Quest for Glory is a series of hybrid adventure/role-playing video games, which were designed by Corey and Lori Ann Cole.

The objective of the series is to transform the player character from an average adventurer to a hero[10] by completing non-linear quests.

There are real dangers to face, and true heroic feats to perform, but silly details and overtones creep in (when the drama of adventuring does not force them out).

Cheap word play is particularly frequent, to the point that the second game's ending refers to itself as the hero's "latest set of adventures and miserable puns.

[13] Rowan Kaizer of the blog Engadget credits the games' hybrid adventure and roleplaying systems for the series' success.

[16] During the second or third games, a character can be initiated as a Paladin by performing honorable actions, changing his class and abilities, and receiving a unique sword.

The magic user and the thief are both non-confrontational characters, as they lack the close range ability of the fighter, but are better able to attack from a distance, using daggers or spells.

Quest for Glory II: Trial by Fire takes place in the land of Shapeir, in the world of Gloriana.

Directly following from the events of the first game, the newly proclaimed Hero of Spielburg travels by flying carpet with his friends Abdulla Doo, Shameen and Shema to the desert city of Shapeir.

[12][32] Rakeesh the Paladin brings the Hero (and Prince of Shapeir) along with Uhura and her son Simba to his homeland, the town of Tarna in a jungle and savannah country called Fricana that resembles central African ecosystems.

Drawn without warning from his victory in Fricana, the Hero arrives without equipment or explanation in the middle of the hazardous Dark One Caves in the distant land of Mordavia.

Erasmus introduces the player character, the Hero, to the Greece-like kingdom of Silmaria, whose king was recently assassinated.

The Hero competes against competitors, including the Silmarian guard Kokeeno Pookameeso, the warlord Magnum Opus, the hulking Gort, and the warrior Elsa Von Spielburg.

Originally, the series was to be a tetralogy, consisting of four games, with the following themes and cycles: the four cardinal directions, the four classical elements, the four seasons and four different mythologies.

We worked with the four seasons, the four basic elements – Earth, Air, Fire, and Water – and the four cardinal points of the compass.

"The original third chapter," added Lori, "was to be Shadows of Darkness, set in Transylvania – the East – and in the Fall, using Air as the central element.

"Somewhere between finishing Trial by Fire and cranking up the design process for Shadows of Darkness, the husband-and-wife team realized a fifth chapter would have to be added to bridge the games.

"One of the unifying themes," explained Corey, "is the growth of your character, going from being an adolescent Hero in the first game to being a young man in the second.

You're strong and confident..." "The third game," continued Lori, "was to show you as a master of your profession, with the fourth depicting you at the mature peak of your powers.

"In the first episode, the player is a new graduate of the Famous Adventurer's Correspondence School, ready to venture out into the springtime of his career and build a reputation.

In the second chapter – Trial by Fire – the Hero enters the summer of his experience, facing more difficult challenges with more highly developed skills.

While the episode is more serious and dangerous than its predecessor, it retains the enchanting mixture of fantasy, challenge, and humor that made the first game a hit with so many fans.

Of all the reasons Lori and Corey found for creating a bridge between Trial by Fire and Shadows of Darkness, the most compelling was the feeling that the Hero character simply hadn't matured enough to face the very grim challenges awaiting him in Transylvania.

"Along with the Hero, several recurring characters appear and re-appear throughout the series including: Rakeesh Sah Tarna, Baba Yaga, Abdullah Doo, Elsa von Spielburg, the evil Ad Avis, and others.