform puzzle video game and the sequel to the Wii 2008 video game De Blob. As with its predecessor, De Blob 2 was developed for home consoles by Blue Tongue Entertainment and published by THQ, this time in association with the TV network Syfy. Unlike de Blob, however, de Blob 2 was also released for other consoles other than the Wii; the game was released for the PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and the Nintendo DS, with the latter version having been developed by Halfbrick Studios and taking place between de Blob and de Blob 2. This was the last game to feature the 2000 THQ logo: it appears in-game and on the Australian box art of the Nintendo DS, PS3, Nintendo Wii, and Xbox 360 versions.

<i>WWE All Stars</i> 2011 professional wrestling video game

WWE All Stars is a professional wrestling video game published by THQ and developed by THQ San Diego for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 systems and Subdued Software for the PlayStation Portable, Wii, Nintendo 3DS and PlayStation 2 systems. The game features current and former WWE wrestlers competing in fast-paced wrestling matches. It was released on March 29, 2011 in North America and April 1, 2011 in Europe. It is also the only WWE video game to be available for the Nintendo 3DS and the last WWE video game to be released on the PlayStation 2 and PlayStation Portable.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Majesco Entertainment</span> American video game publisher and distributor

Majesco Entertainment Company is an American video game publisher and distributor based in Hazlet, New Jersey. The company was founded as Majesco Sales in Edison, New Jersey in 1986, and was a privately held company until acquiring operation-less company ConnectivCorp in a reverse merger takeover, becoming its subsidiary and thus a public company on December 5, 2003. ConnectivCorp later changed its name to Majesco Holdings Inc. on April 13, 2004.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Mark Bozon (5 September 2008). "Lock's Quest Review". IGN . Archived from the original on 22 August 2012. Retrieved 7 January 2017.
  2. ↑ Sal Romano (6 January 2017). "Lock's Quest rated for PS4, Xbox One, and PC in Germany". Gematsu. Archived from the original on 7 January 2017. Retrieved 7 January 2017.
  3. ↑ "Lock's Quest coming to PS4™, Xbox One and PC". THQ Nordic. 16 February 2017. Archived from the original on 17 February 2017. Retrieved 16 February 2017.
  4. ↑ "Lock's Quest - release date moved to May 30th 2017". THQ Nordic. Archived from the original on 25 April 2017. Retrieved 24 April 2017.
  5. ↑ "Lock's Quest". GameStop. Archived from the original on 2016-11-09. Retrieved 2016-08-01.
  6. ↑ Construction Combat: Lock's Quest Announced Archived 2008-10-07 at the Wayback Machine . IGN. Retrieved on September 5, 2008.
  7. ↑ Bozon, Mark (April 2, 2008). Lock's Quest Preview Archived 2008-09-26 at the Wayback Machine . IGN. Retrieved on September 5, 2008).
  8. ↑ Harris, Craig (July 25, 2008). SDCC 08: Lock's Quest at Comic-Con Archived 2008-08-11 at the Wayback Machine . IGN. Retrieved on September 5, 2008.
  9. ↑ IGN Nintendo Team (July 25, 2008). Nintendo DS Best of E3 Awards Archived 2008-09-14 at the Wayback Machine . IGN. Retrieved on September 6, 2008.
  10. ↑ Lock's Quest Reviews Archived 2008-09-22 at the Wayback Machine . GameRankings. Retrieved on October 29, 2008.
  11. ↑ Lock's Quest: Reviews. Metacritic. Retrieved on October 29, 2008.
  12. 1 2 Kolar, Philip (September 17, 2008). Lock's Quest Review [ permanent dead link ]. 1UP.com. Retrieved on October 29, 2008.
  13. 1 2 Bramwell, Tom (October 1, 2008). Lock's Quest Review Archived 2008-12-04 at the Wayback Machine . Eurogamer. Retrieved on October 29, 2008.
  14. 1 2 Light, Austin (September 26, 2008). Lock's Quest for DS Review Archived 2008-12-19 at the Wayback Machine . GameSpot. Retrieved on October 29, 2008.
  15. 1 2 Platt, Dylan (September 19, 2008). Lock's Quest Review Archived 2008-09-22 at the Wayback Machine . GameZone. Retrieved on October 29, 2008.
  16. 1 2 Metts, Jonathan (September 21, 2008). DS Review: Lock's Quest Archived 2008-09-25 at the Wayback Machine . Nintendo World Report. Retrieved on October 29, 2008.
  17. ↑ IGN DS: Editors' Choice Awards Archived 2008-07-03 at the Wayback Machine . IGN. Retrieved on September 6, 2008.
  18. ↑ "Nintendo DS Game of the Month: September 2008 - IGN". 30 September 2008. Archived from the original on 19 July 2011. Retrieved 20 December 2008.
  19. ↑ Holzhauer, Grant (September 24, 2008). Lock's Quest on DS Review Archived 2008-09-27 at the Wayback Machine . GameDaily. Retrieved on October 29, 2008.
  20. ↑ "IGN DS: Best Strategy Game 2008". IGN.com. 2008-12-15. Archived from the original on 2008-12-19. Retrieved 2008-12-19.
  21. ↑ "IGN DS: Best New IP 2008". IGN.com. 2008-12-15. Archived from the original on 2013-11-03. Retrieved 2008-12-19.
  22. ↑ "Best Game No One Played". GameSpot.com. Archived from the original on 2008-12-23. Retrieved 2008-12-28.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.