PC REVIEW | Dark Quest 4

Welcome to the world of Dark Quest 4, a game based on the old eighties tabletop game HeroQuest, which, if I am honest, is a game I never actually got to play as a youngster, so I was pretty curious to see what this one would feel like to play, and let’s just say it was an interesting experience. I’ll get into more detail about that shortly, but let’s get into the premise behind the game first.

You play as a group of heroes who must battle against Gulak and his master, the evil sorcerer. You can choose 3 out of 10 heroes to battle through each dungeon and discover treasures and monsters galore. With each passing floor your team will face harder challenges and more aggressive foes to defeat. You get to use a mixture of turn-based strategy and card-based attacks to fight your way to victory and hopefully vanquish the evil sorcerer behind Gulak and his minions.

Now, is Dark Quest 4 fun to play? Well, let’s get into the fine details.

Things I liked!

• Graphics | Dark Quest 4 looks gorgeous; the characters, the board and even the cards look like they have been pulled out of a real board game and brought to life on screen. The hand-drawn aesthetic looks fantastic and gives the game a retro-modern feel. I especially like the setup of the game board itself, as it gives a sort of Populus-meets-Baldur’s Gate-mixed-with-HeroQuest feel to the experience that, if you are a board game player, will feel just right.

• Sound | I really enjoyed the soundscape of Dark Quest 4; the music especially just works so well in giving you that authentic TTRPG night feel with just the right amount of atmosphere as you battle and forage your way through each level of the dungeon. The voices are kept to a minimum, but this isn’t an issue, as you will be concentrating more on the sounds of battle as you hack, slash and burn your way through the many minions you will face. Which brings me to the sound effects themselves; they are just so much what you would imagine a board game come to life would sound like.
  
• Gameplay | If, like me, you are into your board games, then you will find a lot to enjoy while playing Dark Quest 4. Now I unfortunately never played the other games in the series, so I can only go by what I have played here, and from what I played, I felt like it was a very enjoyable table top experience. You get a set number of spaces and moves for each of your characters, and every one of them has their own unique abilities and skill sets which will help you through each dungeon floor. Utilising these skills correctly is where the fun comes in, as you have to learn to anticipate what your enemies will do and what traps may or may not come on each level. Every single character has abilities unique to them, so take your time and learn them, or you will find yourself getting killed quite quickly even on the early levels. But don’t worry because Dark Quest 4 does help you a lot on the earlier levels to get to grips with everything before chucking you into the deep end, as it were. This is where the fun really starts as you manoeuvre your characters through more and more treacherous terrain and horrors trying to find treasures and cards that can help you succeed. Like I said earlier, if you are into your board games, you will be smiling even as you are defeated because you get to try another strategy. to win next time.
  
• Difficulty | As I mentioned during the Gameplay section there, Dark Quest 4 is not meant to be completed in one sitting; the difficulty of the game is less about an AI system of the game’s intelligence to defeat you and instead relies on classic board game-style strategy to allow you to use logic and skill to overcome your enemies. The only difficulty really is what you yourself bring to the table. If you learn about your characters and take your time, you will find yourself having a fun experience as you battle the monsters, but if you just want to blast your way through the game, you might find it to be a lot trickier than you anticipated. I personally found the difficulty level to be just right, as I failed and failed, then succeeded to an inward cheer as I descended to the next level of the dungeon. So just remember board game difficulty applies here, not video game logic.
  
• Characters | Every character in Dark Quest 4 is unique; each has their own strengths and weaknesses to discover, and each one has abilities that will help you on your quest. Why is this important? Well, you only get to choose 3 out of 10 every time you set out on a quest, and because of that, you will need to choose carefully because if you don’t have the right team, you might find yourself back in the camp licking your wounds. The diversity of each character means that you will obviously have your favourites (I love a barbarian), but you will have to let go of your preconceptions and give other classes a try if you want to get any further and if you want to get the full experience of the game. Also as a slight hint, your heroes will need to rest from time to time, and the rest of the heroes in camp will be there to take the strain while your main party gets rid of the fatigue of battle, so that is another good reason to get to grips with all of your party.

Mixed & disliked!

• Bugs and Glitches | There were a couple of bugs and glitches that I encountered while I was playing, such as bosses not taking their turns, which meant I had to restart, and also sometimes my heroes getting stuck against a wall or an enemy firing through a wall that should have prevented the fireball from reaching me. I am hoping that these small issues will be patched out soon, as otherwise I would say that Dark Quest 4 is a very enjoyable experience.

• Story | The story is quite simplistic in terms of board game-style storytelling, and that is fine, but for a video game I would have expected just a little more meat, as you aren’t sitting in a large group discussing what you think is happening and adding your own little quirks to each character. It’s not really a terrible story, to be honest, but it just lacks the depth I would expect from a game like this in the format it is in.

How long did I play the review before publishing? 6 hours
How long to beat the story? 4 hours
How many Achievements did I earn before publishing? 8 out of 16
How long to complete everything? about 10 to 15 hours
You’ll love this game if you like these | Baldurs Gate 1 and 2, legends of Grimrock

CONCLUSION

Score: 75 /100

It’s time to be a hero and quest your way through the dark dungeons of Dark Quest 4, a tabletop RPG with a lot of meat on its bones which should satisfy those evenings where you can’t gather around the table with your friends to play. Is it something I would play a lot? No, but it is something I feel I could pick up from time to time to enjoy and not feel bored while playing. If you are a fan of TTRPG games and you are looking for something to just chill with, then I would recommend Dark Quest 4, but if you are a hardcore gamer looking for a battle, then you might want to look elsewhere. Dark Quest 4 is a niche game that knows its audience, and I just so happen to be a member of that audience.