Thursday, March 20, 2025

QuartetCrypt





I made another disk!

I’ve got a feeling you knew I was up to something daft after I went on about my love for Quartet recently. Well, you were right - I've crammed a floppy disk full of Quartet tunes! Well, sort of. These music files can be pretty large, so you can’t fit loads onto a single disk. But hey, I went ahead and made a disk anyway!

Yes, here is a floppy disk by yours truly that I've decided to call QuartetCrypt. Apologies - my lack of imagination for these titles is astounding, right? Anyhow, my disk boots up with background music and a dead-interesting scroller before dropping into GEM where you can pick from a bunch of cracking Quartet tunes.

You guys already know I've no programming, music, or pixel art skills! So how have I done this? Easy, I used the talents of other people! So here are the due credits along with some more links you will love...

  • Message Writer by Gareth Pople
  • Quartet Player by Dan Panke
  • Background music by Unknown
  • Dead Human by Spaz / The Lost Boys
  • PYM Reset by Spaz / The Lost Boys
  • Indian Swirl by DNA and Exarch / Paranoia
  • Good Old Times by 607
  • Wreckers by Warren Cann

Don't forget to check out my previous Quartet post https://ataricrypt.blogspot.com/quartet-player.
Additionally, I recorded Wreckers (DMA stereo) https://www.youtube.com/@AtariCrypt.
There are loads more Atari ST disks by me! https://ataricrypt.blogspot.com/about-me.html.

Friday, March 14, 2025

FateMaster






Strange creatures with guns

Fate Master is a top-down RPG released by Animal Soft in 1992 and programmed by Floris Muller (remember Color Clash and the Gobblin & Piggy games?). We are Tsin-Fei on planet Tafoi, which is at war with the Swocki who have killed many Galluks. Weird names, but it's the usual storyline with puzzles and payback.

As Tsin-Fei, we have 20 hit points, plus stats for strength, speed, and defence. Our inventory includes a pistol, two grenades, and a V-potion (health). We begin in town looking for information and items that may help our quest for justice. Explore, but beware, some places have bizarre monsters whizzing about...

Contact with them results in an automatic battle that begins with two options: Attack & Escape (that rarely works). These battles are turn-based and conclude once someone dies. Successfully killing the enemy provides a cash reward you can use with traders to purchase better weapons and V-potions. The more cash you have, the better the weapons you can afford. I particularly like the very effective grenades and rockets.

Along the way, there are clues, hidden games, items (mostly pointless), and characters with information. Some might provide a hint to nudge in the right direction. You're unlikely to get lost as the levels aren't large and the puzzles are easy to suss. Just make sure you have a stockpile of V-Potions and a decent weapon.

Right then, I'm getting bored with all this chit-chat. Let's see a couple of screenshots...



I accidentally bumped into a spider and had to fight it to the death!
Most enemies appear to have (ahem) similar strengths.



The red splodge is a dead enemy and you can see my HP, stats/etc.
Killing enemies increases stats, but you will run out of HP (and cash) doing so.





Something's not quite right

It's time for a whinge. Have you ever played a game, but felt let down because something didn’t feel right? Something that makes you wonder what was going through the developer's mind. Well, I wasn't long into the first level before I noticed that "something". The concept of Fate Master is superb but spoilt by unfair mechanics. The idea is to battle/earn money, buy weapons, and progress deeper into the adventure. Simple.

However, the money earned by defeating monsters should be better when compared to the expensive shop prices. That difference is way off balance. So you're left deciding whether to buy a better weapon and hope you don't lose too much HP, or buy V-Potions. Rarely can you do both. It's a catch-22.

Not only that, but avoiding battles isn't always possible. Many rooms have no way to safely pass, so you are thrown into an unnecessary conflict. To make matters worse, the defeated won't stay dead and respawn fresh and healthy to do battle again! Yup, you're forced into (yet) another fight on your way back!

Also, I'm not sure this is an "RPG" as there is no sense of progression and my stats never seemed to affect performance. Basic character interaction is, well, very basic!! Also, all weapons -more or less- perform the same. Perhaps a lite RPG but I feel it's more of an action/adventure and its "RPG" aspects can be ignored.

Okay, I barely scraped through level one, but the unfair design made the second impossible - without cheating! Sigh, the cash rewards don't work, but maybe it would if monsters didn’t respawn? Anyhow, this mix of unfair rewards and endlessly respawning enemies kills the game’s potential. Disappointing.

I'm shocked Animalsoft made such an unfair game! Let's console ourselves with screenshots...



The rockets are great but expensive! He respawned so I had to fight him again :(
And yes, my HP is maxed at 20 because I am cheating!! I had no choice O_o



The stats for strength/etc don't appear to have any effect. Kinda odd, right?
The "escape" option rarely works. In fact, it only ever worked once or twice for me!





Aesthetics

Floris' visual styles use a cartoon design we all recognise. This design stands out a mile and looks great with its strange-looking characters. I loved the extra attention to detail, especially the blood! Each location is rather basic, but I liked the unnecessary clutter which is clean and functional using a quirky perspective.

The audio is lame because there isn't chip music to help keep us engrossed. In fact, we only have a few spot effects when something gets shot, blown up, or dies. Yeah, it desperately needed a chiptune.

This game isn't exactly impressing me, right? Let's wipe away my tears with more screenshots...



Blood and dead bodies were everywhere. Wait, I see a survivor hiding!
One of the more gruesome screens in the entire game.



The second stage is good but would have been better with more shops.
It's impossible to play, without a decent gun and lots of V-Potions in stock!





The CryptO'pinion

I absolutely loved the simplicity Fate Master presented when I began playing. It's easy to get around using smooth controls, the locations are no-frills but work well, the storyline is predictable yet interesting, and the monsters are humorously weird. I was hooked, so much so, that I began mapping it with vigour.

Sadly, my passion waned halfway through the first level. I simply didn't have many opportunities to upgrade both weaponry and V-Potions to compensate for the loss of my HP. Not to mention the fact I was pointlessly fighting some of the monsters for a second time. Hence, even more HP loss which made the game impossible. Now, add suspect collision detection and Houston, we have a problem. A misquote, but it applies!

At its heart, this could have been a great action/adventure. However, the cash situation is off balance by a mile, and the respawning enemies killed any chance the game had to redeem itself. Never have I been so disappointed by a game for many years. I shall rate Fate Master a depressing 25% which kills me to type.

  • Atari Legend has the floppies and I recommend Neon Lights #15.
  • Carry on scrolling for the hi-res level maps (others here).



Perhaps the most impressive room? Access to information, dynamite, and a freebie weapon.
However, try to exit this screen without coming into contact with an enemy. If you can!



Hidden games exist that provide a humorous and welcome break from the game!
You can find them all using the maps. Just keep on scrolling...




Level 1-3 Mapped

Firstly, I'd like to express my sincere gratitude to Peter Putnik for helping me with my gruesome project to map Fate Master. Sadly, the game appears to crash when fighting the "last" monster, as it cannot die. However, after playing and mapping three levels, I lost interest. Perhaps there is a fourth level; who knows/cares?

As always, these images are thumbnails so click here to download the high-res originals!



For the most part, level one was a hoot to play!



The second level is tiny, difficult, and without much-needed rewards.



The third level is possibly the "easiest" but without decent options to restock.

Tuesday, March 11, 2025

Phantasie - Day 3





Grinding

Of course, I didn't have the right team as previously mentioned. Yep, I had to make changes after losing my terribly weak wizards. Ah, well live and learn. So, venturing forth like the fool I am, I remembered what Jeff mentioned in his video. Grinding is the best way to begin the adventure because level-one characters are weak and easily fall victim to their enemies. Sure, it takes time but it's better to be stronger.

As with the Temple Of Apshai, the world of Phantasie isn't randomly generated and designed specifically for the quest. However, the encounters are and will happen anytime, usually when you least expect it. When you're called into battle, there are options to consider: Beg For Mercy, Threaten, Greet, Fight, and Flee.

It's usually a good idea to greet your prospective foe as you won't lose a turn and being nice costs nothing. If it works, they shall greet you before scarpering. Sadly, that means no rewards or XP. So it depends on the needs and requirements at that stage in your adventure. Of course, all this depends on the enemies as I've never been able to greet Bantir or Slime. Don't bother with the Black Knights, they aren't listening!

Begging for mercy is a bad idea in most circumstances because they will take your gold and self-respect. Threatening is exactly what you would imagine and often fails against something that couldn't communicate in the first place. So, that just leaves Fleeing, which is an option during a losing battle?

That means we are left with the noble action of fighting, which is one of the reasons we're playing this game! Phantasie has an enormous range of different monsters who are presented in ranks before our mighty warriors. This is physical and something to consider when choosing each character's relevant actions.

For example, a warrior who attacks or slashes has his actions directed at the closest rank. Whereas a lunge can hit the enemy deeper down. Thieves are sneaky with a stealthy option to hit any rank you like. Spellcasters appear to prefer attacking those further away, which balances nicely with our melee counterparts. Parry is best used when you wish to keep someone safe and when it's not necessary to take action.


The Coyote is a common enemy and I thought about threatening them (ha!).
Instead, I went for the fight. My spell casters and the thief hit the ones further back.
My clubbers hammered the one at the front and put in a few lunges.
All died!! I won!! Oh, yeah ;)




Kill 'Em All!

All battles are turn-based, which gives plenty of time to manage your side of the conflict. It pays to calculate your actions against the particular enemies in their respective positions. Winning earns xp for the team - to be used to manually level up any character. You could even find the odd item like a weapon for example.

As you grind, watch each character's health and magic points. It's no good staying out in the field and risking dying. Nor is it a good idea to remain if all your wizard's MP is expired. This is the grind; fight, fight some more, but know when to head home. Don't stretch your resources too thinly - replenish yourselves in town.

It's this part of the game where Phantasie confused me a bit. You can't use your XP to level up while out in the field, nor can you manage your gold or the items you've collected. There were moments when I knew we had found a great weapon, yet I couldn’t use it or give it to anyone. Everything like that has to wait until you're back in town. It’s not a huge issue and soon became second nature, but newcomers will get caught out.

So, whenever you enter a town you can distribute all your earned wealth accordingly as you see fit. Check your bank balance, as each party member has their own account - plus you can pool funds for gear and training (levelling up). And that is always a manual process that can only be done at the Guild. Oddly, your inventory can only be shared out (or sold) at the Inn. That was strange as I expected to use the store.

Phantasie I is quirky in many ways but certainly nothing bad. It's old, so I can forgive its lack of an obvious design. Just remember, manage your band of merry men in town. Outside in the field is for fighting monsters and exploring. I must get used to this restrictive leash as I plod on killing the endless hoard.

I hope you have enjoyed "part three" of my Quest into the world of Phantasie. I'm really enjoying this. Yes, it's old but it's new to me and I'm loving it. If you would like to read the first two parts then click here. This post is dedicated to John Heritage who kindly bought me a few beers specifically for this great game:)

To sum up, this is a brawler's dream and I'll leave you with some screenshots...


As you saw, the coyotes are in ranks so it's worthwhile also throwing a few lunges.


The dreaded Black Knights. Don't bother greeting this lot. Flee!!



After hours of gameplay, new enemies!! I had to screenshot this whacky lot.



Annnnd it pays to identify your enemies before engaging in combat.



Back in town and we're coppering up before heading to the store.


The guild offers a good opportunity to view stats and much more


This is the "Skills" option from the above screenshot (for my thief)


The Inn is where we distribute all weapons/items to your party.

Saturday, March 08, 2025

Invasion of the Mutant Caterpillars





Two Day Challenge

What a brilliant title for a "challenge" set by Atari ST User magazine in 1992. This game was developed by Darren Ithell to showcase the STOS 3D extension and was featured on their April cover disk. It’s a fairly simple game, somewhat reminiscent of Starglider, but with gameplay mechanics similar to Missile Command. The objective is straightforward - huge slabs of polygon caterpillars are hurtling towards the city. There isn't much time before they destroy us so shoot them down before they reach the city's (ahem) many buildings.

The game's framerate is surprisingly good - better than the official Battlezone, I would say. The controls are superb using a joystick, mouse, or cursor keys. Personally, I found that a combination of keyboard and mouse worked best. Optionally, the F1 key toggles between displaying ground terrain and a starlit sky, while the F2 key switches the rather tiny scanner on and off. It’s a handy feature, but why is it so small?

It’s always refreshing to play something different, and I enjoyed this for a few goes. It’s nothing groundbreaking, but considering it was developed in two days, that’s pretty impressive! I don’t know much about STOS, but I’m now tempted to track down more of its 3D games to see if the quality and speed improved over time. A modest shooter that came free with the magazine, it’s great fun and deserves at least a 70% rating.




We begin each level near the "city" that needs our urgent help.



They're coming, use the radar scanner and hunt these caterpillars down!


Taken this screenshot purely for effect. Yes, I let the citizens of the city perish!



I shoot at one Battlezone style!!



A risky distant shot but he's too close not to try.


Credit: Atarimania for the online ST User magazine.



Yep, I even have this cover disk in my collection <geek>!!

Friday, March 07, 2025

Quartet Player





Tricky Tracker

Quartet Player is a free program by Dan Panke for playing ".4Q" files (I know how that sounds - stop laughing!) which are MOD-like, 4-channel digital music files. Quartet was originally released by Microdeal in 1989, with an improved version around 1991 that added stereo playback for the Atari STe using its DMA audio hardware. Now, I am more of a chiptune kind of person, but I have loved the smooth sounds this program produces. I have always seen it as our version of a Tracker - which, let’s be honest, it absolutely is!

Quartet was used by musicians to create some fantastic tunes for loads of games and demos, and I’ll try to link some below. With so many tracks, it’s great having a program like Quartet Player to play them. Unfortunately, it doesn’t seem to support DMA hardware, so while playback might sound good, it’s only in mono.

If you want to hear them in stereo, you must use the official Quartet program. That is most disappointing but not a big deal these days, thanks to websites like Atarimania, but I still find it odd that a (STe) standalone player was never released. You’d think one would have appeared at some point - but apparently not.

To make things even trickier, .4Q files are compiled, bundling both the song and its voices together. That means they need to be deconstructed before Quartet can recognise them. Weird, right? But don’t worry - it’s an easy fix, thanks to a handy little program called Separate, also by Dan Panke.

Personally, I love having a quick and easy program like Quartet Player and I'm surprised there aren't others out there. However, if I come across a tune I really like, I’ll run it through Separate so I can hear it in stereo. So much better! (I do wonder if someone out there will ever make a standalone stereo player)

Anyhow, give Quartet Player a playtest and enjoy some wonderful tunes...



Of course, much of the scene used Quartet; here are some I love with screenshots...




Quartet v1.5 (hit that F5 key ASAP!!)



Dan's Quartet Player. A superb program but F5 does nothing, sigh...



The Bootlegger released a fantastic compilation which supports stereo playback!!



Not their best effort but it features stereo playback of a great tune by David Moss (Spaz!)



Quartet Demo is simple but could prove nice with your own image. Sadly, not in stereo.


Ignore the previous text it displays; this is a great disk of tunes - in my opinion!


I never realised the audio was made using Quartet! Brilliant demo this!!

Sunday, March 02, 2025

Anthony Rosbottom

Anthony has a rich and fascinating history across a variety of platforms. Naturally, his pixel skills on the Atari ST are what I found particularly interesting - he contributed to some of my fave games: Prophecy I: The Viking Child, Special Forces, 
Rock'n Roll, and Zone Warrior. In addition, he is credited with three games I have yet to showcase on AtariCrypt (shame on me), Butcher Hill, Combo Racer, and Xenophobe.

It was a pleasure chatting with this fellow Lancashire lad, and I was thoroughly captivated by his intriguing history. Of all his stories, I loved the one about the left-handed mouse! Unbelievable, and pretty silly when you look back on it, haha. Also, his casual visit to the job centre was a surreal moment that marked the beginning of his new 16-bit career. What a fantastic moment in time!

I want to express my gratitude to Anthony for taking time out of his busy schedule to chat. Not only that, but he kindly waded through a pile of old 'stuff' and found several photos I'm sure you'll love. I've thoroughly enjoyed this journey down memory lane; I hope you all enjoy the interview as much as I have.

If you'd like to read more interviews with other ST Legends, click here!



~ Anthony Rosbottom The Interview ~


Tell us a bit about yourself

Growing up as a kid in South Australia, I was obsessed with my Dad's Commodore 64. As a kid, I used to draw C64 character sprites on graph paper - then typed the pixel values into basic code to display them. Then he got an 8086 PC and I was intrigued by that machine because though the graphics were less colourful than the C64, the machine could run 3D games slightly better and I remember being wowed by early flight simulators.

Anyway, we emigrated to Preston, Lancashire when I was 17. I needed a job and my Dad suggested going to the job centre to see what they had going. The lady there asked me what skills I had and I answered "Gardening and drawing". She went into her filing cabinet and pulled out a job posting. It was a video game company in Preston looking for a graphic artist. I said to her "Sure, I'll give it a go".

So I went along to the interview not expecting much as I had no experience using computers to make game graphics. All I had to show was a portfolio of paper drawings. The company was called DMA Systems (not to be confused with DMA design of GTA fame) and they were just finishing off the Atari ST and Amiga ports of Airborne Ranger for Microprose. The company consisted of two coders. They had a graphic artist but he left near the end of Airborne Ranger so they were looking for a replacement.

After a fifteen-minute chat, I was told I had the job. Since then I've had the occasional gap in employment but I've generally made game graphics since that first job. I didn't think I'd be drawing graphics for a living!



Which game did you enjoy working on?

My favourite Atari ST game to work on was Rock n' Roll, published by Rainbow Arts. It was the first game I worked on where I did all the graphics. I helped finish a few bits of Butcher Hill before Rock n' Roll but this was the first game I was responsible for all the graphics.

The guys at Factor 5 did a great job with the original Amiga version and they included an Amiga mouse and Monitor in the front-end menu. For the ST version, I drew an Atari ST mouse and a colour monitor made for the Atari ST (I can't remember the model number).

AtariST Rock n' Roll was a great training ground for me. The game is like a top-down Marble Madness clone/homage. The player needs to find four different colour keys that match the four different colours of the gate used in the game. This was all straightforward on an Amiga with 32 colours but I only had 16 colours (well 15 colours and the transparent, black colour) to represent the four different colours of the gate, key combos, and the other graphics in the play area. Quite a challenge but satisfying when I got it all working in 16 colours.



This shot was taken during the development of Special Forces.





What do you think is your best work?

I think my best AtariST work was some of the front-end menu screens on Special Forces. It was my last AtariST project and I think I honed my 16-colour skills pretty well by then. My favourite AtariST work would have to be the high score input screen in Viking Child. A bit random but I just like how it turned out.



How did you find the industry?

DMA Systems was a subcontractor for Imagitec which is why I helped out on the graphics for Butcher Hill and how we got to do the Atari ST version of Rock n' Roll. I'm hazy on the details but partway through working on Rock n' Roll, Imagitec acquired DMA Systems and we moved from Preston to Mirfield, West Yorkshire to work in-house at Imagitec.

A few games later and after Prophecy: Viking Child was finished, myself and the two DMA coders, moved back to Preston to start our new studio, Sleepless Knights.

In those early days of the video game industry, particularly through the 16-bit era, there was a culture of either working late nights or drinking in pubs, peppered with outrageous parties a few times a year. Professional project management was in its infancy back then. Attempts were made to plan the projects but they were always a hectic rush at the end to finish.



A cheeky marketing shot from 1990, taken just before the release of Viking Child. While other developers were posing on their red Ferraris, this Fiat was the closest thing they had to a red Italian sports car! (Barry Leitch is top left, Anthony is top right, and Mark Fisher is on the bonnet)





Was the industry all that you had hoped?

Microprose was really good to work for. They didn't micromanage or ask for relentless demos like some publishers do today. The following story isn't directly related to Microprose but it wouldn't have happened if we, the Sleepless Knight team, hadn't visited the Microprose office in Tetbury for a meeting.

We planned to stay there overnight. We booked a room above a rowdy pub and in the evening got chatting to a Scottish guy. We explained how we were big fans of the Highlander film. He explained that he was an extra in the film and used to live in the nearest village to where the Scottish parts were filmed. We excitedly agreed to drive from Tetbury in the morning all the way to the Scottish Highlands to visit the castle and bridge used as locations at the start of Highlander. Which we did and loved it. We loved the Highlands so much that we had two more holidays up there after that.



Tell us about the programs you used.

For the first few years, I worked directly on the AtariST to do the game graphics. I used an art package called OCP Art Studio. It was mainly designed to do sprite animations and you could only work on one 64 by 64 pixel area of the screen at once. It was a bit convoluted to use it to draw whole screens like title pages, loading screens etc. but I got used to it.

Ironically what was harder to get used to was using a mouse on a computer. On my first day of work, they put me in front of an AtariST and the mouse was on the right-hand side of the machine (like they normally are). The trouble was, I am lefthanded for drawing and writing. It didn't occur to me to move the mouse to the left-hand side of the AtariST!

Instead, I drew bad graphics for two weeks while my brain re-wired circuits to my right hand. I thought I was about to get fired for not producing anything useable in my first two weeks but then luckily it all clicked and was, in hindsight,  a blessing. To this day I can use a PC mouse with my right hand and use a pen tablet with my left hand. Super useful and something I wouldn't have learnt if I had the common sense to move the AtariST to the left-hand side.



Mark Fisher's desk while working for Sleepless Knights.





What about the hardware?

I never owned an AtariST while I was working on AtariST games but a few years later, when I was working at Probe, they gave me an AtariST and monochrome monitor which I used to experiment with making dance music on.

As I'm sure you know, an AtariST running a copy of Cubase was the setup to have in the 1990s for music production because of its built-in MIDI ports. The musicians at Probe had moved onto PCs by mid-1990 so the Atari STs were sadly surplus to their requirements.

I sold that ST a little while later but did enjoy owning it.



Any fun tales to tell?

The last Atari ST game I worked on was Special Forces and the animated intro was created unusually. Well, the helicopter shots were. To get animation frames of the helicopter, we bought a toy helicopter and a black and white CCTV camera. The toy helicopter was plastered with gaudy stickers but more troubling was that it was one of those friction toys with wheels that you pushed along the floor.

We took the wheels and axle off the helicopter but I didn't have the time or the skill to cut off the large, plastic bulge on the helicopter body that housed the friction mechanism. So we left the large bulge and pretended it was some sort of surveillance radar housing. We took the stickers off the toy helicopter, painted it with grey primer and basically stop-frame animated the helicopter sliding along a desk, both towards the camera [that was taking black and white photos] and away from the camera.

I then took all the black and white, digitised photos of the helicopter, deleted the background, recoloured them and incorporated them into the animation. This was a convoluted process but it was 1991 before digital cameras were a thing.



"We spent the day at Hoghton Tower, having Keith's wife take some
'marketing photos' of us, for the upcoming release of Special Forces."





Final words...

I have a great fondness for the AtariST. When people find out I created graphics for 16-bit games, they assume I made the graphics on an Amiga and reduced the amount of colours for the AtariST. But back then, especially in the smaller development companies, the Amigas, which were about 25% more expensive than the equivalent ST (the amount of RAM), were reserved for coders working on Amiga versions and musicians who used its audio sample capabilities.

I didn't use an Amiga much at all. If there was a time near the end of a project, I'd jump on someone else's Amiga and increase the colours in the ST graphics. But I always had an AtariST on my desk which I used every day of my early career.

I stayed in video game development till 2021 but since then the industry has crashed and I've had to freelance in other industries. I'm looking into ways of breaking into the Indie game scene and making my own small games. For that, I'll need to dust off my old pixel art skills. I'll keep you posted on how I get on :)


More random ATARI ST articles from the archives