Rogül (preview)

Ten Dimensions of Doom

Originally released on the Atari 8-bit by Wojtek Bociański, Rogul arrives on the ST/STe courtesy Retro Blitter Team (yes, those of Cannon Fodder fame), with strikingly atmospheric visuals by Hospes. You already know how much I love roguelikes, so the thought of another sent quivers down my giant sword (ooer!!).

This time, we’re not simply descending into a creepy dungeon; we guide a lone warrior through ten demonic dimensions to eventually challenge Amalotolos. He is the tyrant who has plunged the realms into chaos, spreading hunger, violence, and death through his ruthless rule and ever-present minions.

Of course, the goal for each level is to kill monsters, build XP, and level up to get stronger for the worst monsters that lie ahead. Clear enough of any realm, and a Portal Key will eventually drop, opening the way forward. Amalotolos is waiting in the tenth and final realm. Yes, I'm scared already.

Your survival hinges on exploration, lots of killing, clever use of the turn-based system, and whatever is in your backpack. Along the way, you can gamble at mysterious altars for divine favour (or punishment), and spend hard-earned gold at rare trading machines that appear every few realms. Thankfully, there are many items to aid your journey, ranging from health potions to scrolls for teleportation and much more.

The first level gradually introduces you to the type of challenge that lies ahead. However, it’s not long before you face tougher and more aggressive foes with different skills. So use your melee weapons and hit hard - these range from blades to heavy hitters like war axes and great swords. Range attacks are possible, but only when the monsters drop bows or crossbows. Tactical positioning is key to success, as the immediate terrain modifies the combat stats of both you and your enemies. So look where you're standing!

I must admit that after my first playtests, Rogul is beyond impressive. I tip my hat to Wojtek for creating such an impressive game. He's taken the #roguelike format and ramped it up with some truly exciting ideas that I love. Kudos to the Retro Blitter Team, who proved their incredible talent in converting Rogul to both ST models, using each computer's respective audio strengths. Of course, the STe is better because of its DMA hardware, but you won't believe how much until you have played for yourself (follow my Rogul posts on X).

Just a few more weeks until the bugs are squashed and the final touches are added...

Prepare thyself!!

I'd like to express my gratitude to KtZ and Hospes for sending me an early version. The public release is pencilled in for the end of May, so whilst you wait for that, you can play Rogue (that I improved with DMA-streamed audio - check that out), along with the magnificent Nano Cave that blew my socks off. So, until then, here are some cool screenshots...

A gorgeous loading screen as displayed on the ST. I love its eerie atmosphere.

The same image on the STe thanks to the extended palette. Stunning.

The screen is littered with enemies, and those (grey) Banshees are scary!

Yes, I'm hiding behind a wall. Too scared to come out!

Remember, not everything goes into your inventory as it's used straight away.

You receive a bonus when levelling up or casting a Wisdom Spell.

Wow, I've finally reached the surreal 10th dimension, and I'm scared stiff!!

I did it. Amalotolos is dead!! 💀 💀 💀 

ST2VGA Enhanced VGA Adapter

Pixel Sharp

Those of you following my ramblings over the years will remember that I originally had a terrible flat-screen TV. I then bought two really old VGA monitors and used a standard cable. It worked, but produced weird lines on the screen. These looked like scratches that worsened whenever disk access was happening. Later, I bought the UBESWITCH, which is a superb product with a sharp display. Sadly, the scratches remained.

So, after that long-winded background, let's get to the point! Okay, I bought SidecarTridge's enhanced VGA adapter, which is a little more expensive than their other adapter. The ST2VGA Enhanced has an active video processing stage that amplifies the analog signal before it reaches the monitor.

This model draws power via a USB port (I use a nifty dongle in the cartridge port or a free USB slot on my Mac). I've tested this on two different VGA monitors, and it's ultra-sharp without those dreaded scratch marks. I'm sharing this to encourage more ST Nutters to buy this superb bit of kit. Excellent work, Diego!

Here are the links, plus some badly taken photos using my phone (which seemed like a good idea at the time!). You might not be able to see how great the display is, but you shall note the scratches are gone...

• SidecarTridge web page for their enhanced adapter (always worth paying that bit extra!).
• Check out SidecarTridge on X and give Diego a follow.
• Listed down the right side of every page is our Hardware section - check it out.

I thought I'd show this boring screen - completely free of scratches!

Again, a black background without scratches. I'm loving this adapter :)

Then I thought a close-up of the sharp display... Ugh... Trust me, it's sharp.

This one captured well, I thought. Look how nice and clear the text is. Niiiiiice!!

firST year

STuck in the 80s

When I first became an ST user, I was completely unfamiliar with the concept of a demo. Perhaps I might have assumed it meant a game demo, who knows? What I do know is that Grusel and The Union Demo were the first that truly captured my interest in this new world of impressive effects, music, and scrollers.

Grusel was something I stumbled upon while browsing the Page 6 library, along with a bunch of other intriguing things that piqued my curiosity as a new ST guy. Of course, it was The Union Demo that truly ignited this new passion. Weirdly, I discovered it by pure chance through an advert in a magazine. It's an understatement to say I was astounded by the capabilities my Atari ST suddenly possessed overnight.

This marked the beginning of something monumental. I wondered how my 520ST was doing all this, as I walked Charley across the smooth-scrolling landscape to some incredible demos. In fact, to this day, I still regard The Wobbly Screen by the mighty Replicants as one of the best. I couldn’t help but wonder what else was out there, so I began looking! This led to buying disks like Money For Nothing and others. Including the older TEX demos, I had previously not known about. These disks gave birth to my demoscene addiction!

One of the most impressive demos I encountered during this time was the 007 Demo by the ST Squad. It blew me away due to its length and the clarity of the sound. It was incredible what a 512Kb computer with a floppy drive could produce. Since I didn’t have any speakers, I remember it being played through the TV. In fact, I even remember my Dad coming upstairs to ask if I was watching a James Bond movie, haha.

Around this time, many more sample disks were released. It seemed like a popular niche, with artists cramming as much music onto a floppy disk as possible. This could be recorded samples or simply mixing parts to create something longer. Whatever the method, I was hooked and spent hours searching for more.

In short, I’ve been reliving my early days by going through sample disks from around this time. Hearing my ST sing everything from Ghostbusters to Stingray was/is a surreal moment. And it's thanks to The Union boys. Curiously, I wonder how long I might have been unaware of "demos" if it weren’t for them?

Anyway, this is just a small part of my history from my early days when I discovered "demos". What about you guys? Here are links to other 'sample' demos that I remember during those years...

Batdance by Matt Kennedy (Ripped Off #65) - https://demozoo.org/Bat...

Robomix by Electronic Images & Radical Systems (POV #9) - https://demozoo.org/

Ghostbusters by ST Squad (POV #14) - https://demozoo.org/ghosts...

Phantom Of The Opera by Tony Longworth (Ripped Off #2) - https://demozoo.org/daley...

Miami Vice Theme by MJS - https://www.atarimania.com/miami-vice

Stingray by The Poltergeists (The Source #49) - https://demozoo.org/sting...

The Cola Wars by Tom O'Shaughnessy (Mind-blowing) - https://www.atarimania.com/cola-wars

I couldn't leave without a quick show of the Union Demo. What a moment in time!!

No Limit & No Limit II

Tilt Happens

Pinball was massive in the 90s, and the ST got its fair share of digital tables. In 1993, Andreas Kröber released No Limit - if you're wondering why that name, you will soon realise when loading it up (ARGH, my ears lol). This is a good game, but it looks dull as ditchwater without scrolling, and the ball feels more like squidgy rubber than steel. Still, I guess there really were no limits, because a year later, the sequel arrived! This used the hardware scrolling for rapid display and a bigger area. So, it blew away the original.

Flippers are handled by the two SHIFT keys, and when things get hairy, whack that spacebar to tilt the table and hopefully save the ball. Yep, hairy stuff. That's my understanding of Pinball in a nutshell. Of course, the sequel is the one to choose, as it looks better and plays great with nice physics. I love how the smooth scrolling zips up and down the screen! My only quibble is with the odd table with its bizarre snowy theme.

So there you go - play the second game and hit those flippers to bash your ball. Make sure you’re on an STe; otherwise, you’re missing out on the sounds and silky-smooth scrolling. It’s not up there with Obsession, but I would happily put No Limit II alongside Starball as a great alternative on the Atari ST/e.

• Atarimania has both (unregistered) games to download.
• No Limits II can be installed onto a hard drive/Ultrasatan thanks to 8BitChip.
• Check out some of the other Pinball games for the ST/STe.
• Seeing as both games are nicely enhanced, they've made it onto my list!
• Check out some more games that work in high-res mode.

The physics/feel of the ball (ooer) might not be the best, but I enjoyed the game.

Look, it even runs in high-res monochrome!!

I reached 1472, not bad, I guess... ahem...

No Limit II seems to have a snowy feel. It's not the most glamorous of tables, is it!

Yeah, it looks poor, but it plays very well in high resolution.

Oh no, another ball out of play... I reached 42,402 points.