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Inferno released on the iPhone, iPod Touch & iPad |
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antom |
Message #117911, posted by antom at 23:12, 3/6/2011 |
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Thought it might be of interest to a few of you that Paradise Games have re-released the classic Arc game Inferno on the iPhone, iPod Touch & iPad:
http://www.paradisegames.co.uk/
It'd be interesting to see if any other games from the Archimedes era end up getting re-released like this, don't you think? |
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Sion |
Message #117952, posted by apacketofsweets at 12:02, 6/6/2011, in reply to message #117911 |
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I quite liked Inferno at the time, it was a nifty little game and is suited for a platform such as iOS or Android but I don't think I'll be downloading it, there's a huge load of very similar games (Tron and Dark Nebula to name a few) on the mobile market.
As for Archimedes era games, I have downloaded Speedball for my iPhone and they've done a good job on making it playable on a touchscreen, it is quite fiddely though. I hear TBA might be developing iOS versions of their RISC OS games, so that's something to keep an eye out for. |
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Trevor Johnson |
Message #117954, posted by trevj at 13:27, 6/6/2011, in reply to message #117952 |
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[...] touchscreen, it is quite fiddely though. [...] iControlpad? |
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Phil Mellor |
Message #117985, posted by monkeyson2 at 19:58, 9/6/2011, in reply to message #117954 |
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I have to say, I find the controls pretty tricky. Hard to change direction - level 7 of zone 1 is frustrating because of this. (It's the one with the very short time limit.)
That aside, it's a very good port. |
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Ian Jeffray |
Message #118379, posted by Ian at 12:58, 26/7/2011, in reply to message #117985 |
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I have to say, I find the controls pretty tricky. Hard to change direction - level 7 of zone 1 is frustrating because of this. (It's the one with the very short time limit.) A couple of weeks back we pushed out update version 1.0.3 which tweaks the control system and adds some more pickups and ammo to this level that people seem to find tricky.
Controls have been a real issue and we've actually spent quite a lot of time trying to get a system that feels as good as we can - Inferno was obviously designed for keys/joypad and you need that physical haptic feedback for it to work well really. We've done an OSX build which plays so much better than the iOS one simply due to having keyboard input. If we don't release it on the Mac AppStore, we'll maybe stick it as a freebie on the website.
Thanks for the interest - it's been a fun project, and we're on with the next one now! |
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Phil Mellor |
Message #118382, posted by monkeyson2 at 18:40, 26/7/2011, in reply to message #118379 |
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Hello there!
I have to say, I find the controls pretty tricky. Hard to change direction - level 7 of zone 1 is frustrating because of this. (It's the one with the very short time limit.) A couple of weeks back we pushed out update version 1.0.3 which tweaks the control system and adds some more pickups and ammo to this level that people seem to find tricky.
Ace - I'll try that out. 
Controls have been a real issue and we've actually spent quite a lot of time trying to get a system that feels as good as we can - Inferno was obviously designed for keys/joypad and you need that physical haptic feedback for it to work well really. We've done an OSX build which plays so much better than the iOS one simply due to having keyboard input. To be fair, I find the controls for most games tricky  My brain can't cope with anything that deviates from AcornSoft's Z, X, ;, /, Return combo!
It's changing direction in a T junction that I always find hardest with these types of controls (if you're going left to right and want to turn and go down the leg of the T). Have the same trouble with D-pads on physical controllers too.
Thanks for the interest - it's been a fun project, and we're on with the next one now! Oooh - what's that going to be then?
If we don't release it on the Mac AppStore, we'll maybe stick it as a freebie on the website Cool!
How are you finding the app stores from a developer/publisher's perspective? |
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richard cheng |
Message #118392, posted by richcheng at 13:01, 27/7/2011, in reply to message #118382 |
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My brain can't cope with anything that deviates from AcornSoft's Z, X, ;, /, Return combo That's because that is the One True keyboard control layout. |
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Andrew Poole |
Message #118395, posted by andypoole at 16:38, 27/7/2011, in reply to message #118392 |
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My brain can't cope with anything that deviates from AcornSoft's Z, X, ;, /, Return combo That's because that is the One True keyboard control layout.
Hm. I always referred to them as Z, X, * and ?. But yes, they're the controls I always liked best |
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John Albert Bullen |
Message #118396, posted by JohnB at 17:55, 27/7/2011, in reply to message #118395 |
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My brain can't cope with anything that deviates from AcornSoft's Z, X, ;, /, Return combo That's because that is the One True keyboard control layout.
Hm. I always referred to them as Z, X, * and ?. But yes, they're the controls I always liked best
Totally agree Chocks Away and numerous other classics had those keys.
Although now I've become a bit used to the arrow keys etc when gaming. |
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richard cheng |
Message #118405, posted by richcheng at 12:51, 28/7/2011, in reply to message #118395 |
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My brain can't cope with anything that deviates from AcornSoft's Z, X, ;, /, Return combo That's because that is the One True keyboard control layout.
Hm. I always referred to them as Z, X, * and ?. But yes, they're the controls I always liked best
The One True way of referring to the One True keyboard control layout? |
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Trevor Johnson |
Message #118406, posted by trevj at 14:42, 28/7/2011, in reply to message #118396 |
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[...] Although now I've become a bit used to the arrow keys etc when gaming. I never understood why programmers (or was it the publishers?) chose this control method! It's not at all intuitive and the keys' relative positions vary with different hardware. Like some others here, I grew up primarily with Z, X, *, ? on the Beeb but also ISTR a few A, Z, <, > which seemed preferable to the Speccy equivalent of Q, A, O, P.
IMO the best solutions (rarely implemented) were:- Choice of preset combinations - good for gaming with friends used to different layouts
- User definable - sometimes in the loader, presumably due to lack of memory in the game itself... and sometimes while loading from tape, 'Demolator' being one such (the only?) game IIRC, although not so good when transferred to disk as I didn't know how to modify the code to introduce the necessary pause before loading the next file!
(Sorry to digress - this should probably be posted on the STH forum.) |
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Phil Mellor |
Message #118407, posted by monkeyson2 at 21:56, 28/7/2011, in reply to message #118395 |
Please don't let them make me be a monkey butler
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My brain can't cope with anything that deviates from AcornSoft's Z, X, ;, /, Return combo That's because that is the One True keyboard control layout.
Hm. I always referred to them as Z, X, * and ?. But yes, they're the controls I always liked best
I think the Electron had a slightly different keyboard layout. |
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Martin Bazley |
Message #118409, posted by swirlythingy at 15:47, 31/7/2011, in reply to message #118407 |
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z, x, ' and / surely?
[Edited by swirlythingy at 16:48, 31/7/2011] |
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bcass |
Message #118488, posted by bcass at 19:08, 24/8/2011, in reply to message #118409 |
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Inferno is now available for download on the Xbox 360 in the Xbox Live Indie Games section. Fingers crossed that they port the excellent Overload as well. |
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Stephen Scott |
Message #118495, posted by sa_scott at 08:42, 25/8/2011, in reply to message #118409 |
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z, x, ' and / surely? The One True Layout... if you're right handed? Left handers must have been a minority, you never did get the choice in many games. Surely A,Z,< and > would be the One True Layout for left handed people?
Having got used to arrow keys for movement in Half Life 2, going back to these keys is strange. Perhaps I expect to move a mouse as well? |
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Martin Bazley |
Message #118503, posted by swirlythingy at 19:28, 25/8/2011, in reply to message #118495 |
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Having got used to arrow keys for movement in Half Life 2, going back to these keys is strange. Perhaps I expect to move a mouse as well? Aghhkkhk. Don't talk to me about arrow/mouse combos in FPSs. Jeffrey Doggett's Doom port is not only the only version currently working on the Iyonix, but completely (AFAICT) lacking in meaningful key redefinition options (I could fudge the key map, but that would make the menus all weird). It was the very first time I had ever had to play Doom with the original keys, and I came to the conclusion that the cursor keys are surely the very worst control system for this genre ever developed by humanity.
Eventually I gave up, having found it impossible to move anywhere with any accuracy, and simply did all movement with the mouse - hence rendering the Shift-to-run functionality nigh-on unusable.
And who the fuck thought that having to stretch one's little finger over Ctrl, one stupid Microsoft key, and another stupid Microsoft key, all the way to Alt, and then hold it down at the same time as the left - or, even worse, right - arrow key, just in order to strafe - an action which, in general, one generally wishes to perform with the greatest convenience, promptness and velocity feasible? I strafe two hundred times as often as I turn on the spot, but I need one hand on the mouse at all times (because otherwise I can't realistically move anywhere, and firing while strafing is extremely common, and don't even suggest that on the way to holding down the Alt button I should somehow manage to spare another finger to tap Ctrl on demand on the way there...). |
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Trevor Johnson |
Message #119604, posted by trevj at 19:48, 19/2/2012, in reply to message #117911 |
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In a not-very-related development, SDL Asylum is now available on the Pandora.
[Edit Maybe I should've posted this under SDL port of Asylum released.]
[Edited by trevj at 08:10, 20/2/2012] |
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Steven Gregory |
Message #119605, posted by thecellartroll at 20:39, 20/2/2012, in reply to message #117911 |
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It'd be interesting to see if any other games from the Archimedes era end up getting re-released like this, don't you think?
I'd pay to have Starfighter 3000 on my XPeria Play. I have the PS1 version, but its pretty crap. Either the Risc OS version or the 3DO version. |
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antom |
Message #119848, posted by antom at 00:04, 24/3/2012, in reply to message #117911 |
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Since posting this, I've got myself an iPhone and paid up for a copy of Inferno - great little game, even if the touchscreen controls are a little fiddly. Plus, if buying it gets them going to port Overload, then so be it! |
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bcass |
Message #120309, posted by bcass at 21:19, 9/5/2012, in reply to message #119848 |
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Looks like Cataclysm (renamed to Aqualibrium) is also coming to Xbox Live Indie Games:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qB1yxW6BRw4 |
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Philip Webster |
Message #120318, posted by pwx at 09:26, 10/5/2012, in reply to message #120309 |
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Looks like Cataclysm (renamed to Aqualibrium) is also coming to Xbox Live Indie Games:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qB1yxW6BRw4 Brilliant.
Is this by the original author? |
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bcass |
Message #120320, posted by bcass at 11:19, 10/5/2012, in reply to message #120318 |
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Aqualibrium and the XBLIG release of Inferno were handled by Archifishal Software. Don't know if the original authors are involved. Both those games were originally created by different people so it seems unlikely.
Eitherway, I hope this sells well enough to fund more Archimedes classics being ported onto XBLIG. |
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Alex Macfarlane Smith |
Message #120327, posted by aardvark at 12:35, 10/5/2012, in reply to message #120320 |
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Aqualibrium and the XBLIG release of Inferno were handled by Archifishal Software. Don't know if the original authors are involved. Both those games were originally created by different people so it seems unlikely.
David Postlethwaite's been involved from a technical point of view (eg. explaining how the alien motion was supposed to behave etc.), and all the graphics/levels/sounds are from the original, but all the coding's been done by me.
Alex. |
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Alex Macfarlane Smith |
Message #120330, posted by aardvark at 12:59, 10/5/2012, in reply to message #118503 |
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And who the fuck thought that having to stretch one's little finger over Ctrl, one stupid Microsoft key, and another stupid Microsoft key, all the way to Alt, and then hold it down at the same time as the left - or, even worse, right - arrow key, just in order to strafe - an action which, in general, one generally wishes to perform with the greatest convenience, promptness and velocity feasible?
You could always use < and > to strafe instead. |
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Martin Bazley |
Message #120343, posted by swirlythingy at 17:32, 10/5/2012, in reply to message #120330 |
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You could always use < and > to strafe instead. Fortunately, I've since discovered how to reconfigure the port to use proper keys. It involves editing a text file called Choices:dsg.doomrc with the ASCII values of the keys you want to use. Why I didn't think of that all along I don't know... |
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Philip Webster |
Message #120356, posted by pwx at 12:14, 11/5/2012, in reply to message #120327 |
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all the graphics/levels/sounds are from the original
I found this article on an indie games site, which suggests multiple difficulty levels. I don't recall the original having that.
Link: http://www.indiegamemag.com/gushing-aqualibrium-trailer/
Does this mean there will be an 'easy' mode, alongside the original single difficulty - or will there be a new 'hard' mode?
I was 11 when this first came out, and I finished all 40 levels in a week - hammering it every day, even school nights! I had this as soon as it was released (I live in Sheffield) and it's still one of my favourite games. I even managed to shoehorn a mention of it into my BSc dissertation...
A proper Cataclysm sequel would be nice - something that exploits the widescreen aspect ratio and vastly increaded processor power. More levels - and user-submitted content support would be great, as I thought the original 40 levels were both too few and too easy.
David Postlethwaite's music is excellent, and I was rather happy to hear the original game's menu music.
Unfortunately I don't have an Xbox, but hopefully this Cataclysm port might appear on other platforms at some point.
Suggestion: Do a port or update of Inertia! Also one of my favourites - and also by David Postlethwaite. There are a few isometric/marble madness-style games for various platforms, and they do tend to go down well with retro fans. |
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Trevor Johnson |
Message #120357, posted by trevj at 13:53, 11/5/2012, in reply to message #120356 |
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I even managed to shoehorn a mention of it into my BSc dissertation... I wish I'd done something similar. Although mine was written in Impression Style and I'm sure I included (within the Acknowledgements section) both Julianne Regan and Dave Mustaine... I omitted Steven Singer and Tom Cooper. What an unforgivable oversight!
The dissertation related to the FLAC software package (not my choice: some sort of automated computer system allocated projects based on 3 preferences and my top 3 all went to someone else - in hindsight, I should've proposed my own waffly literature search type project instead but I was too naive to think of that). |
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Philip Webster |
Message #120358, posted by pwx at 14:14, 11/5/2012, in reply to message #120357 |
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I even managed to shoehorn a mention of it into my BSc dissertation... I wish I'd done something similar. Although mine was written in Impression Style and I'm sure I included (within the Acknowledgements section) both Julianne Regan and Dave Mustaine... I omitted Steven Singer and Tom Cooper. What an unforgivable oversight!
The dissertation related to the FLAC software package (not my choice: some sort of automated computer system allocated projects based on 3 preferences and my top 3 all went to someone else - in hindsight, I should've proposed my own waffly literature search type project instead but I was too naive to think of that).
To be fair, mine was on cellular automata, so I had justification for the inclusion of Cataclysm. |
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bcass |
Message #120364, posted by bcass at 22:04, 11/5/2012, in reply to message #120358 |
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The final level of Cataclysm was pure evil and it was always down to pure luck. It's amazing that this idea never spawned any similar types of games, although I doubt any other home computer could have managed it as well as the Archimedes back then. A fully fledged sequel would be most welcome.
I suppose the only remotely similar game is Humpty Dumpty in the Garden for the ZX Spectrum. |
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Philip Webster |
Message #120378, posted by pwx at 09:25, 14/5/2012, in reply to message #120364 |
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The final level of Cataclysm was pure evil and it was always down to pure luck. I assume you are referring to the bit with the two gun turrets at each side of the level covering the way down to the bottom half of the level.
There is potential for some really clever puzzle design in Cataclysm - but that last level was just *cheap*. I'm sure that if there was a level editor and the option to use user-created levels in the game, the community could come up with some truly outstanding levels.
Chu Chu Rocket on the Dreamcast was great for this very reason. |
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