My son has ported Grey Tower and Palace of Sand for OS X, and is working on the other games. Thanks, Fred!
The Classic versions of all my color games are coded so they can be translated into other languages. Are you looking for a big extra-credit project? Have friends in another country? Do you have access to a resource editor? Let me know!
In response to user requests, the original WorldBuilder versions of my games are now available here. These games were made on and for the first-generation, pre-PPC Macs— perfect for a quick study break on that old SE you thought was only good for word processing. The manuals have been updated, but nothing else has been changed.
Note that saved games from the b/w version can not be opened in a color game, and vice versa.
The b/w games are released on an as-is, freeware basis. You can no longer register them, and I’m not actively supporting them, but if you register a color game you are automatically registered for its b/w equivalent. (Conversely: if you registered any b/w game before the end of 1999— I know who you are— contact me for information on registering the equivalent color game.)
If you’re getting stuck a lot, download Lucy’s FAQ for advice on all my games, both b/w and color versions. You’ll need a text reader or word processor.
If you’re having download problems, read on.
Each game’s manual (ReadMe) includes payment instructions for people who simply want to send me a check from a US bank. If you live outside the US, or if you prefer to pay by credit card, you can register online at kagi.
My games are for Macintosh only. If your Mac is over 10 years old, read on; otherwise you’ll be fine.
All games require 32-bit QuickDraw, and all except Pavilion and Grey Tower need two sound channels. Memory defaults range from 2000K to 2400K, but setting your monitor to 256 colors will let you run the games on much less memory.
If you have an old color Mac (LC or earlier) and you’re not sure what it can do, download and run Lucy’s Diagnostic (33K download). This should tell you if the games will work on your Mac.
If you have a b/w Mac, or the diagnostic says you won’t be able to run the games on your elderly color Mac, you can still run the old WorldBuilder versions, also available here.
They’re on their way... slowly. Meanwhile, the existing versions should run in Classic Mode. Please feel free to e-mail me with problems and bug reports involving OS X Macs. I may or may not be able to do anything about it, but I’d like to know anyway.
| color games | patches (color games) | b/w games |
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Color Pavilion 1.4.2: 289K January 2000 |
Pavilion 1.4.2 patch: 84K Needs: Color Pavilion 1.3 or later |
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Grey Tower 1.5.2: 764K February 2006 |
Grey Tower 1.5.2 patch: 40K Needs: Grey Tower 1.5 or later Grey Tower 1.5 patch: 83K Needs: Grey Tower 1.4 or later |
The Tower 3.0.1: 546K August 1997 |
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Palace of Sand 1.6.1: 720K March 2007 |
Palace of Sand 1.6.1 patch: 37K Needs: Palace of Sand 1.6 Palace of Sand 1.6 patch: 253K Needs: Palace of Sand 1.3 or later |
Sultan’s Palace 2.1.2: 429K November 1997 |
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Muddy Water 1.3.2: 967K March 2000 |
Muddy Water 1.3.2 patch: 232K Needs: Muddy Water 1.2 or later |
Canal District 2.0.1: 527K September 1997 |
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Color by Number 1.2.2: 787K March 2000 |
Color by Number 1.2.2 patch: 112K Needs: Color by Number 1.1 or later |
Double Trouble 1.1.1: 468K September 1997 |
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More about Xanadu |
Check it out! |
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They’re here!
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All downloads on this page— except for Grey Tower X, which is packaged as a disk image— are StuffIt archives (suffix .sit). You can open them using StuffIt (v. 3.6 or later) or StuffIt Expander from Aladdin Systems. Some other decoders can also open StuffIt files; check the documentation for your preferred utility.
If a download doesn’t happen at all— the status bar displays for a few seconds and then goes away again— it simply means your browser is being grumpy, or there’s maintenance going on at this site. Give it a day or so and try again.
Important:
If the downloaded file shows up on your hard drive as a “SimpleText document” rather than a “StuffIt (or StuffIt Expander) document,” don’t try to open it by double-clicking from the desktop! Open it from within StuffIt or other expander.
In rare cases, a server will chew up files in transit. If nothing seems to work, and you’ve tried repeatedly (say, three times over a period of several days) let me know and I’ll send you a binhexed version of the file. Binhexed files (suffix .hqx) take up more ftp space and more download time— that’s why I don’t use them by default— but they’re sometimes more stable.
Watch this area for release notes & updates.
Each game’s documentation includes a detailed version history. New releases of the full-size games always include an updated Easter-egg page.
Saved games from earlier color versions can be opened in the newer releases, and your old prefs will still be valid.
Bug fix
In earlier versions of the color games, if you selected the “double-clicking” preference and then double-clicked instead of single-clicking on some types of objects, the click wasn’t recognized at all. This problem was fixed in the January-March 2000 release of each game.
v. 1.4.2 released 24 January 2000. Fixes the double-click bug.
v. 1.4 released 27 December 1998. You’ll see changes
in the closet door, the witch’s book, the initial bump on the head...
and the unicorn is back!
v. X 1.1.1 released 28 February 2007. Updated my contact info, fixed a couple minor graphics bugs, and improved menu disabling during delays.
v. X 1.1 released 2 March 2006. Fixed a few bugs, updated some easter eggs, and made Grey Tower X a Universal Binary.
v. X 1.0 released 2 January 2006. For OS X!
v. 1.5 released 29 January 2000. Fixes the double-click bug
and updates the Easter-egg page.
v. 1.3 released 27 December 1998. You’ll see changes in small-scale animations such as the sun/moon hanging
and the flickering flames, and a whole new treatment of matchlight.
v. X 1.0 released 20 March 2007. For OS X!
v. 1.6.1 released 17 March 2007. Updates Easter-eggs.
v. 1.6 released 2 February 2000. Fixes the double-click bug,
updates the Easter-egg page and redoes some graphics.
v. 1.3 released 27 December 1998. If you’ve been to the Palace before, you’ll find some doors that weren’t there before... and be sure to stop and admire Zainab’s ceiling!
v. 1.3.2 released 1 March 2000. Fixes the double-click bug
and a couple of other problems, and updates the Easter-egg page.
v. 1.3 released 8 February 1999. Tackles some of those Plausibility Issues that tend to arise in adventure games. Look for changes in what happens when you sleep, when you offer treasure to other characters... and when you leave some rooms.
v. 1.2 released 29 December 1998. Everything to do with water will behave a little differently, including nicer treatment of background sounds. If you’ve been to the District before, you’ll find that you have a wider range of combat options... and a new way to misplace the sceptre.
v. 1.2.1 released 10 March 2000. Fixes bug involving rat.
Fixes the double-click bug, and updates the Easter-egg page.
v. 1.1 released 30 December 1998. If you’ve been to the house before, you’ll notice that the ghosts are a little ghostlier, the blurry doors a little blurrier... and, as in Grey Tower, all your different light sources will be treated in distinctive ways.