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General Category => Games => Topic started by: Targhan on 06:46, 10 October 16

Title: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 06:46, 10 October 16

CargoSoft is very proud to present you its new game: Imperial Mahjong. It can be downloaded here (http://mahjong.cpcscene.com).

Imperial Mahjong is a reflexion game based on the Chinese game called "Mahjong Solitaire", in which the player must make all the tiles disappear by selecting pairs that match.

The game features several technical achievements, including the use of two outstanding new graphic modes:
- the EGX (Extended GraphX) that displays 16 colors in 320*200 instead of 4.
- the EGX2 that displays 4 colors in 640*200 instead of 2.

A full list of these achievements will be published, but once again we don't want to spoil the surprise! For the same reason, we will not show any screen shot for now, for you to discover the game by yourself.

Please run the game on a real CPC! The graphics were designed to run on the real hardware. It is much, much, much more beautiful on a real CPC old.

We hope you will enjoy this game. Don't hesitate to give us your feedback!

Targhan and Super Sylvestre from CargoSoft.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: ervin on 07:06, 10 October 16
Wow, this is absolutely stunning!
I've only emulated it so far, but I'm looking forward to seeing the "real" effect on my cpc when I get a chance!

[EDIT] I just noticed that in the instructions (which are *beautifully* presented!), "flowers" and "seasons" seem to have their labels switched.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: tastefulmrship on 07:23, 10 October 16
Simply stunning! Best look, sounding & playing game on CPC... EVER!

If only we had this back in the 1980s... ^_^
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: reidrac on 07:56, 10 October 16
I gave it a go before coming to work, but I don't own a 128K model so I tried a couple of emulators and one of them seems to render properly.

It looks amazing (and nice tunes too); I'll be back to this one this evening.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 08:15, 10 October 16
Thanks all for your (positive so far) comments.

QuoteI just noticed that in the instructions (which are *beautifully* presented!), "flowers" and "seasons" seem to have their labels switched.

Actually, no :). I thought that too but it's the way it "officially" is!

Trg.Aks
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: HAL6128 on 08:49, 10 October 16

Incredible graphics and sounds. Really it is! I tried it on a real CPC but connected to a GPS > LED Monitor. No flickering, smooth and lots of colours. It seems that the game itself is in this extended Mode 1 and the description in Mode 2. Sooo many colours! Overscan.
Respect! Just a question: Digidrums means I can also use a Digiblaster?
HAL6128
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: ldaneels on 09:05, 10 October 16
Oh my ! That is great. Thank you for the awesome game (any Shanghai game is awesome by definition).
Is there any chance you will release a physical edition ? I am a complete sucker for these :)
As a sidenote, if you try the game on an emulator, use Winape, it will give the closest result to a real CPC (in this particular case, I personally prefer CPCE & Sugarbox otherwise), or at least it will be useable.
Thanks again for your superb work.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 09:12, 10 October 16
QuoteDigidrums means I can also use a Digiblaster?


Well, no. Digiblaster requires a special port to access it. Plus, our digidrums are only 4 bits instead of the 8 the digiblaster supports. So it would require a change in the code, in the resources, etc. Believe me, it is not so trivial as it may seem, the way the game is built.

QuoteIs there any chance you will release a physical edition ?

We wanted to, but... we won't. We can discuss this a bit later, but let's just say that this game was waaaay harder to code and took waaaay longer than expected. We want to move on to our next production.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: HAL6128 on 09:39, 10 October 16

Quote from: Targhan on 09:12, 10 October 16
We wanted to, but... we won't. We can discuss this a bit later, but let's just say that this game was waaaay harder to code and took waaaay longer than expected. We want to move on to our next production.
...because of the mathematics behind that game or grafix realisation?
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 09:56, 10 October 16
Both, I guess.


Sometimes adding a feature seems "weightless", but really making it work requires three times more work than expected. I of course won't give any technical spoil for now, so let's just say that this game was a nightmare to code :) .
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: villain on 10:05, 10 October 16
No screenshots? That's really hard after all the comments here when you have to wait till middle of the week. :-)

Thank you for still supporting the CPC.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 10:36, 10 October 16
Why do you need screenshots when you can download and play the game ? :)


They will be released in a few days, when "everyone" will have played it. I think our scene has the tendency to show too much before the people actually play the game, ruining a bit the surprise.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: villain on 10:46, 10 October 16
No, that's absolutely ok. It's only that we have neither CPCs nor emulators at work.  :D
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Ast on 11:14, 10 October 16
Only one word : "Bravo!"
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Arnaud on 11:58, 10 October 16
I have a little comment, on my 6128+ a small part of the top of the screen is missing (three of four pixels according to winape emulation).
Maybe you can move a little to the bottom the display or add an option to calibrate the screen.

The rendering is really succesful and it's far better on real CPC than emulation.

Congrats !

Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Maniac on 11:59, 10 October 16
Superb stuff! Always loved this sort of game on the Amiga - this looks on par with that!
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 12:07, 10 October 16
QuoteI have a little comment, on my 6128+ a small part of the top of the screen is missing (three of four pixels according to winape emulation). Maybe you can move a little to the bottom the display or add an option to calibrate the screen.
Yeah, my monitor (CPC old) is also "too high", I miss a few lines. We wanted to add a calibration, but... I couldn't find a way to do it properly due to some technical considerations, I'm sorry.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Arnaud on 12:15, 10 October 16
Quote from: Targhan on 12:07, 10 October 16
Yeah, my monitor (CPC old) is also "too high", I miss a few lines. We wanted to add a calibration, but... I couldn't find a way to do it properly due to some technical considerations, I'm sorry.
No problem, it's just a comment :D because it's totally enjoyable and playable.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: dragon on 13:28, 10 October 16
Nothing i found it. Now takes more sense, beautiful.

I lost in menu icons ultil i found t, great game!.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 13:29, 10 October 16
You mean you need a manual? Press ESC during the game and select the option on the full right.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Singaja on 13:55, 10 October 16
Can someone record a movie for those at work?  :P 
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: arnoldemu on 13:56, 10 October 16
Quote from: Targhan on 13:29, 10 October 16
You mean you need a manual? Press ESC during the game and select the option on the full right.
@Targhan (http://www.cpcwiki.eu/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=110):
I need to see it on a real monitor.

I have looked at it on my emulator and I can see why:
1. you ask people to see it on a real CPC
2. what you are and are not doing to make the effect.

I only have a CM14 monitor which I connect my CPC6128 to.  Would the result be good on that?
What is the result on a Plus?

Very impressive.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 13:59, 10 October 16
QuoteI only have a CM14 monitor which I connect my CPC6128 to.  Would the result be good on that?What is the result on a Plus?



On a Plus, it's not as beautiful (Sylvestre would be much, much harsher about how it looks on a Plus :) . He would say it's worst than on emulator!). As for your CM14, I don't know, I only tested on the conventional hardware. It won't kill you to try :) .
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: arnoldemu on 14:03, 10 October 16
Quote from: Targhan on 13:59, 10 October 16



On a Plus, it's not as beautiful (Sylvestre would be much, much harsher about how it looks on a Plus :) . He would say it's worst than on emulator!). As for your CM14, I don't know, I only tested on the conventional hardware. It won't kill you to try :) .

No problem. I will try tonight :)
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: roudoudou on 14:04, 10 October 16
I've just take a quick look at lunch break, this is a nice color usage, congratulations, the board is beautiful!
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Prodatron on 14:33, 10 October 16
What a cool game!!
I didn't know that this would be so addictive! I was wasting now 2 hours trying to solve the first board :)
I also like the interface and style and first I couldn't believe this new EGX graphic mode  :o
Great work, Targhan! It's cool that currently there is so much activity in the CPC scene again!
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 14:43, 10 October 16
Thanks all !


QuoteGreat work, Targhan!

Ah, it's a team work :). Sylvestre is the inventor of the EGX mode. I'm just the slave that included it into a real game :).
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: reidrac on 17:31, 10 October 16
Just got some time time to look at it and I love it, graphics and music.

Well done guys, outstanding production for the CPC!
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Puresox on 17:37, 10 October 16
Nice game , and I have to say congratulations on giving us a decent cursor control. Such as small thing but can make the difference between an irritating, slow or jerky experience. To making it a pleasure to play . Great game Mahjong Solitare /Shanghai
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: ||C|-|E|| on 18:16, 10 October 16
Playing it right know! It is absolutely great!!  :D
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: remax on 18:19, 10 October 16
Wow...

First, the technical performance is impressive  :o

The rendering is really nice on a real Amstrad CRT. The music is really good, i would only say that it feel a little "distant" (like the digitized music in the OP intro), but this is not a big deal as it's uniform in the game. I might try to pull my stereo hi fi to see what it gives.

The game has a real Cargosoft feeling to it... Wouldn't be out of place as a (not mini) game in Orion Prime  ;D

On the game side, it's really pro. A very complete Mahjong game that, as you say in the manual, will really give a lot lot hours of gameplay.

And... I won my first game (and i don't always win at Mahjong, far from it) so it's a good sign :D
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Rhino on 18:49, 10 October 16
Very good job, congratulations!

The game itself is very addictive, the overall atmosphere is very good and new video modes looks amazing :)

A suggestion, mouse ballistics for AMX users should be great!

On the other hand, I'm desiring to know more about these modes... :)

Regards!
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: CraigsBar on 19:03, 10 October 16
Dam damn damn! I am away from my CPC. Currently sat in the 3 arena waiting for JMJ to take to the stage, then back to a hotel room tonight where the only retro is..... 2 spectrums, an Amiga 600, a GameCube, N64, an elk and 2 C64s. Not a CPC in sight until I get home tomorrow.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Carnivius on 19:19, 10 October 16
Dammit.
(http://i.imgur.com/8BN6EDC.png)

Won a couple of games but that one.. argh...
The game has superb presentation.  Sorry I had to use an emulator (my Amstrad is a 464 with no add-ons).   Great job on this production. :)
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Tai on 19:21, 10 October 16
I'm just playing it on the real hardware on a CTM644 and it's beautiful, amazing, enjoyable!

What a gift to the CPC Community.

Thanks guys!
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Puresox on 19:23, 10 October 16
Quote from: CraigsBar on 19:03, 10 October 16
Dam damn damn! I am away from my CPC. Currently sat in the 3 arena waiting for JMJ to take to the stage, then back to a hotel room tonight where the only retro is..... 2 spectrums, an Amiga 600, a GameCube, N64, an elk and 2 C64s. Not a CPC in sight until I get home tomorrow.
Lol No Heckling him, shouting out 'Play the tune from Captain Blood'  :P loon
Nah seriously , I can imagine that it is a spectacular gig with great atmosphere .
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: beb on 20:07, 10 October 16

Ola

Je me joins a la liesse populaire pour vous adresser (Sylvestre et Targhan) mes sincères félicitations.
Autant j'ai pas grande motivation pour un MahJong (on en a deja suffisement parlé), autant la réalisation est excellente.


Particulièrement le mode graphique général qui est ingénieusement beau. (je sais comment ça marche avant tout le monde :) )
Ainsi que la partie sonore trés enthousiasmante.


Et vive la France !!! :)
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: SRS on 20:18, 10 October 16
Thanks a lot for this game. It's at least on AMIGA level :)

Hint: if you turn off "TURBO" mode in WINAPE it looks way better :picard:
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Token on 20:26, 10 October 16
Holy sir lancelot, very impressive on the CTM644, the poor CPC pushed again, saying me, "see, I'm not even a low-res ST".
Black magic, waiting when you'll talk about the top secret tech or we'll have to perform an autopsy...
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: andycadley on 21:10, 10 October 16

Looks damned impressive on WinAPE and on my 6128+ (with CM14). I have no idea if it looks even better on old school machines, but it's well done anyway. Look forward to more details on how it actually works from a technical perspective.


Cunning effects aside, it's also a bloomin' good version of those Mahjong tile matching games too.  ;D
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: robcfg on 21:17, 10 October 16
It looks absolutely gorgeous!


Also, the keyboard control is fantastic.


Congratulations!
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 22:04, 10 October 16
Thanks a lot for your comments.


Maybe you haven't noticed, but you can generate levels from a typed sentence. For example, Player A can challenge Player B to finish his level called "Mahjong is great". This is nice to challenge people, but also to remember levels you couldn't defeat.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: ||C|-|E|| on 22:33, 10 October 16
My girlfriend, that has been playing for a while, noticed!  :D By the way, she typed "silk" and she could not pass the level, although she tried a couple of times  :laugh:
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: MacDeath on 22:44, 10 October 16
Neat...

:o

Post-post : basically alternating mode1 and mode0 lines... I wonder how CPU intensive such routine is ?
I guess the game not being action based helps and really it seems better than "flashouilles" or split rasters to add colours per lines in mode1.
Cleverly designed graphics indeed.
with this technique CPU can be used to change mode between lines, but the screen is not heavier.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 23:02, 10 October 16

QuoteBy the way, she typed "silk" and she could not pass the level, although she tried a couple of times

Ah, my girlfriend is a "Mahjong Master" and always finished every level she began.


She will try "silk" :). First Mahjong challenge, great :).
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Nich on 23:06, 10 October 16
Oh. Wow. :o My jaw didn't hit the floor but I stared at the screen open-mouthed in awe for a long time. :laugh: It looks absolutely gorgeous!

I'll have to play this game more thoroughly over the next few days. :)
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: CraigsBar on 23:57, 10 October 16
Quote from: Puresox on 19:23, 10 October 16
Lol No Heckling him, shouting out 'Play the tune from Captain Blood'  [emoji14] loon
Nah seriously , I can imagine that it is a spectacular gig with great atmosphere .
I resisted the temptation! Damn good show tho. Like being inside the best demo you can imagine on any format!
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Snake_Plissken on 09:18, 11 October 16
Very nice game  !

Excellent musics !
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Singaja on 09:41, 11 October 16
I had my play through. It's really really impressive, music is really good (my fav atm is #4). Took a me sec to figure out the menu, but once I found help it was all cool. I especially liked varying animations for tile disappearing.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: TotO on 09:59, 11 October 16
A nice technical acheivement. I'm not a Mahjong fan, but I like the polished work!  8)
Now, I think that game should be more dynamic if the tiles pair can disapear simultaneously.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: fgbrain on 10:04, 11 October 16
Although not my type of games...

It is extremely polished and AWESOME !


This what I got when played first time: :doh:
Totally unfair!!! >:(
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 10:13, 11 October 16
Bad luck :).
The algorithm attempts to create "finishable" levels.In some rare cases, it is possible that it builds "unfair" levels, but from experience, when you fail a first time, try the same level playing a different way, taking in account the tiles that stuck you before. So far we haven't found any "unfinishable" level.

@Toto: yes, I wanted to do that, but for some technical reason, couldn't :(. Oh well, it's a Zen game, you're not supposed to play very fast :).
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Prodatron on 10:41, 11 October 16
Finally I made it  :D
[attach=2]
I really have to take care not too waste my whole time with this game  ;D
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Overflow on 11:18, 11 October 16
Technical achievement. Painful code (to out at contant/given times for mode and sound), painful gfx also (what a mode!). Result is impressive (see&hear).
Not my kind of game, but as a demo I enjoy it very much! :)
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: iXien on 12:56, 11 October 16
Just stunning, as usual. I'm really fond of mah-jong and it's a real pleasure to play it again and again, looking for these colorful graphics and beautiful musics. I really like soundfx too ! But beyond the technical smash, such a huge content should be welcomed too. Very polished production. Play it on your real CPC, it's a totally different experience!


And indeed, I was just starting to get tired of Ishido, thank you guys 8)


If I take pictures of the game running on my Commodore 1084S, do you think Amiga-scene will trust there is a new game for their computer ?
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Kris on 14:14, 11 October 16
Not my favorite type of game, but i have to recognize the great achievment that it represents: code & gfx are simply amazing.


Congrats to Targhan & Sly for this high quality prod.

Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Joseman on 14:22, 11 October 16
Hi

Yesterday night, my girlfriend and i were playing several levels until we get stuck on the piramid level, think was about 2:00 AM.

We will play the game until we end it, we are addicted to the game now!!
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Xifos on 18:22, 11 October 16
It's really amazing !!!
Great work !

And i liked mahjong games when i was young, spend a lot of time on them at the army !
:)
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 22:03, 11 October 16
QuoteMy girlfriend, that has been playing for a while, noticed!  By the way, she typed "silk" and she could not pass the level, although she tried a couple of times 

Well, after 4 attempts, my girl-"Mahjong Master"-friend finished your "silk" level! "Not easy" indeed, but doable!
She issues a challenge: use the last layout (the kind of "animal"), and use the sentence "tu pu" (don't ask... :) ). This one is really tough :) .

Trg.Aks

Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Sykobee (Briggsy) on 22:34, 11 October 16
Quote from: Prodatron on 10:41, 11 October 16
Finally I made it  :D
[attach=2]
I really have to take care not too waste my whole time with this game  ;D


Amazing graphics there - the alternative modes really work out well (and I see that mode 2 bar in the middle there!).
So unless some unknown hardware trick to switch modes every scanline was discovered, then I guess there is that timing of the mode changes to take into consideration.


Imagine this combined with mode 1 palette changes, where appropriate!
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: ||C|-|E|| on 23:35, 11 October 16
Quote from: Targhan on 22:03, 11 October 16
Well, after 4 attempts, my girl-"Mahjong Master"-friend finished your "silk" level! "Not easy" indeed, but doable!
She issues a challenge: use the last layout (the kind of "animal"), and use the sentence "tu pu" (don't ask... :) ). This one is really tough :) .

Trg.Aks



Good work!! I will definitely tell her tomorrow and we will have a look!  :D :D
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: TotO on 06:34, 12 October 16
 :laugh:
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: CraigsBar on 22:31, 12 October 16
Amazing! Just amazing. It looks and plays amazingly on a plus machine. A bit late I know but any chance of albireo mouse support!
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: ||C|-|E|| on 22:39, 12 October 16
Good news is that it actually works well with the AMX mouse and Bryce´s mouse adapter!!  :D
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 20:03, 13 October 16

... And now for the full list of features!


So in case you people haven't noticed it if you're playing with an emulator, there is actually sample while loading the introduction! All this with a FDC running at full speed!


As for the introduction music, it's Sample-SIDs, hence the, I hope, original sounding music. I guess it's a bit like BSC did some times ago though I'm not sure. Basically, I can have a lot of different samples, mixed with "real" PSG waves. This is just a beginning. The main feat is that, for the first on CPC I believe, the sound is actually rendered on 3 channels, so you have stereo, plus the 4 bits of resolution for each sample ; classic Digitrack codes mix three tracks into one channel, because reaching for the three channels is too slow. Well...).


That's it!


Trg.Aks
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Puresox on 20:22, 13 October 16
It's a great production , I look forward to seeing all what this game has to offer .
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: HAL6128 on 20:32, 13 October 16
What? A CPC? And I thought all the time I had an Atari ST in front of me. (...because of all the Features :))
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: SRS on 21:03, 13 October 16
Quote from: HAL 6128 on 20:32, 13 October 16
What? A CPC? And I thought all the time I had an Atari ST in front of me. (...because of all the Features :) )

Funny :) Like me always saying "What ? An Atari ST ? I thought it's a CPC" ;)
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: BSC on 19:19, 14 October 16
Quote from: Targhan on 20:03, 13 October 16
As for the introduction music, it's Sample-SIDs, hence the, I hope, original sounding music. I guess it's a bit like BSC did some times ago though I'm not sure. Basically, I can have a lot of different samples, mixed with "real" PSG waves. This is just a beginning. The main feat is that, for the first on CPC I believe, the sound is actually rendered on 3 channels, so you have stereo, plus the 4 bits of resolution for each sample ; classic Digitrack codes mix three tracks into one channel, because reaching for the three channels is too slow. Well...).

Thargan, that was very interesting music. And a very memory hungry way to play/mix sampled music with 2 AY channels (not all 3, right?) ;-)

Congratulations to the technical achievement. The graphics are impressive!
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 09:57, 15 October 16
No, I really meant 3 AY channels. Left/middle/right :). Plug your stereo amp and check if you don't believe me.


Yes, memory hungry. I allowed 64kb for the samples, they are all generated during the "low" sound after the introduction screen appears.


Trg.Aks
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 10:42, 15 October 16
Pouet entry added (http://www.pouet.net/prod.php?which=68307). Feel free to leave a comment if you like :).
Title: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Maniac on 14:19, 15 October 16
Finally managed to complete a game! Presentation and game are excellently done!
(http://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20161015/c43efc6ae36a4aaa441e0e521ee5c3cd.jpg)
However I think my CM14 needs a good service as it looks a bit blurred at times!
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Geo Anas on 06:47, 16 October 16
Quote from: Targhan on 10:42, 15 October 16
....Feel free to leave a comment if you like :) .

Amazing ! Outstanding ! Jaw Dropper! .... Need to say more ?  :D
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: remax on 13:19, 16 October 16
Quote from: Hazeinteresting technique there, alternating the higher resolution 4 colour mode with the lower resolution 16 colour mode every scanline to give a weird illusion of both colours and resolutions..  for that type of graphics it kinda works.

presumably needs exact timings.

http://forums.bannister.org/ubbthreads.php?ubb=newreply&Board=1&Number=107650&what=showflat&fpart=1&q=1
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 13:46, 16 October 16
@Remax: can't access to the forum, it seems restricted.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: remax on 14:21, 16 October 16
http://forums.bannister.org/ubbthreads.php?ubb=cfrm


then MAME and the "cpc 6128 - demo" topic


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Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: GFXOR on 17:45, 16 October 16
Thank you all for your laudatory words.

We are proud that you like EGX & EGX2. It is not really easy to use. But now I have worked on it, I hardly come back to the classic modes 0 or 1. When I drew it, I always felt that the trick was really easy to discover. But now, I know it was not so obvious.

It will be hard to surprise you again for the next Cargosoft game.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 17:53, 16 October 16

QuoteIt will be hard to surprise you again for the next Cargosoft game.

You're joking, aren't you? :)
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: GFXOR on 18:10, 16 October 16
Quote from: Targhan on 17:53, 16 October 16
You're joking, aren't you? :)
Of course, because (choose the right answer) :
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: SRS on 22:02, 16 October 16
Quote from: GFXOR on 18:10, 16 October 16

       
  • The next Cargosoft project is a database software, very addictive.

This is so COOL. I hope it is PL/SQL compatible, so I can earn some of my wage directly on the CPC !
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 23:11, 16 October 16
Yeeeeah, for this one I think I'll handle the design, and Super Sylvestre the code. Suits me better.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: eliot on 13:51, 18 October 16
Absolutely brilliant production... Well done!


Awesome graphical work regarding the 1st steps seen some years ago...
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: keith56 on 23:21, 23 October 16
Stunning work here - I was racking my brains to figure out how the heck they could get Mode 0 colors on Mode 1! Very, very clever programming
Its really incredible to see what new ideas people can realise on such an old system!
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: beb on 23:57, 23 October 16
@Targhan (http://www.cpcwiki.eu/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=110) : How many percent, did your game reach on a Rhino's scale ?
I'm curious...
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 08:25, 24 October 16
Ahah, excellent question, I really don't know, since I don't know what a "100%" game would mean :). I will wait for his "40%" Pinball (which should already be very exciting) to weigh in!
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: roudoudou on 08:59, 26 October 16
Quote from: Targhan on 20:03, 13 October 16

       
  • Sample during the loading of the game at FDC full speed.


The FDC is always reading at full speed (if not, you get a timeout error - ET1 bit 4). Maybe you mean without retries ;)


The clever part is the sector list translation between each tracks to optimize track change.


Nice tuning!

Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 10:24, 26 October 16
No, that is not what I meant. Generally speaking, the FDC is indeed reading at full speed, and no retry is needed (on the software side), error excepted. But the time spent by your code between reading sectors can make you miss the next sector. Which is probably why Amsdos sectors are interlaced when formatting a Data track (try to format linearly: the loading is much much much slower). But it is not an error in itself: the FDC considers it can not find a sector only when it has reached *twice* the end of the track.

The way to make the FDC run at "full speed" is to always be sure to feed him with the right sectors, including when changing track, so that it doesn't have to wait for the next round. It seems obvious, yet I didn't see many loading code that managed it correctly. Never with 10 sectors track, actually. So try to beat me, lamerzzz :) .
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: roudoudou on 11:05, 26 October 16
Amsdos is slow because he read a sector list. Your loader will be slower than amsdos with fragmented files ;)
Anyway it's possible to be faster with sector 6 format as you did not specify if the floppy has to be written by a cpc. Then  you have one kb more data (+20%) in the exact same time.
Need an amiga or kryoflux to write it...
Cheaper version is to create a HFE.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 12:58, 26 October 16

QuoteYour loader will be slower than amsdos with fragmented files

Absolutely not, why would that be? I also read a sector list.
Amsdos is slow because he does stuff after reading each sectors (which is not abnormal for an OS). You have less than a HALT of "free" time between two consecutive sectors to "do stuff". Passed this, you've missed the next sector and the FDC has to wait for the next round.


QuoteAnyway it's possible to be faster with sector 6 format as you did not specify if the floppy has to be written by a cpc. Then  you have one kb more data (+20%) in the exact same time.

Not true. Your sector will start at the start of the track. By the time you read all the data, you WILL go beyond the end of the track (because size 6 is bigger than the real track size). You will go to the next track, but by the time you do that, the head will probably be in middle of the next track when being ready to read the only sector of the track. One more round to wait...

It is probably possible to do like you say if you are able to start the writing of your unique sector in "mid" track. I know a real-cpc technique to do that, but an Amiga may be able to do it more simply. So let's pretend you can shift sectors like I did for Orion Prime and Imperial Mahjong, but for size-6 sectors.

BUT: even if you have a nice track layout, since you actually encode more data than needed (because size 6), you will read real data + garbage data. So there won't be, I think, any gain of speed. Unless you stop reading after a certain amount of read data (by provoking an overrun), but then it's really not clean.

So to sum up: it's nice for the technical challenge, but I don't think you will have real benefits for sooo much trouble.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: roudoudou on 13:12, 26 October 16

Quote from: Targhan on 12:58, 26 October 16It is probably possible to do like you say if you are able to start the writing of your unique sector in "mid" track. I know a real-cpc technique to do that, but an Amiga may be able to do it more simply. So let's pretend you can shift sectors like I did for Orion Prime and Imperial Mahjong, but for size-6 sectors.


BUT: even if you have a nice track layout, since you actually encode more data than needed (because size 6), you will read real data + garbage data. So there won't be, I think, any gain of speed. Unless you stop reading after a certain amount of read data (by provoking an overrun), but then it's really not clean.


That's exactly my point, shift sector 6 and do not read more than 6000 bytes. I tried this on a CPC (format+write+read) by using read track command but it seems that there is not the same FDC bug like on the Atari ST. So the read command fail with the wrong format bit set as my 12 zero synchro bytes are not corrects...


Quote from: Targhan on 12:58, 26 October 16
So to sum up: it's nice for the technical challenge, but I don't think you will have real benefits for sooo much trouble.




Of course, it's a technical challenge  ;D



Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 13:37, 26 October 16
I already did some size-6 tests, and reading/writing works fine (of course, you WILL get an error every time you will read or write... But this is to be expected, right?). But the non-copyable thing makes it less interesting for a game producer like myself :).


What bug are you talking about? The checksum when reading will never be right, so the result will be an error.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: roudoudou on 13:59, 26 October 16
Quote from: Targhan on 13:37, 26 October 16
What bug are you talking about? The checksum when reading will never be right, so the result will be an error.


I hoped the FDC 765 behaviour was kind of WD1772 (Atari ST FDC) with sync pattern disabled in some cases. I was wrong


The trick is used by dungeon master, monkey island, etc.

Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 14:22, 26 October 16
I still don't know what "bug" you're talking about, but you can still read the sectors without too much trouble. You will just get an error every time. In that case, it is better to perform a checksum by yourself for the data that you know are valid. But I guess you thought about that already.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: PulkoMandy on 09:18, 27 October 16
The "bug" in WDC controllers (used on Atari ST and some Thomson machines) is that the read track command can be made to completely ignore sectors and return an infinite stream of data with some disk formats. As long as it doesn't lose sync with the MFM encoding, that is. But then you have no error detection (no CRC), and you have to do some of the decoding by yourself (finding sector headers in the byte stream). Better let the FDC do the work :).
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 10:07, 27 October 16
Ok thanks! Interesting. Yeah indeed, it's much more reliable and handy to let the FDC do the job :).
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: arnoldemu on 13:45, 27 October 16
On CPC you can use read track and set N to 6 and EOT to 1. Now you can read the entire track.
You can format data format, and then read all the gaps and id headers etc. (it's one of my new fdc tests).

After formatting you can read every sector ok because the syncronisation is good.

But write a sector and you will see that the fdc will not sync to it properly if you use N=6 and EOT=1 because it was synced to a previous sector. FDC re-syncs for each id field and data field.


Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 00:27, 31 October 16
Mmmh, I'm not sure I understand. Do you mean that, after formatting and WITHOUT writing some sectors, you can read all the data by making a ReadTrack of a size-6 sector?
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: arnoldemu on 14:58, 31 October 16
Quote from: Targhan on 00:27, 31 October 16
Mmmh, I'm not sure I understand. Do you mean that, after formatting and WITHOUT writing some sectors, you can read all the data by making a ReadTrack of a size-6 sector?
Yes.

Example:

Format track with c1-c9 size 2.

Use read track, N=6, EOT=1.

Data starts with sector c1 data field. You then get all the gaps, sync marks, id fields and data fields for all the other sectors to end of track and because you didn't write, the sync data is perfectly done so that you can read it all. At end of track the fdc looses sync, so you can see a pattern that looks like id for c1 and for the index "id", but it's not synced.

Now, format the track c1-c9 and write to sector c2.

Use read track, N=6, EOT=1.

Data starts at sector c1, the fdc is synced on that. c2 data can't be seen the fdc doesn't attempt to re-sync on it because it is still reading a sector of size 8192 bytes. You can see the pattern of syncs and data but the bytes are different because it is not synced.





Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 19:22, 01 November 16
So basically... You can't use this technique at all, except for empty track, right ? :)
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: alex76gr on 22:32, 01 November 16
 :o :o :o
There are no words...
Congratulations and thank you guys!
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Kerrick Sword on 22:50, 01 November 16

I join the praise.


Congratulations on the game that you have made.


And thank you for share with us this work of art.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: arnoldemu on 15:01, 03 November 16
Quote from: Targhan on 19:22, 01 November 16
So basically... You can't use this technique at all, except for empty track, right ? :)
Yes (unless I can find another way).
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: PulkoMandy on 21:01, 04 November 16
You can use that FDC trick to read a track that has been written in a single pass (not format + write). This means you can't write the disk using a CPC, but with a more low level tool, it is possible (with an Amiga, or by making a hand crafted HFE image to use with the HxC). That would also make the floppy difficult to copy using a CPC. Wether or not that's a good thing, I let you decide.
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: grouik1er on 16:28, 11 May 19
Did you release the OST ?
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 18:38, 11 May 19
No, I didn't... Maybe I should?
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: grouik1er on 12:47, 13 May 19
Quote from: Targhan on 18:38, 11 May 19
No, I didn't... Maybe I should?
I love Them
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Gryzor on 13:59, 14 May 19
Please do :)
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 19:32, 19 May 19
@grouik1er (http://www.cpcwiki.eu/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=2453) @Gryzor (http://www.cpcwiki.eu/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=1) Well, you wanted it, here it is. Check Imperial Mahjong website, you can now download the music! I will also upload it to the radio, and I'll also start a new recording session for it There are hundreds of recent songs waiting to be recorded!
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: grouik1er on 19:35, 19 May 19
Quote from: Targhan on 19:32, 19 May 19
@grouik1er (http://www.cpcwiki.eu/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=2453) @Gryzor (http://www.cpcwiki.eu/forum/index.php?action=profile;u=1) Well, you wanted it, here it is. Check Imperial Mahjong website, you can now download the music! I will also upload it to the radio, and I'll also start a new recording session for it There are hundreds of recent songs waiting to be recorded!
Un grand merci !!!
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Gryzor on 09:22, 20 May 19
Recording the analog output of a 35yo machine and storing it as FLAC... priceless :D
Title: Re: Imperial Mahjong: CargoSoft new game.
Post by: Targhan on 19:38, 20 May 19
QuoteRecording the analog output of a 35yo machine and storing it as FLAC... priceless

Using a state of the art computer to emulate this 35 years-old machine has the same irony... But I like it :).
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