Remake Comparisons

[MisterKerr]

There wasn't an exact where given, but there was dialogue in the game suggesting why Mannanan kept going on all these journeys... Just pointing that out in case you didn't stumble over that.

Care to give me a clue as to when this occured? I guess I missed it, or didn't notice it.

I could be wrong, but I think he was "keeping an eye on the townsfolk", whatever that implies. Odd that making sure none of the population of Llewdor "steps out of line" involves allowing bandits, pirates, and a lecherous storekeeper. I think the barmaid was the only decent person in the land (unless you count the bard, but I don't think he's a native, for some reason). Then again, Manannan is evil, so I guess as long as they don't try to start an uprising he doesn't care? Or does he actively make sure the bandits stay in business with his trips?

[Bobbin Threadbare]

Luckily I still have savegames from choosing 3 items. So I took the liberty to check everything. In short, the extra endings are worth it, plus adding a new mystery on the scene after the ending credits.

Cross my fingers this won't stop until KQ4 are remaking. I'm sure AGDI won't let any loose ends with the Father and will be concluded in KQ4 before Mordack takes over.

[Chyron_8472]

The Magic Mirror Games forums are quite dead as far as I have seen lately. Dirkdelshire, who has a "Developer" tag under his username there (indicating he helps work on it) posted this:

from http://www.mmgames.org/KQ4/SMF/index.ph ... 44#msg5944
Although it can't really be helped for my part. I have no PC/Internet right now.
I will post as often as I can borrow PC usage though.

Which makes me think they aren't even working on it at all really. It's a shame.

And AGDI has said that they need to start making money for their work, so making a KQ4 remake isn't financially feasible.

I wish enough people would donate to AGDI's cause so that it was financially feasible. I really would enjoy a full KQVGA set, especially with The Father in AGDI's KQ games.

[MusicallyInspired]

Problem is, we can't accept monetary compensation for these remakes because the IP is not ours.

[Aristocles]

There wasn't an exact where given, but there was dialogue in the game suggesting why Mannanan kept going on all these journeys... Just pointing that out in case you didn't stumble over that.

Care to give me a clue as to when this occured? I guess I missed it, or didn't notice it.

I could be wrong, but I think he was "keeping an eye on the townsfolk", whatever that implies. Odd that making sure none of the population of Llewdor "steps out of line" involves allowing bandits, pirates, and a lecherous storekeeper. I think the barmaid was the only decent person in the land (unless you count the bard, but I don't think he's a native, for some reason). Then again, Manannan is evil, so I guess as long as they don't try to start an uprising he doesn't care? Or does he actively make sure the bandits stay in business with his trips?

If he was in the town, there would be a chance Alexander would have run into him. I think it is safe to say that wherever his journeys take him, it is far from Llewdor. See IA's version for a fantastic possibility of where one such journey might be.

[Aristocles]

@Aristocles- You didn't compare the voice acting of the minor characters. AGDI wins this hands down, no contest. In the IA version, the voice acting for the barmaid is flat, the storekeeper is repetitive and the Guybrush cameo sounds nowhere near anything close to Dominic Armato. Also, the mouth syncing with the voices isn't exactly right at times (if present at all, I don't remember.) I recall playing IA's KQ3 and becoming aware that at times Gwydion would stop moving his mouth before he stopped talking. The AGDI version has perfect voice syncing.

Also:

• In the AGDI version, you can have new extended conversations with minor characters (including talking to Manannan after he eats), fleshing them out more and giving the game more depth.
• The end of Redux gives reward titles, promoting lots of replay value.
• I thought the "on his right... buttock" bit was great; I like Alexander's reaction.
• Redux adds more information about previous servants Manannan has had. It evoked emotion in me to read the journal of a boy who is now long dead- writing his story to someone, he knows not who, which turns out to be his successor and also a boy of his same age, called by the same name, and in the same predicament. However as it turns out, the former slave's efforts to hide the solution to his one hope at freedom becomes a stumbling block for Alexander (at least, it was for me.)
• Redux gives reason to why Manannan specifically chose Alexander to abduct. In the original game and IA's remake, it just seems like rotten luck for Daventry, but in this game it's deliberate.
• While I admit that the sprite animation of the orb itself was a bit lacking (ie. a ball flying through the air and hitting stuff,) it gives a happy ending to KQ3, rather than one that is confusingly bittersweet concerning the state the land is in at the end of IA's remake.
• Redux requires a more complicated method of getting into the labratory; a puzzle which makes sense as Manannan would probably try to make it exceptionally difficult for (any) Gwydion to get in there even if he did find the switch for the trapdoor.
• Redux's sprite animation for turning into an eagle is better than IA's. I noticed this while dropping the spider into the sea.
• Redux's spellcasting method is better. In KQ6, when you mouse over a spell in the spellbook, the "cast" cursor is orange; in IA's KQ3 it is grey, which is a different color than the other cursors one is used to seeing and at first made me wonder if it was greyed-out like I needed to do something else first. You don't though: you just click "cast" and the game does all the work; the fact that the cast cursor in IA's is grey is just unfortunately misleading. I like Redux's method here. It not only requires work and thought, but makes perfect sense.
• I didn't think the after-the-dragon part of the game was bad at all. You get to talk to your sister about your family, ask her why she shushed you in front of the gnome, and more.
• Redux gives a bit more time for the family to reunite with each other before throwing the hat.
• The Father's visible anger at seeing the Item made me wonder if that was the exact moment of Graham's heart attack.

Very true; most of the voice acting and the awards feature are major improvements, as is the lip syncing.

Redux does not give more time for the family to reunite; in fact, in the IA version, it is implied that a number of weeks or months pass while the royal family itself takes the time to help rebuild, as opposed to letting the green orb do all the work. I'm sure that given the unending chest of gold, Graham could afford to landscape the area around the castle in a years' time, without the need for pinball ex machina.

I don't think anyone cares about the gnome, though. No one. Well... maybe the folks who make Lucky Charms, although that is a Leprechaun, and the distinction is actually an important one in the first King's Quest.

The butt thing... yeah, that was from the original. IA cut it out. One wonders if he will have to moon the entire kingdom as proof of his identity. We all hope not.

[techie775]

I haven't seen the "item" ending yet so i'm curious what that is like but I enjoyed IA's version of Graham and Alex spending some time together repairing Daventry before you know what happens in KQ4. Also I liked IA's music for going down the mountain. AGDI's I like the new puzzles with the library, cat spell and getting the treasure with the pirates. and I loved the color changing to warn you when mannanan returns. I still really think they both are really good remakes so I try not to judge.

[DarkTerror8]

I just played King's Quest III Redux and I just loved it. Lol, I tried not to look for too many hints, and tried to go off memory. Moments like figuring out Seran's pillar makes me think of me when I was like 12 years old figuring these one of a kind "situations" specific to a story. That's not the case in modern gaming which is more like "kill this".

I played IA's version and I really liked both versions. Redux did a good job at expanding the story in a creative level, like the yeti and the stone,medusa (when I saw that, I thought that is so AGDI thinking back at KQ2) and quite specifically the gwydion journal.

One thing I really liked about IA's version is how they really got moments of Mordack in there, that will always be a big special difference along with several interesting cutscenes. As well while Redux's version had a spectacular ending, IA's version ended with a song that I thought really encompasses what KQ3 was about.

In fact anyone have a link to that song that IA uses at the end of KQ3?

[Klytos]

The soundtrack to IA's KQ3 is available on our website

www.infamous-adventures.com

under the KQ3 section.

[JohnWWells]

The joke of a prince with a distinctive birthmark on one buttock is from the movie The Court Jester, which the people at Sierra seem to have been huge fans of. It pops up a lot in the Quest for Glory games; the "flagon with a dragon" bit in QfG1 is also from The Court Jester.

I think that bit was worth keeping, if only for nostalgia purposes. I think it's good if a game does something totally ridiculous now and then! I laughed in the original, and I laughed here. Cutting it from a remake seems to me like taking the whole thing too seriously.

(Also, The Court Jester was a great movie.)

I'm not sure this can even be compared to the IA remake. The IA game was their first remake! It was a great deal of fun and quite polished, and so is KQ3 Redux. Redux adds some more puzzles, most of which work pretty well, and, more importantly, tons of design tweaks that make the game more fun. The lab sequences in Redux, in particular, are absolutely stellar.

That said, the extended Father/curse/ancients mythology clashes with the more personal story of KQ3. It added something to KQ2+, but only distracts here, and the IA remake is better for sticking to the meat of the original story. On the other hand, the discovery of that journal in KQ3R adds a lot to the story. It's a rare case of "storytelling by discovered document" working well.

IA put out their remake 4+ years earlier, as their first release, and the simple fact is that any KQ3 remake of this level of competence is a great thing to have. AGDI put their remake with a ton of experience under their belts (and a previous remake to compare to!), and that shows.

[hanakogames]

There wasn't an exact where given, but there was dialogue in the game suggesting why Mannanan kept going on all these journeys... Just pointing that out in case you didn't stumble over that.

Care to give me a clue as to when this occured? I guess I missed it, or didn't notice it.

I could be wrong, but I think he was "keeping an eye on the townsfolk", whatever that implies. Odd that making sure none of the population of Llewdor "steps out of line" involves allowing bandits, pirates, and a lecherous storekeeper. I think the barmaid was the only decent person in the land (unless you count the bard, but I don't think he's a native, for some reason). Then again, Manannan is evil, so I guess as long as they don't try to start an uprising he doesn't care? Or does he actively make sure the bandits stay in business with his trips?

(since it's been a while) IIRC there was a conversation between animals explaining that, since Gwydion is about to turn 18, the wizard is out shopping for a new baby boy. Just any stolen child wouldn't be good enough for him (and he needs some preparation time to ensure he can steal the baby and get away without being caught)

[Erpy]

That's correct, but it's only possible to overhear that one before the wizard bites it.

[Xandarius]

I just want to go on record that I don't have a problem with the green pinball. I realize it's an unlikely deus ex machina, but it really does help explain Daventry's restoration in KQ5. In fact, the restored garden in front of the castle seems to be based on what the castle looked like during the intro to KQ5. I don't think all the money in the world would cause the vegetation to grow back in only a year. (Besides, injecting too many gold coins from the magic chest into the local economy would probably completely devalue the gold coin as currency...)

I also don't mind the gnome. He was in the original KQ3, and even then I thought it was nice to see some continuity.

The buttock thing is perhaps a bit embarrassing to everyone involved, but I think it's a good bit of writing, actually. I didn't realize that IA excised it from their game. I could've sworn it was still included.

[Erpy]

Nah, IA left it out. I do remember several Alexander fangirls on the TSL forums complaining about it. (though it was kinda meant to go in here from the start)

[Broomie]

I don't know why we didn't include the whole birthmark thing in our remake. I was expecting us to make an animation of Alex revealing his birthmark on his arse and a Ren & Stimpy style close up to follow. Ah well, maybe because it'd have ruined the moment. You just killed a dragon, you don't want to be getting your arse out in front of your long lost sister. Not a great first impression.

[MusicallyInspired]

Lol! I can just picture a high-quality professional KQ5/KQ6-style closeup painting of Alex's hinder parts.

[Lambonius]

Lol! I can just picture a high-quality professional KQ5/KQ6-style closeup painting of Alex's hinder parts.

I will SO do that closeup if we ever do a special edition re-release!

[Loney Childress]

Maybe it should've just cut to the shot in Forest Gump where he shows LBJ is scar.

[El Ravager]

I just want to go on record that I don't have a problem with the green pinball. I realize it's an unlikely deus ex machina, but it really does help explain Daventry's restoration in KQ5.

My opinion is that the concept works, but the execution not so much. I think I would have preferred a more mystical transformation scene...maybe the orb rises into the sky and emits a dazzlingly bright emerald light which bathes the entire countryside, slowly and gently healing the land's wounds and transforming the scorched earth into a thing of beauty. The bouncing orb animation is IMHO just a little too comical to take seriously...

[ATMachine]

I just want to go on record that I don't have a problem with the green pinball. I realize it's an unlikely deus ex machina, but it really does help explain Daventry's restoration in KQ5.

My opinion is that the concept works, but the execution not so much. I think I would have preferred a more mystical transformation scene...maybe the orb rises into the sky and emits a dazzlingly bright emerald light which bathes the entire countryside, slowly and gently healing the land's wounds and transforming the scorched earth into a thing of beauty. The bouncing orb animation is IMHO just a little too comical to take seriously...

Agreed. It would've worked much better as you describe.

[Aristocles]

I'm just a bit surprised that it can make plants grow, put out fires, make water appear out of nowhere, and even fix the castle walls.

Why not just have Alexander use his storm brew to put out the fires and refill the rivers, and let nature grow the plants back? Graham will have to spring for the masonry repairs using his bottomless treasure chest.

P.S. IA had a better gnome/leprechaun near the end, IMHO to tell Alexander about the situation.

[Blackthorne519]

I'm just a bit surprised that it can make plants grow, put out fires, make water appear out of nowhere, and even fix the castle walls.

Why not just have Alexander use his storm brew to put out the fires and refill the rivers, and let nature grow the plants back? Graham will have to spring for the masonry repairs using his bottomless treasure chest.

P.S. IA had a better gnome/leprechaun near the end, IMHO to tell Alexander about the situation.

Fun fact, I played the voice of that Leprechaun.


Bt

[Klytos]

What Leprechaun?

There was no Leprechaun in KQ3.

Weirdo's.

[Blackthorne519]

They meant Gnome. They messed up the terms for little dudes. I knew what they meant.

Yeah, the guy in KQ3 is a gnome, not a leprechaun.


Bt

[Klytos]

Remake? What remake? There was a remake?