Game:Diamond Mine II Format reviewed:Acorn Electron Developed by:Blue Ribbon Year of original release:1985 Also available on:BBC Micro, Amstrad CPC, Commodore 16, Commodore Plus/4, MSX Available now on:Nothing
Mining and diamonds seem to be a common theme in computer games of old. Games like Boulder Dash for example and, er, um, Manic Miner. Not too sure we saw Miner Willy doing any actual mining in it though. I suppose you could count Jet Set Willy too as it featured the same character. Oh well, maybe mines and diamonds aren't that common a theme. Perhaps the black backgrounds that were a feature of many 1980s computer games made me think they were all set in mines, and I suppose diamonds were fairly easy to draw so they also seemed to pop up quite a bit in old games.
When this screen is moving, the box of colours changes and
moved inwards from the outer edge. Psychedelic!
Anyway, a game that was a fusion of the less-common-than-I-thought themes of mining and diamonds was Diamond Mine, a game released in 1984 for the Acorn Electron by MRM and again the following year by Blue Ribbon. Oh wait! There was also Mineshaft, also released on the Acorn Electron. Another mining game! We're not looking at that today though. We're also not looking at Diamond Mine either as it is pretty much impossible to play. Instead, we're heading straight for its far superior sequel, Diamond Mine II which Blue Ribbon also released on the Acorn Electron in 1985, as well as a few other machines which I may come onto later if I remember.
As its title suggests, the idea of Diamond Mine II is to mine diamonds. And like many games in the 1980s, the mines takes the form of maze-like levels. You simply have to clear the diamonds from the paths in the mazes. You do this by guiding a pipe through the level. If you touch your own pipe or attempt to go backwards on yourself, you lose a life. You can however retract your pipe, a necessity to get through the game. The pipe retracts for however long you hold down the relevant key, which is Return in the Electron version.
I was mining in a mine one day. In the very merry month of May
Making life tougher are nasties which take the form of mutant eyes. These eyes move horizontally through each level and are also able to travel through walls. You can suck them up your pipe but if they come into contact with any other part of it, it's another life lost. Sucking them up is only temporary as a few seconds later they're back! If this happens when you're clearing a completely different part of the level, you need to retract and suck them up again. Part of the beauty of the game is seeing how much you can clear before retracting, whether to be daring or over-cautious? As moving your pipe through the levels and retracting it uses energy, you need to be careful that you don't retract too often or waste too much time making a decision, so playing too safe isn't always a good idea. So you need to keep an eye on your energy levels as well as the wandering eyes. I once went out with somebody with a wandering eye. Had to end it though as I thought she was seeing somebody else.
Remaining energy becomes points at the end of each level.
There are diamonds on this level. They just happened to be
blue when I took the screenshot.
Controls for the game are simple. You just have up, down, left and right and the aforementioned retract key. At first, movement feels a bit sluggish but as you get into the game, the speed is just right. Clearing objects from mazes is a concept lifted straight from Pac-Man, but there are enough extra elements to make this a different kind of game. Levels quickly get tough and really do test your skills. It's sometimes frustrating to lose a life by accidentally going back into your own pipe, but this often happens when you're under pressure. Like a lot of 80s games, you need to combine skill with strategy and this game balances the two well.
Eye eye.
Graphics do a good job too. Levels are colourful and clear. Your pipe makes a chomping noise as it collects diamonds and there are suitable sound effects for deaths, bonus points and the like. The only music is a little tune which plays when you start a new game. Fortunately it doesn't play throughout as it would quickly get annoying. Like the graphics, the sounds suit the game. In fact, everything about this game just feels right. Although the game isn't up there with the all-time greats, and doesn't feel as frantic and as fluid as other arcade style games, Diamond Mine II is a good game if you're feeling like a quick challenge. It's also quite addictive too and leaves you knowing that you could easily do better if you just have one more go.
RATINGS Presentation: 65% Nothing too exciting but they do the job. The Blue Ribbon corporate loading screen is followed by the game's name, writer and copyright info on background of changing colours. Graphics: 83%
The game is colourful and it's clear to see what's going on. The diamonds are just dots of changing colours, while the game's only sprites, somebody bouncing at the top of the screen and the mutant eyes, are well-drawn. Sound: 70% Suitable sound effects with a short melody when you start the game. Playability: 82%
Easy to pick up, hard to put down. Fun to play without being overly frustrating. Overall: 81%
A great little Acorn Electron arcade style game, something to return to again and again.
Mining for Diamonds elsewhere
Diamond Mine II wasn't an Electron exclusive. Oh no, not at all. It also made appearances on some other home computers too, although for some reason didn't make it to the Spectrum or C64.
Level one Amstrad CPC-style
The BBC Micro version is almost identical to the Electron version, save for better sound and a different loading screen. It plays a bit smoother too. The game is also fairly similar on the Amstrad CPC, although features a different opening theme tune. Movement on this version is fluid like the BBC version although the eyes seem to regenerate quicker meaning there is more retracting of your pipe needed, so doesn't feel as fun.
While over on the Commodore 16, we have this.
The game was also released for the Commodore 16 and Commodore Plus/4. The Commodore 16 version, although it features the same concept of gathering diamonds with a retractable pipe, uses a different level layout and isn't quite as enjoyable to play. There are a larger number of enemy eyes which, like on the CPC, cause you to have to retract more often. This just makes the game feel frustrating. On the Plus/4, the level structure of the Acorn machines and the Amstrad are the same. However, although the pipe flows smoothly, you need to be in exactly the right place above or below a vertical path to be able to move you pipe along it. This again breaks up the flow of the game. An MSX version was released too, but I haven't taken a look at that one.
Wishy washy colours on the Commodore Plus/4
The BBC Micro version is the best of the bunch with the trusty Electron version a close second.
Cloning Diamonds
Diamond Mine II wasn't an original game. Instead it was based on a little known arcade game called Anteater from Tago Electronics whose only other release appears to be a game called Calipso. I have to say I have never heard of either. Instead of piping your way through a maze to collect diamonds, Anteater features an aardvark with an extendable snout which sniffs its way around similar mazes, collecting ants and worms. It is quite infuriating to play and it's little wonder that it isn't a well known game now. An unreleased port was apparently created for the Atari 2600, while the only other versions for other devices are clones. Aardvark was a very close remake, released for some of the Atari and Commodore machines of the early 80s, while Oil's Well from Sierra On-line and Diamond Mine II were clearly influenced by the gameplay of the Anteater arcade game.
Diamond Mine II video
Want to see Diamond Mine II on the Acorn Electron in action? Of course you do. Head on over to our YouTube channel to see it! Or view it here in super-tiny vision.
Game:Circus Maximus: Chariot Wars Format reviewed:Sony PlayStation 2 Developed
by:Kodiak Year
of original release:2002 Also available on:Xbox Available now
on:Nothing!
Looking back through some of my past gaming purchases, I often find myself thinking one thing - what the hell was going through my head when I bought that? Yes, there are some games that I appear to have actually gone to the trouble of purchasing that simply baffle me. They aren't necessarily bad games, or really that obscure, but they are most certainly a little odd. For some reason, a lot of these games seem to be on the PlayStation 2 but I believe that was more down to my buying habits at the time and not the PlayStation 2 hosting a disproportionate number of questionable games.
One of these such games was Circus Maximus: Chariot Wars, a chariot racing game released for the PlayStation 2 (and also the Xbox) back in 2001/2002. Yes, chariot racing, that most famous of gaming genres. The game was basically what you get when you cross Gran Turismo with Road Rash with Ancient Rome. But, before I get onto looking at the game, I feel that I need to try to figure out exactly what it was that inspired me to pick it up from a shelf, take it to a cashier and hand over money in exchange for it.
When I was younger, I was probably a bit too sensible when deciding what games to own, especially when it came to console games which were even more expensive back then than they are now. This may be because I would only really get games for birthdays and Christmas, and they were being bought for me rather than by me. So, instead of making up my own mind about what games to go for, I was nearly always influenced by reviews in gaming magazines and would usually only choose games that got a rating of over 90%. Sometimes this was combined with a positive portrayal of the game on video games shows such as Gamesmaster, Bad Influence and Games World, or even Movies, Games and Videos. In theory, this would mean that I would never own a dud game. For this reason, most of the games I owned during the 1990s were popular, mainstream games. They're also worth crap all now due to them being so common.
As I got older, something changed. At the beginning of the century, I was in my early twenties. I had a job, my own money, no major financial outgoings, and, more importantly, my own mind - which wasn't necessarily a good thing. I no longer read magazines and took the advice of journalists to tell me what I should play. I think, in a way, some of the "mega games" I played as a youngster actually disappointed me, and I found that some of the lower rated games that I sometimes rented were actually more fun. They probably had some irritating flaws which prevented them from becoming all-time classics, but they still had their own charm and appeal. And so, the older me would buy games and sometimes consoles spontaneously. I would go off my gut instinct rather than off the instruction of the apparent greater knowledge of a gaming journalist. And my gaming collection became a lot more varied and interesting. I will get to my review of Circus Maximus in a bit, but I'll reminisce about something vaguely related to demonstrate what I'm going on about for a bit first.
Back in the summer of 2000, I purchased a Dreamcast after seeing it demonstrated on a shopping channel late at night, not really knowing much about how well regarded it was by the gaming press at the time. The TV channel sold it to me so well that I wanted one straight away. So the following day, I went to Comet and picked one up. I suppose I should have bought it off the TV as a way of repaying their impressive efforts to persuade me to get one, but that would have meant waiting for it to be delivered. It came with Chu Chu Rocket, which I've played once - I never really understood what was going on in that game - and I picked up Crazy Taxi (the game demonstrated by the shopping channel that convinced me that I needed it) and Worms Armageddon to start off my Dreamcast collection. Later games that found a home in my collection were Fur Fighters, Resident Evil: Code Veronica, Virtua Tennis, Jet Set Radio, Rayman 2, Metropolis Street Racer, Who Wants to be a Millionaire? and Chicken Run. All were games which I enjoyed immensely, but they were games which I bought by just picking them off the shelves in shops rather than knowing much about them in advance. Some are nowadays quite rightly regarded as classics, others not quite so (Chicken Run??). Still, I quite like my small but varied Dreamcast collection. And it was my first gaming collection that was put together without much influence from so-called experts; I suppose I picked some games based on their chart positions, explaining why there were some highly acclaimed games in my collection, but that was probably the only factor other than instinct which influenced my purchasing decisions.
A few years later, I saw a bit of Grand Theft Auto: Vice City on TV, and decided there and then that I wanted it. Problem was, I didn't have anything to play it on. The day after a works Christmas party in January 2003 (our Christmas parties was always held after Christmas), a little worse for wear and probably still a bit drunk, I ventured up to Game and bought myself a PlayStation 2 and GTA: Vice City. Once again, this was a spontaneous decision that I made just because I felt like it. Over the years that followed, my PS2 collection gradually grew. But, like my Dreamcast collection, it grew with games that I bought with no prior influence or plan. Quite often, I would just look out for games on offer when I happened to be in a shop selling them. Shopping in Tesco late at night was great. By now it was open 24 hours. I worked in a pub and restaurant, and would stop off at Tesco on my way home looking for something for tea. And to prevent myself from going to bed on a full stomach, I would sometimes pick up a new game to play. Some weren't great, but there were some hidden gems amongst my collection. Giants: Citizens Kabuto was one. They also had a great choice of retro game compilations which is one of the PlayStation 2's strengths (that's one of the downsides of online game stores - retro games have gone up in price! That's another topic for another day though). But, the strangest purchase I made was Circus Maximus: Chariot Wars. See! I knew I'd get back to that game eventually! Rather than buying this in the middle of the night at Tesco, I bought the game from HMV one afternoon where they had an offer of two games for £20 or something like it. The other game I bought was Dynasty Warriors 2, which was another refreshingly good game, but not particularly well known. Neither game initially jumped out at me, nor were they promoted in any special way. I just felt like buying something different to what I would usually play. I don't even think I spent much time making a decision. I suppose I just thought, it's only £20, what have I got to lose? So, I picked up the two games, went to the counter and bought them. And later that day, I experienced my very first virtual chariot race.
So, after that over-long introduction to Circus Maximus: Chariot Wars, my review of the game had better be good.
Rule Britannia!
As you'd expect in any self-respecting chariot racing game, the aim of the game in Circus Maximus: Chariot Wars is to race chariots. Races take place on courses spread across the Roman Empire, from the green and pleasant lands of Britannia, to the dry sandy deserts of Alexandria. The Romans are meant to have built long straight roads, but I don't suppose that would make much of an exciting game, so the roads in this game are more varied with bumps, turns, adverse cambers and changing terrains. Even water. Wow!
Options! Options! Get your options here!
There are a couple of modes available in this game: arcade mode and tournament mode. Arcade mode allows you to have a quick(ish) race on whichever course you choose, whereas in tournament mode, you play them all in order, providing you win your races. Not all courses are initially available in arcade mode, with these needing to be unlocked through tournament play. Whichever mode you choose, you next have to pick your chariot, a rider and a fighter. Who needs Gran Turismo when this level of customisation is available to you? Chariots, riders and fighters are representative of geographical regions, such as Rome, Greece or Africa.
Choosing a vehicle, rider and fighter. It's a bit like picking out an outfit for work.
Smack!
Once you've chosen your game mode, your vehicle, rider, fighter and somewhere to race, the fun begins. The handling of the chariots is done quite impressively in this game with them controlling quite realistically. Turn too fast or take a bump at an awkward angle, and your chariot topples over. But, it's possible to attempt to prevent a topple by some skilful manoeuvring. Chariots are pulled by horses, so a bit a whipping will get your nag to speed up if you need a boost. Adding more variety is the fact the you sometimes need to duck to avoid low level obstacles - gates, bridges, and so on. There are also short cuts to be found, which can save quite a bit of time on your journey. The game isn't just about racing chariots though. Oh no, you also get to beat up your opposition. Holding on for dear life at the back of your chariot is your fighter. He or she will attack the fighter in competing chariots. This isn't automatic though. You have to do the fighting. Defeat your competitor and this will force their chariot off the road for a moment or two. But the same will happen to you if you get defeated. Scattered around the levels are power ups which offer extra speed, energy replenishments, extra strength and so on.
Beautiful! Absolutely beautiful! A quaint British road of old.
Phwoar! Boobies!
The graphics on offer are fairly good. The detail of the chariots and characters is good, although the scenery isn't fantastic. As each course differs though, there is quite a bit of variety on offer. Sound is not bad either. The clip-clop of hooves and wheels on the gravelly roads dominates, while there is Roman sounding music tinkling away in the background which doesn't always sound too suited to a racing game but obviously suits its historical theme. A nice touch is the ability to taunt other racers. This basically makes your fighter shout abuse at opponents or say something about his or her greatness.
Whoops! This isn't going to end well.
As already pointed out, the game controls well and the novel vehicle choice means it feels substantially different to other arcade-style racers. It is fun to ride the chariots through the various courses, and having to control fighters too doesn't distract too much, although you do have to keep your eyes peeled on the road ahead. Unlike games like Road Rash, where fighting was a selling point of the game, but wasn't actually necessary to do well, you have no choice but to get involved in fights in this game as opponents are eager to attack you. Like many racing games, fall behind and it's fairly easy to catch up, but you don't often get the chance to get too far ahead as your competitors also seem to find it easy to catch up. It's all about rubber band AI or something, but it doesn't feel that well done in this game. It's also all too easy to fall off tracks or collide into walls or obstacles so it sometimes feels a bit stop-start, but that will largely be down to the fact I haven't played the game for years. I'm sure with practice, it's easy to get around the tracks without too many restarts.
A good old Roman age snarl up.
This isn't the sort of game that will keep you enthralled for a while, but it is one that you'll come back to for a fun and unique race numerous times. At least, that's what I found myself doing several years ago. It is one of those games that gets forgotten about though over time, but is a pleasant find to rediscover in your collection. If you're looking for a fun non-pretentious racing game that doesn't take itself too seriously, then look out for this. It's very odd, quite unique, but nowhere near as bad as its poor reception over ten years ago probably suggests it was.
RATINGS Presentation: 60% Functional menu screens with pre-game intros but not a lot else. Graphics: 80%
Good detail on characters and chariots, but bland scenery in places and sometimes a bit dull Sound:
75% Music is drowned out by horse and chariot noises, taunts are quite funny but not always audible. Playability: 80%
Fun to pick up and play but unlikely to hold your attention for long. A good game to come to for a quick time filler. Overall: 77%
Unique but surprisingly fun
YOUTUBE
Footage of me playing the game available on our YouTube channel, or below!
EXTRA IMAGES
Once again, I took too many screenshots. Here are some left overs.
There's more to Classic Gaming UK than just a sporadically updated blog that gets about two visitors a month - that's this blog in case you're wondering. We also have our very own YouTube channel. Oh yes, not only can you read about games of yore here, you can also see them in action over on Google's video sharing site of plenty.
The Classic Gaming UK YouTube channel has footage of games that have been written about already on this very blog, such as Cool Spot, Phoenix, Moon Patrol, Kickle Cubicle, Crazy Taxi and Edd the Duck! There are also videos of the Conversion Comparisons of Marble Madness and Pac-Land. And, our most popular video, a playthrough of Fantasia on the Mega Drive. It's had over 7000 views in 11 months. Not sure how much of an achievement that really is, but I'm quite pleased. Going forward, to use a phrase overused in offices and other corporate environments, we aim to deliver more fantastic examples of games from decades past.
But that's not all! Oh no, not only does Classic Gaming UK's YouTube channel feature my attempts at capturing footage of video games in whatever convoluted way possible, it also features other game-related videos, and videos that aren't related to games in any way but might be of interest to people into nostalgia. In a half-assed attempt to declutter, I've been transferring VHS tapes to my PC before sending them to videotape heaven. So far, I have transferred and uploaded the free preview videos that came with issues one and three of Mean Machines Sega. There is also an extract from an episode of Movies, Games and Videos. I would have including the whole episode but as it includes bits from films, I'm not sure how this fits in with copyright rules. And there are also the commercial breaks from a Tommy concert performed by The Who that was shown on Sky One early in 1990, providing a fairly rare glimpse of the early days of satellite TV in the UK.
You can find Classic Gaming UK's YouTube channel either by searching for "classicgaminguk" (all one word) on YouTube, or by following this link: http://www.youtube.com/user/classicgaminguk
Game:Castlevania Format:Nintendo Entertainment System Developer:Konami Year
Released:1986 (Japan), 1987 (USA), 1988 (Europe) Also released on:Famicom Disk System, Commodore 64, Commodore Amiga, DOS, Microsoft Windows, Gameboy Advance Now available on:Virtual Console (500 Wii points)
Once upon a time, vampires were the hardmen of horror. They would go around and commit all kinds of socially unacceptable atrocities to satisfy their bloodthirsty desires. If there was any character in fiction that would typify evil, that character would be Count Dracula, the most infamous of vampires. Although Dracula and his cronies seemed to have an unhealthy obsession for young virgins, anything containing blood was fair game to them. Vampires were feared, and quite rightly too. Nowadays though, the reputation of vampires as being Transylvanian terrorists has been tainted somewhat by the popularity of teenage trash such as Twilight and The Vampire Diaries (lots of 't's in that sentence, wasn't actually intentional). In these, the vampires have morals and an awareness of good and bad. They hold upstanding roles in society and prefer to sip from the blood of animals rather than humans. They do well at school, appear to be rather cultured and knowledgable. The Cullen clan in Twilight seem to be a bunch of do-gooding vampire foster kids, all partnering off with each other, in a wimpy vampire version of Home & Away. If only Shannon from Home & Away was in it, it might be more interesting. Or Sophie. Or Angel. Or, er, ahem, where was I? Oh yes, vampires are now pansies. Fortunately, saving us from this current soft image that vampires now appear to possess is Castlevania, a video game featuring vampires in their more traditional guise - as the evil undead.
Entering Castlevania for the first time. The first time of many. Mwahahahahahah!
A cat (or is it a dog) waits to pounce.
Castlevania is a franchise of vampire-themed video games in which the protagonist, usually a descendent of the Belmont family, has to battle with Count Dracula and his assorted pals. Like many long-running game series, the storyline today is as convoluted as can be, with a multitude of story arcs, canons, tangents and diversions that only interest the most die-hard fans. For everyone else, Castlevania is an opportunity to defeat Count Dracula. Or at least, harm him enough so that he doesn't come back for quite a length of time, but hopefully by the time a follow-up is ready. The series began back in the mid-1980s on Nintendo's Famicom Disk System and the MSX 2 as Akumajō Dracula. Although the game on the two systems had the same title and shared a number of similarities, they were also slightly different to each other. The Famicom disk version was slapped onto a cartridge for us westerners and renamed Castlevania, and it is that version that is examined today.
Throwing an axe at a bat.
The 50 Shades of Grey book features a "Red Room of
Pain" (apparently). It was based on this.
Castlevania was a simple platform game - although kind of unique in style - in which you took on the role of Simon Belmont. Simon's quest is simple. Count Dracula has awaken and he needs to be put back to sleep. To get to Dracula, Simon must defeat a number of other enemies, including characters that wouldn't be out of place in Hammer Horror films, such as Frankenstein's monster and The Mummy. The Grim Reaper also makes an appearance. Simon possesses a whip and the ability to carry a second weapon. Initially, the whip is fairly weak and short, but can quickly be upgraded by collecting whip-upgrading power-ups. These power-ups are found by whipping animated ornaments, most often candles. As it doesn't take much effort to actually get the whip upgraded, regardless of where you are in the game, it does seem a little pointless that it needs upgrading in the first place. Although as you progress through the game, losing a life and therefore losing your power-ups, can make battling some of the tougher bosses much more difficult.
An annoying monkey thing is about to bounce around you. Whip the little shit as soon as you can.
Secondary weapons can be collected throughout the game which can be unleashed by pushing up and fire. These include boomarangs, swords, clocks that stop time and axes. You can also collect upgrades that allow you these secondary weapons quicker. Using the weapons is a case of pushing up and fire, so it is sometimes easy for Simon to shoot one off accidentally. That's what she said. Throughout the game you also collect hearts. The number of heart pieces you have collected represents the number of times you can fire the secondary weapons, so it's best saving them up for end of level baddies.
Simon meets his mummy, and his other mummy. He has lesbian parents.
At the top of the screen are two energy bars. One represents your energy, the other represents the energy of the end of level boss, so it doesn't do anything for most of the level. You can replenish your energy by collecting food, which is usually hidden in a platform block or some of the scenery somewhere in a level. In this game, hearts don't increase your health, which is something that takes a small amount of getting used to. Enemy collisions deduct your health.
Medusa's head is on its way. Get the bitch!
There are really only two types of enemies: walking ones and flying and jumpy ones. The walking ones are fairly easy to defeat, although take multiple hits as you get further through the game. The flying and jumpy ones are a pain in the ass though. Medusa's head oscillates its way through the screen, and there are jumpy monkeys and some other weird things that just hop around you and move unpredictably. The controls are ok, but they aren't amazing, feeling a bit stiff and make it a little awkward to time your movements well to avoid collision. A major issue with the game is how colliding with enemies affects you. Simply coming into contact with an enemy is enough to cause Simon Belmont to leap backwards. This becomes frustrating on some levels where if you fall off a platform, you fall to your death. As jumping over some of the enemies isn't always easy, you will find yourself losing lives, somewhat unfairly, all too often.
Duck! Duck now. Oh no, it's a bat.
As the game progresses, it gets extremely tough. This is down to the fact that enemy collisions deduct more and more points from your health. Early levels only see your health deducted by one bar, later levels by four. Added to the additional harm that enemies inflict on you, there are also a lot more enemies to defeat. It's challenging, but also frustrating and doesn't always feel entirely fair. Simalarly, end of level bosses begin by being quite easy to defeat, before getting rediculously tough towards the end.
A big white bird craps out a bald monkey.
The game's appearance is ok. Levels are mostly dark and dingy, although most NES games looked dark and dingy to me. They capture the horror theme quite well, although one level in the middle of the game seems to take place in daylight, which just seems a little out of place. Enemies are fairly well drawn, and Simon's animation is not too bad. The graphics are nothing amazing but do their job and are well suited to the game. Overall presentation is quite good too. The title screen is a fairly standard NES style one, displaying the game's title and little else. The game then shows Simon entering Castlevania before the action begins, and there are little map screens in between each level detaling his progress.
Looks happy, but scary at the same time. Bit like Ronald
McDonald.
As for the sound, the music is quite upbeat, featuring jolly, catchy tunes. Some of these are now classics in the world of video game music, and have gone on to feature in several of Castlevania's sequels and on albums. The music gives the game an arcadey feel, and somehow prevents the game from being seen as overly moody and sombre. Subsequent games retain this kind of soundtrack.
As a franchise that still exists today, it is good to see how many of the ideas the exist in current games began in the very first one. As a platformer in its own right, Castlevania is fun and challenging, if a little frustrating. A lot of 1980s platformers just haven't stood the test of time and are just a chore to play today, but Castlevania is still an enjoyable test of your gaming skills, looking and sounding good too.
It's Skeletor!
RATINGS Presentation: 75% Functional presentation which allows you to get into the game easily and suits its purpose well. Graphics: 72%
Mostly dark and moody and suit the games theme. Sound:
80% The birth of some famous video game tunes was in this game. They are typical NES tunes, but not as forgettable as most. Playability: 83%
The main character controls well, but is hampered by his reaction when coming into collision with enemies which results in some frustrating and unfair deaths. Gets a bit tough later on, but it's not impossible to complete due to unlimited continues. Overall: 80%
A high-quality, enjoyable platform game which captures its theme well.
This is a level from the demo seeing as I never got this far into the game when getting these shots.
A few weeks back, I wrote a quick introduction to the Raspberry Pi, a mini computer that has been created to be a cheap and easy way of getting into programming. Its target audience is schoolkids in an attempt to replicate the days of things like the BBC Micro and its contemporaries. But for now it appears to be available for purchase so that enthusiasts and the like can faff with it and see what it can do before kids get their grubby little hands on them later this year.
I first heard of the Raspberry Pi sometime last year when reading the news during lunch at work. At first, I thought it was one of those cheap laptops that were being produced and provided to third world countries as part of the $100 laptop or One Laptop per Child scheme. It was only through the coverage of the Raspberry Pi as it was getting ready for release that I realised that it was something entirely different. A fully working computer for only £25! I'm not really sure what made me want one. In one way, I thought I could use it as a dedicated retro gaming machine, and in another way, I thought I could use it to get into programming, or back into it seeing as I did a spot of very basic programming when I was younger on my Acorn Electron. Maybe it's because I'm into gizmos and gadgets and this gizmo gadget seemed quite interesting and unique.
The Raspberry Pi went on sale sometime towards the end of February. However, it didn't stay on sale for very long. The number of people pre-ordering devices crashed the websites of the two companies supplying them, and the ability to do so was stopped. Instead, you had to register an interest in the devices and wait to be invited to place your order. I registered an interest with both companies supplying the Raspberry Pi: Element 14 (or Premier Farnell, I'm not really sure what the company is actually called as its two names appear interchangeable), and RS Components. Shortly after registering my interest, I received an email from Element 14 with a link to place a pre-order. So I placed my order through them without actually knowing when I'd receive my gadget, although the forums at the time suggested it was likely to be August. Incidentally, I only received my invitation to order through RS Components about two weeks ago. More recent updates suggested that any orders placed before mid-April would be delivered before the end of June, including mine!
Before receiving my Raspberry Pi, I did a bit of reading up on how it works and what it does, but it all seemed a little confusing and bewildering so I thought I'd wait until I received mine to figure out what I needed to do to get it going. After months of waiting, it finally turned up. Although the Raspberry Pi itself comes in a little box, the actual packaging was a little bigger due to me receiving a free T-shirt with my purchase too. After putting my T-shirt on, I unpacked my Pi and, er, stared at it for a while trying to figure out what to do next with it. As I was off out to the pub that night, I didn't have much time to do anything with it, but decided to set myself a mission to locate a USB keyboard (turns out that the one plugged into my PC is PS2!), and a micro USB lead. Despite having a collection of old mobile phone chargers, none of these are micro USB. I ended up discovering that the cable for my Samsung digital camera was micro USB, and my charger for my (broken) Kindle would provide the 5 volts of power needed. I already had a USB mouse, thought I had a SD memory card, and I could borrow the HDMI cable from my Virgin TV box or PlayStation 3.
The following day, I thought I was ready to go. But on locating my SD card, I discovered it only had 1 GB capacity. The Pi needs at least 2 GB, so I had to nip out to Tesco to buy a new card, plumping for a 4 GB card to provide me with more than enough space. Back at home, hopefully now with everything needed to get going, it was time to set it up. But I now needed to get an operating system onto the card. The Raspberry Pi currently runs Linux operating systems. I visited Element 14's Raspberry Pi section (http://www.element14.com/community/groups/raspberry-pi#downloadcenter), which provides links to three operating systems. The first two are Arch Linux ARM and Debian for ARM, with the third being Raspberry Pi Development VM v0.8. The latter had a warning about it being 8 GB in size, and sounded a bit techy, so I went for the first one. I downloaded the file, unzipped it, and then discovered that getting it onto the card would require another program - it's not just a simple case of moving it onto the card. Finding instructions on how to do so wasn't easy on Element 14's website, so a ventured over to Raspberry Pi's official site. The Quick Start guide there provided a list of all the physical equipment I needed (keyboard, mouse, power, SD card and so on), followed by a paragraph about downloading on OS, and then it started talking about "sudo" and DHCP leases and superusers, kernel sources, cross-compiling toolchains and suchlike. Quick Start my arse! Still, I followed the link to the OS downloads from the second paragraph, discovering that I should have downloaded the Debian one, the second one listed on Element 14's download page (why not first?). But, as I'd downloaded Arch Linux ARM, I thought I'd stick to it. I found that the program I needed that would allow me to transfer my OS to my SD card, now plugged into my PC, is something called Win32DiskImager. So, I visited the link for this, and found myself on a highly complicated looking page - https://launchpad.net/win32-image-writer The download link is somewhere to the right, one is a source.zip file and one is a binary.zip file. Which one to download??? Thinking logically, I tried the first link. Once downloaded and unzipped, I searched for an .exe file to run the program, but there wasn't one there. Nope, it was in the binary.zip download. Ah! I should know by now that the first link is usually the wrong one. Assisting me with all of this detective work to find files and folders and links and downloads and instructions and everything was the Raspberry Pi wiki at http://elinux.org/RaspberryPiBoard.
So, I now had the unzipped OS on my PC, and a program to move it to my SD card, and the SD card plugged into my PC. Getting the OS onto the card was actually quite easy using Win32DiskImager, and when it was completed, I excitedly plugged the card into my Raspberry Pi, unplugged the HDMI cable from the back of the Virgin TV box and into the Pi, and then connected the USB keyboard, mouse and finally the power. And then I switched it on. Lights began flashing on the Pi, but I got a message on the TV that it wasn't detecting an HDMI signal. I tried my PlayStation 3 HDMI cable instead, but nothing. After unplugging and plugging the cables back in over and over again, I still couldn't get my TV to pick up the Pi. Grrrrr! So, I decided to try it out on a portable TV upstairs (usually used for my Mega Drive and Master System) using a component cable. This still didn't do anything (I'll explain why later!) so I decided to try a different OS as, a little bit of forum searching mentioned something about something in a config.txt containing information about HDMI hotplug forcing, whatever any of that means. Feeling that if I can't even get my Pi to output a display using Arch Linux ARM without having to faff about in config.txt files, I've got no chance of knowing what I'm doing with it when I've finally got a display. Maybe Debian would be easier. So, I downloaded the Debian "Squeeze" OS, the one recommended for beginners, and thickos like me, and transferred it to my SD card. Again, I plugged the card into my Pi, the Pi into the portable TV, and the power into the Pi. Lights flashed in the correct sequence, but still nothing on the TV. I tried manual tuning and all kind of troubleshooting, but nothing. As I'd now been at it for about 3 hours, I'd resigned myself to giving up, but thought I would give it one last try on the main TV using the HDMI cable. So, I picked up my Pi and all its wires and cables, went back downstairs, plugged everything in again and, all of a sudden, the screen went blank, and then started filling with text and a little Raspberry logo. Finally! It works! I'd already read up on how to get into some kind of graphical interface, so typed in the preset username "pi" and password "raspberry" and then the command "startx" and, lo and behold, I was treated to a desktop. It was a desktop that continued to flicker though, but removing the Virgin HDMI cable and trying out the PS3 one fixed this. And that was it. My Raspberry Pi in action. The first thing I did was reset it, and start it up again, as there is something quite satisying about 'logging in' to a computer using a username and password and text commands. Something very 80s-esque.
However, as it was now very late, and I really couldn't face having to figure out what to do next for fear that I wouldn't be able to get my Pi to do what I wanted and I would end up spending even more time winding myself up, I logged off one last time and went to bed. I will follow up with more of my adventures with my Raspberry Pi some other time.
I received a new toy earlier this week! As the title of this blog kind of gives away, my new toy is a Raspberry Pi, something I ordered back at the end of March and which finally found its way through my letterbox on Tuesday. I've read quite a bit about the Raspberry Pi over the last few months, admittedly without really understanding what it was at first, but it was a segment that I saw on BBC News one night which convinced me that I needed one. My initial thought was that I could use it as a way of 'creating' my own little retro gaming device, maybe even something I could programme in an 80s-era stylee.
Before I continue, and for those who have never heard of the Raspberry Pi or who have, but don't really get it, here's a quick introduction. A Raspberry Pi is basically a "computer on a chip". It's a credit card-sized chip which contains everything you need - memory, a processor and relevant ports and slots - to plug into your TV and get computing. Well, almost everything. It's also very cheap. The main reason it exists is to encourage kids to get into computer programming, and ties in nicely with the government's plan for schools to replace Computer Studies, or Information Technology, or whatever it's called nowadays (I knew it as Information Systems at my school for a while) with Computer Science. Basically. instead of kids learning what they can do with a computer (e.g. conjure up a Word document, knock up a Excel Spreadsheet, browse the web and verbally abuse their mates on Facebook), they will instead learn how a computer works and how they can develop their own apps and programs on it. It's a bit like the difference between learning how to drive a car and learning how to fix one.
The people behind this Great British invention is the Raspberry Foundation, a charitable organisation which aims to get kids programming again, just like us kids of the 80s did with our BBC Micros and Speccies and suchlike. It's no coincidence that some of the names behind this scheme are names that were big in the 1980s, at least in the world of home computing. One of those names is David Braben, who co-wrote the classic computer game, Elite, and that 3D flying demo thing on the Acorn Archimedes. Lander, or Zarch, or both. I remember playing it at a Open Day for my high school back in 1990 and being mightily impressed. It's also no coincidence that the two current models of the Raspberry Pi are called Model A and Model B, referencing the BBC models of bygone days. Yep, the Raspberry Foundation want to get those days back, and get people programming again, or coding, or whatever you like to call it.
I suppose the desire to create the Raspberry Pi, and the government's aim to push Computer Science, has come about because nowadays, when you switch on a computer, you can do pretty much anything you want to do just by double-clicking an icon. Kids are probably more capable of using a computer than their teachers. Microsoft, Apple and so on have all designed their operating systems so well that you don't need to understand how your computer works to get it to do stuff. It just does. But, what if you do want to find out how they work? Or, you don't have that desire, but if you had the opportunity to find out, it might just interest you? The nice clickable icons don't make digging deeper into the actual workings of a computer easy, or make you really want to do any deep digging to find out. However, if you were a child of the 1980s, switching on a computer back then was a completely different experience. They weren't quite as friendly and inviting, but they made getting into programming and finding out how your computer works much much easier. Instead of the fancy graphics and colourful icons you get now, back then you were basically provided with a mostly blank screen and a flashing cursor, with your computer waiting patiently for you to tell it what to do next. You generally had two choices: either type out a program or type in whatever command you needed to enter to get it to start loading whatever was stored on the cassette in your tape player. Sometimes the "load" commands themselves were mini programs. I'm sure the command to load Commando or Football Manager on my Acorn Electron was a few lines long. I never did just try Chain"" to see what happened for fear of breaking something.
Having access to the computer's programming environment immediately on boot up was enough to encourage you to find out what you could do with it. I had an Acorn Electron, and its user manual began with a few pages on how to plug it in, switch it on, play tapes, etc. but then went on to talk about how to write your own programs. In a way, it was as if you were expected to use your machine for this purpose. It wasn't an option, just part of the learning curve of getting to know it. And program it I did. I copied listings from Electron User, The Micro User, and even Let's Compute! for its short lifespan - I've still got all issues of that magazine! - and I even got capable enough to write my own programs, despite them being mostly crap. I experimented a bit on my sister's Spectrum, but by the time she had that, I had a Sega Master System and was drawn into console gaming instead. On the Amiga, I couldn't figure out how to program it, basically because the ability to do so wasn't shoved right into my face, and I suppose since then, I've always assumed that to create programs, you have to have certain software and a degree in computing, due to the way that computers were getting more and more complex and able. About a year or so ago, I decided to have a look at ways of programming on a Windows PC, but gave up after discovering that there are nowadays dozens of programming languages, and it all seemed quite complex and messy. What I needed was a simply little device, a bit like the Acorn Electrons of the 1980s, that made it easy and accessible to program. Enter the Raspberry Pi, rather conveniently. Small, basic and, importantly, cheap. A Model A board is $25, and a Model B board is $35, which translates roughly to £16 and £25 in the UK (despite being a British invention, they insist on pricing it in dollars - apparently something to do with exchange rates). At this price point, it should be fairly easy to get loads of these into schools all over the country.
So, the above is pretty much the reason and my interpretation of why a device like the Raspberry Pi exists. But, what exactly is it? Well, it's a bare-bones computer chip with all of its innards on display. It's small, about the size of a credit card. Speaking technically, which isn't really one of my strengths, the Pi has a chip on board which contains its 256 MB of RAM and an ARM processor. Oh yes, even its processor has its origins from the Acorn computers of old. Apparently. It also has ports and connectors for you to plug into it the things that you need to get it to work. This adds some additional cost to the device, but the stuff you need are likely to be things you can find scattered around. Firstly, on the Model B, which is the one I ended up with (I don't think the Model A is actually available to purchase yet), there are a couple of USB ports. These are handy for a USB keyboard and mouse. Alternatively. you can plug a USB hub thingy into one of the slots to add other USB stuff you may need. There are two ports for display - a HDMI port to display stuff in glorious High Definition, and a composite port to plug into most other TV sets. It's worth noting that there is no VGA port so it's not easy to get your Pi to work with slightly older computer monitors. There is a 3.5mm audio port too, which can be used for headphones, speakers and the like. If you want to get surfing, there is an Ethernet port for all of your online needs. And finally, there is a slot for an SD card. Well, I say finally. There are actually all kinds of other connections and things on the chip, but you don't need these for now to get your Pi working, and I'm not actually sure what they're for anyway, so I'll ignore them for now. Anyway, the SD card slot is important because it's where you need to slot an SD card containing an image of your operating system of choice. Oh yes, this all baffled me at the beginning, but I'm pleased to say I managed to get things working after hours of faffing. Oh, there's also a Micro USB port for power.
That's the device introduced. As it's late, I'll not go into my experiences of setting the Raspberry Pi up and getting it working - kind of. Instead, I'll leave that for another day.
Game:Edd the Duck! Format:Commodore Amiga Developer:Impulze Year Released:1990 Also released on:ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, Commodore 64 Now available on:Nothing
Andy Crane, Edd the Duck and Wilson the Butler in the Children's BBC Broom Cupboard
If you were a child of the mid-to-late 1980s or early 1990s and you grew up watching Children's BBC, you may remember The Broom Cupboard. In broadcasting-speak, The Broom Cupboard was an in-vision continuity studio situated somewhere in BBC Television Centre. It was basically a little room where presenters provided information about other BBC shows for kids, interviewed celebrities, announced competitions and provided introductions and links into other shows. Arguably, The Broom Cupboard became more famous than the programmes themselves, and gave several presenters their first big breaks into broadcasting. The Silver Fox himself, Phillip Schofield, found fame from the Broom Cupboard, as did Andy Crane and Andi Peters. Amongst the clutter of the Broom Cupboard (pictures, props, toys, monitors, illuminated signs), Phil, Andy and Andi shared their little studio with puppets, who became personalities in their own right. A young Phillip Schofield was accompanied by Gordon the Gopher, perhaps the most well-remembered of the Broom Cupboard puppets. Even today, he still makes appearances on TV, and recently appeared as Phillip's co-presenter on Dancing on Ice, a vast improvement on Christine Bleakley.
It's Edd the Duck!!!
Gordon and Phillip went on to present Going Live on Saturday mornings, leaving a couple of empty places in The Broom Cupboard. Andy Crane filled the presenter's seat, with the puppet's chair first occupied by a banana, called Ben (or Bobby), and later a duck with punk green hair. That duck was Edd the Duck. A huge fan of Kylie Minogue, Edd the Duck spent several years in The Broom Cupboard, assisting Andi Peters with presenting duties after Andy Crane departed. For the BBC, he was fantastic, as his image could be licensed to appear on all kinds of merchandise to fill their coffers even more. Inevitably, and rather handily for this blog, one of the licensed products was a computer game. Edd the Duck's game, called Edd the Duck! appeared on several home computer formats. And today, we shall look at the Amiga version.
The fish in this picture reminds me of Ben from EastEnders.
In Edd the Duck! you control Edd through various TV-studio related levels. Levels are based on the weather department, although there is no Michael Fish in it to deny any forthcoming hurricanes, special effects department and children's TV department (quick fact: The Broom Cupboard was used as an emergency news studio during the "great storm" of 1987, as it was the only studio at TV Centre with power!). On each level are a number of stars. Edd must collect all of these stars to complete each level. Quite conveniently, a counter at the bottom of the screen tells you how many stars are left on each level. Levels on Edd the Duck! scroll vertically, with Edd starting at the bottom of each level, working his way upwards a la Rainbow Islands. Oh yes, the influence for this game is quite obvious, with the only thing missing from this being the rainbows themselves.
This is where Microsoft got the idea for the design of the Windows logo. It's true.
Bees and the EastEnders Ben fish give Edd a headache.
Each level features a number of enemies. These cannot be killed, but they can be frozen, literally, by throwing snowballs at them. This stops them from moving and makes them harmless, although this is only temporary. When the snow melts, they begin moving again and become fatal to the touch. Put simply, the idea of the game is to collect stars and avoid enemies.
Edd the Duck! is presented really well, with some nice pre-game screens, intermissions, a good game over sequence and leader board. Graphically, it's all very nice and colourful, with well-defined cartoon-style sprites, detailed platforms, and a general feel of overall quality. Sound-wise, the music is terrific. There's only one tune that plays throughout the game, although this is actually quite a good, catchy tune, sounding very Children's BBC in style, and there is nice intro music, game over and leader board music too. There are no sound effects to speak of, but all in all, the game's presentation is all quite nice and jolly and captures the TV studio context well.
The sun is rather happy in this colourful picture
An image from the "Special Effects Department" level. This is where the BBC made Doctor Who.
Onto the gameplay, and again, it's not too bad. Edd moves at a good pace around the levels, and responds quickly to your instructions. One of the problems comes when jumping as it isn't possible to make Edd move when in mid-jump. The makes precision-landing quite difficult and causes the game to become frustrating in parts. This results in you taking your time and freezing all enemies in your path when it comes to attempting to reach stars in their vicinity, rather than relying on well-honed arcade skills to leap and jump wherever you want. This flaw is what gives the game its main challenge, as I suppose it would actually be quite an easy game if the controls were better. This is because, other than enemies scattered around the level, there is nothing else to cause you any problems. Edd can survive any fall, there's no rising water level to put pressure on you to hurry up, there are no dangerous inanimate objects, such as spikes, and there are no end-of-level bosses. Yep, the iffy jumping method adds challenge to the game, but takes some of the fun out of it. With better controls, the developers could have added various other features to the game to make it more of a test of gaming ability.
Moons, stars, mouldy green platforms and a smiley space shuttle populate this screenshot.
Another problem is that the game is quite short. There are only the three levels (weather, special effects, kids TV), each split into three stages. And the first level and the third level look fairly similar to each other. It is possible to get through the game quite easily, just by taking it one bit at a time, freezing enemies, collecting a star, and then moving to the next bit. But, doing it that way isn't much fun and you'll end up trying to whizz through the levels, but failing to get very far because the jump control isn't that great and it's all too east to accidentally jump into an enemy. Given that the game is obviously aimed at kids, I can't imagine that kids would get much pleasure out of it as they aren't exactly known for possessing much patience!
Edd the Duck! feels like a game that could have been so much more. A little extra work on the controls, and a few extra features, and it could have been a minor classic, maybe even giving Rainbows Islands, the game on which is it obviously attempting to cash-in, a run for its money. Instead, it remains a nicely-presented, moderately fun little game which will keep you amused for a short while.
It's the end of Edd's TV career after colliding with too many enemies. Oh dear.
RATINGS Presentation: 90% Nice loading screen and intro screen, with polished intermissions and leaderboard. Graphics: 83%
Clear and colourful, with attractive cartoon visuals, good animation and, on level two, a nice background. Sound: 85% The Amiga's sound chip provides some great tunes, although it would have been nice to have different music for each level. Playability: 76%
Easy to pick up and play, but suffers just because Edd can't change direction when jumping, and can get frustrating. Overall: 78%
An enjoyable platform game, but missing a few elements that could have made it amazing.
Edd on the Speccy! A game that can't be completed!
Edd the Duck! elsewhere
Being the worldwide superstar that he was, Edd the Duck made appearances on a few other computers at the time. In addition to the Amiga version above, he also graced the Amstrad CPC, ZX Spectrum and Commodore 64 with his presence. I gave the Spectrum version a go, and found that Edd is actually able to move while in mid-air in it, which makes controlling him a little easier. However, apparently this version of the game isn't possible to complete due there not being enough stars in one of the levels (the counter wants you to get 20, but there are only 19 on the level). A poke fixes this, but it does make you wonder what kind of playtesting went on before releasing games back then!
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