CPC Colours, Games, ans some more

[oky2000]

The Beast demo is not a game project, it's just a demo and afaik uses all memory so there wouldn't be any space for more graphics or a game.

 

Is there enough space to finish to write the 1st level as shown or not even enough memory left to turn it into a game?

 

Could always load the levels from disk and there is also the 128K CPC 6128/664 machines to write it on as well even so.

[Lazarus]

Could always load the levels from disk and there is also the 128K CPC 6128/664 machines to write it on as well even so.

I could be wrong but I think the beast demo already uses 128k. It uses a hell lot of pre-shifted graphics to achieve the scrolling and since it's using overscan every shifted version of the screen eats more than 16k of memory.

 

On A8 and C64 such a demo is easy to do. It's just a bit scrolling and color changes via DLI/raster IRQs + a big sprite in the middle.

 

EDIT: Just checked, a screen has 25.5k size, shifted 4 times that would be 102k for screen buffers only. Add a bit of sprite animation and very little code, entire 128k used just for the demo without any space left for any kind of level or game.

Edited October 22, 2009 by Lazarus

[oky2000]

Could always load the levels from disk and there is also the 128K CPC 6128/664 machines to write it on as well even so.

I could be wrong but I think the beast demo already uses 128k. It uses a hell lot of pre-shifted graphics to achieve the scrolling and since it's using overscan every shifted version of the screen eats more than 16k of memory.

 

On A8 and C64 such a demo is easy to do. It's just a bit scrolling and color changes via DLI/raster IRQs + a big sprite in the middle.

 

EDIT: Just checked, a screen has 25.5k size, shifted 4 times that would be 102k for screen buffers only. Add a bit of sprite animation and very little code, entire 128k used just for the demo without any space left for any kind of level or game.

 

Ahh well shame then really as it looks really good, not much use for a game but a good showcase of what you can do theoretically.

[andym00]

EDIT: Just checked, a screen has 25.5k size, shifted 4 times that would be 102k for screen buffers only. Add a bit of sprite animation and very little code, entire 128k used just for the demo without any space left for any kind of level or game.

 

 

Really ? 4 Shifts ? I'd always assumed the Amstrad 16 colour modes were 2 pixels per byte/packed nybbles.. I guess I should go read some more

 

 

[Lazarus]

Really ? 4 Shifts ? I'd always assumed the Amstrad 16 colour modes were 2 pixels per byte/packed nybbles.. I guess I should go read some more

Yes but it also uses the 2 and 4 color modes.

[youki]

that's funny to see a C64 Vs CPC war on that forums.

 

in France , the CPC had a really hudge success. Despite it is a very interresting machine , in term of gaming the machine is lot of less "power full" than the C64. That is not really comparable.

 

Of course they are game that are better on CPC than on C64. For Instance the game "Sorcery" , But it is due to the fact that the game does not need scrolling. And that the color palette of the CPC is very well used in that case.

 

but generally CPC games does not compare well against C64 game. Scrolling and sound are generally very poor.

 

Where the CPC was very strong , it is on the BASIC language side. The Locomotive BASIC is very very good and of course infinitely better than the C64 Basic... (not difficult..).

 

In addition, on the end , CPC games and Spectrum game were almost identical, due to the fact the developper had kind of automatic conversion tools. They make the game on Spectrum and then port them extremely quickly on CPC ... So if you were lucky you get more color sometimes (as done in shadow of the beast) but in general not , you got the exact some game in more or less "black and white".

 

That's very funny than some of you compare a CPC to an Atari ST...

 

On the other side , there is the game of CPC+ , what are enhanced CPC with 4096 color palette, hardwarde scrolling, hardwar sprite etc... This machine are in my opinion the best 8bit machine never done. And could compete with 16bit (look the game burning rubber or Robocop 2 on that plateform) . But the machine cames to late and didn't sell well and no real support from developper that was just doing game for classic CPC (CPC+ was compatible with CPC). It is pity.

 

To go back to shadow of the Best. The C64 version is very well in my opinions. I would love to see a that game on a A8 . (something better that the prototype that exists..)

 

 

 

Here a walk through all commercial version , nice to compare.