Settings questions

General chat related to ScummVM, adventure gaming, and so on.

Moderator: ScummVM Team

Post Reply
Avatrunei
Posts: 34
Joined: Thu Dec 20, 2012 3:10 am

Settings questions

Post by Avatrunei »

I have tried to experiment with some game settings, but I saw no observable difference, plus I found no relevant information online, so I ask here.

In some AGI games there is the option to "Use Hercules hires font". What exactly is this? I have tried a game with and without this option checked and I saw no difference.

Where the "render mode" options are valid? I see they are the same for every game, but only in specific games they have an effect. Eg. the Hercules and CGA settings have an effect only with early games, like AGI. However, if I run the SoMI (PC VGA version) with EGA or Amiga options, it won't feel like I am playing the EGA or Amiga version (actually, no change at all).
User avatar
LogicDeLuxe
Posts: 437
Joined: Thu Nov 10, 2005 9:54 pm

Re: Settings questions

Post by LogicDeLuxe »

Avatrunei wrote:However, if I run the SoMI (PC VGA version) with EGA or Amiga options, it won't feel like I am playing the EGA or Amiga version (actually, no change at all).
The Amiga option is for 16 color games only and will render them with a slightly different palette. Most notably with a brighter skin color.
On the original Monkey Island VGA version played on DOS, the EGA option would convert the graphics to 640x200, 16 colors in realtime. Not sure if this is supported by ScummVM.
Avatrunei
Posts: 34
Joined: Thu Dec 20, 2012 3:10 am

Post by Avatrunei »

I think the options are valid only if the game supports it. For example the early AGI games were programed to run in Hercules, CGA or EGA modes, so these options run those games accordingly. This can't be the case with later SCI games, so the options can be a little confusing.

Some games could be run in various modes, selected when running them or during installation. For example when I owned the original Quest for Glory 3 for DOS I remember that I could install it to run also in EGA mode. However such options aren't available in all games: other games came as different releases, sold separately.

SoMI was the later case. The EGA version was redesigned and distributed/sold separately. It was not a real-time 16-color render of the VGA graphics.

So I guess the SVM render options are provied for games that came with those options. Eg. I guess we could run QG3 with EGA option (haven't tried it yet) because its original files supported both installations. However I guess we can't do it with SoMI, because the EGA verson was a different release, or with QG4, which never came as an EGA release.

However the number of options is confusing. :) It would be nice if the interface could provide the valid options that each game could support.
User avatar
LogicDeLuxe
Posts: 437
Joined: Thu Nov 10, 2005 9:54 pm

Post by LogicDeLuxe »

Avatrunei wrote:The EGA version was redesigned and distributed/sold separately.
AfaIk, the EGA was the original and the VGA version was the redesign. The Amiga and Sega CD versions are a hybrid of both, using the EGA sprites and a color reduced version of the VGA backgrounds.
Avatrunei
Posts: 34
Joined: Thu Dec 20, 2012 3:10 am

Post by Avatrunei »

I see. In any way, they were separate releases.

Is there any information about the "Hercules font" option for the AGI games?
Post Reply