Introduction
Welcome to the KulaQuest Wiki, a comprehensive technical reference derived from years of reverse engineering and research into the PlayStation 1 game KulaQuest!
Warning
This wiki is still under constant development, so expect a lot of changes!
About the Game
KulaQuest is a 3D puzzle-platformer video game developed by Game Design Sweden AB and released for the original PlayStation in 1998. Published by Sony Computer Entertainment in Europe (Kula World) and Japan (KulaQuest), and by Psygnosis in North America (Roll Away), it casts players as a colorful beach ball navigating through a series of suspended structures filled with collectables and hazards. The game's core mechanic revolves around directional gravity, which changes based on the ball's position, challenging players to think spatially.
Throughout this wiki, the game will be referred to as KulaQuest as it was the original name and was intended to be known as such all over the world [1], despite most people knowing it as Kula World. If something relates specifically to the Japanese release of the game, it will be explicitly stated. The other titles will be used in cases of version differences as needed.
Game Design Sweden AB
KulaQuest was created by Game Design Sweden AB, a small team from Sweden. [2] None of what you see here would have existed without their work:
| Role | Names |
|---|---|
| Original Concept, Graphics | Johannes Söderqvist |
| Programming | Stefan Persson, Jens Rudberg, Jesper Rudberg |
| Game Design | Stefan Persson, Jens Rudberg, Jesper Rudberg, Johannes Söderqvist |
| Level Design | Jesper Rudberg |
| Additional Level Design | Mattias Karlgren, Stefan Persson, Jens Rudberg, Martin Stigels, Richard Stigels, Johannes Söderqvist |
| Music & Sound Effects | Twice a Man |
The original sketch that started it all, drawn by Johannes Söderqvist after his dream[3]:
A picture of the programming team[4] — Stefan Persson, 24 (left), Jens Rudberg, 25 (middle), and Jesper Rudberg, 26 (right):
Resources
Several resources are available here, including:
- Tutorials for various modding tools built alongside this research.
- Version history and differences covering every known release of the game, including prototypes and regional demos.
- Technical documentation for all of KulaQuest's custom binary file formats.
Credits
This wiki was created and is maintained by Brandon Gardenhire (aka SaturnKai, pankaio). The research here represents years of work and dedication to preserving the game's legacy.
Special thanks to Murphy, who contributed to the research, early tool development, and website design of Kula Workshop.
Interview with J. Söderqvist, Neike Taika-Tessaro (2003) ↩︎
Roll Away Credits, MobyGames ↩︎
Super Power 1998.07 Magazine, p. 28. Super Power (1998) ↩︎
Super Power 1998.07 Magazine, p. 26. Super Power (1998) ↩︎