robert@alliant.backbone.uoknor.edu (Robert Lindsay) (03/28/91)
Awhile back I purchased 'Malta Storm' when Simulations Canada began porting their stuff to the amiga. Like all good owners I sent in my registration card, and was rewarded a few months ago with the SimCan newsletter. In it I find SimCan lamenting that in europe people have sold their C64s and moved to amigas 'which are very poor quality machines'. They further lamented that the atari ST was dying 'because it was so easy to program' for. They then go on to state that GREY SEAS/GREY SKIES, FIFTH ESKRADA, SEVENTH FLEET, and NORTHERN FLEET (basically their best games) will not be ported due to the fact that that the amiga is so unstable and so difficult to program on. They then go on and recommend everybody to get a IBM clone. Feeling rather insulted by all this, I mailed them a letter which admittedly made some snide remarks about their programming skills and asked them what programming language they were using were they a registered developer ect. A few days ago I recieved a equally snide reply from Mr Newberg the head of SimCan in which I found out: a) they were using MetaComco Pascal since that's what the originals were written in, and translating to a new language would be to difficult. b) they thought I was just whining since 'I bought the wrong computer' c) stated that GS/GS was better than HARPOON (it was a great game on the apple) but they still weren't going to port it. d) Stated that in a couple of years all that will be out there is PC CLONES with windows and the Mac. e) stated that amiga software sales are slumping. I would just trash the company and write them off forever execpt for the fact that nobody else produces amiga wargames (historical ones) with any regularity. For those who dont know SIMCAN games are VERY graphically limited but reasonably good historical simulations. I believe SimCan is on GENIE so flames should be directed there. I dont have SimCan's address, could someone post it? robert lindsay robert@alliant.uoknor.edu
jonabbey@cs.utexas.edu (Jonathan David Abbey) (03/28/91)
Actually, if they were using Metacomco to develop Amiga software, they deserve our deepest respect and admiration, along with an admixture of pity. As to there only being PC's and Macs well... I'll be looking to CDTV myself. -- ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Jonathan David Abbey \"Take your place on the great Mandela" P,P&M the university of texas at austin \ jonabbey@cs.utexas.edu "Love me, love computer science/math?/psychology? \ (512) 472-2052 my Amiga" -Me