Retro DOS Review: Conquests of the Longbow, The Legend of Robin Hood!

Conquests of the Longbow: The Legend of Robin Hood (from now on known as CLLRH) was a title I missed out on when I was little, but after playing it through, I feel it was probably better that way.

While having a lot of humorous dialogue between Robin and his band of merry men, the game contains a much more serious side of the Robin Hood story. It still follows the basic storyline: Robin Hood declared an outlaw, evil Sheriff is in control, Richard the Lionheart is away, Marion needs Robin's help, and so on. In this version, King Richard has been captured and put up for ransom to Nottingham, the Sheriff is conspiring to keep him there by controlling the wealth, and you must steal from the rich and give to the Free King Richard Fund.

CLLRH does a great job of pushing the more cloak and dagger side of Robin Hood. Much of the game centers around you fooling the Sheriff and his lackeys by disguising yourself (this is usually accomplished by either stealing the clothes off a bad guy, or somehow convincing someone else to give you their clothes), using secret passages, and a good bit of acting. The story takes place in the standard Sherwood Forest and Nottingham, with a few new elements thrown in, such as the Fen Brotherhood of Monks monastery (the Sheriff's secret society), and the druid groves of Sherwood. Most of your time is spent in the forest, from waiting on the Outlook for travelers on the road to take clothes from, running from the Sheriff's men, holding secret rendezvous' with Maid Marian, to just plain running around looking for trouble.

Sadly, the game doesn't include a lot of fighting, although there is an archery shooting system built into the game. The only times you get to use it are in the beginning where you learn how to shoot, and toward the middle of the game where you get to compete in the local archery tournament and have to split an arrow down the middle (not so hard in a video game!). It does, however, bring a few fantasy aspects into the story. Maid Marian ends up being a druid priestess who helps you meet the Green Man of Sherwood. He comes in handy later by enabling you to be protected by the trees when the Sheriff's men come around. There are also magic rings and talk of spells, woodland folk like brownies, and will-'o-the-wisps who all help you along the way. Even among the changes to the traditional storyline, the creator did an incredible job adding depth and immersion to the game world. For example, at one point you must find a lost scroll of Marian's among ten or so others. If you click on the wrong one, most games would just tell you so and you would move on. Instead, CLLRH included several paragraphs of history and plot per scroll.

Robin, admiring his wardrobe.

CLLRH has a lot of new game elements we haven't seen here yet. First of all, they included an in-game map. While I think drawing your own map is awesome, being able to travel far distances with one click is a definite plus. The previously seen "one-click" system of playing evolved into having different types of icons for things like talk, walk, use, look, and shoot bow. It also took copyright protection to a whole new level, and actually made it so it was part of the storyline and an essential part of the game. The manual includes Gemstone Lore (info on what kinds of things different gems are thought to heal and affect), pictures and names of trees you would find in Sherwood Forest, and European coats of arms, all of which are used to solve puzzles and foil the Sheriff's plans during the game. This is also one of the earlier games I can think of that included mini-games. In the local tavern, you can play Nine Mens Morris for extra cash, and eventually a required plot item. And lastly, as most adventure games typically only gave you a score, CLLRH also gave you a ransom total (how much you have put towards Richards ransom), and a total number of outlaws in your band (you could theoretically lose all of your men if you make some poor decisions).

What it looks like if you made the right choice.

His next outfit victim.

CLLRH is available for download HERE. The manual or website with the manual info is absolutely essential to finishing. All of the info needed can be found at the same link above, or on Sierra's website HERE.

Hope everyone enjoys this one. It was very gratifying playing the game all the way through at last.

NEXT UP! We go way ahead to the time of drive-up burger joints and drag races, betting your pink slips for fun, and souping up your muscle car to be the best, I bring you Street Rod 2!