Just to clear up the confusion:

King's Quest 1 remake by Sierra is, indeed, NOT VGA. IT uses their first SCI engine which uses EGA only. Sure, Sierra did some awesome things with thei first SCI engine and by the use of dithering they made it appear is if there are a lot more colors than their actually are.

What confuses people even more is the fact that all other Sierra remakes used their SCI2 engine and true VGA graphics.

There are a couple more indications of this as their SETUP-Program lists the graphics card as EGA/VGA and not a sepparate VGA and EGA option.

Also, when using SCUMMVM to play King's Quest 1 SCI you are given the option of using EGA undithering - an option which is, of course, not present in true VGA-games.

Using EGA graphics was the best way of creating games back then. Keep in mind that even up to Monkey Island 1, Lucas Arts did the same and only later released remakes.
VGA cards wre still rather rare and it allowed easy conversion for Tandy, PC Jr., Amiga and Atari ST.


The first REAL VGA game was, in fact, King's Quest 5, which was released much later.

You can also see that Sierra changed their graphics style significantly when switching from EGA to VGA graphics as they began to used hand painted backgrounds.

The problem, I think, is that later many people kept callong all remakes -VGA.

By the way: I absolutely adore Sierra SCI-games and their awesome EGA-graphics.

Thank you very much Patryn for your post! I was hoping someone else would chime in on this subject :)

Also, for anyone that wants to see what games used sci0 (ega), sci1 (ega & vga), and sci2, and what each interpreter offered, here is a nice list from ScummVM. The list can give you a bit of interesting history as to how the games advanced through the years

http://wiki.scummvm.org/index.php/Sierra_Game_Versions#SCI_Games

The 1990 KQ1 remake was marketed as SCI/VGA remake, with full EGA color support, but created for VGA computers. The SCI engine was considered a stepping stone INTO the VGA era.

I have cited two pages already which explicitly stated this.

They said this at the TIME IT WAS SOLD.

You cannot re-write history because you don't like the fact they didn't use the full VGA Color spread.

http://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu283/trekkieforasimov/WP_20140926_20_42_01_Pro1.jpg
http://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu283/trekkieforasimov/WP_20140926_20_41_47_Pro1.jpg
http://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu283/trekkieforasimov/WP_20140926_20_41_35_Pro1.jpg
http://i656.photobucket.com/albums/uu283/trekkieforasimov/WP_20140926_20_41_11_Pro1.jpg

These are photos from one of the promotional materials that exist at the same time as the original SCI/VGA remade version.

Sierra directly marketed their SCI engine as a VGA engine with EGA support. They called all of their SCI powered games, SCI/VGA because VGA was becoming more popular.

You can try to spin this all you want, but you're a troll if you refuse to accept the fact that Sierra itself said their 1990 remake of KQ1 was called an SCI/VGA remake.

Any attempt to say "it's only recently that they started saying this" is someone talking out of their rectum. Back then Sierra said the 1990 re-release was a SCI/VGA remake, whether or NOT you have the millions of colors a VGA card has, it was SCI/VGA remake. Period. That is how they marketed it. That is how they ALWAYS Marketed it. The back of the box on the official re-release identified it as such. The hint books identified it as such. The Marketing identified it as such. This bullshit argument that has started on this board is just that, complete bullshit.

Dear god, I bet you argue about Wolfenstein 3d not being a real 3d game, too. It would behoove everyone to stop citing idiotic fan sites that try to re-write history because they think they know what happened 20 years ago. Try actually referencing legitimate sites, and the real marketing that was released WITH THE F'ING GAME.

LOL! Getting frustrated are we? I just showed exact scanned copies of the original box that very clearly showed EGA. How can you argue with the original 1990 box? That's as original and authentic as it gets dude. Grow up and stop acting like a 12 year old who isn't getting his way. The guide book was written years later by an outside source and just authorized by Sierra. The author, Peter Spears never even worked for Sierra. It wasn't written by someone who did the original programming. I'm done showing obvious proof. Show me an actual BOX SCAN showing SCI/VGA as you claim you have as proof. And where is this ORIGINAL MARKETING showing it was VGA? Don't show a stupid guide book released years later. I have shown official box scans and official sites all indicating it was EGA. You have a guide book created several years later. Lame. I have asked you several questions to prove your point and you can't answer ANY of them. You just keep referring to a guide book. Really? I'll tell you what...Give me scanned copies of the actual original box stating the game is VGA only. And ORIGINAL marketing showing it's VGA. OR that it's using the new VGA technology for improved graphics and I'll shut up for good. I'll even settle for picture comparisons where you can show a difference between a EGA & VGA version. SOMETHING other than a guide book. Fair enough?

I'm frustrated because all you are doing is trolling this thread.

Pay attention to the guide book, GENIUS. It's the only official Sierra Edited and Approved guidebook, and it was Identified as SCI/VGA. Published in 1993 it predates your asinine claims that it wasn't identified as VGA until recently. I also quoted the current abandonedware download site. That site uses the exact marketing promotional statements that were used for the remake when it was published - SCI/VGA remake. Those are the words USED BY SIERRA ITSELF.

Please just leave the thread you troll.

Oh yes, the abandonware site...which in itself isn't official, the link you posted is invalid.
"404 Page not found". However you can find it doing a search. And the description, nowhere, claims to be original marketing material from Sierra. It obviously isn't original marketing since it says "VGA & SVGA" . SVGA didn't even EXIST when the remake was released! VGA was brand new at the time...which you even acknowledged!

I showed you a scanned copy of the original 1990 box for the SCI game showing "EGA". That predates your guidebook and is obviously as official as you can possibly get. So explain that to me. Explain how the original box, that says "EGA" isn't any more official than your guidebook. If not more so since the box came directly from Sierra and there production staff. Quit side stepping this question and answer it for once. I'm all ears....

What is also exceedingly frustrating is your ignorance on the matter. You choose to believe that because it used the EGA color palette that it was not VGA. The fact is the SCI engine was primarily a VGA platform and thus fully compatible. The only reason why the EGA color palette was used was so people with EGA computers could still enjoy the remake.

Sierra said it was an SCI/VGA remake in 1990, and no matter how you try to spin your own asinine and ignorant definition, it remains an SCI/VGA remake. The number of colors you see doesn't matter what it was. For example: I could do an 8 bit game with nintendo's palette on a Windows platform and yet my game is still a windows game. But according to you, because I don't choose to use more colors it'd be a Nintendo game.

Sierra said it was an SCI/VGA remake, that is how the official guidebook represented it, that is how the marketing represented it, that is WHAT IT WAS. No amount of you attempting to re-write history is going to change that fact.

LOL The abandonware site I lined used the official marketing information. It is most certainly valid.

STOP repeating yourself and referring to the guidebook. Answer ONE simple question that I've asked you...HOW do you explain the original 1990 box showing EGA? You saw the box scan I posted. Simple question... Explain how the abandonware site says "svga" when that never even existed at that time. Amazing how Sierra could predict the future and refer to something that wasn't even invented yet. SVGA resolutions were higher than 640x480. Sierra was still only using 320x200 resolutions @ the time

I already explained it to you, and if you concentrate real hard and try to understand what I am typing, you'll realize you're full of crap.

EGA was the baseline.

The SCI Engine fully supported VGA.

That EGA on the cover, was to let people know that even though Sierra was transitioning to their new SCI/VGA engine you could still run it on your EGA platform.

Now, ask yourself this question: If you were right, and EGA was the ONLY version of the game, then why did all of the marketing for this game say SCI/VGA?

Do you know why?

Also, official reviews of KQ 1 actually trashed Sierra for claiming their new SCI engine was VGA despite using EGA color palette. It was a controversy back then because Sierra supported the older EGA graphics while promoting their engine being the new wave for VGA gaming.

If you were right and it was JUST an EGA remake, and they weren't saying it was SCI/VGA, then you wouldn't be seeing all of their official materials (such as the OFFICIAL SIERRA APPROVED GUIDEBOOK) saying it was a 1990 SCI/VGA remake.

LOL! Ok, I'm done. You just keep referring to the guidebook and act like it's the affinitive answer to everything. That anything else, official, or otherwise, doesn't count. You even helped my point by stating people were upset that Sierra falsely was claiming it was SCI/VGA. I've shown you proof from people that actually program in SCI and help other people who want to do the programs themselves. Again, I'm done. If you keep posting, I'll keep responding, so we can agree to disagree, or if you want to keep pushing your opinion, then go for it...

edit: You know, from the sounds of it, you're a little green behind the ears. I was a serious DOS gamer by the time the 1990 game rolled out. I was old enough to FULLY understand the computer and console wars probably before you were born. This method of advertising and game development was COMMONPLACE. You develop the BASELINE MINIMUM requirements for an OLDER computer, and you do so while creating a game engine that is built around the BETTER technology, so you can have an SCI/VGA game running on EGA graphics, as you make the transition into VGA gaming.

That's something I grew up with. LOTS of games would do that. They would MARKET themselves with the higher end key words, while putting MINIMUMS on the box.

They basically do the same thing today, but it's not as visible or different as it was back then.

That's how this game was marketed and developed. That SCI engine was primarily for the VGA transition, and calling the 1990 remake an SCI/VGA remake even though it had "EGA on the cover" is entirely what they did on ALL of their major marketing and promotion. They took heat for it, too.

So, grow up a little and actually try to look at the past and actual materials of the era, instead of reading fan sites done mostly by people who were probably still drooling over their NES during that period.

Green behind the ears? I was programming in DOS when I was 10 years old. I actually helped the computer science teacher with things they didn't even know when I took computer science in college (honest to God truth). My dad worked for IBM and helped invent most of the things you were playing with. Don't you dare act like you have an ounce more experience in computers than me. You know the very basics and go by what you read. You've never programmed computers, setup the hardware or did tech support for Windows, AOL, internet, etc, like I have

You're just getting upset, again acting like a 12 year old, who has to throw insults when he's not getting his way. Not a very intelligent or mature way of handling a simple disagreement

Yeah, you have just proved your immaturity with that last response. You claim to be a programmer and your dad is a great inventor at IMB, while ignoring the most basic fundamentals of graphics cards change overs, and denying anything I link to you by saying it doesn't count.

Everything you have said is utter trolling bs in this thread. Go away, you little troll.

You keep responding, so you could be trolling too. My Dad helped create the 1st CD ROM drive used on IBM computers and received a plaque award. He actually was one of the managers who over saw a team that worked on the technology. And yes, I'm very proud of my Dad and what he did to help teach me about computers. I don't have to explain myself to you. You couldn't even answer any of my questions when I asked you to show how the SCI remake took advantage of the VGA capabilities in any way. If you know so much about computers, why can't you explain yourself? Beyond just a guide book. If it used any VGA capabilities, I'd easily be able to point it out