Spectrum Computing

moroz1999 wrote: ↑Mon Feb 24, 2020 11:42 am https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.p ... el_id=2870 - Cristiano Cremonini (Italy)
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.p ... el_id=2869 - Cristiano Cremolini
Seems to be the same person: both produced similar-looking adventures, same publisher.

Since my Italian only just orders me a pizza, Multiface shows string "Cristiano Cremonini" at address 0x5e26 after loading Proxima.

Stefan wrote: ↑Mon Feb 24, 2020 2:40 pm

moroz1999 wrote: ↑Mon Feb 24, 2020 11:42 am https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.p ... el_id=2870 - Cristiano Cremonini (Italy)
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.p ... el_id=2869 - Cristiano Cremolini
Seems to be the same person: both produced similar-looking adventures, same publisher.

Since my Italian only just orders me a pizza, Multiface shows string "Cristiano Cremonini" at address 0x5e26 after loading Proxima.

Oooh... good spotting, both of you. We don't have those other two games in the database at CASA for some reason, either.

Stefan wrote: ↑Mon Feb 24, 2020 2:40 pm Since my Italian only just orders me a pizza, Multiface shows string "Cristiano Cremonini" at address 0x5e26 after loading Proxima.

Name confirmed as Cremonini from the actual issue of the associated magazine...
http://laxdelzx.altervista.org/Lnr/Lnr_ ... ta_n51.pdf

This author...
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.p ... bel_id=845

"Andevi"

Is credited as "A. De Vivo" for the game La Perla in Load'n'Run issue 19... http://laxdelzx.altervista.org/Lnr/Lnr_ ... ta_n19.pdf

8BitAG wrote: ↑Mon Feb 24, 2020 4:33 pm This author...
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.p ... bel_id=845

"Andevi"

Is credited as "A. De Vivo" for the game La Perla in Load'n'Run issue 19... http://laxdelzx.altervista.org/Lnr/Lnr_ ... ta_n19.pdf

Andevi is a pseudonym of Andrea, or Antonio, De Vivo in fact. I remember that adventure, I even solved it back then.

By the way, Castel Basic was first published in Load 'n' Run issue 20, October 1985. The game screen shows the later Spanish translation.

Operazione Ladro
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.p ... 6&id=26389

The corresponding Load'n'Run lists the authors as M. & A. Salvi

http://laxdelzx.altervista.org/Lnr/Lnr_ ... ta_n30.pdf

As already mentioned here, some programs from Load 'n' Run are incorrectly listed as demos, while they are simply advertising. This error was carried over from the WoS database.

Campagna abbonamenti means "subscription campaign" and shows what you should do in order to subscribe to the magazine. Pubblicità simply means "advertising" and is in fact an ad for a shop in Milan offering to expand a 16K Spectrum to 48K for a "fabulous" price.

On a side note, that was the same shop which was one of the first to distribute pirated software with changed names and under its own brand; they even sold an unofficial Italian translation of the Horizons tape which came with the earlier Spectrum models, while the first official translation was included with the Spectrum +. It was there that Italy's most notorious Spectrum hacker, Giovanni Zanetti - better known as "G.B. Max" - began his dubious "career".

Mosquetero de la Reina (https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.p ... 6&id=35232) was developed using only PAW, MuCho was used on other titles of the same dev.

Another one sorry:

Specball 2016, should be called just "Specball".

This cropped up via PM with someone close to the game.

Little Mouse Adventure...
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.p ... 6&id=35171

Created with the Professional Adventure Writing System

The version of Cursed be the City in the archives is incomplete and could do with that fact being flagged on the entry so it's known that the missing portions of the software need to be recovered.

https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.p ... 96&id=6134

We currently only have the text-only version of the game, which was on one side of the tape. The other side of the tape (both in its original release, and The Guild re-release) had a less verbose text & graphics version of the game. This version is MIA.

"Rescate" https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.p ... 6&id=15034 the 1991 version, has a comment:
"Finalist of the Concurso de Aventuras de MicroHobby."
The game was not a finalist but pre-selected for the competition, as stated on this page: https://archive.org/details/microhobby- ... 1/mode/2up

druellan wrote: ↑Sun Mar 01, 2020 1:42 pm "Rescate" https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.p ... 6&id=15034 the 1991 version, has a comment:
"Finalist of the Concurso de Aventuras de MicroHobby."
The game was not a finalist but pre-selected for the competition, as stated on this page: https://archive.org/details/microhobby- ... 1/mode/2up

Quite a controversial competition, that one, as I'm sure you know... and I guess it depends on your definition of finalist. It certainly got on to the initial shortlist. There were over 100 adventures submitted and it was one of just fifteen chosen to proceed. These fifteen were then narrowed down to seven semi-finalists which all ended up being declared as the winners.

http://wiki.caad.es/Concurso_de_aventuras_de_MicroHobby

Labelling it as "On the final shortlist of the Concurso de Aventuras de MicroHobby" might be more accurate, I guess.

8BitAG wrote: ↑Sun Mar 01, 2020 1:52 pm Quite a controversial competition, that one, as I'm sure you know... and I guess it depends on your definition of finalist.
[...]
Labelling it as "On the final shortlist of the Concurso de Aventuras de MicroHobby" might be more accurate, I guess.

Yeah, that's what I was thinking, we can discuss the semantics, but at the end of the day IMO we need to stick to the sources

Danger Street
https://spectrumcomputing.co.uk/index.p ... el_id=9018

The correct publisher is Marvel Soft and not Manuel Soft.

patters wrote: ↑Mon Feb 03, 2020 11:46 pm Based on this info:
NSFW!

Spoiler

https://web.archive.org/web/20180613030 ... index.html

Can we add Artem Orlov into the DB as the real name for Oleg Origin? Could be useful one day if someone wants to look him up for an interview or something.

[mention]moroz1999[/mention] do you think this is correct or adequate? Perhaps the author does not want to have his real name in the database?

Italian Supercar is the sequel to Super Stuntman, according to the inlay and Crash.

According to the page for Speccy Rally, it was released in 2013 and participated in CSSCGC Crap Games Contest 2014.

However it's not listed in either CSSCGC Crap Games Competition 2013 or CSSCGC Crap Games Competition 2014.

Did it really participate in CSSCGC?

Also according to the page for Waiting for Sproggo, it participated in CSSCGC Crap Games Contest 2013.

However it doesn't appear at CSSCGC Crap Games Competition 2013.

Did it really participate in CSSCGC?

Einar Saukas wrote: ↑Wed Mar 04, 2020 4:50 pm Also according to the page for Waiting for Sproggo, it participated in CSSCGC Crap Games Contest 2013.

However it doesn't appear at CSSCGC Crap Games Competition 2013.

Did it really participate in CSSCGC?

Seems like it did participate, but according to the site, the actual title is 'Advanced Waiting for the Royal Baby to Spring from the Vagina of that Woman whose Parents run some Website what sells Balloons and stuff Simulator'.

http://csscgc2013.blogspot.com/2013/07/ ... sbass.html

[mention]Einar Saukas[/mention]

As djnzx48 says, Waiting for Sproggo definitely participated in the 2013 CGC. It's in the blog and I remember reviewing it (and the tedious royal media coverage from the time!)

I'm fairly sure that Speccy Rally did not compete in any CGC. I can't remember if I included that info in ZXDB originally. Yoshiatom did send games of similar quality to the CGC around this time, but I seem to recall Speccy Rally was emailed to me outside of the CGC—that's why it's at my old CGD blog.

In summary:
Waiting for Sproggo - definitely CGC 2013
Speccy Rally - quite sure not CGC at all

Black Lamp

The tap file BlackLamp.tap.zip contains the MCM version, "Black Lamp (MCM).tap", not the original Firebird version.

StooB wrote: ↑Thu Mar 05, 2020 6:21 pm Black Lamp

The tap file BlackLamp.tap.zip contains the MCM version, "Black Lamp (MCM).tap", not the original Firebird version.

I suppose that's because the MCM re-release was recorded with the standard ROM loader instead of the Firebird Bleepload. TAP files made from software recorded with the Firebird Bleepload are practically useless because they won't load with a CF/SD-based interface, and nowadays TAP files serve exclusively this purpose since all emulators can handle the TZX file format.

druellan wrote: ↑Tue Mar 03, 2020 4:44 am @moroz1999 do you think this is correct or adequate? Perhaps the author does not want to have his real name in the database?

@druellan, I'm afraid that Artem Orlov is just one more pseudonym, and it cannot be used with 100% confidence. I believe that Oleg Origin is a real person, and he is not alone in Zosya Entertainment, but that'[mention]moroz1999[/mention]

moroz1999 wrote: ↑Thu Mar 05, 2020 9:04 pm @druellan, I'm afraid that Artem Orlov is just one more pseudonym, and it cannot be used with 100% confidence. I believe that Oleg Origin is a real person, and he is not alone in Zosya Entertainment, but that's all.

Thanks, Moroz! And yeah, we got a second confirmation about that, and besides, as I said, I'm not sure if it is adequate for us to expose his real name. One thing is to be known on the scene, and another is to dig the identity of someone that has no intention to make it public. Thanks again!