Dark Mage problems....

[firebug]

so i just bought a Dark Mage cart from atariage here. i popped it into my atari and booted it up, started playing the game, and immediately got stuck.

 

i looked and looked around and couldn't find any help. i then decided to try the ROM image here, and automatically noticed some differences.

 

first of all, when i play the real cart, there is no intro to the game. i get a blank screen and the more.. selection at the bottom. i can hit my button 3 times and get plopped into a screen in front of a castle. i can't go north, the guard won't let me. i can't go east, theres an ocean. i can't go west, there's a steep cliff. i CAN go south, and in this screen there's a penny. i already have a hammer, so i pick up the penny. now i have the hammer AND a penny. east and west here is the ocean and the steep cliff again, and if i try to go south, it says im afraid of getting lost, so i return to my original path.

 

so really, i have only two rooms to deal with here, and i've tried every combination of things to do to get farther. the guard wont accept the hammer or the penny. i can't USE them there, and in the other room, i cant GIVE or USE anything at all.

 

when i downloaded the .bin file, there was an intro explaining a little storyline, and i started the game in a field of white flowers. so im really confused here. do i somehow have a different version of the game? or is my cart malfunctioning and only letting me play a certain part of the game or what? and if my cart IS messed up, how would i go about getting a new

cart with the actual game on it without being forced to buy it again?

 

thanks a lot in advance!

[Thomas Jentzsch]

The cart version and the supercharger version are different.

 

It sounds like they accidentially put a beta version on the cart. Attached are 3 4K cart versions of the game. Which one is yours?

dm.zip

[firebug]

ok, so i tested all three of those versions. none of them look like whats on my cart. the 'rough beta' has slightly different controls. the other two look more like the ROM file i DL off atariage here, with an intro story and being placed in a field of white flowers with an artist nearby.

 

it's very odd. it looks like i should have an intro story, because i have to press MORE... three times before i see START (although i just get 3 blank screens). also, i start the game in front of the castle with a guard, not in a field of roses with an artist...

 

this is rather frusterating, i really would like to play this game, but on an emu the flicker is so bad i can hardly read the text. also, i paid 13 bucks plus shipping and handling to have a real cart in my hands, not some ethereal image on my HDD.. it would be nice to be able to play it who should i contact about getting a replacement?

[Tom]

this is rather frusterating, i really would like to play this game, but on an emu the flicker is so bad i can hardly read the text.

 

If you run the game with z26 and supply the -f switch, the flicker goes completely away. Seems to work in windowed modes only, though.

[Thomas Jentzsch]

who should i contact about getting a replacement?

Just contact Al, usually there are absolutely no problems in getting a replacement.

[Albert]

It sounds like they accidentially put a beta version on the cart. Attached are 3 4K cart versions of the game. Which one is yours?

 

No, the 8K version we have on AtariAge is the same one that we use to make cartridges. I confirmed this some time ago with Greg Troutman before we started selling Dark Mage. I don't have the earlier 4K versions anywhere near the 8K version burned onto EPROMs.

 

Firebug--It sounds like a bad cartridge, as you should definitely be seeing the intro after the first "MORE" prompt. I'll send you a PM so we can get you a replacement cart.

 

..Al

[Albert]

I just tried the 8K version on the Krokodile Cart and I am seeing the same behavior you described. Hitting RESET causes the game to behave "normally", with the "Dark Mage by Greg Troutmant" text to appear, followed by the intro pages after you hit the fire button. Can you try hitting RESET after you power up the cartridge to see what happens? I'm wondering if this is something that only exhibits itself in certain hardware combinations (such as different flavors of the 2600)? Could be the game is depending on certain conditions inside the 2600 when it's powered up, and that those conditions may vary.

 

..Al

[Thomas Jentzsch]

No, the 8K version we have on AtariAge is the same one that we use to make cartridges.

Oops, I didn't know that you are selling the 8K version.

 

Especially because it is that cheap!

[Albert]

I just burned an EPROM and tried it on one our 8K boards and it does the same. It's possible I always just hit Reset to start a game when testing these and didn't realize there was a problem if you just hit the fire button on starting. Since it doesn't behave this way in emulation, sounds like it could be a glitch in the game's startup code. I'll write Greg Troutman and see if it's something he has time to look at.

 

..Al

[Thomas Jentzsch]

Could be the game is depending on certain conditions inside the 2600 when it's powered up, and that those conditions may vary.

Maybe it's a bankswitching problem, though at first glance the code looks ok.

[firebug]

nice! i guess i just didn't hit reset every time i tested the game. i feel kind of silly, most 2600 games require you to hit reset to play the game anyways.

 

thanks much you guys! i'm looking forward to enjoying this game!

[Albert]

nice! i guess i just didn't hit reset every time i tested the game. i feel kind of silly, most 2600 games require you to hit reset to play the game anyways.

 

thanks much you guys! i'm looking forward to enjoying this game!

 

I hope this allows you to enjoy the game, but the problem should definitely be fixed. You're the first person to point this out, but that doesn't mean it hasn't confused other people.

 

..Al

[chadtower]

I see it in the cart I bought last month... I'll try hitting reset. For the record, I'm using the cart as bought here and a 6 switch woody.

[+thegoldenband]

I beat this game this evening -- the gold coin puzzle is a nice "gotcha". Some questions:

 

I assume that you're supposed to start on the hilltop, correct? (i.e. that it's not a bug)

 

The penny and hammer are red herrings, I'm guessing -- is there anything at all you can do with either of them?

 

If this is "Part One", was there ever a "Part Two"?

[liveinabin]

It IS an awesome game, though isn't it?

I've never been able to finish it.

 

Mindless trivia - the label art I did for it was inspired by a picture I saw on a Japanese Pokemon Card.