Playing KQ6 on Windows 7 64-bit

[Fierce Deity]

I'm quite the overachiever, and right now I want to see if there is a way to play KQ6 (CD) on Windows 7 64-bit. I could buy the King's Quest Collection on Steam (I've considered doing so many times), but since teams are remaking the older King's Quest installments, I'm curious as to whether I can just play my CD versions of KQ6 and KQ5. That way, I won't feel like I'm wasting money on games that I already own.

I tried to use DosBox, but I'm not very savvy with Dos. I used it once before to play King's Quest, but actually configuring files and creating a proper emulator aren't exactly my strong points. Does anybody know how to use DosBox or have a means of playing KQ6 and KQ5 on Windows 7? Also, will the HEAP glitch from KQ5 affect the game if it is being emulated on Windows? I appreciate any assistance.   

[kindofdoon]

Download DOSBox from here: http://sourceforge.net/projects/dosbox/files/dosbox/0.74/DOSBox0.74-win32-installer.exe/download

Run DOSBox. Type "mount c [the directory where you have KQVI installed]" (for example, C:\SIERRA\KQ6 or wherever you installed it, then "c:", then run the executable in the KQVI folder by just typing the filename minus the file extension. This could be "KQVI", "KQ6", "SIERRA", or something else, I just can't remember off the top of my head.

I apologize if this is hard to follow or didn't answer your question.

[Allronix]

the DOS Box will work with 5 & 6. Doesn't work with KQ7, though. Any ideas?

[kindofdoon]

I don't own KQVII, so I can only speculate, but my two cents:

KQVI was probably the last DOS game in the series, so KQVII is Windows, not DOS. If you have any machines running Windows 95 or 2000, that's the simplest solution. Other than that, I don't really have any experience running games in virtual environments.

You could try tinkering with the settings in the "Compatibility" tab in the Properties of KQVII's main executable. Maybe that would do something, but it's not usually helpful for me.

[Fierce Deity]

Thanks kindofdoon, much obliged. 

[Lambonius]

Actually, it's only the first release of KQ7 that was Windows-only.  Version 2.0 of the game was a DOS version, which actually had some bug fixes, too.  If you have the Windows-only version of the game, there is a patch available at the Sierra Help Pages (http://sierrahelp.com/) that will allow you to patch it and turn it into the DOS version, at which point it works just fine in Dosbox.  

*Go to this link (http://sierrahelp.com/Games/KingsQuest/KQ7Help.html#DOSXP) for specific details on how to patch KQ7 and get it running in Dosbox.  You can thank me later. 

[kindofdoon]

Thanks kindofdoon, much obliged. 

You're welcome, glad to help.

[Fierce Deity]

Well, I regret to say I hit a speed-bump. Installation was going swimmingly till I hit an error that said:

"Warning: file d:\RESOURCE.CFG exists and failed to open in write mode.
Please Remove write-protection"

I'm embarrassed to say I don't know what this means and don't know how to get past it. Otherwise, DOSBox was working great. I was blown away when it could actually read my King's Quest 6 disc.

[Lambonius]

Well, I regret to say I hit a speed-bump. Installation was going swimmingly till I hit an error that said:

"Warning: file d:\RESOURCE.CFG exists and failed to open in write mode.
Please Remove write-protection"

I'm embarrassed to say I don't know what this means and don't know how to get past it. Otherwise, DOSBox was working great. I was blown away when it could actually read my King's Quest 6 disc.

You shouldn't need to actually install the game via the install program to get it to run in dosbox.  Copy all the files from the CD into the designated game directory, then just make sure to set dosbox so that it reads the same directory for the CD as it does to access the game executable file.  You'll essentially be tricking dosbox into thinking that it's reading from the CD, when in fact it's just reading from the game directory.

[Baggins]

Now if you want to get KQ6 Enhanced to work, you're going to have a lot of pain :p... That is even if you have a copy with KQ6 Enhanced.

Version 2.0 of the game was a DOS version, which actually had some bug fixes, too.

Unfortunately it also disabled one of the death scenes in the game... Rosella being killed by the crystal dragon :p

Well, I regret to say I hit a speed-bump. Installation was going swimmingly till I hit an error that said:

"Warning: file d:\RESOURCE.CFG exists and failed to open in write mode.
Please Remove write-protection"

I'm embarrassed to say I don't know what this means and don't know how to get past it. Otherwise, DOSBox was working great. I was blown away when it could actually read my King's Quest 6 disc.

Don't install under program files directory?

[tessspoon]

That dragon killed me so many times when I was a kid...

[Fierce Deity]

Well, I regret to say I hit a speed-bump. Installation was going swimmingly till I hit an error that said:

"Warning: file d:\RESOURCE.CFG exists and failed to open in write mode.
Please Remove write-protection"

I'm embarrassed to say I don't know what this means and don't know how to get past it. Otherwise, DOSBox was working great. I was blown away when it could actually read my King's Quest 6 disc.

You shouldn't need to actually install the game via the install program to get it to run in dosbox.  Copy all the files from the CD into the designated game directory, then just make sure to set dosbox so that it reads the same directory for the CD as it does to access the game executable file.  You'll essentially be tricking dosbox into thinking that it's reading from the CD, when in fact it's just reading from the game directory.

I got it working, thanks Lambonius. I have one more question which isn't important, but more of a preference. Is there a way to change the quality of the characters' portraits? I remember being able to play with the better portraits, but the game is now set on playing with the lower quality portraits. Can I change that?

[kindofdoon]

In the settings panel, set detail to the highest level and make sure the game is in "SPEECH" mode rather than "TEXT" mode. Also, it's possible that your version doesn't have the high-quality portraits - the earliest versions didn't.

[Lambonius]

Only the Windows version has the HQ portraits.  So if you are playing the dos version, it won't have them.  Personally, I prefer the lower res ones, but that's just me. 

[kindofdoon]

There's definitely charm in the lower resolution.

[Fierce Deity]

Okay, so as long as it's DOS, it'll be lower res. I just remember playing the game on Windows, and it had higher res. Nothing wrong with the lower res portraits, just not what I'm used to. 

[Lambonius]

Yeah--KQ6 is one of the rare occasion where the Windows version arguably offered an "enhanced" version of the game--really the only "enhanced" difference was the portraits though.  Most other Sierra games were either no different in Windows (minus the ugly white cursors) or were actually slightly inferior (again, usually because you lost some sort of cool animated cursors, like the Dos vs. Windows versions of QFG4.)

[Baggins]

Actually the inventory was enhanced too. You got high res inventory items.

[Lambonius]

Actually the inventory was enhanced too. You got high res inventory items.

Ah yes, correct.    I do recall that as well now that you mention it.

[Baggins]

Oh, it also had a slightly different Sierra logo sequence. Where a picture of Half Dome fades into the Sierra logo as I recall.