Xyphoe's Vids - [AMSTRAD CPC+/PLUS] Prehistorik 2 - Review & Longplay (Part 1 of 2)

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[AMSTRAD CPC+/PLUS] Prehistorik 2 - Review & Longplay (Part 1 of 2)
3 December 2010, 2:40 pm

 

	[AMSTRAD CPC+/PLUS] Prehistorik 2 - Review & Longplay (Part 1 of 2) The amazing Prehistorik II on the Amstrad! A truly landmark and important release for the Amstrad Plus machines.... This longplay is done on the 6128 PLUS version with extended colour palette (fifty colours), parallax scrolling, DMA music (and interrupts), hardware scrolling, hardware sprites, screen splitting ... basically ALL the new features that were added in for the new 464/6128 Plus machines (and GX4000 console). So this is a very special game indeed, certainly it's the only game I can think of that actually uses the new DMA music (which is a special way of feeding the existing sound chip essentially). So here you can truly see what the Plus machines were capable of, bringing a platformer game up to the standard of the 16-bit rivals of the time. Just a shame about the slow-down that occurs. This is probably due to making certain parts of the game compatible with the normal CPC so compromises were made... releasing a Plus only game would have been sweet but it wouldn't have sold as well. So yes - this also works on a normal CPC gameplay and levels intact but minus the parallax scrolling, extended colours and DMA title tune. It can also work on a 64k only CPC!! Simply amazing work by programmer Elmar Krieger, who also did the excellent Super Cauldron, just wished he had made more games and not appeared so late in the CPC's life (1993!!) - just imagine what could have been. Just goes to prove that the CPC was capable of being so much more than the lazy ports and rush ...	From: Xyphoe Views: 0 0 ratings
Time: 14:55	More in Gaming

Source: Uploads by Xyphoe

[redbox]

Nice vid, enjoyed it.

Are you going to do a Super Cauldron review and longplay...?

[Xyphoe]

Nice vid, enjoyed it.

Are you going to do a Super Cauldron review and longplay...?

Cheers mate!

And yea I will be, but I've only just managed to do the first area/section!

Does anyone know how many levels/area/sections Super Cauldron has? The instructions and scans for that are in French on the cpc-power website
(sorry don't speak French!)

[Xyphoe]

Aha -

"Quatre mondes sont a explorer: la toret, la plaine, la ville et le chateau."

Even my GCSE French can translate 4 worlds to explore - the forest, the plains (desert?), the city and the castle

[redbox]

I'd love to know how he did the parallax scrolling (especially the trees scrolling vertically with a static background), some good stuff in there.

Such a shame about the slow-down, otherwise it would have been the Plus game...!

[arnoldemu]

I'd love to know how he did the parallax scrolling (especially the trees scrolling vertically with a static background), some good stuff in there.

Such a shame about the slow-down, otherwise it would have been the Plus game...!

The trees are + sprites.

Same with the clouds in later levels.

[redbox]

The trees are + sprites.
Same with the clouds in later levels.

I did think that, but it looked like there was more than 16 on the screen at one time!

That explains the slow downs then, everything is soft-sprite (like the classic CPC version) and he used hard-sprites for the parallax.  Shame, but guess classic CPC was the biggest market.

How does he keep the far background static when scrolling then...?

[arnoldemu]

I did think that, but it looked like there was more than 16 on the screen at one time!

That explains the slow downs then, everything is soft-sprite (like the classic CPC version) and he used hard-sprites for the parallax.  Shame, but guess classic CPC was the biggest market.

How does he keep the far background static when scrolling then...?

the far background is "split rasters".

He changes the colours very quickly.

This also uses a lot of cpu time.

I think the hardware sprites ARE also used in later levels, I think for the paraplane/hang-glider bit.
But mostly it's soft sprites.

[norecess]

Great review, I enjoyed it. Do you plan making other ones ?

[Xyphoe]

Great review, I enjoyed it. Do you plan making other ones ?

Indeed sir!
Well there's another 100-odd longplays on my channel of course

Currently being processed is a longplay of FLUFF ... that'll be up online later this evening

[redbox]

The thing about your videos is they keep taking me off on tangents thinking about other CPC stuff rather than concentrating on what I'm developing...!

Good stuff, none the less 

[Xyphoe]

The thing about your videos is they keep taking me off on tangents thinking about other CPC stuff rather than concentrating on what I'm developing...!

Good stuff, none the less 

Haha! Sorry dude!

What are you developing at the moment out of interest?

[redbox]

Well...

A custom Plus cartridge that lets you have ROMs in the cartridge space
A much better Plus demo than my last one
And slowly a Plus game engine

I expect none of it will work 

I am programming a little side demo at the moment which should be released soon, but shhhhhhhhhhhh 

[Gryzor]

Which is your Plus demo then?

[andycadley]

I did think that, but it looked like there was more than 16 on the screen at one time!

They're multiplexed, so that the same sprite gets reused within the frame. That's probably also why the foreground is quite repetative, since reloading the sprite images is rather slow.

[redbox]

Blob Demo was my first Plus demo - surely you remember it 

Interesting that the sprites are multiplexed in the game, didn't think anyone had done this in a production.

[norecess]

Keep up the good motivation on your next demo, redbox!
Feel free to ask if you need advices or more.

[redbox]

Thanks norecess, that's great.

I do like programming the Plus, but am at the stage where I am working out how everything is done rather than coming up with something original.  So, for example, I get fast sprites working but more as a proof of concept than anything good for a demo - but it does mean I have started a library of routines (and more importantly, understand how they work) which is useful when programming as you think to yourself "I have done this before, how did I do it" when you get stuck 

I am hoping to release just a little demo soon and then work on putting something together more challenging in the new year.

[Gryzor]

Ah! The Blob demo! Loved it to bits, really. So very cute!