This is still very problematic. zeckensack freezes randomly after playing for a while and dgvoodoo2 cannot be configured to maintain 4:3 aspect, so everything is stretched.
nglide too suffers from a serious problem- a memory leak.
all in all, the safest way to go is with direct3d, however it is too dark and doesn't look as sharp as it does with glide.

sadly, there's no perfect way to run it at the moment, except with a real 3dfx card.

I don't have freezes related to Zeckensecks. I haven't seen crashes with Dgvoodoo2

Direct 3D version was not working at all on my Aalienware. Direct3d also disables a number of special effects.

The best option would be to somehow combine all the options with some kind of external menu to change the settings', and let people decide which works best for them. Like they offer with the kQ7 half of the pack.

Also this game has a number of its own issues that cause crashes and hangs and wasn't patched well to begin with.

Same here. I've never had Zeckensecks freeze up on me or cause me any problems. Don't assume that because you've had issues with it that everyone else has also

It freezes on both pcs i've tried to run it on, with different hardware - windows 7 32&64. I've tried everything - with default settings and with the specific settings for KQ8, none which had worked. everything is fine, sometimes for very long time, but suddenly everything will freeze.

* oh and I've noticed that zeckenseck has stated in his website that modern machine with more than 512mb can cause problems with the wrapper

My computer has way more than 512 mb, and its fairly modern hardware and I have had no problems with the wrapper.

I've have tested on several computers over the years with different configurations but in last ten years these have included on Inspiron 7600 series (or something like that), an XPS m1330, a XPS Studio 16 (only machine to have a Radeon GPU), an XPS 15 series, and an Alienware M11x R3. This will give you an idea of a variety of different system specs if you care to look them up for comparions.

I've only listed my laptops, but there were a number of self-built desktops I've tested them on as well. But those all varied, each with generally top of the line Nvidia card at the time (plus whatever enthusiast vs. windows ram limitations were at the time; so on average anywhere between 4 to 8 gigabytes of ram obviously less the closer you get back to 1998).

I'll soon be testing on an Alienware 14 as well (this comes with 16 gb of ram, IIRC).

You'll have to be much more specific as to what your hardware actually is, and all the specs on your systems.

It's also well known fact, that KQ8 without the fixes is buggy on its own. It freezes on its own. But these issues have occured even if you have a hardware 3DFX card. These problems have occurred since the game first came out.

Some suggestions and known major lock up points are listed here (many of these suggestions are as old as the game);

[url=http://kingsquest.wikia.com/wiki/King%27s_Quest:_Mask_of_Eternity#Technical_Support]http://kingsquest.wikia.com/wiki/King%27s_Quest:_Mask_of_Eternity#Technical_Support[/url]

Note: A number of these issues are actually addressed by Arablizzard's fixes in the installer for the CD rom (and it includes Zeckenseck's last time I checked, but may also include DgVoodoo 2 at this point?).

I, basically, back everything stated by Baggins. Your freezing problems are probably caused by something other than the wrapper. My graphics card has 1GB and there's no issue there

I installed KQ8 using my own disc with the updated installer that fixes a lot of bugs and freezes, and I use zeckenseck's wrapper. Since then, I personally have not experienced any problems with the game

I personally use dgvoodoo2 and am running it, fullscreen, 4:3 on a 1920x1080 monitor, and I got it do do the same (although not quite as gracefully) on my sister's computer. It just takes messing with the dgvoodoo2 settings.

Anyway, I am all for this. Only reason I'm on the forums right now is to find which file to edit to get past a cutscene lockup. Once you know what file to edit, and of course the line to add to it, the lockups aren't actually that hard to fix, but it would be nice, having not played this before, to not have to spend time fixing it on my first play through. In case anyone reading this is curious about the fix for the lockups, arablizzard2413 explains how to fix them here.

I understand if gog.com doesn't change the glide wrapper, as it really seems there isn't a "one size fits all" option, but I really hope they implement the script fixes at some point.

To be honest it would be better for GOG to not include any glide wrapper than ton include Nglide due to its memory leak. Which makes things nearly unplayable.

It's also actually another extra step to try to remove it from the installation, in order to be able to switch to a different method. Making sure you remove all the files etc, then install the new files.

I think the best solution would be an external program could be used to 'uninstall' the files, and then unpack and 'install alternative' set of files. Something similar to what the thief community uses to change and patch the game Thief 1 through "Tfix' and similar programs for Thief 2.

Zeckenseck's is technically closest to the 'one size fits all' (as everyone has access to DirectX 9 at least), and that's one reason why Arablizzard's installer included it in the past I think? But its main weakness is that its pretty system demanding (especially if you try to force it into doubled resolutions).

At least it doesn't have the memory leak, and it properly renders transparencies and shadows without the major hit that Nglide has..

Yah, I can see that. You don't really need to remove Nglide, though, do you? Don't you just need to replace the Glide2x.dll file? I know it would make the folder slightly cleaner, but that's what I did on my sister's and my computers (just in case, keeping the old file as glide2x.old.dll).

Also, I did try to use Zackenseck's and it was the one that worked the best for me "out of the box", but for me at least the only reason I didn't end up using it was that the framerate just dies with dynamic lighting on with my computer and Zackenseck's. That's why I spent probably a day or two trying to get dgvoodoo2 to work (took me that long because I have never used a glide wrapper before and didn't know how to install it), and it has been working just about perfectly since (aside from non-Glide related issues, such as the cutscene lockups).

Well the an external program that could switch the .dll. That should be doable right?

Oh, yah. That would be completely doable. Saw someone on these forums say that Zackenseck has been MIA for several years, though, so GOG.com can't get permission from him to use his Glide wrapper. Thus why it comes with nGlide, which I suppose is probably the only other "one size almost fits all" Glide wrapper. Would be nice to package in dgVoodoo2 for us who have a DX11 card, though.

Anyway, I don't think the Glide wrapper is the most important thing they should be focusing on, since there is the option of software rendering. Sure, it doesn't look as good, but it isn't game breaking like the cutscene lockups. I think what they should do is remove nGlide, and start looking at trying to make the game playable from start to finish (I don't know how effective Arablizzard's installer is since I don't own a CD copy of KQ8, so if just implementing all of its fixes will do that then that's what they should do if they can get the ok to do so).

There's actually two ways to go about fixing this, one is with the Application Compatibility Toolkit (because we really need 3 entries for this game... 4 if you count the useless fix GOG added in v2 of the installer) and the other is to patch out the broken test in the executable. I need to check again, but I think the last update for my installer added the fix through the toolkit, but I found the offset and just need to update the installer with it.

Edit: It's not just a problem with zeckensack's wrapper, he just mentioned it on that page as a general compatibility issue with the game.

Edit2: Here's the hex modification to bypass this bug - for English v1.0.0.3 CD-ROM, Brazilian Portuguese localization, or copies installed using my installer or Collector's only. Will *not* work on GOG's version or v1.0.0.3 patched (using Sierra's original patch) since it's an entirely different build of the executable.

0xB9FE9
7D 07 -->
EB 07 Which cutscene are you having problems with? Post a save and I can probably fix it for you.

Don't ask for the scripts to be included, ask for the underlying cause in the executable to be fixed! This stupid bug can affect any part of the game (adding experience points, receiving items as part of a cutscene, animations/camera actions, regaining control of connor, etc.) and the script patches are only a messy way of getting around it for certain spots that cause noticeable problems (the lockup). There's a CPU speed component to this bug as well, the fix in the linked post above works reliably for slower CPUs (in my case an AMD E-350 1.6GHz) but won't work at all for a Intel Core 2 Duo 3.0 GHz. The fixes in my installer are actually the result of hours spent timing each line of dialog to use a series of KQCueEvent commands, I actually shared these with Collector a while back and he included them in the installer currently on sierrahelp.com.

Has anyone attempted to tried to contact Zeckenseck?
http://www.zeckensack.de/imp.html

He did give quite a bit of contact information and identity.