lance-ewing.bsky.social
Retro computing & gaming enthusiast. Sierra On-Line AGI graphic adventure games, computer chip reverse engineering, 8-bit computer emulation, Oric, Commodore VIC 20, Teletext, BBC micro, digital electronics, js13kgames.
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I'm tempted to try this RP2350 approach for the VIC chip myself. It has at least been added to my growing list of possible retro projects, so maybe one day.
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@tynemouthsw.bsky.social, I thought you might be interested in this approach with regards to your Mini VIC project. It's an alternative to using FPGA. The software emulation would obviously need to be spot on, but if this ends up working for the Oric ULA, then why not the VIC 6560/1?
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This is awesome, and OCULA is the perfect name. I love the play on words. I will be keeping a close eye on progress.
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Oh yes, in fact it was literally within arms reach of where I was sitting when I read your post just now! The sample AGI source code is what fascinated me when I bought this 35 years ago. That and the screenshots of the SCI picture and view editors.
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I enjoyed it back in the day. I played the sequel first though and prefer it. I purchased the San Francisco game not long after it was released. My knowledge of San Francisco landmarks is thanks to that second game! They're certainly quite different from other Sierra AGI games.
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We had that Scramble game growing up. I spent a lot of time playing it.
We also had the Grandstand Firefox F-7 game, which I preferred, but I did enjoy the Scramble one. I seem to recall the Scramble one being more difficult though.
I now have the music from these games stuck in my head 😂
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Thanks. Yeah, I assumed that this was possible from something I read but hadn't yet tried it. I'll give it a go.
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The external connection back in is a "feature". The first device has svideo & composite video output, with the short cable to feed it back in for HDMI output, if required, which for me will probably always be the case. I thought I'd keep the connection external though, just in case they're needed.
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I probably could have tidied up the Cumulus cable a bit, but with the LOCI, it is so compact, self contained and easy to use out of the box.
I'm sure I'll be tempted to get the Oric out a lot more now.
#Oric
#LOCI
#RetroGaming
(Cumulus on the left, LOCI on the right)
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Ah, I'm not quite up to date then. Thanks for the tip. I'll have to keep a regular eye on it. I realise this is quite new, so will be changing a bit over coming months.
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With the firmware now up to date, it is time to try loading tape files again. This time it is working, e.g. the Stormlord tape loads, as shown below. The Hobbit also loaded.
#Oric
#LOCI
#RetroGaming
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My first few attempts at loading a tape file didn't work, so I thought it was time to upgrade the firmware. The update process was trivial and appears to have worked without issue. The versions have indeed changed in the LOCI UI from what was shown in my earlier photo.
#Oric
#LOCI
#RetroGaming
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Loading from disk appears to work fine, with the few demos that I have tried so far.
#Oric
#LOCI
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"The Solitude" house is supposedly haunted, and it is this aspect that the game's storyline picks up on. The player controls a resident ghost that has amnesia. The aim is help the ghost remember how they died.
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During development of the game, I drew the rooms out in a notebook. The floor plan is actually based on a real building called "The Solitude", built by John Penn in the 1780s, now part of the Philadelphia Zoo.
en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Sol...
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I've always liked this little Xmas card.
Recently, I wrote a Sierra AGI game interpreter that runs in a web browser, so can play the old AGI games online, including this Xmas card.
Try it out below:
agi.sierra.games/play/christm...
#SierraOnline
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I had a quick look on there just now and couldn't find them. Maybe they're more rare than I thought.
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The programmer's manual is a bit used, as I certainly used it a lot back then. I wrote a tool to convert Visual Composer ROL music files to the Sierra On-Line AGI game sound format, for fan game creators to use.
I also have the books for the Composition Projects and Jukebox. #AdLib #SierraOnline
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I wrote a 3 part series of articles about how I made use of emojis in this game:
lanceewing.github.io/blog/js13k/2...
lanceewing.github.io/blog/js13k/2...
lanceewing.github.io/blog/js13k/2...
"The King's Missing Page" was written for the 2020 js13kgames contest. It placed 25th overall.
#js13k
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Brings back memories. I ordered mine from Sierra On-Line. I don't have the Adlib card itself anymore but I still have all the books. #AdLib
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For a further comparison, here is a play through on an Android phone, showing yet another different emoji look:
www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Y4E...
#adventuregames #pointandclick #adventuregame #emoji #emojis
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There are more images related to this in the following github repo, including of the whole SAA5050 schematic (as drawn in circuitverse), various sub-circuit diagrams, and the dieshot with functional blocks labelled: github.com/lanceewing/s... #Teletext #SAA5050
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The following is a screenshot of my circuitverse.org SAA5050 simulation being used to render a full Teletext page. I had to break it up into multiple smaller screens due to the max size limitation of Circuitverse's screen component. #Teletext #SAA5050
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More specifically, the HD6845SP chip. I'm not currently working on it (too many in-flight projects at the moment), but the bit I did trace is the SVG in the following repo: github.com/lanceewing/h...
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This is scary (spend a few mins thinking about it). We had a power cut recently. There was no Internet, no power, nothing. I couldn't work, couldn't tell my work colleagues l couldn't work work!! We were stuck. All we had. Was water 😂
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Sounds like you have one of the earliest versions then!!! I enjoyed the 3rd game as well, but the 4th game, although being my favourite from a storyline perspective, was just so error prone!!!! Come on Corey Cole!! #ILoveHeroesQuest
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Honestly, I really want to share what I am doing, such as converting three of Notch's Java4k games to JavaScript, but that was years ago, and I'm still trying to find away to share that!
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And the back....
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This is the front.
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Hmmm... okay, give me a few mins and I'll send through a few photos...
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I loved these games!!!! 😍
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One of my all time favourite Sierra games. I ordered this game before it was released, so my box must be one of the earlier versions. I ordered this game direct from Sierra On-Line in Oakhurst CA, for delivery to New Zealand 🤣, and it arrived! I still have it, only 4 meters from where I'm sitting!
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I have heard from one of the former Sierra On-Line employees that the keypad security pin code to get into the Sierra On-Line programmer's office at the back of Ponderosa Printing building was 6502, i.e. the microprocessor used in the Apple II, VIC 20 and Atari machines they were writing games for!
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And this is the other side of the invite. #SierraOnline
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Really? Cool! When I started writing that, I was in the last year of university, but I first started reverse engineering the AGI interpreter in the early 90s, certainly by 1992. I only knew BASIC then, but it didn't stop me. Yeah, its a demo, but one day I'll finish it 🤣. I still have the game plan.
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For those who really love the early history of Sierra On-Line, here is a digital scan of the invite to Ken & Roberta Williams's housewarming party at this very house on the 3rd Sept 1983. 200 guests received this invite. #SierraOnline #KenWilliams #RobertaWilliams
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A lot of what I've been posting since joining Bluesky has been hinting at this. I'm a bit of a Sierra On-Line early history buff, with a particular interest in that top secret King's Quest IBM PCjr project that created the world's first animated graphic adventure game. #SierraOnline #adventuregame
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My best guess is that the NBC Magazine film crew visited Oakhurst in September 1982. Perhaps it was October 82, or early November 82, but fairly sure it was autumn 82. A former Sierra employee who start in Oct 82 thinks it was before he started, which suggests Sept or Oct. #SierraOnline
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@stevenlevy.bsky.social, if Hackers is chronological, then the NBC crew visited before Applefest '82. It started on the 18th Nov 82. Hackers also mentions the Williams' house had a major fire during Applefest, and yet the video shows the house untouched. I think it must be from before Applefest '82.