URI Quest is a homebrew adventure game that was created in a long-forgotten age when the Internet, and I, were both much younger... (and when I actually had free time). I leave this page here, albeit with a new coat of html5 paint, as a testament to those glorious old days of PC gaming. Enjoy...
-Jeff
You may be asking yourself... "SELF!"... "What is URI Quest?"
Well, let me tell you. It's an adventure game very much in the same vein of Sierra On-Line's mid-80s work. Now, unless you're about my age, you still might have no idea what I'm talking about. In the 80s and early 90s, there was a company called Sierra, which made adventure games. These were actually quite revolutionary and clever games for their time. It all started with the King's Quest series. Some other game series' you might have heard of are Space Quest, Leisure Suit Larry, Police Quest and Manhunter.
Anyhow... these games were created using an engine called AGI (Adventure Game Interpreter) that was developed by Sierra. In these games, you play as a character that walks around different "rooms" or "screens". You give commands to your character by typing them in. The game parses your request and responds accordingly. These games were called 3-D adventure games because your character was able to move in front of and behind objects. The game rooms had a certain "depth" to them, if only illusionary. The games were not true 3-D like today's games are. The graphics mode was 160x200 resolution with 16 colors.
So what does all this have to do with URI Quest? Well, it's a game made by me using the same AGI interpreter that was used to create all those old games that we know and love. And this game is/was by no means the only one under development. In the past few years [Editor's note: This text was originally written circa 1998], some pretty smart folks decoded the interpreter and created utilities that can hack into them and allow just about anybody to create their own games using AGI. (Of course, a good background in programming also helps). There are/were many other people currently working on their own AGI games.
URI Quest follows the adventures of me and 3 other college friends at the University of Rhode Island. Although I'd long since graduated, at the time I thought it would be funny to make a game about college. In the game, you play the role of me and my friends John, Ed, and Ziggy (the crazy Norwegian). What are we searching for, exactly? Well, I can't tell you. You'll have to play the game and discover the plot for yourself.
URI Quest requires an IBM compatible computer to run. Aside from this, you will need the AGI interpreter files from another early Sierra game. Distributing these files myself would be illegal [Editor's note: I doubt this is the case anymore, but we used to worry about such things back then, lol]. A sound card is required (along with a patch for your interpreter file) to fully hear the music in the game. To check out the game for yourself, and to get instructions on how to do all of this, check out the Download section below.
Editor's note: This text was originally written circa 1998. I have not checked how valid it still is in the age of Windows 7, 10, and beyond... (though the DOSBox solution noted below should always work).
URI Quest requires an IBM compatible computer to run. Aside from this, you will need the AGI interpreter files from another Sierra AGI game. I can't distribute the interpreter files with my game files since they are copyrighted programs. You can buy many of these older Sierra games at any software store. They are sold as part of certain collections.
So far, URI Quest has only been tested with interpreter versions 2.915, 2.917 and 2.936. It works fine with any of these, so I suggest using one of them. Using any earlier versions will be at your own risk, especially since I offer version 2.917 on this site (see below).
The interpreter files you need are called SIERRA.COM (might be called KQ.COM or something similar), AGI (no extension), and any files with an .OVL extension. You can download a program called AGIVER.EXE from this web site to check your interpreter versions (see below). Run this program in your interpreter files directory and it will tell you what version you have.
IF YOU DON'T HAVE A CORRECT INTERPRETER VERSION: Sierra has, in the past, distributed free AGI demo programs. "Demo Pack #3" included interpreter version 2.917. This interpreter will work fine with URI Quest. I will make this particular interpreter available on this site until Sierra says I can't, in which case I will remove it.
Disclaimer: URI Quest contains mild language and cheesy pixelated nudity. If you have a problem with this, in the immortal words of the MST3K theme song, you should really just relax. I've rated the game PG-13. I must stress that this is NOT an adults-only game.
Follow these easy steps to install and run URI Quest the way it was intended:
For those of you keeping up with the digital age, you may notice alot of your older DOS games don't entirely work with newer MS operating systems. AGI games in particular won't have functional sound, because Windows NT/2000/XP don't support it under their emulated DOS modes. However, it is still possible to hear the sound in URI Quest if you follow these simple steps:
If you can't get the game to work natively in Windows using any of the steps above, I would recommend trying to set it up to run in DOSBox, which creates an emulated DOS computer. This method should definitely work (and is probably the best way to do it anyways), but requires a bit of technical know-how. If you do go this route, make sure to run it on an emulated Tandy PC, if possible, for the best sound and visuals.
Stuck in the game? Need a little hint? No problem! We've got you covered with two types of walkthroughs: One for hints only, and one with the full solutions. Select the version you want using the buttons below.
General notes and hints: There are quite a few typing shortcuts available. For example, "O D" can be used in place of "OPEN DOOR", "L" is short for "LOOK", and "L" and "R" can be used in place of "LEFT" and "RIGHT" respectively. You should also have a basic familiarity with the campus layout, such as the names of certain buildings/dorms - there is a map inventory item to help you with this. The names and locations of other buildings/landmarks will only become clear by looking around and exploring the campus. It may be helpful to make your own map. A screenshot map of the entire URI Quest world is also available to assist with navigation.
This version of the walkthrough is for general hints only. Outright solutions are not given. I won't tell you what to do type step by step, but I will provide hints as to what you are supposed to do.