Al-Qadim: The Genie's Curse

Al-Qadim: The Genie's Curse is an action RPG with adventure elements created by Cyberlore Studios. It was published by Strategic Simulations Inc in 1994 for MS-DOS.

This is a game that made me very curious. Rarely have I seen so many positive and negative reviews from different critics for the same reasons. Before I played it, I was curious. Will I love it? Will I hate it? Will I be one of the few in the middle? The answer came in the first few minutes, and now I'm going to tell you why, in my opinion, the game is a masterpiece.

The game puts us in the shoes of a young corsair whom he and his family are unfairly blamed for causing a shipwreck where his future wife is. Thus, the protagonist must clean his and his family's honor and save them from execution. Moreover, all this happens simultaneously when several geniuses are released from their masters. So the character must also discover the cause of this and investigate Genie's Curse.

One of the most criticized aspects of the game, positively and negatively, is how simple it is compared to other RPGs. The title only lets you add the player's name. Then, the statistics and physical features are already defined. Also, the player cannot buy weapons or armor; he can only improve the ones he already has by leveling up, solving puzzles, and combat. Besides, the latter takes vital importance in an adventure full of enemies who seek to kill the protagonist. While I understand how this can bother some creative masterminds, I think this simple action-oriented approach is a fresh and entertaining genre adhesion. It is also worth mentioning that combat is not everything because it is full of riddles and puzzles that gradually become exciting challenges.

The graphics of the title are very well done. With beautifully balanced colors inspired by the apparent desert theme, warm yellows are the composition's clear masters. The soundtrack also leaves nothing to be desired, with music very much in tune with each situation and tones that trap the player and insert them into their universe.

Finally, it is also important to note that Al-Qadim: The Genie's Curse has an excellent story, very complex, engaging, and very well executed. Although there are still many detractors, I have no doubt that this is a great game and an even better recommendation for fans of the genre and people curious enough to try it.