Search found 1487 matches

by 8BitAG
Thu Mar 28, 2024 7:42 am
Forum: Other Retro Stuff
Topic: Atari 400 Mini
Replies: 15
Views: 895

Re: Atari 400 Mini

Is this from the same company that was at the centre of the Vega debacle? No. It's from the company that was formed by some of the people involved in the original Vega project, but it was a separate company they set up to produce other retro console revivals. The act of them setting that company up...
by 8BitAG
Tue Mar 26, 2024 7:15 am
Forum: Hardware
Topic: Options for reading & writing real Disciple / Plus D & SAM disks in 2024
Replies: 7
Views: 201

Re: Options for reading & writing real Disciple / Plus D & SAM disks in 2024

I've been able to copy across various CP/M programs to SAM from a Windows XP machine because SAM ProDOS (CP/M for the SAM) has a utility for reading from FAT formatted disks. http://8bitag.com/info/documents/cpm-to-prodos.txt
by 8BitAG
Mon Mar 25, 2024 6:29 pm
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: Devfinitive Edition (Fergus McNeil): discussion
Replies: 5
Views: 154

Re: Devfinitive Edition (Fergus McNeil): discussion

For the purposes of this I would probably suggest combining the Dragonstar entries. They're really multiple parts of the same game and when I asked Fergus I seem to remember that he thought the advert that suggests he was selling them separately may have just been badly worded. (They were only ever ...
by 8BitAG
Fri Mar 22, 2024 1:23 pm
Forum: Brand new software!
Topic: The Elves of Maroland
Replies: 10
Views: 413

Re: The Elves of Maroland

No, it would not be true to say that DAAD is a Spanish version of the PAW. DAAD was a separate, specially commissioned development system that grew from the PAW, in a similar way to how the PAW itself came from The Quill. DAAD has its own entry in SC. (There *was* a Spanish version of the PAW. But t...
by 8BitAG
Fri Mar 22, 2024 9:43 am
Forum: Brand new software!
Topic: The Elves of Maroland
Replies: 10
Views: 413

Re: The Elves of Maroland

There is some past precedent for a single entry (for both language versions of the later DAAD version) e.g. https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/34819/ZX-Spectrum/The_House_on_the_Other_Side_of_the_Storm And examples either way of whether the PAW and DAAD versions could be combined. The argument in...
by 8BitAG
Tue Mar 05, 2024 7:25 am
Forum: Emulators
Topic: Will Spectaculator ever get a new version?
Replies: 5
Views: 345

Re: Will Spectaculator ever get a new version?

Spectaculator is still my go-to emulator when it comes to playing and developing games. I must admit I've never experienced any of those issues mentioned in the "cons" section. At the moment, it runs perfectly well under Windows 11 so I'm not sure it needs a new version. Jonathan still res...
by 8BitAG
Fri Feb 16, 2024 8:23 pm
Forum: Preservation
Topic: Cursed be the City
Replies: 6
Views: 256

Re: Cursed be the City

Image
by 8BitAG
Fri Feb 16, 2024 8:15 pm
Forum: Preservation
Topic: Cursed be the City
Replies: 6
Views: 256

Re: Cursed be the City

The tape inlay indicates the files have come from The Guild re-release of the game, yes. (The original release would've likely included the identical files but the existing version preserved is incomplete)
by 8BitAG
Wed Feb 14, 2024 10:13 am
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: "Alfa Een" Afrikaans adventure game
Replies: 8
Views: 350

Re: "Alfa Een" Afrikaans adventure game

This would be the very first (text?) adventure I've heard about written in Afrikaans, so hopefully it can be found eventually. I've only previously come across games from South African that were written in English.
by 8BitAG
Mon Feb 12, 2024 8:30 pm
Forum: Preservation
Topic: The Quest for the Staff of the First Moon
Replies: 21
Views: 698

Re: The Quest for the Staff of the First Moon

UnQuill is more for extracting the game's database to a text file. I don't think it will do what people are suggesting it will. (I use UnQuill & UnPAWs all the time) What do you have of the original game? Does it exist on tape? You could make a nice clean version of it by loading the game file b...
by 8BitAG
Sun Feb 04, 2024 11:22 am
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: The best Speccy game by Mike Young: vote
Replies: 5
Views: 345

Re: The best Speccy game by Mike Young: vote

The current date on ZXDB for The Plagues of Egypt is incorrect. It's at least as early as 1989, as it was reviewed in the August 1989 issue of Adventure Probe. Plagues is a much bigger (two part) adventure written with the PAW, rather than the Quill as used in Noah.
by 8BitAG
Fri Feb 02, 2024 2:39 pm
Forum: ZXDB Discussion
Topic: Lord of the Rings license/inspiration games not in list
Replies: 4
Views: 335

Re: Lord of the Rings license/inspiration games not in list

The licences for games, products & other artistic works such as films based on The Hobbit and those based on The Lord of the Rings are often distinct. Which has caused... and continues to cause... headaches for the companies licencing works and the various Tolkien companies themselves. ;) The li...
by 8BitAG
Tue Jan 30, 2024 10:03 pm
Forum: ZXDB Fixes
Topic: 'never released' 'not a Spectrum game' trash
Replies: 5
Views: 515

Re: 'never released' 'not a Spectrum game' trash

We have discussed many of these entries in past threads, such as this one...
viewtopic.php?p=26260
by 8BitAG
Tue Jan 23, 2024 9:57 am
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: British Crown Dependencies on the ZX Spectrum
Replies: 12
Views: 578

Re: British Crown Dependencies on the ZX Spectrum

Opens can of worms about whether the "UK" tag on ZXDB covers the Isle of Man etc. ;)
by 8BitAG
Sun Jan 21, 2024 9:54 pm
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: British Crown Dependencies on the ZX Spectrum
Replies: 12
Views: 578

Re: British Crown Dependencies on the ZX Spectrum

Also on the text adventure front, Mark Walker, who wrote The Amulet of Darath and The Oppressed Land for Zenobi, is from the Isle of Man, iirc.
by 8BitAG
Sun Jan 21, 2024 3:13 pm
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: The best Speccy game by Tartan Software: vote
Replies: 7
Views: 407

Re: The best Speccy game by Tartan Software: vote

To be fair, I'd advised you in line with your usual rules. ;) Which I always respect, but don't agree with. White Door was disqualified as it was a non-Tartan type-in in its original Crisis at Christmas form. 1942 Mission wasn't originally at Tartan-published game. The Spy Trilogy slips in, as altho...
by 8BitAG
Tue Jan 16, 2024 8:36 pm
Forum: Preservation
Topic: La Diosa de Cozumel
Replies: 14
Views: 653

Re: La Diosa de Cozumel

It was the early pre-DAAD version of... https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/6183/ZX-Spectrum/Cozumel ...I think? Unpublished at the time? I'll leave that to the Spanish adventurers like Rockersuke to confirm, but from what I read it was what Andres used as a demonstration to present to Dinamic bef...
by 8BitAG
Tue Jan 16, 2024 10:49 am
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: The best Speccy game by 8th Day Software: vote
Replies: 8
Views: 613

Re: The best Speccy game by 8th Day Software: vote

They were pretty big sellers back in the day and their initial "budget" range was certainly disruptive; making what some companies were charging look extremely expensive. Although the tabloid (and House of Commons) baiting HRH probably gets a lot of the attention, some of the later PAWed t...
by 8BitAG
Sun Jan 14, 2024 9:58 am
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: The best Speccy game by Tartan Software: discussion
Replies: 2
Views: 135

Re: The best Speccy game by Tartan Software: discussion

While I always have a preference for looking at the complete catalogue in these sorts of polls, going on your usual rules these games wouldn't normally be included... 1942 Mission (originally released by CCS) Gordello Dynasty (this is a compilation, not a distinct game) The Prospector (original vers...
by 8BitAG
Fri Jan 12, 2024 12:00 pm
Forum: Preservation
Topic: Adventure 4 Pack
Replies: 4
Views: 250

Re: Adventure 4 Pack

Both Mansion and Castle are the same too, so this is probably the version of the compilation already archived.

We didn't have the inlay, though.
by 8BitAG
Thu Jan 11, 2024 10:21 pm
Forum: Preservation
Topic: Adventure 4 Pack
Replies: 4
Views: 250

Re: Adventure 4 Pack

I've quickly checked the first game (Mission X) and the databases for both versions attributed to H&D are identical. I'd imagine it'll be the same for the other three but I will verify at a later point.
by 8BitAG
Thu Jan 11, 2024 10:10 pm
Forum: Preservation
Topic: Adventure 4 Pack
Replies: 4
Views: 250

Re: Adventure 4 Pack

This is the matching ZXDB entry, so I think it should be identical - https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/0013362 I will have a check though, later. Walter went on to release the games himself, where iirc he made various tweaks. Those versions later went on to be republished by GI Games/Zenobi. The...
by 8BitAG
Sun Jan 07, 2024 10:27 pm
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: The best Speccy game by 8th Day Software: discussion
Replies: 12
Views: 584

Re: The best Speccy game by 8th Day Software: discussion

Serious comment: I don't think many of these games got a lot of attention, so I wonder how meaningfully people can vote. Perhaps not from people who frequent these forums, but 8th Day were a big disrupter of the adventure market back in the day and they're probably one of the bigger "professio...
by 8BitAG
Sun Jan 07, 2024 10:26 am
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: The best Speccy game by 8th Day Software: discussion
Replies: 12
Views: 584

Re: The best Speccy game by 8th Day Software: discussion

Skelvullyn Twine probably should be on the list as well. At the moment, there isn't (as far as I know) any evidence Peter himself sold any copies prior to 8th Day releasing the game. All the reviews we have are for the 8th Day version.