specter@disk.UUCP (Byron Max Guernsey) (12/04/90)
I don't know if it is a good idea to boycot a company that puts out a bad piece of software (ot even consistantly puts out bad software). The reason being that they might just stop producing software at all for amiga. I think that would be worse than prodicuing sucky programs. Worse off they might go make it for the NEXT! We can't have that! (grin) Is the amiga version like the ibm version? I played around a bit with the IBM version on super VGA and thought the graphics were pretty good. I didn't see much, I just saw the dungeon adventuring. Hmmm come to think of it..maybe it was Ultima VI??? In the IBM version I saw the guys smoothly walked around the dungeon (in a semi-3d overhead view) Byron Guernsey
huebner@aero.aero.org (Robert E. Huebner) (12/06/90)
In article <4626@disk.UUCP>, specter@disk.UUCP (Byron Max Guernsey) writes: |> I don't know if it is a good idea to boycot a company that puts out a bad |> piece of software (ot even consistantly puts out bad software). The reason |> being that they might just stop producing software at all for amiga. I |> think that would be worse than prodicuing sucky programs. Worse off they |> might go make it for the NEXT! We can't have that! (grin) So what are you recommending? That we go out and buy a clearly inferior game? Leave my checkbook out of this. |> Is the amiga version like the ibm version? I played around a bit with |> the IBM version on super VGA and thought the graphics were pretty good. |> I didn't see much, I just saw the dungeon adventuring. Hmmm come to think |> of it..maybe it was Ultima VI??? In the IBM version I saw the guys smoothly |> walked around the dungeon (in a semi-3d overhead view) I think the only one to support VGA on IBM was VI, and it was buggy as hell. Between the gaffes on the IBM and this lousy port, I wouldn't be suprised if Origin went out of business. About the quality of the Amiga version: Put it this way- in all honesty, I'd rather play the C-64 version. Really! My recommendation is to write to Origin and tell them that a) you would have purchased their game if it showed even a slight bit of effort on their part b) you will consider buying the game if proper repairs are made In this way, you're out $.25 instead of $39.95, and your vote will be recorded probably at the highest levels possible. The only address I have for Origin is: Origin Systems 136 Harvey Road Building 'B' Londonderry, NH 03053 Address it to the president, what the hell. If anyone out there has a more current address (this was from the C-64 box, I'm not buying the Amiga version, obviously) please post it on this under this topic name. Thanks to Dave Poland (2FLNTOPAZ@kuhub.cc.ukand.edu) for information. ----- Robert Huebner huebner@ecn.purdue.edu -----
keithh@bwdls40.bnr.ca (Keith Hanlan) (12/06/90)
In article <4626@disk.UUCP> specter@disk.UUCP (Byron Max Guernsey) writes: >I don't know if it is a good idea to boycot a company that puts out a bad >piece of software (ot even consistantly puts out bad software). The reason >being that they might just stop producing software at all for amiga. I >think that would be worse than prodicuing sucky programs. I disagree Byron. Bad software *is* worse than none. Poorly written software detracts from productivity and adversely affects the marketability of the platform. This hurts us all in the long run. When the MacIntosh was introduced, a great deal of corporate effort went into making sure that software written for the machine was done professionally. This slowed down the availability of a lot of software but paid off in the long run. I'm not a big fan of the Mac but you can't help but admire the marketing skill that has made it the success it is. Furthermore, poorly written software is a sign of lack of commitment on the part of the authors and marketers. This sign also indicates that the software is much less likely to be improved let alone corrected. As to your comment that if we boycott them, they'll switch to another platform: Let'em. Don't encourage more bad software. Boycott it. Keith Hanlan keithh@bnr.ca Bell-Northern Research, Ottawa, Canada 613-765-4645
kuan@iris.ucdavis.edu (Frank [Who me?] Kuan) (12/06/90)
In article <4626@disk.UUCP> specter@disk.UUCP (Byron Max Guernsey) writes: >I don't know if it is a good idea to boycot a company that puts out a bad >piece of software (ot even consistantly puts out bad software). The reason >being that they might just stop producing software at all for amiga. I >think that would be worse than prodicuing sucky programs. Worse off they >might go make it for the NEXT! We can't have that! (grin) I only need to mention two words to disprove your assertion that having sucky software is better having no software: Altered Beast Tis better to have no software than sucky software. Determining whether software is "sucky" is a very subjective matter, but there are standards of quality that are commonly accepted by the majority. Ultima is such a great series that people are going to buy it even though they know it's buggy (I bought Ultima 6 on the IBM). However, shoddy programming will result in consumer wariness. However, high quality programming will have wonderful results. I will never buy another ultima unless I've tested and played it first to make sure it works. On the other hand, When Speedball II hits the market, I'm going to pick up the phone and order it from a mail order place without even checking this group to see how other people like it.
dfrancis@tronsbox.xei.com (Dennis Francis Heffernan) (12/07/90)
|MesgID: 93511@aerospace.AERO.ORG |The only address I have for Origin is: | |Origin Systems |136 Harvey Road |Building 'B' |Londonderry, NH 03053 | |Address it to the president, what the hell. | |If anyone out there has a more current address (this was from the C-64 |box, I'm not buying the Amiga version, obviously) please post it on this |under this topic name. I can't find a more current address, but that one is definitely bogus. The company is now located in Texas. dfrancis@tronsbox.xei.com ...uunet!tronsbox!dfrancis GEnie: D.HEFFERNAN1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ "I don't understand why you make such a big deal out of everything...haven't you learned; if it's not happenning to me it's not important?" -Murphy Brown
brian@sky.COM (Brian Pelletier) (12/07/90)
In article <93511@aerospace.AERO.ORG> huebner@aero.aero.org (Robert E. Huebner) writes: >My recommendation is to write to Origin and tell them that >a) you would have purchased their game if it showed even a slight bit of > effort on their part >b) you will consider buying the game if proper repairs are made > >In this way, you're out $.25 instead of $39.95, and your vote will be >recorded probably at the highest levels possible. > Excellent idea. I'll be writing a letter as soon as I have a recent address. I think the Londonderry NH address is old, can anyone with a recent Origin release provide a better address from the documentation? >----- >Robert Huebner huebner@ecn.purdue.edu >----- Thanks to all the people who have bothered to post information on Ultima V here. Your comments, both positive and negative, *do* make a difference. I'd love to get Ultima V for the Amiga, but based on the overwhelming evidence I've seen on the net, the game appears to have serious problems. So I'll wait, write a letter to Origin, and maybe look for something similar to spend some time (and $$$) on. Hopefully Origin will do something to change my opinion of them, but the quality of their products has gone downhill since Ultima III, and their games have lost some of that 'magic' quality that made them so addictive in the first place. Brian Pelletier, Hardware guy | Disclaimer: These are MY opinions, not SKY's. Sky Computer Chelmsford, MA | Amiga! UUCP: pelletier@grove.uucp (home) UUCP: brian@sky.com (work) | Plink: TACK
alj@bilver.uucp (Arthur Johnson) (12/08/90)
The address you gave is current as far as I can tell. If you don't feel like mailing, call them at 1-800-999-4939. The people who man the phones aren't always kept up-to-date, though. As of two weeks ago, both people I talked to didn't think the Amiga version was going to be released until either December or January, although people had been getting them about a week before that. For those who would like to know, Ultima V works fine on an A3000 with WB2.0. That's about the only good thing I can say about the implementation. Problems? There's a keyboard problem (maybe part of the A3000/2.0 combination, though) that makes playing the game extremely frustrating and it's just impossible to play the harpischord when you need to... Disk accesses occur every sixteen steps and take between five to ten seconds to complete. Kind of really breaks the game up when you've got far to go. There's only one tune that I've heard. It's nice, but gets monotonous as you may expect. The alternative (can't have both simultaneously) sound effects are nothing impressive and somewhat sparse in occurrence. It insists on saving your game to the copy-protected (weird disk format) disk, but I haven't had any problems with that, fortunately. Ultima III was bad about killing disks this way. One of my biggest beefs is that you cannot convert your Ultima IV character over. I spent a lot of time ensuring I'd come into V with a bunch o' stuff and not have to worry about money, equipment, spell components or mixtures. This is not to be and is quite frustrating, as I wanted to get to the "meat" of the game without lots o' gold-grabbing and walkin' around. Sigh! Another complaint (about the game itself this time) is that just about everything seems to poison you. AN NOX's (if you can type the word with the keyboard problem) go like quicksilver. Very annoying. Rats, snakes, spiders, swamps, chests, squids, etc., etc. At least the orcs aren't rabid - yet! As part of the problem, even though you may detect a trap on a chest, I haven't found a non-spell way to try to remove it. Spells and components are expensive, so I have to waste the open spells just to remove traps. I used to hate the realistic night - you can only see in the eight squares around you. However, torches are plentiful wherever you go and help expand your seeing to tolerable limits. I enjoy cruisin' around at all times o' the day. Hey - don't people generally wake-up when they are damaged? My guy got beat to death from 100 HP's and slept peacefully through it all. That routine needs a little work... This was during a regular camp and not due to a spell, which I'd accept a little more. I heard that someone had fixed the keyboard problem. Please reply by e-mail or posting if you have, as I'm stuck until I can play a tune. By the way, barring the keyboard problem, the game's really not bad. The integral plot is what mosly matters and only the interface problems I've described above hurt play in any way. You can get it mail-order in the low $40's and it's OK for that price. I just wish ORIGIN would release a version with some of the problems (constant disk accessing - argh!) fixed, but that's a pipe dream.
specter@disk.UUCP (Byron Max Guernsey) (12/10/90)
So you are saying that you would rather have no port of a game than have one with problems? I personally like to be able to say "Yes, they have that for Amiga" rather than say "Umm no, they don't produce games for amiga any more". In general I didn't mean not to stop buying the sucky Ultima version, but rather not to boycot the company totally. Noone really suggested that, but in my mind I was thinking that that was an alternative way of expressing disgust. Byron