Lotus Esprit music disk

Pedal to the... Musix!

It's been half a decade since the enhanced version of Lotus was released. Where does the time go? You may recall that Jon Thomas took the original game and completely revamped it with his coding expertise, creating a dedicated Atari STe version. While the chip music stayed the same (not that I’m complaining), the improvements to the game were incredible. It showcased what our machine is capable of when in the right hands.

Well, the Atari ST community stays ever active, since I just spotted an X/Twitter update from "Chris Hospes," who created a music disk featuring his remixes of Shaun Southern's soundtracks. It's superb and offers a fresh new way to enjoy these banging tunes (right now, in the background - as I write this text!).

I asked Hospes what prompted him to make such a release, and here's what he said...

The main reason was sadness that, after doing so much work on the Lotus STe version, the music still sounds like “crap.” (Hey, I love chip! -Steve). We are in the 21st century and have unlimited disk space, so it hurts that the author of the conversion didn't decide to sacrifice 20 MB of HDD space for the audio track. After all, we have great versions of Giana Sisters, Xenon 2, and Cannon Fodder. But even in the new version of Lotus for Atari STe, the old Yamaha bleeps.

I’m also currently working on my own remixes of music for other ST games that deserve a new life. I'm looking for (coding) assistance in replacing the old chipmusic from these games.

I've recorded a teaser video that plays a minute or so from each track. Why only a teaser? Well, nothing beats downloading it for yourself, especially on real hardware! So, what are you waiting for? Go and grab this download and enjoy listening to these outstanding tunes on your Atari STe. Here are the links you need...

• Download this music disk from Atarimania.
• Follow Hospes on X/Twitter, and get in touch if you can help him out.
• Enjoyed that? Good. The Atari ST/e has loads more music right here.
• What, you missed the enhanced version of Lotus Esprit? Tut, Tut, Tut!! Better click here then.
• We have listed many more enhanced games for the Atari STe :)

SidecarTridge Multi-Device

Multi-Device

Wow, how long has it been since I posted anything in our Hardware section? Well, my dry spell finally comes to an end as I've treated myself to a gadget that plugs into the side of any Atari ST. Yep, no case cutting or soldering needed at all. It's called the SidecarTridge Multi-Device and is based on the Raspberry Pi Pico, designed by Diego Parrilla. I won't pretend to know what that is because it's all black magic to me!

It has many uses, but the main use (for me) is booting floppy disk images as if a real floppy disk were inserted into the drive. Of course, there is much more to this tiny piece of hardware: it can also act as a GEMDOS drive (like in Hatari), features a real-time clock, supports an SD Card storage, and can connect to WiFi to download games and programs on the fly. There's even a USB port to power my Ultrasatan - how cool is that?

This little gadget fits snugly into the cartridge port, and from the moment of power on, you are presented with the option to activate it or boot as normal. Hitting the left shift key takes you into its menu, where you should complete the initial (one-off) configuration for WiFi access (and inverting the screen colours to prevent your eyes from exploding). It's also worthwhile to format an SD Card on your Mac/PC, with three folders...

• An "HD" folder is used by the Multidevice as an emulated hard drive, similar to how Hatari works (GEMDOS). Anything you store within here will be accessed as Drive C by your Atari.
• A "ROMS" folder is for any images you may have.
• Finally, the "FLOPPIES" folder is where you will keep any MSA/ST disk images.

Regardless of what you choose to store within the folders, there is the option to download games and more over WiFi. Yes, on the fly, which is pretty darn awesome!! Anyhow, once you've formatted that SD Card (as FAT16 or exFAT) and created the (above) folders, slide the card inside the device and reboot your ST.

As I mentioned, my primary reason for purchasing this device is to find a more convenient way to use floppy disks again. So, when you have configured WiFi, choose option 5 from the main menu to access a database of ST games. This gives access to thousands of disks by Automation, Medway Boys, and others. All can be downloaded and instantly used, without the faff of using a Mac/PC and manually copying them to the SD card. It’s much quicker, and beats my old method of converting an MSA/ST image back onto a real disk!!

This database is alphabetically listed, and you can filter by letter simply by hitting the relevant key (example: R for Rogue, X for Xenon, etc). Also, you can then use the left/right keys to "quickly" paginate through the list. Sadly, there is no actual search option, so if you wanted to play Dynamite Dux, that means you must wade through several pages listing games beginning with 'D'. That also includes loads of "doc" disks... Not ideal, but hardly the end of the world.

Okay, let's take a break to see the main menu and access the device's game database...

This is the main menu and, as you can see, it's dead easy to use.

Option 5 presents a massive database of programs to download via WiFi.

Compatibility?

I have tested Multi-Device on five Atari computers...

• 520 STM 512Kb TOS 1.00 - I had trouble getting the ST to recognise the cartridge. I had to reboot the device a few times before it worked. Thankfully, things improved afterwards, and I was able to load most disks. Sadly, some still fail, possibly because of the limited RAM or the TOS version.
• 520 STM 1MB TOS 1.02 - Similar to the above, but with much better success thanks to a couple of extra reboots at initial power on. Sadly, it often crashed in the menu with many bombs!! I fear that might be the cartridge port, which felt quite slack. I need to repair this ASAP :(
• 1040 STF 1MB TOS 1.02 - Worked perfectly with floppy images downloaded via WiFi or via the SD Card. However, I was concerned about how reliable TOS would be when used as a 'hard drive'.
• 520 STe 4MB TOS 1.62 - The best of the bunch and remains the computer on my desk. It works like a dream and is fast and responsive when running through different menus/etc/etc.
• Mega STe 4MB TOS 2.02 - Performed perfectly well, just like the stock STe, except that TOS 2 has an annoying feature to keep testing the RAM, which becomes irritating when using the Multi-Device. Nothing major, just my personal feeling, as everything else worked well.

Of course, the compatibility isn't just about the hardware alone. We want this thing to play ST games, watch demos, listen to music, view art, read disk mags, and do everything we did back in the day. Sadly, things get a little sketchy, and I had mixed results. Browsing the games over wifi delivers an enormous list, by many crackers. It's huge, but I'm sure it could be even bigger when you consider 95% of crews aren't included (just look at Atari Legend to see what I mean). I hope Diego finds some way to include more from other archives.

Many disks worked great, but some didn't, as they weirdly still attempted to access the hardware directly. So, rather than loading data from within the virtual drive within the Multi-Device, you will instead hear the floppy drive spin up. These disks are the ones that won't work, no matter what I try. Of course, if one crew's disk fails, you can always source another, as numerous games are listed more than once.

Generally speaking, Automation disks are a safe choice and work about 90% of the time. Some disks still fail as they attempt to access the real floppy disk drive, for example, Rick Dangerous II on disk #362. Thankfully, the SidecarTridge lists many games multiple times, and Rick Dangerous also appears on Flame of Finland #49, and that works a treat. Also, Terry's Big Adventure is featured on three different crews' disks - it's fine with the Automation and Pompey Pirates disks, but the Medway Boys let us down. It's not all bad news, as Dan Dare III appears on Pompey, FOF, and Automation, and works flawlessly on all.

Sadly, some games fail no matter which crew you choose to try: Golden Axe as both the Pompey Pirates and the Automation disks attempt to access the floppy, which results in BOMBS. Also, Fire & Forget II has the same crashes from both the Automation and FOF versions. So disappointing :(

Of course, some games that fail are listed only once: Alien Storm (D-Bug), Ghouls 'n Ghosts (Pompey), Lemmings II (Adrenalin), Chaos Engine (D-Bug). However, many work a treat: Sabre Team (Superior), Galaxy Force (Automation), Ballzone (D-Bug), Warlock The Avenger (Medway), War In The Gulf (Adrenalin), Hero Quest (Superior), Moonfall (Cynix), Z-Out (Pompey), etc/etc. This means you should manually download another crew's disk from Atari Legend and manually copy it over to the SD Card to playtest.

Additionally, games on two disks cannot be played unless you download the disk images and mount them manually (using menu option 3). It's not a big deal downloading two disks, but it is a bit of a faff. Of course, the game itself still needs to support Drive B, which is often another issue altogether!! ie, Domark's F1, Cannon Fodder, Cadaver, Ghostbusters II, Magic Boy, and others do not recognise the virtual Drive B.

This has been a lot of work, but somebody's got to do it lol. Hey, it's screenshot time...

Option 3 displays all the floppy images I've copied onto the SD Card.

If you have some hard drive-adapted games, then option 4 is for you!

CryptO'pinion

The Multi-Device is a marvellous piece of kit and only costs around £40 incl. postage. Incredible value for money when you think about it. This offers us a wealth of functions without much initial configuration. So it's a matter of simply powering on and pressing the Left Shift key to begin. It's that simple. And having access to loads of ROMS and floppy disks via the WiFi is a killer feature! Thankfully, no internal soldering or case cutting is required, which is ideal for people like me who are dangerously inept at that sort of thing!

Once again, I know this is a "multi-device", but my main reason for buying this is to access floppy disks, mainly menu disks. I cannot tell you the joy I feel in easily flipping between disk images. It can mount anything (ST/MSA format), which means you could download everything from magazine cover disks to PD Disks to Menu disks and relive the 1990s, which is absolutely amazing!! However, it's not perfect as I've previously mentioned. Plus, the menu is missing a few basic features, like an option to delete unwanted MSA/ST images.

Of course, the device provides those alluring extra features - mounting ROM images and having an alternative type of hard drive are interesting. However, I have my Ultrasatan, which is better than any GEMDOS/GEMDRIVE. Again, I bought the MultiDevice to use ST floppy disks. Have I mentioned that already? :-)

This is a fabulous piece of hardware, which has provided me with the opportunity to relive my cracker days and enjoy menus. No more impaired emulation, or converting disk images into real floppies, whilst hoping that the disk is free of bad sectors. Yup, I cannot recommend this device enough: it's easy to install/setup and provides access to squillions of menu disks with more games than you can shake a stick at. Marvellous.

• SidecarTridge's Mult-Device is awesome, so click here to buy one yourself.
• They have loads of other cool gadgets you'll love right here.
• Why not follow Diego's ST passion over on X/Twitter!!
• Check out my 'Hardware' section for other goodies I've bought.

Lethal Xcess

Play fast, die faster

Certain games, I am never going to bother reviewing here on AtariCrypt because everyone already knows them. For example, Eclipse's amazingly sadistic shooter, which is the 1991 sequel to Wings of Death. So, instead, I've created a gameplay video to showcase the levels (I tried to last as long as possible without dying!). Okay, I know that there are already squillions of video recordings out there, but I feel I must add my own. Plus, this gives me the perfect opportunity to add Lethal Xcess to this ever-growing list of enhanced games.

If, like me, you are struggling to successfully play this zappy shooter, then check out my previous page for Wings of Death (linked below). Many of its gameplay tips apply here, and it's not always a case of rushing to collect every power-up dropped by these ferocious enemies! Switching weapon types will only get you into trouble - so I stick to the same weapon and upgrade it rather than switching to something else.

Grab a coffee, sit back, and watch my talented gameplay video before clicking on these links...

• Floppy disks are best sourced from Atari Legend, and I used Fuzion #128.
• Both PP and D-Bug have hard drive installable versions.
• Hey, check out my Enhanced games list for the Atari STe :)
• The original Wings Of Death is slightly easier and definitely worth playing!

The first level is a killer, and here I am - dying!!

The second stage feels easier, but, oddly enough, I still die.

The difficulty cranks up for the third stage, and it looks rather Xenon'y too!

Guess what? Yep, that's right, the fourth stage is rock hard.

Call me daft, but the fifth stage is less painful compared to the others. I still died.

Using the cheat on Fuzion #128 allowed me to finally watch the end sequence.

“The ST Can’t Scroll”

Really?

One of the things we have all heard time and time again, both now and even back in the day, is that the Atari ST cannot scroll. But I’ve never really understood where that came from. Because when I unwrapped my ST on Christmas morning back in 1988, I was straight into games like Xenon, Beyond the Ice Palace, Black Lamp, Return to Genesis, Thundercats, Wizball, and Zynaps. All of them scrolled - and they scrolled well. That was just the start, as the months passed, I got to play R-Type, Robocop, Baal, Pac-Land, Ghouls 'n Ghosts, Custodian, The New Zealand Story, Jug, Blood Money, StarRay. And that list goes on (and on, and on...).

Sure, there were some stinkers - lazy ports that got the quick ‘n’ dirty Amiga-to-ST treatment, with zero care and even less optimisation. Especially in the 1990s, and when that happened, some developers shrugged and blamed the hardware. “The ST can’t scroll,” they’d say. More likely: the programmer didn’t have the time or the talent to do the job properly (ouch!). I'm still waiting for someone to Blitterise Cannon Fodder!

However, it's deeper than a handful of poorly converted games. So, where did this myth come from? Well, the standard ST was never going to churn out loads of games running at 50fps because it doesn’t have hardware scrolling, after all. But does that automatically mean anything running slower is rubbish? Not at all, but somehow, that excuse stuck - and even now, decades later, people still repeat it like it’s a fact.

Since I’m clearly not bored of moderating the abusive comments after posting about STDOOM & DOOM8088ST, I figured it was time to put this tired old myth to bed. I’ve made a 'gameplay' video showing several ST games that scroll fine – and yes, I could’ve included many more, but I think the point’s been made.

When the ST is in the hands of someone who knows what they’re doing and actually gives a TOS, it delivers. So you might say, a bad workman blames his tools... Just STay Atari, and enjoy my recording! :-)

In the eye of the beholder

Pleasing pixels

Upgrading to the Atari ST was a monumental moment. I remember seeing games like Dungeon Master, Xenon, The Pawn, and International Karate. I couldn't believe the detail and range of colours - without colour clash! Of course, that feeling happened again when I bought The Union Demo. The joy my eyes and ears experienced with extra colours, glossy fonts, plasmas, parallax scrolling, etc. What a moment that began a new era!!

So where is this yabber taking us? I was sitting here wondering what my favourite ST/e image is. Over the years, I've seen great pictures from people using programs like NEOchrome, Degas, Spectrum 512, and Photochrome. Not to mention the creations of the demoscene, embedded within intros, cracktro, demos, etc.

You can see my choice (at the top) taken from Drone, an Atari STe demo by DHS. It was originally created by Ultradialectics and is horrifically exquisite. Drone is a remarkable demo with an ominous style and presentation, yet it remains funky-fantastic! Yes, that's my silly way of describing their hard work!

So what is your favourite pixel art and why? I'm not talking about the technical aspect as it can be anything - monochrome, 16-colour, or feature thousands of colours in overscan! Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. However, the caveat is that the Atari ST/STe must be able to display your choice (not TT/Falcon).

Links

---

Original artwork by Ultradialectics [ Deviant Art ] [ Demozoo ]

28-colour STe version [ Dead Hackers Society ]

Drone demo for Atari STe w/ credits and download [ Demozoo ]

Dead Hackers Society [ Demozoo ]

The Union Demo [ Demozoo ]

You know the rule - best experienced on a real Atari STe.

Addendum

---

An overwhelming response... sigh... So here are examples of gaming #pixelart that I admire.

Rambo III.

Starting with an obvious one! The resemblance to the artwork is astounding. Love it!!

Escape From The Planet Of The Robot Monsters.

Jaw-dropping pixel artistry was used for its intro. A truly stunning screen.

Black Lamp.

Perhaps a cheat, as it's basically a collection of sprites! A legendary screen!!

Fire And Brimstone.

Of course, this isn't a title screen, but just look at that outstanding pixel art!!!!

Laser Ball.

Technically not the best, but the exotic toon results are superb.

After The War.

Wow, a surprisingly good beat 'em up, and this screen is mind-blowing!!

Spikey in Transylvania.

Not a title screen, but a scene from the game I absolutely love. Gorgeous expressions!

Dungeon.

So bad, it's actually good. I love the dripping flesh. Amazing!!

A Prehistoric Tale.

I wanted to keep this to just games, but the demoscene had to sneak in! ;) #SUPERB

ATORIC

Tangerine Dream

It's often a pointless venture, without any real-world use, but I still enjoy emulating other computers on my Atari ST. Yes, I'm a geek! If you're as weird as me, check out our Emulation section here on AtariCrypt and watch as I painstakingly try to suss out how to emulate computers like the PC, ZX Spectrum, C64, Tandy, and ZX81 (plus other silly stuff).

I love finding programs like these, and today, I shall turn my Atari ST into an Oric Atmos. The "Oric computer" is actually two machines - the older Oric 1 looks futuristic, but (from what I've read) had many bugs. The Oric Atmos followed a year later and was basically the same computer with many of the bugs ironed out (more information online if interested).

I recall seeing the Atmos in Rumbelows (remember them!?), which they featured on a pedestal in the middle of the shop. Perhaps they had high hopes? Anyway, I still remember how cool this computer looked with a great design and a proper keyboard. I wanted one, but all my friends had ZX Spectrums, and that was that. What a fool I was. Unless a time machine is invented - very soon - I might always regret not choosing computers like this and the 8-bit Ataris.

Anyhow, I might not need that as there may be light at the end of the tunnel thanks to a program called Atoric...

The later release of Atoric boots to a Microdisk default with many different options.

ATORIC

So, here we are in 2024, emulating the Oric using my Atari ST thanks to this program developed by Christian Peppermueller. I managed to find a few different versions online, but for most of this article, I was using v0.3 until (ahem) I remembered that I had already downloaded v0.9 ages ago. But somehow forgotten about it... Doh!

Actually, all versions work much the same with surprisingly accurate emulation, albeit very slowwwwwww. Yes, the stock 8MHz Atari ST oddly struggles compared to the other emulators I've used. I would estimate its performance is about a tenth of the speed of the original Oric - which is shocking compared to the speed of the Spectrum emulator. Even the Falcon/TT don't perform well, so I can only imagine (and hope) that the modded Atari computers do better.

Anyhow, enough whining! Atoric is an excellent piece of software and very easy to use. Depending on which version you try, it's easy to load games. Later versions can simply use the command CLOAD"", which uses the ST's file selector. Although you can also enter the command in full: CLOAD"MANIC" (for example, to load Manic Miner - which I renamed).

The latest version (that I found) of Atoric is v0.9, and it comes with Microdisk/Sedoric disk operating tool that features many functions. Use it to boot up in Atmos mode and "begin playing". Interestingly, there is a tool to amend the Atoric configuration file. This can alter how Atoric performs and more: default path locations can be chosen along with ST/Falcon displays (colour and high-resolution). It can use overscan, which makes up for the Oric's resolution.

It's worth reading the documentation before attempting any changes...

The configuration tool is enhanced somewhat in the later releases and is very easy to use.

Let's get straight to the games!

In terms of the emulation, fantastic is the word because almost everything worked well. Sadly, in terms of speed (when running on my STe), I can only say that poor is a better description. My old 8MHz computer doesn't have the grunt, and the emulation speed is shocking. Which I find odd, especially compared to the Speccy emulator. After all, the Oric is similar, with a slower processor, so I'm quite bemused by the sluggish performance. But, what do I know...

Okay, I booted up about 40/50 random games - I've never used an Oric, so I didn't know anything about its library. However, the Oric has Manic Miner, so that was obviously the first game I tried. The quality of the emulation is superb, and everything looks great. However, it's running at less than 1fps, which means it's totally unplayable.

Booting into Hatari and configuring as a 32MHz ST improved things - but only slightly. The Falcon/TT configs didn't improve matters. Not that much - so I can only wonder what type of Atari computer would!

Okay, let's see some more games. Almost everything works perfectly, if you ignore the speed! There were one or two issues with a few other games where the overscan failed - so I couldn't see the bottom of the screen. Also, a couple of games appeared to work, except the keyboard stopped accepting input. Very handy. Not!

It's now we declare defeat and admit that the Atari ST will never run an Oric game properly (I really need a Medusa). So, with that in mind, I plodded on and "playtested" a few games with the first being Manic Miner (emulated in both colour & mono). As a Willy fan, it's surreal to see the Oric version running on my ST!! What a shame it plays like a slideshow!

(low-res) Manic Miner on the Oric on my Atari ST. Fantastic stuff!! #geek

(hi-res) I thought the performance might be better without the stress of colours. It wasn't lol.

And it's now that I must plug the incredible Atari ST version of Manic Miner developed by Fede Pede in 2018. It's 95% complete and downloadable so give it a whirl. It's a cracking repoduction of the 8-bit original!!

Donkey Kong

This was actually called Honey Kong - to avoid the usual Nintendo troubles - and is a fun conversion. Visually, a bit bland, so I thought the performance might be better. It wasn't. Although not as slow as Manic Miner, it was still unplayable. Additionally, the display is quite fluffy with a few glitches - so make sure you enable the overscan option for better results.

Forget this one, dear ST people. Has anyone got an Atari TT they wants to donate? Hmm

Credit: V. Nicolas for Sprites.

https://www.oric.org/software/honey_kong-1200.html

I later enabled overscan, and everything worked dandy. Except way too slowly!

Football Manager

Yes, Kevin Toms' famous face has even managed its way onto an Oric cassette. I'm not a footie fan but - stop the press - this was actually playable!! Well, with the acceptable performance expectation. So, with that in mind, it is playable. Yes, I use all of these terms lightly, but always positively. Forget the official ST game and play this one instead! ;-)

Credit: Addictive Games

https://www.oric.org/software/football_manager-43.html

I reckon Football Manager came out on every computer?

Zaxxon

This isn't a game I had high hopes for, but I tried it anyway. I was shocked when I first booted it up, as I thought the graphics had been screwed up because it looked nothing like the US Gold release. But this game was programmed in BASIC, so I guess the look and performance are as expected. Great results considering it's BASIC, but it's best we move on...

Credit: Richard Juhel

https://www.oric.org/software/zaxxon-1777.html

I wasn't impressed, but then I learnt it was programmed in BASIC!

Driver

This is a weird one that reminded me of a mix of Motor Massacre & Bugziacs. We drive around a maze looking for flags whilst avoiding enemy cars. The graphics are screwy (especially without overscan), and the scrolling is probably the reason for the poor performance. You know the story, it's one of those games that makes me wish I had an upgraded ST.

Credit: Francois Lionet (whaaaaat?)

https://www.oric.org/software/driver-37.html

The sprites look odd unless that's normal? As ever, far too slow to play...

Galaxians

This shooter is by one of my favourite 8-bit companies, Softek. It's another game that is fully playable and emulated extremely well with decent graphics and sounds - albeit only for the original Oric computer. Okay, I'll now stop mentioning the lack of speed when using an Atari ST because I'm sick of repeating myself. If only my ST ran at 128MHz lol.

Credit: Gordon Russell

https://www.oric.org/software/galaxians-45.html

I had a few issues with this game, but it eventually worked with overscan enabled.

Ghost Gobbler

Hey, it may have a bizarre name, but it's still Pac-Man and a great version too! However, I'm not sure what Ian was on when he developed this game. After all, those lavish colours will drive anyone insane after a few games. Perhaps that was his plan? Who knows!! Anyhow, I do know that this is a great version of the classic arcade game.

Credit: Ian Hothersall

https://www.oric.org/software/ghost_gobbler-47.html

Who doesn't love Pac-Man? This is a great version for those with the hardware to run it!

Krillys

The file I found gave the impression this was a Defender clone, but it's nothing like Jeff Minter's wondrous release. In fact, it's more of a Scramble, which is excellent news to this fan! It appears to be very good, but the graphics are a little messed up. It plays well, and I can imagine a faster Atari computer would be fine booting this up for a quick blast.

Credit: John Cumming, Gary Munroe, Ian Marshall

https://www.oric.org/software/krillys-63.html

Something wonky has happened to the graphics, but it plays well enough.

Road Frog

I wasn't expecting this to beat the ST's 2016 release of Frogger, but I was expecting to play ... something. Sadly, this is one of the few games that crashes! Right after the loading screen, it pops up with this: "Syntax Error 500". Ah well!

Credit: Philip Hulme

https://www.oric.org/software/road_frog-87.html

This looked great, but it's one of the few games that produced an error message.

Velnor's Lair

An adventure game released by another of my favourite 8-bit companies, Quicksilva. Originally a Speccy game, from what the link tells me, although I have never previously heard of it. Now, don't expect graphics as this game is purely text and, as a result, is fully playable on the bog standard 8MHz Atari ST. Yippee, I am one happy bunny!

Credit: Derek Brewster and John Airey

https://www.oric.org/software/velnor_s_lair-574.html

There are no flashy graphics, and it's still slow lol. Thankfully, it's not that (hmm) bad!

The Warlock's Mountain

Believe it or not, this game was originally a Your Computer type-in from 1984 (remember that magazine?). Of course, being programmed in BASIC means it worked well in the emulator and was playable, to a degree. Well, I'm being generous, but you get like that after so much constant disappointment. Of course, play it on a supped-up ST for best results.

Credit: A.J. Edgington

https://www.oric.org/software/warlock_s_mountain__the-590.html

This is a game I'm keeping to play using the Mac emulator. It's different and I love that.

Hunchback

Yet another game by the mighty Ocean, and it's a cracker too. I loved playing the Speccy game, and the ST has some odd remakes. Sadly, like their Road Frog, this game had troubles. It froze right at the start of a new game. Bugger!

Credit: Philip Hulme

https://www.oric.org/software/hunchback-57.html

I was looking forward to this one as the Speccy game is a favourite of mine. Sadly, it froze!

Xenon 1

Don't even think about it!! This shooter is nothing like the Bitmap Bros' ST game. No, it's more of a Phoenix clone from what little I managed to see. Yeah, it really needs a beefy computer to run properly - and is better when overscan is enabled.

Credit: John Sinclair

https://www.oric.org/software/xenon_1-105.html

It's slow and impossible to play, but I imagine it's great on a real Oric.

Wizard's Lair

Like our Atari ST, the Oric is getting new games released and, by sheer chance, I stumbled upon a #roguelike by Rax & Iss. This game is incredible, but arghhh, I couldn't get the controls to work. I don't know why, because it appears to be running fine. Anyhow, I had to see more, so I booted up an Oric emulator for my Mac to take this screenshot.

(credit to Defence Force for the find: https://forum.defence-force.org)

I dare anyone not to be impressed with this Rogue game. It's a belter!!

The CryptO'pinion?

Oric computers are great and better than I expected. I mostly used the Atmos model as it's the same spec as the original computer, but with many bugs ironed out. In many respects, the Oric is much like a ZX Spectrum, but better. I wouldn't say it's as good as the C64 or Atari 8-bits, but it's close. What a massive shame it flopped (outside of France).

Atoric is a wonderful piece of software, and I've enjoyed tinkering with it. It's obvious that Christian put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into its production. The end result is impressive and complete - so it emulates the Oric remarkably accurately. He also included a configuration tool providing access to different features and basic defaults for hardware, paths, etc. The overscan ability is brilliant and eliminates the flickering due to the different resolutions.

Sadly, it's the speed that will disappoint. Oric games might be emulated accurately, but are unplayable on an ST. In fact, the Falcon/TT machines I set up in Hatari faired only slightly better. If I'm honest, I don't understand why that is, as the Oric runs at 1MHz, slower than the other computers we can emulate. Yet, the results are terrible by comparison.

However, that's not the point of playing with old software like this. A program like Atoric proves how vibrant and energetic the Atari ST scene was back in the '80s/'90s. Plus, I've had a blast wading through the Oric's gaming library. Okay, I played very few games, but it was an adventure. And one I've thoroughly enjoyed. Yes, I am insane. I know I am!!

Atoric is a magnificent program that I've thoroughly enjoyed. I only wish I had a faster Atari ST :/

I expect somebody out there wants to try Atoric for themselves? I genuinelly hope so!! I have bundled together everything that I've been using which you can download off my Dropbox.

Additionally, if you're after a bundle of Oric games, then grab 'em from Emu-Land.

If you're mad like me and enjoy using emulators on the Atari ST, let me know how you got on using the comments below. My options were limited by my humble 8MHz Atari STe and also Hatari. I would love to hear from you guys with better Atari computers regarding the performance.