King's Quest IV: The Perils of Rosella Retold

[DrSlash]

Hey everyone! Let me present to you King's Quest IV Retold, a point-and-click remake of the fourth chapter in Sierra's King's Quest series!

While this is not a 1:1 conversion of the original SCI game, with the most prominent change being the addition of full mouse support, I decided to keep the beautiful 320x200 EGA graphics of the original. In addition to halving the amount of work necessary to complete the project, this decision was also largely motivated by my dissatisfaction with the way many previous attempts at remaking 320x200 SCI games translated EGA graphics into VGA. In many (though not all) cases, the resulting art would look blurry, and much of the charm of the original would be lost in the process. Sierra's VGA remake of Quest for Glory I is probably the most notorious example of this issue.

No changes were made to the game's story or puzzles. Other than the transition to point-and-click controls, which can be seen either as an improvement or as a drawback depending on your tastes, all changes aim to improve upon the original game while staying as faithful to it as possible.

Key Features

Spoiler

Support of modern operating systems
Unlike any of the official releases of King's Quest IV, which cannot be played on modern operating systems without third-party emulators (e.g. DOSBox and ScummVM), this version is designed to run on Linux, MacOS, and any version of Windows from Windows XP onward.

Point-and-click controls
Unlike the original SCI and AGI versions of the game, which were controlled using text commands, King's Quest IV Retold features full mouse support and a completely reworked point-and-click interface similar to that of later Sierra titles. Many parts of the game were also tweaked to be more responsive to player input.

Incorporation of the best features from different versions of King's Quest IV
This remake combines the best aspects of the game's numerous official releases in a single version, offering players the most comprehensive King's Quest IV experience. This includes Roland MT-32 music, sound effects from the Apple IIGS release, environmental sounds from the Amiga release, as well as additional animation frames and more detailed backgrounds found only in early PC versions of the game.

Autosaves
King's Quest IV Retold features a number of quality-of-life improvements aimed at making some of the more dated mechanics of the original game more approachable, especially for new players. One of such improvements is the addition of an autosave system: the game will save automatically every 10 minutes or whenever the player enters a dangerous area. Autosaves cycle between three dedicated slots and will not overwrite manual saves created by the player. Autosaves can be disabled or re-enabled at any time.

Option to remove dead ends
Another major quality-of-life improvement is the option to remove all dead ends that can potentially prevent you from progressing in the game. Selecting this option will also remove the four-hour time limit, giving you as much time to complete the game as you need. Alternatively, you can choose to keep the dead ends and the time limit if you prefer to play the game the way it was originally designed.

Reworked troll caves
A number of improvements were made to troll caves, the most frustrating section of the original game. In addition to several minor gameplay improvements that allow the player to traverse the caves without abusing the game's save system, this area now features brand new backgrounds that replace the pitch-black screens found in the original game, allowing for easier navigation.

Additionally, this remake introduces numerous minor tweaks and improvements. It would be practically impossible to list everything, but more generally these include bug fixes, new animations, re-implementation of graphics cut from the original game, slight tweaks to portraits and backgrounds, typo corrections, additional flavor text, and so on.

[close]

F.A.Q.

Spoiler

Q: So the graphics are the same as in the original SCI version? What's the point then?
A: First and foremost, this remake is aimed at players who prefer point-and-click interfaces over text input. The rest can still enjoy it as a new, significantly less frustrating way to experience this Sierra classic.

Q: Why have I not heard about this project before?
A: No one has. This is just something I had been working on for fun in my spare time without actually expecting to ever finish the game, hence the lack of an announcement.

Q: How many people worked on this game?
A: Just me, myself, and I.

Q: How long did it take to complete the project?
A: Technically, this remake was first conceived back in September 2018, when I decided to create a small project for the 10th anniversary of my introduction to AGS (and by extension my introduction to game development in general). However, at the time it was just a one-room demo and was not meant to be anything more than a scripting exercise for someone who hasn't used AGS for almost 7 years. Months later, I randomly stumbled upon the project on my PC and decided to continue its development, since I had just obtained my master's degree and had a couple of months to spare before starting a new job. About 90% of the game was finished over the course of those two months. Understandably, after that, between the new job and the global pandemic, as well as my participation in several non-AGS projects, progress became much slower, at times coming to a halt. Fast forward two more years and the game is finally ready for release.

Q: Why not call it King's Quest IV Remake?
A: While technically King's Quest IV Remake would be a more accurate title, it would also be somewhat misleading, since most people in the Sierra fan community have come to associate remakes with more radical reimaginings that completely change the original game's look. Besides, there is always a chance that someone will actually make an SVGA remake of the game, so I decided to leave this title for others to take.

Q: Why King's Quest IV? Why not Space Quest III or some other game?
A: I find Space Quest III to be a perfectly good game the way it is. King's Quest IV, on the other hand, had the benefit of having a number of major flaws that I wanted to fix, while also being more historically significant (King's Quest IV was the first SCI game, the first PC game to support a sound card, as well as the first adventure game to feature a female protagonist). Another factor that contributed to this choice was the official reboot by The Odd Gentlemen, which rekindled my interest in the King's Quest series.

Q: Is this the final version of the game? Will there be a voice pack or other additions/changes in the future?
A: You can expect bug fixes in the future, but I don't have any major plans in terms of the game's content for the future. While there will always be more things to add or improve, at some point you need to draw the line and call your project finished.

Q: Will you port the game to [insert platform name here]?
A: While I'd love to port the game to more platforms, I have no experience in porting AGS games and no way of testing them under anything other than Windows. If there is a relatively easy way to create such ports and if you are willing to test them, let me know.

Q: What's next?
A: Well, now that I've spent the last 12 years working on fan games, remakes, and mods, it's high time for me to move on to my own original commercial projects. However, I don't have anything concrete in the pipeline right now, so if you need a translator, tester, or programmer for your commercial game, let me know.

Q: Is there any way to support your future projects?
A: Not at the moment, but I'll look into it when/if I decide on what my next project is going to be.

Q: What about Space Quest XII?
A: Canceled. Has been this way for over a decade now. One of the main reasons for the cancellation was the general lack of interest in the project among the Sierra fan base, however, there were also a number of fundamental problems with the very premise of the game, fixing which would require redoing the entire thing from scratch.

[close]

Changelog (may contain minor spoilers if you haven't played the game yet)

[changelog]Version 1.0.4 (July 24, 2022):
[ + ] The unicorn can now be seen roaming the meadows once it is released
[ + ] Picking up the frog now automatically sets it as the active inventory item to avoid confusing the player
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the game would switch to nighttime at noon if the dead ends are enabled
[ - ] Fixed a graphical bug where Rosella could sometimes pick up the frog and the ball without walking up to them first
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the peacock could sometimes walk on water
[ - ] Fixed a minor graphical bug where Rosella's sprite would not update after falling off the stairs
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the song played when summoning the dolphin would sometimes prevent other music tracks from playing
[ - ] Fixed a typo in the text pop-up for examining the chest of drawers in the Manor bedroom
[ - ] Fixed misaligned text boxes in one of Lolotte's cutscenes
[ - ] Fixed incorrect text box positions in one of Edgar's cutscenes
[ - ] Tweaked the walkable area masks for the organ room and the upper part of the Manor stairs
[ - ] Tweaked the walk-behind mask for Lolotte's dining room
[ - ] Increased the size of the trigger zone for going north from the eastern cemetery
[ - ] The troll now takes more time to appear when chasing Rosella from a different screen
[ - ] The unicorn's initial location is now determined after starting a new game rather than immediately after the game is launched
[ - ] Adjusted the timing of the intro cutscene
[ - ] Updated the fonts used in the credits

Version 1.0.3 (June 6, 2021):
[ + ] Added an alternative hotkey for toggling between Walk and the last cursor mode
[ + ] Mouse is now automatically switched to Walk mode after digging to prevent the player from breaking the shovel by accident
[ + ] Added a text pop-up for trying to interact with the fake wall after looking at the portrait but before examining the wall
[ + ] Added mouseover hints for stable gates
[ + ] Added nighttime water animations for Genesta's island
[ + ] Added nighttime graphics for the ogres' house
[ + ] Added a new ambient track that plays in the forest at night
[ + ] Added a music track that plays when Rosella gets caught by the troll
[ + ] Seagulls can now appear on the screen with the fisherman's shack
[ + ] Improved goon pathfinding when using diagonal movement hotkeys
[ + ] Rosella now always faces the board before picking it up
[ - ] Fixed a bug where Rosella would get stuck on the eastern stairs in Lolotte's castle
[ - ] Fixed a bug that would sometimes prevent the player from combining inventory items
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the hen would not appear in Lolotte's storage room
[ - ] Fixed a bug where Rosella would fall upwards after trying to pick the bow from the opposite side of the pool
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the troll would appear even if the game is already over (e.g. if the player extinguishes the lantern immediately after entering a new screen)
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the message warning the player about Lolotte's goons would permanently stay on the screen
[ - ] Fixed a graphical bug where Rosella would move backwards while on the stairs
[ - ] Fixed a typo in the text pop-up for examining the locket
[ - ] Slightly tweaked several backdrops (waterfall, south of the waterfall, organ room, western stairs in Lolotte castle, Lolotte's throne room)
[ - ] Made major updates to all nighttime and some daytime backdrops for Genesta's island
[ - ] Tweaked walkable area and walk-behind masks for the northeastern and southeastern sections of Genesta's island
[ - ] Tweaked walkable area, walk-behind, and hotspot masks for Cupid's pool
[ - ] Increased the size of several hotspots (crypt ladder, Lolotte in bed, Genesta in bed)
[ - ] Updated the ambient track used in the swamp
[ - ] Fall sounds no longer get cut off on room transitions
[ - ] Certain decorative birds and fish no longer appear at night
[ - ] Rosella can no longer die from exposure at night
[ - ] Slightly increased the maximum distance from which Cupid can be startled

Version 1.0.2 (May 10, 2021):
[ + ] Added hotkeys for toggling between Walk and the last cursor mode
[ + ] Lute and flute playing animations can now be skipped with the Esc key
[ + ] Movement hotkeys introduced in the previous patch can now be used to stand up from the organ
[ - ] Fixed a bug where movement hotkeys introduced in the previous patch allowed Rosella to walk while holding the frog
[ - ] Cupid behavior is now more consistent with the original game
[ - ] Increased the chance for the robin to appear
[ - ] Implemented a better fix for the bug where the game would not recognize a two-tile inventory item
[ - ] Optimized the code responsible for highlighting items on the inventory screen
[ - ] Fixed minor graphical errors on the backdrop for Genesta's bedroom

Version 1.0.1 (May 9, 2021):
[ + ] Added a quicksave feature
[ + ] Added a hotkey for restoring the last save
[ + ] Added hotkeys for changing game speed
[ + ] Added hotkeys for switching between cursor modes
[ + ] Added numpad hotkeys for moving diagonally
[ + ] Pressing the Enter key is now equivalent to clicking the left mouse button when no GUI is displayed
[ + ] Chasm fall animation can now be skipped with the Esc key
[ + ] Keyhole cutscenes can now be skipped if the ogre is sleeping or not inside the house
[ + ] The ending cutscene can now be skipped with the Esc key
[ + ] The "KQ4" button in the options menu now includes a message indicating whether the dead ends and the time limit are enabled
[ - ] Fixed a crash where the ogre and the ogress would appear in the bedroom or the kitchen at the same time
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the game would say the Unicorn is paralyzed with fear even if there is no Unicorn on the screen
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the game would not remove the fish from the player's inventory
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the game would not recognize a two-tile inventory item if the inventory window was closed on the exact frame the item was selected
[ - ] Fixed a bug where one of the halves of a selected two-tile inventory item would sometimes not be highlighted on the inventory screen
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the time displayed in the grandfather clock's look message would repeatedly switch between A.M. and P.M. at noon and midnight
[ - ] Presumably fixed a bug where the game would softlock when falling down the chasm
[ - ] Implemented WASD movement, which did not work in the previous version despite being listed among the game's controls
[ - ] To prevent possible bugs, manual saves may no longer contain the words "AUTOSAVE" and "QUICKSAVE" in their names
[ - ] Game speed is no longer automatically set to default when Edgar comes upstairs to Lolotte's room
[ - ] Ogre spawn behavior and door script for the ogre's house are now more consistent with the original game
[ - ] Increased the size of the trigger zone for going downstairs from the organ screen
[ - ] Increased the size of the hotspot for the pile of bones
[ - ] Slightly expanded the walkable area for crossing the chasm
[ - ] Prerequisites for automatic time progression are now more consistent with the original game
[ - ] Increased the chance for the Lord of the Manor to appear
[ - ] Changed the behavior of the Miser to make it more consistent with the original game
[ - ] Updated the appearance of the talk cursor
[ - ] Removed silence at the end of the music track that plays on the pier screen[/changelog]



The game is available for Windows, Linux, and MacOS. Download links can be found on the game's AGS database page.

[Athanor]

Congratulations to the release! That's a wonderful surprise and I really like the fact that you carefully modernized this classic without changing the atmosphere and aesthetics. I especially like that there is an option to play without the terrible Sierra dead ends. And, lazy as I am, I really appreciate the point and click-controls. Oh and I LOVE the MT32-music and the atmospheric environmental sound effects! Well done!

[DrSlash]

Thanks, Athanor! Yep, between the somber soundtrack and the almost horror-inspired visuals, atmosphere is definitely one of the best aspects of the original game. As for the whole point-and-click vs command input controls discussion, there are definitely arguments to be made for both sides, but I personally feel that, in the case of King's Quest, there isn't much "lost in translation" when adapting these games to mouse controls. Can't say the same about Leisure Suit Larry or Space Quest, though.

Hope you have fun playing the game!

[daleks13]

Wow thanks couple quick questions is it easier to walk up the whales tongue ? And is the stairs easier to climb ?

[DrSlash]

Yes, to both of your questions! Moreover, in addition to these sections of the game being less punishing thanks to the support of mouse controls and to AGS having better pathfinding than early SCI, the game also creates an autosave whenever you enter a room with potentially lethal stairs, just in case!

[agentbauer]

Congratulations to the release! Just downloading and I appreciate the PnC interface.
You should get in contact with Nightfable, she made some wonderful VGA backgrounds and animations for our (on hold) remake of KQ IV.

[mkennedy]

Thanks for the option to avoid dead ends!
Is the text parser present at all or is it strictly point and click?

[DrSlash]

Congratulations to the release! Just downloading and I appreciate the PnC interface.
You should get in contact with Nightfable, she made some wonderful VGA backgrounds and animations for our (on hold) remake of KQ IV.

Thank you, agentbauer!
Yep, I've seen Nightfable's work, it looks fantastic! It's a shame that the project was canceled/put on hold.
Maybe I'll message her once I get a chance to step back from my project for a while and get some rest. To be quite honest, I'm currently at the point where I can't even look at my game (or anything else King's Quest, for that matter) anymore. That's what countless hours of testing will do to you, I guess!

Thanks for the option to avoid dead ends!
Is the text parser present at all or is it strictly point and click?

Nope. I considered keeping it as an option similarly to AGDI's Quest for Glory II remake, but that would be just too much work for something few people would use. One of my main goals with this project was to make King's Quest IV more approachable for newer players, many of whom were put off by the original game's controls. At the end of the day, text parser purists will always have the option to go back to the original.

[daleks13]

Theres still this unicorntales working on KQ 4 remake https://unicorntales.org/kq4-perilsofrosella-remake/ that needs help.

[DrSlash]

Yep, I'm familiar with that project as well. From what I understand, they already have the programming part more or less sorted out. Not to mention that differences in game resolution and background composition would render my code pretty much unusable for them, since none of the hotspots, walkable areas, object coordinates, etc. would match between the two projects. In most cases, it would really be easier for them to write their own code from scratch than to try and adapt someone else's. However, if their programmers ever run into some sort of a major roadblock, I'd be happy to help them with some advice and explain how I dealt with it in my project.
I definitely am looking forward to seeing their version of the game released and wish them the best of luck! 👍 The more fan games there are, the merrier. After all, these projects are what keeps the Sierra fan base alive after so many years.

[Blackthorne]

Very cool! This looks amazing!


Bt

[negator2vc]

Wow! Amazing!!!! Every old (especially Sierra) adventure game need a remake like this.
Improved controls + no dead ends!!!!
Great Job

Now for a little feedback:
- Increase the room's exits hotspots size. Now you have to click right on each screen edge in order to change room (which make it difficult to navigate the world).
Even better maybe show a desc or a different cursor ex. an arrow (like most modern adventure games do)
- Show, maybe in the settings panel, which game's version the player is currently playing (with or without deadends).
- In the Linux Version the exec filename "King'sQuest4" need to be renamed in order for the game to start (in addition to the needed change of permittions).
Since the exec filename is taken from the project name when you build the game I think it's best if you rename the project (just the project) to something like KQ4Retold (without spaces or weird characters) to avoid the problem.

I tested the Linux version in Linux Mint x64

[DrSlash]

Very cool! This looks amazing!


Bt

Thanks Bt! Infamous Adventures is one of the biggest reasons why I started making my own games, so it's always great to hear positive feedback from you!

Wow! Amazing!!!! Every old (especially Sierra) adventure game need a remake like this.
Improved controls   no dead ends!!!!
Great Job

Thank you, negator2vc! I'm glad you're enjoying the game!

Even better maybe show a desc or a different cursor ex. an arrow (like most modern adventure games do)

That's actually a great idea, I will consider it, thanks!

Show, maybe in the settings panel, which game's version the player is currently playing (with or without deadends)

Yeah, I thought about it but didn't find a suitable place to display this information. I'll probably add this in the next patch.

In the Linux Version the exec filename "King'sQuest4" need to be renamed in order for the game to start (in addition to the needed change of permittions).
Since the exec filename is taken from the project name when you build the game I think it's best if you rename the project (just the project) to something like KQ4Retold (without spaces or weird characters) to avoid the problem.

I tested the Linux version in Linux Mint x64

Thanks! Great to know that the port works! I'll make sure to change the filename as you suggested.

[OneShortEye]

First off, awesome game! I know we spoke a bit on YouTube, but I'll echo my sentiments and congratulate you on how good this is.

topkekshrek found a bug that occurs after you grab the hen but then go upstairs in the ogre's house.

https://clips.twitch.tv/TenuousBlightedButterOSkomodo-QrEvYHqoDd1qu7oT

There were a couple others that I'll try to grab video of later involving the cave chasm. On multiple occasions, we've fallen down the chasm, only to have the restore / restart dialog never show up.

[DrSlash]

Noted. Thanks for bringing this to my attention, I'll be sure to fix these in the upcoming patch!

[JStryker47]

Hello, Dr. Slash.  I'm Jack Stryker, head of Unicorn Tales' King's Que-

Crowd:  "We know!"

Okay already...

As I stated in my latest update thread, we have indeed gotten over most of the hurdles involved with our project, though we do still have some bugs left to exterminate.  All the same, we would very much appreciate any kind of help we can get, should we ever need it.  That being said, I've just played through your remake and I have some feedback to offer.  I'll inform you in advance, that the good most certainly outweighs the bad.  Also, just so you know, we had a couple ideas similar to yours, but we honestly had no idea your game existed until now.  So, here are the pros and cons.

Spoiler

Pros:

+ The ambient sounds are very nice.
+ I like what you did with the ball in the pond, and the narration message for picking up Cupid's bow.
+ The death screen messages are pretty good.
+ The inventory messages aren't too shabby either.
+ The troll cave section is amazingly well done and I liked how much easier it was to elude the troll.
+ I think I speak for about 90% of all King's Quest fans, when I say that I appreciate you eliminating that annoying "You're not close enough." message.  (For the most part anyway.)
+ Pan walking up to Rosella after hearing her play the lute, instead of just freezing in place, is a good change.
+ The stairs are indeed much easier to navigate.
+ Autosaves and the option to eliminate dead ends are a welcome addition.
+ I liked that you slowed down certain animations that went by too fast in the original - like when Genesta teleports Rosella and herself outside in the end.  In the original, it was so fast that you could barely make out a word of the narration message.
+ Genesta's revised line about Edgar is a welcome change too.
+ As much as I like Roberta and all the things she did for the PC gaming community, it was nice to not have to look at her picture in this game.  (Although I think Genesta's portrait might've been more appropriate for the ending.)

Cons:

- The fish remained in my inventory, even after feeding it to the pelican.
- While the stairs were significantly easier to navigate, I found it incredibly hard not to fall from the top of the stairs in the organ room; which I'm not sure was possible in the original.  (Was it?)  At any rate, that was the only part where I had any trouble falling, and I did fall there A LOT.
- The only ghost sound I heard was an occasional baby cry; which wasn't very scary-sounding.
- The sound of the grandfather clock was a little annoying and sort of took away from the ghosts' music when they appeared in that room.
- The clock's eye message also contains a typo.  12:00 AM is midnight.  If it's daytime, then the time should be 12:00 PM.

[close]

[doctorfargo]

Just completed it! Very good job!

I especially liked that you used the ambient sounds from the Amiga version. 

[DrSlash]

As I stated in my latest update thread, we have indeed gotten over most of the hurdles involved with our project, though we do still have some bugs left to exterminate.  All the same, we would very much appreciate any kind of help we can get, should we ever need it.

Hi, Stryker! Sure, feel free to PM me and fill me in on the details of what remains to be finished in your remake in terms of scripting. I'll see if I can help you somehow. However, I have a feeling that I'll be too busy patching my own game in the coming weeks, so I can't make any promises right now.

That being said, I've just played through your remake and I have some feedback to offer.  I'll inform you in advance, that the good most certainly outweighs the bad.  Also, just so you know, we had a couple ideas similar to yours, but we honestly had no idea your game existed until now.  So, here are the pros and cons.

Thanks for your extensive feedback! Glad you noticed the smaller changes as well! The fish remaining in your inventory sounds like a bug, I'll make sure to fix it. Pathfinding in the organ room is probably the most common complaint right now, I'll see if there is a way to improve it. Almost all sound effects are taken from the IIGS and Amiga versions of the original game; unfortunately, neither of them had any sounds for the other ghosts. And yep, I always keep making the same mistake of confusing AM and PM at noon and midnight â€" will be fixed!

Just completed it! Very good job!

I especially liked that you used the ambient sounds from the Amiga version. 

Thank you, doctorfargo! Glad you enjoyed the game!

[Whyshchuck]

Great job! Wow! Thank you!

The only think I found missing is diagonal move with numeric pad.
It's would be very usefull in stair scenes.

Have you thought about preparing Conquest of Camelot in the same way?

[DrSlash]

The only think I found missing is diagonal move with numeric pad.
It's would be very usefull in stair scenes.

Good idea, will be implemented in the upcoming patch!

Have you thought about preparing Conquest of Camelot in the same way?

Conquest of Camelot is a fantastic game, but I don't plan to start any new remake/fan game projects at this point. I've already dedicated the past 13 years of my life to fan projects, so I think it's time for me to move on to my own original games.

However, hypothetically speaking, I would love to see someone remake Quest for Glory III more than anything else. QfG3 doesn't need any significant updates to its visuals or gameplay mechanics, but its story could definitely be fleshed out a bit more and there just isn't that much stuff to do in the game (especially for the Thief class).

[JStryker47]

I forgot to mention two other pros, and one other con:

Spoiler

+ The KQ1 SCI style title screen is a welcome change.  Honestly, every King's Quest game should've started like that, rather than asking whether or not the player has played the game before.
+ It was nice to be able to avoid the shark, rather than have his presence be an immediate death sentence.  (Though I was usually able to avoid him completely, by walking off the pier and swimming to Genesta's island from there.)

- The ogre’s dog moves pretty fast, making it difficult to click the bone on him in time.  (The way we combat this in our version, is by having the cursor go to the icon bar as soon as the “watch out” message goes away, and making him move slightly slower.)

[close]

Personally, if it was possible, I'd like to see Quest for Glory 5 re-done.  As much as I enjoy that game, it has quite a few serious problems.  But I feel like that's a rant that needs its own thread; which I'll probably make later.

[daleks13]

Ok i finished the game with perfect score. 3 things that were the hardest for me climbing  whale tongue still. Climbing the stairs leading to Lolotte's bedroom going up and down.
and getting the eye from those witches.

Also i noticed even with no deadlocks on you can still eat the fruit surprised with that means you could only get the sad ending. i saved my game before doing it though just wanted to see if it was possible.

[edenwaith]

I noticed that there are versions available for Windows and Linux, but not for Mac.  On a Facebook post announcing this game, another person lamented that there wasn't a Mac version available.

Fortunately, I have ported a number of AGS games to the Mac, so I spent a couple of minutes to put together a proof of concept, and got a Mac version up and running in about five minutes.  Let me know if you'd like a more official version of a Mac port.

[imgzoom]http://www.edenwaith.com/images/misc/KQ4-Retold-Mac.png[/imgzoom]

[mkennedy]

How does the day/night cycle work when you disable the time limit and dead ends?

[DrSlash]

Fortunately, I have ported a number of AGS games to the Mac, so I spent a couple of minutes to put together a proof of concept, and got a Mac version up and running in about five minutes.  Let me know if you'd like a more official version of a Mac port.

That's great, edenwaith! Feel free to pm me so we can discuss the port. I'm planning to release the first patch some time this weekend, and I'd love to have it available for Mac as well.

How does the day/night cycle work when you disable the time limit and dead ends?

Pretty much the same way as in the SCI version of the game, minus the time limit. You see, even in the original game, there are set points in the story that will automatically progress the time till night or morning. Minor spoilers below:

Spoiler

â€" The night falls once you have the scarab and the fruit
â€" The morning comes once you defeat Lolotte

[close]

[agentbauer]

Has anyone else problems in kissing the frog.
I picked him up, but I can't click on him. The cursor always says, I click on Rosella.

But anyway, great work, very impressive.
I'd love to see a QfG 5 in your style

[DrSlash]

King's Quest IV Retold 1.0.1 is out!

The patch fixes a number of minor bugs, as well as contains several new quality-of-life improvements. None of the bugs are completely gamebreaking though, so feel free to skip this patch if you've already started a save on the older version.

Complete changelog (may contain minor spoilers if you haven't played the game yet):
[changelog][ + ] Added a quicksave feature
[ + ] Added a hotkey for restoring the last save
[ + ] Added hotkeys for changing game speed
[ + ] Added hotkeys for switching between cursor modes
[ + ] Added numpad hotkeys for moving diagonally
[ + ] Pressing the Enter key is now equivalent to clicking the left mouse button when no GUI is displayed
[ + ] Chasm fall animation can now be skipped with the Esc key
[ + ] Keyhole cutscenes can now be skipped if the ogre is sleeping or not inside the house
[ + ] The ending cutscene can now be skipped with the Esc key
[ + ] The "KQ4" button in the options menu now includes a message indicating whether the dead-ends and the time limit are enabled
[ - ] Fixed a crash where the ogre and the ogress would appear in the bedroom or the kitchen at the same time
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the game would say the Unicorn is paralyzed with fear even if there is no Unicorn on the screen
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the game would not remove the fish from the player's inventory
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the game would not recognize a two-tile inventory item if the inventory window was closed on the exact frame the item was selected
[ - ] Fixed a bug where one of the halves of a selected two-tile inventory item would sometimes not be highlighted on the inventory screen
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the time displayed in the grandfather clock's look message would repeatedly switch between A.M. and P.M. at noon and midnight
[ - ] Presumably fixed a bug where the game would softlock when falling down the chasm
[ - ] Implemented WASD movement, which did not work in the previous version despite being listed among the game's controls
[ - ] To prevent possible bugs, manual saves may no longer contain the words "AUTOSAVE" and "QUICKSAVE" in their names
[ - ] Game speed is no longer automatically set to default when Edgar comes upstairs to Lolotte's room
[ - ] Ogre spawn behavior and door script for the ogre's house are now more consistent with the original game
[ - ] Increased the size of the trigger zone for going downstairs from the organ screen
[ - ] Increased the size of the hotspot for the pile of bones
[ - ] Slightly expanded the walkable area for crossing the chasm
[ - ] Prerequisites for automatic time progression are now more consistent with the original game
[ - ] Increased the chance for the Lord of the Manor to appear
[ - ] Changed the behavior of the Miser to make it more consistent with the original game
[ - ] Updated the appearance of the talk cursor
[ - ] Removed silence at the end of the music track that plays on the pier screen[/changelog]

A MacOS port is underway and will (presumably) soon become available as well.

The clock's eye message also contains a typo.  12:00 AM is midnight.  If it's daytime, then the time should be 12:00 PM.

Interestingly, turns out it wasn't a typo. It was a bug that caused the clock to switch between AM and PM every frame at noon and midnight. I'm surprised that this bug was caught so fast, considering that there was only a 10-second window in which it could occur.

Has anyone else problems in kissing the frog.
I picked him up, but I can't click on him. The cursor always says, I click on Rosella.

Spoiler

Yep, this is not how you kiss the frog. Try a different approach.

[close]

[daleks13]

Has anyone else problems in kissing the frog.
I picked him up, but I can't click on him. The cursor always says, I click on Rosella.

But anyway, great work, very impressive.
I'd love to see a QfG 5 in your style

Agentbauer check your inventory the frog should be there then just click hand icon on the frog to kiss it.

[Shadow1000]

Incredible remake! I don't think I played the original (it was SO long ago) but thankfully there are plenty of walkthroughs because some of the puzzle solutions are not ones I would have figured out on my own. (this remark is towards the original, not to remake)

One small scripting bug:

Spoiler

I am at the point in the game where I have to retrieve the unicorn. I went back on the mountain to see what happens and it says "the unicorn seems paralyzed with fear" even though I don't yet have the unicorn

[close]

[DrSlash]

Thanks, Shadow, glad you're enjoying the game! Also thanks for the report, however the bug you described has just been fixed in today's patch

[Athanor]

Thank you so much @DrSlash for continuing to iron out the (very few!) bumps in your lovely remake! I really appreciate that.

[DrSlash]

King's Quest IV Retold 1.0.2 is out!

Same as the previous one, this patch only contains minor fixes and quality-of-life additions, so no need to updated if you've already started a save.

Complete changelog (may contain minor spoilers if you haven't played the game yet):
[changelog]Version 1.0.2 (May 10, 2021):
[ + ] Added hotkeys for toggling between Walk and the last cursor mode
[ + ] Lute and flute playing animations can now be skipped with the Esc key
[ + ] Movement hotkeys introduced in the previous patch can now be used to stand up from the organ
[ - ] Fixed a bug where movement hotkeys introduced in the previous patch allowed Rosella to walk while holding the frog
[ - ] Cupid behavior is now more consistent with the original game
[ - ] Increased the chance for the robin to appear
[ - ] Implemented a better fix for the bug where the game would not recognize a two-tile inventory item
[ - ] Optimized the code responsible for highlighting items on the inventory screen
[ - ] Fixed minor graphical errors on the backdrop for Genesta's bedroom[/changelog]


The MacOS port is still coming, stay tuned!

Thank you so much @DrSlash for continuing to iron out the (very few!) bumps in your lovely remake! I really appreciate that.

Thank you, Athanor! Yeah, there were definitely less bugs than I feared, but still more than I hoped (then again, I hoped there won't be any bugs at all  ).

[sonneveld]

This is wonderful! I found out about this new version on therenesance's twitch stream https://www.twitch.tv/videos/1016235795 .

Is there a chance of incorporating some of the differences in the AGI version?  For example, opening Pandora's box is slightly different:

I was also wondering if you had a chance to add easter eggs like these ones:

[DrSlash]

This is wonderful! I found out about this new version on therenesance's twitch stream

Thanks for the link, I'll definitely check out the stream! Seeing other people play the game is extremely helpful for collecting feedback.

Is there a chance of incorporating some of the differences in the AGI version?  For example, opening Pandora's box is slightly different:

Interesting, I did not know that the Pandora's box scene has a dedicated screen in the AGI version. Regardless, I don't currently have any plans to incorporate any of the scenes unique to the AGI version into Retold. That would require remaking all the graphics used in these scenes from scratch, which is beyond the scope of the project.
Besides, Retold has its own easter eggs (albeit, all of them are text-only).

[Jen_78]

I think I found a mistake unless I am missing something.

Spoiler

At the end of the game, after killing Lolotte, the hen is supposed to be in the room with Pandora's Box. You're supposed to be able to pick it up and take it to Genesta's island, but it isn't in the room.

[close]

Other than that, thank you for this!  This is my favorite game of all time and it was so much fun revisiting it!

[DrSlash]

Spoiler

At the end of the game, after killing Lolotte, the hen is supposed to be in the room with Pandora's Box. You're supposed to be able to pick it up and take it to Genesta's island, but it isn't in the room.

[close]

Hm, very curious, thanks for reporting this. I think I might have found the issue. Did you

Spoiler

return to the Ogre's house to get the axe AFTER bringing the hen to Lolotte, by any chance?

[close]

[Jen_78]

Spoiler

At the end of the game, after killing Lolotte, the hen is supposed to be in the room with Pandora's Box. You're supposed to be able to pick it up and take it to Genesta's island, but it isn't in the room.

[close]

Hm, very curious, thanks for reporting this. I think I might have found the issue. Did you

Spoiler

return to the Ogre's house to get the axe AFTER bringing the hen to Lolotte, by any chance?

[close]

Ah, actually, yes, yes I did.  I forgot about

Spoiler

picking up the axe the first time. I went upstairs and was like... I KNOW I was supposed to do something up here, but can't remember what. So I had to go back later and get it.

[close]

And I am exactly 4 points shy of the perfect score... and that is why.

[Snarky]

Really happy I noticed this thread. So cool! I haven't played it yet (or any earlier version of KQ4, actually), but I'm really psyched that you've got all the various music and audio from different versions combined.

Not gonna lie: I would really love to see this refresh of the game design/UI combined with Nightfable's VGA-style art (the 3D-rendered, SVGA style does not appeal to me), even though I have a whole lot of respect for this approach as well. Perhaps some day…

[agentbauer]

Really happy I noticed this thread. So cool! I haven't played it yet (or any earlier version of KQ4, actually), but I'm really psyched that you've got all the various music and audio from different versions combined.

Not gonna lie: I would really love to see this refresh of the game design/UI combined with Nightfable's VGA-style art (the 3D-rendered, SVGA style does not appeal to me), even though I have a whole lot of respect for this approach as well. Perhaps some day...

Yep, not much to add.
I worked with her on the VGA remake, and her VGA-art is perfectly Sierra style.

Just take a look here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dk9deJYs0gY

Add her VGA-art to this awesome remake, and there would be Kings Quest IV: The Perils of Rosella Retold VGA

DrSlash, I just finished the game the second time, this time with dead-ends..
Awesome work, even if I repeat myself. Programming that game must have been a difficult task.

[DrSlash]

The Mac port is now available for download! Same as with other versions, all download links can be found on the game's AGS database page. Huge thanks to edenwaith for creating the port!

Really happy I noticed this thread. So cool! I haven't played it yet (or any earlier version of KQ4, actually), but I'm really psyched that you've got all the various music and audio from different versions combined.

Awesome work, even if I repeat myself. Programming that game must have been a difficult task.

Thanks, both of you!
And yep, programming this game was definitely a rather challenging task, considering its scope and the complexity of some of its sections and systems, but that's what made this whole project fun. Game development can become tedious and feel like a chore when there are no challenges.

[JStryker47]

I seem to have discovered a new bug.

Spoiler

When clicking the hand on Cupid's bow, from the bottom of the pool screen, Rosella crosses the pool to get it.  Then she "falls" up a screen and makes a splash.

[close]

[cesarcoll]

Great work! In my personal opinion, that was the only kind of remake KQ4 could use, I find the original pixelated graphics so beautiful (unlike, the graphics in KQ1, KQ2, AND KQ3).

I was wondering if you plan to add speech. I think one of my favorite things about KQ6 is the narrators voice. It feels like someone is reading you a story. Max out those nostalgia points.

There are very good voice actors on fiverr.com. If you count the words that need to be said, you can easily calculate the cost and then start a gofundme campaign. I think it's quite doable.

Anyway, congratulations agan. KQ4 is my favorite of the series!

[DrSlash]

I seem to have discovered a new bug.

Thanks for letting me know! It will be fixed in the next patch.

I was wondering if you plan to add speech. I think one of my favorite things about KQ6 is the narrators voice. It feels like someone is reading you a story. Max out those nostalgia points.

There are very good voice actors on fiverr.com. If you count the words that need to be said, you can easily calculate the cost and then start a gofundme campaign. I think it's quite doable.

No, as stated in the F.A.Q., I don't have any plans to add voices to the game. It's an extremely tedious and time-consuming process, and it simply would not be worth doing at this point.
And attempting to crowdfund an unofficial non-commercial project is a whole other can of worms that I have no desire to open.

[mkennedy]

Good job on the remake, one slight comment about getting a perfect score -

Spoiler

apparently Rosella does not need to return Cupid's bow to him? Seems he would be a lot more deserving than giving the eye back to the withes.

[close]

[sthomannch]

Well done! KQ IV was one of the first graphical adventures that I played and the best in the whole series.

About a perfect score:

Spoiler

Cupid does not come back, no chance to return the bow, also not in the original game

[close]

[mkennedy]

About a perfect score:

Spoiler

Cupid does not come back, no chance to return the bow, also not in the original game

[close]

Yeah, It's just that if I remember correctly

Spoiler

she made a comment about giving it back which was kind of why I wondered about it.

[close]

[cesarcoll]

I don't have any plans to add voices to the game. It's an extremely tedious and time-consuming process, and it simply would not be worth doing at this point.
And attempting to crowdfund an unofficial non-commercial project is a whole other can of worms that I have no desire to open.

Fair enough. I'm just so excited about your work, tho. Would you consider making the code open source? 

Anyway, I found a little discrepancy with the original version (not even a bug, really). On the river screen, one west of the starting screen, when you go up, the original game sends you to a different screen depending on your horizontal position. If you are close to the river, it takes you to the bridge screen. I personally like this, but I can also see that it can be confusing for people who are drawing their first map of Tamir.

[DrSlash]

Good job on the remake, one slight comment about getting a perfect score -

Spoiler

apparently Rosella does not need to return Cupid's bow to him? Seems he would be a lot more deserving than giving the eye back to the withes.

[close]

Yeah, as sthomannch said, there is no way of returning the bow in any version of the game. I included a text mentioning it in Retold so as to at least make it clear that Rosella does not intend to steal the bow, even if she never gets an opportunity to give it back. While it would be interesting to have an option to return the bow, I didn't want to make any changes or additions that would make the game incompatible with walkthroughs written for the original game. Besides, there are dozens of other things that I would love to alter or implement, but it would just delay the release a couple of years more.

Would you consider making the code open source? 

I have considered doing it at one point during the development, but it would be more trouble than it's worth. However, if someone is interested in some particular feature of my project, especially if it's something unique to Retold and not present in the original game (e.g. autosaves, lantern code, etc.), I might consider creating a thread where I explain how I did that.

Anyway, I found a little discrepancy with the original version (not even a bug, really). On the river screen, one west of the starting screen, when you go up, the original game sends you to a different screen depending on your horizontal position. If you are close to the river, it takes you to the bridge screen. I personally like this, but I can also see that it can be confusing for people who are drawing their first map of Tamir.

I always found it weird and unintuitive how this is the only screen where this happens in the original game. So, no, this is one discrepancy between my remake and the SCI version that I have no plans to fix.

[mkennedy]

Good job on the remake, one slight comment about getting a perfect score -

Spoiler

apparently Rosella does not need to return Cupid's bow to him? Seems he would be a lot more deserving than giving the eye back to the withes.

[close]

Yeah, as sthomannch said, there is no way of returning the bow in any version of the game. I included a text mentioning it in Retold so as to at least make it clear that Rosella does not intend to steal the bow, even if she never gets an opportunity to give it back. While it would be interesting to have an option to return the bow, I didn't want to make any changes or additions that would make the game incompatible with walkthroughs written for the original game. Besides, there are dozens of other things that I would love to alter or implement, but it would just delay the release a couple of years more.

Spoiler

Maybe just add an extra line of dialog at the end where Rosella gives the bow to Genesta and ask her to give it to Cupid next time she sees him?

[close]

[Nowhere Girl]

King's Quest IV was (...) the first adventure game to feature a female protagonist

And this is scary: that for so long men have considered us Uninteresting People.

OK, now I'll move on to what I came here for. I wanted to comment because I have just played the game. Some of my loose thoughts about it:
1. I have discovered it quite accidentally! Why isn't it promoted everywhere where there are game developers who "admit" to retro inspiration?
2. When I first discovered "King's Quest 4", I greatly enjoyed checking how do places change after nightfall... and was very disappointed to see that, apparently, at night you just can't return to Genesta's island. Rosella would just get tired and drown. (At some point I complained about it somewhere and someone commented, something like: typical Sierra - don't want to do extra graphics? Block a whole area off in an implausible way! ) Thanks a lot for fixing that flaw.
3. Obviously, also thanks for reworking the cave section. In the original, the fragment with crossing the chasm was unfair to the point of being just ridiculous. Now it's much better.
4. Although, the "readme" file seems to indicate that there is some way of getting rid of the troll, or having him let you pass. I haven't discovered it - any hint?
5. Therefore (?), I also had "only" 228 points, unlike in the original.
6. Improvement idea. I actually liked the new text on the note found in the whale's mouth, but I was a little disappointed that there's nothing more. Perhaps it could promote other retro games, particularly EGA/EGA-ish ones - you'd of couse need to talk to their developers. "The Crimson Diamond", "Betrayed Alliance", "Snail Trek", "Cascadia Quest", and just now a guy from Powerhoof is making some little EGA game for Adventure Jam, I hope that it will be available... (Actually, I checked out the Adventure Jam site, but haven't seen any information about this game - and I can't contact omost game developers directly because I only use social media "passively"- (that is, I read some profiles without having any accounts.)
7. As most players probably know, the SCI version didn't have the "Beam Me" room. I wondered if you had nevertheless recreated it for this version. And if yes - how to get there without a text parser?
8. I love good-quality EGA, although I still prefer VGA (if I had to choose a single favourite game, it would probably be "Foxtail") and I still hope that a VGA version of "King's Quest 4" will be made some day. I regret that one of the people who attempted a remake died, but I don't regret that remake itself - I'm open about disliking 3D and I didn't like how Rosella looked too sexy in the 3D version... really, can't we have female protagonists without catering to horny men? I know we can, but I just dislike this direction of development.
Just some of my thoughts, thank you in advance for commenting and answering my questions.

[Nowhere Girl]

However, hypothetically speaking, I would love to see someone remake Quest for Glory III more than anything else. QfG3 doesn't need any significant updates to its visuals or gameplay mechanics, but its story could definitely be fleshed out a bit more and there just isn't that much stuff to do in the game (especially for the Thief class).

QfG3 is buggy, first of all. I have tested running it in ScummVM a few years ago and it helps a lot, but is not perfectly smooth either.
1. When playing through DOSBox, I never get any extra dialogue topics when I meet Harami again. Always the same ones as on the first evening.
2. There is one major bug with ScummVM: day/night cycle not working visually. That is, all nighttime events happen as they should, but visually, it doesn't get dark.
3. There will probably always be some bugs in the currently existing version, regardless of the emulator. I often don't get new responses at the bazaar (the same ones as on the first day), the last time I played it, if I remember well, I couldn't "catch" Janna telling the hero that Khatib died. And randomly placed events in this game (finding the honeybird, the blue orchid, meeting Johari and Manu...) can take a lot of time, which is very frustrating.
Altogether, these bugs prevented me from getting a perfect score regardless of whether I used DOSBox or ScummVM. But the latter seems to allow bypassing more bugs.

QfG4 is less buggy, but has a famous bug at the very end:

Spoiler

Ad Avis respawns after having been defeated. In my experience, possible to bypass only by simultaneously slowing the game down a lot in-game (the menu game speed option) and using Ctrl-F11 in D-Fend Reloaded to further slow the emulation down.

[close]

[DrSlash]

1. I have discovered it quite accidentally! Why isn't it promoted everywhere where there are game developers who "admit" to retro inspiration?

Well, it's not a commercial project, so there isn't much point for me to actively promote it. The goal was to create a game, not to reach an X number of downloads. My thinking is that if someone really wants to play a remake of KQ4, they'll eventually stumble upon this project one way or another.

2. When I first discovered "King's Quest 4", I greatly enjoyed checking how do places change after nightfall... and was very disappointed to see that, apparently, at night you just can't return to Genesta's island. Rosella would just get tired and drown. (At some point I complained about it somewhere and someone commented, something like: typical Sierra - don't want to do extra graphics? Block a whole area off in an implausible way! ) Thanks a lot for fixing that flaw.

In that case I've got more good news for you!  All backdrops for Genesta's island post-nightfall will be updated in the next patch. The ones used in the current build are very rough first drafts found in the original game's files. Here's a comparison between an old backdrop and its updated version:

4. Although, the "readme" file seems to indicate that there is some way of getting rid of the troll, or having him let you pass. I haven't discovered it - any hint?

What I meant in the readme file is that it is now possible to outrun the troll. In the original game this wasn't an option.

5. Therefore (?), I also had "only" 228 points, unlike in the original.

Did you check it before or after the ending cutscene?

Spoiler

The last 2 points are scored when Rosella returns the magic hen to Genesta, which happens automatically mid-cutscene.

[close]

6. Improvement idea. I actually liked the new text on the note found in the whale's mouth, but I was a little disappointed that there's nothing more. Perhaps it could promote other retro games, particularly EGA/EGA-ish ones - you'd of couse need to talk to their developers. "The Crimson Diamond", "Betrayed Alliance", "Snail Trek", "Cascadia Quest", and just now a guy from Powerhoof is making some little EGA game for Adventure Jam, I hope that it will be available... (Actually, I checked out the Adventure Jam site, but haven't seen any information about this game - and I can't contact omost game developers directly because I only use social media "passively"- (that is, I read some profiles without having any accounts.)

Yep, giving a shoutout to other AGS games was something I had considered, but I didn't want to leave anyone out, so I ended up with a more blanket and, frankly, underwhelming message. To be honest, now that I think about it, I should probably give this idea another shot. Thanks for the feedback.

7. As most players probably know, the SCI version didn't have the "Beam Me" room. I wondered if you had nevertheless recreated it for this version. And if yes - how to get there without a text parser?

No, none of the easter eggs unique to the EGA version are currently in the game, and I don't really have any plans to add them later. That would be beyond the project's scope.

_______________________________________________________

Maybe just add an extra line of dialog at the end where Rosella gives the bow to Genesta and ask her to give it to Cupid next time she sees him?

I feel like that would mess with the pacing of the ending. To be honest, I think the bow thing isn't such a big deal. Adventure game protagonists "borrow" unattended items all the time. 

[mkennedy]

...QfG4 is less buggy...

When running in ScummVM is it possible for the character to max out his skills? When I tried with the old dos version my save games all got corrupted.

[Nowhere Girl]

When running in ScummVM is it possible for the character to max out his skills? When I tried with the old dos version my save games all got corrupted.

I don't know. At some point ScummVM didn't support QfG4, so I had to stick with DOSBox and I'm not sure if I tried running it in ScummVM.
There is one more problem with ScummVM, at least to double-left-handed users such as myself: it's harder to get it to "see" the character save. When I was doing it (QfG2 VGA remake ---> QfG3 ScummVM), I had to change ScummVM's save paths and I messed up my default settings for saving stuff in ScummVM. Since then, I have no idea where do my screenshots end up when I play a game which has a ScummVM profile in D-Fend Reloaded (earlier it was Alt-S and all neatly ended in D-Fend Reloaded\Capture\game title) and I need to use Irfan View for screenshots from ScummVM games instead.

A postscript not about games. The captcha is ridiculous. Now I got a new question: "Are you not a robot?". I wanted to humbly point out that, as far as I know, English (and also Polish) lacks something for example German has: a positive answer to a negative question (in German: doch).

[JStryker47]

According to PushingUpRoses' youtube video, Space Quest 1 was originally going to give the player a choice of gender for their character.  I kinda wish they'd kept that idea, since I personally only really like the first three.  The ones after that are kind of... eh to me, and I'll always be curious to see what the series would be like, if they could be played with a female protagonist.  Maybe they could've given 4-6 more interesting stories.

I bought the QFG series on GoG, when it was on sale for $3.99.  Those versions of the games have most of the bugs squashed, except for...

Spoiler

- Franz introducing himself by saying "Igor's death must be avenged", in Ivan's voice
- Bonehead's lines about Punny Bones getting skipped automatically
- the game occasionally freezing after killing a wraith (though waiting about a minute or so will usually unfreeze it)
- and the wizard being told he's "too busy" to summon Erana's staff after killing Ad Avis (though I think turning the detail all the way down fixes that)

Also, not too many people know this, but the thief also has two ways of killing Ad Avis.

1.  Tell him the joke and then throw a dagger at him.
2.  Take the staff out of your inventory, tell him the joke, and then do an acrobatic jump on him.  (You will, of course, have to jump back onto the space you were at before, to use the staff on the crystal.)

Wizards can also cast the reversal spell before cooking the Elderberry pie, to avoid being turned into a hedgehog by Baba Yaga.  (It won't backfire on her, like her frog spell previously did, but her reaction is pretty funny.)

[close]

There's also a fan-made patch for QFG3 that makes some minor enhances, including some cut content, like

Spoiler

going to the Simbani village, after the peace meeting, and consoling Uhura over her uncle's death.

[close]

Here's a link:  https://github.com/AshLancer/QFG3-Fan-Patch

I think in order to find Manu,

Spoiler

you have to go to the area with the waterfall.

[close]

If you're referring to Johari's capture by the Simbani,

Spoiler

fighters or paladins have to get their throwing skill up to about 175 and then have Uhura challenge them to a match.  You don't have to win, but you do have to play against her, in order to trigger Johari's capture, as you do have to compete against Yesufu later, to become a Simbani warrior before you can "buy" Johari.  Wizards have to gain their magic staff, which they need to compete against the Leopardman shaman in a wizard duel.  Thieves just have to go to the waterfall area to trigger her capture.

[close]

[SansSouci]

Hello,

I wanted to ask whether it would be possible to play the KQ4Retold under ScummVM?

[Nowhere Girl]

DrSlash - could you perhaps tell when, approximately, can the patch be expected?
And I thought... I'm no artist, I lack a steady hand, a good mouse (it tends to perform double clicks when my finger does a single click and I often somehow can't hold the button - it too seems to be murine* fault, not mine) and visual imagination... but a model already exists in form of the AGI version. Maybe I'd try drawing a SCI version of the "Beam Me room"? In fact, I even have an item-related idea: the golden ball remains on the ground after Rosella lures the frog with it and the turns it back into a prince, and can be picked up again. Maybe it could be used somewhere in Lolotte's castle in the morning to be sent to that room?
I remember when I wrote to the developer of "Betrayed Alliance" and complained that the arcade game in the cave is too hard (and it's needed to get an item! By the way, it has a lot of Sierra cameos, such as 'Enry the 'Ermit, Rosella, Erasmus, Roger Wilco, Aziza, Larry Laffer, Laura Bow...  ) and I had an idea about how to improve it for the double-left-handed. In "Space Quest 1" you can attach a little magnetic device to a gambling machine in Ulence Flats and win every time until the machine overheats. And the developer included my idea.

*"Mus" is "mouse" in Latin and "murinus" is the adjective from this noun. Actually used in scientific texts, one can find phrases such as "murine DNA fragment". So why not use it here?

[DrSlash]

DrSlash - could you perhaps tell when, approximately, can the patch be expected?

It's very close to being finished, actually! I'm planning to release it by the end of next week, around June 6.

And I thought... I'm no artist, I lack a steady hand, a good mouse (it tends to perform double clicks when my finger does a single click and I often somehow can't hold the button - it too seems to be murine* fault, not mine) and visual imagination... but a model already exists in form of the AGI version. Maybe I'd try drawing a SCI version of the "Beam Me room"? In fact, I even have an item-related idea: the golden ball remains on the ground after Rosella lures the frog with it and the turns it back into a prince, and can be picked up again. Maybe it could be used somewhere in Lolotte's castle in the morning to be sent to that room?

Unfortunately, even beyond the more obvious reasons to not include the easter eggs from the AGI version (i.e. the need to remake the old AGI graphics and the impossibility to adapt the commands "kq rap" and "beam me" for point & click controls), I just don't see much point in adding these into the game. One of them describes the development of the original game, which is irrelevant to this particular remake. The other is a tribute to the original team behind the AGI release, which has nothing to do with this version. Moreover, Sierra themselves did not deem it necessary to include either of the two in the SCI release. And most importantly, the whole point of easter eggs is the search itself (at least for me), so I don't see any reason to include an easter egg that has already been discovered decades ago.

Hello,

I wanted to ask whether it would be possible to play the KQ4Retold under ScummVM?

Hi, SansSouci! Is there any particular reason why you would want to run the game under ScummVM in the first place? To be honest, I don't really follow how that would help with anything, considering that the game should run under Windows, MacOS, and Linux without an emulator. To answer your question, from what I understand, only the ScummVM team themselves can help you with this issue, there is nothing I can do, unfortunately.

[SansSouci]

I wanted to ask whether it would be possible to play the KQ4Retold under ScummVM?

... Is there any particular reason why you would want to run the game under ScummVM in the first place? ... To answer your question, from what I understand, only the ScummVM team themselves can help you with this issue, ...

Hello. I simply had been using ScummVM a lot lately and Iove to have one program to run all my King's Quest games. I have read that ScummVM supports AGS, so it seemed to me that it would be easy to run KQ3Retold. I guess I was wrong.

[Hobbes]

I wanted to ask whether it would be possible to play the KQ4Retold under ScummVM?

... Is there any particular reason why you would want to run the game under ScummVM in the first place? ... To answer your question, from what I understand, only the ScummVM team themselves can help you with this issue, ...

Hello. I simply had been using ScummVM a lot lately and Iove to have one program to run all my King's Quest games. I have read that ScummVM supports AGS, so it seemed to me that it would be easy to run KQ3Retold. I guess I was wrong.

It's working fine for me over here. Just be sure you're using the daily build of ScummVM (link on their download page). The game isn't recognised (yet) but you can just click "Add Anyway". Works like a charm! (And the easiest way for me on my Macbook)

[SansSouci]

It's working fine for me over here. Just be sure you're using the daily build of ScummVM (link on their download page). The game isn't recognised (yet) but you can just click "Add Anyway". Works like a charm! (And the easiest way for me on my Macbook)

Hello Hobbes,

Thank you very much for the tip. You are right. I had downloaded latest git source, compiled it and it recognizes KQ4Retold out of box

[DrSlash]

King's Quest IV Retold 1.0.3 is out!

This should be the final patch for the time being. Same as before, it mostly contains minor fixes and quality-of-life improvements. The biggest changes of this patch concern night scenes: a number of unfinished night backgrounds from the original game have been reworked, the script responsible for spawning animals at night now behaves more consistently with the original game, and there is now a new ambient track for night woods.

Complete changelog (may contain minor spoilers if you haven't played the game yet):
[changelog][ + ] Added an alternative hotkey for toggling between Walk and the last cursor mode
[ + ] Mouse in now automatically switched to Walk mode after digging to prevent the player from breaking the shovel by accident
[ + ] Added a text pop-up for trying to interact with the fake wall after looking at the portrait but before examining the wall
[ + ] Added mouseover hints for stable gates
[ + ] Added nighttime water animations for Genesta's island
[ + ] Added nighttime graphics for the ogres' house
[ + ] Added a new ambient track that plays in the forest at night
[ + ] Added a music track that plays when Rosella gets caught by the troll
[ + ] Seagulls can now appear on the screen with the fisherman's shack
[ + ] Improved goon pathfinding when using diagonal movement hotkeys
[ + ] Rosella now always faces the board before picking it up
[ - ] Fixed a bug where Rosella would get stuck on the eastern stairs in Lolotte's castle
[ - ] Fixed a bug that would sometimes prevent the player from combining inventory items
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the hen would not appear in Lolotte's storage room
[ - ] Fixed a bug where Rosella would fall upwards after trying to pick the bow from the opposite side of the pool
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the troll would appear even if the game is already over (e.g. if the player extinguishes the lantern immediately after entering a new screen)
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the message warning the player about Lolotte's goons would permanently stay on the screen
[ - ] Fixed a graphical bug where Rosella would move backwards while on the stairs
[ - ] Fixed a typo in the text pop-up for examining the locket
[ - ] Slightly tweaked several backdrops (waterfall, south of the waterfall, organ room, western stairs in Lolotte castle, Lolotte's throne room)
[ - ] Made major updates to all nighttime and some daytime backdrops for Genesta's island
[ - ] Tweaked walkable area and walk-behind masks for the northeastern and southeastern sections of Genesta's island
[ - ] Tweaked walkable area, walk-behind, and hotspot masks for Cupid's pool
[ - ] Increased the size of several hotspots (crypt ladder, Lolotte in bed, Genesta in bed)
[ - ] Updated the ambient track used in the swamp
[ - ] Fall sounds no longer get cut off on room transitions
[ - ] Certain decorative birds and fish no longer appear at night
[ - ] Rosella can no longer die from exposure at night
[ - ] Slightly increased the maximum distance from which Cupid can be startled[/changelog]

I don't know when (or if) a MacOS port of this patch will be ready, however, from what I understand, Mac users can still play the latest patch under ScummVM. The Mac port is out!

[DrSlash]

Hey everyone! Just a quick update: King's Quest IV Retold 1.0.3 is now available for MacOS! As usual, all download links can be found on the game's AGS database page. Once again, huge thanks to edenwaith for his help with the port!

[ToeKnee]

Oooooh, happy dance.
I can't wait to re-try this. Loved all of the KQ series and first played this one just over 30 years ago!!! - the week it was released
Great job. re-living my younger days is so nice!

[Nowhere Girl]

Thanks a lot for the update. It's beautiful, although I must admit that I found the swan pond a little disappointing (should have expected that the flowers will look brown at night...). But particularly th facade of Genesta's palace looks amazing.
Will you be updating the message in the bottle?

[DrSlash]

Oooooh, happy dance.
I can't wait to re-try this. Loved all of the KQ series and first played this one just over 30 years ago!!! - the week it was released
Great job. re-living my younger days is so nice!

Thanks a lot for the update. It's beautiful, although I must admit that I found the swan pond a little disappointing (should have expected that the flowers will look brown at night...). But particularly th facade of Genesta's palace looks amazing.

Thanks, both of you!

Will you be updating the message in the bottle?

Yes, I still have it on my to-do list, but right now there are more important matters that I need to focus on. Updating the message requires some time (as I would need to play some of the games I haven't played yet, select the games to be included in the message, get a thumbs up from their authors, and write the messages), but it is pretty high on my list, so there is a good chance that I will do it for the next patch whenever/if it comes out.

[DrSlash]

There had been several reports that MediaFire links don't work for some people, so I've added mirror links to the game's AGS database page. Huge thanks to Steven Alexander (aka Blackthorne) of Infamous Quests for providing hosting space for the mirrors!

[Bombermans]

I am SO, SO HAPPY about this. At least I can play this game without the constant fear and dread of dead ends *¬* And as english is not my native language, the parser thingie won't be a major obstacle for me anymore. Thank you, THANK YOU for this game! I have been waiting something like this for years <3 <3 <3 ;_;

[Frodo]

Not played much of it yet, but I have to say, it looks amazing!   

I've always been a huge fan of the King's Quest games, and this point & click version is such a treat. 
And all the background sounds - the waves, the seagulls, the unicorn neighing, the waterfall - it's all such a delight. 

Thankyou DrSlash.   

[almeath]

I know this thread has not been active for a while, but I wanted to thank DrSlash for the excellent work in producing this enhanced version of my favorite childhood PC game. 

Some years back I followed some instructions on the Vogons forum on how to 'hack' the sounds from the Amiga release into the PC version. It did work, but this version goes far and beyond and essentially perfects the original release, as long as one is not so traditional that you prefer the old text parser.

If DrSlash is still monitoring this thread, I just have one quick question. When I play the original PC release, the MT-32 tracks tend to blend seamlessly when looped, but in some places in this enhanced version (i.e. the dwarfs' cottage) there is a brief gap of 1-2 seconds between the looped tracks. It is a very minor issue, but I was wondering if this occurs because of a technical limitation in the AGS engine (i.e. as the MT-32 is being emulated) or whether it is something that could potentially be addressed in a later bug fix release?

[DrSlash]

Thanks for the kind words, everyone! It really makes my day whenever I hear from people who enjoyed this project!

When I play the original PC release, the MT-32 tracks tend to blend seamlessly when looped, but in some places in this enhanced version (i.e. the dwarfs' cottage) there is a brief gap of 1-2 seconds between the looped tracks. It is a very minor issue, but I was wondering if this occurs because of a technical limitation in the AGS engine (i.e. as the MT-32 is being emulated) or whether it is something that could potentially be addressed in a later bug fix release?

Yeah, it's an unfortunate limitation of using .mp3/.ogg music as opposed to midi. While there are workarounds that would allow for better looping (i.e. cutting the audio falloff at the end of each file, blending it with the beginning of the corresponding track, and then having the game switch between two versions of the track â€" one with no falloff and one with the falloff inserted at the beginning â€" depending on whether it's the first time the track is being played or if it's being repeated), but that would be beyond the current scope of the project.

That being said, implementing better music looping is definitely not a bad idea and would absolutely benefit the project. Another major audio-related improvement I had in mind was remastering the soundtrack with the use of modern instrument libraries (while allowing players to switch back to the original MT-32 soundtrack via game options, of course). If someone more experienced in audio editing and mastering than myself were to take on these two tasks, I'd gladly welcome the help and add their version of the soundtrack to the game.

[Mandle]

Loving the game so far... I'm at about 75 points and delightfully stuck. I refuse to look at hints because this feeling takes me back to pre-internet adventure game days, as does the game itself.

Time travel! Whheeeeeeeeeee!!!

[ArthurWalden]

I realize no one has posted on this topic in months, but I'm concerned I may have found a bug with the game.

When playing with the time limit enabled, the game immediately switches to night as soon as the clock reaches 12 pm. There is no afternoon time at all. Since this effectively only allows one hour real time to get through the daytime part of the game, I am concerned that it may be near impossible to complete the game with the time limit enabled.

[DrSlash]

Currently looking into this issue. Could be a programming oversight that went unnoticed for over a year because of how few people play with the deadends enabled. If I manage to replicate this bug, I'll be sure to fix it as soon as I can.

[DrSlash]

King's Quest IV Retold 1.0.4 is out!

Fixed the bug reported by ArthurWalden as well as a few other minor issues that I've been meaning to correct.

Complete changelog (may contain minor spoilers if you haven't played the game yet):
[changelog][ + ] The unicorn can now be seen roaming the meadows once it is released
[ + ] Picking up the frog now automatically sets it as the active inventory item to avoid confusing the player
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the game would switch to nighttime at noon if the dead ends are enabled
[ - ] Fixed a graphical bug where Rosella could sometimes pick up the frog and the ball without walking up to them first
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the peacock could sometimes walk on water
[ - ] Fixed a minor graphical bug where Rosella's sprite would not update after falling off the stairs
[ - ] Fixed a bug where the song played when summoning the dolphin would sometimes prevent other music tracks from playing
[ - ] Fixed a typo in the text pop-up for examining the chest of drawers in the Manor bedroom
[ - ] Fixed misaligned text boxes in one of Lolotte's cutscenes
[ - ] Fixed incorrect text box positions in one of Edgar's cutscenes
[ - ] Tweaked the walkable area masks for the organ room and the upper part of the Manor stairs
[ - ] Tweaked the walk-behind mask for Lolotte's dining room
[ - ] Increased the size of the trigger zone for going north from the eastern cemetery
[ - ] The troll now takes more time to appear when chasing Rosella from a different screen
[ - ] The unicorn's initial location is now determined after starting a new game rather than immediately after the game is launched
[ - ] Adjusted the timing of the intro cutscene
[ - ] Updated the fonts used in the credits[/changelog]

[ArthurWalden]

Hi. Thank you for patching the game.

Now that I've completed the game twice with dead ends both enabled and disabled, I'd like to give some feedback and I have a few questions:

1) Although most dead ends and time limits were indeed disabled, there are a couple of borderline cases I though I should mention:

     a) The shark is still a hazard with dead ends disabled, and while you can swim away if you're very near shore, if the shark attacks while you're in the middle of the sea, it is unlikely you can escape. Now, it does seem that Autosave offers a way around this, as there appears to be a new autosave with each ocean screen. Still, there may not be enough warning for a new player who doesn't necessarily know to expect the shark.

     b) The overall day/night cycle time limits are disabled (if that option is chosen); however, there are some other shorter time limits that may still be issues for some. I'm not talking about obvious threats like the ogre or the troll, as the ability to escape from those is usually feasible (though getting stuck in a corner in both cases could be an issue). I'm talking more about becoming exhausted by swimming in the ocean and, particularly, running out of breathable air in the whale's mouth:

           i) In regards to swimming, while you do receive one warning, if you got lost at sea (fairly easy to do if you don't swim straight out to Genesta's island) you probably couldn't get back to shore in time. Even Autosave may not work here, as it appears to use a new autosave slot for each ocean screen you enter.

          ii) The whale mouth is particularly insidious as you get very little warning of the danger at all. In fact, the first time I played just now with dead ends disabled I somehow seemed to run out of time too quickly in the whale and had to restore to a location before getting swallowed. If this time limit will remain, more warning for a new player is important.

2) On the other hand, it is impossible to see several death scenes if you disable time limits (specifically, getting killed by the zombies, and, of course, running out of time altogether). I know not everyone cares, but players may want to be informed of that.

3) One thing that might be particularly concerning to new players is that the introductory statement, if you choose to disable dead ends, doesn't in any way explain that there are still many ways to die in the game. This could come as a particular shock to a player mainly used to adventure games with a "mortality failsafe" policy (i.e. it is not possible to die in that game, essentially the policy classically associated with most Lucasarts adventure games). I'm not saying that I myself only want to play adventure games with "mortality failsafe." (I actually enjoy both kinds.) It's just that there are some players who expect it.

4) Aside from my feedback, I had a couple of questions:

      a) Did you deliberately remove any possibility of Lolottte's goons waking up? I never saw it happen even when dead ends were enabled.

      b) I was just wondering if you were planning on placing the random Sierra game plugs in that message in a bottle eventually. I really enjoyed that part of the original game.

Thanks again for all the work you put into the game and letting me enjoy it again.

[DrSlash]

Hi, ArthurWalden, thanks for the extensive feedback! I'll try to answer your questions as best I can.

a) The shark is still a hazard with dead ends disabled, and while you can swim away if you're very near shore, if the shark attacks while you're in the middle of the sea, it is unlikely you can escape. Now, it does seem that Autosave offers a way around this, as there appears to be a new autosave with each ocean screen. Still, there may not be enough warning for a new player who doesn't necessarily know to expect the shark.

No, the game only creates a new autosave once you enter the ocean, so this shouldn't be a problem. If there were any additional autosaves created while you explored the ocean, those are generic timed autosaves made at 15-minute increments and have nothing to do with the ocean. These won't overwrite your original save file created when first entering the ocean unless you spend at least 45 minutes in the water without leaving or dying.

b) The overall day/night cycle time limits are disabled (if that option is chosen); however, there are some other shorter time limits that may still be issues for some. I'm not talking about obvious threats like the ogre or the troll, as the ability to escape from those is usually feasible (though getting stuck in a corner in both cases could be an issue). I'm talking more about becoming exhausted by swimming in the ocean and, particularly, running out of breathable air in the whale's mouth

Once again, these dead ends should all be completely avoidable with autosaves.

2) On the other hand, it is impossible to see several death scenes if you disable time limits (specifically, getting killed by the zombies, and, of course, running out of time altogether). I know not everyone cares, but players may want to be informed of that.

Yeah, those scenes are unfortunate casualties of removing the dead ends. However, I don't consider this to be too big of a problem, since even the original game has an instance of an unachievable death (death by the mummy).

3) One thing that might be particularly concerning to new players is that the introductory statement, if you choose to disable dead ends, doesn't in any way explain that there are still many ways to die in the game. This could come as a particular shock to a player mainly used to adventure games with a "mortality failsafe" policy (i.e. it is not possible to die in that game, essentially the policy classically associated with most Lucasarts adventure games). I'm not saying that I myself only want to play adventure games with "mortality failsafe." (I actually enjoy both kinds.) It's just that there are some players who expect it.

It's a Sierra game, so the vast majority of players, with very few exceptions, should expect the game to have deaths. I may expand the text explaining the dead ends removal feature at the start of the game to include information on still being able to die even with the dead ends disabled, but frankly speaking, that text window is wordy enough as it is.

a) Did you deliberately remove any possibility of Lolottte's goons waking up? I never saw it happen even when dead ends were enabled.

Very odd. They absolutely should be able to wake up and catch you. Are you sure you were standing close enough to them?

b) I was just wondering if you were planning on placing the random Sierra game plugs in that message in a bottle eventually. I really enjoyed that part of the original game.

Including plugs for 30-year-old games seemed somewhat redundant, so I ultimately opted for their removal. I do agree that the current message in the bottle is rather uninspired, but that's what happens when you write things at 4 a.m. on the night before the release.  I did originally consider putting a link to Patreon or some other donation page on there, but decided not to to avoid potential legal trouble with Activision Blizzard. I may change the text in the future â€" there have already been suggestions to change it to plugs for modern adventure games, and while it's a sound idea, I can't say I love it considering that these will also eventually become redundant once the advertised games come out. I'd prefer the message to be a bit more timeless.

[ArthurWalden]

Regarding Lolotte's goons: They did wake up when I got close to them in your version. What I'm remembering from the original game is that some of the goons could wake up randomly, regardless of where you were on the screen. Yes, this did pretty much mean you had to save regularly when moving around Lolotte's castle and restore a lot. I believe Sierra's hint book refers to this.

I wouldn't really blame you if you removed the random wakings, as (like with the troll cave) they could be frustrating. I just wanted to know if you did so deliberately.

[DrSlash]

Ah, I see. I believe in the original game there was a chance that a goon will be waiting for you at the door when you exit the kitchen screen. If that's what you mean, I decided not to include it in Retold since it's more of an annoyance than an actual game mechanic.

[daleks13]

Just wondering would this patch https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cm7kt1AeUPA&t=17s work on your KQ 4 Retold Version ?

[DrSlash]

No, since Retold is a recreation of the original game built from the ground up on a different engine, no patch made for any of the official releases of KQ4 would work with it.

[Gamemaster]

It is interesting game but if only you could remove the EGA dithering Pass. It is so irritating that it is there when you can buy the original at GOG, open it in Scummvm and choose "skip EGA Dithering Pass." that makes the graphic better then the one in Retold.