Date   : Mon, 12 Apr 2010 14:41:10 +0100
From   : tim.matthews@... (Tim Matthews)
Subject: Lord of the Rings: Game One.. with graphics.

  Brilliant! Well done... should keep me from doing any work for the
rest of the week! :-)


________________________________

       From:
bbc-micro-bounces+tim.matthews=bbc.co.uk@...
[mailto:bbc-micro-bounces+tim.matthews=bbc.co.uk@...] On
Behalf Of Kieran Mockford
       Sent: 12 April 2010 04:42
       To: BBC MailList
       Subject: [BBC-Micro] Lord of the Rings: Game One.. with
graphics.
       
       
       After I posted about The Hobbit and the "Universal version" that
I created, the good master samwise made the following suggestion:
        
       >
       > On to the Lord of the Rings: Game One next?  :)
       >
        
       I took up the challenge, and the tale of getting the disc images
to me "over here" is almost as good a tale as the one of the ring-bearer
himself!
        
       Anyway, I may have taken things a bit far.. :)
        
       Following many hours of re-engineering of the original game code
(it gets live patched from the code in sideways ram, just as in The
Hobbit), and hacking of the MSDOS version of the game to get at its
location graphics; 83 of them (and re-colouring them because the CGA
colours were awful!)..
        
       The result is the "Universal disc, with graphics" version of:
The Lord Of the Rings: Game 1 for the BBC Micro:
        
       http://home.kindredintellect.com/beeb/Software/LordOfTheRings 
        
       1. It will now run on almost any BBC Micro model (with any disc
controller) providing it has at least 16K of sideways RAM.
          
       2. Full location graphics have been retro-fitted to the game!
        
       The graphic version is rather large and as such needs to be run
from an ADFS disc (either floppy or hard drive/CF), or the version that
has been split over several SSDs. The game play of the graphic version
is designed to be very close to The Hobbit. Location graphics can
optionally be shown automatically as you move from location to location.
Or alternatively only when you press TAB at the input prompt (that also
works when auto-pictures are on).
        
       Also added is the ability to save games as files to the drive
that it is running from (this includes DFS, ADFS, CF etc.). Just use the
normal save feature in-game and it will create and load the appropriate
file.
        
       The intro screens are from the Amstrad CPC version, and the
location graphics are from the PC/MSDOS version, but the horrible
original CGA colours have been fixed! 
        
       The code to make it work is all new :)
        
       It has been tested on:
        
       - A real BBC Master 128 (using DFS, ADFS, RetroClinic CF,
MMBeeb)
       - The same Master 128 running in 1770 'B' mode using Vine's
Replay
        
       - All the emulators I could lay my hands on for PC and OSX
including BeebEm and B-Em. In BBC, BBC B+ and Master and Compact
incarnations, using DFS and ADFS.
        
       There are three versions here:
        
       1. lotr_ADFS_graphics.zip contains a bootable 640K ADFS image
that contains all parts of the newly re-engineered edition which
includes full location graphics and very pretty intro screens! This
version requires at least 16K of Sideways RAM (32K makes it faster) and
ADFS.
        
       2. lotr_SSD_graphics.zip contains 5 (!) bootable single sided 80
track disc images that should work on any BBC with 16K of Sideways RAM
(32K makes it faster). Each is dedicated to one of the parts of the
game. Enough space for saved games has been left on these images. These
are ideal for running from an MMBeeb (or DataCentre once I figure out
the "known issue" described below).
        
       3. lotr_SSD_no_graphics.zip contains a bootable single sided 80
track disc image that should work on any BBC with 16K of Sideways RAM.
It contains all parts of the game, but with no graphics. (should be able
fit a couple of save games on there too)
        
       Let me know if you find any problems, and I'll do my best to fix
them.
        
       Happy keeping away from the Nazguls-ing! :)
        
       Kieran Mockford
        
       Known issue:
       -----------
        
       For some reason the SSD images won't work correctly from a
DataCentre *IMPORT. The game appears to load, but is then stuck solid at
the point where one chooses which character to play. Investigations are
ongoing.. It does, however, work perfectly from a RetroClinic or
DataCentre CF ADFS hard drive, so all is not lost..!
        
       Credits where credits are due:
       -----------------------------
       samwise:  for laying the challenge before me and for
orchestrating a trans-Atlantic bit-shipping of the appropriate disc
images.
                
       billcarr: wrestling the images off the original floppies and
getting them beaten into some kind of shape for surgery. He also did
some pretty deep investigation that helped head me in the right
direction for getting off the 8271.
        
       Steven Flintham: for his splendid LZSSC and accompanying
utilities for LZSS compression and decompression.
                 
       The original 8271/Model B only disc images can be found here:
        
       
http://www.stairwaytohell.com/bbc/archive/diskimages/MelbourneHouse/Lord
OfTheRings-disc.zip
                 
                 Thanks chaps.
        


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