Wow! I can't believe this code is nearly 4 years old. Scary, eh? Where Have I Been? ------------------ Somewhere back in Spring of 1993, I succumbed to the maddening urge to purchase an IBM PC compatible. As much as I loved my MegaSTe, I knew that I needed to move on. I kept my MSTe around for almost another year (I think), but the need for PC speed made me sell the ST stuff, and put together a better, faster PC, the 486dx2/66 that sits on my desk now. Fortunately, I did buy a GEMulator card, which although often cranky, still lets me use my ST stuff here and there. I had pretty much left the ST scene behind, though I occasionally got a letter about Dr. Necro or some of the other ST thingys that I had written in the past. Then, a couple of weeks ago, I got, of all the bizarre things, a Shareware registration for Dr. Necro. As if that were odd enough, it became apparent that the gentleman was resgistering a very old GFA Basic version of the game! (Dr. Necro has been a mix of C and 68k assembly since March of 1992!). Along with the check was a short note about how much he had enjoyed the game, and some of the refinements he'd like to see. I was a bit touched. I called up Delphi and asked for comments, and although there weren't many, they were most definately positive. I looked on GEnie and Delphi to see what the last version I had uploaded was. Turns out that it was the last GFA Basic version I ever did, GFA 0.62. Since then, the code had been converted to C, sampled sounds added, some background music, new graphics, etc., as well as a bunch of "one-of's" to test some neat ideas, like a high score screen (remember Robotron?). None of this has ever been released, at least that I can remember, and has rotted on some floppy backups since mid '93. I fired up Laser C under the GEMulator today, and put together this latest incantation. Here it is, hope you like it. The GEMulator -- good and evil ------------------------------ It's a pretty neat card, you know. Really wild to be able to run an ST development system on a PC. Just the fact that I was able to edit a new version, compile, and test it is a pretty cool thing. Alas, no emulator is ever perfect. The sound is marginal at best, the background music sounds real strange on my Pro Audio Spectrum 16 sound card. The digitized effects don't play at all. (bummer) Laser C has some gripes about it (after I save from the editor, my mouse goes away to never-never land). However, these obstacles are *not* insurmountable. So, Ken, get to the point! -------------------------- Well, here's what its all about. I'd like to finish this game as I originally intended. This version is just the newest in my backup set, with some quick fixes and a pause feature. I had a great idea to speed up the animation, a cool high score table(the code is actually written, and in the executable, but turned off since it has some, shall we say, "growing pains"?), some intermissions, and some animation sequences for the unused space on the screen (something like the magnifying glass in the Nintendo(tm) game). Unfortunately, time is at a premium for me. My real-life job takes 60+ hours a week, and PC programming, which actually does pay some money, eats up a lot of the rest. I don't suspect this game will generate a lot of money, in fact, these days, the only thing I can guarentee in exchange for registration is an executable without the level limits. So what do you want? -------------------- I need to know that finishing this project is *worth it*. If you'd like to see it happen, let me know. Drop me some e-mail, send me a postcard or a letter. Money is always welcome, but communication is the biggy. What do you like about it? What do you hate? What would you like to see? Would you play it if I finish it? If there is enough response, I'll keep working at it, if not, well, it will sit on the hard drive, until I need space for DOOM III or something. Other random notes ------------------ When I would get stuck on a problem in Dr. Necro, I'd do something else to get my mind off of it, and usually, the answer would come to me. One of the "something else's" was a port of the game "Arex" from my old Atari 8-bit. Depending on how motivated I am, there may or may not be an Arex executable in this archive (getting files from the GEMulator to DOS is a bear, since the version of GEMulator I have doesn't recognize my DOS hard drive partitions). If its on here, its old, very rough, and probably won't show you much of anything. However, it is also something that could be completed if there is enough interest. If you remember the game, you know it was simple, addictive, fun, and guarenteed to soak up your time. Well, enough rambling. Stop reading, play the game, and drop me a line! -Ken Schafer NecroWare Development 11/11/1994