Happy Easter

Happy Easter everyone!!

Okay, I needed an egg-related game for Easter which usually means Dizzy or perhaps even Chuckie Egg 2 (Nah, I'll never play that terrible game again!). So, here is Heartland released in 1996 by Tony Greenwood of Stosser Software and later improved for the Atari STe by TOS-Crew with 50fps scrolling!!

That's right, the original was good but it was supersized somehow by magic!

Hey, what's Dizzy doing here in the land of whizzy scrolling!

Eggcellent!

This is a cracking (sorry) platformer but I admit that I struggled to grasp the sheer size of its map. This is a big game and something you either play properly or not at all - unless you enjoy running around just to see the smooth 50fps scrolling whilst listening to the DMA sound burping through the speakers? The older STfm guys still get the same visuals but the audio is now crisp YM generated. Which I prefer, if I'm being honest.

Regardless of the computer, this is a great upgrade and I enjoyed the graphics whizzing across my screen like silk that completes the experience. However, I wasn't so sure about the music as I prefer chip.

Okay, let's take a look at the keys you can smack during gameplay...

• Move using the cursor key's: left & right
• space: jump (or use the joystick or JagPad)
• m: map
• r: show processor time left rasters
• s: toggle sample (STE, Falcon), sound chip, effects and no-sound
• Esc: quit the game
• c: to toggle between sizzy and sazzy
• h: toggle 50/60 Hz (ST, STE only), on 8 MHz machines

Woo, this map is confusing at first. And boy, is this game big. Perhaps too big?

Play it

Okay, it might be the same game and aesthetics never matter much but, I must admit, they sure are nice to have. TOS-Crew has taken a good game and made it even better with proper scrolling that slides across the monitor like never before. I think this will help you to enjoy Heartland more than ever.

This proves the power of the Atari ST when programmed by people who care. What a wonderful upgrade and my congratulations @TOS-Crew for going that extra mile to improve an already excellent game!!

Grab the floppies or a hard disk installable version and I hope you have a great Easter †