Space Quest III: The Pirates of Pestulon Technical
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General Information
640 KB RAM required on PCjr.
Graphics
Sound
Requirements
MS-DOS
Minimum OS: Minimum CPU: Intel i286 Minimum RAM: 512 KB Minimum Video RAM: N/A Graphics Modes: Hercules, CGA, Tandy / PCjr, EGA, VGA, MCGA Audio Hardware: PC Speaker,Tandy/PCjr Sound,Tandy with DAC,AdLib,Roland MT-32,Game Blaster (CMS),Sound Blaster,Generic MPU-401 MIDI,IBM Music Feature CardPC Speaker, Tandy/PCjr Sound, Tandy with DAC, AdLib, Roland MT-32, Game Blaster (CMS), Sound Blaster, Generic MPU-401 MIDI, IBM Music Feature Card Input Devices: Keyboard, Mouse, Analog Joystick Media: 3 3½" floppy diskettes
Apple II
Minimum OS: Minimum CPU: Minimum RAM: Graphics Modes: Input Devices: Keyboard, Joystick Media:
Apple IIgs
Minimum OS: Minimum CPU: Minimum RAM: Input Devices: Keyboard, Mouse, Joystick Media:
Mac
Minimum OS: Minimum CPU: Minimum RAM: Graphics Modes: Audio Hardware: Input Devices: Keyboard, Mouse Media: Minimum CD-ROM Speed:
Amiga
Minimum OS: Kickstart 1.2 Minimum CPU: Amiga 1000 Minimum RAM: 1 MB Graphics Modes: OCS/ECS Sound Devices Supported: Roland MT-32 (and LAPC-I) Input Devices: Keyboard, Mouse, Joystick Media: 3.5" floppy diskettes
Atari ST
Minimum OS: 520 ST Minimum RAM: 512KB Sound Devices: Casio CZ-101 Roland MT-32 (and LAPC-I) Input Devices: Keyboard, Mouse Media:
Exploring Game Resources
Resources Used
- VIEW.* — View resources; 16 color sprite graphics. Location: RESOURCE.00*, RESSCI.00*, patchDir.
- PIC.* — Picture resources; 16 color background graphics. Location: RESOURCE.00*, RESSCI.00*, patchDir.
- SCRIPT.* — Script resources; the game logic. Location: RESOURCE.00*, RESSCI.00*, patchDir.
- TEXT.* — Text resources; series of ASCII strings. Location: RESOURCE.00*, RESSCI.00*, patchDir.
- SOUND.* — Sound resources; MIDI music and some sound effects. Location: RESOURCE.00*, patchDir.
- VOCAB.* — Vocabulary resources; Internal dictionary for the parser. Location: RESOURCE.00*, RESSCI.00*, patchDir.
- FONT.* — Font resources; graphics to display text. Location: RESOURCE.00*, patchDir.
- CURSOR.* — Cursor resources; graphics for the cursor or pointer. Location: RESOURCE.00*, patchDir.
- PATCH.* — Patch resources; Audio patch files. Location: RESOURCE.00*, patchDir.
External Resources
Resource Tools
- Sierra Resource Viewer - Opens, views, and exports AGI and SCI game resources
Multiplayer
None known.
Patches
No Official Patch
New Installer
SHP New Space Quest 3 for DOSBox Installer Setup File [663 KB]
- Requires files from the original distribution media. Works with all versions of the game. Copy the files from your floppy disks into a temporary folder on your hard drive and run this installer from that folder.
Debug Modes
Debug mode in SCI0 gamesNearly all SCI0 games have an internal debugger, meaning a build-in debugger in the game's interpreter. Next to that, some games also have a script debugger. Like with AGI games, a script debugger is a debug script located directly in the game code itself, rather than in the interpreter's code.
Internal DebuggerThe internal debugger is activated by simultaneously pressing [SHIFT + SHIFT + MINUS] (the MINUS key located at the NUMERIC keypad). The debugger is/was mainly useful for programmers, but some things like changing variables can be easily done.
Command Action Notes Q Quit game B Set Breakpoint A Inspect ID in accumulator C Inspect Current Set of Objects
Press C to see all of the objects within that set. Press I to inspect the selector. Press E to edit that selector.I Inspect Object/Memory
Press cursor Up/Down to go up/down through the memory by 16 bytes and Left/Right to go up/down the memory by 2 bytes.F Show free heap S Show sends R Show resource types O Show objects in heap [SHIFT + O] Show objects with addresses [SHIFT + S] Show stack usage G Change global variable L Change local variable T Change temp variable ENTER Proceed single step through script. TAB Step across send [SHIFT + /] Help; shows list (incomplete) of shortcuts. Note that these are case sensitive, so [CAPS LOCK] should be deactivated.
Example: The room number is controlled by global variable 13. When the debug is activated, push [G]. It will ask which global variable should be changed. Enter "13". Now it will show the current value of the variable. Change this to your preferred, valid room number. Exit the debugger ([SHIFT + SHIFT + MINUS] or [SHIFT + SHIFT + D]) to see the effect.
Script DebuggerThe script debugger is a bit more interesting and often more extensive. Not all games have a script debugger, some of them were likely removed before the final release of the game. However, a fair number of games still have it. The script debugger is in most cases activated by typing a certain sentence in the game. This sentence differs from game to game.
When there isn't a sentence to type, but a debug is present in the game, it can be activated by changing the value of a certain global variable. An example of doing this is given in the previous chapter "Internal Debugger".
Note that in some games, the debug mode will be activated on room change.
When the script debugger is activated, the following general commands are available:
Command Action Notes [CTRL + left click] Instant movement (of ego) Does not work with Quest for Glory / Hero's Quest [SHIFT + left click] Show coordinates
Space Quest 3To activate the debug mode, type: "backstage pass"
Command Action TP Teleport (change room/scene/script) [ALT + E] Show ego information [ALT + R] Show current room number [ALT + Y] Assign object [ALT + P] Show priority screen [ALT + H] Show free heap [ALT + C] Show control lines [ALT + V] Show visual screen [ALT + Z] Quit Another option is available in the starting room of the game: Type "QA" to get a selection screen with the choice between various game states (in space, arriving on different planets, ending).
References
Related Links
