By "Meerkat" Shaw
An Adventurer is You - Kingdom of Loathing
One the more delightful and hilarious little games hidden away in the vast jumble of the internet does not have dazzling graphics or heart-stopping action, but it does have drama, intrigue, puzzles, humor with more than a bit of whimsy tossed in for good measure.
Created by "Jick", Kingdom of Loathing is for the most part text driven with many options available, including inventory management, PC interaction, character creation and equipping, adventure choices etc---just like any other adventuring game. Items can be sold from your inventory and bought from ingame stores either run by NPCs or your fellow players. Items accumulate quickly but if you get more than you can handle or keep track of and aren't ready to sell, every player is provided with a handy closet to stash goodies in, apart from what is being carried.
Character creation is fairly simple...you get to choose from a variety of professions: Seal Clubber, Turtle Tamer, Pastamancer, Sauceror, Disco Bandit or Accordion Thief. Pick your profession, name your character, create a password and you're good to go.
Did I mention that Kingdom of Loathing is free? There are no charges to play tis true, but Jick appreciates a donation now and then, which seems to be fair considering the amount of work that obviously has gone into creating and maintaining this game. PayPal is accepted and donations of $10 or more get ingame goodies that can be very helpful, though not overwhelming to those not possessing them.
The game starts out with a bit of history and a suggestion to head to Mt. Noob and visit the Toot Oriole (this game is chock full of puns) who sends you on various quests to get you introduced to the basics of the game. From there you are on your own to explore the plains, mountains and Seaside town areas. There is quite a bit to explore in the town alone..the right and wrong side of the tracks, the Council of Loathing, the Market Square and the Dungeon full of Dungeons to name a few. The markets are full of odd and puzzling items, the use of which is not always obvious At the market you might want to purchase some chewing gum on a string to slip through a grate and snag a goodie with. Or a Familiar Gro Terrarium to nurture the peculiar little critters you will find that can grow into helpful sidekicks. There is a vast array of familiars---mosquito larvae, sabre-toothed limes, blood faced volleyball, ghost pickle on a stick, baby killer bee, to name a few--- all of which have different properties, some more useful than others. You can only take on familiar along with you at a time, leaving the rest to chill out in the Familiar-Gro Terrarium.
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As your skills grow and you level up, more areas of the map will be revealed to you with new areas to explore and do battle in.
PvP is consensual. You open yourself up to PvP combat by smashing the Hippy Stone in your campground (don't do this too soon!). This act can be undone if you go two weeks without attacking another player.
One feature of the game is the ability to combine items that you find in order to create something entirely new and helpful. Items are combined using meat paste. Food items can also be combined to make tasty dishes with addtional properties.In Kingdom of Loathing, meat is the accepted currency. Meat is a frequent reward of a successful battle as well as an
occassional lucky find. From what I've seen in the player-run stores, inflation is rampant in KoL, so a lot of meat can be required to obtain that special weapon or piece of protective clothing. Fortunately, it adds up fast.
The game is pretty much quest driven and there is always something to do or explore or figure out. Quests usually require obtaining special items to succeed and can be pretty challenging. Just figuring out what you need can require some thought and the ability to decipher some of the pun-laden puzzles that are the key component of KoL.
If addiction is a worry, fear not! You get 40 adventures per day. Then you have to wait til tomorrow to continue. Adventures do add up if you don't visit for a day or so. There is an upper limit, however. You can add a few more turns to your day's allotment of adventures by eating or drinking certain foods and beverages, but there is a limit to that as well.
Beneath the humor, puns and stick-figure graphics, Kingdom of Loathing is a full-fledged RPG, complete with stats (Magic, Strength and Moxie) and complex adventures. The game has been around for almost 2 years now, so this isn't breaking news, but if you haven't visited Kingdom of Loathing you are missing out. Go to http://www.kingdomofloathing.com. join the other 130,000 avid players and go back to a simpler time when games didn't rely on graphics and video clips to be cool and fun. And if you can, send Jick some bucks. He deserves it!
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