Future remake? (archived)

[The Knight]

We like King's Quest 1 the way it is. We don't want it to change. CHANGE IS BAD!

The Knight

[MusicallyInspired]

Maybe the facts that Roberta has designed it and that it takes place in Serenia have something to do with it.

Well...uhm.....lots of places can be called Serenia...heehee.

Well, I surrender then. But I think Serenia is just a name they re-used in KQ5. [my opinion]I still don't consider it part of the KQ universe.[/my opinion]


"Requires MCGA, CGA, VGA, PGA, or TA-RA-RA-BOOMGA!!" -Gary Owens, SQ4

[Kurdt]

I agree with Musically Inspired, but I think it's an interesting concept to think that The Wizard and the Princess is part of the same world. Maybe it wasn't intended that way at first, but it doesn't hurt the series at all to have it thought of in that way. So one more adventure happened in Serenia? So what? It doesn't even have any KQ characters in it (that I saw), so what's the big deal? I'd actually like to believe that elements in Wizard and the Princess (i.e. the snake blocking your way and the desert) ended up finding their ways into KQ5's Serenia. That makes it even easier to believe that the Serenia in KQ5 was indeed the Serenia we saw in Wizard and the Princess. As far as I know, it doesn't hurt the KQ continuity as it has nothing to do with KQ (save being in the same world), why NOT consider it part of the KQ world? I mean, MOE had more to do with KQ than Wizard and the Princess. Why not make it part of the same place?

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Cris Skelton
Newsletter and Plot Writer
Kings Quest IX: Every Cloak Has a Silver Lining



"Battler for Truth, Justice, and the American Way!"

[The Infamous Mecha Sonic]

Completely rescripting the whole project would get old quickly.

But the game is already scripted. King's Quest I VGA is already done. All I'm saying is, give it some substance. Have puzzles that make some sense. Don't have a magic bowl that can fill itself with stew upon the utterance of a single word lying out in a meadow for no reason. Have it belong to the elf, and instead of the elf giving Graham the invisibility ring just because he was friendly and talked to him, have Graham receive the ring and the bowl as a reward for his honesty in returning it. Don't have sacks of diamonds sitting inside hollow stumps, the owner having simply forgotten such a precious treasure there. Have the pouch of gems belong to the thieving dwarf, and have the dwarf be seen hiding it there.

Don't have Graham steal other peoples' goats, burglarize another person's house, shove the owner of said house (whom has done nothing to Graham) into a tub of boiling green goo, or any other such un-knightly and un-kingly stuff. Have Graham be given to goat for dispatching a dragon that has been stirring up trouble on the pen-keeper's property, and have Graham hear of the witch's evil deeds from some NPC instead of having him wander onto her pad in the woods and -- "Hey, a witch! I think I'll hide in your bedroom while you're gone, sneak out when you come back and aren't looking, murder you in the most horrible, gruesome way imaginable, and feast on your candy house for the rest of the day! Hahahahaha!"

Give the characters' more than three lines of dialogue, max. Instead of confining them to the roles of mere tools to pass puzzles, let them contribute to the plot.

Woodcutter: Your generosity has spared my wife from the cold hand of Death! Thanks to your gift, noble knight, I'll not have to watch as she descends, suffering, into the Realm of the Dead.
Graham: It was no problem. Really.
Woodcutter: Please, take my fiddle! It's over there, in the corner. And please, take a word of advice. Before the forests of this land were consumed by darkness, I often ventured into the woods to chop lumber. Whenever I did so, I would notice a little dwarf spying on me from between the trees. Sometimes, that dwarf would emerge from his hiding place, take a saw or a hammer from me, and dart off into the woods again, quick as a wisp! Even dared to pick my pocket a few times, he did! Of course, that was back when I actually had gold to spare... Nontheless, the dwarf still lives, and he still makes a profit, too. Can't imagine how he does it. Nobody in Daventry has anything left to be stolen. Not in these hard times. Still, you should be wary of him. He's a cunning little beast, not one to be trifled with. Nowadays, I see him in the dark forest behind this cottage, or on the north banks of the lake outside. Watch out for him. He's a sneaky one.
Graham: Thank you, good woodcutter.

Edited by: Wolfgang Abenteuer at: 5/15/03 1:43:25 am

[Wolfgang Abenteuer]

You may want to turn your ezCodes back on if you plan on using them, Mecha Sonic.

~Wolfgang

[Erpy]

Rescripting the puzzles is rescripting a large part of the game. Trust me on that one.

[navynuke04]

Not to mention that redoing all that dialouge would require re-recording the speech-pack. That would be a lot of work in itself. Besides, who knows if Tierra can still get hold of all the people that did the voices from the first speech pack.


"Without the fleet, the contest would be on our home grounds, and war is one contest in which it is best to be on the visiting team." -ADM Nimitz

[The Knight]

I think KQ1VGA should be left alone. It's fine as it is. Why give Tierra more work when we can get more games instead?

The Knight

[The Infamous Mecha Sonic]

I think I'm being misread here. I don't mean that every single puzzle should be re-written, re-drafted, and re-programmed. A lot of the puzzles are fine as they are. Well? Fine. Bucket? Fine. Dragon? Fine. Goat-Troll? Fine. Gnome? Eh, I'd add a little more to the note in the gingerbread house to make the puzzle less cryptic, but not much. Planting? Fine. Giant? Fine.

You see where I'm going? The game doesn't need to be completely re-scripted. Most of the scripting is there already. The game is intact and complete. All I'm saying is, add a little bit more here and there to bring the game together. Get rid of the utter randomness of it all.

Hmm! A powerful magic bowl lying out in the middle of a meadow for no apparent reason! A highly valuable elven dagger hiding under a large, heavy rock! An elf willing give awau an incredibly valuable ring for no reason other than that the player spoke to him! A sling slipped into a crack in the base [-of a tree in a land where the only being who could have put it there could not possibly get it out again, since he's a giant and his hands would be too big to fit! A pouch of priceless diamonds with no owner hidden in a hollowed out stump just waiting to be found! Hmm, are we to assume somebody put such an expensive item there and just forgot about it? Not bloody likey.

A kingdom large and powerful enough to warrant its own castle with only two apparent human citizens (well, three if you count the enchanter and the guards). And in terms of personality, those citizens are entirely one-dimensional. Hell, one of those citizens -- the woodcutter's wife -- doesn't even speak. A dwarf that plays a role so large in the second title of the King's Quest Series and a role so minor in the first that it causes everyone who plays both games to frown and open their mouths in disbelief at the sight of a character with no purpose turning into a rival to Hagatha in terms of overall gameplay and story importance.

These are not good things.

And just in case I didn't make it clear the first time...

These are really, really, really not good things.

Look at King's Quest VI, heralded by far as the best of the King's Quest Series. Does it have magic items lying out in the middle of nowhere? Characters willing to bestow items so priceless as a ring of invisibility upon the ego out of the mere goodness of their hearts? How about flat characters? Items strewn about in places so random that it makes the player wrinkle his nose at the sheer lack of sense the game has? No.

Now, some of you might argue that King's Quest I simply isn't like King's Quest VI. "They're two entirely different games built on two entirely different scales with two entirely different goals." To that, I would argue, "King's Quest II wasn't like King's Quest VI at all, either. In fact, King's Quest II was less like King's Quest VI than King's Quest I was before Tom, Wookie, and the AGDs worked their magic on it. And look what they were able to do. They transformed a bizarre and overall stupid game into a masterpiece worthy of second or third best in the series in the span of a single year."

And guess what? The same could happen to King's Quest I. And it wouldn't even take a year, seeing how the backgrounds, chraracter portraits, and the majority of the scripting is already done. It would only take a couple months, maybe even less to refine the game and make it worthy of its sequels. To give it a plot, real characters, and what it needs most: some common sense.

And as for voices, what the hell. There were hardly any voices in the original, anyway. Graham's and King Edward's voices wouldn't need to be touched. The elf had three lines of dialogue, simple to re-record if it ever came to it. And the same goes for the woodcutter.

[anathoth8]

I have to say, Mecha Sonic, that you make some good points. I personally would say that I would love to see it happen, if Tierra wants to do it. I will try to see both sides of this debate.

Here, you have the possibility of turning a mediocre game into an excellent game. This is, after all, the beginning of the series. Why shouldn't it be a strong starting point for all the rest of the games to kick off from? Certainly, there could be no harm in adding a little bit of cohesiveness to the entire King's Quest universe through this game.

On the other hand, I can understand that Tierra wants to work on something new. I'm always glad and relieved to finish a project, and the idea of picking it up again is rather distasteful. Also, we really have no way of knowing exactly how much work would truly be involved, even with the seemingly small changes that you have suggested. For the time being, it might be best to just leave it alone.

Personally, I would love to see something added to this game. The story that is told through the manual is strong. If nothing else, simply adding something of this story into the game itself would add quite a bit to the experience. The best story telling devices are to not give the audience everything all at once. But as always, I leave the ultimate decision up to the fine folks at Tierra.

Finally, I would like to say that just crying that "everything is fine" and "let's not change" is a rather narrowminded way of thinking. Sure, we may get new games if it is left as it is, but an expanded King's Quest would be a new experience as well, now wouldn't it?



"Let me show you what hope you have."

[adeyke]

Look at King's Quest VI, heralded by far as the best of the King's Quest Series. Does it have magic items lying out in the middle of nowhere? Characters willing to bestow items so priceless as a ring of invisibility upon the ego out of the mere goodness of their hearts? How about flat characters? Items strewn about in places so random that it makes the player wrinkle his nose at the sheer lack of sense the game has? No.

The teacup and the bottle of false poison both just appear on the Isle of Wonder. A pungent flower just happens to be at the foot of the mountain where the Prince can take it. The ferryman just gives up his rabbit's foot because the Prince asks for it. The pawn shop owner just tosses out the useful invisible ink.

[The Infamous Mecha Sonic]

The teacup and the bottle of false poison both just appear on the Isle of Wonder.

I see where you're going here, and you're right -- those items did appear rather conveniently at Alexander's fingertips exactly when he needed them. I'll admit, it's not a case of very good writing. It must be remembered, however, that this is the Isle of Wonder we're talking about -- having items appear in a location as strange and off-the-wall as it just seems to fit somehow. I don't know how, but Sierra made it work. Oh well.

A pungent flower just happens to be at the foot of the mountain where the Prince can take it.

It's a flower. Flowers grow in the ground. To find a flower growing at the base of a mountain is not uncommon. It's certainly more common than finding a magic bowl growing out of the ground in a meadow, or a knife appearing in a secluded, dark hole underneath a big rock, I'll warrant.

The ferryman just gives up his rabbit's foot because the Prince asks for it.

The lucky rabbit's foot wasn't a tool as valuable as a ring of invisibility, either. To put it simply, it was a piece of junk. Besides, the ferryman stated his logic in giving the item away: "I've had that thing for so many years, maybe giving it away will improve my luck after all this time."

The pawn shop owner just tosses out the useful invisible ink.

While Alexander is talking to the owner of the pawn shop about the magic map, the pawn shop owner remarks, "The magic map once belonged to the one-and-only wizard this island has ever known. Before he died, he left the magic map and many of his other possessions to me -- which reminds me, I still have some stuff of his in the back that I need to throw out."

That explains why he threw out the ink. As for why he would throw away such a useful item along with the other junk (cracked wand, broken crystal ball, fake thumb, etc.), he most likely thought it was an empty bottle of ink, just as Alexander did when he picked it out of the trash bin before he spilled some of it on himself.

[The Infamous Mecha Sonic]

Guess I killed the topic, huh? Darn.

[Kurdt]

Impossible. This topic's gone strong for almost an entire year, I don't think you saying something killed it.

I'll personally shout for Conquests of Camelot VGA until the day I die, but that's just me. I would agree with a revamped KQ1, but I don't think it should be the very next remake after QFG2. Personally, I'd like to see at least two or three games (including QFG2) that come out by Tierra that AREN'T KQ games at all. It's way past time that Tierra gave some lovin' to the other games in the adventure genre.

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Cris Skelton
Newsletter and Plot Writer
Kings Quest IX: Every Cloak Has a Silver Lining

"Battler for Truth, Justice, and the American Way!"

[NyteSprite]

Just getting to learn my way around here -- I voted for KQ3, but as was pointed out in a much earlier post, if tradition proves true, we'll likely see a KQ3 VGA from Tierra in the future. I'd like to see Alex done in VGA again -- he looked great in KQ6.

Otherwise, I'd love to see Laura Bow 1 remade. It was actually my first thought before I saw the options on the poll.

Faith Morrill
Ass't. Writer, KQ9
"Ain't got no problems, ain't got no suitcase, ain't got no clothes to worry about, ain't got no real estate or jewelry or gold mines to hang me up..."

[Erpy]

(notices Nyte's signature)

Hey, I didn't know you were part of that gang as well. Did Kurt do some recruiting on the Sierra forums? (without getting himself booted in the process)

[Kurdt]

Actually, she was a member a looong time before I was. At least 3 months or so. I don't really know, myself. I've been a member for almost a year, personally.

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Cris Skelton
Newsletter and Plot Writer
Kings Quest IX: Every Cloak Has a Silver Lining

"Battler for Truth, Justice, and the American Way!"

[Broomie]

DO IT!!! DO IT!!! DO IT!!! DO IT!!! DO IT!!!



"Who am I? I'm Spiderman" Peter Parker

[Erpy]

What are you talking about? You've already done it.

[Broomie]

I MEAN A GAME! I MEAN A GAME! I MEAN A GAME! I MEAN A GAME!




"Who am I? I'm Spiderman" Peter Parker

Edited by: broomie at: 5/25/03 1:09:26 pm

[optic]

So what you're saying is...

Is that you really, really, really want and desire a remake of Kings Quest III, right?

[Broomie]

Exactly, if Tierra pull this one off then who knows what will be in store for Tierra's future. But it proberly will be KQ3VGA.



"Who am I? I'm Spiderman" Peter Parker

[Vildern]

What good do you people find in these old 2D games... go away and leave them all to me....muhwhahaha

[The Knight]

Vildern, you're not much of a "Lord of the Cats" with your current avatar and sig pic. Then again my title dosen't exactly go with my avatar and sig pic either.
And I voted yes for KQ3VGA.

The Knight

[Paladinlover]

hey don't worry about it, we'll have a remake of every single Sierra EGA game. And Kurt, yes, I would definately love to see a Conquest of Camelot VGA remake, but we're just going to have to wait, remaking games takes a while, but I'm patient, I waited for a year and 3/4 for QFG 2 and I'm still waiting patiently for it to come out.

Till next time stay cool 8)