I played that version only much later (originally I had it on Amiga and then PC VGA), but the EGA version has indeed a unique charm of its own. It really feels like an alternative, equally good looking relase rather than a downgraded version of the VGA one, which makes sense as iirc it was developed and shipped first.

100%. What Steve Purcell and Mark Ferrari achieved with those 16 colors is simply genius. The 256 color version added detail, but lost much of the boldness and elegance of the EGA version.

Some reasons as to why it can look better at https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=26445522

Some time ago I read a long recollection of Mark Ferrari on the origins of the graphics, but now I can't find it for the best of me. There's a very nice interview where it explains it a bit at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ri4_3P2Oh14 , though.

a long explanation or interview by Mark