Within the settings menu we can tweak the game engine and sound output (among other configuration options). (Those of you with eagle eyes will note that the game name is Quest for Glory and not Hero’s Quest-Sierra changes the game name after a conflict with the Hero Quest board game by Milton Bradley). Once we click choose, we’re presented with a settings menu for the specific game. Navigate the to the appropriate directory and select choose-if the game is not on the compatibility list or missing key files ScummVM will not allow you to select the directory. Once the game files are finished copying to their new directory, head back into the ScummVM interface and click Add Game. Our copy of Hero’s Quest went into /ScummVM/Games/Hero’s Quest/. We’re storing them directly in the ScummVM directory so should we decide to copy the whole setup to another computer everything is already neatly organized. Regardless the game you’re using, the steps will be the same.Įxtract or copy the game files to the location you wish to store your games. For our test we’re going to use the Sierra games classic Hero’s Quest (a lesser known title in the genre of King’s Quest and Space Quest that is dear to our hearts). To get started we need to add some games. On first run, you will see two things, a warning message (indicating that the scummvm.ini configuration file is missing and a fresh one will be created) and the actual ScummVM interface window as seen above. Once you’ve installed or extracted it, run scummvm.exe.
Installing for ScummVM is dead simple-especially if you download the portable copy-just run the installer or extract the zip file to a location of your choosing. Installing ScummVM and Placing Your Game Files A cursory search engine query should help you find them. If paying $10 for a 30 year old point-and-click game is a bit rich for your budget you can always hit up eBay and other reseller locations to scoop up old games on the cheap.Īs an alternative route, for games no longer in production or distribution, there are multiple sites that host retro games that have fallen into the realm of “abandonware”.
You can also download point-and-click games that have been released for free legal download or browse the list of compatible games in the ScummVM wiki and check out the links to sites that still sell the vintage games. If you have the the original game disks/discs and the ability to read them, you can simply copy the files over.
For a full list of the two dozen plus operating systems and platforms supported check out the Platforms entry in the ScummVM wiki.Īs for the game data files, you can acquire them in one of several ways.
What Do I Need?įor this tutorial you’ll a small number of things, all of which are free.Ī note on the necessary items: We’ll be using ScummVM for Windows but ScummVM is a highly ported application and is available for everything from Mac OS X and Linux to Android, iOS, Wii homebrew, and more. Now that you’re pumped and ready to get playing your retro favorites, let’s review what we need and get started. As long as you have the data from the point-and-click games (even if you can’t run the original game on your computer) you can import them into ScummVM. ScummVM essentially replaces the executable that launches the original game with a shinier, more efficient, and feature packed interface that allows for everything from custom support for individual games to enhanced gaming saving. The result of that overlap is the ScummVM project-a multi-platform game engine that acts as a modern front end for old game scripts. Thankfully, there is a sizeable overlap between the realms of skilled programmers and die-hard point-and-click adventure fans. If you can even get the old games to run in compatibility mode they are plagued with graphics and audio issues that radically decrease playability and put a definite dent in your nostalgia fix.
If thoughts of playing Maniac Mansion, The Secret of Monkey Island, Kings Quest, and other classic point-and-click adventures sends tingles of nostalgia to your mouse hand, read on as we show you how to enjoy the classics on your computer with ScummVM.Īs any fan of old-school point-and-click adventures can tell you, installing and running the retro classics from the 1980s and 90s on a modern computer is a complete and utter crapshot.