Space Quest III: The Pirates of Pestulon
Encyclopedia
Space Quest III: The Pirates of Pestulon, the third game in Sierra Entertainment
's Space Quest
series, was released on March 24, 1989, and was developed using an early version of Sierra's SCI
engine.
) and leave the scow
. However he will meet some difficulties, as Arnoid the Annihilator (an Arnold Schwarzenegger
-like android terminator) hunts him for not paying for a whistle in SQII. He eventually discovers the sinister activities of a video game company known as ScumSoft run by the "Pirates of Pestulon".
Pestulon, a small moon of the volcanic planet Ortega, is covered in soft, moss-like vegetation, and dotted with twisted tree-like growths throughout. Elmo Pug, the CEO of ScumSoft, has abducted the Two Guys from Andromeda
and is forcing them to design their awful games. Roger somehow gets inside the supposedly impregnable ScumSoft Sea of cubicles
and rescues the two programmers. In the process, Roger must fight Elmo in a game that combines giant Mecha
-style combat with Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots
.
drummer Bob Siebenberg
, and was one of the first games to support the new Sound Blaster
sound card. PC versions of the game now supported mouse movement and a new, heavily improved text parser
. Mouse movement was still in its primitive state at the time of the game, so Roger does not automatically find his way around obstacles in the game world (instead he just stops dead if he encounters a barrier). Computer mice were relatively new at the time, and Sierra's mouse movement would greatly improve in the following games.
Space Quest III also featured a minigame
called Astro Chicken, which was not necessary to complete the game, but getting a high score revealed a hidden distress message that the Two Guys had programmed in.
Sound effects included digitized audio sampling, such as the voice of Roger Wilco speaking "Where am I?" during the introduction. The digitized effects can be heard in the Tandy, Amiga and Macintosh versions of the game. Though Space Quest III was designed to utilize the Sound Blaster's ability to play digital samples, the inclusion of an incorrect driver file left the effects unavailable to IBM PC users with the Sound Blaster card.
minigame in Space Quest III. Gameplay consisted of attempting to land a chicken on a trampoline
. The mechanics of the game were similar to those of Lunar Lander, with the exception that the chicken would rebound unharmed if it struck the trampoline too forcefully. When the chicken landed safely, it would exclaim "Bacock!". The Astro Chicken theme music is a variation on Chicken Reel
, a traditional folk song best known for its use in animated cartoons.
Sierra also released the Astro Chicken minigame as a demo to promote Space Quest III.
gave the ST version a score of 83 %, calling it "enjoyable and addictive".
The game was reviewed in 1989 in Dragon
#149 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 4 out of 5 stars. The Lessers reviewed the Macintosh & PC/MS-DOS versions of the game in Dragon #175, also giving those versions of the game 4 out of 5 stars.
Computer Gaming World
gave the game a positive review, noting improvements in the presentation and action sequences over its predecessors.
Sierra Entertainment
Sierra Entertainment Inc. was an American video-game developer and publisher founded in 1979 as On-Line Systems by Ken and Roberta Williams...
's Space Quest
Space Quest
Space Quest is a series of six comedic science fiction computer games that follow the adventures of a hapless janitor named Roger Wilco, as he campaigns through the galaxy for "truth, justice and really clean floors"....
series, was released on March 24, 1989, and was developed using an early version of Sierra's SCI
Sierra's Creative Interpreter
Sierra's Creative Interpreter is the scripting language created by Jeff Stephenson of Sierra On-Line for its adventure games after the older AGI, and the runtime environment for such adventure games....
engine.
Plot
Roger Wilco's escape pod from the end of SQ2 is floating in space until captured by an automated garbage freighter. Roger's first task is to repair an old ship found there, the Aluminum Mallard (a play on the Millennium FalconMillennium Falcon
The Millennium Falcon is a spacecraft in the Star Wars universe commanded by smuggler Han Solo and his Wookiee first mate, Chewbacca...
) and leave the scow
Scow
A scow, in the original sense, is a flat-bottomed boat with a blunt bow, often used to haul bulk freight; cf. barge. The etymology of the word is from the Dutch schouwe, meaning such a boat.-Sailing scows:...
. However he will meet some difficulties, as Arnoid the Annihilator (an Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Schwarzenegger
Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger is an Austrian-American former professional bodybuilder, actor, businessman, investor, and politician. Schwarzenegger served as the 38th Governor of California from 2003 until 2011....
-like android terminator) hunts him for not paying for a whistle in SQII. He eventually discovers the sinister activities of a video game company known as ScumSoft run by the "Pirates of Pestulon".
Pestulon, a small moon of the volcanic planet Ortega, is covered in soft, moss-like vegetation, and dotted with twisted tree-like growths throughout. Elmo Pug, the CEO of ScumSoft, has abducted the Two Guys from Andromeda
Two Guys from Andromeda
"Two Guys from Andromeda" is an alias for the designers of the Space Quest series, a popular series of adventure games published by Sierra On-Line...
and is forcing them to design their awful games. Roger somehow gets inside the supposedly impregnable ScumSoft Sea of cubicles
Sea of cubicles
Sea of cubicles is a derisive vernacular term for featureless, modern open office designs which consist of seemingly endless rows of identical office cubicles.- History :The exact origin of the term has been lost...
and rescues the two programmers. In the process, Roger must fight Elmo in a game that combines giant Mecha
Mecha
A mech , is a science fiction term for a large walking bipedal tank or robot, including ones on treads and animal shapes.-Characteristics:...
-style combat with Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots
Rock 'Em Sock 'Em Robots
Rock'em Sock'em Robots is a popular two-player action toy and game, designed by Marvin Glass and Associates and was first manufactured by Marx toy company in 1964. It features two dueling robot boxers mechanically manipulated by the players, and the game is won when one player knocks the head off...
.
Technical details
Space Quest III featured music composed by SupertrampSupertramp
Supertramp are a British rock band formed in 1969 under the name Daddy before renaming to Supertramp in early 1970. Though their music was initially categorised as progressive rock, they have since incorporated a combination of traditional rock and art rock into their music...
drummer Bob Siebenberg
Bob Siebenberg
Bob Siebenberg, also known as Bob C. Benberg, is an American musician, best known as a member of British progressive rock band Supertramp, playing drums and percussion...
, and was one of the first games to support the new Sound Blaster
Sound Blaster
The Sound Blaster family of sound cards was the de facto standard for consumer audio on the IBM PC compatible system platform, until the widespread transition to Microsoft Windows 95, which standardized the programming interface at application level , and the evolution in PC design led to onboard...
sound card. PC versions of the game now supported mouse movement and a new, heavily improved text parser
Text parser
In an adventure game, a text parser takes typed input from the player and simplifies it to something the game can understand. Usually, words with the same meaning are turned into the same word and certain filler words are dropped .The parser makes it easier for the game's author to react on input...
. Mouse movement was still in its primitive state at the time of the game, so Roger does not automatically find his way around obstacles in the game world (instead he just stops dead if he encounters a barrier). Computer mice were relatively new at the time, and Sierra's mouse movement would greatly improve in the following games.
Space Quest III also featured a minigame
Minigame
A minigame is a short video game often contained within another video game. A minigame is always smaller or more simplistic than the game in which it is contained. Minigames are sometimes also offered separately for free to promote the main game...
called Astro Chicken, which was not necessary to complete the game, but getting a high score revealed a hidden distress message that the Two Guys had programmed in.
Sound effects included digitized audio sampling, such as the voice of Roger Wilco speaking "Where am I?" during the introduction. The digitized effects can be heard in the Tandy, Amiga and Macintosh versions of the game. Though Space Quest III was designed to utilize the Sound Blaster's ability to play digital samples, the inclusion of an incorrect driver file left the effects unavailable to IBM PC users with the Sound Blaster card.
Astro Chicken
Astro Chicken was the name of an arcade gameArcade game
An arcade game is a coin-operated entertainment machine, usually installed in public businesses such as restaurants, bars, and amusement arcades. Most arcade games are video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, and merchandisers...
minigame in Space Quest III. Gameplay consisted of attempting to land a chicken on a trampoline
Trampoline
A trampoline is a device consisting of a piece of taut, strong fabric stretched over a steel frame using many coiled springs. People bounce on trampolines for recreational and competitive purposes....
. The mechanics of the game were similar to those of Lunar Lander, with the exception that the chicken would rebound unharmed if it struck the trampoline too forcefully. When the chicken landed safely, it would exclaim "Bacock!". The Astro Chicken theme music is a variation on Chicken Reel
Chicken Reel
"Chicken Reel" is a dance tune. It was composed by Joseph M. Daly in 1910. Joseph Mittenthal added lyrics in 1911.Along with "Turkey in the Straw," "Chicken Reel" is probably best known for its use in early animated cartoons as a catchy tune used to represent animal activity. Originally composed...
, a traditional folk song best known for its use in animated cartoons.
Sierra also released the Astro Chicken minigame as a demo to promote Space Quest III.
Reception
UK magazine C&VGComputer and Video Games (magazine)
Computer and Video Games is a video game magazine and website published in the United Kingdom.- History :...
gave the ST version a score of 83 %, calling it "enjoyable and addictive".
The game was reviewed in 1989 in Dragon
Dragon (magazine)
Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
#149 by Hartley, Patricia, and Kirk Lesser in "The Role of Computers" column. The reviewers gave the game 4 out of 5 stars. The Lessers reviewed the Macintosh & PC/MS-DOS versions of the game in Dragon #175, also giving those versions of the game 4 out of 5 stars.
Computer Gaming World
Computer Gaming World
Computer Gaming World was a computer game magazine founded in 1981 by Russell Sipe as a bimonthly publication. Early issues were typically 40-50 pages in length, written in a newsletter style, including submissions by game designers such as Joel Billings , Dan Bunten , and Chris Crawford...
gave the game a positive review, noting improvements in the presentation and action sequences over its predecessors.