Friesen@HIS-PHOENIX-MULTICS.ARPA (05/01/88)
Well I guess my machine is more of a business computer than most :-). Everyone says that they have a lot of games for their Atari. Well I only have 3 (plus about 4 PD ones and a few I have programmed). The reason I don't have too many is because I like arcade action games, not text adventure games (which seem to be the most common type). I would like to see Atari (arcade games division) get together with Atari (computer division) and program some of their arcade games for the ST. I have played two fairly new games in the arcade by Atari, and they are excellent. They are Roadblasters, and Blasteroids. These games are very realistic in control response (at least they seem to be, I mean I really dont know how it feels to control a spaceship shooting asteroids :-) ). Blasteroids is like a modern version (and much improved version) of Asteroids. Roadblasters is like Pole Position, except you shoot your apponents. These games have the most astounding resolution, sound, and controls. I know it would be impossible to program these games for the 2600, because it is too limited, but the ST might just have enough power for a very good reproduction. I hope Atari would change its mind about not making games for the ST (after all, they already made a few games for the ST, and Atari is the best arcade game manufacturer). Oh well enough said, I just hope Atari is listening. I really don't see why they won't make just a few games, I don't think that would change the way anyone feels about the computer as far as being for games only. Aric Friesen P.S. Sometimes people ask, "If you knew when you bought your Atari, what you know now, would you have bought it? My answer is YES!YES!YES!YES!YES!YES! I love my Atari!!!!!! Addresses: Genie: A.FRIESEN ARPA: Friesen%PCO@BCO-MULTICS.ARPA "Exterminate! Exterminate!"--Daleks
greg@bilbo (Greg Wageman) (05/04/88)
In article <880501041352.036351@HIS-PHOENIX-MULTICS.ARPA> Friesen%PCO@BCO-MULTICS.ARPA writes: > >Well I guess my machine is more of a business computer than most :-). >Everyone says that they have a lot of games for their Atari. Well I >only have 3 (plus about 4 PD ones and a few I have programmed). The >reason I don't have too many is because I like arcade action games, not >text adventure games (which seem to be the most common type). > > [stuff re Atari Video marriage with Atari Computer deleted...] > There are some excellent video games for the ST. Atari's own Star Raiders has been updated and enhanced to take advantage of the graphics capabilities of the ST. It has the feel of the original with lots of pretty little touches added, like multiple simulated "computer displays" within the main window... >Sometimes people ask, "If you knew when you bought your Atari, what you >know now, would you have bought it? > >My answer is YES!YES!YES!YES!YES!YES! I love my Atari!!!!!! Well, this brings up an excellent point: why did YOU buy this machine? Mr. Beckemeyer apparently chose the machine because it was the fastest, cheapest 68000 box around and he intended to concentrate on that aspect of it; unfortunately in his enthusiasm or niavete he either overlooked the machine's designed-in limitations (no external bus connections, buggy OS ROMS), or underestimated their impact on the power of the machine. Now he bemoans the fact the Atari is slow in fixing things. Did Atari hold a gun to your head, and force you to develop for their machine, Mr. Beckemeyer? It was your choice. If it was a bad one, then move on. No one likes sour grapes. I chose the machine for several reasons. I had been working with an S-100 bus system based on a Z80-A computer, running CP/M 2.2. I was tired of hitting the limits of the Z80's speed and memory. The graphics board I had was limited to 265 x 192 resolution with a fixed palette of 16 colors (based on the TI9918A chip). I could see the possibilities with more speed, more memory, better graphics. Then, along come both the Amiga and Atari. Both are based on 68000's, with its large linear address space, rational register architecture and instruction set. The Atari is available, stock with a MEGAbyte of memory (ye gods! How could I EVER fill that up? :-). The screen resolutions are nearly double what I had. The prices are within my budget. Now, how to choose? At the time (about two years ago), all the talk on the Amiga side was about how buggy the operating system is, how slow the file management is, what a pain Kickstart is, etc. So I bought Atari. Now, to my sardonic amusement, all the talk in Atariland is about how buggy TOS is, how slow FAT searching is, where is the blitter, etc! And Amigaland? Well, they get their OS updates on disk, so they're WAY ahead of where they were 2 years ago! So knowing what I know now, I would probably buy an Amiga, maybe... except that there have been a number of EXCELLENT software packages published exclusivly for the Atari, such as Antic Publishing's Cyber Studio. This stuff is EXACTLY what I wanted the computer for. Personally, I haven't found any of the TOS bugs fatal; except that I don't have a hard disk so I stand to loose less than others. I don't mind that the floppies aren't as fast as they could be, since they hold 1/3 more data (800K vs. 600K) than my 8" floppies, in a fraction of the space. I do wish Atari would release new ROMS, and a blitter mod for the 1040, but I never had a blitter before (hell, I had to write my own graphics routines from the SET/GET PIXEL level on up!). I guess I can live without one for a while longer... P.S. Apologies to Mr. Beckemeyer if I have misspelled your name. I do not have your posting in front of me. If I have, and it makes you feel any better, feel free to misspell mine. Greg Wageman ARPA: greg%sentry@spar.slb.com | To err is human; to Schlumberger Technologies BIX: gwage | REALLY screw things 1601 Technology Drive CIS: 74016,352 | up requires a San Jose, CA 95110 GEnie: GWAGEMAN | computer. (408) 437-5198 UUCP: ...!decwrl!spar!sentry!greg | ------------------ The opinions expressed herein are solely the responsibility of the author.
wolf@csclea.ncsu.edu (Thomas Wolf) (05/05/88)
In a previous posting on the subject, someone mentioned an updated version of
Star Raiders for the ST. Does this version work in monochrome?
My reason for posting this message is to express my amusement: Here we have
Atari Corp. who has marketed a single computer for which a software developer
has to develop TWO distinct versions of a game if he/she wishes to have them
run on both colour AND monochrome. But does Atari set a good example by doing
exactly that with its arcade-style games? Apparantly not. The first version
of Star Raiders at least did not run in monochrome. Atari apparently expects
other developers to go through the extra trouble but doesn't do so itself.
The only publisher of Atari ST games to have undergone that "extra effort"
(as far as I know) seems to be RainBird/Firebird. Their "StarGlider",
"Tracker", etc. games all work fine in monochrome. Since I only own a mono
chrome system, I would like to commend them for their efforts (btw, I have
no affiliation with this publisher -- I'm just a satisfied user.)
Maybe in the future we will see other companies taking that extra step in
developing their games? Perhaps they already do in Europe? (since there,
monochrome systems are much more common than in the US)
Tom Wolf
Arpa: wolf@csclea.ncsu.edu
tw@cscosl.ncsu.edu
Tom Wolf
ARPA (I think): tw@cscosl.ncsu.edu
or wolf@csclea.ncsu.edurgn@ecsvax.UUCP (Robert Norris) (05/05/88)
In article <1786@ncsuvx.ncsu.edu>, wolf@csclea.ncsu.edu (Thomas Wolf) writes: > In a previous posting on the subject, someone mentioned an updated version of > Star Raiders for the ST. Does this version work in monochrome? > > My reason for posting this message is to express my amusement: Here we have > Atari Corp. who has marketed a single computer for which a software developer > has to develop TWO distinct versions of a game if he/she wishes to have them > run on both colour AND monochrome. But does Atari set a good example by doing > exactly that with its arcade-style games? Apparantly not. The first version > of Star Raiders at least did not run in monochrome. Atari apparently expects > other developers to go through the extra trouble but doesn't do so itself. > [ some stuff deleted ] The developers kit that I bought back in early '86 even had a letter enclosed urging developers to write resolution independent software. When Star Raiders became available I ordered it without checking to make sure it ran on a monochrome system, and was very dissapointed when it arrived and I couldn`t use it. Anyway, I have both monitors now, so hopefully I have all the bases covered! :-) Rob -- Rob Norris Dept. of Math Sciences UUCP: ...!mcnc!ecsvax!rgn Appalachian State Univ. BITNET: rgn@ecsvax Boone, NC 28608 (704) 264-2366
knutsen@athos.rutgers.edu (Mark Knutsen) (05/05/88)
In article <880501041352.036351@HIS-PHOENIX-MULTICS.ARPA> Friesen@HIS-PHOENIX-MULTICS.ARPA writes: > like to see Atari (arcade games division) get together with Atari > (computer division) and program some of their arcade games for the ST. Atari Games is a subsidiary of Warner Communications. Atari Corp is a computer company, sold by Warner to the Tramiels several years ago. The two companies, therefore, are totally distinct (they do not have the same corporate parent, in fact, Atari Corp is public), and neither really cares what the other does. > I have played two fairly new games in the arcade by Atari, and they are > excellent. They are Roadblasters, and Blasteroids. Roadblaster (singular, I believe) is indeed excellent, but then, the quality of the average Atari coin-op is very high. Witness 720, Rolling Thunder, I Robot, Dragon Spirit, Gauntlet and Gauntlet II, Major Havoc, APB, et. al. ("Sure could use a doughnut...") -- \ I don't drink, so how \ Jersey \ GEnie GE Mail: M.KNUTSEN \ ||| \ come I live in Barr \ Atari \ The JACG BBS: (201)298-0161 \ / | \ ||| \ Hall on Busch Campus? \ Computer \ NetLand: knutsen@rutgers.edu \ / | \ \ --Mark Knutsen, R.U. \ Group \ or: {...}!rutgers.edu!knutsen \
rjung@castor.usc.edu (Robert Jung) (05/06/88)
In article <1786@ncsuvx.ncsu.edu> wolf@csclea.UUCP (Thomas Wolf) writes: >My reason for posting this message is to express my amusement: Here we have >Atari Corp. who has marketed a single computer for which a software developer >has to develop TWO distinct versions of a game if he/she wishes to have them >run on both colour AND monochrome. But does Atari set a good example by doing >exactly that with its arcade-style games? Yes. Read on. > Apparantly not. The first version >of Star Raiders at least did not run in monochrome. Atari apparently expects >other developers to go through the extra trouble but doesn't do so itself. Despite all the Atari flaming ("constructive criticism"?) going on here, you can't pin this one on them. I don't know about the latest release of _Star Raiders ST_, but Atari's _Missile Command_ game not only runs in low and high resolution, but medium as well. I do believe (but cannot confirm) that their gun-shooting (mouse-shooting?) game _Crack'ed_ also runs in monochrome... >The only publisher of Atari ST games to have undergone that "extra effort" >(as far as I know) seems to be RainBird/Firebird. Their "StarGlider", >"Tracker", etc. games all work fine in monochrome. Since I only own a mono >chrome system, I would like to commend them for their efforts (btw, I have >no affiliation with this publisher -- I'm just a satisfied user.) Everybody who's bought a Firebird product is a satisfied sustomer. They and FTL are among the best Atari ST developers around. Long may they live! >Maybe in the future we will see other companies taking that extra step in >developing their games? Perhaps they already do in Europe? (since there, >monochrome systems are much more common than in the US) You could also check out that new program _Monoware_, which is supposed to make your monochrome monitor emulate a color monitor perfectly, and vice versa. I haven't used it myself, but everything I've heard says that it delivers. --R.J. B-) ______________________________________________________________________________ Bitnet: rjung@castor.usc.edu "Who needs an Amiga?" = == = = == = Power WithOUT the Price = == = ===== == ===== Just because it's 8-bits doesn't make it obsolete. ==== == ====
john@stag.UUCP (John Stanley) (05/09/88)
In article <857@nunki.usc.edu> rjung@castor.usc.edu (Robert Jung) writes: > > Everybody who's bought a Firebird product is a satisfied sustomer. They and >FTL are among the best Atari ST developers around. Long may they live! While I agree in general, I don't think bringing up FTL in a discussion about the problems involved in color-ONLY programs is a good idea. While Dungeon-Master is one of the best games on the ST, it's so color-only that even OmniRes can't get it to run on a monochrome monitor. > You could also check out that new program _Monoware_, which is >supposed to make your monochrome monitor emulate a color monitor >perfectly, and vice versa. I haven't used it myself, but >everything I've heard says that it delivers. You've got it backwards... Monoware runs monochrome programs on a color system, not the other way around. There is, to my knowledge, no existing public-domain or shareware program to run color programs on a monochrome monitor. (And no commercial versions that are capable of running Dungeon-Master.) --- John Stanley (dynasoft!john@stag.UUCP) Software Consultant / Dynasoft Systems
jac423@leah.Albany.Edu (Julius A Cisek) (05/31/88)
In article <May.5.09.40.18.1988.19483@athos.rutgers.edu>, knutsen@athos.rutgers.edu (Mark Knutsen) writes: > Roadblaster (singular, I believe) is indeed excellent, but then, the > quality of the average Atari coin-op is very high. Witness 720, > Rolling Thunder, I Robot, Dragon Spirit, Gauntlet and Gauntlet II, > Major Havoc, APB, et. al. Gauntlet has been out on the ST and is a VERY good version of the arcade game. I especially like the way the sound was done. It was digitized from the video game, so your Atari sounds quite unlike the usual. Rolling Thunder is also in the process of being released (sike!), I think by a European software group. -- What about technology, computers, .------------------. J.A.Cisek nuclear fusion? I'm terrified of |Spectral Fantasies| jac423@leah.albany.edu radiation, I hate the television. `------------------' jac423@uacsc1.albany.edu
KEITH@SYSD.SALFORD.AC.UK (Keith Wolstenholme) (06/08/88)
In article <May.5.09.40.18.1988.19483@athos.rutgers.edu>, knutsen@athos.rutgers. > Roadblaster (singular, I believe) is indeed excellent, but then, the > quality of the average Atari coin-op is very high. Witness 720, > Rolling Thunder, I Robot, Dragon Spirit, Gauntlet and Gauntlet II, > Major Havoc, APB, et. al. The UK software houses are very fond of arcade conversions at the moment (some of which have actually made it to the market). I thought the games fanatics out there might like a list of what to look out for ! Below is a list of arcade conversions either availbable now or under development for the ST by UK software houses. I've probably left a number of titles out, this is all from memory but I think I've got the publishers right ! Some of the comments have been "gleaned" from various UK ST and Games magazines. First the actual arcade conversions: Title Publisher Notes Roadrunner US Gold - Now available in a Indianna Jones " - 4 game compilation Gauntlet " - Metrocross " - Rampage Activision Buggy boy Elite Getting good reviews Road Blasters Activision ? Under development Xenon Melbourne House ARCADE QUALITY vertical scroller Sidewinder Melbourne House " " " " (easier than Xenon) Roadwars Melbourne House Difficult to describe ! Good graphics Gameplay not great. Gauntlet 2 US Gold Just out. 4-PLAYER with adaptor. Space Harrier Elite Under deleopment ? Things seem to have gone quiet on this. Early reports were interesting. 8 bit versions have been out for over a year. Star Wars Domark Good conversion, maybe a little slow. Empire Strikes Back Domark Under development. Return of Jedi Domark Under development ? For Xmas. Rolling Thunder US Gold ? Just out. Competemt conversion. Slap Fight Ocean Average Conversion. Ikari Warriors Elite Average Conversion. Outrun US Gold Good Conversion. Bubble Bobble Firebird Good Conversion. Bionic Commandos US Gold Under development. Halls of Kairos US Gold Under development. Sold as "Desolator". Alien Syndrome The Edge Status unknown ? Darius ?? A company had a Darius machine on display at last years PCW show. Nothing has been mentioned since. There's also a few original games that may be worth getting: The Last Ninja System 3 Under development (for a looong time!). Return to Genesis Firebird Smooth horizontal, parallax, scroller. Leathernecks Microdeal 4 Player. Whirlygig Firebird Under development. Screen shots look good. Black Lamp Firebird Good platform game. Backlash Novagen 16 bit version of Encounter (on the 8 bit and C64). Mindless blasting. Its great ! Damocles Novagen Under development. Sequel to Mecenary. Graphics are completely different. Gameplay ? Captain Blood Infogrammes Recent release from a French company. English language version just out. Space exploration. Great graphics, good sound. Takes some time to get into it ! Carrier Command Firebird Wow ! Combat/war game with arcade/ Flight simulator graphics. Solid filled 3-D graphics. Animation is very smooth. Virus Firebird This is the game used to "sell" the Acorn Archimedes - difficult to describe. Byte carried a screen shot in a news item about the Archimedes. Reports of the conversion are very favourable. Starglider 2 Firebird Under development. Should be ready "soon". Firebird have started to advertise it. Graphics are solid, filled, 3-D. Should be as smooth as Carrier Command. I have a mono monitor so have not actually got many of these games, but I have seen and even played some of those that have been released. Have fun ! JANET keith@uk.ac.salford.sysd ARPA: keith@sysd.salford.ac.uk PHONE: +44 61 737 7010 POST: 3-S, Computer Centre, Salford University, Salford, M5 4WT, U.K.