4th Dimension Games
Steve Harratt
Hi All
I have a RPC fitted with SA and my children have the following 4th D. Games
Saloon Cars Deluxe
Chopper Force
Drop Ship
Enter The Realm
Pandoras Box
E type
147 Pool
Has anyone managed to get them working on the RPC. I have tried both Game On
and Strong Guard by the Arm Club, but to no avail.
I would be most grateful for any help in getting them working.
Thanks in anticipation.
Cheers
--
__________________________________________
| |
Steve & James | Steve Harratt LRPS |
| Tel. (01302) 535891 |
Harratt | Email Steve steve....@argonet.co.uk |
| James ja...@argonet.co.uk |
|__________________________________________|
Martin Piper
In message <na.4526ff4744.a7...@argonet.co.uk> Steve Harratt wrote:
> Hi All
>
> I have a RPC fitted with SA and my children have the following 4th D. Games
>
> Saloon Cars Deluxe
> Chopper Force
> Drop Ship
> Enter The Realm
> Pandoras Box
> E type
> 147 Pool
>
> Has anyone managed to get them working on the RPC. I have tried both Game On
> and Strong Guard by the Arm Club, but to no avail.
>
> I would be most grateful for any help in getting them working.
>
> Thanks in anticipation.
>
> Cheers
>
I'm afraid you find will it very difficult if not impossible to get old
4th dimension games working on a SA. However if you have ever bought any TBA
games, like Axis, Cobalt Seed etc then you can get replacements that are SA
aware from us.
--
Martin Piper
Partner, TBA Software.
Free demo downloads of our software at http://www.tba-software.co.uk/
Stuart Thomson
> Hi All
>
> I have a RPC fitted with SA and my children have the following 4th D. Games
>
> Saloon Cars Deluxe
Yes, no problems, using GameOn. (Except that when you drive on the grass, it
flickers a bit!)
> Pandoras Box
Tried and failed.
> E type
Worked when I first got my RPC (using GameOn). Tried it recently and it
doesn't work! Not sure what's happened there. (Presumably you mean E type,
rather than E type 2.)
>
> Has anyone managed to get them working on the RPC. I have tried both Game
> On and Strong Guard by the Arm Club, but to no avail.
>
> I would be most grateful for any help in getting them working.
>
> Thanks in anticipation.
>
> Cheers
>
Hope that helps, or at least indicates which you should keep trying with.
Email me with some more info about Saloon Cars if you think it will help.
--
Stuart Thomson HAPPY
st5...@bristol.ac.uk (term-time only) NEW YEAR!
stu...@lavenham.demon.co.uk
Stuart Marshall
In article <na.4526ff4744.a7...@argonet.co.uk>, Steve Harratt
<URL:mailto:steve....@argonet.co.uk> wrote:
> I have a RPC fitted with SA and my children have the following 4th D. Games
>
> Saloon Cars Deluxe
> Chopper Force
> Drop Ship
> Enter The Realm
> Pandoras Box
> E type
> 147 Pool
>
> Has anyone managed to get them working on the RPC. I have tried both
> Game On and Strong Guard by the Arm Club, but to no avail.
<easy escuse for blatant plug!>
Yes!
Saloon Cars Deluxe (the later versions certainly) can be persuaded to
work with StrongARM together with StrongCache (available at URL
below). I'm not too sure about earlier versions (they used a slightly
different copy protection method which refuses to work with StrongARM
at all), although if the copy protection can be removed in some way
then the game itself does work.
E-Type certainly works without any problems with StrongCache,
although turning the cache off altogether might also work.
Break 147 / Superpool also work with StrongCache, or at least my
versions do.
I've had no joy so far with Chopper Force, Enter The Realm and
Pandoras Box - this is down to the copy protection (if anyone has a
nice version -copy protection I'd appreciate knowing if these work
with StrongCache).
I've had a couple of emails from people who claim to have had Drop
Ship working under StrongARM with StrongCache - but as I've not been
able to try this myself I'm not sure.
Oh well, it looks as though we've nearly got a 50% success rate. Not
bad for a free program! <grin>
Basically <about to set of Andrew Clover again...> the majority of
problems are once again down to poor copy protection used. They never
stopped anyone copying the titles - but what they have achieved is
poor compatibility. Stupid really.
If you have any problems getting any of the titles working I've
mentioned can be made to run please drop me a line and I'll try and
sort things out.
(StrongCache release 2 is unfortunately going to be later than
planned, late January is the expected release).
Cheers,
--
Stuart Marshall, Spidersoft - http://www.argonet.co.uk/spidersoft/
______________________________________________________________________
d.s....@argonet.co.uk, backup moderator of comp.sys.acorn.announce.
Submissions to cs...@art.acorn.co.uk, related mail to
csaa-r...@art.acorn.co.uk. A posting in comp.sys.acorn.announce
does not constitute endorsement by any part of the Acorn Group.
Stuart Thomson
> Hi All
>
> I have a RPC fitted with SA and my children have the following 4th D. Games
>
^^^^^^^ Oops - missed that when I sent my last posting,
so please ignore it. My posting referred to a RPC *without* SA :-(
Alex Card
In article <ant300149868P$A...@arg.argonet.co.uk>, Stuart Marshall
<URL:mailto:d.s....@argonet.co.uk> wrote:
>
> In article <na.4526ff4744.a7...@argonet.co.uk>, Steve Harratt
> <URL:mailto:steve....@argonet.co.uk> wrote:
>
> >
> > Chopper Force
> > Drop Ship
> > Enter The Realm
> > Pandoras Box
> > E type
> > 147 Pool
> >
> > Has anyone managed to get them working on the RPC. I have tried both
> > Game On and Strong Guard by the Arm Club, but to no avail.
> Break 147 / Superpool also work with StrongCache, or at least my
> versions do.
I can confirm this, they are the Risc PC versions though as the originals
didn't work (even without StrongARM)
>
> I've had no joy so far with Chopper Force, Enter The Realm and
> Pandoras Box - this is down to the copy protection (if anyone has a
> nice version -copy protection I'd appreciate knowing if these work
> with StrongCache).
I have got Chopper Force working with StrongCache, also the new version of
Pandora's Box that is on The Real McCoy 5 works nice and swiftly without the
need even for StrongCache. No joy with Enter The Realm yet though.
>
> I've had a couple of emails from people who claim to have had Drop
> Ship working under StrongARM with StrongCache - but as I've not been
> able to try this myself I'm not sure.
I've not managed to get Drop Ship working at all (with StrongCache or
StrongGuard).
>
> Oh well, it looks as though we've nearly got a 50% success rate. Not
> bad for a free program! <grin>
Ah beat you.. 66% ish. StrongCache is excellent and always my first choice
for those awkward games. What's the new version going to do differently and
can I test it for you ?.
Check out Peter Smith's, Gareth Moore's and Martin Friar's compatibility
lists too !.
Alex.
--
Alex Card - I know nothing.. RTFManuel
E-mail : al...@acetone.demon.co.uk
Web Pages : http://www.acetone.demon.co.uk
Darren Salt
In article <ant300149868P$A...@arg.argonet.co.uk>
Stuart Marshall <d.s....@argonet.co.uk> wrote:
[snip]
> I've had no joy so far with Chopper Force, Enter The Realm and Pandoras Box
> - this is down to the copy protection (if anyone has a nice version -copy
> protection I'd appreciate knowing if these work with StrongCache).
(Hmm, I have one or two of these in need of deprotection...)
If this is the same protection as on Cataclysm, it's reasonably easily
broken; I have that very game (fully unprotected) running without problems -
well, other than needing GameOn to fix the frame rate. (I don't know whether
it would work on SA, not having one to try it on.)
Using the original disks, it fails on a * command with the game fully (or
at least almost fully) loaded...
[snip]
> Basically <about to set off Andrew Clover again...>
;-)
> the majority of problems are once again down to poor copy protection used.
> They never stopped anyone copying the titles - but what they have achieved
> is poor compatibility. Stupid really.
Yes. I was playing around with Robocod [1] earlier today, and found that it
wouldn't quite work properly on my RPC. I quickly ruled out disk defects by
checking it on my A3010; it ran perfectly, not limiting you to one level.
Copy protection problems again, though an ADFS_DiscOp trap soon fixed that.
I've still to stop it hanging when I tell it to return to the desktop,
though...
[1] Yes, I know it's not a 4D game :-)
--
| Darren Salt | Acorn Risc PC, | 01268 515441 | Toon Army
| arc...@spuddy.mew.co.uk | A3010, BBC Master | free email & | Season ticket
| darre...@unn.ac.uk | Spectrum +3 | Usenet |
| We've got Shearer, you haven't
No good deed goes unpunished.
Craig Adam Brown
Steve Harratt <steve....@argonet.co.uk> wrote:
>Hi All
>I have a RPC fitted with SA and my children have the following 4th D. Games
>Saloon Cars Deluxe
>Chopper Force
>Drop Ship
>Enter The Realm
>Pandoras Box
>E type
>147 Pool
>Has anyone managed to get them working on the RPC. I have tried both Game On
>and Strong Guard by the Arm Club, but to no avail.
>I would be most grateful for any help in getting them working.
4th D. do offer upgrades for some of these games, but IMHO the prices
are very high :-(
My homepage (http://homepages.enterprise.net/craggleb)
carries a picture of my RiscPC running Mac OS in a
window and has numerous emulator links. It also has garish
colours and no content to speak of as yet. Still, I'm
working on it. Give me feedback & ideas!
david_lodge
In article , Darren says...
>In article <ant300149868P$A...@arg.argonet.co.uk>
> Stuart Marshall <d.s....@argonet.co.uk> wrote:
>[snip]
>> I've had no joy so far with Chopper Force, Enter The Realm and Pandoras Box
>> - this is down to the copy protection (if anyone has a nice version -copy
>> protection I'd appreciate knowing if these work with StrongCache).
>broken; I have that very game (fully unprotected) running without problems -
>well, other than needing GameOn to fix the frame rate. (I don't know whether
>it would work on SA, not having one to try it on.)
Again its Gordon Key's stupid frigging Z-filer module - a program written by a
moron who has no idea of how to write copy protection....
Bit strong you might think, but half the problems with 4D games[1] are due to
assumptions made by Mr Key in writing Z-filer, and then he boasts about
how good his protection is (cf X-fire) The protection is easy enough to
remove - I'd advise anybody to do this as it gives your games more chance
of surviving hardware upgrades ad nauseum...
dave
[1] And Starfighter 2000
David Glover
In article <5aehb9$i...@news.enterprise.net>, crag...@enterprise.net (Craig
Adam Brown) wrote:
> Give me feedback & ideas!
Here's an idea... DELIMIT YOUR SIG!!
--
David Glover - glo...@argonet.co.uk - http://www.argonet.co.uk/users/glover/
MCSSoftware - FCOS - ZFC A S - IRC "Quasi" - Support free speech on the net.
50 Z=RND(1)
Stuart Marshall
> Again its Gordon Key's stupid frigging Z-filer module - a program
> written by a moron who has no idea of how to write copy protection....
> Bit strong you might think, but half the problems with 4D games[1]
> are due to assumptions made by Mr Key in writing Z-filer, and then he
> boasts about how good his protection is (cf X-fire) The protection is
> easy enough to remove - I'd advise anybody to do this as it gives
> your games more chance of surviving hardware upgrades ad nauseum...
Wasn't ZFiler that dreadful module which decided to reset your
machine as soon as you hit F12? I managed to crack the original version, but the later games (SC Deluxe etc...) I still can't get done... :-(
(shame really, as I'm sure they'd work without the d*mn protection).
Regards,
Stuart Marshall
In article <5aehb9$i...@news.enterprise.net>, Craig Adam Brown
<URL:mailto:crag...@enterprise.net> wrote:
> >Has anyone managed to get them working on the RPC. I have tried both Game On
> >and Strong Guard by the Arm Club, but to no avail.
>
> >I would be most grateful for any help in getting them working.
>
> 4th D. do offer upgrades for some of these games, but IMHO the prices
> are very high :-(
You mean they offer upgrades now? Last I heard was that you had to
buy the full game again at RRP. :-(
Stuart Marshall
In article <ant01112...@acetone.demon.co.uk>, Alex Card
<URL:mailto:al...@acetone.demon.co.uk> wrote:
> In article <ant300149868P$A...@arg.argonet.co.uk>, Stuart Marshall
> <URL:mailto:d.s....@argonet.co.uk> wrote:
> > Oh well, it looks as though we've nearly got a 50% success rate. Not
> > bad for a free program! <grin>
> Ah beat you.. 66% ish. StrongCache is excellent and always my first choice
> for those awkward games. What's the new version going to do differently and
> can I test it for you ?.
Thanks for the kind comments Alex, much appreciated. The new version
(which seems to be getting held up far too often at the moment) will
offer more advanced cache switching options as well as some rather
clever cache flushing code which (so far) seems to cure quite a lot
more problems than we originally thought. A timer will be introduced
(just for completeness :-) ), and a database containing application
details. Basically, double-clicking a program will cause StrongCache
to check whether it knows anything about it - causing it to act
accordingly. Kind-of like a certain commercial product ;-)
(Alex, if you can drop spide...@argonet.co.uk an email with the
subject "StrongCache beta" you'll be added to the list).
> Check out Peter Smith's, Gareth Moore's and Martin Friar's compatibility
> lists too !.
Agreed, both excellent pages.
david_lodge
In article , Stuart says...
>> Bit strong you might think, but half the problems with 4D games[1]
>> are due to assumptions made by Mr Key in writing Z-filer, and then he
>> boasts about how good his protection is (cf X-fire) The protection is
>> easy enough to remove - I'd advise anybody to do this as it gives
>> your games more chance of surviving hardware upgrades ad nauseum...
>Wasn't ZFiler that dreadful module which decided to reset your
>machine as soon as you hit F12? I managed to crack the original version,but
>the later games (SC Deluxe etc...) I still can't get done... :-(
Yep; that's the module - it's gone through about 20 changes, none of the changes have made it harder to remove, as there is a fatal flaw in it. Though
saying that the version on SF3000 had been altered slightly to make it
harder to crack; this just prevented it running on my computer - I removed
the copy-protection and - hey presto - it worked...
Erm... As to removing the protection it is so easy I could tell you now, but
erm... that's against copyright.
dave
(trying to guard his own back here)
Clive
I sure that simply TELLING us how to remove it wouldn't be a breach of copyright.
--
Cheers,
Clive
Chris
>> Erm... As to removing the protection it is so easy I could tell you
>> now, but erm... that's against copyright.
>> dave
>> (trying to guard his own back here)
> I sure that simply TELLING us how to remove it wouldn't be a breach of
> copyright.
> -- Cheers, Clive
How about emailing the interested people then no one knows, and no need to
guard back ??
Emailed from an Acorn Risc PC running Risc-OS, & Strong Arm
ch...@epsaber.demon.co.uk
Richard Sutton
Quoteing foollows
In article <19970104....@coltonhs.demon.co.uk>,
kcegg...@coltonhs.demon.co.uk (Clive) wrote:
>
> In message <5aj0rr$8...@lana.zippo.com> you wrote:
>
> > In article , Stuart says...
> > >> Bit strong you might think, but half the problems with 4D games[1]
> > >> are due to assumptions made by Mr Key in writing Z-filer, and then he
> > >> boasts about how good his protection is (cf X-fire) The protection is
> > >> easy enough to remove - I'd advise anybody to do this as it gives
> > >> your games more chance of surviving hardware upgrades ad nauseum...
> > >Wasn't ZFiler that dreadful module which decided to reset your
> > >machine as soon as you hit F12? I managed to crack the original
> version,but
> > >the later games (SC Deluxe etc...) I still can't get done... :-(
snip
> >
> > saying that the version on SF3000 had been altered slightly to make it
> > harder to crack; this just prevented it running on my computer - I
> removed
> > the copy-protection and - hey presto - it worked...
> >
> > Erm... As to removing the protection it is so easy I could tell you now,
snip
> I sure that simply TELLING us how to remove it wouldn't be a breach of
> copyright.
Even if it does not surely this would lead 4D games open to piracey by the
masses please keep it secret!
We have a moral obligation. It is not fair to go giving the information
needed to copy something. So I have come up with a quit if may be slighty
naught/illegall soulution.
PLESE NOTE: This just a Idea I had I neither aprove or dis aprove and by no
means agree to take part.
Why can't the person who knows how to do this tell us over email so we can
getour games to work. We could then leave this thread alone to not be seen
ny too many people, if anyone in the futre we could see needs help somone
could quietly email them the solution
This would leave the games working,
Tom,
--
From tiny Acorns Grow Mighty Oaks! back...@argonet.co.uk or nem...@cyberyjunky.com
Cooming to you from a Risc pc SA For a free catalogue of Bargain Monitors
200mhz 21mb Arm powerd Risc machine. printer inks and internet/Dtp mail Nemesis.
Menber of the Arm Club! ZFC A and C ranking menbers!
Martin Piper
In message <19970104....@coltonhs.demon.co.uk> Clive wrote:
> In message <5aj0rr$8...@lana.zippo.com> you wrote:
>
> > In article , Stuart says...
> > >> Bit strong you might think, but half the problems with 4D games[1]
> > >> are due to assumptions made by Mr Key in writing Z-filer, and then he
> > >> boasts about how good his protection is (cf X-fire) The protection is
> > >> easy enough to remove - I'd advise anybody to do this as it gives
> > >> your games more chance of surviving hardware upgrades ad nauseum...
> > >Wasn't ZFiler that dreadful module which decided to reset your
> > >machine as soon as you hit F12? I managed to crack the original version,but
> > >the later games (SC Deluxe etc...) I still can't get done... :-(
> >
> > Yep; that's the module - it's gone through about 20 changes, none of the changes have made it harder to remove, as there is a fatal flaw in it. Though
> > saying that the version on SF3000 had been altered slightly to make it
> > harder to crack; this just prevented it running on my computer - I removed
> > the copy-protection and - hey presto - it worked...
> >
> > Erm... As to removing the protection it is so easy I could tell you now, but
> > erm... that's against copyright.
> >
> > dave
> >
> > (trying to guard his own back here)
> >
>
> I sure that simply TELLING us how to remove it wouldn't be a breach of copyright.
>
Trap some certain SWI's, store the results then replay them. ;-)
Andy Rose
>>> Erm... As to removing the protection it is so easy I could tell you
> How about emailing the interested people then no one knows, and no need
> to guard back ??
Yes Please ;-))
Yours
Andy.
--
Paul Clifford
In article <2659e...@soup-kitchen.demon.co.uk>,
mat...@soup-kitchen.demon.co.uk (Matthew Bloch) wrote:
> In article <19970105....@tbalond.demon.co.uk>
> Mar...@tbalond.demon.co.uk (Martin Piper) wrote:
>
> > Trap some certain SWI's, store the results then replay them. ;-)
>
> Well, that's the theory :-)
Or, you could hack the ZFiler module to allow you to load in all the
encrypted files, kill off the module and save them back unencrypted.
Once you've modified the lines that load these files using ZFiler,
your game no longer needs the module and stands a far better chance of
working on a newer machine.
--
"So what do we do if we get bitten by something deadly, then?"
He blinked at me as if I was stupid. "Well what do you think you do?"
he said. "You die of course. That's what deadly means."
Darren Salt
In article <ant030054bc8P$A...@arg.argonet.co.uk>
Stuart Marshall <d.s....@argonet.co.uk> wrote:
> In article <5agd16$r...@lana.zippo.com>, <URL:mailto:David@> wrote:
>> Again its Gordon Key's stupid frigging Z-filer module - a program written
>> by a moron who has no idea of how to write copy protection....
[snip]
>> The protection is easy enough to remove - I'd advise anybody to do this as
>> it gives your games more chance of surviving hardware upgrades ad
>> nauseum...
> Wasn't ZFiler that dreadful module which decided to reset your machine as
> soon as you hit F12? I managed to crack the original version, but the later
> games (SC Deluxe etc...) I still can't get done... :-(
Probably; I've never encountered protection systems which look for
keypresses!
It must be the original version which I've encountered, since it only resets
on certain * commands (but not *% commands :-) ) and certain OS calls,
notably OS_File with R0=0 or 10.
> (shame really, as I'm sure they'd work without the d*mn protection).
Speaking of stupid assumptions, don't you just *hate* those games (such
as Nevryon) with ADFS::0 hardwired in - and no provision for installation on
hard disks?
--
| Darren Salt | 01268 515441 | Toon Army | Acorn Risc PC,
| arc...@spuddy.mew.co.uk | free email & | Season ticket | A3010, BBC Master
| darre...@unn.ac.uk | Usenet | | Spectrum +3
| Sunderland? What a bunch of losers!
Stop that! It's silly!
Paul Davidson
<judicious snipping>
> Bit strong you might think, but half the problems with 4D games[1] are due to
> assumptions made by Mr Key in writing Z-filer, and then he boasts about
> how good his protection is (cf X-fire) The protection is easy enough to
> remove - I'd advise anybody to do this as it gives your games more chance
^^^^^^^
> of surviving hardware upgrades ad nauseum...
Er, could I ask you to advise *this* anybody as I haven't a clue with my
32 bit games which is very unsatisfying given the hacking I enjoyed (mostly
with a view to transferring stuff from my tape collection to disc) in the long
gone days of the Beeb. I've a pile of 4D stuff all properly paid for, which I
don't fancy paying again for just to have them change the protection methods
because of hardware upgrades.
cheers
Paul
--
____ _ |__Using:________:_from:______________________|
| _ \ __ _ _ _| | | Acorn A420/1 : p.dav...@zetnet.co.uk |
| |_) / _` | | | | | |_____ARM3_8MB___:___(at_home_in_West_Sussex)_|
| __/ (_| | |_| | | | Acorn RiscPC : p.dav...@ic.ac.uk |
|_| \__,_|\__,_|_| |____ARM610_42MB_:___(at_work_in_London)______|
Dr P.C. Davidson
In article <n485...@andyrose.demon.co.uk> and...@andyrose.demon.co.uk (Andy Rose) writes:
>>>> Erm... As to removing the protection it is so easy I could tell you
>[snip]
>> How about emailing the interested people then no one knows, and no need
>> to guard back ??
>
>Yes Please ;-))
Seconded! I used to be able to do this stuff in the BBC micro days
(and occasionally getting ten times as much fun out of it than out of the
games themselves!), but haven't a clue how to go about it nowadays.
This talk of trapping SWI callls - does that mean they are all passed
through some vector/indirect address location as on the Beebs, which can
then be passed firstly to your own code? If so where and how to set it
up?
cheers
Paul
Liam Gretton
In article <19970108....@plasma.demon.co.uk>, Paul Clifford
<URL:mailto:pa...@plasma.demon.co.uk> wrote:
> Or, you could hack the ZFiler module to allow you to load in all the
> encrypted files, kill off the module and save them back unencrypted.
> Once you've modified the lines that load these files using ZFiler,
> your game no longer needs the module and stands a far better chance of
> working on a newer machine.
That isn't as easy as trapping SWIs as ZFiler uses an awful lot of
self-modifying code to initialise itself, then scrubs its own initialisation
code so you can't find which vectors it's claimed (though you could see which
ones it releases, I suppose). Actually, reading that back, this isn't a very
good argument ;-) The main problem is that you can't examine the module
without having it loaded, and so you're unable to save it for later hacking.
--
Liam Gretton
li...@binliner.demon.co.uk (preferred address) Home (0116) 2701642
l...@star.le.ac.uk
Stuart Marshall
In article <5b5jh7$7...@netty.york.ac.uk>, Simon Challands
<URL:mailto:sgc...@york.ac.uk> wrote:
> Darren Salt (arc...@spuddy.mew.co.uk) wrote:
> > Speaking of stupid assumptions, don't you just *hate* those games
> > (such as Nevryon) with ADFS::0 hardwired in - and no provision for
> > installation on hard disks?
> It might be possible to work around that. The problem with Nevryon,
> though, as far as my programming ability tells me, is that it reads
> something straight off the disc. Consequently it no longer works for
> me (even though it is an original, but came second hand with the
> computer). Try to save something else onto the disc for some reason,
> hey presto, it wiped out that all important section of code. Or at
> least that's what I think.
Yes, Nevryon does do DiscOp data straight of the disk. I can't quite
remember I cracked this one - think I used Investigator to save the
data as a file and load it in that way. Anyway, unfortunately this is
one title that (even minus protection) still doesn't work under
StrongARM.
> Chocks Away seems to have ADFS::0 wired in, takes even longer to
> load, and seems to be far more awkward to do anything about. That is
> a real **** nuisance.
Agreed, although the protection on this is fairly basic and is easily
removed. :-)
Regards,
--
Stuart Marshall, Spidersoft - http://www.argonet.co.uk/spidersoft/
______________________________________________________________________
d.s....@argonet.co.uk, Moderator of comp.sys.acorn.announce.
Simon Challands
Darren Salt (arc...@spuddy.mew.co.uk) wrote:
: Speaking of stupid assumptions, don't you just *hate* those games (such
: as Nevryon) with ADFS::0 hardwired in - and no provision for installation on
: hard disks?
It might be possible to work around that. The problem with Nevryon, though,
as far as my programming ability tells me, is that it reads something
straight off the disc. Consequently it no longer works for me (even though
it is an original, but came second hand with the computer). Try to save
something else onto the disc for some reason, hey presto, it wiped out
that all important section of code. Or at least that's what I think.
Chocks Away seems to have ADFS::0 wired in, takes even longer to load, and
seems to be far more awkward to do anything about. That is a real ****
nuisance.
--
Simon Challands
http://www.york.ac.uk/~sgc102
http://www.york.ac.uk/~sgc102/EliteDir/Elite.html - a very nice page on Elite
Darren Salt
> In message <19970104....@coltonhs.demon.co.uk> Clive wrote:
[about that **** Z-Filer protection]
>> I sure that simply TELLING us how to remove it wouldn't be a breach of
>> copyright.
> Trap some certain SWI's, store the results then replay them. ;-)
Ah yes, the tried and tested methods. ;-)
--
| Darren Salt | Toon Army | Acorn Risc PC, | 01268 515441
| arc...@spuddy.mew.co.uk | Season ticket | A3010, BBC Master | free email &
| darre...@unn.ac.uk | | Spectrum +3 | Usenet
| Kevin Keegan come back! :-(
Never put off till tomorrow what you can avoid doing entirely.
Steve Harratt
Hi All
Can anyone email me with an how to get the damm games working. I've bought
Strong Gaurd, downloaded strongCache and spent hours trying but to no avail.
I have bought originals I merely want to get them to work on my RPC with SA.
Thanks in anticipation.
--
__________________________________________
| |
Steve & James | Steve Harratt LRPS |
| Tel. (01302) 535891 |
Harratt | Email Steve steve....@argonet.co.uk |
| James ja...@argonet.co.uk |
|__________________________________________|
Paul Clifford
In article <ant09213...@binliner.demon.co.uk>,
li...@binliner.demon.co.uk (Liam Gretton) wrote:
> The main problem is that you can't examine the module without having
> it loaded, and so you're unable to save it for later hacking.
Try altering OS_Module 10 (possibly 11, can't remember) so that it
saves the data to a file instead of starting a module, and then
running the file containing the ZFiler module :)
--
"Shee, you guys are so unhip it's a wonder your bums don't fall off."
Martin Piper
In message <ant09213...@binliner.demon.co.uk> Liam Gretton wrote:
> In article <19970108....@plasma.demon.co.uk>, Paul Clifford
> <URL:mailto:pa...@plasma.demon.co.uk> wrote:
> > Or, you could hack the ZFiler module to allow you to load in all the
> > encrypted files, kill off the module and save them back unencrypted.
> > Once you've modified the lines that load these files using ZFiler,
> > your game no longer needs the module and stands a far better chance of
> > working on a newer machine.
>
> That isn't as easy as trapping SWIs as ZFiler uses an awful lot of
> self-modifying code to initialise itself, then scrubs its own initialisation
> code so you can't find which vectors it's claimed (though you could see which
> ones it releases, I suppose). Actually, reading that back, this isn't a very
> good argument ;-) The main problem is that you can't examine the module
> without having it loaded, and so you're unable to save it for later hacking.
>
> --
> Liam Gretton
> li...@binliner.demon.co.uk (preferred address) Home (0116) 2701642
> l...@star.le.ac.uk
>
Ahh but what you can do is trap out all OS_Module SWI's that run a module from
memory and alter it to save the module to disc before it starts. This makes it
much easier to alter it then! ;-)
Robin Moffatt
OK, so I'm Mr Thicky, but despite all the nudge nudge wink winks and
"trap Filer_blah OSVector 152" I'm still non the wiser about how to
get Chocks Away and Chocks Away Extra Missions working on my RPC. If
*anyone* can help I'd be *soooo* grateful. If you are in doubt as to
whether I have the originals I'll scan bits of the manual or
whatever, but PLEASE help :)
Many TIA,
Robin
--
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Robin Moffatt Horn player Sheffield, UK
Ro...@moffatt.demon.co.uk http://www.moffatt.demon.co.uk/me/
----------------------------------------------------------------------
..Oooh! Suits you sir, suits you!
Paul Clifford
In article <87749...@moffatt.demon.co.uk>,
Ro...@moffatt.demon.co.uk (Robin Moffatt) wrote:
> OK, so I'm Mr Thicky, but despite all the nudge nudge wink winks and
> "trap Filer_blah OSVector 152" I'm still non the wiser about how to
> get Chocks Away and Chocks Away Extra Missions working on my RPC. If
> *anyone* can help I'd be *soooo* grateful. If you are in doubt as to
> whether I have the originals I'll scan bits of the manual or
> whatever, but PLEASE help :)
I'm not going to show anyone how to deprotect their games, but I have
had some limited success in making 4th Dimension games work on a
StrongARM by using alternate !Run files. Carnage Inc and Time Machine
appear to work perfectly, and Haunted House is fine except that
dragging items leaves a trail behind. Saloon Cars works up until you
try and start a race, at which point it hangs, and I'm not sure about
Virtual Golf as it seems to have self-destructed :(
I haven't tried Chocks Away, as I (rather rashly) altered my original
disc and can't see how the protection worked any more, but it runs so
fast on the StrongARM it's probably not playable anyway. However, if
Robin Moffat wants to email me the original !Run files for Chocks Away
and Extra Missions (uuencoded or you'll lose important bits) then I'll
have a look. Please nobody else email me the files or I'll be swamped
by them :) If I have any success I'll post a message here.
If you're interested in the patches for the other games, they're all
in one small zip file at:
http://www.plasma.demon.co.uk/4thfixes.zip
--
"Ah," said Arthur, "this is obviously some strange usage of the word
'safe' that I wasn't previously aware of."
Liam Gretton
Hi Robin,
In article <87749...@moffatt.demon.co.uk>, Robin Moffatt
<URL:mailto:Ro...@moffatt.demon.co.uk> wrote:
> get Chocks Away and Chocks Away Extra Missions working on my RPC. If
> *anyone* can help I'd be *soooo* grateful. If you are in doubt as to
ISTR talking to you many moons ago about Chocks Away and never coming up with
the goods. I hacked both ages ago, using a brute force method (a combination
of DoggySoft's Hacker, Zap and the command line). I even had a nice little
wimp frontend which allowed me to run either quite easily. However, when I
buggered my A310's HD all of this went into the great bit-bucket in the sky.
Anyway, I rehacked 'em some time ago, and now have the two running from a
single application (they share a lot of files), with only a quick edit of the
!Run file necessary. I haven't played either for ages, though Chocks worked
on my RPC (though it's now far too fast with my StrongARM), and I'm quite
sure Extra Missions worked OK too, but was a little slow for me and my
housemate to play in two-player mode.
I could e-mail you a Sparkived copy if you wish. However, the archive is
about 600k, so if you don't wish to receive this via mail, I could set up a
passworded section on my ftp server at work (another RPC :-) from where you
could retrieve it.
Let me know how you'd prefer to receive it, anyway.
Jim or Rob White
What about all these new games that we are being promised?
Drifter seems to look quite good but what I don`t understand is why somebody
does`nt convert Wipeout instead of having a clone. Still, it does look good.
--
Jim White ZFC Pd ji...@argonet.co.uk
*or*
Rob White ZFC Al tre...@argonet.co.uk Wimbledon London England
... "Bother", said Pooh, as he started up Norton Utilities
Tony Houghton
In article <na.3bd42d474...@argonet.co.uk>
Jim or Rob White <ji...@argonet.co.uk> wrote:
> What about all these new games that we are being promised?
> Drifter seems to look quite good but what I don`t understand is why somebody
> does`nt convert Wipeout instead of having a clone. Still, it does look good.
That's very easy to understand. They'll probably get away with releasing
a clone if it's not too similar to WipeOut, but if they wanted to port
the original they'd have to pay thousands in licence fees.
Arc World said it was supposed to be released at the end of December
though :-(. I expect 4D will send me something when it is, I seem to be
on their mailing list.
--
\________________________
\ http://www.tcp.co.uk/~tonyh/
The Curling Pages \
Richard Sutton
Set it up on your works ftp site,
tell us where it is
tell me the password
Many thanks,
Tom
--
back...@argonet.co.uk or nem...@cyberjunky.com
For a free catalogue of Bargain monitors printer inks and internet and
D.T.P. packs email Nemesis. Not to forget web page creation from £5.
Menbers of the Arm Club! ZFC A and C ranking menbers!
Comming to you from a, 238mhz Arm powerd, Acorn Risc PC system.
Richard Sutton
--
back...@argonet.co.uk or nem...@cyberjunky.com
For a free catalogue of Bargain printer inks and internet, and church
D.T.P. packs email Nemesis. Not to forget web page creation from £5.
Menbers of the Arm Club! ZFC A and C ranking menbers!
Comming to you from a, 200mhz Arm powerd, Acorn Risc PC system.
Wanted: Someone/or company, to upgrade my Gemini 1 PC CO PRO Card
I have instructions including pictures, and it does work
with the writeback cache! The parts cost £80 and Labour
would envolve, changing the CPU and some links on the board.
For the instructions, or if you are able to do the upgrade
for me / may be able to, obvisouly for a fee contact:
The Vicariage at back...@argonet.co.uk
Richard Barlow
In article <6bd7f...@tonyh.tcp.co.uk>, Tony Houghton
<URL:mailto:to...@tcp.co.uk> wrote:
>
> In article <na.3bd42d474...@argonet.co.uk>
> Jim or Rob White <ji...@argonet.co.uk> wrote:
>
> > What about all these new games that we are being promised?
> > Drifter seems to look quite good but what I don`t understand is why somebody
> > does`nt convert Wipeout instead of having a clone. Still, it does look good.
>
> That's very easy to understand. They'll probably get away with releasing
> a clone if it's not too similar to WipeOut, but if they wanted to port
> the original they'd have to pay thousands in licence fees.
>
> Arc World said it was supposed to be released at the end of December
> though :-(. I expect 4D will send me something when it is, I seem to be
> on their mailing list.
Yeah, sorry about that...I've got a beta on my machine and have done for
some 8 weeks and it seemed to me that 4thD were telling me the truth
when they said "End of December" ;-( Obviously not ;-( I'll phone them
tomorrow and let you all know. BTW The beta is very very very good ;-)
Cheers,
[ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - |- - - - - - - - - - -_- -_- ]
| Me: Richard Barlow Job/Alias: DArcman | O U T |\ /| | \ / \ |
| Freelance 'Journo' for Archimedes World... | O F | | /_| |_/ | |
| Email: dar...@numedia.demon.co.uk | T H E |/ / | | \ \_/ |
[ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - |- - - - - - - - - - - - - - ]
Liam Gretton
In article <ant19012...@binliner.demon.co.uk>, Liam Gretton hit the
wrong sodding button and sent private mail to the newsgroup:
[much Chocks Away stuff snipped]
*Oops*
Sorry folks - this was supposed to be private mail to Robin. In my defence
I'll just say that Marcel's post-to-newsgroup and post-mail buttons are too
close together :-(
*Please* don't bother mailing me about this, because I'm not sending any
copies of Chocks to anyone, and it's not going onto a ftp site. I happen to
know about Robin's situation from previous correspondence.
Sorry again.
Graeme Richardson
>In article <5agd16$r...@lana.zippo.com>, <URL:mailto:David@> wrote:
>
><judicious snipping>
>
>> Bit strong you might think, but half the problems with 4D games[1] are due to
>> assumptions made by Mr Key in writing Z-filer, and then he boasts about
>> how good his protection is (cf X-fire) The protection is easy enough to
>> remove - I'd advise anybody to do this as it gives your games more chance
> ^^^^^^^
>> of surviving hardware upgrades ad nauseum...
>
Yes its not our (the other programmer's fault)!
>Er, could I ask you to advise *this* anybody as I haven't a clue with my
>32 bit games which is very unsatisfying given the hacking I enjoyed (mostly
>with a view to transferring stuff from my tape collection to disc) in the long
>gone days of the Beeb. I've a pile of 4D stuff all properly paid for, which I
>don't fancy paying again for just to have them change the protection methods
>because of hardware upgrades.
>
Its a headache apparently, the upgrade business. Acorn keep changing
their hardware and there is no technigal help dept now for these
matters!
Tony Houghton
In article <32ecf740...@news.demon.co.uk>
gra...@groundzero.demon.co.uk (Graeme Richardson) wrote:
> Its a headache apparently, the upgrade business. Acorn keep changing
> their hardware and there is no technigal help dept now for these
> matters!
You're the author of Nevryon, Spobbleoid and their respective sequels
aren't you? Nevryon was one of the best presented 4D games, especially
after I hacked it to run off my HDD, but later on something I must have
installed stopped it working (RISC OS 3.1).
I feel you could try a little harder with being future proof etc. Spob
Fantasy was released well after the Risc PC, but it's letter-boxed and
unplayably fast. In fact, the only way I can play it comfortably is by
using a 70Hz mode and using GameOn to halve the frame rate, something
you're only supposed to do with 100Hz modes! I take it back if the full
version has a VGA mode, I've only seen the demo.
Tony Houghton
In article <ant21201...@numedia.demon.co.uk>
Richard Barlow <dar...@numedia.demon.co.uk> wrote:
> Yeah, sorry about that...I've got a beta on my machine and have done for
> some 8 weeks and it seemed to me that 4thD were telling me the truth
> when they said "End of December" ;-( Obviously not ;-( I'll phone them
> tomorrow and let you all know. BTW The beta is very very very good ;-)
Great!
Please try to persuade them to do a demo as well. Then again I'll
probably buy it anyway. I'm desperate for a good game :-(.
Hang on, "tomorrow"? Tsk, I'm getting 4 day old news again :-(. I
suppose a lot of that could be blamed on Demon this time though.
Martin Piper
In message <11e93...@tonyh.tcp.co.uk> Tony Houghton wrote:
> In article <ant21201...@numedia.demon.co.uk>
> Richard Barlow <dar...@numedia.demon.co.uk> wrote:
>
> > Yeah, sorry about that...I've got a beta on my machine and have done for
> > some 8 weeks and it seemed to me that 4thD were telling me the truth
> > when they said "End of December" ;-( Obviously not ;-( I'll phone them
> > tomorrow and let you all know. BTW The beta is very very very good ;-)
>
> Great!
>
> Please try to persuade them to do a demo as well. Then again I'll
> probably buy it anyway. I'm desperate for a good game :-(.
>
> Hang on, "tomorrow"? Tsk, I'm getting 4 day old news again :-(. I
> suppose a lot of that could be blamed on Demon this time though.
>
Then buy BHP, this is going to be a really good game.
Richard Barlow
In article <19970127....@tbalond.demon.co.uk>, Martin Piper
<URL:mailto:Mar...@tbalond.demon.co.uk> wrote:
>
> In message <11e93...@tonyh.tcp.co.uk> Tony Houghton wrote:
>
> > In article <ant21201...@numedia.demon.co.uk>
> > Richard Barlow <dar...@numedia.demon.co.uk> wrote:
> >
> > > Yeah, sorry about that...I've got a beta on my machine and have done for
> > > some 8 weeks and it seemed to me that 4thD were telling me the truth
> > > when they said "End of December" ;-( Obviously not ;-( I'll phone them
> > > tomorrow and let you all know. BTW The beta is very very very good ;-)
> >
> > Great!
> >
> > Please try to persuade them to do a demo as well. Then again I'll
> > probably buy it anyway. I'm desperate for a good game :-(.
> >
> > Hang on, "tomorrow"? Tsk, I'm getting 4 day old news again :-(. I
> > suppose a lot of that could be blamed on Demon this time though.
I phoned 4thD today and they said it'll now be March before release.
They've also had to do a fair bit of re-design due to that fact
it looked so much like Wipeout!
> Then buy BHP, this is going to be a really good game.
I'll have to agree there. Certainly looks very impressive and the
playability is outstanding.
Tony Houghton
> Yeah, sorry about that...I've got a beta on my machine and have done for
> some 8 weeks and it seemed to me that 4thD were telling me the truth
> when they said "End of December" ;-( Obviously not ;-( I'll phone them
> tomorrow and let you all know. BTW The beta is very very very good ;-)
Any news on this yet?
I've posted this to the group and emailed it because of Demon's recent
news problems. Perhaps you could do the same.
Tony Houghton
In article <19970127....@tbalond.demon.co.uk>
Mar...@tbalond.demon.co.uk (Martin Piper) wrote:
> Then buy BHP, this is going to be a really good game.
Your description about going through a tummel then going over the brow
of a hill sounded fantastic. But when will we get it?
Martin Piper
In message <ant29160...@numedia.demon.co.uk> Richard Barlow wrote:
>
> > Then buy BHP, this is going to be a really good game.
>
> I'll have to agree there. Certainly looks very impressive and the
> playability is outstanding.
>
Cool, this is what I like to see. Famous journos hypeing a TBA game. ;-)
I am going to have to put some new screen shots out soon. I still can't get get
used to the varied scenery of the game even now. It makes Wipeout look like a
drive through a dull, wet, Sunday evening.
And if you havn't bought a Strong ARM yet and are wondering if any games will
take advantage of it then... Go and buy one now or it may be too late!
Toby Haynes
In article <19970129....@tbalond.demon.co.uk>,
Martin Piper <Mar...@tbalond.demon.co.uk> wrote:
>In message <ant29160...@numedia.demon.co.uk> Richard Barlow wrote:
>> > Then buy BHP, this is going to be a really good game.
>> I'll have to agree there. Certainly looks very impressive and the
>> playability is outstanding.
>Cool, this is what I like to see. Famous journos hypeing a TBA game. ;-)
... and tentative evidence of a demo version ...? :-)
>I am going to have to put some new screen shots out soon. I still can't get get
>used to the varied scenery of the game even now. It makes Wipeout look like a
>drive through a dull, wet, Sunday evening.
Stop it! Stop it right now! I wanna demo!!! *sob* :-)
If it really has picked up significantly, a few screenshots would be
much appreciated! (By the way - please jazz up the title page a little
- it looks like a 4D effort :-) )
>And if you havn't bought a Strong ARM yet and are wondering if any games will
>take advantage of it then... Go and buy one now or it may be too late!
Been there, done that!
By the way, any more news on whether that Quake-style demo is going to
appear on a Web site or magazine cover CD or ...?
Cheers,
Toby
--
Toby Haynes | "Take a look at Independance Day. There
Somewhere in Cambridge | you have concrete proof that all you need
| to do to destroy an Alien Civilisation
| is to plug an Apple Mac into it ..."
Mark Belien
> I am going to have to put some new screen shots out soon. I still can't get get
> used to the varied scenery of the game even now. It makes Wipeout look like a
> drive through a dull, wet, Sunday evening.
Can you do it before friday (or maybe even a little mega-demo)?
Our Acorn-club will take part in a 3-day PC-show, and I'm looking all over
the place for stuff to turn peoples eyes (and minds) to the Acorn-way.
Mark.
--
Thomas Boroske
In message <5cpusg$l...@lyra.csx.cam.ac.uk> Toby Haynes wrote:
> By the way, any more news on whether that Quake-style demo is going to
> appear on a Web site or magazine cover CD or ...?
It says on the website that it'll appear there, IIRC.
--
Thomas Boroske
Thomas Boroske
In message <19970129....@tbalond.demon.co.uk> Martin Piper wrote:
> In message <ant29160...@numedia.demon.co.uk> Richard Barlow wrote:
>
> >
> > > Then buy BHP, this is going to be a really good game.
> >
> > I'll have to agree there. Certainly looks very impressive and the
> > playability is outstanding.
> >
>
> Cool, this is what I like to see. Famous journos hypeing a TBA game. ;-)
>
> I am going to have to put some new screen shots out soon. I still can't get get
> used to the varied scenery of the game even now. It makes Wipeout look like a
> drive through a dull, wet, Sunday evening.
Well, I haven't been too impressed with the screenshots of BHP (low resolution,
and the graphics aren't exactly world-class). [1]
But what makes WipeOut soo cool is the speed feeling and the ship handling
(from the moment on you figure out how to use the airbrakes and actually
manage to take one of those 180 degree bents at full speed).
I've never seen something like this on the Acorn, perhaps a small trace
of it in SF3000.
Don't take this personally, but if I consider for how long and how often
you're telling us about TAG/New TBA developments, the results are pretty
poor so far.
Well, I'm not in the business, but I know for *sure* that a 3D-engine
alone doesn't make a good game, let alone a smasher.
> And if you havn't bought a Strong ARM yet and are wondering if any games will
> take advantage of it then... Go and buy one now or it may be too late!
Excuse me, do you fear Digital going bust ?
[1] The resolution doesn't really matter that much. Quake screenshots
or still images look utterly boring, it's the animations / lighting
that makes it so brilliant.
Regards,
--
Thomas Boroske
Alex Card
If there any truth in the rumour that Drifter has been delayed due to
Acorn's interest in the game and the desire that a souped-up version is
released that takes into account the extra power of the StrongARM ?
The games is looking superb from the screenshots, I hope it plays as well.
There is still life in the Acorn game scene 8-)
--
Alex Card - I know nothing.. RTFManuel
E-mail : al...@acetone.demon.co.uk
Web Pages : http://www.acetone.demon.co.uk
Samuel Penn
In message <19970201....@tbalond.demon.co.uk> Martin Piper wrote:
> In message <19970201....@y0001006.tu-bs.de> Thomas Boroske wrote:
>
> > Well, I haven't been too impressed with the screenshots of BHP (low resolution,
> > and the graphics aren't exactly world-class). [1]
>
> It does depend on what set of graphics oyu have seen. If you refer to the
> screen shots of before Christmas then yes they were dodgy. ( Can anyone
> say coder graphics? ) On the other hand if you mean the most recent shots then
> I can't really understand your thoughts. Bear in mind these were taken at the
> start of January. You are the only person so far to not be impressed. Tell me
> are you deliberatly playing devils advocate?
I had a look Friday (or was it Thursday?), so unless they've been
updated since then, I have to agree with Thomas. Having played
Wipeout, I'd have to say that the BHP screenshots don't come close.
Wipeout has lots of varied scenary, some of it very nicely animated.
All your screenshots show are yellow and black walls, with plain blue
sky. Hardly awe-inspiring by Wipeout standards (and it was you Martin,
who claimed that it made Wipeout look like a drive through a dull, wet,
Sunday evening).
> Mind you to really get a feel for a game you really need to see it move.
> Time for a demo methinks.
Agreed. The date on the page says it was updated 11th January 1996(?!)
Either I have been looking at some _really_ old screenshots, or you've
got the date wrong.
--
Be seeing you, ARM not Intel.
Sam. Acorn not Microsoft.
Martin Piper
In message <ant01210...@acetone.demon.co.uk> Alex Card wrote:
> If there any truth in the rumour that Drifter has been delayed due to
> Acorn's interest in the game and the desire that a souped-up version is
> released that takes into account the extra power of the StrongARM ?
>
> The games is looking superb from the screenshots, I hope it plays as well.
>
> There is still life in the Acorn game scene 8-)
>
You are thinking of BHP from TBA Software, which for now, being a StrongARM
only game looks outstanding. Screen shots and information can be found on the
below web address.
Alex Card
In article <19970202....@tbalond.demon.co.uk>, Martin Piper
<URL:mailto:Mar...@tbalond.demon.co.uk> wrote:
>
> In message <ant01210...@acetone.demon.co.uk> Alex Card wrote:
>
> > If there any truth in the rumour that Drifter has been delayed due to
> > Acorn's interest in the game and the desire that a souped-up version is
> > released that takes into account the extra power of the StrongARM ?
> >
> > The games is looking superb from the screenshots, I hope it plays as well.
> >
> > There is still life in the Acorn game scene 8-)
> >
>
> You are thinking of BHP from TBA Software, which for now, being a StrongARM
> only game looks outstanding. Screen shots and information can be found on the
> below web address.
Martin, your persistance does you credit but no I am thinking of "Drifter"
the Wipeout clone from 4D 8-).
Fear not, I will buy both of these games if they live up to their promise.
Good to hear that you're modelling BHP on Screamer 2, it's the best PC
racing game by far.
As for Drifter I believe that Kevin Lingley of Acorn was trying to contact
Andrew Docking (author of the game) presumably for a similar reason as
Acorn's interest in BHP. One swallow does not a summer make so it's
encouraging to see Acorn taking an interest in the games scene once more.
Now if Eidos release Tomb Raider, Krisalis return to the fold and TBA
release some more games I'll be one happy bunny 8-)
Martin Piper
In message <19970201....@bifrost.demon.co.uk> Samuel Penn wrote:
> In message <19970201....@tbalond.demon.co.uk> Martin Piper wrote:
>
> > In message <19970201....@y0001006.tu-bs.de> Thomas Boroske wrote:
> >
> > > Well, I haven't been too impressed with the screenshots of BHP (low resolution,
> > > and the graphics aren't exactly world-class). [1]
> >
> > It does depend on what set of graphics oyu have seen. If you refer to the
> > screen shots of before Christmas then yes they were dodgy. ( Can anyone
> > say coder graphics? ) On the other hand if you mean the most recent shots then
> > I can't really understand your thoughts. Bear in mind these were taken at the
> > start of January. You are the only person so far to not be impressed. Tell me
> > are you deliberatly playing devils advocate?
>
> I had a look Friday (or was it Thursday?), so unless they've been
> updated since then, I have to agree with Thomas. Having played
> Wipeout, I'd have to say that the BHP screenshots don't come close.
> Wipeout has lots of varied scenary, some of it very nicely animated.
Ahh yes, those are the old screen shots. I'm sorting out some new ones. These
have got varied scenery and other pretty stuff.
>
> All your screenshots show are yellow and black walls, with plain blue
> sky. Hardly awe-inspiring by Wipeout standards (and it was you Martin,
> who claimed that it made Wipeout look like a drive through a dull, wet,
> Sunday evening).
>
Yup no more blank blue skies and no more yellow and black walls.
> > Mind you to really get a feel for a game you really need to see it move.
> > Time for a demo methinks.
>
> Agreed. The date on the page says it was updated 11th January 1996(?!)
>
> Either I have been looking at some _really_ old screenshots, or you've
> got the date wrong.
>
Yup really old screen shots.
Tony Houghton
In article <ant01210...@acetone.demon.co.uk>
Alex Card <al...@acetone.demon.co.uk> wrote:
> If there any truth in the rumour that Drifter has been delayed due to
> Acorn's interest in the game and the desire that a souped-up version is
> released that takes into account the extra power of the StrongARM ?
Another rumour is that the delay is that 4D are worried it's too much
like WipeOut for the lawyers. I haven't played WipeOut, but I gather
it's very good, so that's a promising sign, unless 4D's approach to the
problem means it ends up being very unlike WipeOut in a crap 4D sort of
way.
Robin Watts
In article <ced6c...@tonyh.tcp.co.uk>, Tony Houghton
<URL:mailto:to...@tonyh.tcp.co.uk> wrote:
>
> In article <ant01210...@acetone.demon.co.uk>
> Alex Card <al...@acetone.demon.co.uk> wrote:
>
> > If there any truth in the rumour that Drifter has been delayed due to
> > Acorn's interest in the game and the desire that a souped-up version is
> > released that takes into account the extra power of the StrongARM ?
>
> Another rumour is that the delay is that 4D are worried it's too much
> like WipeOut for the lawyers. I haven't played WipeOut, but I gather
> it's very good, so that's a promising sign, unless 4D's approach to the
> problem means it ends up being very unlike WipeOut in a crap 4D sort of
> way.
Wipeout 2097 is the worlds best game ever written (and if you don't
agree you're wrong). It is incredibly playable, and the learning curve
is MIND BLOWINGLY good - you really do keep getting better and better;
at no stage does the next target seem impossible, though the one after
that does...
The screenshots I saw for Drifter made it look like a Wipeout-wannabee,
but they looked very tame in comparison. Of course what matters is the
gameplay, so I will be watching with interest...
Robin
--
Robin Watts, Email: Robin...@wss.co.uk
Warm Silence Software, WWW: <URL:http://www.wss.co.uk/>
P.O.Box 28, Woodstock, Tel: 0585 487642 (or Home: 01865 510752)
Oxfordshire, OX20 1XX Fax: By arrangement
David Thomas
In article <ced6c...@tonyh.tcp.co.uk>
Tony Houghton <to...@tonyh.tcp.co.uk> wrote:
> In article <ant01210...@acetone.demon.co.uk>
> Alex Card <al...@acetone.demon.co.uk> wrote:
>
> > If there any truth in the rumour that Drifter has been delayed due to
> > Acorn's interest in the game and the desire that a souped-up version is
> > released that takes into account the extra power of the StrongARM ?
>
> Another rumour is that the delay is that 4D are worried it's too much
> like WipeOut for the lawyers. I haven't played WipeOut, but I gather
> it's very good, so that's a promising sign, unless 4D's approach to the
> problem means it ends up being very unlike WipeOut in a crap 4D sort of
> way.
A new 4D game? Oh goodee, I do hope it's got some dodgy floppy disc-based
protection which breaks when the hardware is next upgraded. ;)
I've played WipeOut - a lovely smooth, slick, gorgeous game - and if 4D
manage to produce anything even barely like it then I will be most shocked,
oh yes.
Dave
--
\\ D a v i d T h o m a s Computer Studies Student //
\\\ CMSD...@livjm.ac.uk Liverpool John Moores University ///
\\\\ David....@cableinet.co.uk http://java.cms.livjm.ac.uk/cmsdthom/ ////
Manuel Timmers
> In article <ced6c...@tonyh.tcp.co.uk>, Tony Houghton
> <URL:mailto:to...@tonyh.tcp.co.uk> wrote:
> >
> > In article <ant01210...@acetone.demon.co.uk>
> > Alex Card <al...@acetone.demon.co.uk> wrote:
> >
> > > If there any truth in the rumour that Drifter has been delayed due to
> > > Acorn's interest in the game and the desire that a souped-up version is
> > > released that takes into account the extra power of the StrongARM ?
> >
> > Another rumour is that the delay is that 4D are worried it's too much
> > like WipeOut for the lawyers. I haven't played WipeOut, but I gather
> > it's very good, so that's a promising sign, unless 4D's approach to the
> > problem means it ends up being very unlike WipeOut in a crap 4D sort of
> > way.
Then what 4D should do is tackle the market and GIVE this game away...
It can be done. Give the game away but ask a few quid for the tracks.
By releasing this as *freeware* nobody can sue them as they aren't
*selling* it. Make big propaganda around this *event* and you not
only make a name (market recognition) but this might aswell push
people far enough to buy Acorn equipment just to have this game.
Thereby 4D will increasing their potential market for future
gamebuyers.
Or like we say "Throw a little fish in the water and catch a whale."
C U
--
Manuel Timmers, StarLight Corp., email star...@innet.be
Personal pages WWW-pages at http://www.club.innet.be/~year0332/
StarLight Corp. WWW-pages at http://www.whib.be/starcorp
**** Acorn Risc OS Systems: Power to Smart People! ****
Philip Sainty
In article <ant15132...@year0332.innet.be>,
Manuel Timmers <star...@innet.be> wrote:
>Then what 4D should do is tackle the market and GIVE this game away...
As if people don't have a hard enough time making money in this market
as it is?
id software hasn't sued any of the numerous companies who've made Doom
clones, AFAIK, so I'd think 4D ought to be pretty safe. A few superficial
differences should be enough; that's all that the Doom clones have
over Doom.
>but this might aswell push people far enough to buy Acorn equipment
>just to have this game. Thereby 4D will increasing their potential
>market for future gamebuyers.
This is absurd. No one is going to spend lots of money on Acorn kit if
all they want is a game which is available (and probably better) in its
original form on a much cheaper console machine.
Philip
P R Wheatley
>> > Another rumour is that the delay is that 4D are worried it's too much
>> > like WipeOut for the lawyers. I haven't played WipeOut, but I gather
>> > it's very good, so that's a promising sign, unless 4D's approach to the
>> > problem means it ends up being very unlike WipeOut in a crap 4D sort of
>> > way.
>
I think this "its like Wipeout" thing has got blown out of all proportion.
Drifter is similar to Wipeout but the graphics look completely different, and
its all on a flat plane. So there will be no problems with it being too much
like Wipeout.
Its written for pre-RPC machines as well as the higher end computers, so don't
expect it to push your SA too much, but at the same time, its very playable. I
think the next game/s in the series will be written specifically for faster
machines, but don't quote me on that. It all looks pretty promising for the
Acorn games scene tho...
--
Paul
http://sidonie.imag.fr/AcornDemos/Qtm/
A G Jackson
Manuel Timmers wrote:
> Then what 4D should do is tackle the market and GIVE this game away...
> Or like we say "Throw a little fish in the water and catch a whale."
It's a nice idea, but I don't think it would actually do 4D any good.
Firstly, I think they *could* face legal action for giving the game
away. Secondly, I think they'll be able to change it sufficiently and
release it as a good game that isn't quite a Wipeout 2097 clone.
Or like we say "Throw a little fish in the water and you don't have
a little fish any more."
Adrian
Jim or Rob White
In article <1997Feb19....@leeds.ac.uk>, csx...@scs.leeds.ac.uk (P R
Wheatley) wrote:
> but the graphics look completely different
yup, the shadows look like something on those "lower" computers aswell.
Y`know, pixel redraw etc:o)
--
Jim White ZFC Ag ji...@argonet.co.uk
*or*
Rob White ZFC Al tre...@argonet.co.uk Wimbledon London England
... "Bother", said Pooh, as he accidentally deleted his message base.
Tony Houghton
In article <1997Feb19....@leeds.ac.uk>
csx...@scs.leeds.ac.uk (P R Wheatley) wrote:
> Its written for pre-RPC machines as well as the higher end computers,
> so don't expect it to push your SA too much, but at the same time, its
> very playable. I think the next game/s in the series will be written
> specifically for faster machines, but don't quote me on that. It all
> looks pretty promising for the Acorn games scene tho...
I rang 4D on Monday afternoon (the phone was answered promptly by a
helpful human being despite what someone posted recently IIRC) and
advance ordered it. He hinted there may be two versions, one for the Arc
and one for Risc PCs with extra features and maybe even extra tracks.
The RPC version may be delayed an extra week or two behind the Arc
version because of this. Both should be out within a month I hope.