Kid GP

Munsie magic

This is the third Dave Munsie game to be featured on AtariCrypt, but it's one I've never heard of. The idea is to run around each screen, avoiding the baddies and collecting all of the diamonds. Originally aimed at the younger audience, but I have found it incredibly fun, so there's hope for all of us... Or I'm just simple?

Collecting diamonds may sound easy, but there are loads of wacky creatures zipping about the screens. Each one loves getting in your way, whilst others are looking to give a good chase. Bump into one and a life is lost!! So it's a good job we can use a hammer to smack these blighters and send 'em packing. Yeah!

The game rewards your hammer attacks with lots of bonus fruits - before respawning them. Magic mushroom power-ups are available for a range of cool effects that may boost or alter your visibility. A bonus timer is counting down, and if you manage to finish with time remaining, then you can build up points by grabbing the goodies. What this lacks in (ahem) originality is more than made up for in gameplay!

I think we need to see a colourful screenshot with cute critters with beady eyes...

Okay, it might look ...umm... rather familiar, but the gameplay is rock-solid awesomeness!!

Bubble... Rainbow... What?

Graphically, this is gorgeous with bold colours and the cutest sprites. Those big-eyed blue faces will always make me smile - especially after I've clubbed them! This is exactly how an arcade game should look. Sure, it might look familiar for any number of reasons, but who cares about originality when it looks this good?

Interestingly, you can flip between 50/60Hz and also three game speeds, at any time.

The audio is slightly less impressive because there are no chiptunes. I think it would have been nice, so I missed that. Thankfully, the sound effects are fantastic and very zesty for a game of this ilk.

Screenshot time, and how about some fruit? No? Well, here you go anyway...

Wow!! Look at all that gorgeous colour and beautiful fruit. Yum Yum, get it all eaten up!

The CryptO'pinion?

Kid GP is exhilarating!! Manically running around, collecting lots of diamonds and fruits, whilst avoiding the silly-looking nasties, is surprisingly entertaining. The controls are perfectly responsive, and I loved the ability to have two different jumping options, as the hammer only works horizontally. Which is my only gripe.

Dave Munsie might have originally designed this game for children (my seven-year-old certainly appreciates it), but there’s no denying its positive impact on this big kid (yes, me!!). I thoroughly enjoyed Kid GP!!

Stop whatever you're doing and

download this wonderful game right now.

EasyAraMiNT

Putting old hardware to good use

Aranym is a piece of software by Petr Stehlik to create a virtual Atari computer capable of running GEM software at lightning speeds. Most find Aranym rather awkward to set up from scratch, so a fella called Philippe Noble has developed something called EasyAraMint. This is a "ready-to-go" installation using EasyMint 1.18, which provides an incredible multitasking environment using the power of the host, be that a Mac or PC.

As you can see in my "expertly recorded" video, I'm using an old Mac Mini that was donated to me (thanks Mum!). My video shows me using unix 'scp', viewing images/PDF, listen to tunes, and playing Doom before ending with web browsing. Yes, this is as geeky as it gets. Love it!! :-)

EasyAraMint can be installed in minutes. It also comes pre-installed with many Atari programs. Philippe has done an outstanding job with this ready-to-go multitasking OS. I cannot recommend it highly enough!

Aranym and EasyAraMiNT can be downloaded and tinkered with, so let me know what you create!

I accessed another Mac via FTP and chatted online with a friend. What a geek!!



The command line might not look much fun, so I jazzed up my screen with PixArt...

Not all websites display perfectly, but what do you expect for free? :o)



Why not read a PDF document and listen to some background tunes too!

Jug

Big Jugs

This is a scrolling shooter by one of my favourite companies, Microdeal. It's set in the future, and we are tasked to save Spiraeus, a living planet suffering from a nasty tumour that urgently needs to be eliminated. However, the autoimmune system thinks you're a threat, so it unleashes its defences, intent on your demise!!

This sounds really silly, but stick with me because Jug was programmed by Paul Hunter (Armour-Geddon) and is no lazy Amiga port. In fact, quite the opposite and certainly pushes our old STFM to the limit in terms of the visuals. Playing Jug is a strange and frantic affair, as it combines elements from games like Blood Money, Droid, and Return To Genesis. Sometimes combinations like this fail, and sometimes they work.

Check out this screenshot...

Some eye candy is ghastly, whereas others are great examples of beautiful pixel art.

One smooth shooter

Our ship can move left and right and even fly, but this is affected by gravity like in Alien World and requires fuel top-ups. The controls are responsive, but the movements are a bit sluggish, making it hard to dodge the nasties without depleting precious energy. The action is relentless with baddies constantly zipping across the screen in waves of attack; it’s a frantic, never-ending hell. If you crave excitement, you've got it!

However, they aren't the brightest bulbs and appear to move/shoot blindly with little AI, thus it's like they aren't aware of our presence. Weaponry is an upgradeable mixed bag; however, the plasma gun is mounted far too low to be fully effective. How did that happen? Anyhow, replacing that with a laser cannon is lots of fun!!

Playing Jug is never dull, because the action is near-constant and challenging. It will take practice to beat, as the map layout is quite confusing. The enemies increase gameplay to a crazy pace, and this makes the whole journey thrilling. Or at least try to - this is a tough game that will eat away your spare hours.

Well, I'm sick of typing and wanna show off a screenshot...

Look out for teleporters... And when death comes, it's pretty demoscene-y. Which I love!

Aesthetics

The best thing about Jug isn't its humorous name (based on the ship's barrel-chested assets!!) but its visuals, gorgeously designed by Martin Kenwright. It boasts ultra-smooth parallax scrolling with a metallic palette - so you should use a real Atari ST to fully appreciate the graphics breezing across your screen.

The music is a masterpiece by Paul Shields, so leave the main menu be, to enjoy its chiptune. In comparison, the sound effects are overshadowed, but they do their job well enough compared to the stunning music.

Let's see a screenshot of my successful gaming skill...

Arghh, not again? Is it me? Am I actually this bad at games? How could this be? O_o

The CryptO'pinion?

Jug has all the makings of a brilliant shoot 'em up, but some strange mechanics dampened my enthusiasm. Instead, I recommend any of the above-mentioned games along with Uridium, Cybernoid, or Sideways!! The difficulty is overwhelming thanks to a confusing map and the constant enemy onslaught.

Technically superb, but I'm on the fence because it's left me with mixed feelings. Plus, the need to use a trainer. Or am I wrong?? What do you guys think about this game? Well, let me know in the comments.

If you have a hard drive or Ultrasatan, then grab this superb download.

Floppy disk addicts can find Jug on the Atari Legend website.

Finally, and untested by me, here is how to get infinite energy and extra lives:
 Press and hold down the ESC key on the title screen and then use the mouse to click on the right-hand edge of the screen. This should help the game be a little more achievable. You'll need it!!

ZombieCrypt

I've made a horror slideshow!

A few months ago, I conceived the idea of a slideshow based on a zombie or horror theme. I love George A. Romero and movies like Evil Dead and Resident Evil. Not to mention Milla Jovovich!!

I used Imagecopy 4 to convert several JPGs from various movies, but that's where my artistic skills ended! So I asked a few friends if they'd like to donate some gruesome pics of their own. My thanks to the boys listed below for their images and Peter Jørgensen for his awesome slideshow. This program removes the lower border for a cool scroller, plays fantastic YMT music, and can be launched from a floppy or hard drive.

I've enjoyed working on this project, and I hope you ST nutters download it. Let me know :^)

- The Credits -

Production ideas and childishly drawn images are by Meeeee!! :D

Artistic skills: Stuart Johns / Peter Jørgensen / Karim Mezaouri / Aurélien Vaillant

Also, credit to the "unknown" for the images I nabbed off the web!

Slideshow programmed by Peter Jørgensen.

Addams Family theme tune by Vic Wizzy (converted Peter)

- Sample Slideshow Pics -

Hoog

Prepare thyself!

The Atari ST is a computer with a huge public domain library, be it games, programs, utilities, etc. Our archive proves how popular the ST was for both users and creative folk with the talent to code and create art or music. This is what I love about the Atari ST and something I've yet to "feel" from a modern computer.

Believe it or not, Hoog is a shareware platformer released in 1994 by MP Lord - yes, he of Droid fame. It's incredible to look at and feels similar to Creatures but with more of a puzzle theme. Some elements reminded me of Sleepwalker and Lemmings, but whether or not that's a good thing I'll leave you to decide.

That's enough reading for the moment! How about some sexy screenshots to whet your appetite...

Using the balloons, we can float upwards to access places otherwise impossible to reach.

A bundle of stars and a cheeky grin make this platformer something extra special!

Aww, little baby Hoogs!

The objective is simple - rescue baby Hoogs that are trapped inside cages! Sounds so cruel? Yes, it is, and they're trapped, innocently waiting for us to free them. However, these little kiddies are darn stupid and, when released, will blindly wander off through their dangerous new world - and die!! They can get trapped, drown, or fry in burning flames. There's a lot of strategic thought needed when guiding these little babies home.

Hoog himself can walk, jump, and chuck bombs at his foes. However, he's only a short, stubby fella, so he cannot do much without the help of his environment, like helium-filled balloons that offer a chance to reach inaccessible areas. There are various other mechanics to aid; look for springs to bounce high into the air, switches that unlock hidden ledges, and special gateways that transport Hoog long distances in the blink of an eye.

This is a game that is easy to pick up and play. The controls are responsive, without lag or finicky irritations. You're not thrown in at the deep end and gradually taught how to get the best from your environment to save the babies. I was impressed with how each level becomes steadily and progressively harder. I personally get that warm, fuzzy feeling playing this game because a lot of thought went into its creation!

Fancy some more colourful screenshots? I know, I know, of course, you do so here ya' go...

There's that cute, happy face again! How can you not love the graphics :)

Things are hotting up now! Not only the difficulty, but those flames will cook a baby hoog!

Amateur homebrew aesthetics?

Visually, this must be one of the most impressive "PD" games I have ever seen. The entire artwork is astounding and way beyond anything else that I can think of from the ST's homebrew scene. Each level features landscapes of stunning beauty, and I truly do mean stunning. Miles has made lovely use of colour because everything is so bright and cheerful. It's unbelievable, and I recommend sunglasses before you play!

That's not all, the sprites are stunning and even have a Bitmap feel. Animations are lovely with neat attention to detail - like when Hoog smiles during a jump. He even wiggles his bum in flight. Finally, I cannot end without mentioning the smooth parallax scrolling. This is a commercial game, right? What, no, you say?!!

The audio is a treat, proving chiptunes will last forever compared to most tracker tunes. Sadly, there's only one in-game tune, so it gets tiresome after a while. Don't get me wrong, it's a good tune your YM2149 is knocking out, but we needed more. However, I love what we have, and I cannot get it out of my head lol.

Hoog screenshots are great, but we have to end sometime. So here are the final two screenshots...

Use the ledges, but hang on a minute, I see two cute critters below that appear asleep.

When everything is peachy, and fire can't harm him. I'm too cute to burn........... honest!!! <evil grin>

The CryptO'pinion?

Hoog is something rather special, but it isn't easy. It will take practice to figure out the most efficient way to solve the puzzle of rescuing babies. Well, unless you enjoy watching cute critters drown or burn? Perhaps you do? Or is it just me lol? Anyhow, whatever your sadistic preference, this is an utterly superb platformer. It will keep you occupied for many hours with its humorously challenging, addictive gameplay.

Once again, Miles Lord has released a wonderful game that humiliates many commercial companies that rushed through sloppy Amiga ports. This proves what the Atari ST is capable of in the hands of talent; it's a magnificent example of great coding. Hoog is a mind-blowing platformer and one of my favourite ST games!!

- DOWNLOAD HOOG -