Jon Garry

Jon Garry is the man behind one of the best and most liked alternatives of Pacman, H-Mec. The maze is still there but gone are those dozy ghosts in favour of a sinister AI that gave it a Lode Runner feel.

And it worked so well H-Mec appeared on an ST Action cover disk!

I think H-Mec was a hit because it was instantly playable and addictive. In fact, it is a simply great game and one that sported superb visuals & audio. Oh, and was exclusively available for the Atari STe!!

Yes, his first game and already he was making good use of the enhanced hardware - extra colours, Blitter, smooth scrolling and DMA audio. Later on, a sequel was released along with a new game called Oh No! Not More Radioactive Mineshafts. H-Mec II was basically more of that winning formula but his Mineshaft game was something new and much underrated with simple gameplay mechanics yet, immensely addictive. And I loved it.

I was eager to contact Jon for an interview and he agreed. Heck, he actually seemed giddy about the idea and was a pleasure to chat with, a great bloke. I was impressed to discover the part his Dad played in this - come on, he sold the family car! However, what was he thinking about games like Ghouls 'n Ghosts! Whaaaaat??

I'd like to thank Jon for being a great sport over the last few months and I hope y'all enjoy this interview!

- The Jon Garry Interview -

Hello Jon, tell us all about your hiSTory

My coding life began on the ZX Spectrum when I was about 8. Funnily enough, around 1982, my Dad sold the family car to buy us the computer and that's where I first got the coding bug. How he got that past Mum, I've no idea! He thought that computers were the future and bought it for us to play on. I cut my teeth learning to program and the first game we played was Manic Miner which had a huge impact on me. From the moment I saw it, heard it and played it I loved it. The colours, the sound, the humour, the obstacles, the names of the levels!

I think of Manic Miner as the "Sgt Pepper" of computer games so, 1982 was where my coding journey started. Whilst I loved this, I wanted to know how to make it myself. Fairly soon, I went from "Guess the number" to understanding screen coordinates, variables, algebra, sprites, etc. In short, I taught myself a lot of maths and, by the age of 10, I was able to make a platform game more like "Lode Runner" than Manic Miner, which never happened.

Christmas Day around 1989 I guess when we got our Atari STe, our brand new "16-bit" computer and we couldn't wait to plug it in! We were lucky that my Dad had a bonus from work and used that to buy us the STe. I think it's the most important present that I ever had, just because of the impact it had on my life. I can't thank them enough for that. They weren't flush with cash and used that bonus to treat us to an extra present.

By the time the Atari came, I understood BASIC and the maths behind games. This helped me move back into programming — wanting to make my own version of games I was seeing on the STFM and Amiga. I was used to only having BASIC on the Spectrum so it was strange to find you could choose your language on the ST.

I found STOS too slow so that was out of the window. By the same token, the effort needed to learn Assembly seemed huge. I didn't know C at the time and it seemed difficult to use the tools. However, when I came upon GFA Basic, I started coding. GFA was surprisingly fast on the Atari STe, probably not much slower than C.

In the meantime, I'd started to see what the STe could do on demo disks and more people were getting them. So, I was getting introduced to the idea that the Atari STe could — easily - have full-screen smooth scrolling, lots of action on the screen, digi-music, no borders and a 256 colour palette.

Hey Jon, you're in luck! Manic Miner has been released for the Atari ST (by Peter Jørgensen)

What games did you play?

I just didn't code all the time and still did lots of other non-computer things. I was — still am — a huge football fan and spent hours with friends playing Kick Off 2 and Player Manager. To this day I still think those games were almost perfect — simple, fun and once you'd got around the ridiculous speed of the games they were utterly addictive. I think our Mum and Dad must have bought tens of joysticks after we wrecked them lobbing the keeper!

I also loved playing Castle Master, Terry's Big Adventure, Xenon 2, Stunt Car Racer, Continental Circus, Toki, Millennium 2.2, Speedball 2, Mega Lo Mania, Wonderboy, Vroom, Giana Sisters to name a few!

I loved Ghouls N Ghosts and Ghost N Goblins on the arcade, but the ST ports were poor. Well, any game on the STFM just wasn't as smooth as the arcades, or in truth even compared to the Amiga. I thought they were the 'past' and basically were no good for arcade games and that the STe was the future. So, the combination of coding, watching demos and seeing the STe as the future paved the way for what would become H-Mec!

Tell us about H-Mec

From memory, the first 'application' I wrote was ProbeST which allowed you to 'rip' music and graphics from games. ProbeST was actually a great help in ripping music to use in the two H-Mec games! In terms of H-Mec, I think that technically it was quite impressive for its time. It couldn't run on the STFM, certainly not smoothly.

All the coding for H-Mec was in GFA Basic - a superb language at the time. It supported the Blitter chip which meant that I could use this chip to do full-screen smooth scrolling using about 20% (from memory) of the CPU. This meant that I could 'afford' 20% for digi-chip music and the rest for the rest of the game. To see that full-screen smooth scrolling with the music and the gameplay was quite something at the time.

So, you have a game that is smooth, great graphics, great music and is quite playable. I sent it off to a few PD libraries to share. I thought it was a good game, but didn't expect much more than a few decent reviews. Just after I posted the disks, we all went on a family holiday for a couple of weeks.

What happened next?

When I came back, I had about 30 letters waiting for me telling me how they'd loved the game on the ST Action cover disk... but I never sent it to ST Action! I was puzzled! So I went to our local newsagents and sat on the shelves was ST Action. As you'll know, ST Action was 'the' ST gaming magazine which always had commercial game demos on the cover disk but for that month it was H-Mec.

For anyone to remember this game after all these years is touching. It's hard to explain but something I created as a 17-year-old is still available on the internet and someone is asking about it.

My game competed with commercial games! The review said something like 'this game was too good to review so we put it on the cover disk!'. This was an STe-only, PD game on their cover disk and I was blown away. I got loads of letters from all over Europe and the UK for weeks afterwards which was brilliant!

Forget Pac Man, the ghosts here are brutal and never give up until you are dead meat!

Where did the name H-Mec come from?

From memory, it came from the noise of a dog barking in the local park I used to walk past to get the bus!
I remember hearing a dog bark, and it sounded like "H-Mec" and it stuck with me for some reason. It didn't mean anything as such but I guess to me at the time it also sounded slightly modern too! :)

So what about your other games?

H-Mec 2 was just adding some other ideas on really — the pointed traps and graphics. I'd gone to University to study Computer Science and I just didn't have time anymore. I think it was just added a few things like the spikes, updating the graphics and (rather primitive) AI. I had too many other things to do then!

Radioactive Mineshafts was a quick idea — it certainly didn't take long to write. I didn't think it was good enough to release as a full game (see the falling block graphics). The penguin character and the jumping action were the start of a platform game — remember, I was hugely influenced by Manic Miner - which didn't happen.

Funnily enough, I always thought it was a better game than H-Mec and in recent years when I've played, I still feel the same. I just think it was on the same disk as H-Mec 2 and was pretty much overlooked. A few years ago, I did think about porting it to phones as I think it would work where you could tilt the phone to control the penguin!

Which game are you most proud of?

Without a doubt, H-Mec. After I did my degree, I applied to do a Masters degree in Multimedia. I went for an interview with the Doctor who was running the course and his first question was "What is multimedia?". I spoke about graphics, music, animation, co-ordinating them as well as computer science aspects. Of course, it led to H-Mec and the magazine reviews. He was impressed by the reviews and we spent a lot of time talking about it. H-Mec got me a place on the course to my Master's degree, and basically kick-started my professional career. 

A few years later, I remember thinking it was quite an achievement to have written the game. Especially when I think about how much I'd taught myself. Remember, there was nothing in schools to teach kids anything about programming. I taught myself from magazines and library books — there was no internet! To go from ZX Spectrum basic to understanding blitter chips, CPU cycles, ripping music and spending months working on a game was really hard work. The reviews it received were astonishing and I am really proud of the work I did.

My Dad was right about computers being the future and both myself and my brother work in IT. If my Dad hadn't sold the Beetle or used his backpay differently, my life would have been different. So, H-Mec definitely is the one I'm most proud of — technically impressive, decent gameplay, great reviews and helped me enormously!

I see this screen a lot but it always makes me smile thinking about H Mec's "grilling" lol

Inspirations?

Demos were definitely a huge inspiration. Whilst H-Mec isn't a demo it shares some of their traits — the big palette, smooth scrolling, and the intro screen look like a demo disk. H-Mec was a platform game to start with, but it was just easier to do mazes rather than something like Rainbow Islands!

I'd say, on the whole, I am still proud of the work I did and it definitely surpassed any expectations I had!

Also, quite a few people did donate which was very kind and generous. I had enough to pay for a few nights out which was great! I also had quite a few football pennants from around Europe sent to me as 'thank yous' as well which was lovely. I had all of them up on my bedroom wall for many years after!

What was it like being a part of the ST scene?

I loved it! Whilst a lot of the Atari ST scene was done through posting disks, I was also a member of a very social ST Club in Oldham. This club was based at the Bowling Green in Hollinwood, eventually moving to the Lancaster Club in Failsworth and, every week, about 50+ people would turn up armed with STs, TVs and 4-way plug sockets! You'd have rooms, where each plug socket had a 4-way in and each socket on the 4-way had a 4-way in which had 4 ways in with all these ST's and TVs plugged in!

The club was very friendly and had a real mixed bag of members. People from 8 to 80, some were there just to play Kick Off 2 every week, others to swap games, others came to chat and others had connections to the Pompey Pirates and download games on a primitive internet. It was very, very social and was enormous fun. Just lots of people, of all ages and backgrounds, with an interest in the Atari ST coming together to chat and have a good time. Nowadays, it would all be on the internet and nowhere near as social. I do miss those days.

Through ProbeST and H-Mec, I got in touch with other people around Europe too - Germany and Finland in particular. The PD Libraries were great and I'd regularly swap disks with people who ran them. All this would be done on the internet today, but I think that it was more personal back then as you had to -write- to someone. Whether it was the club in Oldham or the letters to Europe I do feel privileged to have experienced it.

Jon and Sally?

In terms of the handles I had, I can't quite remember them, to be honest. I was obviously Jon, and Sally was our dog haha! I think the names were probably to make it look like lots of people had worked on the games but in reality, it was me coding and others did the music and graphics. Sadly, Sally the dog died although she did extremely well for an Irish Red Setter and lived till she was about 17.

Imagine yourself back in the day knowing people who had contact with the Pompey Pirates!

Did you make music with your STe?

Whilst I can play a bit on the keyboards and I can play the guitar, I never wrote music on the Atari. At University, I did do some sampled music for fun, but nothing decent. I was a big fan of "Count Zero" who I thought made the best Atari music. I loved his version of the end of Tubular Bells and it's no surprise it's used in everything I did!

Very creative!

At the time, I didn't consider making games to be particularly creative, but as I've got older I have a different perspective. In my teens, I thought being creative was about painting, films, playing music or drama, etc. Not programming. But when you write a game from scratch it's one of the most creative things you can do!

You start with a white screen and nothing happens. You then create a world — the visuals, the sound, what it looks like and the rules. And how each screen flows from one part of the game to another. It's a VERY creative process and when you play a good game, you can tell that someone has really thought about the whole experience.

I'd also written some other tools that kind of grew out of H-Mec as well. ProbeST, was well-received when it was pushed out to PD libraries. It was written by me and my friend Clover at the time. We had lots of ideas, but most didn't come to fruition. It's probably just like someone in a band — you start 500 songs and finish one!

Any unfinished games lurking in the attic?

No, but I started a football manager game and I thought if I could combine Championship Manager with the in-game graphics of "Football Manager" I used to play on the Spectrum, it would be a winner. Sadly, it never went anywhere but it did give me an appreciation of what's involved.

I honestly used to start a new game every week, but most of them didn't go far. Writing a game from end-to-end takes effort and determination and I fully respect anyone who's actually done it. It probably took the best part of a year from start to finish to do H-Mec. Obviously, I wasn't working on it all the time, but it's a real effort to make games.

As I've said, the Spectrum was an influence on me and a game that we loved was "Lords of Midnight" and the sequel "Doomdark's Revenge". I must have started 100 versions of these on the Atari but again, nothing came of it. As soon as you try to make a copy of a game, you really get to see what absolute geniuses people are.

This didn't make it to the top of Jon's list, but I thought this was a darn excellent 'hopper'

What happened after your STe days?

I went to University in 1993 and I didn't have the time anymore to write games. I moved away from home, I stopped going to the club and the letters became harder to keep up with. Still, I used my Atari to write code and essays for a couple of years until I had to get a PC - which again, my parents got for me. It had an astonishing 8MB DX processor (a good one at the time) and a hard drive.

However, compared to the Atari it was such a big, clunky, noisy, ugly machine that couldn't do a lot and the graphics and sound were TERRIBLE. Windows wasn't a patch on the GEM Desktop, but it felt like I had to move. I was learning languages like Pascal, Smalltalk, Assembly and Ada which weren't available on the ST. I was genuinely amazed that Windows was seen as the future at the time, as it was truly awful not to mention - unreliable and slow. The languages just didn't have the power of GFA Basic either!

However, in recent years as Windows improved and emulators appeared I started looking back at the games on Hatari. It really is great to go back and play the games I remember as a kid! Some haven't aged too well but I still get the buzz seeing the old classic games. However, I could never quite get H-Mec to work and maybe, part of me didn't want to be embarrassed by what a 17-year 'me' made!

But part of me wanted to see it and I saw your YouTube video. It's a peculiar feeling though. Remember, this is me in my mid-forties looking back at a game I wrote as a 17-year-old so you will be looking at yourself back in time. When I look at it, I am quite proud although I can see that 16/17/18-year-old boy in there. I can still see 'me' in the game and what I was thinking. I do think 'he/me' was a very good programmer - I'd hire him today!

What are you doing today?

Nowadays, I'm a professional programmer who pays the bills writing web applications and business software. I haven't written games for many years now, but I feel incredibly lucky to work as a programmer.

If you'd had asked me what I wanted to be as a 10-year-old, other than a footballer, I would have loved to have been a computer programmer. I think if you asked my parents, I bet they'd agree that selling that old VW Beetle was one of the best decisions they made!

This is a photo from around 1991 of Jon and his mate "Booze" playing Kick Off 2.

And Finally...

It's funny really, but when you got in touch it brought back a LOT of memories. I could have written a book! As I said, I was touched that you got in contact and it's quite something to think that something I did nearly 30 years ago is still available on the internet. I can absolutely guarantee that most people won't be able to say that! The fact you and others are preserving that slice of late 80s and early 90s culture should be applauded.

I've been very lucky in my life that my parents supported me and my brother, selling the family car, getting us the Spectrum and later the ST and the life it's given us. I feel very lucky to have been part of a wonderful scene in the late 80s/early 90s and met some fantastic people. I genuinely feel very honoured that you asked to do this interview and I send a very heartfelt "thank you" for bringing back many wonderful memories!

---

This interview was a pleasure and Jon is a great bloke. Fancy reading more Atari ST interviews?

Ballerburg

A quick play...

There's nothing better than blasting cannonballs at enemy kingdoms after a soul-crushing day at work. Today was that day! I needed a few games of artillery mayhem in Ballerburg as this is one of my favourite Atari ST games. I first played it long before I could afford a high-resolution monitor but it was still playable in "emulation". In fact, this isn't the first time I've featured this fantastic game so click here for more.

Are there any fans out there? Let me know in the comments below...

* The download is available on Eckhard Kruse's website. Along with a rather potty horror-demo!!
* Try MonoPack if you don't have a mono monitor, it's great and can even use the Blitter.

Intro by The Conceptors

Sometimes I need a break from the norm... So, over the last few days, I've been having a 'fumble' through my entire collection of Menu Disks. Whilst I've got the usual run-of-the-mill stuff like Automation, Pompey Pirates, etc... I also found a few disks which I'd never seen before. Or possibly my old man memory had just been forgotten?

Anyhow, here's the menu from one such disk - Menu #01 by The Conceptors. I genuinely haven't heard of this group but I must admit, this is one sexy intro using overscan and the music is outstanding. Oddly, I never hit a key to play any of the games. Which is peculiar for a guy running an Atari ST gaming website lol

YouTube is nice but nothing beats seeing this on a real Atari ST... [Demozoo download]

Credits:
7an - Music
Demon - Code, Graphics (logo)
Slime - Graphics (Font)

Tecnoball

It's Brick Buster time!

Tecnoball Z was published in 1991 by TLK Game and is a Breakout conversion developed by Pierre Denis. Oddly, I had never heard of this game until a good friend happened to mention it a few weeks ago (thanks Paul). Sadly, I have no idea whether it was ever officially released over here in the UK. Does anyone know?

Okay, we all love a quick blast of Breakout/Arkanoid now and then; olde classics have stood the test of time for a reason. I would say Arkanoid is the most well-known, unless you're an ST guy then it's perhaps Bolo. I'm always open to an alternative, especially when it's an Atari ST game I have never played before!!

Okay, let's take a look at a screenshot with its strange colour scheme and... erm... something else...

Here, I held onto the ball whilst blasting the bricks with a weird laser weapon. Sweet!!

It's 1976 all over again?

The first thing that struck me was the use of overscan for a larger display but the brick-busting gameplay remains much the same. Each screen has a different collection of blocks that must be cleared using your bat and ball and, with each hit, points are earned with a chance of spawning cash, power-ups and sometimes enemies.

The mouse controls are great; precise and accurate just as you would hope. However, it isn't long until you realise that the physics is 'different' as the ball often doesn't react as expected. Manipulating strikes using the different parts of the bat doesn't work and might even force the ball to bounce in a different direction! That means it's tough trying to finish a level when only a few blocks remain! But, there's a power-up in the shop to help with that...

Yep, a shop pops up after each level to offer goodies like extra lives, a bigger bat, weaponry and more. Heck, it's even possible to install extra bats on the remaining three sides of your screen! I like surprises like this plus that silly idea reminded me of the chaos I suffered in Wacko Software's Video Games I. Innovation like this keeps the player interested which is how I managed to clear several levels and defeated a couple of bosses!

Check out my power-up pads on all 4-sides of the play area. It's mental!

Over-what?

Graphically, I like Tecnoball as it's quite futuristic in style and different from the original our Dads used to play ;-) Overscan has been used to great effect and provides a better experience, more arcade-like perhaps because of the extra screen space? The use of colour is good and everything feels smooth but I thought the blocks themselves lacked a bit of pizzazz? Sometimes I did wonder what they were thinking with the choice of colours.

Hey, see how I've not mentioned the guy in the status panel who freaks me out. Darn, I just did...

Sound effects are great using samples for the 'dinks' but there is no in-game chip music so it's almost as quiet as the original, I guess. Even worse, there's no theme tune for the title screen which I found very disappointing.

This is the first boss screen and oddly, it features no blocks!

The CryptO'pinion?

This is a fun take on the original game but the physics are peculiar which acts as a "bug". At one stage, the ball hit an enemy (at the top of the screen) which then ricochets it sideways. The call began bouncing from left-to-right, in a perfectly straight line. Weirdly, that continued for about 30 seconds!! Luckily, it hit a wandering enemy that changed its trajectory so I could carry on playing. Not very good, I'm sure you'll agree?

Having said that, this is still a good game and I enjoyed ploughing through the many levels. The addition of a shop works well to provide a great variety of extra features that helped improve the game massively. Give it and try and see how it compares to your favourite version of Breakout? Let me know in the comments below.

Download the floppy from Stonish on Cobra #27 menu disc.

Gotta love the artwork and even this Game Over screen is in overscan.

Athanor II The Legend Of The Birdmen

What? Another brand new game?

Somebody once said that the Atari ST died during the 1990s yet here we are (again) with another new game! Okay, raising the cash to buy this adventure may have taken me a little longer than I originally planned, but I've finally received what is a brand new Atari ST adventure game - Athanor II The Legend Of The Birdmen by Safar Games. Very excited!!

Credits
Design and Programing - Eric Safar
Graphics - Vincent Jambut, François Gutherz, Angel Bautista
Musician - Mathieu Stempell [DMA-SC]

What is it?

Athanor II is a point-and-click adventure sequel to the original 8-Bit game. Our adventure continues through four different worlds with new interactive characters and an abundance of puzzles. All Atari computers are supported with 1MB+ RAM and the Atari STe will use its extra colours, Blitter Chip and the DMA for clean audio sounds. Excitingly, this is the second title of what will eventually be a trilogy - oh yeah, this is something else to look forward to!!

I believe the elusive TT and Falcon are also supported but, that's something I'm unable to test unless someone fancies donating their hardware to AtariCrypt? Yeah, I thought so... O_o

Design and programming were done using GFA Basic and Devpac by Eric Safar (yes, he of Ranx!!) who was also interviewed a couple of years ago by Atari Legend. I must say, this is a quality product and I feel Eric went that extra mile with a product that looks and feels great. The build is strong and well-designed plus comes with a bunch of goodies inside the box. One of the best purchases I've ever made and something I'm very eager to play.

The CryptO'pinion?

Okay, I'll say it again just to get this point across, this is one of the best purchases I have ever made. Athanor 2 is a quality product. The box art is weirdly fantastic and there are many trinkets inside along with the disks and manual. It's fun to open up a box to see such goodies, something kids today miss out on with their digital downloads.

I genuinely cannot wait to begin this adventure and I'm excited to see what wonders lay ahead. I only hope the family gives me enough quiet time to play it properly (I can but hope). Let me know, in the comments below, if any of you have bought and are playing Athanor II. I'd love to hear about your progress and thoughts on the game. Enjoy!

Athanor II - The Legend Of The Birdmen can be purchased using Eric's website.

Let's take a look at the goodies inside the box...

Look at all the goodies that come inside the box. I absolutely love this!

The hands of Eric and his gleamingly clean Atari ST. I should dust mine more...

Hero Quest

A board game? Meh, no thanks...

HeroQuest is one of those ST games I've seen mentioned many times yet, never bothered with it. That's probably because it's a board game and I'm not exactly a fan of those (except Monopoly!). The ST adaptation is modelled on that turn-based board game and retains a similar look using an isometric perspective. So, having never experienced Hero Quest, I attacked it with a fresh pair of eyes not knowing what to expect.

Our adventure takes place in Morcar's castle. He's an evil wizard with an army of monsters: Orcs, Zombies, Mummys, Goblins, etc. Four valiant warriors have signed up for 13 torturous quests to defeat him. That means plunging the castle's depths to battle monsters, avoiding hidden traps, and grabbing loot or anything else that might heed the journey. Let's be honest, whatever the story, I'm in. Now, where did I put my sword?

Before beginning, we need to see a couple of screenshots. What glorious isometric graphics...

An Elf enters the room much to the delight of the Wizard who punches the air with joy.

This is when being a midget helps, sneak up on your prey and club him to death!

Choose your warrior!

We begin by picking a preferred warrior(s) from four different races - Barbarian, Dwarf, Elf, and Wizard. Before rushing off on the first quest, you should consider who you want to be and why because they each have their own different types of strengths, weaknesses, and abilities. Even dice rolls, but more on that later.

The Barbarian is built for strength and is a trooper during the bloodiest of melee battles. Stumpy the dwarf is quite strong and also the crafty one of the bunch who uses handy skills to compensate his shortcomings. Elves and Wizards are physically weaker but the clever lads of the group. They use their brains to cast an array of magical spells without running the risk of having to get up close and personal.

Whether you're solo or not, there is an option to choose other characters instead of heading out as the Lone Ranger. It's optional but, there are benefits of having friends accompany you on the journey into the castle's terrors. It's here that you can also name your plucky hero and spend cash in the shop to buy weapons, armour, etc. Finally, there is the possibility of nursing a tired adventurer back to full health, but at what cost?

I suggest playing with two characters: the Barbarian is rock solid and the Elf is an all-rounder who offers the chance to experiment with magic. Umm, the Dwarf is a good option with traps or if something is blocking the way. The Wizard? Well, superb with spells but too squishy for my liking!

Let's take a look at a couple more screenshots of some rather spine-chilling monsters..

Excellent!! His back is turned and he's unaware I'm here so let's kill him. Wait, I see a chair...?

Oh no, the door slams shut behind you on this quest and the room appears not too friendly!!

Go on a crusade!

Now decide which of the 13 quests to attempt - they're all different and listed in order of (more or less) their difficulty. Actually, there are 14 quests, the first is a trainer that offers a chance to learn the fundamentals of exploration and combat: the objective is simply to escape, and the quickest adventurer is rewarded with loot which can be used in the shop for the next mission. Use this to master the mechanics of HeroQuest.

Whatever quest you decide on, the gameplay is incredibly similar to the board game. Each player takes a turn by throwing dice to determine the number of action points - used to walk, perform searches, and fight the ghouls (for the Atari ST game, we spin coins but it's the same difference). There are limitations to this method; searching for treasure (or hidden doors) can only be performed once during a player's turn. Lastly, the monsters are then moved by the evil Morcar for his turn - which is automatically controlled by your Atari ST.

Well, it's that time again when I break up the boring text with some screenshots. Enjoy these...

Ha ha, you can see me but you can't reach me! Hmm, perhaps it's time for a little magic?

The map is an extremely useful tool and even identifies the monsters. Ugh! A Chaos Warrior?

Come on, a board game... Really?

Yes, and all quests take place on a different part of the castle - they feature many rooms and corridors laid out in a grid formation. Exploration is performed using the direction arrows (or clicking on the desired tile) and the map is a helpful tool that displays the parts of the castle you have visited along with monsters and objects. It's also great when something doesn't feel quite right, perhaps there's a secret room? Don't forget to search for loot but remember that this castle is riddled with traps and scary monsters so tread carefully.

Expect the usual creatures prowling; Orcs, Skeletons, Zombies, Mummys, Fimirs, etc. All are controlled by the evil wizard hiding inside your 68000 and their actions are executed after the heroes have completed theirs. The computer isn't always offensive and this can present an alternative strategy option. Also, if walking away from a battle is an option then take it because it's not always necessary to fight each and every monster.

This is a cool board game and something I need to check out. But first, some more screenshots...

We're all playing a game and the first one to blink gets zapped by a fireball!!

I knew it was too good to be true. Sometimes this game is very cruel O_o

Gimme icons!

The user interface is excellent and helps you to explore and interact (comparatively) with your surroundings. The current player has his image displayed top/left along with their attributes for action points, health, mental ability, and cash. The icons at the bottom of the screen might look confusing but they're easy to learn:

1) The shield with an arrow allows you to end your turn.

2) The shield with a sword begins a fight against a chosen monster.

3) Bunch of keys - use these to unlock doors if you want!

4) The door with a question mark performs a search for what might be lurking nearby, like traps and hidden doorways. Works well with the map when things appear a little 'off'.

5) The opened bag is used to perform a search for treasure (kept by that particular player).

6) Satchel - this is the inventory and features the extra equipment a character can use.

7) Map - I'm sure this one is pretty obvious but is something you should use!

8) Directional arrows - use these to explore the castle (or click the tiles instead).

This is a fantastic quest and is quite the nervy rush getting Sir Ragnar back home safely.

Oh cr+p!! This is Ulag, the Orc Warlord and yes, he did kill me...

Clash Of The Titans

Nobody enters Morcar's castle without expecting a fight with something unholy and it's a bonus leaving any room unhurt, albeit in blood-splattered clothing! He has many gruesome creatures walking the corridors so it's not long until something comes looking for you - all are controlled by Morcar. Ie, your lovely Atari ST.

A skirmish in HeroQuest isn't what I expected of an 'RPG'. Firstly, a battle can only happen against a foe on an adjacent tile and that fight is presented on a separate screen. However, there isn't anything to do as the computer rolls special dice for attacking/defending characters - skulls (for attack) and shields (for defence). So, if the monster has more skulls than you have shields, then that difference is deducted from your health. Likewise, if you are attacking and happen to have more skulls than the monster has shields, you win.

This system might work for the board game but is odd. Especially as each player has a different amount of dice: Wizard = 1, Dwarf and Elf = 2, and Barbarian = 3. What is peculiar is when neither side rolls successfully so they both stand idle doing nothing more than staring at each other! Actually, that is quite annoying - it's a missed opportunity which could leave you somewhat vulnerable before the next turn.

Zombies never fail to impress and they're also in Hero Quest if you scroll down a little...

An unsuspecting Zombie victim but I've not got enough action points left...

No problem because his attack was fairly weak so I came back stronger and killed him!

Clash Of The Mages!

Elves and Wizards have a different style to their combat thanks to range attacks as magical spells. All magic can be used against any enemy currently within the same location, so you don't need to be close, in order to attack an opponent. The ability to team/work should now start to prove its worth to all players?

Magic comes in a huge variety to attack or hinder the enemy in some way. You can even help or hinder one of your party if you so desire. Each type of spell is grouped into four categories: air, wind, fire, and earth providing a separate style of magical ability. There is no in-game help so it's best to experiment.

Along with spells to replenish health and harden defences/strength, there are many nifty alternatives:

1) Tempest blows a torrent of wind around your foe thus confusing them so they lose a turn. Perhaps this is something you might wish to use on a fellow team 'mate'? :-)

2) The Genie spell is actually quite incredible and can pack a humongous punch.

3) Ball Of Flame and Fire Of Wrath are two spells that provide powerful attack options. Both could potentially turn an Orc into a pile of dust very easily.

4) But what if you happen to wander into a room that's full of monsters? A good spell might be Courage which will help give you that much-needed adrenalin boost!

5) Pass Through Rock is incredible and an unmistakenly selfish, albeit cunning ability!

That's more like it!! Unfortunately, I'm in a room with a Chaos Warrior...

Sometimes magical spells fall short of the mark so run to the nearest Barbarian for help!

Help, I'm confused!

You shouldn't be. To succeed in HeroQuest you should take it slow - be a careful explorer who wants to survive and reap all the rewards. Remember to search a room thoroughly for anything that may help. Especially the hidden loot which is spent on upgrading weapons and other stuff for the later quests.

The quests are all different but the ultimate goal is to follow the instructions and complete what's required before safely escaping. Personally, I prefer to be the Barbarian as I'm more of a melee kinda guy. But I do sometimes require the assistance of another teammate to increase my chances (they're collateral damage!)

Hero Quest isn't a difficult game to master and is a lot of fun, especially with family.

Spend your plundered booty on something useful for the next quest.

Well, here's another nice mess you've gotten me into! Try, try again...

Pix'appeal?

I love the isometric style as each room looks superb using a strong palette which is nothing you would expect a wizard's lair to look like. But, it works. The characters look amazing with incredible detail and the Mummys are the best - but I also love the Skeletons with their scythe! Sadly, animations are fine but should have been better, especially for walking. Oh, the battles are nothing more than a sword slap in the face!

Bangin' Beats?

Well, the sound effects are basic; a fuzzy shuffle for walking plus a few chinks & clangs during a battle. It's a shame sampled sound effects aren't used throughout seeing as the ST is mostly idle. Music can be played in-game and is absolutely awesome, I gotta say. However, there's not enough so it can become quite repetitive after a while, so I'm glad of the option to hit F10 to disable that in favour of just the sound effects.

From the very start, Hero Quest impresses with its aesthetics. Just watch this intro...

I love this intro which tells the story of how Morcar became the evil wizard.

The CryptO'pinion?

Don't be mistaken and assume that this is an RPG, it isn't. Sure, there are elements for a lukewarm role-playing experience but, this is a board game first and foremost. Each hero has strengths and weaknesses but there is little character building beyond the equipment and collecting stuff. They are also separate from one another - there isn't an actual requirement to work as a team so you cannot progressively group-attack a particular monster because each battle is a new and separate act. Remember, it's a board game.

However, it's a brilliant board game conversion and is better with everyone huddled around the Atari ST like they did back in the day. Even solo, this is a fine adventure especially if you play with a couple of characters. I suggest a few practice games to see which you prefer but grouping them is certainly a recipe for success.

Considering I'm not a fan of board games, I am enjoying HeroQuest a bunch. What a wonderful game!!

The floppy discs can be downloaded from Atari Legend.
(and perfectly fine on either type of Atari ST/e)

Merry Christmas

Ho Ho Ho, I've made a festive pic

It's been a peculiar year, hasn't it? Sadly, it doesn't look likely to get better any time soon but I hope everyone remains in good health. I wanted to thank each and every one of you guys for visiting my humble website throughout another year. Not only that but I appreciate your comments and kind messages.

I would like to thank each of our patrons for their immense support, which is something I cannot express enough. I do hope you guys are still enjoying your Patreon gifts from earlier in the year? I'm drinking my coffee using the mug right now!! That was an exciting project and I would love to try again sometime.

STay safe everyone and I wish you all a very Merry Christmas †

Tristam Island

Another Brand New Game?

Yep, that's right and Tristam Island is a text adventure for lots of computers including our Atari ST. It's been developed by Hugo Labrande and costs only a few quid (download link is below). That payment grants access to each and every download available, plus some hints & tips. Heck, there's even a free demo for those eager to evaluate it first.

The adventure begins having crash-landed, only to find ourselves stranded on the beach of a tropical island somewhere in the South Atlantic. Okay, my mind is picturing golden sands, blue skies, juicy coconuts, sexy female natives, and freshly running mineral water that's been magically enhanced with more than a dash of whiskey...

But enough of my silly dreaming! We actually begin hungry, tired and rather soggy. Later on, we realise that the island was once inhabited, which is unexpected, and now I can see an abandoned house up on the hill. Let's go!

I found ST High delivered the usual brilliantly crisp display and was my personal preference.

An ASCII Expedition!

General exploration is very easy using compass directions, of course. All locations offer a detailed description without being overbearing with tons of pointless text. Clues are subtle, as are solutions, so I often found myself backtracking when I realised I had foolishly bypassed something. Those muddy steps were a killer... try fishing without a flower!! O_o

This is a text adventure like the old Infocom adventures and is using the Z-code Interpreter Program which is launched as a TTP program. Don't be scared, it can easily be installed as an application for z3 files. Actually, I'm grateful GEM wasn't used as that might have been sluggish wheras this feels fast and fresh in all three resolutions. The ST's Low Resolution felt too cramped but High is pure perfection, of course, you knew that!

The parser is excellent without any of the irritations I had with Ooze not too long ago. It's straightforward using commands like "n" to walk north, x to examine, l to look, I for inventory and so on. This is true for items & objects: pull rope, open compartment, get a fishing rod, smell flowers, etc/etc. The inventory functions are rather restrained with having only one pair of hands so carrying multiple items, or using large objects, will require thought (very important).

Medium resolution works very well but you might wanna change the colours first?

The CryptO'pinion?

Exploring remote islands is a pleasant surprise but there are a few irritating niggles that hampered my progress. I found some of the puzzles quite bewildering and was baffled by oddities that made no logical sense: like struggling to make a hammock and the fishing task is weird. Plus the inventory is (initially) a pain in the bum (ouch!).

However, the story is interesting and I was soon questioning everything like an insufferable Sherlock Holmes wannabe. Tristam Island will appeal to oldskool adventurers rather than the younger players and is nothing less than a charming and challenging adventure. So, if you haven't downloaded this new adventure, then I hope I've helped persuade you to give it a go? Personally, I hope and expect to lose many hours on this island over the coming Christmas holidays.

Whatever computer you use - this is a belting adventure and worth every penny - just make sure it's an Atari ST though or don't talk to me again! Downloads are available from the Tristam Island web page. A fantastic game!!

Yep, changing the default colours almost makes ST Low worth using so I went a bit silly...

Iceblox Plus

Yet Another New Game?

I might be a couple of years late but here is Iceblox Plus, a brand new Pengo remake by Karl Hornell for Côté Gamers. It's based on the recent Commodore 64 conversion - which is based on the mobile phone original. That is some history and it's actually strange to think it was something I could have played on my old Nokia!

The game introduces us to Pete the Penguin and explains the gameplay basics which are crushing blocks as the method used to eliminate our enemies. As in Pengo, there are 16 icy screens with blocks to shove or smash; some you break whereas others can slide into the baddies for an instant kill (flames and burning wheels). A few blocks will contain hidden coins and it's these that we should break open to complete each level.

Sounds cute and cuddly doesn't it? Let's check out the first screenshot of our chubby fella...

Wee-SMASH!! This image fails to display my joy at sliding a block for a kill. Points awarded too!

Gaming like it's 1982

Iceblox breaks you in gently with just the one flame lurking, but things soon heat up with the next level having two flames chasing you. By the fourth level, three flames are chasing which is frantic. However, I personally found the difficulty drastically increased by level 6 which is all thanks to those dreaded burning wheels! These do a magnificent job of tracking down poor old Pete for a terrible death by fire. He prefers it cold!

It's interesting how the levels become progressively harder; thanks to their unassuming design and the firey enemies who appear in combinations (up to) four at once. Both use great chasing techniques that feel like H-Mec II. Killing them results in bonus points. Plus a much-needed short breather, before they respawn!

You won't last long without a few practice games, trust me. This next screenshot was a killer...

Run Pete, RUN!!! (He's got no chance because I was controlling him <insert evil laugh>)

Fancy some tips?

Oh heck, I only managed to reach level 12 which isn't bad at all (for me). So I hope this helps you guys:

1. Don't just run around like an idiot - think before you make your move! 
2. Use the blocks to extinguish those dreaded enemies for a burst of freedom albeit only for a second or so. Hey, don't knock it, every second counts.
3. Each nasty provides a high degree of cunning chase, rather than blindly heading to your location. However, the wheels can be infuriating so take them out as quickly as possible.
4. Use the maze design by hiding behind static blocks for cover (see below).
5. Don't panic. I know, it's easier said than done, but panicking only gets Pete killed quicker!

Pete is a penguin and NOT a chicken. Ahem, you can't hide forever...

Graphics & Sounds

Okay, this is no Gods or Magic Boy but I doubt any version of Pengo would drop your jaw to the floor? Iceblox is strikingly 8-bit with a bold design using colourful and beautifully animated sprites - I love how Pete wibbles as he walks! Plus he turns into a skeleton when dying, which is sad but also funny. It looks old yet sorta new?

The audio is just as cute as the visuals with jingles and chip music by M.D. Smit. Everything has a simplicity I adore - it's not trying to produce the greatest ST music but it's humorously apt for the task at hand.

It looks and sounds like the 8-Bit era should have been? Yup, and it's screenshot time too...

Oh no, things are hotting up (sorry) with both a flame and a burning wheel chasing you!

The CryptO'pinion?

Iceblox Plus is a great twist on the original and, rather than a straight conversion, it comes with added bells and whistles. My only gripe is the limited play area using a grid layout of 12x10 which is a little claustrophobic.

I enjoy how Iceblox Plus transported me back in time. Those old enough to remember the original (or the 8-bit conversions) will appreciate the balance of authentic and updated styles. Although I panic like a big girl's blouse from level six onwards, I'm completely smitten by the exhilarating oldskool gameplay.

Iceblox is quite simply a fantastic game and is highly recommended.

AtariMania has the download 

There is a boxed version by Cote Gamers (now sold out). 

Has anyone got Iceblox Plus for sale? Thanks!