EcoQuest: The Search for Cetus

Game developer: Sierra On-Line
Game release date: 1991 year
Game status: Released

Ecoquest is another game in the long line of Sierra adventures they released in the 80's and 90's however this one has a distinct difference as it is geared towards younger players. You play the part of Adam a young boy who just moved with his parents to a new house. They run a local animal shelter where they treat injured animals and one of their latest additions is a dolphin that was caught in a fisherman's net. After spending some time with him you find out that he is no ordinary dolphin as he can talk! You find out he's called delphinius and on a quest to find Cetus the whale that ruled the city of Eluria but who is now lost. After a while he can no longer continue and he asks for your help which is the start of a great adventure. You will visit the city where you must talk to the Oracle and she will prophesize that a human boy will save Eluria so it's up to you to fulfill your destiny.

Even though the first puzzles are at the house you live in you quickly move on to the sea as that is where the main story takes place. The first job to do is to save the city of Eluria where after Cetus disappeared an evil flesh eating manta has taken over. Your task is to rally all the citizens of the town and get them to the mayor so they can have a meeting. It's not because the inhabitants are unwilling but most of them are simply unable to come due to the pollution in the city which has made some of them sick. It's up to you help them so they can attend and while you're at it you can also clean up the mess that the humans have made. You can do this by collecting all the waste you find in your recycling bag (which has unlimited bag space btw) which will not only clean up the place but also be required to talk to some inhabitants. After saving the town you will have to look for Cetus before the evil manta destroys the town. Can you find Cetus before it's too late for both him and the inhabitants of oceania?

This game uses the standard point and click interface that most sierra games had with a small number of icons depicting actions such as use or talk. Your characters walks or swims across the screen with a simple click of the button and interacting with objects on screen is just as easy. Most of the puzzles revolve around using certain items in the correct manner but this is true to most adventure games, there aren't many really obscure puzzles though. Another things that is "missing" compared to other sierra games are the mazes, dead ends and numerous instant death situations, in fact I don't think there is a single one in the entire game which makes is far less frustrating than some other adventures and makes it very suitable for younger people. The graphics are hand drawn and then digitized which give a distinct look like most of the adventures released by sierra at that time. Coupled with excellent music that makes the games not only great to play but also nice to look at.

Ecoquest is very much like other sierra adventures yet because of it's younger audience the changes make the game much more enjoyable. No death around every corner and no dead end situations is a definite plus for every adventure which lets you focus on the game rather than saving/loading all the time. Unfortunately the game is a tad short but while it lasts it ranks among the better adventure games I have played in my years so it's definitely a must have.

Game genre: Adventures
Platform/System: MS-DOS Games