Information on Krabby Quest

[HumanGamer]

Moderator Edit: I'm editing this first post and the thread title so that the following information will get more exposure (and because I'm going to make this a Sticky thread).

Q: Where can I purchase Krabby Quest?
A: Unfortunately, it has been pulled from all game vendors and is unable to be purchased anymore at this point in time.

Q: Well, how about a trial/demo?
A: You can find information on downloading trials for the game by reading the game's article on WonderWiki, which you can find by clicking here.

Q: Is there any other way to play the game?
A: Forum member Bisquick is currently developing an emulation project called KrabbyQuestEmu. It is a media preservation project that takes the necessary steps to not include any copyrighted material. You can read about it here: https://pcpuzzle.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=28019

Q: What if I have already purchased the game somewhere in the past and I want to install it again?
A: You will have to log into your account on whatever website you purchased the game from (BigFishGames, Shockwave.com, WildTangent, etc.) and try to redownload from your order history. The game was never available directly from Midnight Synergy. If you have any issues regarding accessing your purchase of Krabby Quest, please contact customer support on the site you purchased from.

Q: Where can I find level solutions for Krabby Quest?
A: Click here.

-jdl

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Original Post:

Hello,

When doing testing with KrabbyQuest for the editor, I was using a trial. My trial ran out, so I resulted with abusing a BigFishGames flaw that I used to reset my trial timer.

I'd like to actually buy the game, but I don't know the official site. I don't want to buy from BigFish because I want to directly support the developers.

Thanks!

~ Matt

[Muzozavr]

I think it used to be on MS's page but I don't think the original "official" page even exists now. Only the online solutions remain.

[Midnight Synergy]

We never had it for sale on our site - you'll have to buy it from another distributor.

[Jutomi]

I got mine from Bigfish games, but...

I am not sure if it's as compatible with the RTW swapping stuff as from other websites, from what I've been seeing in discussion, recently.

[jdl]

I got mine from Bigfish games, but...

I am not sure if it's as compatible with the RTW swapping stuff as from other websites, from what I've been seeing in discussion, recently.

My copy is from Big Fish Games and I'm able to extract the files and edit things with cooldudepoke's Custom Enabler and the Krabby Quest Editor programs.

[HumanGamer]

I got mine from Bigfish games, but...

I am not sure if it's as compatible with the RTW swapping stuff as from other websites, from what I've been seeing in discussion, recently.

My copy is from Big Fish Games and I'm able to extract the files and edit things with cooldudepoke's Custom Enabler and the Krabby Quest Editor programs.

Do you have to run it through Game Manager though? That's what I don't like

~ Matt

[Jutomi]

Well, I just click it on my desktop, but whenever I do, bigfish does come up;
so, to answer your question, I am assuming so.

[jdl]

I got mine from Bigfish games, but...

I am not sure if it's as compatible with the RTW swapping stuff as from other websites, from what I've been seeing in discussion, recently.

My copy is from Big Fish Games and I'm able to extract the files and edit things with cooldudepoke's Custom Enabler and the Krabby Quest Editor programs.

Do you have to run it through Game Manager though? That's what I don't like

~ Matt

If you have Windows to show hidden files and folders and then go into the game's directory, you'll see the REAL executable file that runs the game instead of it being booted through BFG's game manager program (and if you're wondering, no, this does not remove the time limit because that stuff is injected into the game's hidden exe itself by the game distributor).

[HumanGamer]

I got mine from Bigfish games, but...

I am not sure if it's as compatible with the RTW swapping stuff as from other websites, from what I've been seeing in discussion, recently.

My copy is from Big Fish Games and I'm able to extract the files and edit things with cooldudepoke's Custom Enabler and the Krabby Quest Editor programs.

Do you have to run it through Game Manager though? That's what I don't like

~ Matt

If you have Windows to show hidden files and folders and then go into the game's directory, you'll see the REAL executable file that runs the game instead of it being booted through BFG's game manager program (and if you're wondering, no, this does not remove the time limit because that stuff is injected into the game's hidden exe itself by the game distributor).

Thanks

And about the hidden exe...You'd be surprised...Remember how I said I reset my trial timer...well I just opened that exe and it was the fullversion...

Again, I'd rather support the developers. Does shockwave use a Game Manager by any chance? They might be a good place to buy from.

~ Matt

[jdl]

Thanks

And about the hidden exe...You'd be surprised...Remember how I said I reset my trial timer...well I just opened that exe and it was the fullversion...

Again, I'd rather support the developers. Does shockwave use a Game Manager by any chance? They might be a good place to buy from.

~ Matt

Let the game run for another hour (even if it's minimized) because after an hour it should close on its own.
I've tried running KQ on another computer before using just the hidden exe, and the game, after an hour, closed on its own. Reopening the exe just made it open for a second or two and then close.

And just to be clear: I tried this out of curiosity to see how well they have their games protected, not to try and pirate their games. I do not support piracy, but instead, the people who develop the games.

As for Shockwave, I do not know if they have a game manager or not, sorry.

[Koopson44]

Shockwave does have a game manager.

[HumanGamer]

Shockwave does have a game manager.

Dang

[HumanGamer]

Thanks

And about the hidden exe...You'd be surprised...Remember how I said I reset my trial timer...well I just opened that exe and it was the fullversion...

Again, I'd rather support the developers. Does shockwave use a Game Manager by any chance? They might be a good place to buy from.

~ Matt

Let the game run for another hour (even if it's minimized) because after an hour it should close on its own.
I've tried running KQ on another computer before using just the hidden exe, and the game, after an hour, closed on its own. Reopening the exe just made it open for a second or two and then close.

And just to be clear: I tried this out of curiosity to see how well they have their games protected, not to try and pirate their games. I do not support piracy, but instead, the people who develop the games.

As for Shockwave, I do not know if they have a game manager or not, sorry.

Thanks for the info

[Koopson44]

Shockwave does have a game manager.

Dang

Oops. It doesn't have a game manager. At least the full version doesn't. Demo does.

[HumanGamer]

Shockwave does have a game manager.

Dang

Oops. It doesn't have a game manager. At least the full version doesn't. Demo does.

Oh! Nice!

Thanks

~ Matt

[HumanGamer]

I just bought the game from shockwave.

Thanks everyone!

~ Matt

[garirry]

Apologies for the huge bump, however I'm in a similar situation, where I've been trying to look for a DRM-free version of this game. The reasons are 1) I am not installing BFG's game manager on my main computer ever (the version I own) 2) The game always launches in full-screen, which is a problem since I need to be able to run a certain app side-by-side, and this is a problem that all game managers appear to have with the Wonderland games since they don't allow a launcher.

I've tried the method posted above of getting from Shockwave but that failed because their servers are screwed and the game can't be activated (plus it turns out that it DOES use a game manager), so I had no choice but to try to get a refund (through Paypal). I would like to ask whether a proper DRM-free version even exists out there, and if so, where can I get it. Using the DRM version is extremely inconvenient for what I want to do, and on top of that these games are become rarer as more game stores are shutting down or breaking (as with the case above), and having a full, proper, collection of MS games would be amazing.

[Midnight Synergy]

I wish there was a way to get the Spongebob game onto the new collection CD - unfortunately there are way too many licensing components in place to make this happen.

[rainbowmon]

Hey, Garirry. I have WA and MoFI from Big Fish myself (although all the other Wonderland games I have from Midnight Synergy's website) and while not true for MoFI (due to it apparently having issues in fullscreen mode if I remember correctly) the options launcher isn't there, but the launcher IS there for WA, in Program Files (x86)/Wonderland Adventures - specifically, the Options.exe file. Maybe you can find a launcher in a similar location for Krabby Quest?

[Kilicool64]

Hey, Garirry. I have WA and MoFI from Big Fish myself (although all the other Wonderland games I have from Midnight Synergy's website) and while not true for MoFI (due to it apparently having issues in fullscreen mode if I remember correctly) the options launcher isn't there, but the launcher IS there for WA, in Program Files (x86)/Wonderland Adventures - specifically, the Options.exe file. Maybe you can find a launcher in a similar location for Krabby Quest?

There is no launcher for Krabby Quest. Perhaps the DRM mechanisms for some of the sites it is/was sold at can't handle games with multiple executables.

Cooldudepoke made a mod for the game that adds a launcher among other things, but it's extremely buggy, so it's not really a viable solution.

Apologies for the huge bump, however I'm in a similar situation, where I've been trying to look for a DRM-free version of this game. The reasons are 1) I am not installing BFG's game manager on my main computer ever (the version I own) 2) The game always launches in full-screen, which is a problem since I need to be able to run a certain app side-by-side, and this is a problem that all game managers appear to have with the Wonderland games since they don't allow a launcher.

I've tried the method posted above of getting from Shockwave but that failed because their servers are screwed and the game can't be activated (plus it turns out that it DOES use a game manager), so I had no choice but to try to get a refund (through Paypal). I would like to ask whether a proper DRM-free version even exists out there, and if so, where can I get it. Using the DRM version is extremely inconvenient for what I want to do, and on top of that these games are become rarer as more game stores are shutting down or breaking (as with the case above), and having a full, proper, collection of MS games would be amazing.

By the looks of it, Shockwave.com still exists, but is locking European countries out of their site. They probably didn't want to adhere to the new EU regulations. Perhaps you could activate the game through a non-European proxy?

Though if you're willing to deal with Shockwave's DRM, then I don't see why you'd have a problem with BFG's. All that's really different is that you don't directly download the games, but do so through a client. Which is no different from how Steam works. Having used it myself, I can also attest that it allows you to play the same games on multiple accounts. Of course, if the site's servers ever go down, you'd be unable to transfer the games to any new computers, but that issue is shared by all DRM schemes that involve activation.

The game is also still available on Wildtangent.com, but their site also uses client-based DRM and limits activations to 5 PCs with seemingly no option for deauthorization, unlike Shockwave and (presumably) BFG.

It's apparently also available on a site called Primarygames.com, but it looks somewhat shady, so I don't know if it's a legitimate distributer.

[rainbowmon]

I can confirm you can download and activate a game as many times as you want from Big Fish.

[garirry]

Update: After experimenting with a few things, I solved one of the problems I was having, that being the inability to change the fullscreen settings. Despite not having a launcher, the options.cfg file located in the game's folder can be modified in order to change various settings normally set by a launcher. In fact, said file has similar offsets to the options.cfg files found in other wonderland games, meaning although you could copy another launcher to the SSKQ folder, this is a sub-optimal and not well tested solution. What I recommend for anyone dealing with the same problem as I did is to open a hex editor and change the value at $0C to 00 to 03 (sets the resolution between 640x480 and 1280x960), $10 to 01 to 03 (sets the bits settings between 16-bit and 32-bit), and $14 to either 00 or 01 (fullscreen or windowed, respectively).

By the looks of it, Shockwave.com still exists, but is locking European countries out of their site. They probably didn't want to adhere to the new EU regulations. Perhaps you could activate the game through a non-European proxy?

I'm not from Europe though, I'm in Canada, so I doubt that's the problem. I can access the website just fine, in fact, I managed to buy the game just a week ago directly from their website, and I got the email with a download link and everything. However when I went to enter the code that I received it said that something was wrong with their servers. Obviously me being unable to play the game I had to ask Paypal for a refund. By the way, I'll briefly mention why I even bought from Shockwave in the first place, I was looking for a DRM-free version of SSKQ and I found this thread again by pure accident and the last posts mentioned it not having a game manager, so I took the risk, since very little info about all of this is available.

Also, thanks to reading the thread you posted, I realised that the game executable is actually hidden and can be launched without problem on a PC that doesn't have the BFG client installed (I thought the exe was just a shortcut to the game manager). I copied the game files onto my main PC which doesn't have the DRM software installed, but unfortunately, the game shut off after an hour and wouldn't boot again. Despite the original copy being officially activated (aka paid), it appears that the time limit is still present in the executable of the game itself, even the full version. It seems that the only way that I could resolve this problem completely is to figure out a way to completely bypass the DRM system, and I am not certain whether it is appropriate to discuss this in this forum, since it may cross into illegal territory (DRM circumvention and all that legal crap).

[rainbowmon]

Well I mean, I have Ancient Tripeaks 2 from Big Fish, but for some weird reason it doesn't like Windows 10, and I couldn't play it in compatibility mode (in which it works like a charm) unless I used the exe file in the install folder from the game. It bypasses te BFG Game Manager by doing that, making it possible to use compatibility mode for the game, and thus not have any of the weird save-data disappearing after closing the game issues I was having wben not using compatibility mode. And it didn't have the time limit, because I had already activated it in the game manager. So... Maybe that would work for your purposes with KQ?

[garirry]

Well I mean, I have Ancient Tripeaks 2 from Big Fish, but for some weird reason it doesn't like Windows 10, and I couldn't play it in compatibility mode (in which it works like a charm) unless I used the exe file in the install folder from the game. It bypasses the BFG Game Manager by doing that, making it possible to use compatibility mode for the game, and thus not have any of the weird save-data disappearing after closing the game issues I was having wben not using compatibility mode. And it didn't have the time limit, because I had already activated it in the game manager. So... Maybe that would work for your purposes with KQ?

The problem isn't that I would have to play it through the game manager, because it's simply not true. I can easily open the game's exe directly on a computer that has the BFG client installed and the game would open up instantly and work flawlessly. The problem is that I am required to install the BFG client in order to actually play the game in the first place. The first reason is that I do not want pointless bloatware installed on my computer, and relying on a VM is a sub-optimal solution. However the biggest reason is that I am still relying on Big Fish Games' servers to be active as long as I want to play (well, install) this game. What if 20 years from now they go bankrupt and their servers die? I'd be forced to rely on decade-old VMs that have the game and client already installed just to play it again, or be forced to use the time-limited exe, requiring me to reinstall my OS every time I've played for an hour. I've spent hours trying to figure out the DRM mechanism and see whether there's any way I could transfer the game on a computer without the need for the BFG client, and I still haven't figured it out, and I can't say for sure whether I will on my own. To my knowledge, the BFG client installers appear to require an Internet connection in order to install/activate the game, so that's not solving the issue. The only potential exception is that I think that I own a CD that contains the game and the manager, however, not only do I have no idea where it is, but it could still require an Internet connection to activate the game that's on said disc, though I don't know yet.

[rainbowmon]

Oh... I see. Unfortunately, I don't know what to tell you, though I see your point. As for the CD - I believe it does require internet, as well as that the game be purchased on your account... Hey, at least your mom didn't purchase WA in the early days of Big Fish and something really weird happened and we ultimately had to buy it again later (mom didn't remember buying it for some reason but I know we had the full version before then and I was really annoyed - I'm glad it hasn't happened again with WA or MoFI)... Although... That probably could happen except worse if BFG went out of business... Of course, GameHouse is worse; my mom's entire account from there just mysteriously disappeared one day from their servers a couple of years ago, and it's really annoying because several of my games were on that account.

[Kilicool64]

During the golden age of casual gaming on PCs, absolutely every casual game distributer used DRM for all of their titles. It seems anti-DRM sentiment simply didn't exist among casual gamers, so nobody ever thought of creating a DRM-free alternative like GOG would later do. This wasn't done purely to restrict consumers, though. These sites generally also supported free trials of their games, which obviously wouldn't work without DRM. Those were pretty important for attracting customers, seeing how casual gamers aren't usually the kind of people who read reviews and visit gaming communities. So DRM was unfortunately a necessary evil in that market.

Even casual game developers who also sold their games on their own sites usually just used DRM with free trials. People like Patrick who created special demo builds of their games were the exception, not the rule. And since Krabby Quest is published by Nickelodeon, they got to decide where to sell the game and simply went with the standard options, which all use DRM. Plus, being a subsidiary to Viacom, a company notoriously strict about copyright, they obviously wanted it to be DRM-protected themselves.

That's why no DRM-free build of the game has ever been released or ever will be. You simply have to choose between dealing with DRM and not playing the game. There is no alternative. Or rather, no alternative that's legal to discuss.


Regarding Shockwave not activating the game, I was recently able to access their site using a VPN and discovered that they delisted Krabby Quest. It would be pretty shocking if they went as far as to deny further activations of games they no longer sell, but anything's possible. You should've contacted their support instead of having PayPal refund you right away. From my experience, their support staff is very communicative and might have been able to help you.

[Kamerson]

Sorry for the bump, but I'm looking for a way to play this game currently. You can download the game on BFG, but the purchase link is dead so I'd only be limited to 60 minutes. I can't find the game on any other site, either. Is there any way out there to play this game?

EDIT: I did find and download the game from WildTangent, but I'm pretty sure it's also limited use and the purchase link is also dead on there.

[rainbowmon]

Googled it to see what I could find. Found an installer on archive.org that happened to be the old Nick Arcade version, but it unfortunately wasn't enough - it gave me a Shockwave (THAT SITE STILL EXISTS?!?!?! I THOUGHT THEY WENT BYE-BYE AGES AGO, BUT APPARENTLY NOT!!!) launcher that gave me a 30 minute free trial or the option to purchase, but the game is no longer listed on there, so... Yeah, unless someone has it and figures out how to... If it really isn't available for purchase anymore...

No. Probably shouldn't say it here. Don't want to get in trouble for saying what I think about this whole situation, even though I don't think it would be morally bad given the circumstances. There's probably a forum rule about it...

[Kamerson]

That's alright. I was planning on playing all of the Wonderland games (err... Wonderland-related games), and was planning on playing Krabby Quest after I'm finished with RtW, but I'm fine with skipping to Adventures instead.

[rainbowmon]

Yeah...

I honestly hate it from a preservation point of view because suddenly this game may as well no longer exist. It's really irritating... But there's nothing that can be done that wouldn't be diving into piracy territory, and as much as we may have an excuse morally, legally it's just the same.

...I *DID* hear something the other day about the PC version of Sonic Riders being considered abandonware though, thus making it legal to download off the Internet (though take that with a grain of salt; it was a random post on Twitter that said that). If that's true, maybe something similar could apply to Krabby Quest now...? But it's a whole lot of legal messiness, so unless someone here in the community is familiar with all that stuff and could figure all that out for us, there's no hope of anyone playing it again outside of those who already have the game.