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From: [email protected] (Matthew Hambley)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.acorn.games,comp.sys.acorn.announce,comp.answers,news.answers
Subject: comp.sys.acorn.games FAQ
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Summary: This is the FAQ for the comp.sys.acorn.games news group.
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Archive-name: acorn/games
Posting-Frequency: monthly (approximately)
Last-modified: 4th of June 2001
Version: 2.00
Maintainer: Matthew Hambley ([email protected])
Disclaimer: Approval for *.answers is based on form, not content.

The comp.sys.acorn.games FAQ
============================

2.00 4th of June 2001
=====================

This FAQ was written because the various posters to csa.games got fed up
answering the same questions over and over again with often as little as
two weeks separating each occurrence of a given question. Please read this
FAQ before you post any questions.

If you spot an error, inconsistency or spelling mistake you must do two
things: 1) Pat yourself on the back (that's the easy bit) and 2) (the hard
part) E-mail me so I can correct it. If you have a suggestion for a new
question or an improved answer to an old one please don't hesitate to
contact me.

This FAQ is currently maintained by Matthew Hambley[1] and may also be
found on the web[2].

[1]: mailto:[email protected]
[2]: http://www.aether.demon.co.uk/faqs/games.html

Revision History
- ----------------

2.00 (4th June 2001)
Total re-write both of content and markup

Contents
========

1. General Questions
1.1. Why are so few games released for Acorn's?
1.2. What is the difference between a game, a game demo and a demo?
1.3. Superior Software were possibly the preeminent games company on the
Beeband they where one of the first to do anything for the Arch. Where
havethey gone?
1.4. Where can I get free games from?
1.5. What resources are available on the web for Acorn game players?
1.6. What about game solutions?
1.7. I want to give my games some stick!
1.8. How easy is it to write a game for Acorn computers?
1.9. How can I write multi-platform games on my Risc OS machine?

2. Foreign Games
2.1. I have seen Spectrum and BBC Micro emulators. What about other
platforms? What emulators are available?
2.2. Some IBM compatible games look a bit crumby when run on the x86 card.
What can I do about this?
2.3. Why am I having trouble with x86 sound?
2.4. So how do I complete Quake then?
2.5. What the hack is Angband anyway?

3. Text Adventures
3.1. What is interactive fiction?
3.2. How do I play interactive fiction on a RPC/Archimedes?
3.3. How do I write interactive fiction on a RPC/Archimedes?
3.4. Ooo, interactive fiction sounds like fun! Where can I find out more?
3.5. That's all very well but I like pictures!

Questions and Answers
=====================

1. General Questions

1.1. Why are so few games released for Acorn's?

Acorn Games are usually written by university students who have some
really great ideas and do some good coding but then graduate. They
then tend to be offered proper jobs which they take and suddenly find
they don't have the time (or their contract prevents them) to code.
The other problem is the small market place which means that only a
handful of small companies can be supported.

1.2. What is the difference between a game, a game demo and a demo?

A demo is intended to demonstrate some programming/graphical/musical
flair and techniques - any "gameplay" is peripheral to the program. A
game demo is either a cut-down or "crippled" version of a commercial
or shareware game or a rolling demo. It is designed to demonstrate the
gameplay aspect of a game and encourage you to buy it. A game is a
program intended to have lots of gameplay...

1.3. Superior Software were possibly the preeminent games company on the
Beeb and they where one of the first to do anything for the Arch. Where
have they gone?

A very good question. All evidence suggests that they disappeared
years ago but dispite this every so often a rumour surfaces to the
effect that they are still around somewhere. "The 4th Deminsion"
aquired the rights to Superiors 8-bit catalogue so it is possible that
cje micros may have them now since they have the rights to The 4th
Dimension[1] games. ProAction, on the other hand, has the rights to
the 32-bit Superior games and is utilising them in the form of a
compilation CD-ROM.

[1]: www.cjemicros.co.uk/4d/index.html

1.4. Where can I get free games from?

You may like to try some of the following sites:

* Swallows site[1]
* The Soup Kitchen[2]
* Acorn Arcade's download zone[3]
[1]: http://www.swallows.demon.co.uk/arc/ontheweb.html
[2]: http://www.soup-kitchen.net/software/index.html
[3]: http://www.acornarcade.com/cgi-bin/gamelist

1.5. What resources are available on the web for Acorn game players?

These links may prove useful to you:

* The Acorn Gaming pages[1]
* More Acorn gaming pages[2]
* Cheats prosper[3]
* Acorn Arcade[4]
* Acorn Gaming 98-00[5]
[1]: http://www.acorn-gaming.org.uk/
[2]: http://www.swallows.demon.co.uk/arc/
[3]: http://www.doggysoft.co.uk/cheat.html
[4]: http://www.acornarcade.com/
[5]: http://www.argonet.co.uk/ag98/

1.6. What about game solutions?

* Swallow's sollutions[1]
[1]: http://www.swallows.demon.co.uk/arc/hints/hints.html

1.7. I want to give my games some stick!

A3010 owners will know it is possible as their machines come with
joystick ports. If you own any of the other Acorn machines then you
will require an interface. At the moment Stuart Tyrrell
Developments[1] appear to be the only people manufacturing joystick
interfaces. They also provide joypads for use with your Risc OS
machine.

[1]: http://www.stdevel.demon.co.uk/

1.8. How easy is it to write a game for Acorn computers?

Too much deep techie talk is off topic in this group (csa.programmer
is the place for that) however discussion of general principles and
game concepts is perfectly acceptable.

If (presumably) you've never written a game, you'll want some idea of
how video games tick and the usual sorts of routines you'll need to
program them. For a first game, I'd suggest using one of these
libraries:

GameSuite[1]

Development was halted by Andy Southgate a while ago when He stopped
working on it. In it's current state (3.00), it's still pretty good
if you feel the environment suits you. It's best suited to people
who like BASIC and assembly language programming since the core
routines are in two modules with numerous SWI calls. The
documentation is pretty thorough, and all the source is provided,
though most of it is pretty cryptic and uncommented.

[1]:
ftp://ftp.uni-stuttgart.de/pub/systems/acorn/acornet/long/info/www/s/i_43.html

Popcorn[2]

By Matthew Bloch, Popcorn is a games library still in development.
It comes as a series of linkable AOF libraries written mostly in C,
with all the source provided. No support is provided for BASIC
programmers, though it could be added. In terms of features, it is
slightly better specified and flexible than Gamesuite, but at the
expense of speed. In addition, there were some articles published on
using it in Acorn User (Dec '96, Xmas '96, Jan '97) and an example
game.

[2]: http://www.soup-kitchen.net/software/popcorn.html

These libraries will do a lot of the hard work for you such as object
processing and sprite plotting; be warned that you won't find either
of these perfect, and will probably want to hack a lot of the code
around. Both contain some useful hints on game coding and a certain
amount of tutorial material.

These libraries only handle 2D (flat) games programming; if you want
to write something in three dimensions, there are huge tomes available
on the subject. The comp.graphics.algorithms FAQ is a good place to
start.

TAG is a 3D graphics library written by TBA Software which has been
successfully used in some of their games. TBA is no more so both the
engine and its source code have been made available on the TBA CD-ROM
from R-Comp. Source for BHP and Cobalt Seed are also included on this
disc.

Be warned that knowing how to code a game is only half the battle: If
you want to release something commercially, slick presentation and
careful design are essential. Get other people to draw graphics or
compose music if you don't feel your skills are up to a commercial
standard. Spend a while planning rather than just diving headlong into
the coding. Finally, hold your game up to the light of a similar
offering running under DOS or Windows and ask whether /you/ would pay
the money you're asking for your game. A lot of people have PCs and
prefer playing games (and spending money) on those.

Finally there are a number of commercial games for which the source
has been released. At the time of writing only one of these has not
been ported already: Golgotha.

1.9. How can I write multi-platform games on my Risc OS machine?

At first this may seem like an impossibility. Games written for a Risc
OS machine only have a hope of working on other ARM based computers
(which are a little thin on the ground) and then only if they have a
similar architecture. It is however possible through the plethora of
Gameboy emulators. A UNIX package for creating Gameboy games has been
ported to RISC OS. Its libraries are a little primitive but they
should be useable. It may even be a useful introduction to games
programing (see the previous question)

Find the package on the porters web site[1].

The most common text adventure formats used on Acorn machines are also
ports of very well supported formats. Inform for instance can be used
on everything from C64's to Linux boxes. See the section on text
adventures for more information.

[1]: http://www.plasma.demon.co.uk/gameboy/

2. Foreign Games

2.1. I have seen Spectrum and BBC Micro emulators. What about other
platforms? What emulators are available?

There is a neigh on comprehensive list of emulators held at the Acorn
Gaming[1]site.

[1]: http://www.acorn-gaming.org.uk/index.php3?p=Emulatoion/index

2.2. Some IBM compatible games look a bit crumby when run on the x86
card. What can I do about this?

If it is the actual rendition of the game on screen which is not right
then you may find that adding these to your momitor definition file
helps.

2.3. Why am I having trouble with x86 sound?

A common solution to this problem is to investigate PCSound from
R-Comp Interactive[1]. This bit of trickery will, with the aid of a
MIDI synthesiser be it hardware or software, improve PC sound for a
number of games.

[1]: http://www.rcomp.co.uk

2.4. So how do I complete Quake then?

Unless you are absolutely positively stuck then stop reading now.

I don't want to spoil the fun for you...

Still here? OK, to complete Quake look for the floating ball. This is
the target for the teleporter. When you teleport you will end up where
this thing is. So, just wait for the ball to be inside Shub Niggrath
(The big tenticular end of game gardian) and then teleport. You will
telefrag Shub and win the game. It might be possible to win by
whacking the Cuthuloid one enough times with the axe too.

2.5. What the hack is Angband anyway?

To answer this question I'll quote this brief introduction by the
author of the RISC OS versions:

Angband is a dungeon adventure game, similar to Dungeons & Dragons
in some ways, but with the emphasis on strategic use of equipment,
magic and skills rather than role-playing and problem solving.

It is (loosely) set in Tolkein's Middle Earth, although some
variants of the game draw on quite different sources.

Angband is the single most addictive computer game I have ever
played... I barely even look at Tetris these days ;)

Possibly the first port of call for finding out more should be Musus
Umbra's RISC OS andband site[1]. For general Angband information
including links to the Acorn port why not try Thangorodrim[2].
Alternatively Acorn Arcade has some Acorn spacific links in its Game
Support pages.

[1]: http://www.argonet.co.uk/users/musus/angband/index.htm
[2]: http://thangorodrim.angband.org/

3. Text Adventures

3.1. What is interactive fiction?

Interactive fiction (IF), or text adventures, are games in which the
player and the computer interact through a textual interface: the
player enters commands and the computer responds by printing text to
the screen, generally what the player can see and what effects the
previous command had.

The player's input can be a simple command in the format ?verb?
?noun?, such as "take sword" or "open door" . Modern games will also
be able to parse quite complex sentences like "take the gold coin out
of the treasure chest and bite it. Then close the chest" .

Playing interactive fiction, then, is like reading a novel in which
you are the main character.

3.2. How do I play interactive fiction on a RPC/Archimedes?

Many interactive fictions are available as platform-independent
storyfiles, which are played on an interpreter. There are at least
half a dozen rival formats and, unfortunately, there aren't Acorn
ports of interpreters for every format.

One of the most popular interactive fiction storyfile formats is the
"Z-machine" format, as used by Infocom and, more recently, the Inform
compiler (see below). An excellent interpreter for games in this
format is Zip 2000. This is a multi-tasking application with many
features. Zip 2000 is shareware (ukp10 registration), but a freeware
distribution is available via anonymous FTP from the IF archives[1]

If you prefer there is another z-machine interpreter called Frotz. The
big difference between this and Zip 2000 is its front end which some
people prefer. It can be found at the authors web site[2]

The Hugo engine, HE, is an interpreter of storyfiles generated by the
Hugo compiler (see below). It is currently a single-tasking
application, invoked from the command-line. HE (archived with the Hugo
compiler) is available via anonymous FTP from the IF archives[3]

The TADS interpreter allows you to play games in the TADS run-time
format. This is also a single-tasking application, identical in
appearance to the DOS version. TADS is available via anonymous FTP
from the IF archives[4]

A Level9 interpreter has also been ported to the RPC/Archimedes. This
is used to play games published by Level 9 Computing, such as "Lords
of Time" and "Snowball." It currently runs in a taskwindow on the
desktop. L9 is available via anonymous FTP from the IF archives[5]

Actual games are available from a number of sources. As mentioned
above, the Infocom games ( "Zork," "Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy,"
etc.) can be played with Zip 2000. These games are commercial
software, and are often repackaged by the copyright-holders,
Activision. The most recent collection, "Masterpieces of Infocom,"
contains all but two of the games. This may not yet be available in
Europe, so the previous collections, "Lost Treasures of Infocom,"
(vols. I ? II) may be a better bet. "Zork I" has recently become
freeware, and is available from Activision's Web site[6]

A growing number of very high quality freeware and shareware games
produced with the Inform authoring system, and playable on Zip 2000,
are available via anonymous FTP from the IF archives[7]

Hugo games are, currently, less prevalent, but a handful are available
via anonymous FTP from the IF archives[8]

A number of TADS games are available via anonymous FTP from the IF
archives[9]

The Level 9 games are probably no longer available to buy anywhere,
but are available from a number of FTP sites. L9 can handle these
games in any format (except not Spectrum Z80 files, these must be
converted to SnapShots). An archive of several Spectrum games (Z80
format, so convert) is available via anonymous FTP from would you
credit it?[10]

Lastly, there are one or two games available as RISC OS applications.
Some of these are available via anonymous FTP from that funky IF
archives site again[11]

[1]: ftp://ftp.gmd.de/if-archive/infocom/interpreters/zip/
[2]: http://www.argonet.co.uk/users/musus/frotz/index.htm
[3]: ftp://ftp.gmd.de/if-archive/programming/hugo/executables/
[4]: ftp://ftp.gmd.de/if-archive/programming/tads/executables/
[5]: ftp://ftp.gmd.de/if-archive/level9/interpreters/level9/
[6]: http://www.activision.com/
[7]: ftp://ftp.gmd.de/if-archive/games/inform/
[8]: ftp://ftp.gmd.de/if-archive/games/hugo/
[9]: ftp://ftp.gmd.de/if-archive/games/tads/
[10]: ftp://ftp.gmd.de/if-archive/games/spectrum/level9.zip
[11]: ftp://ftp.gmd.de/if-archive/games/archimedes/

3.3. How do I write interactive fiction on a RPC/Archimedes?

There are a number of publicly available authoring systems for
creating interactive fiction in one of the storyfile formats mentioned
above.

Inform is undoubtedly currently the most popular and ported authoring
system available. It compiles source, written in it's own language
(fully OO and reminiscent of C), to a "Z-machine" -format storyfile.
Inform is available via anonymous FTP from the IF archives[1]

It has recently come to my attention that there is a very good site
concerning the technicalities of writing adventure games with extra
links at this site[2]

Hugo is much newer than Inform. The language bears comparison to
Inform, C and BASIC, but much of the (sometimes confusing) punctuation
has been removed, and the whole language optimised for clarity and
ease-of-use. Hugo source compiles to its own format storyfile, which
removes many of the more limiting restrictions of the "Z-machine"
format. Hugo is available via anonymous FTP from the IF archives[3]

[1]: ftp://ftp.gmd.de/if-archive/infocom/compilers/inform6/
[2]: http://www.gnelson.demon.co.uk/inform.html
[3]: ftp://ftp.gmd.de/if-archive/programming/hugo/

3.4. Ooo, interactive fiction sounds like fun! Where can I find out
more?

There are two newsgroups devoted to interactive fiction. If you are
interested in /playing/ these games, you should subscribe to
rec.games.int-fiction[1]

If you want to /write/ interactive fiction you should subscribe to
rec.arts.int-fiction[2]

The Interactive Fiction Archive is a huge repository of interactive
fiction games, authoring systems, utilities, documentation and other
related material. It is found at the IF archives[3]

Both the rec.arts.int-fiction FAQ[4]and the rec.games.int-fiction
FAQ[5]are available from the IF archives.

[1]: news:rec.games.int-fiction
[2]: news:rec.arts.int-fiction
[3]: ftp://ftp.gmd.de/if-archive/
[4]: ftp://ftp.gmd.de/if-archive/rec.arts.int-fiction/FAQ
[5]: ftp://ftp.gmd.de/if-archive/rec.games.int-fiction/FAQ

3.5. That's all very well but I like pictures!

Well now you can have some. Recently a port of Sarien has been
completed. Sarien is an AGI interpreter. It will allow you to play old
(generally pre 1989) Sierra adventures. For instance, Leisure Suit
Larry and the various Quest games. (King's, Space and Police)

All you need is the original game and a copy of Sarien, available from
the authors web site[1].

Apparently there is work underway to produce an interpreter which will
play more modern Sierra games. Possibly even more exciting is the
prospect of a SCUMM interpreter. SCUMM is the system used by Lucas
Arts for, among other things, Monkey Island.

[1]: http://www.acornemus.freeserve.co.uk/

--
(\/)atthew )-(ambley
Maintainer of the comp.sys.acorn.games and programmer FAQ lists
E-mail : [email protected] Public key ID : C487AC52
http://www.aether.demon.co.uk/faqs/
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