Test Drive

I fancy a road trip!

Accolade's Test Drive was released in 1987 and is one of the games I got free with my first Atari ST computer. So I have fond memories of playing this game during my early 16-bit days. It begins with an intro animation of a dude sitting in his Porsche before winding down the window to display a cheesy grin and then speeding into the sunset. So cool.

There are five sports cars to choose from and each is viewed on the main menu with lots of technical details (that I've never read). Their artwork is gorgeous and I personally think the Corvette is the best of the bunch for a road trip.

It's time for some screenshots so let's check out the choice of smooth riders on offer...

I've never really been much of a Porsche fan... More of a girl's sports car, right?

Okay, it's not a Ferrari 308 but that doesn't stop me from thinking I'm Magnum P.I.

I can't say I'm a fan of this and the handling never really excites, more terrifying!

(Insert James Bond theme now). Okay, it might not be that fast but we love British muscle!!

I'm more of a muscle car fan myself but the Chevrolet Corvette is a beauty in every respect.

An oldie classic?

Test Drive is a race against the clock with points awarded for faster times along a seemingly endless mountainside highway. Driven from an in-car perspective, behind the wheel, you will notice that each car has a realistically represented dashboard. I love that and it includes the manual gearbox controls, that briefly display with each shift.

At first, I found the controls a little wooden, but I soon got the hang of them after a couple of races. A red dot on the steering wheel helps pinpoint a more precise indication of your turning and direction. It's really helpful albeit crude. However, I must admit, it does make up for the lack of analogue controls nicely. Considering that, it feels pretty natural.

Like cars? Like rocks? Then you are gonna love this next screenshot...

Ahh, the open road of a road trip. Wait, another car? Argh, it's suddenly gridlock!! ;^)

You're not alone!

Beware, you aren't actually on a race track, it's a highway. So annoying civilians are driving on these once-safe roads who seem to love head-on collisions!! There are also cops so it's a good job that your car is fitted with a radar to help signal when they are nearby. Then, you have a choice of being good or watching them disappear in your rearview mirror!

Personally, I treat these moments as a green light opportunity to push the pedal to the metal, but that's just me! Don't forget to refuel at the gas station checkpoint before continuing with your Bullrun Rally. Petrol doesn't last forever!

Honestly, I'm a good driver. Especially after a few beers as shown in this next screenshot...

Sometimes your road trip can go terribly wrong!

Old school aesthetics

Test Drive has some nice characteristics - that are hilarious - like the grey fella driving his truck. How about the handless steering wheel or the slo-mo effect as your windscreen breaks up after a crash - it's almost worth slamming into an oncoming vehicle just to see it! Yep, I think that the graphics are nice considering the age of this famous racer. I like the dashboards the most with the Corvette being my favourite. However, all cars feature equally superb graphics.

Musically, this is nice with lots of jingles and cute tunes during the menus and screens when filling up with fuel. The sound effects of the car aren't the best; it's all buzzy compared to other oldies like Turbo Cup. Bit of a shame.

I love how the game looks, even if the cars sound like a bee trapped inside a drum. Screenshot time...

It's time to fill up before hitting that open road.

The CryptO'pinion?

Test Drive offers an enjoyable drive without the rush of a speedster like Vroom or Crazy Cars III. It's more like a charming Sunday drive without that thrill of speed. But don't let that put you off, this is a great driving game and one I have a soft spot for. This cliffside road tripper is the beginning of the historical 90s series. To think that it began on the Atari ST.

A grand racer with loads of great cars for the rocky American roads. Far from perfect but I love it to bits!!

8BitChip has a hard drive installable version which I recommend!

Old Games Finder has floppy disk images.

Update: There is an excellent new video by Wasabim.

There are many Test Drive games and I love No.5 on the PlayStation.

Giana Sisters

Turn your ST into a Nintendo!

The Great Giana Sisters was released in 1987 by Rainbow Arts and is a platformer with (umm) more than a hint of Italian plumbing. Anyhow, the commercial ST game played well but suffered flip-screen scrolling that soon became tiresome on the old eyes. Ultimately, it was a lame port and spoiled what should have been an excellent release.

Don't give me the old excuse that the ST cannot scroll. It can scroll: Viking Child, Ghouls 'n Ghosts, Enchanted Land, Stario, Alien World, Zone Warrior, Onslaught and many, more!! Yes, it bugs me when I see people's daft comments claiming that the ST cannot scroll. Blame the programmer - not the computer! /rant

It looks like I wasn't the only person to hate our poor conversion because Samuel (aka Zamuel_a of Pac-Mania fame) decided to convert it to the Atari STe. He makes use of the hardware scrolling so the entire screen scrolls rather than flipping - and it's smooth, 50fps smooth. To say that this update is jaw-dropping is an understatement and it most certainly beats the pathetic commercial game. Now, just imagine if the industry would have supported the Atari STe properly...

Anyhow, the game itself is the same but it now scrolls and that fact totally transforms the experience. Samuel has put the Atari STe to great use which proves the power of this wonderful computer. Finally, we can play Giana Sisters as it was meant to be enjoyed! Waste no more time and download this wonderful new version (improved by Peter Putnik)

Watch the video and check out these screenshots before deciding whether or not you should download...

It looks basic but it also looks console-cool too. I like it, very NES... to me.

Happily walking along and then something falls on your head! Let's collect the gems.

I really hate that horrendous big bug so let's jump over the sucker and run!

Anarcho Ride

Carmageddon!!!

Anarcho Ride is a new "racer" for the Atari STe by the ever-zealous Thomas Ilg of Laser Ball fame. Well, ignoring what the screenshots show, this isn't actually a racer as such. Sure, it looks the part but it's more of a smash 'n grab - think Carmageddon where head-on collisions get you the points needed to go further and play extra levels.

This is fun but, at first, I actually found it difficult because it's natural to avoid the other cars. Don't. When you're behind the wheel, the aim is to smash into every car you can - and why not shoot the ones you have missed using a missile. That sounds about right! Yes, it's silly and stupid but it's also pure mechanical violence! Totally insane gaming!!

The graphics are weirdly 80s in their style, reminds me of Crazy Cars and others from that era. Of course, the Atari STe produces a decent framerate and is very smooth. The only negative is that the car has no shadow so it appears to "hover". The audio is outstanding with DMA sound effects alongside stunning chip music by xFalcon.

Ignore the screenshots if you're looking for a new racing game. Look elsewhere, this isn't a racer. This is a crash 'em up, I guess you might say? Smashing stuff up is always excellent fun and Anarcho Ride proves that perfectly.

Download Anarcho Ride (+ expansions)

We're out for a nice quiet drive in the desert. Let's hope there's nobody on the road...

Looks like we're in the salt flats and, oh no, there's a safe driver up ahead!!

Now we're smashing through the lush landscape of what could only be England. Death on the roads!

Robert HC Leong

All the way back in early January, I featured a mini-review of Annihilator. This is a familiar-looking oldskool shooter by Robert HC Leong, a much-respected name from the Atari ST homebrew scene I'm sure you'll agree.

He has developed four games - Annihilator, Missile Alert, Pac-Man ST and Space Invaders. Each one was released under the Budgie UK label and they were all hits with ST gamers. Plus I thoroughly enjoyed playing them all too!

To say I was surprised to find out Robert read my review -and- also follows AtariCrypt is an understatement! Talk about a nice surprise! Anyhow, we got chatting and it wasn't long before I threw out a few questions and here we are. :-)

I hope you enjoy this interview? My gratitude to Robert for being a great sport (and for being a fan of AtariCrypt!)

Robert HC Leong
- The Interview -

Hello Robert, please tell us about the guy behind the games

I am from Malaysia and I moved to Ireland in 1980 to further my studies. I bought an Atari 520STFM in 1988 while in Ireland, after graduating. At that time, I had already owned a BBC Micro and was looking for a new computer. I was impressed by the plethora of colours that the ST could produce, and the increase in speed and memory.

I tried to program the ST in Fast BASIC initially, but that was too slow, so it was a natural progression for me to move on to 68000 assembly language using HiSoft Devpac, especially since I was already familiar with 6502 assembly language from my time with the BBC Micro.

Hey, wanna see Robert's Atari ST setup? Of course, you do...

Can you imagine going back in time and being there as he programmed his games!!

What was it like developing ST games?

I have always enjoyed playing shoot-em-up games, so the first game I programmed was Space Invaders in 1989. I tried to keep the game as close to its original playability as possible, including the sprites and even its logo colours. It made the cover of the December 1989 issue of Atari ST User magazine.

I then moved on to do a simplified, 2-player version of Missile Command just for the fun of it – it wasn’t anything spectacular. After that, I challenged myself to do a version of Pacman. Many home computer versions of Pacman at that time had very small sprites. I decided that, for the cuteness factor alone, the sprites needed to be larger, and the way to implement this was to do a vertically-scrolling screen to increase the size of the maze. I tried again to keep to the original version and came quite close. I was not good at producing music so Gary Wheaton, a fellow programmer and musician, was kind enough to provide the music for version 2 and it sold quite well.

Annihilator was my final game for the public shareware label. It was a Galaxians clone, but this time, I drew my own sprites and provided power-ups and end-of-level guardians to spruce up the game as it was the trend in shoot-em-up games at that time. After this, I started programming a horizontally scrolling shoot-em-up but I did not progress much further because of a lack of time; I was spending many weekends and nights on-call while pursuing my medical career. This was the simple reason why I did not have a chance to release any new games for the Atari ST after that.

This is Annihilator and is stuffed with Galaxian action!

Do you have a favourite game?

I had no clear favourites but, looking back, I thoroughly enjoyed programming and play-testing Pacman ST because in my mind it was a step above the other Pacman clones at that time with gameplay approaching that of the original arcade version, and cute to boot!

Did you rake in the cash to buy a sports car!

Budgie UK Licenceware was a public domain label started by Camy Maertens in 1987, where a group of software programmers shared joint royalties on all the games sold. It was a fun concept, gave us some camaraderie, and made us some pocket change, but certainly not enough to buy an inexpensive car, let alone a sports car!

Any chance you will start coding again?

Unfortunately, when I left Ireland for the US, where I am now based, I sold off and gave away all my Atari ST stuff! Hence, it is unlikely that I will ever code anything new for the ST again.

It's Pac-Man and it's a cool version of the original arcade game.

Do you play games?

From time to time, I still reminisce about the good old days of the Atari ST, when I’ll try running an ST game or two on Steem, an excellent emulator on the PC. Of course, I still check Atari ST websites like AtariCrypt and Facebook.

What do you think of the ST world today?

I am frankly amazed, but pleasantly surprised, that the Atari ST scene is so resilient, considering that the machine was discontinued in 1993. For me, the ST had always been an integral and fun bit of my life, so I hope the community lives on!

However, the ST presence appears much greater in Europe, compared to the US, though there is still an active Atari club near me in Davis, California, it tends to cater more to the 8-bit Atari consoles than to the ST. Check out: http://newbreedsoftware.com/atariparty/2016/. (I hope they change! -AtariCrypt)

An excellent alternative spin on Missile Command. It's very, very difficult!!

So what are you doing these days?

I’m now based in the San Francisco bay area where I work as a consultant in the biotechnology industry. I remain interested in IT and programming, especially since Silicon Valley is just a short drive down the road. Facebook, eBay, LinkedIn, Google, Apple, Cisco, and Oracle are all around me. IT executives of all ages are driving Teslas.

When driving around in Mountain View, I give a wide berth to the autonomous vehicles that Google is testing out here. Even Atari had its corporate headquarters here on Borregas Ave, Sunnyvale, but that closed down in 1996 (http://www.atari.io/back-to-borregas-ave/). I have visited the location once or twice to reminisce, and to imagine how it would have been here during Atari’s heydey…

Take a look at my website: (http://fungames.zone/#AtariSTgames)

-It was brilliant talking to Robert and I hope you've enjoyed this little interview :-)

Space Invaders can run in a modern or classic mode and (above) is the classic version.

Venus The Flytrap

Gremlin predicted this 30+ years ago!

Planet Earth is dying because of mankind's habit of breeding like bacteria and raping all its natural resources to serve our gluttony. Well, some rubbish like that anyhow... But, for this game, the over-use of pesticides has finally killed off all the bugs and left Mother Nature unbalanced but we have created cybernetic bugs to compensate for our stupidity. Of course, it wasn't long before they went postal so we must eliminate them all before it's too late!

This is a run-and-kill 'em platformer spread over fifty levels ranging from the green forests to Death Valley. You're a mechanical bug equipped with a cannon to fight off the foes and this can be upgraded using the power-ups left behind by those crazy insects. These consist of a wide range of improvements like better firepower, silly reversible controls, and even antigrav upside-down walking being possible - and that only serves to give brain ache! Bonus rounds appear each way through a level and flip the game into an exciting shoot 'em up for extra points.

Controls are bang-on perfect with a style that is clean and responsive without ever lagging. The graphics are pretty darn beautiful with smooth scrolling and nicely animated sprites plus it's worth noting all those many extra colours which spruce up what would normally have been a boring background. The music is perfect, something I can listen to all day.

Venus The Flytrap is an extremely enjoyable platformer which I highly recommend. A great game!

* I also recorded a midi version of the game's excellent theme tune.

* An awesome remastered tune by ACC:Xess which completely blows you away!

* Okay, here is a hard drive installable copy of Venus by the mighty D-Bug to download.

* Those that require a floppy disk image should check out Old Games Finder.

* Fancy some level codes? Of course, you do! Simply press the SPACEBAR on the menu screen and then ignore using that handy keyboard because they decided that the joystick would be far better to enter these codes:

     -> The Forbidden Forest...starting level

     -> The Frozen Wastes......MANTIDS

     -> The Dead City..........CICADAS

     -> Wood World.............PSYLLIDS

     -> The Kaverns............PIERIDS

     -> Death Valley...........SATYRID

     -> The Creeping Swamp.....LYCAENID

     -> Tech World.............PYRALID

     -> Translucent Plain......NOCTUID

     -> The Stygian Creek......?

* I believe these cheat codes work fine, however, I have never tried them so YMMV... enjoy:

     -> extra time.............JUPITER

     -> extra ammo.............PLUTO

     -> weapons galore.........MARS

     -> fly like superman......MERCURY

     -> unknown................SATURN

Elvira - Mistress of the Dark

Greatest box art ever?

"Can somebody help me find my chest?". Yes, I was hooked from the moment I saw this cover and then read that line! This game has the best box art I have ever seen, by far!! Well, after staring at it for longer than I should have, I took the plunge and booted it up. Ahem, okay, I have nothing more to add to this fine subject matter. I don't wish to get into trouble lol

This is one of my favourite Atari ST games and definitely the best box art the world has ever seen!

- DOWNLOADS -

A hard disk version is available from D-Bug. (highly recommended)

Old Games Finder has floppy images for those that love disk-swapping hell.

A little surfing revealed this walk-through.

(untested by me... but now I'm tempted!)

Car-Vup

Paint by Wheels!

CarVup is a scrolling driving/platformer released in 1990 by Core Designs. We get to play the part of a cheerful car that appears to love painting platforms by simply driving over them. Yes, it's a pretty familiar idea but one which will certainly appeal to the... well... more mature gamer (just like me!) who remembers Painter. #AncientGamer

Each screen has many platforms in need of a new coat of paint and this easy task soon becomes tricky because of the numerous baddies that populate the playing field. Don't think about shooting your way through because there are no weapons (without collecting optional power-ups) so baddies must be avoided. This will be troublesome as your car has no breaks and loves driving constantly in a kamikaze fashion so these mechanics force you to constantly flip direction to find an alternative route whilst frantically searching for that last tile. It's fun, it's frantic, it's pointless - it's Painter!

So, I think it's time for the first screenshot which contains a bunch of handy information...

Follow the instructions and learn the different jumps otherwise, it's Game Over, buddy boy.

Input & Output

This is a game which would sink like a lead balloon if it had anything less than perfect controls. So I'm grateful they are indeed responsive and well thought out. Best of all, they're responsive and without any annoying lag. Many platforms are difficult to reach so require precise timing, which is made harder when the enemy might be blocking your path. CarVup always requires quick and reactions to avoid losing a life because you never know what might appear.

Each level always looks superb with lots of colours and a lovely cartoony design. Personally, I think Core did a great job throughout with the cute appearance, smooth scrolling and cute sprites. The sound effects are pretty nice and do their expected job well but it's the chiptunes which are all foot-tappingly superb. (press key 'M' to toggle).

Right, it's time for another screenshot and this one is from the game itself you will be happy to know...

Always be on the lookout for dangerous items, strange obstacles, or even dodgy enemies!

The CryptO'pinion?

CarVup may not appeal to everyone, especially those old enough to remember how boring Painter was! However, I recommend you give this a try because it's an enjoyable twist on the theme and enjoyable too. I'm an ancient gamer but still found myself enjoying its "just one more go" appeal. Hardly a Grade A release but, definitely worth playing.

And that's about it really, a fun spin on Painter that works very well. Yep, I really enjoyed playing CarVup!

Floppy disks are available via Old Games Finder with a hard disk version by 8BitChip.

The One magazine released a demo version containing extra levels NOT in the commercial release!

If you press the 'Z' key during gameplay then it will stop your car!

Enter these codes into the high-score table :

infinite lives - R.J.TOONE

infinite bumpers - BUMPER

9 lives - PUSSYCAT

faster turn speed - WOOAARRGGHH

level skip - WHOOPSIE

extra points - ARNIECAR

more points - BARMY CAR

Resolution 101

Bad guys need killing

Resolution 101 was developed by Astral who also made Horror Zombies From The Crypt and Archipelagos. They portray a future that is a crime-ridden hell hole displayed using gorgeous vectors for a grim scenario.

We are an ex-criminal turned good and it's our job to hunt down the bad guys in our anti-gravity squad car. So, just like any Van Damme or Stallone movie, you should expect action and lots of explosions! Use your car radar to help map this urban jungle. Whenever you kill anything, they drop their stash for you to collect - which angers the drug lords that will pop up on your monitor display. It's now that you realise your job is to eliminate everyone!!

Control is best with the mouse: use this to view all around your crazy new world. The left button accelerates and the right fires our weapon. This is an excellent system that works perfectly and is far better than the joystick. The graphics are superb using such a fast and smooth 3D engine. I must say it's great when the drug lord appears on your screen - so comical. The sound effects are great as is the music which I love - you can hit F7 to flip between these.

This is one of the best 3D shoot 'em ups for the Atari ST. It's fantastic with no overly complex (ie, unnecessary) objectives to get in the way of your enjoyment. I really liked zooming through the city, which is always fast for a most satisfying chase.

Quite simply, Resolution 101 is one of the most frantic and enjoyable retro shooters that I have ever played.

Don't miss this fantastic shooter - floppy & hard disk

This baddie looks like something from Dr Who so let's zip around him and zoom away!

That guy looks like my old Computer Studies tutor from college. Spooky!

Each level features great animations of the drug lords taking a hit... Nice developers, really!!

The map of our drug-dealer world!

Frogger

Turning back the clock to 1981

You know, it feels like I've been beta-testing Frogger forever but, it's finally complete!! Yes, we have the official release of Frogger, by Scott Clifford. Do not expect a cheap knock-off because this is about as accurate as it gets with authentic visuals, sounds and playability. I'm sure every fan of the arcade game will adore this brand-new conversion. Plus it's 2016 and the Atari ST is getting new games released - which is incredible!!

Frogger is such a simple game but let's take a wild stab at the gameplay basics...

Leapin' Frogger! Home may look like it's only a hop, skip, and a jump away, but looks can be deceiving. First, there's a dangerous highway to hop across, full of fast-moving cars & trucks. Then there's a swirling river to leap,  full of frog-eating creatures. How's Frogger going to get home safely? By letting you hop him on his way. Guide Frogger safely through this perilous journey, and you'll jump for joy!

The object of the game is to hop as many frogs to safety as you can - and to score the most points along the way. Each time you bring 5 frogs home, you'll hear a short tune.  Then the game will continue at a more difficult level with your remaining frogs. The traffic will be more difficult to cross. There will be fewer floating objects on the river. Frogger-eating snakes will also appear on the riverbank in progressively more difficult levels. The game ends when no frogs (lives) are left.

Your score is shown at the bottom of the screen throughout the game. Points accumulate as follows:

Jumping Frogger forward = 10 points
Jumping Frogger home = 50 points
Jumping 5 frogs home = 1000 points
Taking a lady frog home = 200 points
Eating a fly = 100 points
Extra points for time left = 10 points (per remaining second)

I always love information screens - plus how authentic is this? Amazing conversion.

2016 and the Atari ST is alive & kicking!

Frogger should work fine with every model of ST computer but it's only been tested on the Atari ST, Atari STe and Mega STe. So please let us know if you have any issues using one of those super-speedy computers that neither Scott nor I could afford. Okay, you can download this amazing arcade game right now from AtariMania. Enjoy gaming like it's 1981!!

It's Frogger. Which is an original classic. Guess what? The Atari ST now has an excellent and authentic version!!

Update: You may be interested to know that Scott is now a member of Effect and has also been interviewed by AtariCrypt!! He has worked on many demo screens that you need to check out, like the amazing Turrican Music Disk. However, he currently has RAIDEN in development specifically for the Atari STe.

[A]tari [G]ame [T]ools

Feel the power of the Atari STe!!

Here are new videos from the current version of "AGT" by Douglas Little. A.G.T. stands for Atari Game Tools and is intended for the much under-utilised Atari STe and each video shows the potential of this engine. It's a jaw-dropper and Doug has a thread on Atari-Forum detailing more information. He also has a bitbucket website for downloads/tutorials.

Doug has an impressive history and it's amazing what he's done with AGT, so much gaming potential:

* Full support for the Atari STe hardware.

* 8-way (or 4-way) scrolling.

* Horizontal-only scrolling.

* Overscan- Increased resolutions.

* Vertical-only scrolling.

* Scroll rate from 0 to +/-16 pixels per frame on each axis.

* Map size up to 32768 x 32768 pixels.

* Highly configurable for different kinds of games!

 

I look forward to seeing how our community utilises AGT.
"Happy STE coding"

Where Time Stood Still

8-Bits of joy!

Where Time Stood Still is one of those games that kinda bridged my transition from the ZX Spectrum to the Atari ST. This amazing adventure was developed by legends Denton Designs and published in 1988 by the mighty Ocean Software. In fact, Denton Designs came out from the ashes of Imagine Software - I spent my youth playing/mapping their excellent games! I really miss playing The Great Escape, which sadly never made it onto the Atari ST. #TotallyGutted

So the story goes something like this: our plane crashes on a remote plateau somewhere in the Himalayas. Thankfully you, and three passengers, survive the wreck but find yourselves in a land inhabited by prehistoric creatures, dodgy bridges, quicksand slutch, rock-hands, and even strange tribal dudes who are angered easily at their new white friends.

I bet now you're wondering about the graphics? Just don't, you idiot! That doesn't matter so read on...

Day and Night time zones don't slow down our family of budding adventurers!

Let the adventure begin!

Firstly, familiarise yourself with the user interface that shows health/ammo and will also assist during the times you might consider eating, drinking, or resting. The display is simple but will initially be confusing especially when using the inventory/etc. Control can be using either the mouse or joystick but oddly, I found the joystick was the best.

Your name is Jarret, the classic hero who probably has a chiseled jaw, muscles, and designer stubble! The other characters are mostly controlled by the computer and follow wherever you go, so long as they're happy, fed, and content! Each person has their own unique personality - Clive is a rich man who moans and tires easily. Gloria and Dirk are a couple in love and I hear Dirk has some nifty language skills too. Well, so long as he has Gloria to keep him happy...

The characters themselves are ace and add, erm, character to the adventure. When you begin and are wondering what to do or where to go - don't. Experiment and take a gander at your surroundings. Check out items and see what you are capable of doing. Here are examples of what is initially possible. Common sense is not included, bring that yourself!

1. Grab the rope at the start otherwise, you might get into bother crossing a bridge.
2. Surprisingly, it's often possible to run away from dinosaurs!
3. Refill your flask in the river.
4. Just because someone (chubby) is moaning, he can be pushed to continue on...
5. There are two types of natives and the first are the friendly guys!
6. Keep moving in the swamp - don't stop!
7. Wandering hands love a piece of fresh meat!

Right then, this bridge looks completely safe so let's go... Ahem...

Sounds a bit boring?

Hardly. This game is brilliantly designed and will be played over an enormous map, so exploration is the key to success. Not only should you make a basic map of the area as you venture out but, take your time, there is much that isn't as it first appears. Look out for anything useful that you think could assist in some way later on. Think ahead.

But be a careful explorer - what's your rush? Who knows what nasties are around the next corner or if the ground is even safe to walk on. Rocks fall, things break and even the natives aren't always guaranteed to be nice. Coming face to face with your first dinosaur is a scary moment so perhaps it's a good idea to be stealthy? A longer route might be a safer route? Hang on, I see woodland nearby that would be great for cover and shelter. Yes, shelter!

Be a people person, don't forget about your team and their morale. These guys will let you know when they are in need of rest, food, or water, or when suffering an injury. They are quite needy and a bit clumsy too but that doesn't mean you should pander to their every request. Push them a little harder, without being a slave driver because tired people are often grumpy people. And grumpy people are harder to control and often go off by themselves. Did you get those hints?

So take your time, check out the inventory, and have a recon of the area. Let's pause for a screenshot...

Bugger, I've lost all my friends so I'm going to sit here and sulk!

Aesthetics

Visually speaking you might be confused by what your eyes are seeing? No, this isn't a trick using a ZX Spectrum emulator. Yes, it looks almost the same at first glance and there's hardly anything here using the ST's hardware. However, there are many 16-bit differences, along with improvements like better scrolling and a higher detail level. Having said that, they're not massive improvements and it's basically faithful to the original as much as it could be.

The music is by Fred Gray (he of Black Lamp) and is truly amazing so perfectly suits the gameplay style and atmosphere. However, if you so prefer, sound effects can be used instead. Unless you're mad, stick with the chip music!

So it's a game that tricks your ST into thinking it's a Speccy? Well, yeah can't argue with that. Screenshot time...

Watch out you don't slip and die!

The CryptO'pinion?

I've been playing throughout the "summer" and made significant progress: my team has made it through the swamps, found a box of dynamite, ran like a girl when hearing a scary T-Rex, and chatted with the locals. Then a hand came out from nowhere and choked me to death which forced a rethink of strategy. However, advancing across the river wasn't a good idea when hungry natives were waiting. Imagine being eaten alive? What a terrible way to go.

As you can tell, I am really enjoying myself and I can sense victory is close? (I hope so). You know, this is what a (hmm) open-world game should be like - a huge potential to have your own unique adventure. Where Time Stood Still has it all and I feel I should be wearing a butchered animal skin when playing it? What a truly fantastic adventure game.

Download for HDD or FLOPPY

Gobliins 2

Funny creatures with funny expressions

The newest addition to my collection goes to Coktel Vision's Gobliins 2. The cover is very cheesy and it's meant to be. Just look at those silly faces which are quite creepy too. I only wish the sticker on the left wasn't there as I can see eyes looking at me! (I hate it when companies or shops would put their stickers on boxes!!). Anyhow, superb box art.

I've never played any "Goblins" game so, this is all new to me. In this sequel, a demon king has kidnapped The Prince (who's a bit of a Buffoon) but the gruesome twosome will save the day: Fingus and Winkle. This is a unique "co-op" adventure and one I'm dying to boot up later. [grab the floppy or hard drive downloads]

I wasn't sure what to expect when I booted it up. It's quite different and comical but also has characteristics of other point-and-click adventures like, say, Lure Of The Temptress. I wish I had been able to buy both of the Goblin games so I could play the original. I guess I download will suffice. This looks incredible though and I'm excited to play it.

Right then, let's view some more box art and screenshots...

Can you imagine seeing the back of this in a shop? It's so "buy me!"

The manual is short but straight to the point with information and lots of tips to get you started.

Ah, the previous owner marked his possession!! I wonder who S Scott is?

Codes to stop crackers? Well, maybe not but definitely to annoy legit buyers!

Well, I think he's choking a chicken while a giant sleeps under a tree. Nice scene!



LOL Just look at the old dude in the window. Awesome artwork.



This game is certainly living up to my expectations. I'm having a blast playing this belter!!

Retro Image Tool

  

Argh, why are there so many different image formats?

Well, I recently found a video by Sascha Springer, aka Anima, who has created a tool to convert any modern picture into the Spectrum 512 format. This can then be viewed on your Atari ST/e with astounding results!!

These three pictures I created for my own Atari STe are in Spectrum format using the extended palette. Fantastic results, I'm sure you'll agree? So give this extraordinary tool a playtest to see what you can create/convert.

Watch the tutorial video before playing with Retro Image Tool (use Chrome).

You can view the SPU image using his slideshow program on your Atari ST/e computer.

Pommitus

I recently read a posting by Tatu Salmela, who created Pommitus back in 1996. I contact him, we got talking and I found out he learned to program by reading ST Format and he is still patching and improving Pommitus to this day. Since then, it has been converted from Finnish into English and you can now find a download on AtariMania.

Pommitus is a multiplayer strategy game which involves using calculated tactics to bomb your opponent. At first, I wasn't too keen on the user interface because I often clicked outside the control box, thus mistakingly taking my shot. Thankfully, it soon becomes second nature and is great fun bombing your neighbour to kingdom come! Sounds are minimal but good enough and the mono graphics are sharp and detailed - that's right, you will need a monochrome monitor for the best experience. Being GEM-based, it should work on all Atari computers and even supports those lucky enough to have a maths coprocessor installed!

Oddly, an emulator like Hatari might run Pommitus slower than a real Atari computer but that is easily fixed by flipping the CPU setting to 16 or 32MHz. Nothing ever beats the real hardware...!

I am incredibly impressed with Pommitus and so grateful Tatu shared his works with AtariCrypt. Oh, and also this little tidbit of news - he is developing a new Atari ST game similar to Pommitus which will work in ST Low. It is in the early stages but I am very excited to see yet another Atari ST game in development! Watch this space, folks. :-)

Spontaneous Compression

A brand new album

Say hello to the third album by YM-Digital, Spontaneous Compression which was released yesterday and features nine tracks of awesome audio for us all to enjoy. Of course, each track was created using Atari ST computers!!

01. AdraSTea Orbit (16,61 kHz)

02. Cell Synthesis (16,40 kHz)

03. The Lost Confidence (50 kHz)

04. Aomi - The ST Version (16,40 kHz)

05. Yellow Leaves Are Falling (16,40 kHz)

06. Neutralizer II (16,40 kHz) / original composer: Rudolf Stember

07. Digiloo Digiley (50 kHz) / original composer: Kemal Ezcan

08. Draconus - The ST Cover (22,75 kHz) BONUS TRACK / original composer: Adam Gilmore

09. Aomi - The STE Version (50 kHz) BONUS TRACK

Total Time: 32:33 min.

All songs (except "Aomi - the STE version") have been recorded from an ATARI 520ST computer with YM2149 chip.

BeGEMeD

Dear puzzle fans, brace yourself...

Forget playing Candy Crush on your phone because something better is available for the Atari STe. It's called BeGEMeD and is a twist on the Bejewelled theme by Alexander de Vries It's a new game for the Atari STe with 16 beautiful colours and DMA sound effects. Those familiar with the genre will love this version because it plays brilliantly and is challenging - without irritation or frustrating mechanics. You'll be playing for hours!

The graphics were designed by Carnivac and it's difficult to believe that he only used 16 colours. The quality is superb so it appears there are far more on-screen. This talented use of colour is impressive. Accompanying the lush visuals is music by Dma-Sc, one of my favourite musicians and is mesmerisingly awesome. We also have familiar sound effects as we play. This includes samples letting us know how awesome we are.

Very few puzzle games look exciting for screenshots, but let's look at the first anyhow...

The first screenshot... what a nice display with lovely colour and design!

ReadMe.TXT

'Nice of you to visit this text, it will give you all the basic information you need to know to get started. Don’t worry it's easy so you will get the hang of it very soon!!

We are visiting Jack Bright, the castle lord of a medieval castle. He has already lived there for a lot of years and the castle needs some work. But his cash flow is a little bit on the downside so to earn some cash he has to swap gems for it.

He has lots of them hidden in his castle but it is a real mess. They are just piled on top of each other in no order at all. To swap them for cash he has to sort them out! But he can only do so if he has 3 or more of the same collection.

How does he do that? Well simple, just align 3 or more gems horizontal or vertical. For every successful swap, he earns those coins. Click the gem you van to swap with one of its neighbours and then choose the one you want to swap. Or even better just drag it over the other one by holding the mouse button, it both works...

As the coin meter reaches the top you have earned enough cash to go to the next level. The aim of the game is to reach the biggest high score of course.'

The second screenshot... Well, it kinda looks the same as the first doesn't it. lol

The CryptO'pinion?

I contacted Alexander to thank him for developing a great game and... we got chatting... it was only a short time before I was beta-testing a new version - I'm thrilled to report numerous bug fixes and extra features.

This has been a blast because Alexander is a cool chap and I'm honoured to have played a (tiny) part in producing a fantastic and addictive puzzler. I'm confident with the following statement: BeGEMeD is one of the best Bejeweled games there is. A fantastic puzzler that looks and sounds as good as it plays.

AtariMania has the latest version to download