Little bugs in the database 4

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akeley
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Re: Little bugs in the database

Post by akeley »

A pedant writes: Our beloved micro is listed in ZXDB's "Machine Type" entries as "ZX-Spectrum". But shouldn't it actually be "ZX Spectrum"? Just wondering...
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PeterJ
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by PeterJ »

Possibly so [mention]akeley[/mention]. It may be linked to spaces sometimes being an issue in strings, but will let [mention]Einar Saukas[/mention] reply. We are working through earlier bug reports, so it may be a while before you get an answer to this.
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

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Rorthron
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by Rorthron »

Wham! the Music Box / The Music Box

The archive records two titles:

1. Wham! the Music Box 48K (ID 8965), and
2. The Music Box 128K (ID 8481).

It also states in the comments of both titles that 1 and 2 were sold together, despite having different release years.

It appears that 1 was not sold with 2. Instead a third version, The Music Box 48K was released with 2. This third version contains different music from both 1 and 2.

I propose that the third version be recorded in the archive and the notes amended to state that this was the version included with 2.

See further viewtopic.php?f=34&t=2669&start=30.
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by StooB »

Rorthron wrote: Tue Jun 30, 2020 7:32 pm Wham! the Music Box / The Music Box

The archive records two titles:

1. Wham! the Music Box 48K (ID 8965), and
2. The Music Box 128K (ID 8481).

It also states in the comments of both titles that 1 and 2 were sold together, despite having different release years.

It appears that 1 was not sold with 2. Instead a third version, The Music Box 48K was released with 2. This third version contains different music from both 1 and 2.

I propose that the third version be recorded in the archive and the notes amended to state that this was the version included with 2.

See further viewtopic.php?f=34&t=2669&start=30.
this report: viewtopic.php?f=34&t=1425&p=25922#p25922 should be marked as reviewed too, now that the fix has been made
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R-Tape
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by R-Tape »

Little man computer (36062) is marked as authored with the CharAde engine. It definitely does not use this engine. I made a mistake while doing the spreadsheet.

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Juan F. Ramirez
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by Juan F. Ramirez »

Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis (ID 2472).

Licence Tie-Ins/Inspirations: Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis - Type: Comic - Lucasfilm

Either it's wrong (the inspiration would be the PC/Amiga 1992 videogame) or I'm missing something: Is there a comic of Indi Jones???
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by redballoon »

Juan F. Ramirez wrote: Thu Jul 02, 2020 7:35 am Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis (ID 2472).

Licence Tie-Ins/Inspirations: Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis - Type: Comic - Lucasfilm

Either it's wrong (the inspiration would be the PC/Amiga 1992 videogame) or I'm missing something: Is there a comic of Indi Jones???
Yeah, both Marvel and Dark Horse have produced Indiana Jones comics. It was Dark Horse that produced The Fate of Atlantis comic book adaption of the game rather than the other way around. The Fate of the Atlantis was an original story by the creators of the game after they were originally asked to to use an unused 3rd film film script but they found it a bit rubbish which led them to create their own story.

So the comic book was inspired by the game, not the other way around, but I suppose it's still a tie-in. In this case, it's the label that's slightly misleading with “inspirations”.
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Audionautas
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by Audionautas »

Hi guys!


* DALEK ATTACK * (Admiral Software) (https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/1 ... lek_Attack).

According to several sources this game was most probably the last game released for the ZX Spectrum during its heyday. Although 1992 it's the release year appearing on the box, the game wasn't released until 1993. It was reviewed on Your Sinclair magazine issue 91. It seems that this game had to overcome some obstacles to finally be published as we can see on this page of the magazine: https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/page.ph ... 311&page=7

Also, the Wikipedia entry for this game has valuable information (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dalek_Attack). Citations are taken from Your Sinclair news, previews and reviews and this article (https://web.archive.org/web/20100126001 ... ek-attack/):

Alternative Software released the ZX Spectrum version only due to popular demand, since by 1992 the Spectrum was no longer a commercially viable platform.[4][5] Dalek Attack was released for the Spectrum in 1993,[5] and was the last licensed Spectrum game.[2] It differed from all the others in its first level; in all the other releases the first level involved the Doctor on a hoverboard going along the sewer. The Spectrum version had the Doctor on foot running around collecting hostages and avoiding globes. The Spectrum version also lost out on other features such as different enemies; only the Robomen, Ogrons and standard Daleks featured.[6] The end-level guardians were also different. Before its release Spectrum owners who wrote to Alternative software pressing for a release received a letter back stating that the game was in production, and were sent a sticker depicting the game's box front emblazoned with the legend "I've Been Exterminated!"[citation needed]

The problem here is that if you search by year on the ZXDB, in this case 1993, Dalek Attack is missing, and I think is really important to set right which was the last Spectrum game released, even though it seems that it was finally sold via mail order, not retail.


* DEFENDER OF THE CROWN * (The CAT) (https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/1 ... _the_Crown)

On this entry of the ZXDB there is no information or scans about the limited physical released that Cinemaware did from the corrected Spectrum version in 2016.

https://vintageisthenewold.com/defender ... 250-units/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xj3zBRI8GXU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mo6XCPahql0

https://programbytes48k.wordpress.com/2 ... on-fisica/

Thank you!
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MatGubbins
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by MatGubbins »

I type in 'codemasters' to look for a codemasters released game and on page 8 of the long list of their games is Wizball by Ocean. I can't find a connection between Codemasters and Ocean for that game - well nothing that stands out stating Codemasters on the Wizball page.
This also applies to 'Twister' by System 3 and 'International 3D Tennis' by Palace.


International Speedway released by Firebird and then re-released by Codemasters - that page mentions Codemasters.
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PeterJ
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by PeterJ »

Hi [mention]MatGubbins[/mention],

[mention]Einar Saukas[/mention] will know the exact reason for this link to Wizball, but to get just titles published by Codemasters you need to enter Codemasters into the Publisher box, then choose strict results from the results strictness box.

There was a long discussion about something similar a few weeks ago which is why we released the results strictness.

I'm sure Einar will come up with the goods.

Good spot by the way [mention]MatGubbins[/mention]!
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StooB
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by StooB »

Audionautas wrote: Thu Jul 02, 2020 10:24 am

The problem here is that if you search by year on the ZXDB, in this case 1993, Dalek Attack is missing, and I think is really important to set right which was the last Spectrum game released, even though it seems that it was finally sold via mail order, not retail.
It's not the last Spectrum game released though, there are re-releases from Alternative and The Hit Squad after that. Plus you've got publishers like Zenobi who carried on even longer.
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by StooB »

PeterJ wrote: Thu Jul 02, 2020 11:38 am Hi @MatGubbins,

@Einar Saukas will know the exact reason for this link to Wizball, but to get just titles published by Codemasters you need to enter Codemasters into the Publisher box, then choose strict results from the results strictness box.

There was a long discussion about something similar a few weeks ago which is why we released the results strictness.

I'm sure Einar will come up with the goods.

Good spot by the way @MatGubbins!
It's because ZXDB thinks Codemasters own Sensible Software.
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PeterJ
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by PeterJ »

Good spot [mention]StooB[/mention] . Codemasters did acquire them. So you need to use the strict search as mentioned previously.

I understand the issue about points in time [mention]StooB[/mention] , but we just don't have the resources, time, volunteers, or the complete information to ever go down that road. It is noted though.

Strict search was introduced as a partial answer to the issue.
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Pegaz
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by Pegaz »

Just to suggest a correction for these two titles, Galaksija Emulator and Space Invaders Emulator.
Both titles are + 2A/+3 compatible only, do not work with 128k or +2 machines.

https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/1 ... a_Emulator
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/entry/3 ... s_Emulator
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by Pegaz »

And new and more appropriate screenshot suggestion, for Galaksija Emulator. :)

Image
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Audionautas
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by Audionautas »

StooB wrote: Thu Jul 02, 2020 11:49 am
It's not the last Spectrum game released though, there are re-releases from Alternative and The Hit Squad after that. Plus you've got publishers like Zenobi who carried on even longer.
Yes, I know all that, but I disagree.

* Dalek Attack was a game intended for a release in stores, as all the other versions of the game, except the Spectrum version, that after a lot of delay, it was finally released (via mail order, though), thanks to popular demand.

* Unlike those Hit Squad or Alternative Software reissues, this was a new game. Most probably the last new game intended for retail.

* Yes, Zenobi released new text adventures until 1997 or so. They sold a lot of games through mail order, but did it that way all over its existence. The same goes for Ultrasoft in Slovakia and Czech Republic until 1995 or so. They sold several hundreds, maybe thousands, of some of their games, but as far as I know, they did it by mail order too (also according to author and expert Jaroslav Švelch: https://mitpress.mit.edu/books/gaming-iron-curtain). The same goes for some Russian games produced over the 90's al 00's, and obviously the same goes for the homebrew games released by Cronosoft, Bitmap Soft, Matra or Monument Microgames amongst others in limited runs all over the last ten or fifteen years. But I don't think it's the same case here.

In my humble opinion Dalek Attack is a game of significant historical importance for the Spectrum (despite its average quality), because it was the last new game released by an established software house focused on retail sales and also it was the last new Spectrum game reviewed by a major Spectrum magazine (Your Sinclair).

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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by StooB »

You can't say Dalek Attack was the definitely the last "new game" "intended for release in stores" without knowing Alternative's exact release schedule. It could be Playdays!
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by 8BitAG »

Audionautas wrote: Thu Jul 02, 2020 2:24 pm * Dalek Attack was a game intended for a release in stores, as all the other versions of the game, except the Spectrum version, that after a lot of delay, it was finally released (via mail order, though), thanks to popular demand.
It's an important game, for sure, and deserves to be remembered as one of the last, big name releases. And the year of release should definitely be fixed in the database. :)

But your argument that it was the last "retail" game for the ZX Spectrum is flawed if it was never actually released in a retail store and was only available by mail order.

All this "retail versus mail order" stuff is nonsense, anyway. A commercial game is a commercial game, no matter how it was sold. If someone is selling a game for money then it is a commercial game. There were Zenobi games that sold far more copies than Dalek Attack ever sold.

Many, many, many of the big ZX Spectrum companies started off as mail order only firms. A huge chunk of ZX Spectrum games and software either started out as mail order titles or were only ever available by post. In the latter years of the Spectrum, many of the games were not stocked in most retail shops.

In years to come, when we look back on the history of video games, the period in which video games were sold in physical stores will be tiny.
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PeterJ
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by PeterJ »

Hi, we will certainly change the year to 1993, but will continue to work through the earlier reports first.
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Audionautas
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by Audionautas »

StooB wrote: Thu Jul 02, 2020 2:43 pm You can't say Dalek Attack was the definitely the last "new game" "intended for release in stores" without knowing Alternative's exact release schedule. It could be Playdays!
Yes, it probably wasn't the last game, a bold comment on my part, but the only way we have to know if one game was released sooner or later than the other is through magazine reviews. I know that magazines often previewed games that would not be released until months later. Maybe that's the case here, but we don't know. Until we have solid evidence, Playdays was reviewed in May 1993 and Dalek Attack in July 1993. I hope some day we'll know for certain.

All the best!
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by MatGubbins »

PeterJ wrote: Thu Jul 02, 2020 12:10 pm Good spot [mention]StooB[/mention] . Codemasters did acquire them. So you need to use the strict search as mentioned previously.

I understand the issue about points in time [mention]StooB[/mention] , but we just don't have the resources, time, volunteers, or the complete information to ever go down that road. It is noted though.

Strict search was introduced as a partial answer to the issue.
StooB wrote: Thu Jul 02, 2020 12:00 pm
PeterJ wrote: Thu Jul 02, 2020 11:38 am Hi @MatGubbins,

@Einar Saukas will know the exact reason for this link to Wizball, but to get just titles published by Codemasters you need to enter Codemasters into the Publisher box, then choose strict results from the results strictness box.

There was a long discussion about something similar a few weeks ago which is why we released the results strictness.

I'm sure Einar will come up with the goods.

Good spot by the way @MatGubbins!
It's because ZXDB thinks Codemasters own Sensible Software.
Thanks for the answers. I shuffled my Wizball tape from the Ocean stack and onto the Codemasters stack. It looked wrong and put it back onto the Ocean tape stack.
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Re: Little bugs in the database

Post by 1024MAK »

akeley wrote: Sun Jun 28, 2020 6:19 pm A pedant writes: Our beloved micro is listed in ZXDB's "Machine Type" entries as "ZX-Spectrum". But shouldn't it actually be "ZX Spectrum"? Just wondering...
Yes, it should be “ZX Spectrum”.
See also here ;-)

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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by Audionautas »

Hi guys!

I'm doing some searching on ZXDB and I miss an interesting feature.

I'm doing an advanced search by "Language" in this case. My intention is to list all games in Serbian language, for example. Great!, I have a list of games in that particular language. But after reviewing that list I can't find any game from the most famous Serbian 8 bit programmer, Duško Dimitrijević, and that's is because he released all his games in the UK, so the language is English.

So, I miss the option of searching by "Nationality" (of the , not only by "Language". The same case goes for Homega Software, the Hungarian guys who coded Express Raider for U.S. Gold. They're Hungarian but you can't find it as a game made in Hungary because it's in English.

I think this feature of searching by "Nationality" would be very useful to have a real outlook of the software production made in a certain country, regardless the language in which was made.

Thank you!
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Re: Little bugs in the database 4

Post by StooB »

Reversi (Sinclair Research) for the Spectrum
and
Reversi also known as Othello (Sinclair Research) for the ZX81

should have the same name
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