Blacksmith Features
May 11th, 2009 by Lord Basse

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Sabato’s Holy Grail

By Berserker Jerker

Are you, like me, one of those people who have been waiting for years for the final incarnation in the Sabato Series? Have you been waiting, perhaps since 2003, for the last chapter of the Sabato saga, Sabato Lives? HAVE YOU!? Well, then I’m afraid you’ll have to wait a little longer. But while you wait, the forum-active half of the designers behind the Sabato series, Berserker Jerker, has decided to give us all a small gift to play with while we await Sabato Lives, when or if it comes.

Sabato’s Holy Grail should though not be considered as a mere colourful intermission while we endure the long wait for Sabato Lives; Sabato’s Holy Grail is an independent project that stands on its own two feet. As the name might tell you, this story is about the Holy Grail, but not just any holy grail; this is the Age of Kings conversion of the classic 70’s film, Monty Python and the Holy Grail – except this time it’s interactive, and rated PG (for Pure Genius). Seriously though, I should warn younglings and underagers, and others who just don’t like the style of humour, about things like cock-fights, “Bend over the round table, Sir”, etc. etc. If you don’t mind the type of jokes, this scenario is a great pleasure to play.

In typical Monty Python fashion, the scenario starts by breaking the fourth wall as Jerker’s Widow, BJ’s wife for those who didn’t know, accidently kills Sabato the Witch through her reckless driving. Thankfully, she suggest that BJ should make another scenario, this one in fact, and then the actual game starts off. We follow King Arthur and his assistant, Pansy, in his search for knights to join him at his court at Cumelot and in his search for the Holy Grail. You follow along the same line as the Monty Python film went, with the coconut-powered horses, body collectors and the notorious Black Knight. These movie scenes make for some unique and enjoyable quests, like killing of almost-dead people and bring them to the body collector, cock-fighting in traditional BJ-esque in-game mini-game mode (remember the horse racing from Sabato Returns?). Later on you also take on a few scenes not seen in the film, added in for some extra action and challenge, which all add a lot to the experience.

The map design is generally simplistic and often quite realistic, and also very strategically well planned out for the two major battles at the second half of the game; but still, the gameplay is what sticks out most, at least from my experiense. The cock fighting game, the duel with the Black Knight, body collecting, the late strategic battles against bandit rabble, the mini-games in the quests; this is a great show in variation of entertainment, you will not have a boring moment when you play this. Unless, of course, when it’s over, which happens quite quickly unless you get stuck at one of the mini-games or battles. BJ also advices you to send all potential hate mail to Jerker’s Widow (email in scenario).

With two 5.0 reviews, Berserker Jerker and Jerker’s Widow have shown us their designing skills haven’t been rusting asunder since their last scenario release in 2003. Very well, over and out; go get Sabato’s Holy Grail later right now, or rather immediately, if you so wish.