Be Excellent To Each Other

Current scores can be found here : http://www.beexcellenttoeachother.com/counter/c64.php

Inspired by MRD's C64 adventures ( viewtopic.php?f=3&t=7444 ) we shall have a short challenge on some C64 games.

Challenge will run for 6 weeks , we will play one game a week starting on Monday and finishing the following Monday (scores to be in by midnight Sunday)

To compete you simply have to play the game and post your score plus a screenshot (press ALT+C at the same time to output a screenshot from the emulator and upload it) , please put angled brackets <> around your score to make it easier to find (or Grim... may be able to write a script to grab them automatically)

If your using windows download the windows file below which includes the C64 emulator (VICE) , the game files , and a few extra sound / image files

(offsite link at the moment because it tells me the absolute maximum upload is 2mb and i'm sure i've uploaded large files before)

http://www.megaupload.com/?d=Y4O6OTEB

If your using a MAC I cant really help you with the easy install but you can download VICE from the web and then this file which just contains the various game files



Individual instructions for each game will be posted each week and if you find any hints / tips / problems then post in the thread , a number of the games come with 'trainers' (cheats) already built in , you should select not to use these at the start of the game :-)

Controls for the C64 were slightly odd in that it had 2 joystick ports , numbered 1 and 2 , however a large number of games used joystick port 2 only (dont ask - related to keyboard conflicts ) , so you may need to switch the joystick controls over (I'll post each week any extra controls) , also note that The C64 had 4 function keys on the right side (marked F1 / F3 / F5 / F7) which map to the Function keys , and a number of trainers also request you press 'RUN/STOP' at specific times which is mapped to the CAPS LOCK key on a normal keyboard.

When your playing these games remember that everything , the graphics , sound , everything about the whole game fitted in just a few k and ran on a processor which clocked in at under 1mhz , and that the games themselves we're playing will all be between 20 and 30 years old.

There is also a special bonus challenge game which has no score but has great music and came up the most when we were talking about C64 games recently - The Last Ninja If you didnt play this back in the day you'll probably find it a very hard and frustrating game if you did see if you can finish it between now and the end of the challenge (i'll be trying to and i think i probably still can)

The games we will be playing are :

Week 1 - Zolyx

Ian Fairies: 125,691
zaphod79: 122,182
MrD: 119,767
chinnyhill10: 108,807
Malc: 104,434
TheVision: 70,897
devilman: 63,665
Joans: 56,560

Week 2 - Ghosts n Goblins

Malc: 34,900
zaphod79: 30,500
Ian Fairies: 20,000
MrD: 15,500
TheVision: 11,000
devilman: 9,400

Week 3 - IK+

Malc: 64,800
devilman: 61,800
lasermink: 50,700
TheVision: 41,800
zaphod79: 29,500
Ian Fairies: 23,200
MrD: 3,800

Week 4 - Boulder Dash

zaphod79: 2,989
devilman: 2,611
Malc: 2,064
Ian Fairies: 1,956

Week 5 - Forbidden ForestHunters Moon
Ian Fairies: 18,875
zaphod79: 12,075
TheVision: 7,675
kalmar: 6,425
devilman: 2,000
Malc: 1,000

Week 6 - Action Biker
zaphod79: 247,117
Ian Fairies: 143,448
devilman: 45,651












Special challenge for advanced games / nice music for everyone else - The Last Ninja
The Last Ninja by John Twiddy & Mark Cale / Music by Ben Daglish & Anthony Lees
Published by System 3 in 1987 (24 years ago)

This is one of those games that at the time just seemed to be so special and so much in advance of everything else that was out there.





It has absolutly amazing music and at the time large well animated graphics which had not really been seen in home computers.

This game doesnt have a score as such , and its got a real problem with a difficulty spike early on (being able to do the pixel perfect jumps in 3d) , "back in the day" you would put up with this and spend the time to learn what you had to do because everything else about it astounded you , but these days I doubt many people would stick with it much beyond the first part of the game.

If you dont want to even try the game in the SID folder is a basic player and the .SID music file for this - just open SIDPLAY , and drag Last_Ninja.sid into the window

To get this going
Start up the emulator and drag disk A into the window , it will load to the hack screen
Press Space
You'll get the trainer menu
Press the down arrow twice and then press return to get the loading screen , if you have the arrow keys selected as a joystick you will have to disable them first
press space to start , controls are joystick in port 2 , plus the function keys to select items (when you have collected them) with space to switch between weapons - the joystick generally moves you but holding onto fire and pressing a direction will do other things - unarmed you have up for punch / down for kick , and diagonally down to search

When requested it will ask you to flip the disk to the other side , go into file / attach disk image / drive 8 and select the requested disk (drive 8 was C64's "first" disk drive)

The Last Ninja : http://gamebase64.hardabasht.com/games/ ... 284_01.zip

If you look under the SID folder there is a set of SID (music files) for a number of the games if your looking for something to have on in the background

I wonder if the cheat on the Spectrum version of Zolyx works on the C64.

Excellent stuff zaphod, I'll take a look at this soon.

Can't say I remember Zolyx at all though

Nope.. it doesn't.

I used to be half-decent on this, but sadly those skills have deserted me.

<37549>

The Zzap review of the game when launched

http://www.zzap64.co.uk/cgi-bin/display ... 26&page=18

I got 23893

<51096>



The "extensive" Zolyx manual

ftp://arnold.c64.org/games/z/z-gbv7/docs/Zolyx.pdf

<41087>

This game can now GTFF.

I got 30000 and something but I can do better... Hence, no screenshot.

What if i post the Amstrad cover art ?



Oh and remember the button actually does something - it makes the flying dots reverse (but a very limited number of times)

Sorry I'm late!

PM me if the game doesn't change at the end of the 'week', as I'm not on the forum much lately.

<56543>

Thank you - Chinny your scores are not showing because you've not put <>'s round them can you edit your post and it should show on the table

I didn't come here for a lecture on communism.

Oh shit, I forgot about this, how can I play this and write beex weex?



Not enough time...

Malc

At least I have the weekend I guess...

Malc

You have all the way up till midnight on Sunday night to get your score in , and even if you miss this game you can pick up with week 2

I've always been rubbish at this type of game, even the ones on MAME which promise nudey ladies as a reward of clearing the screen.

I'll put some more time in tonight though. I reckon I can beat Chinny at least.

Just for nostalgia purposes, I thought I'd try the Speccy version out. You can see how easy the cheat/bug makes the game -


By drawing two boxes as above, it fills in the wrong side, completing the level.

Nice , I've found a lot of the skills picked up on Qix translate across quite well , but I find that a quick split the screen is a good start (either 50% straight away or a single blob on one side) then either carve up the side with the single dot (to about 47%) or make a trap on the other to try and capture individual dots (A T shape that you then close off)

Goddamn this game is hard! I haven't got close to over 50,000...must try harder.

Man, what a hideous game! Best score near 20,000, really can't be bothered trying any harder.

<19556>

(edited in, is evidence mandatory?)

Tried the CPC version. Not a bad conversion. Smaller screen, suffers from slight slowdown and if you fill 50% you have to wait about half a second.

C64 - 799 Bananas.
CPC - 789 Bananas.

I don't know if I have the emulator running too fast or something but the little dots are flying round my screen at a blistering speed. Best score tonight below - image to follow as evidence:

<49215>

I'll try again tomorrow, when I will decimate your top scores (hopefully) (but probably not)

Here's mine... <54952>

Booya!

May I be as bold as to ask for a slight edit to the first post?

Can you use the Joypad icon please? It'll make the thread easier to find on the front page.

Graphically ? , its minimalist but works very well and it does have that one more go thing + the fact you can often see death just that split second before it happens.

Its very much the type of game i could see on iOS with lots of fancy stuff on the outside but the core game itself is simple and works.



They do fly very fast - if your using vice there should be a %age meter at the bottom which should read 100% , however there is also a 'warp mode' (generally used to get loading times over with quickly) and you may have enabled it - check under options (its the 3rd menu item down)



Done.

You plan to kill one in ten of our high scores?

BOOM! Eat it up Chinny. Eat it right up.

<64387>

I just want you to know that while you were basking in a minor victory, I was already preparing to crush you.



<73872>

Gah! And I had plans for this evening...

Close to Chinnys but not quite - however slightly above yours



<71493>

Current scores with the weekend to go :

http://www.beexcellenttoeachother.com/counter/c64.php

Zolyx
chinnyhill10: 73,872
zaphod79: 71,493
Ian Fairies: 64,387
TheVision: 54,952
devilman: 37,549

I would be awfully grateful if you could observe the following and place me on the top of the leaderboard where Chinny's tears cannot fall onto me:

<78323>

Rollocks! I was looking forward to seeing your total destruction but I've now turned the emulator box off.

<75319>



Zaphod can we have a big link to the leaderboard at the top please.

Its in the first post but i'll move it to the very top

Zolyx
Ian Fairies: 78,323
chinnyhill10: 75,319
zaphod79: 71,493
TheVision: 54,952
devilman: 37,549

In recent developments it has been announced that Chinny is victorious.



<85133>

The pressure must have got to me...

I am exhausted but I have finally done it. Now I can finally enjoy Saturday...phew.

<92462>

A picture speaks a thousand words..... or more precisely one hundred thousand points.





<108445>

<70897>

You people are machines....

Bloody hell. I can't see me beating that. My fingers had seized up just getting above 80k. I might have to suck up the first week defeat and get some GnG practice in.

Here's my tips for newbies though:

1) Don't worry so much about the dots in the black, it's the dots in the blue that kill you 9 times out of 10.
2) Don't try to clear half the screen from the start of each round. Splitting up the pack is much better and tackling them 1 on 1.
3) Once you trap one of them keep reducing the box around them until doing anymore is suicide.
4) I couldn't quite figure out the scoring but you get big points the higher the percent over 75 at the end of the round. So feel free to leave one dot bouncing around a big space while you mop up the remaining space up to 70-odd percent; then blitz the single dot in the large space in one swoop netting a load of points.
5) You've 2 attempts per round to reverse the dots direction. Save them for the big and tricky moves where you're trying to split the pack.
6) Separate the dots individually as much as you can.
7) You've had a bad round and got 8 dots flying around in a small space but only 50 percent done? Just keep snipping away at the edges until you've got 75. Take your time as there's no time limit BUT: Watch the dots in the blue!

That's what I've been doing anyway. Not that I ever want to play it ever again...

Special Cheevo award if you can beat this tiny box (yes it was a fluke):

I trapped one in a two pixel wide box. My best clear up rate is 98%.

Yeah, but this looks like the sort of game I'd be good at...

26 hours to find out I guess...

MAlc

ok, I've loaded the game, and I can see the highscore table, and pressing up on the keyboard changes to a demo screen or something, but how do I play?

I've tried pressing most keys on the keyboard...

Malc

Press fire on the joystick or whatever you've defined as the joystick.

I have joy keys enabled, and I can see the little green light on the screen of the emu flashing when I press up/down/left/right, but I can't find the one that corresponds to fire (which I assume is the central button) I have tried every single key on this keyboard, and none of them seem to be the one!

Malc

ah it's right ctrl, I was sure I had already tested that one.

First game a paltry <4068> whilst I worked out what I was doing, I am sure I can do better!

Malc

<17287>

I'll provide a screenshot when the score is better.

Malc

<47678>



Malc

Hmm, Grimm...'s script is a day too soon...



Malc