ZombieCrypt

I have made a horror slideshow!

A few months ago I came up with the notion to create a slideshow based on a zombie/horror theme because I love George A. Romero and adore movies like Evil Dead and Resident Evil. Not to mention Milla Jovovich!!

I used Imagecopy 4 to convert several JPGs from various movies but that's where my artistic skills ended. I have none! So I asked a few friends if they'd like to donate some gruesome pics of their own. My thanks to the boys listed below for their images and Peter Jørgensen for his awesome slideshow. This program removes the lower border for a cool scroller, plays fantastic YMT music and can be launched from either floppy or hard drive.

I've really enjoyed working on this project and I hope all of you ST nutters download it. Let me know :)

- The Credits -

Production ideas and childishly drawn images are by Meeeee!! :D

Artistic skills: Stuart Johns / Peter Jørgensen / Karim Mezaouri / Aurélien Vaillant

Also, credit to the "unknown" for the images I nabbed off the web!

Slideshow programmed by Peter Jørgensen.

Addams Family theme tune by Vic Wizzy (converted Peter)

- Sample Slideshow Pics -

YMT Play

Let's bleep and bloop the night away!

What better way to end a great Christmas than listening to cool chiptunes using YMT Play by Peter Jørgensen (aka Bionic Nerd). This program features YM music data streaming, like the typical ST-sound playback using a sound range from 50hz -> 300hz and with very little CPU usage. The quality is outstanding and I'm sure you will find its potential interesting and an exciting concept? Go and download YMT from Demozoo.

What is YMT?

"YMT files are like the YM/AY files. Music files where you sampled data from the sound chip register (YM2149/AY8910) in a certain interval, instead of having a dedicate player.

To my knowledge, there has only been YM/AY player that could play tune/score files, that was sampled at 50HZ, but the YMT player can play files up to 300hz (there are some 50hz+ tunes/scores include in the examples)

The advantaged of AY/YM/YMT format, is that to replay these tunes/scores cost very little CPU power. So, if you need a lot power for a eg. a 3D demo, then it could be a wise choice to use it, because it leaves most of the CPU power for 3D calculations and the graphic etc.

The disadvantaged is that it uses a lot of memory, and it is nearly impossible to make a routine that can capture and use the SID sound and Samples etc. It is also why those files need to be hand made, that is the reason why YMT-Player only support pure YM2149 sound."

Jon Garry

Jon Garry is the man behind one of the best and most liked alternatives of Pacman, H-Mec. The maze is still there but gone are those dozy ghosts in favour of a sinister AI that gave it a Lode Runner feel.

And it worked so well H-Mec appeared on an ST Action cover disk!

I think H-Mec was a hit because it was instantly playable and addictive. In fact, it is a simply great game and one that sported superb visuals & audio. Oh, and was exclusively available for the Atari STe!!

Yes, his first game and already he was making good use of the enhanced hardware - extra colours, Blitter, smooth scrolling and DMA audio. Later on, a sequel was released along with a new game called Oh No! Not More Radioactive Mineshafts. H-Mec II was basically more of that winning formula but his Mineshaft game was something new and much underrated with simple gameplay mechanics yet, immensely addictive. And I loved it.

I was eager to contact Jon for an interview and he agreed. Heck, he actually seemed giddy about the idea and was a pleasure to chat with, a great bloke. I was impressed to discover the part his Dad played in this - come on, he sold the family car! However, what was he thinking about games like Ghouls 'n Ghosts! Whaaaaat??

I'd like to thank Jon for being a great sport over the last few months and I hope y'all enjoy this interview!

- The Jon Garry Interview -

Hello Jon, tell us all about your hiSTory

My coding life began on the ZX Spectrum when I was about 8. Funnily enough, around 1982, my Dad sold the family car to buy us the computer and that's where I first got the coding bug. How he got that past Mum, I've no idea! He thought that computers were the future and bought it for us to play on. I cut my teeth learning to program and the first game we played was Manic Miner which had a huge impact on me. From the moment I saw it, heard it and played it I loved it. The colours, the sound, the humour, the obstacles, the names of the levels!

I think of Manic Miner as the "Sgt Pepper" of computer games so, 1982 was where my coding journey started. Whilst I loved this, I wanted to know how to make it myself. Fairly soon, I went from "Guess the number" to understanding screen coordinates, variables, algebra, sprites, etc. In short, I taught myself a lot of maths and, by the age of 10, I was able to make a platform game more like "Lode Runner" than Manic Miner, which never happened.

Christmas Day around 1989 I guess when we got our Atari STe, our brand new "16-bit" computer and we couldn't wait to plug it in! We were lucky that my Dad had a bonus from work and used that to buy us the STe. I think it's the most important present that I ever had, just because of the impact it had on my life. I can't thank them enough for that. They weren't flush with cash and used that bonus to treat us to an extra present.

By the time the Atari came, I understood BASIC and the maths behind games. This helped me move back into programming — wanting to make my own version of games I was seeing on the STFM and Amiga. I was used to only having BASIC on the Spectrum so it was strange to find you could choose your language on the ST.

I found STOS too slow so that was out of the window. By the same token, the effort needed to learn Assembly seemed huge. I didn't know C at the time and it seemed difficult to use the tools. However, when I came upon GFA Basic, I started coding. GFA was surprisingly fast on the Atari STe, probably not much slower than C.

In the meantime, I'd started to see what the STe could do on demo disks and more people were getting them. So, I was getting introduced to the idea that the Atari STe could — easily - have full-screen smooth scrolling, lots of action on the screen, digi-music, no borders and a 256 colour palette.

Hey Jon, you're in luck! Manic Miner has been released for the Atari ST (by Peter Jørgensen)

What games did you play?

I just didn't code all the time and still did lots of other non-computer things. I was — still am — a huge football fan and spent hours with friends playing Kick Off 2 and Player Manager. To this day I still think those games were almost perfect — simple, fun and once you'd got around the ridiculous speed of the games they were utterly addictive. I think our Mum and Dad must have bought tens of joysticks after we wrecked them lobbing the keeper!

I also loved playing Castle Master, Terry's Big Adventure, Xenon 2, Stunt Car Racer, Continental Circus, Toki, Millennium 2.2, Speedball 2, Mega Lo Mania, Wonderboy, Vroom, Giana Sisters to name a few!

I loved Ghouls N Ghosts and Ghost N Goblins on the arcade, but the ST ports were poor. Well, any game on the STFM just wasn't as smooth as the arcades, or in truth even compared to the Amiga. I thought they were the 'past' and basically were no good for arcade games and that the STe was the future. So, the combination of coding, watching demos and seeing the STe as the future paved the way for what would become H-Mec!

Tell us about H-Mec

From memory, the first 'application' I wrote was ProbeST which allowed you to 'rip' music and graphics from games. ProbeST was actually a great help in ripping music to use in the two H-Mec games! In terms of H-Mec, I think that technically it was quite impressive for its time. It couldn't run on the STFM, certainly not smoothly.

All the coding for H-Mec was in GFA Basic - a superb language at the time. It supported the Blitter chip which meant that I could use this chip to do full-screen smooth scrolling using about 20% (from memory) of the CPU. This meant that I could 'afford' 20% for digi-chip music and the rest for the rest of the game. To see that full-screen smooth scrolling with the music and the gameplay was quite something at the time.

So, you have a game that is smooth, great graphics, great music and is quite playable. I sent it off to a few PD libraries to share. I thought it was a good game, but didn't expect much more than a few decent reviews. Just after I posted the disks, we all went on a family holiday for a couple of weeks.

What happened next?

When I came back, I had about 30 letters waiting for me telling me how they'd loved the game on the ST Action cover disk... but I never sent it to ST Action! I was puzzled! So I went to our local newsagents and sat on the shelves was ST Action. As you'll know, ST Action was 'the' ST gaming magazine which always had commercial game demos on the cover disk but for that month it was H-Mec.

For anyone to remember this game after all these years is touching. It's hard to explain but something I created as a 17-year-old is still available on the internet and someone is asking about it.

My game competed with commercial games! The review said something like 'this game was too good to review so we put it on the cover disk!'. This was an STe-only, PD game on their cover disk and I was blown away. I got loads of letters from all over Europe and the UK for weeks afterwards which was brilliant!

Forget Pac Man, the ghosts here are brutal and never give up until you are dead meat!

Where did the name H-Mec come from?

From memory, it came from the noise of a dog barking in the local park I used to walk past to get the bus!
I remember hearing a dog bark, and it sounded like "H-Mec" and it stuck with me for some reason. It didn't mean anything as such but I guess to me at the time it also sounded slightly modern too! :)

So what about your other games?

H-Mec 2 was just adding some other ideas on really — the pointed traps and graphics. I'd gone to University to study Computer Science and I just didn't have time anymore. I think it was just added a few things like the spikes, updating the graphics and (rather primitive) AI. I had too many other things to do then!

Radioactive Mineshafts was a quick idea — it certainly didn't take long to write. I didn't think it was good enough to release as a full game (see the falling block graphics). The penguin character and the jumping action were the start of a platform game — remember, I was hugely influenced by Manic Miner - which didn't happen.

Funnily enough, I always thought it was a better game than H-Mec and in recent years when I've played, I still feel the same. I just think it was on the same disk as H-Mec 2 and was pretty much overlooked. A few years ago, I did think about porting it to phones as I think it would work where you could tilt the phone to control the penguin!

Which game are you most proud of?

Without a doubt, H-Mec. After I did my degree, I applied to do a Masters degree in Multimedia. I went for an interview with the Doctor who was running the course and his first question was "What is multimedia?". I spoke about graphics, music, animation, co-ordinating them as well as computer science aspects. Of course, it led to H-Mec and the magazine reviews. He was impressed by the reviews and we spent a lot of time talking about it. H-Mec got me a place on the course to my Master's degree, and basically kick-started my professional career. 

A few years later, I remember thinking it was quite an achievement to have written the game. Especially when I think about how much I'd taught myself. Remember, there was nothing in schools to teach kids anything about programming. I taught myself from magazines and library books — there was no internet! To go from ZX Spectrum basic to understanding blitter chips, CPU cycles, ripping music and spending months working on a game was really hard work. The reviews it received were astonishing and I am really proud of the work I did.

My Dad was right about computers being the future and both myself and my brother work in IT. If my Dad hadn't sold the Beetle or used his backpay differently, my life would have been different. So, H-Mec definitely is the one I'm most proud of — technically impressive, decent gameplay, great reviews and helped me enormously!

I see this screen a lot but it always makes me smile thinking about H Mec's "grilling" lol

Inspirations?

Demos were definitely a huge inspiration. Whilst H-Mec isn't a demo it shares some of their traits — the big palette, smooth scrolling, and the intro screen look like a demo disk. H-Mec was a platform game to start with, but it was just easier to do mazes rather than something like Rainbow Islands!

I'd say, on the whole, I am still proud of the work I did and it definitely surpassed any expectations I had!

Also, quite a few people did donate which was very kind and generous. I had enough to pay for a few nights out which was great! I also had quite a few football pennants from around Europe sent to me as 'thank yous' as well which was lovely. I had all of them up on my bedroom wall for many years after!

What was it like being a part of the ST scene?

I loved it! Whilst a lot of the Atari ST scene was done through posting disks, I was also a member of a very social ST Club in Oldham. This club was based at the Bowling Green in Hollinwood, eventually moving to the Lancaster Club in Failsworth and, every week, about 50+ people would turn up armed with STs, TVs and 4-way plug sockets! You'd have rooms, where each plug socket had a 4-way in and each socket on the 4-way had a 4-way in which had 4 ways in with all these ST's and TVs plugged in!

The club was very friendly and had a real mixed bag of members. People from 8 to 80, some were there just to play Kick Off 2 every week, others to swap games, others came to chat and others had connections to the Pompey Pirates and download games on a primitive internet. It was very, very social and was enormous fun. Just lots of people, of all ages and backgrounds, with an interest in the Atari ST coming together to chat and have a good time. Nowadays, it would all be on the internet and nowhere near as social. I do miss those days.

Through ProbeST and H-Mec, I got in touch with other people around Europe too - Germany and Finland in particular. The PD Libraries were great and I'd regularly swap disks with people who ran them. All this would be done on the internet today, but I think that it was more personal back then as you had to -write- to someone. Whether it was the club in Oldham or the letters to Europe I do feel privileged to have experienced it.

Jon and Sally?

In terms of the handles I had, I can't quite remember them, to be honest. I was obviously Jon, and Sally was our dog haha! I think the names were probably to make it look like lots of people had worked on the games but in reality, it was me coding and others did the music and graphics. Sadly, Sally the dog died although she did extremely well for an Irish Red Setter and lived till she was about 17.

Imagine yourself back in the day knowing people who had contact with the Pompey Pirates!

Did you make music with your STe?

Whilst I can play a bit on the keyboards and I can play the guitar, I never wrote music on the Atari. At University, I did do some sampled music for fun, but nothing decent. I was a big fan of "Count Zero" who I thought made the best Atari music. I loved his version of the end of Tubular Bells and it's no surprise it's used in everything I did!

Very creative!

At the time, I didn't consider making games to be particularly creative, but as I've got older I have a different perspective. In my teens, I thought being creative was about painting, films, playing music or drama, etc. Not programming. But when you write a game from scratch it's one of the most creative things you can do!

You start with a white screen and nothing happens. You then create a world — the visuals, the sound, what it looks like and the rules. And how each screen flows from one part of the game to another. It's a VERY creative process and when you play a good game, you can tell that someone has really thought about the whole experience.

I'd also written some other tools that kind of grew out of H-Mec as well. ProbeST, was well-received when it was pushed out to PD libraries. It was written by me and my friend Clover at the time. We had lots of ideas, but most didn't come to fruition. It's probably just like someone in a band — you start 500 songs and finish one!

Any unfinished games lurking in the attic?

No, but I started a football manager game and I thought if I could combine Championship Manager with the in-game graphics of "Football Manager" I used to play on the Spectrum, it would be a winner. Sadly, it never went anywhere but it did give me an appreciation of what's involved.

I honestly used to start a new game every week, but most of them didn't go far. Writing a game from end-to-end takes effort and determination and I fully respect anyone who's actually done it. It probably took the best part of a year from start to finish to do H-Mec. Obviously, I wasn't working on it all the time, but it's a real effort to make games.

As I've said, the Spectrum was an influence on me and a game that we loved was "Lords of Midnight" and the sequel "Doomdark's Revenge". I must have started 100 versions of these on the Atari but again, nothing came of it. As soon as you try to make a copy of a game, you really get to see what absolute geniuses people are.

This didn't make it to the top of Jon's list, but I thought this was a darn excellent 'hopper'

What happened after your STe days?

I went to University in 1993 and I didn't have the time anymore to write games. I moved away from home, I stopped going to the club and the letters became harder to keep up with. Still, I used my Atari to write code and essays for a couple of years until I had to get a PC - which again, my parents got for me. It had an astonishing 8MB DX processor (a good one at the time) and a hard drive.

However, compared to the Atari it was such a big, clunky, noisy, ugly machine that couldn't do a lot and the graphics and sound were TERRIBLE. Windows wasn't a patch on the GEM Desktop, but it felt like I had to move. I was learning languages like Pascal, Smalltalk, Assembly and Ada which weren't available on the ST. I was genuinely amazed that Windows was seen as the future at the time, as it was truly awful not to mention - unreliable and slow. The languages just didn't have the power of GFA Basic either!

However, in recent years as Windows improved and emulators appeared I started looking back at the games on Hatari. It really is great to go back and play the games I remember as a kid! Some haven't aged too well but I still get the buzz seeing the old classic games. However, I could never quite get H-Mec to work and maybe, part of me didn't want to be embarrassed by what a 17-year 'me' made!

But part of me wanted to see it and I saw your YouTube video. It's a peculiar feeling though. Remember, this is me in my mid-forties looking back at a game I wrote as a 17-year-old so you will be looking at yourself back in time. When I look at it, I am quite proud although I can see that 16/17/18-year-old boy in there. I can still see 'me' in the game and what I was thinking. I do think 'he/me' was a very good programmer - I'd hire him today!

What are you doing today?

Nowadays, I'm a professional programmer who pays the bills writing web applications and business software. I haven't written games for many years now, but I feel incredibly lucky to work as a programmer.

If you'd had asked me what I wanted to be as a 10-year-old, other than a footballer, I would have loved to have been a computer programmer. I think if you asked my parents, I bet they'd agree that selling that old VW Beetle was one of the best decisions they made!

This is a photo from around 1991 of Jon and his mate "Booze" playing Kick Off 2.

And Finally...

It's funny really, but when you got in touch it brought back a LOT of memories. I could have written a book! As I said, I was touched that you got in contact and it's quite something to think that something I did nearly 30 years ago is still available on the internet. I can absolutely guarantee that most people won't be able to say that! The fact you and others are preserving that slice of late 80s and early 90s culture should be applauded.

I've been very lucky in my life that my parents supported me and my brother, selling the family car, getting us the Spectrum and later the ST and the life it's given us. I feel very lucky to have been part of a wonderful scene in the late 80s/early 90s and met some fantastic people. I genuinely feel very honoured that you asked to do this interview and I send a very heartfelt "thank you" for bringing back many wonderful memories!

---

This interview was a pleasure and Jon is a great bloke. Fancy reading more Atari ST interviews?

Atari ST

My new Atari ST merch!

I have just received my latest "Atari Games" mug by Peter Jørgensen (Enduro Racer / YMT). No, they're not all the same, just scroll down for the reverse side, below. These cups are superb and it's so kind of Peter to send me these. The mouse mat was a gift from my mate Tom, another ST nutter. Both Peter and Tom made the ZombieCrypt mug - probably because the slideshow I released last year was so awesome? Hmm, probably not lol.

There's now't better than suppin' coffee from an Atari ST mug. Hmm, which one shall I use? :-)

Outrun New Year Demo

Goodbye in STyle

I'm going to end 2016 with a brand new release by a good friend of mine - Bionic Nerd - aka Peter Jørgensen. It is the Outrun New Year Music Demo which has just been released so I've recorded a little sample from each track as a teaser for you all. Clickety click to grab this cool music disk right now and enjoy it. :-) Here is a little background by Peter:

"Hi all, I made this little new year music demo because I always loved the music from outrun and I always felt that we Atari ST guys were cheated on. Firstly, there was a track missing. Secondly, it kept shifting between the two other tune every time one would die. Lastly, I do not think that David Whittaker did his best. The music files are YMT format running at 300hz and the reason the program file is so big. In the new year I will make a new sound format, still as fast, but be taking less space but you will need a 2mb Atari to run this. Thanks to everyone for listening and I hope you like this? Thanks, Peter."

MANIC MINER

We're going back to 1983

It gives me the greatest of pleasure to present Manic Miner for the Atari ST!!! This has been InDev throughout much of the year by my mate Peter Jørgensen. It's a brand-new remake with redesigned graphics and incredibly funky music (sound effects are yet to be completed). Each, and every one, of the twenty screens is included but there will also be a few surprising extras which I'm excited about. However, we are wickedly keeping these under wraps for the time being!

Those who have played the original game on their old 8-bit computers like ZX Spectrum or MSX will instantly be at home with this new Atari ST platformer. The basic game control mechanics and physics are perfectly replicated. This means it feels just like it should with authentic gameplay that hasn't been altered (or spoilt, like we saw with Chuckie Egg II).

Please note, this is still a WIP as there are a few niggles to be ironed out. Each level faithfully follows the same playable mechanics of the original but, don't for a second think this means we have a boring ripoff. Willy's adventure has received a cool makeover with beautiful YMT audio and each screen has been designed with painstaking accuracy.

Peter has kept the keys familiar and also included extra keys for a few additional features...

During the title intro, press 1, 2, 3 to change the music.

Pressing R will display a CPU usage raster for the geeks.

In-game, use the cursor keys to walk and he jumps by slapping the spacebar.

You can quit and kill poor Willy anytime by hitting the K key.

Need a wee? Just pause the game by hitting the P key.

Crazy fools who don't love the gorgeous thumping tunes can hit M to mute.

Without cheating, I have reached level 14 - Skylab Landing Bay. However, I have never beaten this terrible screen in 40 years - either on my ZX Spectrum or Atari ST. It's a killer room that blows my mind. Let me know how you do!

Okay, keeping this project quiet from everyone has been tough - but months of beta testing have been an absolute joy. It's impressive how its development has progressed into a fully playable game. The final version is near completion - so you know where to come when it's ready. Genuinely, this is one of the best Atari ST games released in recent years.

Finally, the latest version is now available to download via the Demozoo website. Go on, grab it now!!

A few words from Peter...

I wrote Manic Miner because I have a friend that was very sad that this platformer didn’t exist for the ST. So I thought that I would make him happy and began drawing the title picture which soon lead me onto designing the intro screen - but I only wanted to make a prant screenshot for April 1st. Sadly, I did not finish in time. But then the idea started to continue on with the programming to see what happens. However, I’ve not made a game in decades because life always got in the way but I wanted to do this remake just to stop my friend from crying.

So you could say that this is a Manic Miner AtariCrypt Edition! (I love that -Steve)

My goal was to make the gameplay feel as close to the original as I could but still take advanced of the Atari ST's hardware. Thus, this is a remake rather than a conversion because I have not used a single piece of the original code. I have spent many hours analysing each level, and I’ve used the original sprites and recoloured them but some needed minor changes to work. The map graphics were changed in a big way, to what I think was the idea was behind each level. I played the MSX version so I could see how the game acts and I also think this is close to the Speccy original.

Overall, I'm quite pleased with the results and I hope people enjoy playing Manic Miner :-)

Atari ST Music and Game Map

Ugh, what is this??? A map of the Atari ST game which you can now download :)

Enduro Racer #AtariSTe

Another Atari STe game #indev

Enduro Racer is one of my favourite Atari ST racers because it's fast, fun and an uncomplicated thrill. In fact, it's the classic arcade racer and our conversion is pretty good considering the age of this 1987 release!

As you can imagine, I was very excited to find out that Peter Jørgensen (Mr Manic Miner himself!) has begun the development of an enhanced update specifically for the Atari STe!! He's graciously given me the latest beta to play and it's already looking very impressive with lots of improvements both planned and also partially completed. It's much faster! :)

1) The Blitter is utilised to push a brisk framerate!

2) Expect many more colours on-screen at once.

3) Usage of the extended palette.

4) Remaster YMT music of the original ST scores by legend David Whittaker.

5) Arcade samples played using the DMA hardware.

From what I've seen, heard, and played, this is looking to be a tremendous project. To take one of my favourite Atari ST racers, and improve upon that using the STe hardware, is going to be mind-blowingly exciting.

Good luck Peter - I cannot wait to see more. Check out these screenshots and watch this space!!

GIANTS

Atari ST gaming titans?

Giants was released in 1989 by US Gold and is "a mammoth compilation of world beaters" according to the box. Inside a sturdy plastic case are lots of floppies for four big names - which only goes to prove how cool the 1980s were:

+ Out Run - I cannot believe this is by the same guy that gave us Enduro Racer!
+ Gauntlet II - an Atari ST classic developed by Golden Axe legend Richard Costello.
+ 1943 - developed by Probe... No, wait! Come back, this one is a good 'un!!
+ Street Fighter - Tiertex gave us Strider so I'm hopeful for another gem. Ahem.

Now then, one of these is an arcade beauty on the Atari ST but what about the other games? Let's see...

- OUTRUN -

So let's begin with Out Run. Oh, dear... Yup, I'm not sure what to say about this because we have all moaned about it for many years. Personally, I thought the perspective didn't work on the home computer versions. I know we're in a Ferrari but there ain't enough pixels for such a low position. However, it's that framerate that hurts the most. This is supposed to be a fast-paced rush through the sunny streets but it feels more like a jerky slideshow.

Ignoring the dreadful framerate, the visuals aren't too bad and look bright, colourful and sunny. Of course, the music is fantastic and that's thanks to Jason Brooke. However, it's that framerate that destroys everything this could have been. I wasn't expecting an arcade-perfect conversion but whoever programmed this should be shot.

Stay clear of this game. There are so many other - far better - racers available for the Atari ST.

Thankfully, there is light at the end of this horendous tunnel, thanks to Manic Miner legend Peter Jørgensen who is in the process of upgrading Out Run for the Atari STe. It uses the Blitter for better framerates along with new sprites, music and more. As a work-in-progress, is already a million times better than the official game - which is a car-wreck. Watch this space...

The road ahead is blocked by four trucks. Yes, four trucks. And I'm almost outta time too!!

- GAUNTLET II -

Unlike the other two Gauntlet games, this one is oddly missing from our archives so Giants has nicely plugged that gap. Come on, what a fantastic game this is, and also something every Atari ST player knows and loves dearly. Whether you are playing solo or with (many!) friends, this is a brilliant conversion of the arcade game.

From the moment its cabinet appears - with that foot-tappingly cool music - we are in love. Chose a character from four heroes: be it a brute like Thor, the cunning Valkyrie, a powerful wizard or a wise Elf. Each has its style and all will find it tough to clear the crowded dungeons of evil monsters, ghosts and other demons.

Use your weapon, kill everything and leave nothing alive. This includes those generators popping out all kinds of monsters from the depths of hell. Look for potions to help against the tougher beasts - like death or a massive hoard. But there is also treasure and food along the way to keep yourself wealthy and healthy.

What a brilliant and exciting game this is. One of the greatest Atari ST arcade games you will ever play!

One of the best Atari ST arcade conversions there is. Right? Of course, I'm right!!

- 1943 -

1943 follows on from (wait for it) 1942 and is another vertically-scrolling shooter. However, this conversion is initially extremely tough, so I was saddened by how much I hated it. The gameplay feels too fast so I spent ages ramming into the enemy - and their bullets. It's almost like I had a kamikaze gift for getting myself destroyed.

I also miss the real estate of a portrait display but that's hardly the ST's fault. Nor is reaching over for the spacebar to use a bomb during those difficult moments. However, stick with it and don't be put off because this is actually a faithful and frantic conversion with tons of enemies to kill and power-ups to collect. Also, I must say that I absolutely love the energy bar which I thought was superb - and certainly helped prolong my games!

Graphically, we've not been given a perfect clone but it's no ugly beast. The sprites are nice zooming around your screen but the backgrounds are pretty lame. However, that is compensated by parallax scrolling - using fluffy clouds gliding down the screen like melting butter. The music was YM-composed by Jason Brooke and is just brilliant.

Boot this one up for a good hour of frantic joystick-breaking action! An excellent shoot 'em up.

Oh no, the enemy is attacking from multiple directions? Argh, I'm bound to die pretty soon!!

- STREET FIGHTER -

Anybody that knows me, knows that I'm no expert in this genre. In fact, I know very little until recently dipped my toes in the water a few years back with Double Dragon 3. I was shocked by how much I enjoyed it and found the whole experience rather mind-blowing. What had I been missing all these years? I know, I know...

Anyhow, things aren't (ahem) quite as impressive here with Street Fighter. The gameplay is slow, very slow and the controls simply don't feel right. To me, it's like I'm blindly bashing the button in the desperate hope to punch or kick at the right moment. Also, the opponents never truly feel like they have much AI but, when they do attack, they're possessed by Chuck Norris!! The balance is off so I dare anyone to beat your first opponent - without cheating!

Graphically, it looks nice with neat backdrops and huge sprites (more on that another time!). However, the game moves dog-slow and the sprites have bad animation. I'm not sure why everything is so eye-burstingly jerky because there's actually very little going on. I'm not going to mention the music other than to say how much it grates. Ugh!!

Everything about this conversion feels like a wind-up. Have I been given a beta by accident? Surely this is a joke? Imagine paying the RRP for this lol. Play something else and don't waste your time booting this one up!

Looks quite nice I think. Though fighting in slo-mo is made even worse by a ridiculous difficulty.

- THE CRYPTO'PINION -

It's obvious Gauntlet II was always going to be the star of this collection - and it is. But I'm shocked at how much I enjoyed playing 1943 which is a seriously crazy shooter. Okay, I initially hated it, but after many agonising attempts, I finally got the hang of it. I still need a cheat for infinite lives but I loved every second of it.

Sadly, that leaves two stinkers. OutRun is a terrible racer with a headache-inducing framerate that makes our Atari ST run slower than an Amstrad CPC. So I'm (more than) relieved we have Peter's Atari STe upgrade in the pipeline. Street Fighter is something else. I'm not sure what to say other than shockingly poor programming.

Overall, I would have been pleased with this compilation back in the day. It's obvious that I would have spent most of my time playing Gauntlet II whilst occasionally booting up 1943 for a quickie - and probably not lasting very long. However, the other floppies would have been reformatted and used for the latest Automation disks!!

GIANTS can be downloaded from AtariMania

A Box Of Surprises!

Santa has been!

Possibly the best thing about running with this crazy idea of an Atari ST website is the amazing friends I've made along the way. One of the first is a fella from Norway who has supported me over the years and it's his latest donation that blew me away: a large box of Atari ST games that the original owner was going to throw away!

Now, it's been a terrible few months here and I'm ashamed to admit that this generous gift came over a year ago. Yep, I'm absolutely gutted it's taken me this long to get around to sharing this box of goodies with you all. However, I do remember him subtly warning me that their quality was... ahem... a little rough.

Sadly, most jewel cases are badly broken with sharp edges. I doubt even an eBay seller could get away with exaggerating their condition lol. I don't care because I love anything for the Atari ST (there's a shocker) and the inlays are preserved plus all floppies work. So this collection will be kept safe for as long as I'm breathing.

Finally, there is a game that isn't in a broken jewel case - Mean 18 by Accolade. This is in great condition so definitely the star of the show and something I'll cherish. Before scrolling down, click on these 4 pictures...

Skidz

How does a little community service sound in your game? Well, in Skidz we're picking up litter whilst riding a skateboard or bike. Avoid all the usual silly dangers along the way whilst also collecting top-ups for energy and time... Ugh, I hate time limits in most games. Anyhow, the levels are fantastic with various opportunities to leap ramps and more. The scrolling is nice and smooth plus the graphics are constantly superb for each stage.

Skidz reminded me of Back To The Future II somewhat and isn't really the kind of game I normally play if I'm honest. However, I enjoyed it quite a lot plus I appreciate the effort that went into its creation - it ain't no lame conversion. So, a good start to the box and also possibly something I'll return to someday? Maybe. We'll see...

Wanna take this for a ride then click here for the floppy disks.

Check out those shorts, this is one seriously cool Marty McFly!

Fancy a race? Hit that fire button and get ready for those tight corners.

Liberator

Here's one that should be familiar to all who follow the prattle I post here on AtariCrypt. I won't repeat myself all over again so take a look at the review to see what I thought of it a couple of years ago. How time flies!

Go on, I know that you're curious so click the link above and download it.

Come on, tell me you're not tempted to play after seeing this title screen?

Okay, I bet you're wondering what on earth is going on!

Rock'n Roll

This isn't something I've ever played and didn't know what to expect. It feels like a weird cross between an overhead Marble Madness and Gauntlet. Except we are a ball that's stuck in a maze for some odd reason and I assume we need to escape. Who cares? I'm annoyed already by this game, but I guess I should plod on...

The intro is ace and not unlike a couple of demos we all know and love. The game itself takes a little time to grasp because of the feel of movement using awkward controls. Oddly, I never found the mouse a good option. Getting around the maze is easy after a while and I found keys whilst swerving my way into hazards and secret rooms.

The graphics are actually very good with smooth scrolling albeit at the expense of a smaller play area. Barry Leitch wrote the music and it's excellent, although it grates after a while because you feel like it needed to alternate.

This isn't something I would ever have bought back. The concept will possibly appeal to Marble Madness fans but I found it a galling experience. I simply don't have the patience for stuff like this. I think I hated it.

Don't let my negative nelly attitude put you off, grab the floppy disks and take it for a spin (ugh).

A ripped idea but this is actually the best thing about this game. No, really.

Loads of keys!! How can I reach those? Meh, I don't really care...

Skyfighter

The Atari ST has a great number of decent vertically scrolling shooters so I'm a bit perplexed that I have never played Skyfighter before. The gameplay and style reminded me of Plutos or Xevious but it's all a bit drab with slow scrolling and too few enemies to shoot down. Well, that's hardly a good start, is it?

Control is best using the mouse as it's far easier to move around the screen and shoot with either the cannon or bombs. Dropping bombs on fuel pods will top up your ship's reserve but that can be a tricky task in itself. This concept of refuelling worked well in River Raid but less so here because you must stop concentrating on the bad guys to make a careful detonation. Very fiddly so expect to get shot down in later levels.

After completing the level, you shall be quizzed. Yep, the computer will ask you a basic question about the stage that's just been played. It's a nice idea but rather pointless although very rewarding. To think your commander will send you out to war understocked with weaponry if you get the question wrong. Quite funny...

The graphics and sounds are boring and I'm sure any 8-bit computer could have done better. To me, Sky Fighter feels rushed in every respect but I had fun for 10 minutes. However, I would rather play Flying Shark.

Don't listen to me, grab the floppy disks and take this for a test flight yourself.

It's cheap and very tacky but there's some fun to be had here.

Completing the end of the level task rewards you for the next stage!

Bombuzal

Here's another one I have already featured but this time it wasn't so much a review but rather something that I wanted to share within our Pixel Art section. Why? Because it's got amazing graphics and I wanted to celebrate that wondrous fact. Bombuzal is a beautiful looker and a great puzzler too, so check it out right here.

Don't miss out on this wonderful puzzler. Click the link above and download it right now!

Is it just me, or does he look like he's sleepwalking with his eyes open?

He looks crazy. He is! He plays with bombs after all.

Forgotten Worlds

This is one of those arcade conversions that should never have been. Don't get me wrong, I think Tim Round (of Dragon Breed and R-Type 2 fame) did a great job with this. Except for the botched controls.

Even if you had never played the arcade original, it's obvious that the home computer game doesn't feel right. Shooting straight, whilst moving up and down, is fine but what about shooting in the other directions? Well, you need to hold the fire button to get our guy to rotate that attacking move. It's too weird and very clumsy.

I'm gutted because everything about this conversion is class. I love the presentation from the arcade and both the graphics and sounds are excellent. However, I simply cannot control the darn thing for love nor money. Why didn't they compromise and create something new or compromise, aka Ikari Warriors? You know what I mean...

A beautiful game ruined by the controls. What a shame!

Grab the floppy disks or a brilliant version for hard drive installation by D-Bug.

How cool is this title screen? Love the artwork throughout.

Okay, let's just stay on the left and move up & down. Yeah, that'll work...

Impact

Going old skool... If you enjoy Breakout then Impact is gonna make you grin like a Cheshire Cat because it's brilliant. Audiogenic aren't exactly a big name on the Atari ST but John Dale and Martin Day came up trumps.

A good Breakout needs to be fast and smooth with responsive controls and lots of power-ups to keep you interested. This has got the lot and it's so aesthetically pleasing considering its just bricks and balls. A fantastic Break-Out and most certainly one of the best there is for any computer. I guarantee you will love it.

Waste no more time and grab the floppy disks or better still a hard drive version by D-Bug.

What a naff title screen for such an immensely brilliant game.

Smooth 50fps action throughout and it sounds wonderful too.

Battle Chess

This is one of those games I first got to see on a friend's Amiga. However, since I cannot play chess, I never bothered to 'find' the Atari ST version. Although I cannot play the game, I do enjoy watching the computer move all the pieces. The pixel art is gorgeous as are the animations but I think I like the busy bee mouse pointer the most!!

The kind of game that makes you wish you were lazy and learnt to play chess. Or is it just me?

Download the floppy disks and get battling!

Very regal loading screen. Liking it!

Unlike me, the computer seems to know what it's doing... Look at the busy bee!

Joust

Come on now, tell me you don't adore this classic game? And the Atari ST game is practically arcade perfect. Anyhow, this has already been featured and was part of a special posting comparing it to other console conversions. I should do more like that... Check it out. (pssst, you might also like Winglord, best on Atari STe)

The D-Bug lads have done it again with a superb hard disk version and the floppies are here.

Ostrich's flying, dropping eggs and jousting each other. Sounds normal to me!

It's a crazy idea and features funky cool physics and mechanics. Works a charm!

Targhan

Now we're talking! This is a belting hack 'n slasher in a time of barbarians and bloodied swords. I've always loved Targhan and it's one of those games I periodically boot up for a quick couple of plays. It's simple, it's fun and it sure doesn't take itself seriously. Walk along, see a bad guy? Kill him with your mighty sword. Oh yeah!

We can run, leap like a girl, dodge attacks, climb ladders/ropes and explore as we please in a near-open world style. It's that freedom I love plus the constant enthusiasm for gratifying violence. The controls are responsive and a cinch to learn using the joystick. Attack moves can be performed only when holding down the fire button:

The graphics are great with huge sprites and decent animation along with background aesthetics like flying birds. Sadly, the limitations of the 16-colour palette mean everything is tinted a glaring red. That's a shame because hundreds of ST games feature palette-splitting routines to increase the number of on-screen colours. For example, to separate the play area from the status bar so each part of the screen has a separate palette.

The audio is pretty cool with a fuzzy sampled tune bleating away on the title screen. But things get far better in-game thanks to the sound effects which are superb. Lots of Barbarian-inspired grunts, screams, chinks, footsteps and more. Some are rather strange though - killing a bat produces a peculiar explosion sound.

I personally feel this is one of the better hack & slashers for the Atari ST. It's just downright good fun!!

Download the floppies to hack and slash your way to victory!

When you begin, the screen is clear of enemies so practice with the controls.

Okay, this fella is the first badass you meet. Are you ready?

European Soccer Challenge

Ignoring the fact that I almost lacerated myself on a sharp corner of the box, I booted it up expecting good things. The Atari ST seems to excel with these games, just look at Sensi Soccer, Kick-Off, Goal and Speedball.

The game is viewed overhead but the pitch always has a way to feel cramped and cluttered with too many players fumbling for the ball. The action is sedate and feels like they're trying to run through a field of thick glue. I thought the game was much faster? Its speed reminded me of the ZX Spectrum game, Match Of The Day!

I know, I know, I'm not a soccer fan so what do I know? Well, I partially enjoyed playing Team a while back because it had a large playing area and was fast. But this is one of the worst things I've ever played albeit with great sound effects. They think it's all over. Well, for European Soccer Challenge, it most definitely is. Don't bother.

If you fancy a kickabout then grab the floppy disks from here.

Try as I might, I wasn't able to kick the ball into their net...

Somebody kicked a ball high into the air. Hmm, exciting.

Blasteroids

This is another I have already featured here on AtariCrypt and, I must say, I had a blast with it. Pun intended! Okay, it's not quite as good as Stardust but it's incredible and a bucket-load of fun. Check it out.

Our job always takes us somewhere hot and sunny.

Shoot, move, don't stay still. Kill everything!! Oh yeah, I love it!!

Out Run

This is a racer that's no stranger to most Atari ST owners out there who naively wasted their precious cash. The driving angle is too low and complemented by the worst framerate any game has ever delivered. Tidbit: scientists have proven that if you play Out Run for more than 30 seconds your eyeballs will burst. Fact.

Why anyone would boot this up I've no idea. The Atari ST has far better alternatives: Crazy Cars 3, Lotus Esprit 1 or 2, Vroom, etc... Or go slapdash in a fantasy land with Buggy Boy. Or challenge yourself in Stunt Car Racer. Heck, we even have a brand new remake of Pole Position for the Atari STe by Jonathan Thomas.

Thankfully, there is a rumour of an upgraded version in the pipeline for the Atari ST. It's a work-in-progress by Peter Jørgensen of Manic Miner fame. I have played a few betas and it's much faster, smoother and better looking than the drivel Probe/US Gold produced. An exciting project and I hope he manages to finish it one day.

Download the floppy disk or this hard drive installable version from D-Bug.

Out Run looked so promising from the moment we first load it...

However, get yourself ready for headache-inducing framerates!

Mean 18

Along with Leader Board, this is one of the oldest golf games for the Atari ST and the screenshots certainly help to prove that. But wait, don't be put off by these naff DOS-like visuals because this is actually a cracker.

There are three courses with two difficulty levels: experts choose their own clubs with trickier controls so it's probably more fun as a "novice". The 'action' is viewed from a third-person perspective and the balls are whacked using a 3-click method: once to begin, again to select the power and the final click to hit the thing in a straight line.

Compared to Microprose Golf, it might not have much appeal at first glance but it's a cracking golf game so ignore the frightful graphics and take it for a spin. Ugly as hell but I love this game a bunch. Plus the condition of the slimline sleeve/box, along with the contents, is superb so this is definitely the best of the entire package for me!

It won't ever be as cool as my original but you can grab the floppies from here and play it.

Another glorious shot. Hmm, will I ever break even with a PAR?

Ok, we made it onto the green so let's carefully line up the shot and calc the distance.

The CryptO'pinion?

If ever there was a mixed box of goodies then this is it. Okay. not all games will appeal to everyone and Outrun was always going to be a disappointment but at least the floppy disk still works. Perhaps I should use that as a blank? Thankfully, Targhan, Joust, Blasteroids, Battle Chess, Impact, Bombuzal and Mean 18 are all corkers.

Those with keen eyes would have noticed that there were loose floppies? Captain Blood and Pro Tennis Tour. The first is an astronomical game I should properly feature someday soon. Whereas the other is tennis, a repugnant excuse for a sport. Plus it's the only floppy disk that doesn't work so I'll get Fast Copy on that asap!

Thanks to Loggins for this wonderful gift. Each dangerously broken box will eventually be replaced and carefully preserved within the AtariCrypt archives. Yes, even European Soccer Challenge. Greetings to everyone that helps support AtariCrypt (see the scroller at the top of this page) and also to you for being here right now :-)

Stay Atari and all the beST for 2022.