Conquests of the Longbow: The Legend of Robin Hood

Last updated: January 23, 2026

Overview

Conquests of the Longbow: The Legend of Robin Hood is a graphic adventure game developed and published by Sierra On-Line in 1991, representing the second and final installment in the Conquests series following Conquests of Camelot: The Search for the Grail.¹ Designed by Christy Marx, the game transforms the legendary English outlaw into “less of a carefree swashbuckler and more of a medieval problem solver with a never-ending to-do list,” where “charm and brains often matter more than your bow.”² The game is notable for the considerable amount of historical and cultural research incorporated into its setting and puzzles, with the manual listing twenty-eight volumes in its bibliography.¹

The game represents “Sierra’s richest, most complex game yet” according to contemporary marketing materials, featuring a design philosophy that dramatically differs from most other adventure games of the era.³ Unlike typical Sierra adventures where losing paths are rare, Conquests of the Longbow embraces multiple winning and losing paths, with “the possibilities for tragedy, callousness and folly” being “integral to the interactive story told by the game.”⁴ Depending on player choices throughout the adventure, the game offers four possible endings, “ranging from Robin getting hanged to a happy conclusion of his love life.”⁵

Despite being released during Sierra’s golden age of adventure gaming, the title remains “one of their lesser known games,” often overshadowed by flagship series like King’s Quest and Space Quest.⁶ However, retrospective critics have frequently praised it as “probably Sierra’s most underrated title” and “a true classic that deserves to be in every adventurer’s collection.”⁷⁸

Game Info

Developer: Sierra On-Line¹ Designer: Christy Marx¹ Publisher: Sierra On-Line¹ Engine: SCI1 (Sierra’s Creative Interpreter)⁹ Platforms: MS-DOS, Amiga, Classic Mac OS¹ Release Year: 1991 (DOS), 1992 (Amiga, Mac) Series: Conquests Protagonist: Robin Hood Sierra Lineage: Core Sierra

Story Summary

The year is 1193, and the Third Crusade has just ended. Richard the Lionheart, King of England, is returning to Europe from the Holy Land when he is captured by Austrian Duke Leopold and held for an enormous ransom.⁵ In England, Prince John plots to seize the throne by preventing the ransom from being paid, leaving the country in turmoil. The player assumes the role of the legendary Robin Hood, living as an outlaw in Sherwood Forest, who must work to restore King Richard I to the throne of England.¹⁰

Robin Hood’s quest involves far more than simply robbing the rich to give to the poor. He must raise money for the king’s ransom while protecting Maid Marian from the machinations of the Sheriff of Nottingham, fooling the Sheriff at every turn, and even contacting forest spirits for aid.¹¹ The game presents Robin as a “medieval fantasy but with a hefty dollop of realism,” grounding the legendary figure in historical context while maintaining the swashbuckling adventure audiences expect.¹²

The narrative unfolds with Robin solving everyday problems while working toward his greater goals. As one reviewer noted, players will spend “plenty of time figuring out which villager needs rescuing today and which monk is about to betray you.”² The romance between Robin and Marian serves as a central motivation throughout the adventure, with one modern commentator observing that Robin’s “only motivation to do anything is to find a way to sleep with Maid Marian.”⁹ The theme of the game is described as simple—“love and honor may conquer all”—but “en route, the twists and turns make this conquest all the more poignant.”⁴

Gameplay

Interface and Controls

Conquests of the Longbow uses Sierra’s standard icon-driven point-and-click interface first introduced in King’s Quest V, featuring an icon-based system common to most contemporary Sierra adventures.⁵¹ This represented a significant upgrade from the text parser used in Conquests of Camelot, as the newer SCI1 engine provided 256-color VGA graphics compared to the earlier game’s SCI0 engine.⁹ The game supports multiple input devices including keyboard, mouse, and analog joystick.¹³

Structure and Progression

The game is divided into thirteen days; each day is completed when certain tasks have been fulfilled.⁵ This day-based structure creates a sense of urgency and progression while allowing players to explore the game world systematically. The design notably avoids stalemate situations—“the player’s actions can always lead to an ending, even if it’s an unhappy ending”—yet “particularly reckless actions can quickly close off the possibility of an ideal ending.”⁴

The game structure includes:

• Outlaw Camp: Robin’s home base in Sherwood Forest where he meets with his Merry Men
• Sherwood Forest: Various locations including the shooting glade, Watling Street for ambushes, and mystical groves
• Nottingham: The town with its market fair, castle, and various shops
• The Fens: Marshy monastery area
• St. Mary’s Abbey: Location for key encounters with religious figures

Puzzles and Mechanics

The game reduces traditional inventory-based puzzles in favor of exploration and varied tasks, incorporating combat, puzzles, and arcade sequences that can be “set to whatever degree of difficulty you like.”¹⁴⁵ Designer Christy Marx incorporated medieval knowledge and lore into the puzzles, requiring players to know “what properties gemstones have or learning to identify and name druid trees.”⁹

Mini-games include:

• Combat sequences: Quarterstaff battles and sword fighting
• Archery contests: Skill-based challenges at the fair
• Nine Men’s Morris: A traditional board game⁵
• Druid hand-code system: A puzzle system where each phalanx represents a letter⁸

The copy protection was innovatively integrated into gameplay rather than using typical word verification, requiring players to reference the manual for information about medieval gemstones, trees, and other period-appropriate knowledge.¹⁵

Reception

Contemporary Reviews

Conquests of the Longbow received strong reviews upon release, particularly for the DOS version. French gaming magazine Génération 4 awarded the PC version 93% in December 1991.¹⁶ Joystick gave it 92% the same month, praising its diverse gameplay elements.¹⁶ ACE: Advanced Computer Entertainment awarded a score of 985 in February 1992, with reviewer Gary Whitta impressed by the game’s scope.¹⁶

Dragon magazine gave the game a perfect 5 out of 5 stars, with reviewers Hartley Lesser, Patricia Lesser, and Kirk Lesser praising its quality.¹ White Wolf magazine’s Jim Trunzo wrote in the May/June 1992 issue: “Most impressive is the game’s diversity. Combat, puzzles, and arcade sequences (set to whatever degree of difficulty you like) all add to the overall feel of the product.”¹⁴

Swedish publication Datormagazin awarded the PC version 4/5 in May 1992 (reviewer Göran Fröjdh) and the Amiga version 90% in September 1992 (reviewer Pia Wester).¹⁶ Amiga Games gave the Amiga version 87% in November 1992.¹⁶

The Amiga version received notably lower scores due to technical issues with the port. Amiga Joker awarded just 62%, with reviewer C. Borgmeier criticizing the conversion: “ohne Harddisk ist diese PC-Konvertierung mal wieder hart an der Grenze zur Unspielbarkeit” (“without a hard disk, this PC conversion is once again on the verge of being unplayable”).¹⁷

Modern Assessment

Retrospective reviews have been overwhelmingly positive. Adventure Gamers awarded the game 4.5 out of 5 stars in a January 2, 2009 review by Andrea Morstabilini, who wrote: “Too often forgotten in the midst of more famous Sierra series, with its captivating plot and appealing characters, this game is a true classic that deserves to be in every adventurer’s collection.”⁸ The review praised Christy Marx’s writing as “top-notch” and called Robin “one of the most appealing characters to ever appear in an adventure game.”⁸

Aggregate Scores:

• MobyGames Critics Average: 82% (based on 19 ratings)¹²
• GOG.com User Reviews: 4.6/5 (42 reviews)³
• IMDB: 7.9/10 (40 votes)¹¹
• MyAbandonware: 4.57/5 (92 votes)⁶
• Abandonware DOS: 4.10/5 (72 votes)²
• Glitchwave: 4.05/5⁷
• OldGames.sk: 72%¹⁰
• Lemon Amiga: 6/10 (Amiga version)¹⁸

Awards:

• Computer Gaming World named it one of the year’s top four adventure games in 1992¹
• Adventure Gamers named Conquests of the Longbow the 42nd-best adventure game ever released in their 2011 retrospective list¹

Development

Origins

When the idea of doing a Robin Hood game was suggested to designer Christy Marx, she was “delighted,” as “Robin Hood has always been one of my favorite heroes, not to mention how much I love the Medieval time period.”¹⁸ Marx and Ken Williams decided to focus on Robin Hood instead of King Arthur for broader popular appeal, a decision influenced by the success of the Prince of Thieves film which was released around the same time.⁸ The game released during what one reviewer called “the 1991 Robin Hood movie hype.”¹⁸

Production

Development at Sierra in this era was described by Marx as “like being on the frontier during the Wild West. Nobody really knew what they were doing, and I sure as hell didn’t when I joined them.”¹⁵ Marx conducted extensive research for the project, including studying Welsh legends about Merlin, contacting a museum in Nottingham for historical material about the castle and tunnels, and using reproduced maps of English shires from the time period.¹⁵

Understanding player behavior proved to be one of the key challenges. Marx recalled: “I finally got it when I had a chance to watch players sit down and bash at the game. They truly would do anything in any order with no rhyme or reason.”¹⁵ This observation informed the game’s flexible design philosophy that allows multiple solutions and avoids dead ends.

Some of Marx’s ambitions exceeded technical capabilities. She noted: “What I wanted was beyond the technical capabilities of the time,” with battle scenes ending up more simplistic than intended due to hardware limitations.¹⁵ The game’s art was “created with the brilliant palette of an illuminated medieval manuscript,” resulting in what marketing materials called “a festival of light and color.”³

Development Credits:¹²

• Designer/Writer/Director: Christy Marx
• Executive Designers: Ken Williams, William R. Davis Sr., Guruka Singh Khalsa¹⁹
• Music Director: Mark Seibert
• Additional Music: Ken Allen, Christopher G. Braymen, Orpheus Hanley, Aubrey Hodges

Technical Achievements

The game utilizes Sierra’s SCI1 engine, providing 256-color VGA graphics and support for advanced sound hardware including Roland MT-32 and Sound Blaster.⁹²⁰ The visual presentation was notable for its time, with VGA graphics that helped establish the game’s medieval atmosphere. The soundtrack was composed with period-appropriate instrumentation, with Mark Seibert ensuring authentic medieval musical styles despite an art director who initially wanted a more modern sound.¹⁵

The original soundtrack was later re-orchestrated by Mark Seibert in summer 1992 for inclusion on the Sierra Soundtrack Collection, recorded at Maximus Recording Studios in Fresno, California.²¹

Technical Specifications

DOS Version (VGA):¹³

• Minimum OS: MS-DOS 3.0 (3.3 recommended)
• Minimum CPU: Intel 286 (VGA version), Intel 8088/8086 (EGA version)
• RAM: 640 KB
• Graphics Modes: VGA, MCGA, EGA, Tandy/PCjr
• Audio: PC Speaker, Tandy/PCjr Sound, AdLib, Roland MT-32, Game Blaster (CMS), Sound Blaster, Pro Audio Spectrum, PS/1 Audio Card, Thunderboard, Disney Sound Source
• Media: 6 3½” floppy diskettes (or 7 5.25” HD disks)¹²

Amiga Version:¹³

• Minimum OS: Kickstart/Workbench 1.2
• Hardware: Amiga 500/2000
• RAM: 1 MB
• Graphics: OCS/ECS (64-color mode)
• Media: 8 floppy diskettes
• Notes: Hard drive installation supported; faster Amiga recommended

Windows Version (ScummVM):⁹

• Release Date: May 4, 2017
• OS: Windows 7/8/10
• CPU: 1.8 GHz
• RAM: 512 MB
• Storage: 1 GB
• GPU: DirectX 7 compatible (DirectX 9 recommended)

Cut Content

A CD-ROM version with full speech was planned for distribution around 1993 but was never fully completed.¹² Guy of Gisbourne, a traditional Robin Hood antagonist, is mentioned in the manual but does not appear in the actual game.¹

Version History

Version	Date	Platform	Notes
1.0	December 9, 1991	IBM PC/DOS	Initial DOS release22
1.1	Unknown	DOS	Bug fixes; distributed by GOG and Steam23
N/A	1992	Amiga	Amiga port; Sierra’s last Amiga release18
N/A	1992	Macintosh	Mac port1
N/A	May 4, 2017	Windows	ScummVM-based digital release9

SCI Interpreter Versions:⁹

Game Version	Interpreter	Type	Notes
DOS 1.0	SCI1	SCI1	Initial release, EGA/VGA versions
DOS 1.1	SCI1	SCI1	Patched version for GOG/Steam

Technical Issues

The DOS version had several known bugs addressed by official patches:¹³

• 1535.TEX error: An error message that occurs if Robin orders a drink in the pub
• Green Man loop: A looping problem when Robin talks to the Green Man
• Forest hiding bug: Some players not given time to hide from the Sheriff’s men in the forest the second time
• Animation issues: Some animations (including Robin’s head) displaying incorrectly
• Day 1 bug: Giving money to peasant woman causes game to think she died¹⁸
• Graphics glitch: John appears instead of knight’s corpse, causing game crash when leaving scene⁴

Sierra released an official patch (LBPAT, 14.3 KB) to address most issues.¹³ The GOG/Steam version 1.1 introduced a new problem: “catching the pixie is nearly impossible if you run the game unthrottled.”²³

The Amiga version suffered from severe performance issues. Reviewer Steve Wilkins noted: “It’s damned slooooow! On a ‘naked’ standard Amiga the slider bar for the speed almost appears to be sarcastic: From sleepwalking to slow-motion to slide show.”¹⁸ Graphics appeared “washed-out and blurred compared to PC version,” and the game was “nearly unplayable without hard disk due to frequent disk swapping.”¹⁷

Easter Eggs and Trivia

The game contains numerous references to other Sierra titles and in-jokes:¹²⁴¹¹

• Sierra staff at the fair: Try talking to everyone at the Nottingham Fair and you will find several Sierra programmers and employees, including the Two Guys from Andromeda (creators of Space Quest)
• Political figures: George Bush and Dan Quayle appear as NPCs at the fair
• Daventry reference: The rug seller’s last name is Oakhurst (where Sierra On-Line was located), and he claims his rugs come from Daventry, the kingdom of the King’s Quest games
• Police Quest reference: One rug features the shield of Lytton, the city from Police Quest 1-3
• Larry & Patti cameo: Characters from Leisure Suit Larry appear in an old Norman monastery¹⁷
• Christy Marx cameo: The game designer appears as an NPC in the Nottingham market¹⁵
• Space Quest reference: Referenced in the Space Quest 1 VGA remake escape pod button¹⁵
• Control panel secret: Opening the control panel and hitting the Sierra button shows credits, then informs players that “no guys from Andromeda” partook in the creation¹²
• Talking rats: Hidden dialogue with rats in the torture chamber⁴

Designer Christy Marx included a bibliography of research sources in the game’s manual, with twenty-eight volumes listed including works by J.C. Holt, Maurice Keen, and Robert Graves.¹ The manual also includes essays by Marx outlining the history of the legend and approximate dates at which different characters were incorporated into the Robin Hood legend, such as Friar Tuck and Marian in the 15th century.²

Multiple Endings

The game features four possible endings based on a weighted point system that tracks player choices throughout the adventure:⁵⁸

Ending Variables:

• How righteously Robin behaves (helping peasants vs. pure thievery)
• Success in protecting Maid Marian
• Completing optional quests for maximum ransom
• Treatment of enemies (mercy vs. cruelty)
• Relationship with the forest spirits

Possible Endings:

1. Best Ending: Robin and Marian marry; King Richard returns triumphant
2. Good Ending: Robin survives but with less favorable outcomes
3. Neutral/Bad Ending: Partial success with complications
4. Worst Ending: Robin is hanged in Nottingham

The “best” ending requires accumulating maximum points through righteous behavior and completing all optional objectives. Reviewer Richard noted: “The way in which you deal with the problems each day will have an effect on how the game ends. This feature was way ahead of its time back when adventure games were fairly linear.”⁶

The maximum possible score is 7325 points across all 13 game days.²⁴

Legacy

Sales and Commercial Impact

While specific sales figures are not available, Conquests of the Longbow was released during Sierra’s dominant period in adventure gaming. The company was producing “premium-priced entertainment-software products for the high end of the consumer market.”²⁵ The game was released alongside nearly 20 other Sierra titles in 1991.⁶

The Amiga version represented Sierra’s final release for the Commodore Amiga platform, ending their support for the system.¹⁸

Collections

The game has been preserved through various digital distribution platforms:

• GOG.com: Available with ScummVM compatibility wrapper³
• Internet Archive: Preserved in multiple formats including VHD for MiSTer FPGA use, sourced from eXoDOS v6²⁰

Fan Projects

The game maintains an active speedrunning community with 172 total runs by 13 players as of late 2024.²³ Categories include Any%, Low%, 100%, Best Ending, and a unique “13 Deaths in 13 Days” challenge.²³ The current Any% world record is 10 minutes 50 seconds, held by speedrunner SnowyP on MS-DOS.²³

In January 2023, the speedrunning community discovered “Snowy Skips,” new glitches that further optimized completion times.²⁶ Fan projects have also included 4K upscaled renderings of the game’s graphics.²⁷

Related Publications

• Game Manual: Includes essays by Christy Marx on Robin Hood history, a bibliography of 28 research volumes, and copy protection information integrated into gameplay puzzles¹¹⁵
• Sierra Soundtrack Collection (1992): Includes two orchestrated tracks from the game: “Opening Sequence” (3:27) and “The Map - The Hedge Maze - The Abbey - The Fens” (5:18)²¹

Critical Perspective

Conquests of the Longbow represents one of Sierra’s most ambitious attempts at meaningful player choice in an adventure game era dominated by linear narratives. The game’s design philosophy—embracing multiple paths including detailed losing scenarios—was genuinely innovative for 1991 and presaged the choice-driven narratives that would become popular decades later.

Modern critics consistently identify the game as underrated within Sierra’s catalog. User MisTurHappy’s assessment reflects common sentiment: “Probably Sierra’s most underrated title - maybe tied with Laura Bow 2 - and I can only assume it’s just because it isn’t part of one of their big-name series… The freedom it gives you to play Robin Hood as anything from a virtuous outlaw to a total scumbag highwayman is pretty unique too.”⁷

The game’s focus on historical accuracy and cultural research also distinguishes it from typical adventure fare. The integration of medieval knowledge into gameplay—requiring players to understand gemstone properties, druid traditions, and period customs—created an educational experience that remains engaging. As one reviewer noted: “The game’s focus on nuanced narrative, balanced puzzles, and morally intricate decisions ensures it remains relevant.”²⁸

Downloads

Purchase / Digital Stores

• GOG.com - Windows (ScummVM)

Download / Preservation

• Internet Archive - DOS version
• MyAbandonware - DOS and Amiga versions

Manuals & Extras

• Manual PDF (Internet Archive)
• Manual PDF (MOCAGH)

Series Continuity

Conquests of the Longbow is the second and final game in the Conquests series, which began with Conquests of Camelot: The Search for the Grail (1989). Both games were designed by Christy Marx and share a focus on British medieval legend with extensive historical research integrated into gameplay.⁵ While Conquests of Camelot explored Arthurian mythology, the sequel shifted to the Robin Hood legend while maintaining the series’ commitment to historical authenticity.

The games share design philosophies including multiple endings based on player choices and the integration of period knowledge into puzzles. However, Conquests of the Longbow benefited from the more advanced SCI1 engine, providing significantly improved graphics and interface compared to its predecessor’s SCI0 engine.⁹

No third installment was ever developed, making this the conclusion of Christy Marx’s Conquests series at Sierra.

• Previous: 1989 - Conquests of Camelot: The Search for the Grail

References

Footnotes

1. Wikipedia – Conquests of the Longbow – release dates, platforms, awards, design details, bibliography, British English usage ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴

2. Abandonware DOS – Conquests of the Longbow – gameplay description, user ratings, manual trivia ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

3. GOG.com – Conquests of the Longbow – product description, user reviews, technical requirements ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

4. Adventure Classic Gaming – Cheats/Walkthrough – design philosophy quotes, easter eggs, bugs ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶

5. PlayClassic.games – Conquests of the Longbow – game structure, mechanics, endings ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸

6. MyAbandonware – Conquests of the Longbow – release dates, user ratings, trivia ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴

7. Glitchwave – Conquests of the Longbow – user ratings, user review quotes ↩ ↩² ↩³

8. Adventure Gamers – Review (Archived) – retrospective review, score, analysis ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶

9. Choicest Games – Review – engine details, composer credits, gameplay analysis ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹

10. OldGames.sk – Conquests of the Longbow – ratings, platform info, series info ↩ ↩²

11. IMDB – Conquests of the Longbow – release date, ratings, plot summary, easter eggs ↩ ↩² ↩³

12. MobyGames – Conquests of the Longbow – credits, aggregate rating, technical specs, easter eggs, cut content ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷

13. Sierra Help Wiki – Technical – system requirements, patches, known bugs ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

14. Wikipedia – White Wolf Review Quote – Jim Trunzo review quote ↩ ↩²

15. The Adventure Gamer – Christy Marx Interview – development insights, designer quotes, research details ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹

16. Amiga Magazine Rack (Archived) – contemporary review scores compilation ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

17. Amiga Reviews (Archived) – Amiga version review, technical issues ↩ ↩² ↩³

18. Lemon Amiga – Review – Amiga version analysis, designer quote, technical problems ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷

19. RetroGames.cz – Conquests of the Longbow – executive designer credits ↩

20. Internet Archive – DOS Version – preservation info, technical specs ↩ ↩²

21. VGMdb – Sierra Soundtrack Collection – soundtrack recording details ↩ ↩²

22. The Sierra Chest – Conquests of the Longbow – release date, music track listing ↩

23. Speedrun.com – Conquests of the Longbow – speedrun data, version differences ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵

24. The-Spoiler.com – Point Walkthrough – maximum score, point breakdown ↩

25. The Digital Antiquarian – Sierra business strategy context ↩

26. Speedrun.com – Guide – speedrun strategies, Snowy Skips ↩

27. Reddit r/Sierra – 4K Rendering Post – fan project ↩

28. Best DOS Games – Conquests of the Longbow – modern relevance assessment ↩