Post by hydrophilic on May 25, 2021 10:44:31 GMT
New alpha version of C128 "port" of Atari's classic arcade game Tempest can be downloaded here as D64. The source code is available here as ZIP.
Although it runs on stock C128 (40-column / VIC-II only), it is too slow to be any fun on a stock C128. This is because my software is emulating the hardware of the original arcade. I hope, in the near future, to develop a true port (no emulation) to make it fast and fun on a stock C128. Until then, if you want to enjoy playing the game, you will need to own a SuperCPU (unlikely), or use an emulator that supports SuperCPU, or use my Multi-MHz hack of VICE128 (set at 10+ MHz).
The D64 contains two versions: TEMPEST 128MC and TEMPEST 128HR. Just load and run one. The HR version is completely high-resolution, but is essentially monochrome. The MC version is recommended: the game field uses multi-color graphics, but the text is high-resolution. It looks MUCH better than previous releases.
How to play: press F1, F3, and/or F5 to give yourself credits (be sure and deposit appropriate money into my PayPal account). Once you have 1+ credits, press 1 to begin a single-player game. If you have 2+ credits, you can also press 2 to begin a two-player game.
Controls: you have 3 options: joystick, keyboard, or mouse. Joystick in port 2; mouse in port 1.
Keyboard controls:
NOTE: for left/right cursor keys, the first press will be "slow" but if you hold down the key, subsequent moves will be "intermediate" (faster than default/slow, but slower than fast keys)
Joystick controls: same as keyboard, but left/right are always slow (not variable)... fixing this to be like the keyboard is on my TO-DO list.
Either keyboard or joystick: press SPACE BAR for SuperZap
Mouse: move left or right to move counter-clockwise or clockwise. Press left button to fire. Press right button for SuperZap.
NOTE 1: if you press CAPS-LOCK / ASCII-DIN key, the game will enter "service mode" like the arcade. Here will be a display of game statistics and game options. On original arcade there were about two dozen DIP switches the owner could toggle. On this port you will see 3 lines of huge 0/1 characters... these are the DIP switches. Press A to access row 1; press B to access row 2; or press C to access row 3. Whatever row is active, press Q, W, E, R, T, Y, U, I, O to toggle bits 0~7. Refer to Atari's Tempest Operator's Manual for the results.
NOTE 2: after making configuration changes, you can normally press CAPS-LOCK / ASCII-DIN key again to restart the game with selected changes. However, there are certain mode selections (see Note 1 above) that will prevent resuming normal game play. Ask ATARI why, I don't know.
Interesting "service mode" option changes are language: English / French / German / Italian, number of initial lives (3 to 5), difficulty (easy, medium, hard), extra life points (10K, 20K, etc.).
Less interesting "service mode" changes are credits/slot. The arcade has up to 3 coin slots. The left-most is fixed (highest denomination, like $1 coin), while middle and right slots are variable (for example 50-cent piece [middle slot] and 25-cent piece
Finally I want to thank Robert Bernardo and Mirkosoft for contributions regarding SuperCPU. I have no way to test this, but hopefully SuperCPU code works for you proud owners. If not, the blame is mine; please report and hopefully we can fix it!
Although it runs on stock C128 (40-column / VIC-II only), it is too slow to be any fun on a stock C128. This is because my software is emulating the hardware of the original arcade. I hope, in the near future, to develop a true port (no emulation) to make it fast and fun on a stock C128. Until then, if you want to enjoy playing the game, you will need to own a SuperCPU (unlikely), or use an emulator that supports SuperCPU, or use my Multi-MHz hack of VICE128 (set at 10+ MHz).
The D64 contains two versions: TEMPEST 128MC and TEMPEST 128HR. Just load and run one. The HR version is completely high-resolution, but is essentially monochrome. The MC version is recommended: the game field uses multi-color graphics, but the text is high-resolution. It looks MUCH better than previous releases.
How to play: press F1, F3, and/or F5 to give yourself credits (be sure and deposit appropriate money into my PayPal account). Once you have 1+ credits, press 1 to begin a single-player game. If you have 2+ credits, you can also press 2 to begin a two-player game.
Controls: you have 3 options: joystick, keyboard, or mouse. Joystick in port 2; mouse in port 1.
Keyboard controls:
- Cursor Up = Fast Counter-clockwise
- Cursor Down = Fast Clockwise
- Cursor Left = Variable Counter-clockwise
- Cursor Right= Variable Clockwise
- Shift (left or right) = Fire
NOTE: for left/right cursor keys, the first press will be "slow" but if you hold down the key, subsequent moves will be "intermediate" (faster than default/slow, but slower than fast keys)
Joystick controls: same as keyboard, but left/right are always slow (not variable)... fixing this to be like the keyboard is on my TO-DO list.
Either keyboard or joystick: press SPACE BAR for SuperZap
Mouse: move left or right to move counter-clockwise or clockwise. Press left button to fire. Press right button for SuperZap.
NOTE 1: if you press CAPS-LOCK / ASCII-DIN key, the game will enter "service mode" like the arcade. Here will be a display of game statistics and game options. On original arcade there were about two dozen DIP switches the owner could toggle. On this port you will see 3 lines of huge 0/1 characters... these are the DIP switches. Press A to access row 1; press B to access row 2; or press C to access row 3. Whatever row is active, press Q, W, E, R, T, Y, U, I, O to toggle bits 0~7. Refer to Atari's Tempest Operator's Manual for the results.
NOTE 2: after making configuration changes, you can normally press CAPS-LOCK / ASCII-DIN key again to restart the game with selected changes. However, there are certain mode selections (see Note 1 above) that will prevent resuming normal game play. Ask ATARI why, I don't know.
Interesting "service mode" option changes are language: English / French / German / Italian, number of initial lives (3 to 5), difficulty (easy, medium, hard), extra life points (10K, 20K, etc.).
Less interesting "service mode" changes are credits/slot. The arcade has up to 3 coin slots. The left-most is fixed (highest denomination, like $1 coin), while middle and right slots are variable (for example 50-cent piece [middle slot] and 25-cent piece
). There are also "bonus" options such that [for example] every 4 coins you insert, a 1-coin bonus is applied. Finally you can configure "Free Play" mode (no coins needed). If this is active, you can manipulate bonus options (otherwise irrelevant for Free Play) to enable "Omega level select"; if this is active, you can choose from a large variety of levels (1 to 81) on the "Level Select" screen at the start of any game.
In the images below, the ones on the left are from MC (multi-color version) while those on right are from HR (high-resolution) version
In the images below, the ones on the left are from MC (multi-color version) while those on right are from HR (high-resolution) version
Finally I want to thank Robert Bernardo and Mirkosoft for contributions regarding SuperCPU. I have no way to test this, but hopefully SuperCPU code works for you proud owners. If not, the blame is mine; please report and hopefully we can fix it!
