BLAT

Block Blasting!

I enjoy the occasional brain teaser and Blat is a twist on the Columns genre which was released for the Atari STe by The Infamous Cabbage, aka Chris Vance. I'm sorry STF dudes but this game is only playable on an STe because of the cool samples played via the DMA hardware. Interestingly, this brain-blaster was released on June 17th, 1992 so is 25 years old today. So let's sing, "Happy Birthday, BLAT"

Falling columns of coloured blocks need reordering during their descent and, if we can successfully match them up - it's KABOOM!! This explosion earns us points and helps clear the board space for the oncoming blocks, so the more we match the greater the points. Diagonal rows are the most rewarding and you will receive a smart bomb when matching five or more. It's advisable to keep these until the later (faster) levels!

There are 15 levels but it won't be long until you're grateful for keeping a stockpile of smart bombs because this isn't an easy game - it soon picks up the pace for an extremely harsh difficulty. Thankfully, there are items to help, like the clocks which can slow the pace right down - two is good but three is much better. There are also sticks of dynamite, lightning bolts and even indestructible blocks. Many of these can be paired so try positioning a light fuse next to the dynamite for a massive explosion that conveniently destroys many blocks.

This is a polished product with gorgeous sound effects and is so addictive. Actually, I'm surprised it's PD and not shareware. I've thoroughly enjoyed playing BLAT even if I couldn't get anywhere near level 15 - and it's doubtful I ever will. Highly recommended, especially for those wanting a REAL challenge!!

Stonish have Serenade #1 floppy disk (it features Teserea, another which you may like).

AtariMania has Blat listed in their database with the readme conveniently available.

Amiga!!

Hell froze over!

Sorry guys, I'm leaving the Atari ST because I prefer a slower computer and have decided to switch. Okay, don't sweat it, I'm joking!! The image above shows a clip from the infamous "Amiga Emulator" by Philip Nelson. This is nothing more than a bit of fun and found on the Stonish website - I recommend Quartet #30.

Right then, enough of this silliness... let's boot up my ST to enjoy a better 16-bit experience!!

Whipper Snapper's Race

Hang on, this ain't Cannon Fodder!

What do you get if you merge together "Horace Goes Skiing" with Cannon Fodder? Easy, it's called Whipper Snapper's Race by Petr Sumbera of New Design using Omikron Basic. The game stars Max - a dude who goes skiing down many vertically scrolling levels in places that look (umm) spookily familiar...

Navigate left/right to pass each obstacle as you ski—but don't bump into anything else; you'll fall flat on your bum! Pushing up will reduce your speed, pulling down will increase it, and firing will perform a leap into the air. Passwords are used to access the "missions" without starting over from the beginning!!

Graphically, I could never complain because it is Cannon Fodder with superb attention to detail. Of course, it's all ripped and unoriginal but I do not care! The funky music is in stereo by Tomas Kucera and I'm sure you will leave it playing for a long while. In-game sound effects are ace but I won't spoil that surprise for you!

Sing with me - Skiing in Cannon Fodder... Never been so much fun....... (sorry!).

Okay, this is an easy one to rate, I'm sure you've guessed already what I think. Well, thanks to the great controls, this is effortless to pick up and play but that doesn't mean it's easy. Later missions are challenging yet always fun. Whipper Snapper's Race is a very silly skiing game and shockingly addictive!!

I've made a floppy for those stuck in 3.5" hell :^)

Download the hard drive-installable game @Demozoo!

Petr's website is still up and running after all these years!!

Virtual Escape

Jaw-Dropper

After about 6 years, Equinox eventually released Virtual Escape in 1999 and it's one of my favourite demos. The tunes are utterly sexy and there are also some of the most incredible visuals that will blow your socks off!! Those swirling dots are gobsmackingly beautiful and I love the super-duper fast 3D. It's hard to believe this is all on a stock 512KB 8MHz Atari ST. An incredible production that oozes class and is definitely one of the beST 16-Bit demos out there.

Don't emulate - experience this using a real Atari ST and crank up the volume!

Credits and Downloads

Furax - Music

Jedi - Music

Keops - Code, Graphics (design)

Mad Max - Music (endpart)

Nova - Graphics

Starlion - Code

You can download Virtual Escape right now off Demozoo.

Democyclopedia mentions each effect, along with the awesome Skyline (see above).

Jetpac

16Kb is all you will need

I'm sure everyone knows that Jet Pac was originally released in 1983 for the ZX Spectrum by uber-gaming legends, Ultimate Play The Game. It's one of the most iconic 8-bit games from the era and still plays brilliantly today. Our remake/conversion was developed by Pete J. Whitby in 1992 for Budgie UK. Heck, he also designed all the graphics and sound effects, very impressive. Talent like this never ceases to impress me.

Interesting tidbit? I owned Jetpac on both cassette and cartridge (ZX Spectrum). I also had a huge Speccy collection that dated back to 1981 plus others like an Interface II (I'm such a geek). Sadly, I sold the lot when we got our first house/mortgage. :( ....I need a time machine!!!!!

Right, what's the story? Well, our Jet Man is a lucky fella working as a space pilot for Acme Interstellar Transport Company. They're sending him to fifty planets to assemble (and playtest) their technological creations. Sadly, his luck ran out as each planet was bombarded by hostiles ranging from fiery comets to fluffy aliens.

I thought I'd never see Jet Pac on the ST yet here is a screenshot to make us all very happy...

There are so many different baddies to blast and many new ones too...

Planets, aliens, and lasers!!

Playability is impressively legit from the start. The controls are tight, responsive, and instantly familiar - albeit a tad quicker than I remember. Jet Man's movements are exactly as you would expect but he oddly cannot wrap around the screen. However, he compensates for that lost ability with a new one - shield power-ups.

That's right, the fuel pods aren't the only thing dropping in from the skies. Collect one of the bubbles and you're protected from harm. It doesn't last long but that grace period is good enough during the heat of battle.

Those space nasties use differing attack patterns that help keep the arcade action very engaging. Many are new and some require several shots whereas others are invulnerable. Also, watch out for deadly platforms that can zap Jet Man into an early grave. Heck, there is even an end level - this is something missing from the original. If only I had better gaming skills to witness that for myself? Yeah, I know. Not gonna happen!

Let's view another screenshot and this time I've beaten the hoard and escaped in my rocket...

Jet Man is one lucky dude who gets to play with all the cool new rockets!

Aesthetics

Visually, there wasn't much to the original but it wasn't needed and the same applies here. The Atari ST remake follows the same format albeit with smooth-moving sprites and extra colours. The only thing I didn't like was the new background, which I felt wasn't needed. I wonder if there can be a way to remove it?

The audio is good but not great. You can play with either the sound effects or chip music by Mad Max. Personally, I would recommend you leave that exceptional music playing because the sound effects are bland. Actually, it's humorously disappointing to hear the Atari ST out-bleeped by the inferior ZX Spectrum sound effects.

Okay, it's time for one last screenshot and this one represents the action nicely...

Zip Zap (geddit?) the aliens the best you can!! And refuel that rocket!

The CryptO'pinion?

Jetpac is Jetpac and this game will always be magnificent no matter the year. Admittedly, our remake wasn't going to beat the original but, I feel, Pete has done enough to capture the authenticity whilst also successfully implementing new ideas that work well and set it apart from being a mere clone.

What's not to love about frantically rushing about the screen, zapping a relentless alien hoard whilst gathering fuel pods? I loved playing it and enjoyed the new features. The boring sound effects aside, this is an utterly excellent game that I highly recommend. Let me know in the comments below what you think.

+ Waste no time and get it downloaded for floppies and hard drive.

+ Play the original game on your Atari ST using an emulator:
     > Artemis is a unique (albeit colourless) emulator that works only on 8MHz Atari ST/e computers. Recommended for those wanting to experience something different.
     > Speccy is another emulator with full support for colour and supports faster Atari computers. What a class emulator this is!!

Oids [upgraded]

It's Oids, but better!

Oids is a shooter set deep in outer space and has us rescuing metallic men from captivity. Like Dungeon Master, every ST guy has played this at some point in their life. It's a classic and nothing similar comes close. I've probably spent hundreds of hours on it over the decades so check out our review from last year.

However, I must admit that I was shocked to discover that it only runs at 10/12fps (PAL/NTSC). I'm sure today's kids will probably laugh at such a low framerate! Oddly, it doesn't feel that low, but that didn't stop Peter Putnik from developing an upgraded version running at 25/30fps and he improved the controls too.

This is a fascinating upgrade that enhances the original - without spoiling it. Check out the upgrade for yourself as it's added a whole new dimension to our iconic thruster. And I love it to bits!!

C64

Commodore 64?!!

I'd bet money that this was the last thing you expected to see here on an Atari website? Well, I've had a C64 emulator on my drive for a while and figured it was about time to do something about it. So I started my day by trawling through Old Games Finder looking for games I remembered seeing in C&VG magazine in the early/mid-80s. I wanted to play Pitfall, Manic Miner and Staff Of Karnath but sadly, I had zero success.

However, some worked (with a caveat of displaying text instead of pixels) and some crashed the emulator. Yes, I should have read the docs first - lol. Basically, almost all games aren't supported if they use fancy scrolling, sprites, joystick control, etc. What work are applications, educational titles, etc. Including magazine Type-Ins and many text adventures (impressive, but hardly worth my hassle over the last few hours?)

BTW AtariCrypt has a section dedicated to emulation which you can access by clicking here. Anyhow, would you like to see a screenshot of my programming skills taking advantage of the virtual hardware?

I thought so! Check this out and it's a good idea to make some notes to learn from me...

B.A.S.I.C.

This is the extent of my programming knowledge. Perhaps it's best to leave that be and check out some commands instead? I'm no Commie 64 expert but these commands might help play their version of Jetpac...

   LOAD "$",10               (this loads the disk's directory into Ram)
   LIST                      (this lists that directory to screen)
   LOAD "filename.prg",10    (you've guessed it, this loads a program)
   RUN                       (go on, take a stab at what this might do!)

Please note:
     - The "10" is the device ID for my Atari ST's hard drive.
     - If you are running the emulator from floppy disk then you should instead use "8".
     - Copy the Commodore ".PRG" programs into the same directory as the Atari file: "C64.TOS".
     - C64 emulation was tested on my 8MHz Atari STe and Hatari (same spec) for the animation.

The CryptO'pinion?

I'm not sure who to credit for this emulator but he/she did a great job and the docs indicate many practical intentions. This has been fun and the Commodore 64 is a decent machine (shush don't tell anyone). However, there is no real support for anything more than tinkering. Playing games was never gonna happen. Having said that, this has been a bunch of fun to play with the C64 operating system and some programs.

Sadly, I'm not sure how much longer I can stand the pain of having C64 software stored on my Atari ST's hard drive!! So, I think I should delete this evil software and get back to using the ST properly ;)

If you fancy a dollop of Commodore fun, the best download (that I've found) is on disk LAN-0066 via Floppyshop and it includes the documentation. Additionally, Old Games Finder can link to zillions of C64 stuff in the .PRG format. What a shame I never got to play more games...

Go on, give this a playtest and let me know how you get on in the comments below.