Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Groove Barrel Mod.336

Gods (1991)

the year of grace 1991 the wizards here Bitmap Brothers (of which I have already reviewed Xenon II Megablast ) release for the PC (but also for Amiga, Atari ST and various console with 16-bit) one of my favorite games ever. As you may have guessed from the title, I'm obviously talking about Gods in my opinion one of the best platform / adventure ever. In the microcosm PC I think he had rejected the same emotions just two years later with the arrival of the great Flashback, a title which I believe still holds the palm best game of this category (if you do not agree the comments are available). But, as is fitting, since the beginning ...



In ancient Greece a young and wiry warrior decides to address the age-old challenge of the gods through the lost city and ascend to Mount Olympus to gain immortality.

To receive the gift of eternal life, the hero is called to pass through the four quarters that make up the enchanted citizen facing the hordes of deadly creatures placed by the gods to guard the ancient walls. At the end of each area, the hero will meet a guardian to be demolished to gain access to the next level. Completed its mission, the new Hercules, assurgerà to the rank of god and will, as equals, his place the misty summit of the mountain sacred.
What I have briefly told you the plot on which stands the first experience of Bitmap Brothers in the world of platform and, as I'm concerned, this is a debut with a bang having a touch of class numbers the title makes a fine show.
The first thing you notice is the beautiful graphics, beautifully decorated in dark colors and metallic that much like the group of programmers in England. If you already Xenon and Speedball II had delighted our eyes, with this title we once again demonstrate their ability to draw characters and worlds from look attractive. The only criticism that I can move the graphic industry is not the full support of the 256's VGA, the game was brought to most of the version Amiga / ST and then the colors on the screen will not be more than 32 . In any case, never mind seeing that, I never tire of saying, in the end is not the graphics to make a great game but it is his ability to keep players glued to the screen (of course, but a bit 'of satisfaction with the loved / hated the Amiga Bitmap could also give me, after the setback of the parallax of Xenon II a minimum of revenge ... well !!!). The second way to exit from the experience satisfied the game is hearing thanks to the legendary soundtrack Started ( Into the wonderfull wonderfull ... Into the ) and the powerful and crackling sound effects that accompany the explode of our opponents.
do not know if it is a choice or a necessity, given the obvious limitations of competing memory systems (now I've got a grudge), but completely lacks the musical accompaniment during the game. Beyond the existential doubt, without hesitation I support the decision of the developers saw the sense of immersion that has heard the steps of the protagonist, spikes and the slow grind of the muffled roar that announces the arrival of a patrol of enemies (for pace of all the Amiga frustrated even now admit the superiority of the audio produced by Paula chip that, once again, the sounds of thrashing the Sound Blaster ).
Well, if what I have said so far has sparked your desire to go and try this game, I invite you to stand still for a moment to analyze together the real strength of this title, the gameplay ... to have a little 'patience: o)

Two in-game images of the first and fourth level

In terms of gameplay , Gods amalgam with mastery videogame genres to give us that just mix of exploration, combat and puzzle-solving that make it irresistible.
Gods is primarily a platform exploratory. Prepare yourself to explore (in horizontal and vertical) huge levels full of platforms, escalators, moving parts and so on and so forth. Purpose of your scan, as well as reaching the end of the level, pick up the immense treasures left by Zeus and cronies to attract candidates over the gates of the lost city. The treasures are in the form of diamonds, gems (in a different color based on the score), coins, gold masks, etc.. One can also see a variety of bonuses that will make a bit 'easier your mission.
Secondly Gods is a fighting game. Unlike other platform, where the enemies seem to be advancing in your direction without criteria, the title of the Bitmap Brothers shows off a great artificial intelligence that allows enemies to adapt to your weapons and your fighting style making each fight a real battle. In the early stages of the rascals are quite "silly" but over the levels become increasingly difficult parts to be removed.


The dragon and the Minotaur, which respectively stand guard the second and third level

To round off, the title offers plenty based puzzle of levers, buttons and items to collect (such as the vessels of the first level). Most times the resolution of the puzzle is not necessary to complete the level, but with a little 'commitment will be possible to find short cuts, collect treasures and so unattainable. Upon completion of the component breaks meninges "we have the inventory that allows us to carry a maximum of four objects. Just this limit is necessary to carefully plan and carry such items which may leave the ground to retrieve them later.

playing with this lever (img. left.) And the previous encounter at the beginning of the first level you can access the shortcut (the gem is actually a dark gray transporter )

As I mentioned earlier, the game is littered with bonuses that increase the firepower, recover some lost energy and increase the pecuniary. The accumulation of money is particularly important because, from time to time through the passage in the adventure you will have the chance to meet a very nice salesman willing to yield to her merchandise in exchange for part of your fortune. Being Gods heavily based on the clashes, I invite you right now to try to recover as much treasure as possible so we can properly equip the premature end of the game penalty.

The slow pace of the merchant is a prelude to your visit in his shop

weaponry available helmeted hero is only by throwing weapons: it starts with with daggers , that they may later be replaced with throwing stars, mace (can walk through walls), spears and axes. These can be added, such as power-ups, small fireball , axes and magic bombs useful for tracking. If we add more devices that destroy all enemies on the screen and a nice family following us fluttering giving us a hand, it is obvious that there are all the elements to wreak havoc in spades.

Longevity is ensured by the four levels (the citadel, the temple, the labyrinth and the underworld) each in turn divided into three worlds. The twelve missions result may seem little but I assure you, the amplitude levels, the tenacity of the enemy and the massive amount of exploration necessary to steal every secret of the game will keep you busy for a long time. The game allows you to save your progress but it provides a convenient system of passwords that will allow you to start the last level successfully completed. Unfortunately, the arming of departure, however, with the level at which to begin, is the one chosen by programmers, and therefore may not suit your style of play (I personally I've never found and so I have always taken from the first level). Nice is the final where, after having beaten the last boss , we can recover a lot of extra lives (immortality?) With which to resume play in glee fully armed.

Well, we have reached the end of this review mileage that I leave as my personal tribute to one of the best titles I happened to play in my long career as a gamer . If you are an Amiga probably hard to understand my excitement, but if you analyze this situation does not own the game in the flourishing of platform for PC ... well ... the title is to be classified as a masterpiece! : O)

hope I did not forget anything, I leave you with the classic prototype movie that looks good for once: the level of the citadel, completed with several secrets revealed ... not bad for a title that I picked up almost two decades: o)




With PS This article, which I have deliberately kept aside for the end of the year (the classic review closes with a bang !!!), the first year of PC Retro Games ... 66 post , 27 videos (subscribe to my channel on YouTube ) and nearly 3800 visits a result I think they are more than decent for a blog born almost by accident. Thanks to you all and a sincere wish for a good year ... we feel old: o) With this image

Monday, December 27, 2010

Eye Makeup Remover For Sensitive Eyes

ROCK GREETINGS TO ALL!

Saturday, December 25, 2010

Nepali Lyrics With Chords

80186 and 80286

After a bit 'light of articles devoted to video games, it's time to talk again a bit' of hardware by analyzing the second generation of the x86 family of processors. So no more talk and we continue our ride on the bike at the very heart of our beloved PC ...

80186

early 1982 the x86 family of Intel has added a new microprocessor, the 80186 misunderstood that, despite some interesting innovations, was soon relegated to the only market for microcontrollers (single-chip processors generally used in embedded systems for specific applications of digital control).

The comfortably accommodate its 80,186 homes in 68-pin PLCC


The new Intel CPU derives directly from ' 8086 it inherits from the 16-bit data bus and the bus 20 addresses that allow access to 1MB of memory with the same convoluted mechanism already described for the parent of the x86 architecture. The first dell'80186 marketed versions, capable of operating at a frequency of 6MHz, were significantly more CPU performance of the previous generation of the same frequency, thanks to the many hardware-coded instructions in (address calculation, multiplication and division operations, etc.) . To reduce the number of
external to the processor chip, the 80186 integrates the part of the logic necessary for the operation, as shown in the diagram below.



The architecture block diagram 80186 (click to enlarge)

As you can see some components such as generator of clock, the DMA controller and interrupt controller are directly inside the chip . This choice facilitated the use dell'80186 as microcontroller (practice being able to function with few external elements) but penalize usage within the personal computer , given the fundamental incompatibility with the IBM PC architecture built around 8086. Despite this "flaw" the new Intel processor found within the space of a few systems come in their own way in the history between all the Tandy 2000 , computer marketed by U.S. electronics chain Radio Shack early 1983, Thanks to its innovative graphics card was able to provide respectable performance for those days.


A very young Bill Gates posing next to the Tandy 2000 with the very first version of Windows

before moving on to point out the record, the 80188, version dell'80816 with economic data bus 8-bit.

80,286

The February 1, 1982 arrives on the market the new Intel processor mother intended to supplant the now ancient 8086 (dated 1978) in the increasingly vibrant market IBM PC. The 80,286 shares the same architectural innovations that will enable the younger brother performance to produce as many as twenty times greater than a 8086 working at the same clock frequency . They are not, however, repeat the characteristics that made the 80,186 more like a microcontroller to a real processor allowing IBM to define the second generation of its personal computer architecture called PC AT (Advance Technology ) that was marketed from 1984 to 1987.



the 80286 in all its glory

Among the most interesting we have the expansion of the address bus that goes from 20 to 24 bit that allows the processor to address well 16MB of memory, a very considerable amount for the beginning of the 80s. The complete address space is not available in real mode , inherited directly dall'8086 mode that provides addresses of 20 bits (accessible through the segmentation technique which I have already spoken) and consequent roof of 1MB, but only in new protected mode of which we'll talk soon. Protected mode, as well as allowing access to a larger amount of memory, provides, in hardware, support for multithreading feature that promoted the spread of Unix operating systems like (as Venix, SCO Xenix) even on the platforms of the duo IBM / Intel. At this point, good old MS-DOS begins to show his side being able to operate only in real mode and strictly monothread . Nothing prevents MS-DOS to operate in protected mode as long as you have installed an appropriate Dos Extender that fills the gaps of the base operating system. One of the major flaws dell'80286 was the inability to "return" from protected mode without rebooting , feature that made this mode in fact little used, at least in the MS-DOS (speech for different operating systems that they acted completely in protected mode, as unix, where such limitation in fact disappears) ... definitely a blow to fans of video games that this would have taken many benefits!

memory addressing in protected mode

As I mentioned earlier, the protected mode allows the CPU to gain full access to 16 MB addressable by 286. This is not a linear addressing mode (such as that adopted by some competitors, Read Motorola 68000) but is passed from the management segment in 8086 that switches. Let's see what it is to avoid going into excessive technicalities while trying to be as comprehensive as possible ..

The first thing that catches the eye, as had happened for the 8086 is that the address bus width is greater than that of logs (which are obviously 16-bit), this implies that even in this case the address "final" will be determined by a combination of two values \u200b\u200bthat define a basic position and the other its deviation (offset ) than the latter. Nell'8086 While the operation was very simple, you add the value of one of the basic registers multiplied by 16 (shift 4-position to the left) with the contents of the corresponding index register (with the "embarrassing" result different pairs of values \u200b\u200bgenerated the same physical address), this will complicate things a bit mainly because of the ability to run multiple threads same time (well ... not really but at the same time paying a little 'time to perform each one giving the "feel "field") that they must live "thinking" of having all the resources at their disposal.

In protected mode the segment registers become selectors whose structure is shown in the figure below:

selector

The first two bits (RPL, Requested Privilege Level ) define the privilege level (between the four available) thus allowing the switch to "protect" the most important pieces of code, such as the operating system from malicious "interference" (eg user programs). The third bit (TI, Table Indicator) indicates which belongs together with the switch: local application (LDT , Local Descriptor Table ) or global system (GDT, Global Descriptor Table). The remaining 13 bits define the index of the descriptor table (we will have as many local and global descriptors 8192).
At this point you may have guessed that the name switch stems from the fact that this value is used to select an item in the table of descriptors, which are the real starting point for the calculation of the address.

descriptors are special memory structures (large 8-byte, 64 bit) that describe a segment. Their structure is as follows (each "line" represented 2 bytes)

Structure of a segment descriptor
  • 2 byte (16 bit) number of bytes available to the segment (LIMIT)
  • 3 byte (24 bit) base address of segment (BASE)
  • 1 byte containing the indicators ( flag ) control
  • 2 bytes reserved for future extension (Formerly thought to the future generation of 32-bit processors)


The control flag of the segment descriptor


I control flags are as follows:
  • A : Accessed , that if an access was made to segment
  • TYPE: Defines the type of segment (code, data, stack , etc.)
  • 1: This bit is always one for the segment descriptors (there are other types of descriptors, but I omit not to "overload" too)
  • DPL: Descriptor Privilege Level , privilege level required to access the segment
  • P: Present , is 1 if the segment is present in physical memory

To close the circle and make the "process" of addressing is necessary to introduce two new records GDTR (GDT Register ) and LDTR (LDT Register ) that contain the address of the memory location that begins Global Descriptor Table and Local Descriptor Table . The GDT is a subsidiary and is, in general, the operating system. LDT there are more of one because they are generally associated with each application running (pointers to the various LDT are stored in special descriptors in the GDT on which I will not delay further, suffice it to say that the value is loaded to the need within the Register LDTR).
In light of this, the mechanism for the transition address logic (selector: offset , register selector: index register) is illustrated by the following diagram

Switching from logical address to physical address

  • Using the TI bit of the selector to select which table to go to work descriptors
  • Through records and
  • GDTR LDTR selects the beginning of descriptor table to be used, the value contained in it is added to the component selector Index multiplied by 8 (size in bytes descriptor)
  • address thus obtained is used to access the segment descriptor
  • It checks whether the application has the privileges required to access the memory segment (comparison between RPL and DPL). Otherwise an exception is triggered that stops the execution of the program
  • It controls the ' offset contained in the index register with the limited value of the descriptor, if the' offset exceeds the size of the segment is an exception that stops the execution of the program
  • adding up the base value of the descriptor with the 'offset obtaining access to physical memory
The procedure may seem a bit' complex, but the excellent implementation in hardware of this algorithm, by Intel engineers, is that it can be done efficiently.

Call-Gate

The "wonders" of the protected mode do not end there, the show introduced the infamous gate (literally, gate) that provide access to functions having a higher privilege level. The most classic example is the call-gate that enable applications, which typically operate at lower privilege level, to make routine calls to OS (operating at more than privilege).


Through the mechanism of gate all this is made possible. In addition to calls to the operating system functions (those that later API calls) are introduced interruput -gate, for carrying out routine break, and task-gate dealing with run the task-switching that the transition by a thread to another to give the impression of competition between multiple processes.

Conclusions

Well then we come to the end of this article, despite its inevitable complexity, has allowed us to know a little 'better the second generation of Intel processors . Before closing I invite you to argue with me on the following considerations.

The 80286 provides access to 2 ^ 14 = 16,382 (divided equally between global and local) segments through the fields Index TI and the selector. Each descriptor provides access to a segment of 64KB (2 ^ 16). Doing the math we find that the 286 is capable of virtual address 2 ^ 14 (# segments) * 2 ^ 16 (segment size) = 1GB of memory (divided equally between applications and operating system). How is it possible to "map" only 1GB of storage on 16MB? Nothing could be simpler, the segments are not used are stored on disk and reloaded as needed for the development. The bits P ( Presence) and A (Accessed ) serve precisely this purpose: P tells the processor if the segment is present in memory must be loaded on the disk, tells the processor where the segment was changed, and then if, if required, must be written to disk (if it is modified and this operation is already on the disc is useless). These mechanisms and others that I have deliberately overlooked for not bore you too, make that every thread have the impression that the whole machine to it although it is not.

With the 286 also begins to appear cache (still very limited), which in this case is used to keep the addresses of active descriptors to make sure that the processor can access directly without performing all the operations I have described previously.

short, however you think the 80286 has been a marked improvement over its immediate predecessor. Some structural defects (the "no return" from protected mode, slow gate) but it undermined the success it is essential to know why he opened the way for 80,386 a few years later he helped to establish the rule of the Intel processors competition.

Everything that I have told has no relevance for the players or programmers (at least not to work at the level of kernel) but I find it interesting to know a bit 'better, without going into too much detail, the operation of that 'mass of silicon that allows us all to use a personal computer . Until next time ....

The Olivetti M28, the first personal computer in the house based Ivrea sull'80286 (1986)

Denise Milani In Uniforms

Merry Christmas

dedicated to one of the sexiest heroines of the way of video games (Who has not dreamed of in front of his "curve" polygon), I offer all my readers and those that will have the opportunity to spend on this side of a sincere wish for a Merry Christmas. This year I went wrong, we hope that next year, Santa will bring me memories of the Amiga 1200 that I ask him for years ...

Sunday, December 19, 2010

Clothes For Newfoundlands And St Bernards

Prehistorik (1991)

few days ago, reading the review for Chuck Rock WOPR of his Blog, I came back to mind by way of setting Preihistorik prehistoric (but by !) awarded by the French Titus Interactive in 1991 for Amiga, Atari ST, Amstrad CPC and of course PC / MS-DOS. Although the title
Titus has not enjoyed the same clamor reserved to the adventures of "Rock Carletto," I think this is a good game that deserves to be revived, if only for the healthy fun that can give. That said, let's get started ...


The game begins with the protagonist, a nice cave, surrounded by deep sleep punctuated by dreams of natural food. Woke up and the troglodyte, you realize you have a hunger that will push him crazy, armed with only his club, to address the four levels that make up the game, looking for any bendidio. They start our adventures that will take us through to the world of caves, ice, forest and lava for the sole purpose of appeasing the visceral need for food of the protagonist. Along the way, caves to explore, to find ready-made dishes, and pet beat and turn in as many goodies. The purpose of perigrinare, while achieving the end of the level, to fill the satiety index, which stands high up in the status bar along with the number of lives remaining, the energy bar and time remaining to reach the exit. At the end of each world, we will be invited to address the classic boss (tirannosaruro rex, triceratops and pterodactyl) which gatekeeper to the next.
Along the way we collect some bonus as the stone ax, which shoots down an enemy with one blow, the talisman that gives an extra life , the clock that gives a little 'more time to get to end of the level, the spring which increases the height of the jump and the bomb annihilates all animals on-screen. These bonus , potrenno be picked up exploring the caves scattered throughout the levels or perquotendo with your weapon, the shaman who appears from time to time (always in the same positions). To enrich the gameplay within each level we have to face some screen aboard unlikely means of locomotion such as balloons in the first level or the prehistoric gliding in the second. At this stage we can not offend, but we should confine ourselves to avoid the enemies that try to block the road.

image of the first level and its boss, the fearsome T-Rex from ingrown toenails

Graphically the game is very good, thanks to the good use of colors in the VGA and the nice and well animated sprites. Only note, the transition between one screen and the next, no fluid flow through the progressive ( scrolling) but to "click" whenever the protagnista reaches the edge of the screen. The sound is not too bad given the four different tracks that accompany us in so many levels, mythical, in the ring we deal with the different boss, accompanying evidendemente inspired by the soundtrack of the movie Rocky Balboa . Actually, given the length of the levels, a single pattern repeated in the complex is soon bored but basically you can not have everything: o)
The sound effects though good, tend a bit 'to "get lost" between the notes accompanying the songs, the quality is not that depressing, but your hearing system from the now legendary Sound Blaster, you'd expect something more! The
gameplay is the classic kind of platform with large levels to explore and enemies to mazzulare in joy even though some are so cute, see the penguins of the second level, which sometimes almost sorry to take on the bigwigs clubbed. Personally, I appreciated the need for pixel-perfect jumps due coicidenza between the obstacles we must overcome and the height / apiezza of jumps that we will be able to do (thank goodness there's the legendary mainspring !!!).

For the rest there is not much to add except the criticism only four levels available, which, though long and fraught with difficulties, are completed with relative ease, it seems as if the programmers have included some difficulties such as' limited time available, the jumps and the lack of millimeter-range of our weapons (basically it always clashes with cold) just to increase a bit 'longevity of the title.

Aboard hang-gliding in the second level and the BEGINNING of the lava world that will lead to the end of our adventure

short, Prehistorik is certainly not a masterpiece, but in any case is one of those titles, which once started is hard to give end to end. The gameplay is not the best of verietà but is nonetheless appreciated and will certainly give us insights cute and funny ... we are dealing with a good game, albeit not to the splendor of Chuck Rock, offers interesting and does it with taste. In the following video

your brave editor completes the first level ...


... then fill the big toe clubbed the evil T-Rex guarding the exit!!

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Poseidon Openkore How

Sopwith (1984)

Chi for a while 'follow this blog have noticed the attention that it treats the very first generation of games on PC gaming, when the colors were four and an essentially non-existent. I do this "effort" and for the pleasure it gives me take up these titles, which have accompanied me in my youth, and because it seems to me correct in some way preserve the memory that is gradually being blurred. After having discussed
Alley Cat , Tetris , Rogue and Hart Hat Mak , just to name a few, now I want to tell the "parable" of Sopwith title dogfights dated 1984. At first sight the use of the word parable may seem exaggerated, but if we consider that even today this game, despite never being released commercially, has fansite, fans and many remake ... Well something special but it should have! Let's see what it is ...


The Sopwith Camel protagonist of this game

David L. Clark young programmer BMB Compuscience , is responsible for implementing an application that can demonstrate the potential of their networking architecture called Imaginet . David decides to develop Sopwith distributed multiplayer game bundle with the network equipment. The game allows two players to compete in aerobatic dogfights aboard a World War I biplane. Each plane is armed with bombs and machine guns which shoot down the enemy and destroy installations ground opponents. The game ends with a romantic flight into the sunset, when the enemy's infrastructure was completely destroyed. The player's biplane '1 'is identified by the color cyan, that of the player '2' is magenta (with four color dosposizione you could not ask for more!) Same goes for the ground equipment. In addition to the one against one (playable only on network Imaginet ) are the mode ' single player' and 'Against single player computer ': the first will allow you to become familiar with the control system without the hassle of enemy fire, while the second will allow you to play head-controlled the trust CPU. The player controlled by the processor does not shine for some tactical and intelligence but more often using the technique of suicide bombers , it proves difficult opponent more than once to check. Before proceeding to the description of the control system, which were clearly articulated deserves a chapter at a party, I invite you to view the images below, which, in addition to showing a sequence of duel ended with the defeat of the biplane cyan (I did the rhyme, that good !!!), let me show you some very important elements of the play. The largest portion of the screen is obviously used to see the battlefield in the low we find, the map of the arena (you always play in an environment surrounded by two insurmountable cliffs) with colored dots representing the various goals, the score (which may even go negative because it moves or attacks decreased the incorrect score ) and a nice histogram showing the level of "health" of your biplane and the remaining amount of fuel, bullets and bombs. Due to limited resources comes into play a strong strategic component that will force you to prudent management to avoid having to return to base for refueling and repairs, leaving your facility at the mercy of enemy fire.


Struck!!

The control system of the biplane is to use different keys: ',' (comma) to increase the angle of flight '.' (Period) to reverse the flight position and '/' (slash ) to decrease the inclination of the plane. In addition there are 'Z' to decrease speed, 'X' to increase, 'H' to engage the autopilot and return to base, 'B' to drop a bomb and then the space bar to fire the machine gun. In short, a sprawling system of control that will take some 'practice to be dominated but which, once entered your strings, allowing you to run and spectacular acrobatics.

The game is all here, and though his gameplay may seem somewhat limited, I assure you that has that particular feeling that forces you "morally" to do one more match and then another and then a ' other yet unable to quit. In short, the feeling some nice games once you are literally glued to the screen without understanding why.

Two images of the first in-game Sopwith

The following year, on the success of the game that had spread beyond the network Imaginet now defunct, Clark decides to release a new version, entitled simply Sopwith II, which are added two nice new features: the cows that graze the ground, causing a loss of 200 points for "killing", and a flock of birds precipitate flight when hit in our plane. Are a few graphical improvements such as explosions more elaborate, and the holes left in the ground from the explosion.

Two images of in-game Sopwith II (note the cute cow)

In 2000, with the release GNU GPL licensed code Sopwith , comes " Sopwith - The Author's edition "where the author once again enriches the gameplay introducing (in battle mode only) the end-seeking missiles and counter-tactics ( flare ) for detecting. It also relaxes the conduct of 'plane as a "slam" with the upper edge of the screen: Now you can recover control, while in earlier versions this case involved the crash to the ground mercilessly. On the other hand if you run into ascended without sufficient speed, the plane will stall resulting in a slave to the soil. magazine is obviously the graphics, which while remaining in compliance with CGA traditions, this new and nice animations. With this release, the game reaches the climax.

The presentation screen and a picture of the special game of Sopwith

All versions of the game works perfectly with the DosBox provided a bit of fiddling 'with the parameter cycles to adjust the speed (between 300 and 400 should be fine). If you are not going crazy too, you can download the Windows version directly from the site author. In both cases, I advise you to set the U.S. keyboard layout (in DosBox, type the command ' keyb us') in order to find the slash next point (thus limiting excessive contortions).

Damn, kidnapped by a description of gameplay, I forgot to tell you about the sound, given the strictly internal speaker (at the beginning of the '80s is that there were no alternatives): Fortunately, there is no "music "but only background sound effects that underscore the engine noise, explosions and the melancholy whistle of the falling of our biplane.

Well, I hope my story will stimulate your desire to try this "classical" of softech PC in the early '80s. The graphics will not be a much, the sound is practically non-existent but the gameplay is really the stars. Unfortunately at present it is not possible to play in multiplayer mode now obsolete because of the protocols, we hope that some willing producing a layer of emulation, perhaps for the fantastic DosBox. Let the battle begin ...


Thursday, December 2, 2010

Big Knot On Dog's Tail

Habemus Banner

Dear readers ... today, thanks to the valuable work of his friend Francis "Gekido" Ugga, the reference site for lovers of retrogaming on PC (ok ... I'm a bit 'by mounting the head!) is enthroned in a beautiful banner that not only include the title of the blog , tries to tell his "short" the evolution of the noble art gaming platform MS-DOS. The first traces banner in less than a thousand pixels path Larry Laffer (loser playboy born of the fertile imagination of Al Lowe and published by Sierra On-Line ) from its first appearance Leisure Suit Larry in the Land of the Lounge Lizards (1987) until his last adventure Leisure Suit Larry 7: Love for Sail! (1996) ... I purposely left out the latest episodes delivered, with little success, only to exploit the popularity of the character.
Personally I can not help but thank Gekido for the delicious thought, who gives to my blog color and a touch of professionalism that never hurts ... in short, Francis, editor of Re.BIT, will also be a despot, but it is undeniable that the mouse knows his own making (it shows the beautiful graphics of our magazine that I invite you once again to read ).

Many thanks, Tex

Sunday, November 28, 2010

Short Dresses For A Valentines Dance

Loom (1990)

"Much time has passed from the era of the Second Shadow, when dragons ruled the sky and the stars were bright and numerous ... "


In a possible future, the company is organized in the city was built around guild trades: smiths, shepherds, glaziers and clerics are powerful clans that share the legislative power, administrative and military. Isolated on the tiny island of LOOM , lives the weavers' guild, which avoids the political issues to pursue with devotion to the study of his art. Over the centuries the art of weaving beyond the limits of the canvas, thanks to a magical frame that allows guild members to influence and alter the reality of the future. Lady Cygna Threadbare a young woman in the congregation, asking the elderly to use the magical powers of the frame to ease the suffering of his people who, because of isolation, is slowly disappearing. Faced with rejection, she decides to secretly use the loom to weave the fate of the newborn child and save dall'infausto future of its people. Discovered the crime, the council of elders transforms the woman into a swan, was condemned to exile, and entrusting the little lady to Hetchel .

Bobbin, this is the name chosen by Hetchel grows isolated from the rest of the community, marginalized out of fear of the dark omen launched by the mother with his act recklessly. Hetchel , despite the prohibition of the elderly, the young man secretly teaches the art of weaving and magic.

On his seventeenth birthday, Bobbin is summoned by the council of elders who want to decide his fate (which is far from rosy.) Arriving at the palace of the council, the young man hears the voices of older people intent on trial for having taught Hetchel despite their prohibition. Hidden in the shadows, Bobbin sees his nurse became, for punishment, in an egg. Who makes the issues here ... and break into the room a swan that turns the elderly, and all the people weavers, into swans who leave the earth plane through an interdimensional gateway. Bobbin is so alone ... in the company of an egg! After I got the magic stick (the distaff ) of the head of the council, cast his first spell on the egg from which emerges a black duckling ( Hetchel ) who, before leaving our size, it informs the boy that it's up to him to save the world by the arrival of the Third Shadow. His fate, magically woven by his mother years before, is to leave the island of Loom, get in touch with other guilds and retrieve the objects necessary to complete its task. Here begins your adventure that you do not provide further details so as not to spoil the taste of the good life step by step story of the title.


Bobbin convened by the council of elders - The city of the guild of blacksmiths

When, in 1990 the LucasFilm published Loom, had already to his credit three excellent adventure games ( Maniac Mansion "," Zak McKracken and the Alien Mindbenders "and" Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade ") who had deservedly projected Olympus producers of this genre. The major innovation in the software house, founded in 1982 by George Lucas multifaceted, was the abandonment of the text parser (which had characterized the era of text adventures) and replace it with a fully managed via the mouse (from which the definition of "point and click adventure"). Clicking on the scenario moves the character, the commands you impart selecting an action from the list of verbs and objects from the inventory or the elements of the background (well, a step forward not just !!!). Well ... if you had the opportunity to play one of the previous games in the Lucas, the approach to Loom may seem a bit 'unsettling: the list of verbs, as well as inventory disappeared, giving way to only distaff with which you can weave spells (called wefts) are necessary to interact with the elements of the scenario. The stick is engraved with the eight musical notes ranging from C to high C (indicated by the letters cac ', the corresponding notation in English), a spell is formed by the sequence of four notes played in a certain order. At this point you'll wonder how you learn spells: nothing more simple, just examine objects by double-clicking of mouse (click the single serving to select the object on which to launch a plot) and "interesting" as if by magic (it's appropriate to say it) is literally put to play, teach a new plot. With a double click the pot full of dye for fabrics, for example, the spell will be unveiled to color objects. The plots can also be played by reversing the sequence, thus giving rise to reverse the spell: For example, run through Colors on the contrary, you get the bleaching effect. That's it, your task is limited to exploring the scenarios, discovering new textures and use them to solve puzzles that gradually the game offers. It is therefore all the more simpler than the previous adventures of Lucas , but equally rewarding.
Initially you can only use three of the eight notes available, while the remaining will be released gradually with continued adventure, giving you access to more powerful spells.



Bobbin magic in front of the frame. The lower part of the distaff with which to weave your plots


Scripted by Brian Moriarty, author of the excellent text adventure Infocom, the game was created with the goal of becoming the first interactive movie history sacrificing in part, the gameplay to enjoy ample narrative. Unfortunately time was not ripe and the limits of the medium on which the title was released (3 floppy disk), prevented the game to fully express its potential. To work around this obstacle in part (and to increase the quality of the narrative) is included in the package a cassette that, in the form of "audio drama" tells, in detail, the extensive preamble that serves as introduction to the Adventures of Bobbin. The same control system was designed specifically not to "distract" from over the player to experience the adventure. From these considerations follows a major defects Loom : Lack of longevity. Not having more resources available graphic-sound, compared to the previous adventures, and given the simplicity of the interface and the limited interaction, the game can be completed comfortably in a couple of days of intense play. Little are the three levels of difficulty which only increase the complexity of using the magic wand: the highest level there are no incisions with the notes and when you discover a new plot "to go by ear to see what shades used to play it. Far too little from this point of view to achieve sufficiency.

different for Speech As for the graphics and sound. The graphics, although only 16 colors, is very pleasant both for the sprites that the waters (some designed in a masterly way). The new version of the SCUMM allows you to manage large range shots, with characters that diminish with distance from the observer, and close ups that emphasize the intensity of the dialogues. Very good sound with support for cards AdLib and Sound Blaster . Excellent adaptation of George Alistair Sanger "Fat Man" piece by Tchaikovsky that form the soundtrack to our deeds, but unfortunately, once again, the limits of the support prevents you from having a constant accompaniment throughout the game, but when the music is, is valuable and always adapted to the situations experienced by the protagonist.


In Loom you can fly even if the location is not convenient! - The city of emeralds guild of glassmakers

Loom adventure is strange and somewhat unconventional, and some will love to hate the other madness, and my advice is to try to understand the most creative and innovative spirit that makes the title of LucasFilm the best adventures ever made.

Other versions

The game is released at once, plus, PC Amiga, Atari ST and Macintosh. All versions are essentially identical except that for the 'Amiga that, as usual, shows off a better sound. In 1992 he released the PC version CD-ROM with 256 color VGA graphics, digital audio and speech.


The lair of the dragon in the splendor of the 256 color VGA

SCUMM

The Script Creation Utility for Maniac Mansion is the application made by Aric Wilmunder and R on Gilbert, back in 1987, to simplify the development of Maniac Mansion. The use of a scripting language allowed developers to use images, sprites, music and dialogue sequences without putting hand to complex programming languages. Originally developed on the C64 and later ported to many platforms, from the 3DO Sega Mega CD, allowed us all to enjoy the wonderful adventure games produced over the years by the group of wizards of LucasFilm (later LucasArts ). Although no longer officially used the SCUMM is alive and well thanks to the open source project ScummVM (SCUMM Virtual Machine ) that allows us all to play fluently in securities of Lucas (and others) on modern operating systems ... a great job!

I leave you with a demo movie of non-interactive Loom I hope you can make you want to try this amazing adventure ...



PS The review you have just read is taken from the third issue of Re.BIT that I recommend reading the following this link ... Do not miss this hymn to retrogaming .