If you appreciate the work done within the wiki, please consider supporting The Cutting Room Floor on Patreon. Thanks for all your support!

King's Quest VI: Heir Today, Gone Tomorrow

From The Cutting Room Floor
Jump to navigation Jump to search

Title Screen

King's Quest VI: Heir Today, Gone Tomorrow

Developer: Sierra On-Line
Publisher: Sierra On-Line
Platforms: DOS, Windows, Mac OS Classic
Released internationally: September 30, 1992


AreasIcon.png This game has unused areas.
DevTextIcon.png This game has hidden development-related text.
GraphicsIcon.png This game has unused graphics.
SoundIcon.png This game has unused sounds.
TextIcon.png This game has unused text.
DebugIcon.png This game has debugging material.
Carts.png This game has revisional differences.


NotesIcon.png This game has a notes page

Hmmm...
To do:
  • Revamp the Revisional Differences section, as it's currently quite confusing and poorly-worded.
  • Find out what the Alt+S debug function and the tutorial room's "g"-file effect do.
  • There's some unused system/development text, such as room error messages and "Do not print this. Comment msg only." placeholder lines.
  • Cover script 952's function in more detail.

King's Quest VI is widely regarded by fans as the highest point in the series, for reasons ranging from an excellent storyline, to the then-groundbreaking quality (like the opening CG movie), to rather clever puzzles.

Sub-Page

Miscellaneous tidbits that are interesting enough to point out here.
Notes

Debug Mode

Script 911, which handles debugging functions, seems to have been accidentally left in the Spanish and Italian releases of the final game; these functions can be activated by having an extracted copy of the script file in the game's directory.

Alternatively, the following patch files can be used to enable the debug functions in an English copy of the game.

Download.png Download kq6.en.debug_scripts
File: kq6.en.debug_scripts.zip (4 KB) (info)


(Source: OmerMor)

When active, upon opening the game or choosing to restart, the following menu appears:

KQVI debugwarp.png

These buttons can be used to warp the player to the first room of their respective areas, while specific rooms can be warped to by entering their internal ID number in the text box.

The following debug commands can be used during gameplay:

Keys Name Notes
Alt + A show Cast Crashes the game.
Alt + B Polygon Editor This editor has enough surviving code to at least load in successfully (see below), but trying to create a new polygon with it crashes the game.
Alt + C Control map Shows the Control layer of the current room.
Alt + D DebugOn toggle Displays a textbox saying "On" (or "Off" if you select it a second time). It's unknown if this has any actual effect; the debug functions seem to still work even with this set to Off.
Alt + F Flag set/clr Sets a given flag, or clears it if it's already been set.
Alt + G Global set Changes the value of a given global variable. Trying to make an invalid change crashes the game.
Alt + I Inv items Crashes the game.
Alt + L Log file Activates script 952, a form for QA testers to file bug reports.
Alt + M Memory Displays the amount of bytes free in memory.
Alt + P Priority map Shows the Priority layer of the current room.
Alt + Q show Cursor Coords Crashes the game.
Alt + R Room info Crashes the game.
Alt + S Updating cast elements Function currently unknown.
Alt + T Teleport Brings up the same warp menu as upon game start. Doesn't work on the Isle of Wonder or during some cutscenes (exactly which rooms are affected can be found on the Notes page).
Alt + U return User control As implied by the name, can be used to regain control of Alexander during cutscenes that would normally lock it (though this seems to not always work; more testing might be needed to determine the exact mechanics).
Alt + V Visual map Shows the Visual layer of the current room (aka., the default view).
Alt + W feature Writer This editor appears to be more functional than the Polygon Editor, and can be used to add simple map features to the current room.
Alt + Y Vanishing point adj Crashes the game.
Alt + Z QUICK QUIT Immediately quits the game.

Additionally, the game checks for the presence of a file named g (with no file extension) in the game's directory, and if present, warping to certain rooms will have additional effects:

Room Function
205 (Tutorial) Function currently unknown.
470 (Isle of Wonder, swamp) Adds the dagger, the skull, the hunter's lamp, the teacup, and Rotten Tomato to Alexander's inventory.
480 (Isle of Wonder, garden) Adds the flute and the milk bottle to Alexander's inventory.
740 (Castle of the Crown, main hall) Shows text boxes with dialogue prompts to set story flags for the current game state (see below). Also adds the mirror and the peppermint leaf to Alexander's inventory, making it possible to complete the game from here regardless of your choices.
750 (Castle of the Crown, final vizier confrontation room) Shows text boxes with Yes/No dialogue prompts asking "Does Jollo have lamp?" and "Does Cassima have dagger?", and sets the corresponding story flags accordingly. Also adds the peppermint leaf to Alexander's inventory, making it possible to complete the game from here regardless.

The full sequence of dialogue prompts for room 740 (if "V wedding" is selected for the first prompt, only it and the second prompt are used):

Prompt Options
select: V wedding A wedding
Are Cassima's parent's alive? No Yes
genie status? Killed with peppermint Saved
Found missing treasure? No Yes
Befriended Court Clown? No Yes
Which ring? Cassima has a ring Alex has a ring Left ring at pawn shop

Unused Dialogue

Unused Death Messages

These lines are stored in the same file (message 916) as other death messages, but are never used in-game.

Speaker Text Audio
Narrator Caught in the act! Alexander's in the doghouse now!
Timing is everything....
Perhaps Alexander should have introduced himself when he had the chance!
Don't be taken in by a pretty face, Alexander.
That wasn't berry smart, Alexander!
Too bad Alexander couldn't quiet those ghostly tears!

This line does have a coded-in use case, for when Alexander is caught by the minotaur in the spying room of the catacombs while the hole-in-the-wall is currently present on the wall... except that the minotaur only appears there if the hole-in-the-wall has already ran off, or wasn't used at all, making the line impossible to trigger.

Speaker Text Audio
Narrator Sometimes looks ARE everything!
(Source: shadyparadox, sluicebox)

Removed Background Details

The screen with Beauty's house (room 250) has unused interaction lines for a cat that doesn't appear there in the final game.

Speaker Action Text Audio
Narrator Using an item There's no reason to use that on the poor family cat.
Take Alexander would never be able to catch the cat and wouldn't want to take the family's pet, anyway.
Look A striped cat lounges in the yard of the private home. It must be a family pet.
Speak Apparently, the cat has got its own tongue, for it refuses to reply.

Similarly, the bookshop (room 270) has both actor scripting and interaction lines for a spider that doesn't actually appear in the final game. This spider may have been repurposed into the spider that appears in the castle dungeon later on in the game, which is labeled "ant" internally.

Speaker Action Text Audio
Narrator Using an item Unless Alexander has some flies, the spider is probably not interested.
Take Alexander does not care to get any closer to that spider.
Look A spider seems to be enjoying the shelves of musty books that the book shop has to offer.
Speak The spider merely observes and says nothing.

These lines are from the inside of the ferry (room 290), and presumably were meant for the painting hanging up on the wall there, which is visible but not interactable in the final game.

Speaker Action Text Audio
Narrator Take The woman in the picture probably means something to the ferryman. Alexander decides to leave the picture on the wall.
Look An old oil painting of a pretty girl hangs on the cabin wall.
Speak The image in the picture does not reply.

This line is assigned to the carved horse on the wall in the hallway outside Cassima's room in the castle (room 870), but its action type (verb 75) is unused, rendering it inaccessible.

Speaker Text Audio
Narrator The horse is unable to carry Alexander away from these guarded halls.
(Source: sluicebox, Sam, original TCRF research)

Other

When talking to the ferryman inside the ferry, one of his repeating dialogue lines at the end of the conversation doesn't play in-game. It was re-enabled in the Amiga release, however.

Speaker Text Audio
Ferryman "The island's currents keep us pretty isolated. I can only recall three visitors in my lifetime. When I was a boy a wanderer came, Alhazred himself arrived many years ago, and now you. We have almost no contact with the outside world, but we're content with our little kingdom. At least, we always were in the past."

The scripting for this line (from the Isle of Wonder beach, room 450) indicates that it would've been an alternate line for presenting the flower of stench to Tom Trow, perhaps for doing so too late, but in the final game control is taken away from the player as soon as the time limit for successfully presenting an item is up.

Speaker Text Audio
Narrator It's no good using that on the gnome now!

Several of the rooms used for the Cliffs of Logic have lines seemingly for preventing Alexander from backtracking during the climb, but in the final game there is no such restriction.

Speaker Room Text Audio
Narrator 21 (general Isle of the Sacred Mountain region) Alexander has the feeling the tricky granite steps might not approve if he tried to turn back now.
Alexander has a feeling the tricky granite steps might not approve if he tried to turn back now.
300 (beach) Alexander has the feeling that the tricky granite steps would not approve if he tried to go back the way he came!
320 (mid-climb) Alexander has a feeling the tricky granite steps might not approve if he tried to turn back now.

The "room" (155) used for the cutscenes of riding Night Mare when entering and leaving the Realm of the Dead has two lines of dialogue associated with it, but these aren't used in the final game.

Speaker Text Audio
Narrator Alexander clings to Night Mare's back as she flies higher and higher. They enter a darkness so deep and cold that Alexander feels his very bones penetrated by the icy blackness.
The three mortals cling to the broad back of Night Mare. At first, there is nothing but blackness all around. But the chill gradually melts into an enticing warmth, as they fly into the life-giving sun of the world of men.

These lines are assigned to the end of the final confrontation between Alexander and the vizier (in room 750), but don't actually play there in-game.

Speaker Text Audio
Narrator The vizier, distracted so well by Cassima's bravery, fails to watch the sword at his back--or the enraged prince who wields it!
Alexander "Leave her alone, Alhazred! You are through harming her--and this kingdom!"
Alhazred "Wha...?"
(Source: Original TCRF research)

Unused Graphics

Kingsquest6shamirportraittalk.gif

Shamir has a portrait in the game's data, complete with talking animations and golden eyes shining. In spite of this, it goes completely unused in the game, except in the Amiga release.

Original Color-corrected
KQVI Pic600 original.png Kingsquest6unusedbg1.png

An unused background for the Realm of the Dead. The raw background has a color error, however.

(Source: Akril15)

Unused Room

KQVI room605.png

Room 605 is an unused duplicate of the first room of the Realm of the Dead (room 600) with none of the usual actors or descriptive text present, possibly used for testing. It has one exit to the north, to room 630 (the second room of the Realm of the Dead), whereas in the used version that exit is to the east instead. Upon entry, three text boxes with Yes/No button prompts appear in succession:

Would you like a ticket?
How about a (deadman's) coin?
Maybe a mirror? They're great for defeating spirits!

Answering "yes" to any of these questions will grant the player the corresponding item(s), all of which are required to progress through this area in normal gameplay.

(Source: Original TCRF research)

Unused Sounds

Cassima

Early Final

Audios 3001 and 3002 are Cassima's voices in the DOS floppy release. However, there is a third pointer that also has the ID of 3002-- it leads to an early version of her lines, which seem to be longer and lower in quality. For obvious reasons, it was removed in future releases.

Unused Voice Lines for Unvoiced Text

Some of the used text lines that are unvoiced in-game have voice files associated with them in the files that are never played.

Speaker Text Audio
Narrator NO! I must quest on!
Narrator Yes! I've had it!
Narrator Oops. Cancel restart.
Narrator Yes. Restart already.

When choosing to quit or restart the game, these options (stored in message 0) are given to cancel or confirm your choice.

Speaker Text Audio
Narrator Thank you for playing
Narrator Written & Designed by
Narrator Roberta Williams
Jane Jensen
Narrator Produced by
Narrator Robert W. Lindsley
William D. Skirvin
Narrator Directed by
Narrator Roberta Williams
William D. Skirvin
Jane Jensen
Narrator Art Designer
Narrator William D. Skirvin
Narrator Composer
Narrator Chris Braymen
Narrator Text & Dialogue
Narrator Jane Jensen
Narrator Senior Artists
Narrator Michael Hutchison
John Shroades
Narrator Team Artists
Narrator Russell Truelove
Deanna Yhalkee
Narrator Senior Programmer
Narrator Robert W. Lindsley
Narrator Team Programmers
Narrator Randy MacNeill
Robert L. Mallory
Victor Sadauskas
Narrator Team Quality Assurance
Narrator Robin Bradley
Narrator Guidebook Written by
Narrator Jane Jensen
Narrator Guidebook Illustrated by
Narrator John Shroades
Narrator Guidebook Designed by
Narrator Mark Empey
Narrator Additional Artists
Narrator Darlou Gams
Tim Loucks
Rick Morgan
Jennifer Shontz
Cindy Walker
Karin A. Young
Narrator You received out of points. You've completed approximately percent of the main-path puzzles in King's Quest VI.
Narrator We hope you'll play again!
Narrator Congratulations on your excellent performance! If you want to go "beyond" the ultimate score, we recommend that you try the other, "easier" entrance to the castle. You can do so easily by restoring back to a point just before the Druid's rain storm. DON'T GO BACK TO SEE THE DRUIDS--instead, head for the castle. New puzzle challenges await you!
Narrator Thank you for playing King's Quest VI.
Narrator Opening Cartoon by
Narrator Kronos:
Stanley Lui & Albert Co
Narrator Cinematography
Narrator Rod Fung
Bob Ballew
Narrator Musicians
Narrator Dan Kehler
Rick Spurgeon
Narrator Additional Programming
Narrator Doug Oldfield
Carlos Escobar
Narrator Additional Testing
Narrator Mike Brosius
John Radcliffe
Narrator Customer Service
Narrator Rob Koeppel
Narrator Special Thanks
Narrator Tammy Dargan
Rebecca Sebastian
Mark Seibert ("Girl in the Tower" song)
Fresno State University
KQVI beta testers
Narrator System Development
Narrator Chad Bye
Dan Foy
J. Mark Hood
Brian K. Hughes
Ken Koch
Jack Magne
Terry McHenry
Larry Scott
Chris Smith
Mark Wilden

These credits (in message 94) are the ones you get upon completing the game.

Speaker Text Audio
Narrator Written & Designed by
Narrator Roberta Williams
Jane Jensen
Narrator Produced by
Narrator William D. Skirvin
Narrator Directed by
Narrator Roberta Williams
William D. Skirvin
Jane Jensen
Narrator Art Designer
Narrator William D. Skirvin
Narrator Composer
Narrator Chris Braymen
Narrator Senior Artists
Narrator Michael Hutchison
John Shroades
Narrator Team Artists
Narrator Russell Truelove
Deanne Yhalkee
Narrator Senior Programmer
Narrator Robert W. Lindsley
Narrator Team Programmers
Narrator Randy MacNeill
Robert L. Mallory
Victor Sadauskas
Narrator Team Quality Assurance
Narrator Robin Bradley

These credits (in message 95) are the ones accessible from the About menu.

Speaker Text Audio
Narrator Long ago, in the castle of a kingdom called Daventry....
Narrator A young prince sits alone in the throne room, head in hands, lost in melancholy.
Narrator His mother, Queen Valanice, enters, and hastens to his side.
Valanice "Alexander! Here you are! You're still not thinking about Cassima, are you?"
Alexander "Hmmm? I suppose I am."
Valanice "Son, it's been MONTHS. You've GOT to pull yourself together. After all, you only met her that once...."
Alexander "I know."
Valanice "Have you discovered anything about the Land of the Green Isles?"
Alexander "No! No one's even heard of it! It's like she's just vanished!"
Valanice "I wish I could help. Please try to think about something else, dear."
Alexander "I'll try, Mother."
Narrator With a feeling of helplessness, the Queen turns and leaves her son to his thoughts.
Narrator Suddenly, the magic mirror on the wall flashes to life....
Narrator The prince leaps to his feet and runs to place his hand against the shimmering glass.
Narrator Beneath his fingers, the mirror dissolves into a scene of a beautiful girl in a tower's window, looking out on a starry night sky. It is Cassima!
Cassima "Alexander.... I feel so alone. I don't know what to do.... Alexander, I wish you were here...."
Narrator The picture fades to glass, the princess to the prince's own reflection.
Alexander "Cassima! Wait!"
Narrator But the image is gone! Prince Alexander turns towards the throne room doors.
Alexander "MOTHER! MOTHER, COME QUICK!"
Narrator Queen Valanice rushes in, her face full of concern.
Valanice "Alexander, what on earth? You're white as a ghost!"
Alexander "Mother, I saw Cassima! She was in the mirror!"
Valanice "In the mirror? The magic mirror?"
Alexander "Yes! And it showed me how to find her!"
Valanice "How?"
Alexander "The stars! I saw the stars outside her window! I can navigate by the stars!"
Valanice "Oh, Alexander.... If you really go...."
Alexander "It will be alright, Mother. I promise."
Narrator And so, the prince leaves his homeland, bound for a land he knows only by the stars.
Narrator Three long months Prince Alexander sails the known seas...and beyond.
Narrator Until finally, on a day like every other day at sea, as the young prince searches through his spyglass.
Narrator He sights land!
Alexander "Land ho! LAND HO! LAND HO!"
Narrator Eagerly, the ship bounds towards the distant shore.
Narrator Day turns to night and the ship nears the shore. As the sky blackens, so too, does the sea. The ship is tossed amidst monstrous currents and whirlpools, as though the land itself were shoving the vessel away.
Narrator The battle is courageous, but the ship, and the prince, are drawn down and down....
Narrator Down into the sea....

The version of the intro that plays on the DOS CD-ROM version without speech enabled (found in message 105), identifiable by its use of extended narration to replace the visuals seen in all other versions.

Speaker Text Audio
Narrator This entire work is Copyright 1992
Sierra On-Line, Inc. All rights reserved.

The copyright message displayed before the title screen (found in message 905).

Speaker Text Audio
Narrator About King's Quest I-V
Narrator About King's Quest VI
Narrator Tips for playing King's Quest VI
Narrator Beginner Walk-Thru
Narrator "Girl in the Tower" theme song.
Narrator You just heard a sampling of the love ballad, "Girl in the Tower," written for King's Quest VI. If you'd like to hear the entire song, please contact your local radio station and request it. Refer to the station directory included in your game box for call letters and phone numbers of participating stations. (This promotion ends January 31, 1993.) Look for the CD-ROM version of King's Quest VI available in Spring 1993. Thank you for playing King's Quest VI.
Narrator You are unable to hear a sampling of the love ballad from King's Quest VI because your computer does not have voice capabilities. If you'd like to hear this song, please contact any of the radio stations listed on the station directory provided in your game box and request "Girl in the Tower" from Sierra On-Line. (This promotion ends January 31, 1993.) Look for the CD-ROM version of King's Quest VI available in Spring 1993. Thank you for playing King's Quest VI.
Narrator Tips for playing King's Quest VI:

More About menu text (found in message 908).

Speaker Text Audio
Narrator "Death...where is thy sting?" Now Alexander knows....
Narrator Death waits for no man!
Narrator 'Tis a noble thing to have a means of escape, and 'tis a far, far better thing to never get caught at all!

Two death messages for the Realm of the Dead (in messsage 916) and one for the castle dungeon (in message 820). These particular deaths are the only ones that skip the usual ticket cutscene, as well as being displayed on a plain black background rather than a standard textbox.

Revisional Differences

Character Graphic Portrait versions

Floppy Enhanced CD
Kings quest 6 low resolution 1.png
Kings quest 6 high resolution windows 1.png

Alexander's Item Inventory

Floppy Enhanced CD
Kings quest 6 low resolution 2.png
Kings quest 6 high resolution windows 2.png

Floppy 1992 Version

  • The Windows XP collection of this game plays in DOSBOX mode.
  • The graphics are downgraded to play the original DOS game.
  • The Windows XP version and the Steam releases feature the low resolution graphic portraits of characters Such as Prince Alexander and other characters.
  • The icons and items are featured in low-detail graphics using the pink color palette.
  • The items in Alexanders inventory are downgraded to low detail graphics.

1997 King's Quest Collection CD-ROM Version

  • The opening of the King's Quest VI video plays the opening music all the way to the end.
  • The Windows 95 version features high-resolution graphics portraits of characters such as Prince Alexander and other characters.
  • The icons and items are featured in high-detail graphics using the white color palette.
  • The items in Alexander's inventory are upgraded to high-detail graphics.
  • At the end of the wedding scene in Speech mode, the game crashes and shows the end credits in the black background. This is due to the decisions not to include “Girl in the Tower”.
  • While playing the wedding scene in the text version, the instrumental song "Girl in the Tower" will be played and the end credits shows the background scenes from the game.
  • This enhanced Windows 95 version won't work in the Windows XP or 7, 8, 10 modes and is often considered a lost PC game.

2006 King's Quest Collection CD-ROM Version

  • The opening of the King's Quest VI video doesn't finish and cuts off near the end.
  • The Windows XP collection of this game plays in DOSBOX mode.
  • The graphics are downgraded to play the original DOS game.
  • The Windows XP version and the Steam releases features the low resolution graphic portraits of Characters Such as Prince Alexander and other characters.
  • The icons and items are featured in low detail graphics using the pink color palette.
  • The items in Alexanders inventory are downgraded to low-detail graphics.
  • The DOSBOX game crashes after about 3 hours of gameplay, which may make it frustrating for those who don't save often.
  • At the end of the wedding scene in Speech mode, the game plays the song “Girl in the Tower” which is included in this game.