Search found 1387 matches

by AndyC
Tue Mar 05, 2024 8:37 am
Forum: Sinclair Miscellaneous
Topic: That thing with the blue and magenta ladders (OUT)
Replies: 39
Views: 891

Re: That thing with the blue and magenta ladders (OUT)

The point is that it can *run*/execute something, and not merely do a beep or border. Maybe it is a consequence but you did say this was totally impossible. 'sall. I said the hardware can't trigger something like that from a single OUT, but changing a paging register probably causes the machine to ...
by AndyC
Tue Mar 05, 2024 7:55 am
Forum: Programming
Topic: That thing with the bottom two lines
Replies: 19
Views: 765

Re: That thing with the bottom two lines

Let's try to ignore Icon Graphix ... Wait. Was that the one they gave away on an SU covertape at some point? The one where you had to play a music tape in the tape deck while you were using it or the keyboard routines didn't work correctly? Aside from that glaring bug, I seem to recall it wasn't ac...
by AndyC
Tue Mar 05, 2024 7:47 am
Forum: Sinclair Miscellaneous
Topic: That thing with the blue and magenta ladders (OUT)
Replies: 39
Views: 891

Re: That thing with the blue and magenta ladders (OUT)

ANDY APOLOGISE I stand by what I said. The OUT doesn't really do all the things you're seeing, it's just a consequence of what follows. The OUT swaps the paging arrangement to some unexpected configuration. At that point one of maybe four things could suddenly be true: 1) One of the other 128K ROMs...
by AndyC
Mon Mar 04, 2024 1:55 pm
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: £12 gets you "Free software for LIFE!", apparently.
Replies: 11
Views: 288

Re: £12 gets you "Free software for LIFE!", apparently.

Given that it has 50% more of both 'Great Utilities' and 'Adventure Games' than 'Arcade Games', I'm guessing it's an early PD library trying to vaguely disguise the fact that you're buying into a giant Cassette 50 scheme without the calculator watch or quality control, rather than a lending library...
by AndyC
Sun Mar 03, 2024 9:25 am
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: Devfinitive Edition (Keith Burkhill): vote
Replies: 29
Views: 597

Re: Devfinitive Edition (Keith Burkhill): vote

1. Gilligan's Gold
2. Commando
3. Ghosts and Goblins
by AndyC
Sat Mar 02, 2024 9:25 pm
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: Game versions 48K vs 128K
Replies: 30
Views: 700

Re: Game versions 48K vs 128K

I would have thought that any game that uses a backbuffer that is fully redrawn each gameloop on 128K would use that since it avoids having to copy the backbuffer to the screen? You'd think that, but it often wasn't the case. Probably a lot of developers had routines built for the 48K, which often ...
by AndyC
Sat Mar 02, 2024 7:30 pm
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: Game versions 48K vs 128K
Replies: 30
Views: 700

Re: Game versions 48K vs 128K

An emulator that can set a breakpoint on bit D3 of I/O address 7FFDh could be used to confirm it. Whether it's "interesting" enough for anyone to spend time investigating is another question I guess.
by AndyC
Sat Mar 02, 2024 5:58 pm
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: Game versions 48K vs 128K
Replies: 30
Views: 700

Re: Game versions 48K vs 128K

There's really two different situations, which can heavily influence the answer: A game that runs on both 48 and 128 machines. This probably accounts for the vast majority. Because you wouldn't want the game to break on 48k, you're limited in how you much you can really add. Commonly using the extra...
by AndyC
Fri Mar 01, 2024 10:41 pm
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: Could Knight Lore have been (a lot) faster?
Replies: 10
Views: 472

Re: Could Knight Lore have been (a lot) faster?

Not sure I agree. Consider Manic Miner: perhaps it could've run faster on some screens, or slower on others. Who knows? But would that have been desireable? For me, that's a resounding no. So far as I recall, Manic Miner's speed was its speed, screen through screen. I think in terms of 'experience ...
by AndyC
Fri Mar 01, 2024 10:04 pm
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: Could Knight Lore have been (a lot) faster?
Replies: 10
Views: 472

Re: Could Knight Lore have been (a lot) faster?

Yeah, there's no reason it couldn't run more like HoH. Dunno about frame rate locking, that's good in action games but when you're already running at pretty low frame rates it might not be entirely desirable.
by AndyC
Fri Mar 01, 2024 12:03 pm
Forum: Programming
Topic: That thing with the bottom two lines
Replies: 19
Views: 765

Re: That thing with the bottom two lines

On the Beeb you have that strange double-cursor mechanism where you have to LIST the desired line, cursor your way up there, and then hold down a special Copy key to re-enter it (or just the parts you want to keep). The Amstrad CPC (as far as I recall) involves entering EDIT 100 and then line 100 p...
by AndyC
Fri Mar 01, 2024 8:31 am
Forum: Sinclair Miscellaneous
Topic: That thing with the blue and magenta ladders (OUT)
Replies: 39
Views: 891

Re: That thing with the blue and magenta ladders (OUT)

Firstly, there's no way a single OUT could do something like that on its own. The hardware just doesn't work that way. But you do remember it, so why? Probably what's happened is you've caused the paging hardware to switch something that the system isn't expecting. So suddenly changed what ROM is ac...
by AndyC
Thu Feb 29, 2024 8:21 am
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: How hard would it be to hack these racers?
Replies: 61
Views: 1734

Re: How hard would it be to hack these racers?

Not too drunk then yet ;) It's not self modifying that code in that function though so there's no need to repeatedly write it back to 34680. Unless they do that just to waste some T states so that the OUT instructions occur at some multiple of 8T (which is apparently a thing you should do, I know n...
by AndyC
Wed Feb 28, 2024 8:25 am
Forum: Programming
Topic: Interrupt routine for Vortex Tracker
Replies: 19
Views: 403

Re: Interrupt routine for Vortex Tracker

49157 looks like it may be an entry point (strange to do a JP at the entry point though - so I suspect it might be data or a variables there instead). A common thing amongst AY players (at least back in the day) was to have three entry points right at the start - one to initialize the routine, one ...
by AndyC
Tue Feb 27, 2024 3:41 pm
Forum: Programming
Topic: Interrupt routine for Vortex Tracker
Replies: 19
Views: 403

Re: Interrupt routine for Vortex Tracker

Are you sure you should JP 56 though? The ROM ISR is supposed to be called and not jumped to, since it ends with EI and RET? Once you CALL 56 none of the lines afterwards will get executed (unless you push a fake return address onto the stack before JP 56). I can see a fake return address is not pu...
by AndyC
Mon Feb 26, 2024 10:31 am
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: The 20 games with a <= 10% rating from all three major ZX Spectrum magazines
Replies: 16
Views: 474

Re: The 20 games with a <= 10% rating from all three major ZX Spectrum magazines

It's hard to imagine anything worse than Voyage Into The Unknown. Count Duckula 2 was atrocious, but it did (sort of) manage to be physically playable (it's better than the Amstrad version where you stop if you hit the top of the screen, rendering many screens impossible without using the "hero...
by AndyC
Sun Feb 25, 2024 7:06 pm
Forum: Other Retro Stuff
Topic: Introducing retro gaming to my lad
Replies: 8
Views: 228

Re: Introducing retro gaming to my lad

Obviously but if it lets him play Mario, I won't get too stressed if/when he launches it in frustration! :lol: Depends how legit they are. Some just have a bunch of janky Cascade 50 style games, some have pirated NES games (which may or may not include the Big N's titles, depending on how risk aver...
by AndyC
Sun Feb 25, 2024 1:27 pm
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: The best Speccy game by Infogrames: discussion
Replies: 12
Views: 205

Re: The best Speccy game by Infogrames: discussion

Interesting, although there are some Loriciels, Cobrah Soft and Magic Bytes games listed in there. Now, Cobrah Soft was owned by Infogrames, that's kind of understandable but I don't see how Loriciels and Magic Bytes have a connection. Although I have now just learnt that there are Tom And Jerry ga...
by AndyC
Sun Feb 25, 2024 12:29 pm
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: The best Speccy game by Infogrames: discussion
Replies: 12
Views: 205

Re: The best Speccy game by Infogrames: discussion

They did a lot more on the CPC, you just need to look in the right places: https://www.cpc-power.com/index.php?page=database&lettre=all&lemot=Infogrames&r1=1&r2=1&r3=1&r4=&year=&compagnie=&cats=&dumplang=&xplayx=&titlescreen=&unepictold=&unepic...
by AndyC
Sun Feb 25, 2024 12:21 pm
Forum: Other Retro Stuff
Topic: Introducing retro gaming to my lad
Replies: 8
Views: 228

Re: Introducing retro gaming to my lad

Well that £15 one isn't a Gameboy. I assume it is one of those janky NES clones in a handheld form.
by AndyC
Sat Feb 24, 2024 4:24 pm
Forum: Hardware
Topic: Question... 2nd joystick button?
Replies: 9
Views: 257

Re: Question... 2nd joystick button?

I think, most crucially is that you are going to need some solution for single button joysticks: whether that bit assigning a second function to a keyboard key or something like holding down a button etc.a scheme which requires users to purchase new joysticks/interfaces etc is either going to be rel...
by AndyC
Sat Feb 24, 2024 11:01 am
Forum: Hardware
Topic: Question... 2nd joystick button?
Replies: 9
Views: 257

Re: Question... 2nd joystick button?

Technically, yes, but it would be highly dependent on which joystick interface was being used as well as finding a suitable two button joystick.
by AndyC
Fri Feb 23, 2024 1:39 pm
Forum: Games/Software
Topic: Guess the screen$
Replies: 7695
Views: 232544

Re: Guess the screen$

Oxford dictionary seems to really like ize instead of ise for some reason, I'm not a big fan). Abe Lincoln's city advisor in civ suggesting I should build more theaters was a good moment of irony though, considering where he was assassinated ;) -ize is, despite often being assumed American, origina...
by AndyC
Wed Feb 21, 2024 9:22 am
Forum: Other Retro Stuff
Topic: Did actual game code get bigger as game machines evolved? (Excluding graphics and audio)
Replies: 19
Views: 725

Re: Did actual game code get bigger as game machines evolved? (Excluding graphics and audio)

equinox wrote: Wed Feb 21, 2024 8:50 am yes mate we know you can't draw
I'll have you know my programmer art is some of the finest abstract art ever conceived. Sure, everyone things it looks like garbage and their children could do better, but all true great artists are underappreciated in there time...
by AndyC
Wed Feb 21, 2024 7:51 am
Forum: Other Retro Stuff
Topic: Did actual game code get bigger as game machines evolved? (Excluding graphics and audio)
Replies: 19
Views: 725

Re: Did actual game code get bigger as game machines evolved? (Excluding graphics and audio)

That is fascinating, and something I hadn't considered before. But while having too little space to code can no doubt be frustrating, I'm guessing that having too much space could lead to a daunting or stressful experience for a lone programmer where he's just overwhelmed with too much possibility ...