Glorianna

Glorianna (or Gloriana) is the fictional world in which the hybrid role-playing/adventure computer games designed by Corey and Lori Ann Cole, Quest for Glory, takes place.

History
A force wave hit Earth during 1 BC which split the world in two parallel realities . While our part evolved according to 'real' history, time on the parallel Earth did not advance at an even rate, which explains the anachronisms found in the games.

Due to the uneven flow of time, the civilisations in Glorianna advanced at different rates: some remained in ancient times (Marete), Middle Ages (Spielburg), while others evolved into Victorian times (Mordavia); all civilisations co-existed together, with flavours of modern anachronisms. The Force wave also influenced some animals that rapidly started to evolve into sentient species, such as the Katta and the Liontaur.

The world of Glorianna is, essentially, a mirror of our own world. Many of the kingdoms and locations mentioned in the game series are representative of real-world locations. Spielburg, for example, represents a small, medieval Germanic town; while Marete is Glorianna's version of the Greco-Mediterranean islands in the Aegean Sea.

In Trial by Fire, we see different constellations (eg the Saurus, Dragon and Hand constellation), while the names of the planets Xenon, Ortega, Pestulon, Phleebhut, and Uranus (an allusion to Space Quest 3), hints that Glorianna is in a different planetary system. The division occurs only as 'background' information and is never mentioned in the course of the series.

Geography

Despite the various locations that are mentioned in Quest for Glory fanfiction, the only locations that can be considered canon are those locations in which the games occur, as well as those locations that are mentioned by characters within the five games or in the game manuals.

Locations In Which The Games Take Place

The following are a list of the locations in which the games take place, as well as their corresponding locations in the real world.

*Fricana (Africa)
*Marete (islands in the Aegean Sea)
*Mordavia (Transylvania; possibly a portmanteau of Moravia, Mordovia and Moldavia)
*Raseir (Middle East; anagram of 'Sierra')
*Shapeir (Middle East)
*Silmaria (City in Marete; derived from Latin roots sil- 'wood' and mare 'sea')
*Spielburg (Germany; meaning 'Game Castle' in German)
*Tarna (east African country)

Locations Mentioned

The following list compiles locations not seen in the games, but mentioned in dialogues or texts. Their known or assumed corresponding locations in the real world are also given.

*Damascus (Syria)
*Gaul (France)
*Egypt (Egypt; referenced in a manual, the only homonymous location)
*Gramarye (Great Britain)
*Hesparia (Italy)
*Inja (India)
*Falworth
*Jotunheim (Scandinavia)
*Nova Roma (Italy)
*Petalumeir (Middle East)
*Punjabi (Nepal)
*Surria (Russia)
*Vespucciland (North America)
*Zurich (Switzerland)

Uncertain and/or Speculative Locations:
*Aidendale; extrapolated from the character's name, Devon Aidendale. Its formation suggests it's a surname mentioning origin, therefore a placename. Could be a province of Willowsby or vice versa.
*Andromeda (A reference to the Sierra series Space Quest, possibly not a location on the world, but a galaxy)
*Fredonia (Unknown; reference to the Marx Brothers)
*Willowsby (Mentioned as the hometown of the Hero in the Quest for Glory strategy guide book written by Paula Spiese with Lori and Corey Cole)

Glorianna or Gloriana?

In , examining a globe in the house of the Famous Adventurer gives the message, "This globe is a map of the world of Gloriana." Still, there remains some dispute in the Quest for Glory fan community as to whether the proper name of the series' world is "Glorianna" or "Gloriana." Members of the community assert that one is correct over the other, and attribute the claim to Lori Ann Cole. Regardless of which form is correct, it is a general assumption within the series' fan community that the name "Glorianna", or "Gloriana", is a composite of "Glory" and "Lori Ann".

In September 2003, on the message boards of the fansite Quest for More Glory, Mishell Baker, who was working with Lori Ann Cole on a novelized adaptation of the Quest for Glory series, stated that the correct form was indeed "Glorianna" . In a May 2008 interview, Lori Ann Cole referred to the series' world as "Glorianna" .

As of July 2008, the official website of the Cole's, Transolar Entertainment, has a "Coming Soon" update for their new School of Heroes website, which lists the spelling as "Gloriana".

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See Also

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