SCRUMMVM – If you purchased Loom through GOG.com, you will notice that the game uses the ScummVM interpreter, which recreates the SCUMM game engine that many LucasArts games used. It differs from DOSBox in that it’s not an emulator and some of the ini settings will be different.

FULLSCREEN – Personally, I like to play most older games in Windowed Mode. This allows me to multitask with other open applications without sometimes crashing the game and facilitates screen printing. To exit FullScreen mode using ScummVM, either press ALT + Enter while the game is running, or edit the ini file (in this example loom.ini) in the installation directory and change fullscreen=true to fullscreen=false.

RESOLUTION – ScummVM uses anti-aliasing graphic filters to improve visual quality. As such, instead of manually entering a specific resolution like 800×600 as with DOSBox, you increase the scaling of the game. You do this by adding either -g2x or -g3x to the game properties to double (640×400) or triple (960×600) the resolution respectively from it’s native 320×200 resolution.

Right-click the Game Icon and select Properties. Then change the default Target line from:

“C:\GOG Games\Loom\scummvm\scummvm.exe” -c “..\loom.ini” loom

to -g2x, if you want to double the scale (640×400):

“C:\GOG Games\Loom\scummvm\scummvm.exe” -c “..\loom.ini” -g2x loom

to -g3x, if you want to triple the scale (960×600):

“C:\GOG Games\Loom\scummvm\scummvm.exe” -c “..\loom.ini” -g3x loom 

After loading the game, you will be asked to select one of three Proficiency Modes. These modes determine how Loom’s user interface will behave as you play.

STANDARD MODE (Medium) – A distinct segment of the distaff will glow whenever you hear or spin a musical thread. A musical staff beneath the distaff helps you to identify the threads you hear. Use Standard mode if you are already familiar with Loom or other computer adventure games.

PRACTICE MODE (Easy) – A small box appears beneath the musical staff whenever a thread is heard or spun. This box “records” up to four notes and displays their corresponding letters for your convenience. If you click on the box, the notes displayed inside will be spun sequentially, exactly as if you had spun them on the distaff yourself. Practice mode is ideal for novice computer garners, or for those who wish to familiarize themselves with the experience of Loom before trying a different mode.

EXPERT MODE (Hard) – The distaff does not glow in response to musical threads (except the ones you spin yourself). Also, there is no musical staff to help you identify the threads you hear. You literally have to play the game by ear! Note: Players who dare to experience Loom in Expert mode are rewarded with a bonus animated scene near the end of the story. This scene does not appear in any other mode.

POINT & CLICK (MOVE) – As with most LucasArts games of the time, Loom uses a Point & Click interface to move the protagonist, Bobbin Threadbare, around the world and to interact with other people and objects. If Bobbin isn’t moving when you click an area, try clicking a closer area to see if the path is obstructed or if the original area that was clicked was invalid. 

INTERACTION (USE) – Click on an item on the screen and it will appear in the black bar at the bottom of the screen. Click on the item in the black bar to interact with it. There is no menu of actions, it will simply activate upon clicking it.

SPACEBAR (PAUSES) – Pauses and unpauses the game.

F5 (MAIN MENU) – Displays the SCUMMVM Menu for Loading and Saving the game as well as Options for music and sound volume and subtitle speed.

F7 (SPEED) – Normal speed (Full Animation) or fast speed (Limited Animation)

F8 (RESTART) – Restart the game? Y/N. 

F9 (SUBTITLES) – You can display conversations in text at the bottom of the screen by toggling the F9 key. After tapping F9, you will receive a confirmation that text will appear on the screen. Likewise, when you tap the F9 key again, you will receive a confirmation that text will not appear on the screen.

-/+ (SUBTITLES) – Controls the speed of subtitles.