EGA/VGA Sierra screen comparisons

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Lambonius · #1 Post by **Lambonius** » Fri Mar 30, 2007 8:00 pm

Hey all,

I recently stumbled upon this webpage somebody made that shows EGA and VGA versions of pretty much every screen in the game for King's Quest 5, Space Quests 1 (Remake) and 4, and Conquest of the Longbow (all games that Sierra originally released in both separate EGA and VGA versions.) I thought it was pretty nifty, and might be a decent resource for anyone interested in that sort of thing. It looks like Sierra clearly just took the VGA painted backgrounds and stuck them in a computer program that automatically rerendered them in EGA, as some of them are pretty ugly (nowhere near as easy on the eyes as the drawn EGA backgrounds from Sierra's SCI games.)

Here's the link for KQ5 (the other games are linked on the page.)

http://home.comcast.net/~ervind/kq5screens.html

MusicallyInspired · #2 Post by **MusicallyInspired** » Fri Mar 30, 2007 8:07 pm

I have all of them actually. Way back when all we had was a Tandy 1000 was those EGA versions. I went on a collecting spree not too long ago to get the rest of them and I'm still on it. The only one I have left to get is Eco Quest 1. I don't think they are just pure converted pictures. Some pictures have noticable differences that suggests custom pixel editing by the art department. Such as the perch which Cedric sits on in the scene outside Crispin's house.

Lambonius · #3 Post by **Lambonius** » Fri Mar 30, 2007 8:13 pm

You're right. But it does look like they put them through a converter and then cleaned up certain parts that didn't translate as well, or touched up spots to make certain key characters/objects stand out more. The KQ5 screens are actually some of the better looking ones; I found a lot of the SQ1 images to be particularly garrish in EGA, especially the Kerona desert scenes.

Blackthorne519 · #4 Post by **Blackthorne519** » Fri Mar 30, 2007 11:34 pm

That's a fun site; great find.

Ah, classic Sierra art. I've spent the last few years studying them, and I still love checkin' them out.

Bt

Lambonius · #5 Post by **Lambonius** » Sat Mar 31, 2007 3:11 am

After a little more digging, here's another site by the same guy, featuring a giant list of classic Lucasarts & Sierra trivia links complete with TONS of screenshot comparisons, concept art images, demo/full game comparisons, etc. etc. etc. Man, this guy had a LOT of time on his hands! Makes an interesting read for the likes of us, though.

http://home.comcast.net/~ervind/

Klytos · #6 Post by **Klytos** » Sat Mar 31, 2007 10:20 am

This guy has a lot of time on his hands.

rich_eter · #7 Post by **rich_eter** » Mon Apr 02, 2007 8:44 pm

I love studying this stuff too. It's the only way to ever be able to draw backgrounds or artwork similar to theirs. Assuming that is something you're interested in doing!