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. This was developed using Omikron Basic and stars Max - a dude who goes skiing through many vertically-scrolling levels through places that look (umm) very familiar...

Navigate left/right to pass each obstacle as you ski - but don't bump into anything otherwise, you fall flat on your bum! Pushing up will reduce your speed whilst pulling down will increase it and fire will perform a leap into the air. Passwords are used to access the "missions" without having to start over from the beginning. Yes!!

Graphically, I could never complain because it looks just like Cannon Fodder and has superb attention to detail. Of course, it's all ripped and unoriginal but I do not care! The music is in stereo by Tomas Kucera and sounds funky - 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!

Skiing in Cannon Fodder... never been so much fun... (sorry!). Thanks to the great controls, this is so easy to pick up and play but also remains very challenging too. Whipper Snapper's Race is a very silly skiing game and shockingly addictive!!

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

Download the hard drive-installable game from Demozoo!

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

Cannon Fodder [Atari STe update]

Ugh, another lame Amiga port...

Yep, Cannon Fodder could have (and should have) been far better for the Atari ST. Alas, it was a rushed lame-ass port. However, cry no more tears for Peter Putnik has upgraded the game to support audio playback of 25KHz digital music - yes, during gameplay. This is making use of the DMA audio hardware lurking inside the Atari STe and (because it's a coprocessor) there is no CPU usage. Thus zero impact on the game's performance whatsoever.

Of course, storage requirements are too much for a floppy! An Ultrasatan or other hard drive device will be needed to store your chosen music - this can be anything and instructions are included in the zip file on how to use convert something from your music library. It's dead easy to do using Audacity. Click on my video, above...

Well, what an incredible upgrade! This is something else having real music blasting out from your Atari STe speakers. I'm only gutted it is the lame-ass Cannon Fodder getting this amazing upgrade. Why? Because it's a pile of rubbish with flick-screen horizontal scrolling. This not only gets you killed but also kills any enjoyment you might have had...

I hope Peter uses this technology again - for other Atari ST games - the possibilities are endless!!!

Cannon Fodder

 

I've just stumbled upon a nifty program for Cannon Fodder. It's an intro that offers various cheats like infinite ammo and level select and was created by "Dr D" from The Casualty Dept. I've copied it over to my Atari ST and it works like a charm! Now, I'm not really bothered about the infinite ammo/men but being able to start on any level is superb so opens up this game. Highly recommended for those playing the floppy disk version - enjoy!! :-)

[ Clickety-Click and Download ]

Diamond Edge

I loved Hi-Soft!!

Isn't Diamond Edge a brilliant program? One of its features is 'Test Disk' which scans for various types of potential problems and, only the other day, this saved my bacon because Drive C (a 32MB partition) suddenly reported itself as 22MB. Why I do not know, but Diamond Edge came to the rescue and fixed several serious errors!!

I have also found it particularly useful to optimise (defrag) the partitions in order to better stream audio for (storage) demanding games (Cannon Fodder / Xenon II) or other programs like ST Video Player. I try and defrag the drives on a monthly basis. Don't even get me started with Undelete, another superb part of the Diamond Edge suit.

Diamond Edge is one of the most fundamental utilities for all Atari computers equipped with a hard drive. Anodyne has Diamond Edge freely available to download along with the manual too. Which is simply excellent.

PP's Enhanced Games

New game updates!

Everyone knows that Peter Putnik has adapted hundreds of games for hard disk installation. These often include extras like bug fixes, TOS compatibility, 4MB patching, and so on. However, some are also super-charged with cool coding that utilises the Blitter coprocessor and other hidden chips lurking inside the Atari STe. Are you interested? You should be!

I thought it would be nice to offer a brief round-up of these enhanced games as a compilation here on AtariCrypt. Oids and Uridium are particularly impressive because both updates improve tremendously upon their original counterparts. I also enjoyed playing my own music during a game of Xenon 2 (read the docs and convert music from your library).

There is something here for everyone and I hope you find this useful. Enjoy and let me know what you think...

Let's play...

Okay, let's take a look at some of these enhanced games that you can download and play right now...

 + Xenon II - updated for the Atari STe and features DMA streamed music. Turn up the volume!
 + Cannon Fodder - enhance this lame port with your chosen DMA streamed music.
 + Prince Of Persia - allow the DMA hardware lurking inside the Atari STe to replay the game's sounds.

  

Did you enjoy that? Well, here are three enhanced FTL games that are nicely improved...

 + Dungeon Master - far cleaner samples are heard thanks to the DMA hardware within the Atari STe.
 + Chaos Strikes Back - Again, the DMA hardware allows cleaner sample playback for this awesome sequel.
 + Oids - the potential for double framerates deliver a smoother experience when rescuing the stickmen.

  

Right, let's take a peek at three more which aren't exactly favoured well by the average ST gamer...

 + Jinks - this jerky game is weird but at least it now uses the smoother STe scrolling [original disks still required]
 + Menace - I cannot thank Peter enough for replacing that horrendous yellow ship with a white one!
 + Uridium - Blitter-boost that sluggish ship and add DMA-streamed background music while you're at it!

  

Now let's take a little run-around with these three you might never have expected to boot up...

 + Giana Sisters - this Zamuel_a enhanced game now also comes with optional DMA streamed music!!
 + Hard 'n' Heavy - gone is that embarrassing flip-screen gameplay, all thanks to cool Blitter programming.
 + Road Runner - Improved and also Blitterized for faster scrolling - but it's still a rubbish game (sorry!)

  

Okay, let's end in style! Here are two ST classics and (wait for it) a PC classic too! Ooh, nice...

 + Goldrunner - Some might not like this, but I love hitting the F3 key to disable that fuzzy speech!
 + Gauntlet - this sluggish hack 'n slash arcade game gets big improvements but still needs extra CPU grunt.
 + Wolfenstein 3D - Ray's jaw-dropping FPS now has bugs removed with decent save game support.

  

Peter Putnik

Here is an interview that I am extremely excited to publish because Peter Putnik is a name paramount with Atari ST gaming mainly because of his hard disk adaptations. This means no more running games from an unreliable floppy disk!

I have been using his warez for a long time and ST gaming wouldn't be nearly as much fun without his efforts. The adaptations offer us the ability to install games onto our "hard drives" instead of the sluggish and failing floppies.

The experience is therefore far superior and usually comes with a trainer to help bad players (like me). Each game often comes with support for faster Atari computers which is incredible when booting up something like Frontier on my Mega STe. What's even more interesting is his 'Gamex' a method of snapshotting your progress instantaneously - kinda like an old Multiface!

I was particularly surprised to hear about his past with regards to not only the Atari ST but also ZX Spectrum. Two great computers also form my own computing history. I hope you all enjoy this interview of the man responsible for hundreds of adaptations along with several outstanding Atari STe enhanced upgrades. I don't think there is anybody so active on the Atari ST scene. My sincere gratitude to Peter for taking the time out for a good chat.

- The PP Interview -

What is your Atari hiSTory?

My history started in 1987 when I decided to upgrade from a ZX Spectrum to something much stronger and the Atari ST was my first thought. However, the Amiga had just arrived in the shops so I was in dilemma, but not for long, the Atari ST had far better quality of software and the prices were almost equal. Also, the Atari seemed a better platform for some serious activity. I soon upgraded the RAM to 1MB and also added another floppy driver and made an EPROM programmer (a must for anyone dealing with hardware mods).

I already had some experience with ASM programming with the Z80 so I soon started on the Atari ST. 68000 ASM is really nice to work with, especially with a good assembler like Devpac. I wrote utilities for my own needs with help from Atari Profibuch book and created a floppy copier combined with a RAMdisk. Most learnings was via books and magazines, unlike today with easy software availability. Pirates were pretty much active in these days, even during 1988's PCW Show in London. :-) In Eastern Europe, they were the only source for computer software, I must say. I also wrote some articles for Yugoslav computer magazines during these early years.

What setup are you using these days?

Currently, I have one Mega ST, one STe and a Mega STe. The truth is, I don't use them much because they are very old and fragile and I've needed to repair them a few times, except the Mega STe which is indeed best built. The extra speed is welcome, even for games, although Mega STe was never intended for gaming. I bought this some 9 years ago, and I've since replaced the hard drive. Now used mostly with UltraSatan - much easier data exchange, less noise...

I mostly use the Atari computers to test and to play but my main tool for adaptations is using Steem Debugger and, without this, development would be much slower and harder. This emulator, equipped with a complete overview of emulated computer status, may see all hardware at any moment and following the program flow (even with history). Steem is a very good emulator, and luckily, a couple years ago they released sources so I was able to do some modifications for my needs. On the real hardware, there are limited possibilities of tracing, especially with some software working in very low RAM. Older computers have too low a resolution with a small screen area but there are some things I can not do with my PC: GAL and EPROM programming - where I still use Atari and old programs.


History of your famous game adaptations?

Adapting games started during my Spectrum years actually. However, there was not much to adapt but POKE was popular to exploit the code which decreases a player's life count and the like. I also made a snapshot saving program which was in fact very-very simple and only needed to save the RAM and CPU registers to then restore from where we wanted to play. I did it with faster routines, so loading only took some 2 minutes instead 5. :-) Next step was when I added a floppy interface to the Spectrum and then I wanted to transfer all good games onto floppies. So, basically same thing as the Atari ST with game adapting, except that this was way easier because Spectrum software was singleparted in 99% cases and that means no further loading was required after starting the game. I transferred hundreds of games onto floppies very quickly - one disk could store over 20 games, using compression. Next step was adding hard disk like with Atari ST and I designed my own IDE adapter...

In case of Atari ST games, it was more time consuming, some 60% do not directly access the hardware but instead TOS functions for floppy access. This means it was sometimes simple but other problems might arise, like TOS version incompatibilities, RAM usage, etc. Again, it was easiest with singleparted games, so my first hard disk adaptations were with such games that didn't have any disk access after loading - like Stunt Car Racer and Sentinel. Afterwards, I made adaptations using a RAMdisk for faster loading before the later adaptations, like Formula 1 GP.

Incredible results achieved but why did you begin this?

I started all this because I wanted to get rid of unreliable and slow floppies. The real leap was probably the arrival of Flash cards, so we can now have small, silent, fast, cheap storage. I started to deal with them right at beginning - first one was 8MB Smart Media card in 2004. :-) I certainly did not plan, or expect, that it would reach a count of over 1000 adapted games!


What are your favourite games?

I first played Flight Simulator II which I bought together with Atari ST. Then I was playing Dungeon Master, Carrier Command, Millennium 2.2, Formula One Grand Prix and not forgetting Potsworth & Co.


What other stuff have you created?

My first serious software was MC Tracer, a debugger, for the ZX Spectrum. It could run any software, step by step, and there was a circular buffer feature to store the last 100 executed instructions. What's interesting is that I made almost the same relocating system (it must working at any RAM area) as what is used in TOS executables :-) Also worth a mention is my Spectrum modded ROM - for floppy and hard disk (all available at zx48.8bitchip.info).

For the Atari ST, I first made some floppy utilities and then a hard disk driver, which is still under development. I did some Windows utilities for accessing and transferring data with Atari ST formatted floppies and also hard disks. Soon after the Internet became accessible in our area, I started a website for my Spectrum and Atari ST projects. The site moved couple times during years, I hope that current place will stand for a long time.

Any current hardware projects?

I have many plans but things are moving slowly, especially with hardware. Mostly I would like to finish old projects, like the cartridge port IDE adapter and ACSI port CF adapter. No specific STE projects currently, but the cartridge adapter works better on STE and movies look much better. :-)


What's your favourite hardware creation?

My personal favourite ... hmm it could be the IDE hard disk adapter for Sinclair Spectrum because that was good exercise with GAL programming. For the Atari ST it would be the cartridge IDE adapter.


As a programmer, who inspires you?

I don't think that I was particularly inspired by a particular programmer but there are certain names I associate with high quality. Games by Costa Panayi, Andy Pennell for Devpac ASM and Geoff Crammond for his good simulations.

What about the Atari ST/e future?

My concern is that real Ataris will not last much long. More and more people will use emulators or clones like Mist. Still, adaptations can make playing a lot easier on both. I think doing STe-improved versions of games seems the right choice now. However, this can be very time consuming, I started Uridium couple years ago and simply disassembling it properly took a couple days. I then had to put it on ice because of a lack of time but, luckily, I was finally able to finish this recently.

Other problems are a lack of sources for better sound effects and corrupt or missing original disks. We need flawless images to work with for so many games, like Son Shu Shi, Jinks and others. Thankfully, we recently got Giana Sisters, the internet is a great thing and we need to work together. :-)

Links...

 - I always try and link to Peter's 8BitChip adapted games and all are listed right here!

 - There is also an 8BitChip Forum you should join and a YouTube Channel with lots of adapted game videos.

 - Have you ever seen Peter's Atari STe versions of Xenon 2, Cannon Fodder, Dungeon Master, etc, etc??

The Golden Dawn Mod Disk #14

MCIBTYC!!

The Golden Dawn released many PD and Mod Disks for the Atari ST during their time (Demozoo link). However, this particular disk is something quite different and features a humorous hack of Cannon Fodder. Click play to watch little ST soldiers graffiti the Amiga HQ which obviously escalates into war. Of course, this will end in bloodshed :-)

A superb idea and one that represents the tensions between ST and Amiga users back in the day. Well, mainly Amiga users because we ST guys were too busy enjoying our machine rather than looking over our shoulders! After the intro, this disk is stuffed with cool tunes and supports various playback options, including the stereo playback on the Atari STe.

Thanks to STompy for this piece of gold and get it downloaded right now. Fantastic stuff!!

Credits

Incubi - Text, Other (Compilation)

Lucid Dream - Code

Stoo Cambridge - Graphics

The F.U. Man - Code

D-Day

Rule Britannia!!

Okay, ST nutters, a couple of years ago I managed to buy myself a mint copy of D-Day by US Gold. This is a war game and comes on four disks, so is a pain to someone (like me) who's been spoiled by the luxury of an Ultrasatan. However, I couldn't find a hard disk version anywhere so I did what any sane person would do - I asked Peter Putnik.

Later, during the World Cup (and after a couple of beers), I finally had myself the hard disk adaptation of this wonky old war game. Launching it from my satan is a dream compared to the floppies and I'm really grateful for Peter's commitment to the ST scene. Anyhow, what did I think of US Gold's take on this historic moment in time?

Before we begin, June 6th 1944 is a moment in time that we are unable to comprehend but will never forget. This video recording and game review is just my humble way to say thank you to those who have served.

Righto, I think we need to see a screenshot so let's kick it off with the topography of this historic area...

Overlord offers a crude yet incredible insight into the situation on the day. Quite frightening!

Operation Neptune

D-Day is represented by a map of Normandy during the period and shows just where the enemy is located and the missions which can be planned and executed. This is like a campaign mode for the entire Overlord Operation and has each event featured by time as they unfolded. However, it's quite confusing to newcomers and even the manual recommends you start by playing the individual missions first. I love their honesty so I did exactly that and began each part in turn.

The idea of these mini-games is actually pretty cool. They are broken up into four categories: Tank, Bomb (flying the most sluggish planes ever!), Paratrooper, and Infantry soldiers. Splitting them up is brilliant and allows you to skip directly to your favourite parts. Also, no matter the game, there are always several missions to choose from.

Wanna hear more? Of course, you do. So let's take a look at each of the mini-games right now...

There is a wealth of information and statistical detail to check out in the main game.

Mission #1 - Tank

Okay, the first game is Tank which is a WWII twist on the Battlezone format and looks like another ST title, possibly because they share the same programmer, Pascal Jarry! There are lots of different missions and the first instructs us to destroy every bunker on the beach, which is a lot harder than it sounds! There are a load of other missions but the game is quite buggy and I suffered a few crashes. At one point I even managed to get myself stuck in a tree. Yikes!

Performance is sluggish and also lacks any kind of engine noise (which is just weird) but I have to admit that I had a bunch of fun driving the little tank. Make sure you hit the function keys for the different modes of operation and also a cool outside perspective. Overall, it's worth playing a couple of missions but sadly, feels like a rushed add-on if I'm honest.

My rating for Tank would be above average as it could have been far better. So, I rate this 5/10.

The big boys are here and we're taking no prisoners!

We're out roaming the countryside - looking for a fight.

Mission #2 - Bomb

This next game is an eye-opener alright. How on earth this got by the US Gold Quality & Control debt I do not know. I think they didn't have one? lol. Again, there are lots of different missions and I chose to fly at night to bomb a bridge. Well, that was theory anyhow but I literally had not even the slightest chance of hitting it. Not in a million years!

There are some basic instruments and controls to help you with your noble adventure but you're left feeling blind which makes completing any mission nigh on impossible. Also, to say its 3D engine is sluggish is a major understatement - I reckon an old Oric 1 could do better. Definitely, the weakest game of the lot so I can't say I'll be playing it again.

I'm struggling not to be too cruel here but I cannot help myself and I must rate Bomb 2/10.

Wow, I really don't know how to describe this part of the game... So poor.

Mission #3 - Paratrooper

This game is silly in execution but actually damn good fun. We are parachuting either solo or with other troops through a series of missions. Wind can obviously play a factor (no jokes please) but guiding your men downwards to the ground is peculiarly enjoyable. Sure, it's ludicrously bad but I still loved it. My daughter thought it was superb - bonus!

Overall, unlike the Bomb game, this is something you need to play. Well, at least a couple of times!

I don't really know why I enjoyed this game so much? Perhaps for its silly mechanics? Well, I give it 6/10.

Weeee one man gets tangled and falls to his death but the others land safely!

Mission #4 - Infantry

This is the final game type and easily my favourite. I've always liked overhead strategy games and this is styled in a similar fashion to some action games I've played, such as Cannon Fodder and Rebellion. However, don't be fooled, it might look similar but is more a slower-paced tactical wannabe where stealth is the key to your survival.

There are a bunch of missions that involve us guiding stickmen through the fields avoiding enemy bunkers, tanks, and so on. It plays as crudely as it looks with enemy AI that's more like a robotic turret. Each enemy unit has its place on the map and, once you're spotted, they constantly bombard that area forever. They never stop!! So it's your job to sneakily find an alternative route and pick 'em off with your machine gun, grenades or mortar.

The controls are quite shocking and fairly imprecise - trying to get the soldiers to stand exactly where you need them is half the battle. Also, it's annoying when they take the long route around an obstacle, which often means that they are then in the line of fire - and die! The graphics are quite umm Cannon Fodder'ish but of a very crude standard. Now, I might be a really bad pixel artist but I honestly think I could have done better? Sound effects are made from crunchy samples and certainly, add to the atmosphere but that constant noise might give you a headache after a while.

However, I should stop my snowflake whining because, in spite of all its faults, this is incredibly great fun (it reminded me of Stonkers on the ZX Spectrum). Infantry is nothing more than finding a safe route through the map and picking off the enemy one-by-one. Very simple and not much more to it, but I genuinely enjoyed myself. Yes, I know, I'm mad!!

It's crude and ridiculously unrealistic but I've strangely had many hours of fun so I'm giving it 9/10.

We're on the beach in one mission and then raising everything to the ground on another!

The enemy won't move but they're sure out in great numbers. Can you kill everyone and escape?

The CryptO'pinion?

If there was ever a mixed bag of goodies then this is it. Don't get me wrong, I'm proud to have this in my collection but D-Day feels like it was programmed by amateurs, which is odd when reading the credits [AtariMania]. Technically, this fails to make any decent use of the Atari ST hardware - and is riddled with sluggish, buggy code - which is quite shocking.

So, it's crude, it's buggy and it's a little silly but I gotta admit that this is still a decent war game. Plus the Operation Overlord parts have so much depth and can offer the eager gamer a unique historical insight into the events. D-Day is tacky but I thoroughly recommend playing the better parts, especially on what is such an important day in history.

Grab the floppies via Old Games Finder

8BitChip has the new HDD version!

Looks pretty good, right? Well, this was recorded using my beefy Mega STe. I'll say no more...

Serenade #78

I really enjoyed the STAX #90 feature so figured I would do another one! This time we delve into the Serenade archives to see what's lurking on one of their amazing 85 "PD" disks - nothing quite like keeping it legit? Anyhow, menu #78 appeared to stand out from the crowd with lots of cool games crammed onto one disk.

This is quite a simple menu compared to others from their catalogue but there is stereo music for those lucky enough to own an Atari STe. In fact, it's one of few mods which hasn't aged badly at all, so it's a massive thumbs up from this chiptune guy. Also, the scroller is very interesting - apparently, Man Utd did well against their arch-rivals!

The entire Serenade library can be downloaded from Stonish with credits/etc on Demozoo.

- DEADLAND -

A platoon of little stickmen have crash-landed on the planet Ursula Minor and this place is crawling with Ursulan Soldiers who are eager to kill you without mercy! Also, there are dangerous natural disasters to avoid so it's best we don't hang about and quickly repair our spaceship to escape this hellhole. This means piecing that together (JetPac-style!) before anyone can be safely evacuated. Sounds very easy, right?

Deadland first feels similar to Rebellion or Cannon Fodder: control the direction of your active soldiers using the mouse and a right-click turns them into trigger-happy Rambos. The planet is crawling with enemies and constantly frantic so it's tough learning to battle whilst planning construction work - that might also leave some vulnerable? It's easy to lose your bearings and, just when you're getting to grips, your men drown in a mud pool!!

The enemy is relentless so you cannot expect to wander about easily killing anything without taking a more strategic approach. Each member of your team is listed on the right-hand side of the screen for a health condition and other abilities. Don't forget to look after these guys - green is never good outside of the GEM desktop. There is a lot to master whilst here, especially whilst defending against enemies, incoming rockets, mines /etc.

I really enjoyed Deadland and the concept is great but this isn't something you can easily pick up and play. It takes time and a map would have been nice as would using the cursor keys to scroll. Yep, I have struggled to get to grips with Deadland but it's an excellent strategy and potentially rewarding. If you're brave enough?

- TRAPPED II -

I couldn't get this to work on my Atari STe - blank screen! So I switched to emulation to discover a nifty Tron game. I've never been much of a fan of the genre but I gotta admit that it's good and features different game styles, screen layouts and even a few power-ups (which I didn't expect). There's not much to look at (shock) and I imagined the sound effects would grate, but they didn't. After all these decades, I actually enjoyed a Tron game!

- MANIC MINEFIELD -

Minesweeper was another fad that I have always failed to appreciate and Manic Minefield appears faithful to what I remember with gameplay that's about as enjoyable as I expected. Anyhow, after a few games I enjoyed this crude imitator even though I never won a single game! Actually, I would often feel robbed of a win because I'm sure the ST cheats!! Then it rubs salt into your wounds using a fuzzy sound sample to mock your lack of success. Interestingly, the board size, wallpaper, /etc can all be altered in the Options screen, which is kinda cool.

Manic Minefield is okay and I imagine fans will enjoy it? But I doubt it's something I will play again...

- FRANK & THE LOST AUBERGINE -

Never would I have imagined loving a game's title more than "Hector vs The Mutant Vampire Tomatoes From Hell" yet here is Frank And The Lost Aubergine which is superb!! It's a fast-paced platformer developed using the STOS Missing Link extension and has us frantically running around screens crammed with monsters and gems.

Collect every gem to proceed onto the next level but watch out for the baddies. These can be killed by dropping a well-timed bomb directly in their path - difficult but doable. Or you could just slam into them albeit at the expense of losing one of your 50 lives. Yep, 50 and you'll need them all because there are lots of monsters!

Movement is very fast - too fast!! It's extremely difficult to position just where to stand when you wish to leap off a ledge. In fact, leaping over the wider gaps is close to impossible and it takes too many attempts. I love a platformer that tests your patience, skills and dexterity but it simply doesn't work here. A good idea poorly executed.

- DELUXE INVADERS -

I love Space Invaders and I'm confident nothing will ever beat Sinister Developments' fantastic conversion which is arcade-perfect using authentic effects!! However, this is a conversion of Roklan's 8-Bit Deluxe Invaders by one of the biggest ST legends. I've never played the Roklan game so was hoping for something different.

There are two game modes: slow and fast. The slower game looks superb with colourful aliens invading your screen and can be sped up by flicking over to 60Hz - something you should consider. The faster version is better to play but appears boring in comparison, so I went looking for green cellophane to wrap around my monitor!

Sadly, I didn't feel it with Deluxe Invaders and much preferred the original if I'm brutally honest. Okay, it's a good game but, there are better "Invader" games for the Atari ST. Sigh, I'm also a bit deflated about that fact if I'm honest.

- NIBE -

This is a great snake game I featured this a couple of years ago so I'll copy and paste it:

NIBE is a Nibbler/Snake game by Marc Bourlon that features an ever-greedy snake who wants to chomp his way through lots of apples. However, this gluttony makes him grow longer with each bite so it becomes harder protecting him from bumping into walls or even his own tail. It's our job to help him eat his way through lots of screens - and many are pretty cruel in their design. You can even change the game's speed (if you dare!!)

Graphics are humble and suit the retro theme plus I love its title screen - which is actually a good intro. Sadly, there are no sound effects so Mad Max music plays throughout - never a bad thing!! Overall, Nibe is pretty straightforward and also extremely challenging thanks to a sinister design. Stick with it because the basic mechanics are spot-on and Nibe will certainly test your reactions, patience and concentration so prepare thyself to be tormented!!

I really enjoyed this olde game but beware, it's tough. Probably too tough for you!!!

- MULTRIX -

Groan, another Tetris game? Yup, and it's not that good I'm sorry to say so play BLAT or Teserae instead.

- The CryptO'pinion -

Well, that wasn't the awesome ride through the Atari ST history books that I first imagined. In fact, it was a little bit of a letdown if I'm honest! Not only did I have compatibility problems with a couple of games (Atari STe) but this was a true mixed bag of joy, disappointment and even a few stinkers thrown in for good measure!

It all depends on what you like but, for me, Deadland and Nibe are the best reasons to click download.

Party Seven!

Gary's games

I was looking back through the AtariCrypt archives and came across Alien World, a sensational shoot 'em up. Oddly, unknown to many gamers out there. It was developed by Gary Antcliffe for Hi-Tec Software in 1992 and is a bit like Blood Money or Zynaps. You know the kind - kill everything whilst trying not to die a humiliating death!

Anyhow, he's also the man behind Blazing Thunder, Bomb Fusion, Future Bike Simulator, Scooby-Doo and Scrappy-Doo, T-Bird and Yogi's Great Escape. Quite a bunch... So, I began to wonder what his other games might be like.

You've guessed it! Yes, here is a quick compilation of Gary's games for the Atari ST. Take a look...

- Alien World -

Firstly, there's no need to rewrite any more of my junk! Just take a walk down AtariCrypt's memory lane and then download what is nothing less than an exciting, if brutal shoot 'em up with super-sonic visuals to boot. Yep, it's tough and takes no prisoners but a skilful and persistent player will be rewarded with a fantastic game.

Grab the floppy disk download from Stonish and the HDD from 8BitChip.

- Blazing Thunder -

Remember in Ikari Warriors when you could kill soldiers from within the relative safety of your little tank? Have you ever wondered what it might be like to permanently be inside a near-invincible tank throughout the entire game? Well, wonder no more because this arcade-inspired (aka blatant rip-off) offers exactly that.

Stop! Don't touch the keyboard because there is an incredibly cheesy intro which is hard not to love. The graphics, and sound effects, are both excellent with our hero looking like a Rambo wannabee with the mad 80s permed hair! Following this is the title screen which is worth leaving displayed just to enjoy the thumping music.

As we begin this vertically-scrolling military shooter, everything is pretty much what you'd expect with soldiers blindly offering themselves as free cannon fodder whilst others lurk in trenches, trees or operate guns. What it obviously lacks in originality is more than made up in the fun department right from the start:

Level one takes place in a jungle, of course before advancing onwards to wetter places for the next stage. These two levels are possibly the best reasons to boot up the game.
We head into the desert for the third stage which is where I found my tank starting to show its cumbersome colours. Having to navigate back 'n forth through the terrain was a pain, especially when ginormous tanks are blocking the way! The boss is impossible to beat without a cheat!
Watch out for the firey landscapes of level 4 with tougher enemies and awkward landscapes. Things are now impossible and I cannot imagine anyone playing this without a cheat!
Level 5 is a breath of fresh air, feeling somewhat like the first two levels and I got serious vibes of Fernandez Must Die. Just watch out for the trains and grenade launchers! The boss is impossibly difficult and even if you do defeat it, the robot guardian appears to kick your butt.
Completing the game rewards you with a lame well-done message. Sigh...

I love rumbling through the jungle in my massive and beastly tank but what were they thinking about when creating such an enormous sprite. It's huge!! Thankfully, the controls are sweet with fast movement and level design which makes it easy to manoeuvre. Running down the soldiers is the first thing to do! Why not? I'm in control of 100 tons of steel so I'm bound to enjoy squashing the enemy into the tank's tread. Watch out for mines that will sap your energy (yep, your tank has energy!) and stay clear of hidden bombs marked with a B... for BOOM!!

Thankfully, there are power-ups that aid health and improve weaponry. Hitting Spacebar operates your own collection of bombs - this is insane and dead funny when soldiers are caught in the explosion. They turn into black-singed corpses!! In fact, the bombs are most useful against the bigger baddies and end-of-level bosses.

Graphically, this is an average looker with a poor framerate that doesn't come close to Dogs of War or War Zone. I liked the palette and the sprites are the best thing to look at. However, there is little or no animation - your tank! If you're wondering about the audio, don't. Spot effects which are well, you know...

Blazing Thunder is a good shoot 'em up but gets repetitive after the first level and is very difficult. However, fighting from the "safety" of a tank does offer an alternative spice to the genre and running over soldiers is always fun. Okay, I'm never going to delete Ikari Warriors for this but I did enjoy it. Not great but not bad either.

Grab the floppy disk download from Stonish.

- Bomb Fusion -

Like many Atari ST guys, I upgraded from an 8-bit computer which means lots of fond memories and I've always got a soft spot for anything reminiscent of that era. A good example would be the Dizzy games, Starquake, Highway Encounter, Head Over Heels and most certainly the recent and incredible Bugziacs.

Okay, here goes... in Bomb Fusion, Terrorists have sneakily planted explosives inside a nuclear station and we've come to save the day - arriving in a Sinclair C5. So it's our job to systematically defused each bomb before the radiation levels reach dangerous levels. I'm getting whiffs of Bomb Jack but there is also the additional task to collect and store any leaked fuel pods. Well, I guess that adds a little more depth to the game?

Getting around each level is easy thanks to the number of platforms used to access each remote bomb. Sometimes these are way out of reach which means using pressure pads or falling off the screen. Yep, falling off the bottom of your screen allows you to reappear at the top which is a nifty idea. Also, there is a weird ball randomly bouncing around for some reason - touching that isn't good for your health.

Graphics never make the game but, let's be honest, it's always nice to see your Atari ST looking hot!! Sadly, I can only imagine the shock on anyone's face when they first played this - did we get a direct Z80 port or something? Also, the music is irritating and possibly the worst I have ever heard from the Atari ST. Be quick and hit F10 to flip to sound effects before your ears bleed. Yes, they are still lame but a zillion times better than the music!

Once you've got over the shock of your Atari ST pretending to be a ZX Spectrum, this is quite good. Scurrying off the screen, frantically trying to defuse the next bomb is a rush. However, it doesn't really go anywhere beyond that and later levels are very difficult. Ten minutes of fun but definitely the weakest game here.

Grab the floppy disk from Stonish and the HDD from 8BitChip.

- Future Bike Simulator -

Apparently, motorbikes were banned in 1995 only to be replaced by 300mph anti-gravity Future Bikes! The highways have been converted into The Strip, which is a new track designed for speed without annoying roadworks or Sunday drivers. Each section is littered with mines, bombs and other riders who can be shot and then robbed of their loot. Use this cash to upgrade your bike with missiles, shields and other goodies.

The controls are great but, sometimes, a track would feel a little too cluttered, especially in the city. Ride, blast and kill anything that gets in your way and survive as long as you possibly can. What more could you want?

Visually, I might have been impressed around 1988 but this came later so I'm shocked it's not better - although I thought the sprites scaled nice. Interestingly, there is an option to increase the framerate by hitting the F key which is fast and excellent. You can flip back using the N key but then everything oddly feels rather sluggish. Sadly, the audio is very disappointing with mediocre sound effects but at least the title screen music is superb!

I found that the 25Hz mode was best experienced using real hardware. By far!

This is a neat game but I failed to see anything resembling a simulator so I'm renaming it to Future Bike Racer. The tracks are long and crammed with many bad guys to blast into smithereens but there's nothing mind-blowing here. However, I did find enjoy the simplicity of doing nothing more than riding my bike and killing folk!

Grab the floppy disk from Stonish and the HDD from 8BitChip.

- Scooby-Doo & Scrappy-Doo -

I'm a bit of a fanboy for platformers and this Scooby snack helps to prove why I love the genre. It's bright, colourful, and detailed with excellent controls. However, it's based on Scrappy-Doo, that annoying pup who ruined what was once a fantastic cartoon. Anyhow, Shaggy and Scooby have been kidnapped by the evil Baron Von Drak which means we are (groan) Scrappy-Doo who must attempt the rescue. We begin on a ship, heading to a desert island with later levels taking us through caves and forests before a battle with the Baron himself.

Each stage is superbly designed and fun to explore with the chance to enter hidden secret levels for tons of bonuses. The enemies are varied and run around like crazy fools with some hopping to and from the different ledges, which was most unexpected. There are several items to collect for health or power-ups and Scrappy can throw a mean couple of punches, even if his reach isn't that great. Collecting Scooby snacks will eventually reward you with an extra life and you will need that for the desert stage and onwards when things get a lot trickier.

Visually, this is an excellent treat alright!! Scrolling is smooth, sprites are cartoon perfect and the levels are utterly gorgeous with a great design using bundles of colour. Audio is probably the best of all the games mentioned here thanks to funky chiptunes. You can switch to sound effects but I wouldn't bother if I were you.

Overall, this is a tie with Alien World for the best of Gary's games. They're very different of course but I cannot decide between the two. Good old Scrappy has delivered a killer punch with something that looks, sounds and plays brilliantly. I personally think this is one of the best platformers for the Atari ST. Yep, I said that.

Grab the floppy disk from Stonish and the HDD from 8BitChip.

- T Bird -

It's time to put on your Buck Rogers big-boy pants for a blaster similar to Space Harrier or Galactic Conqueror. It's easier than the Sega conversion, so nowhere near as difficult as I originally feared thanks to its casual mechanics and fantastic controls. Graphically, there is a serious lack of colour and flair so things look incredibly bland. I don't get it, it's not like they sacrificed any glam for that (ahem) extra speed... Audio fairs a little better with chip music playing in the background and there is the option to hear sound effects instead. Don't bother.

T-Bird isn't a bad shooter but the above-mentioned games are miles better so I'm sensing that this was a port with little dedicated ST love. That is a massive shame because the ST rocks with 3D games like this. Ignore what I said about Bomb Fusion because this is definitely the weakest of the bunch and I'm gutted about that.

Grab the floppy disk from Stonish and the HDD from 8BitChip.

- Yogi's Great Escape -

Jellystone Park is going to close and all the animals are to be transported to the zoo so Yogi decides to escape before it shuts down. I imagine the local council sold the land to a housing property developer... Anyhow, I had high hopes for this platformer after seeing the screenshots full of colour and gorgeous cartoon sprites.

The main objective is to dash through to the end of each level avoiding any nasties along the way. There are picnic baskets and items to collect but your main objective is to escape before the timer expires. Each level follows the same basic principle and there are lots of enemies, moving platforms, rolling platforms, long jumps and other stuff to ruin his day. Most of them feel fiddly and unfair, especially those irritating rolling platforms!!

The controls are responsive but Yogi's movements feel somewhat wooden and unrealistic. Plus he's too big for the environment which makes some jumps rather awkward. In fact, it doesn't feel like he can jump - it's more like floating? Very similar to something like Ghost Battle, rather than what you would actually hope for.

Visually, I love its cartoon appeal. Lots of care must have gone into going that extra mile - smooth scrolling, tons of colours and gorgeous sprites. Okay, the animation is lacking but this is one gorgeous looker! The audio is terrible with no in-game music only meagre spot-effects! Plus I didn't care for the fuzzy title music whatsoever.

Overall, Yogi felt flawed with weird mechanics and limited content which is a shame because it looks the business and certainly had potential. There's just something that puts me off and doing little more than rushing through each level. Sadly, it looks like Yogi isn't smarter than the average bear, after all and you're better off with Potsworth & Co, Rolling Ronny, Stario, Magic Boy, Magic Pockets, Terry's Big Adventure, etc/etc/etc...

Grab the floppy disk from Stonish and the HDD from D-Bug.

- The CryptO'pinion -

Well, that was a peculiar and mixed bunch of arcade-inspired games. It's obvious there is a couple of direct ports here, which is a shame but understandable, I guess. It's also obvious that Gary's skill in getting the best out of the Atari ST improved considerably over the years and he certainly ended on two huge highs with Alien World and Scooby-Doo & Scrappy-Doo. In fact, these two are Christmas crackers and blew me away in terms of quality programming and gameplay.

I often wonder what it must have been like for people developers back in the day working against the constraints they were under. Anyhow, I personally enjoyed doing this compilation and found it incredibly interesting. So who knows what I'll do next? Hey, have you played any of these games? What did you think? I'm interested to hear your thoughts...