Police Quest: In Pursuit of the Death Angel (VGA Remake) (DOS, Amiga) ScummVM

Setting & Plot

In the fictional town of Lytton, California, veteran police officer Sonny Bonds is assigned to patrol duties, but he soon becomes involved in investigating a drug cartel headed by Jesse Bains (nicknamed “The Death Angel”). After a traffic accident, DUI arrest, and a biker gang incident, Bonds is promoted to narcotics detective and works undercover to infiltrate the casino-style operations of the cartel. His partner is Detective Laura Watts, and his former high-school crush “Sweet Cheeks” Marie Wilkans provides intelligence. The story culminates in a raid and the arrest of Bains.

Gameplay Mechanics

The original 1987 version used a text-parser interface (you typed verbs and objects) and the game engine was Sierra’s Adventure Game Interpreter (AGI). The gameplay emphasized strict adherence to realistic police procedures: for example, failing to draw your side-arm properly, not storing your gun in a locker, or skipping a patrol inspection could result in immediate game over.

• Players controlled Sonny Bonds via typed commands and navigated through locations by text input and simple graphics.
• The game includes sequences such as patrolling, traffic stops, DUI arrests, ride alongs, undercover infiltration, and poker at the end.

Differences between the Original (1987) and the VGA Remake (1992)

The 1992 remake was built on Sierra’s SCI (Sierra Creative Interpreter) engine, featured 256-colour VGA graphics, a point-and-click interface (icons for Walk, Look, Talk, Touch), updated audio support, and several gameplay and narrative changes.

• The original version ran on AGI with EGA or CGA (16 colors) graphics and used text-parser input; the remake uses VGA (256 colors) and mouse/GUI icons.
• In the original the driving sequences required more manual control of the car; in the remake the driving is simplified (player makes turns/brake decisions while the car drives automatically) and crashes no longer always lead to immediate game over.
• Certain character names and vehicles were updated: e.g., the stolen Cadillac in the original became a Mercedes-Benz in the remake; some NPCs were removed or had gender changes; the town of Lytton’s portrayal was expanded into a larger city.
• The remake added rewritten dialogue and expanded story sections; also puzzles and sequences were altered—some simplified, some made more complex—and the poker mini-game at the end became optional in the remake.