Thesius XII adf

[Benguin]

Hi Kevin,
Ben Hemming here:
It's been a long time since we last chatted (via email some years ago) and I've lost your email address but this seemed a good place to strike up a quick chat -> nice to see Underware Designs is still around in one form or another.

I ended up here when I went looking for an ADF version of T12, ideally one with all the levels (the aminet one was the old original 1 level demo). I don't have a copy of the full thing and I get nostalgic for it sometimes.

Any chance you could post one up here or email it to me? There used to be one on the 50megs.com website I belive but that only gives an error now when you try to dl it.

What are you up to lately anyway? Still in Ballarat?

Ben.

[Benguin]

OR i could spend a whole 30 seconds searching the site and find it's already here and up :)

Still interested in how you are doing though :)

[kevin]

Ben Hemming here:

My god.. Now there's a sight for sore eyes..

It's been a long time since we last chatted (via email some years ago) and I've lost your email address but this seemed a good place to strike up a quick chat -> nice to see Underware Designs is still around in one form or another.

Yeah I pretty much fell of the net through winter/spring of 2001 i think it was. Got into a dispute with telstra.. Imagine that.. Long story short, they finally fixed the phone line..  and I didn't have to swear at them once, i promise  :)

I ended up here when I went looking for an ADF version of T12, ideally one with all the levels (the aminet one was the old original 1 level demo). I don't have a copy of the full thing and I get nostalgic for it sometimes.
Any chance you could post one up here or email it to me? There used to be one on the 50megs.com website I belive but that only gives an error now when you try to dl it.

Me too.. Sadly the posted version is the same as the old aminet one :(.  I'd have some form of  alpha with all the levels on floppy someplace, but my a1200 isn't working these days.   So I'll have to crank up the emulator see about slapping a full version together (as long as i can remember how).  I did try a while back, but the older version asmone wasn't too happy running on the emulator and newer versions don't compile it all..  grumble..

 Actually, while I remember.  Do you still have the art, or any art work from 'War of the Talesman"  ?  Just curious..

What are you up to lately anyway? Still in Ballarat?

Lately, well I'm trying my hand and writing a game/gfx related language called "Play Basic".  It's going pretty well.   There's a few tidbits posted around here about that.  

 Ballarat, yep i'm still here, coding and drumming away.  My little drum school is going fairly well (has it's moments).  Got a good bunch of kids through to mature adults.  Really getting a system in place now.  Short, sharp and effective.  It's great seeing primary school kids play most of technical requirement for VCE.  Not that i tell them that.. :)

 So wants up with you ?  Last i recall you were into rock climbing and were running a web development business ?  and Lars was doing like a 6 month stint writing (java) software for a bank or something..

[Benguin]

'War of the Talesman"? doesn't ring any bells whatsoever :)

I remember Thesius XII well though -I think I probably still have the original art files archived on good old DSDD Amiga floppy - not that I have an Ami around to run them on - (I think an old 500 is still at my mums somewhere).

I would dearly love to have a running/semi running version of the complete one in adf format, even if WinUAE can't handle all your little hacks and nifty optimisations.

Glad to hear you're still enjoying and teaching the drumming. I'm still addicted to rock climbing. Currently helping manage a smallish IT company - 8 or so people, with some friends. It's really nice actually and is going pretty well right now:

http://www.obsidian.com.au/

As for Lars, I still see him once in a while, he alternates between fairly dry corporate programming and overseas holidays :)

[kevin]

'War of the Talesman"? doesn't ring any bells whatsoever

 :)  - A while back, I found a collection of tech demo tidbit sources, but with no art, and that was one of them..  oh well, it's lost for the ages then..

I remember Thesius XII well though -I think I probably still have the original art files archived on good old DSDD Amiga floppy - not that I have an Ami around to run them on - (I think an old 500 is still at my mums somewhere).

 I've think i've pretty much got all the art that you sent down still..  Just copied my a1200 HD backup onto the PC. Freaky stuff..   If only i'd learn to document how things work..  :)

I would dearly love to have a running/semirunning version of the complete one in adf format, even if WinUAE can't handle all your little hacks and nifty optimisations.

 The last multi levels demos I remember had the . City, Pebble Beach (fast scrolling tunnel one) and the Jungle level pretty much up and running.  The
space level only had a minimal amount of object population though.    

 It's tempting to port all the art across to the PC and wack up a retro T12 tech demo with Play Basic..  Got to complete it first though..

Glad to hear you're still enjoying and teaching the drumming. I'm still addicted to rock climbing. Currently helping manage a smallish IT company - 8 or so people, with some friends. It's really nice actually and is going pretty well right now:
http://www.obsidian.com.au/

Yes, That looks like it's kicking on nicely.. Hardly a surprise though

As for Lars, I still see him once in a while, he alternates between fairly dry corporate programming and overseas holidays

 Somehow that's just how i'd picture him too.. grrr :)

[kevin]

T12 Update:
=========


Well after spending all Sunday on it :), i've now got a 3 level version of t12 running.  There's a few versions of level 4 too, but I can't get them compile, let alone work.  From what i can tell though, there's only a handful of objects/patterns in it anyway....The 3 existing levels are pretty complete though, the jungle level is most possible however, there's mostly some polish  missing from the gaurdians in the other levels.. oh well .. All in all i'm stunned at some of the extremes we went too.. In some cases slabs of code for effects that last less than second on screen.  

 Also the demo includes things like speech pack and the game complete screen. (god, dynamic sliced ham with interlaced sprites.. I must have been completely insane)  I haven't uploaded it as yet, need to pack the exe's and build a decent ADF / update the doc's etc   Should be on site by monday..

 it seems to work really well with latest version of WinUAE also, all the copper effects work now, a few dodgy bits here and there, and the sound has drama's.  But it works almost like a real Amiga....

[Benguin]

That sounds very cool - I'm really excited about being able to play it again. It really was a labour of love. And I remember well the bazillions of code refactoring passes and tweaks you went thorugh :)

And the editor - dear god! Thinking back on it it seems so impressive that we did such a nice job on - especially all the code work you did.

(and hand adding each wave of ships :)

I spent some time (far to long) on the weekend with UAE so I now have it running fine and working with a big solid playstation joystick -> so I can play Amiga games the way they were intended to be played :)

[kevin]

That sounds very cool - I'm really excited about being able to play it again. It really was a labour of love. And I remember well the bazillions of code refactoring passes and tweaks you went thorugh

oh  don't remind me..  it wasn't my best design..  :) .. It seemed like such a good idea to use custom displays and wedge the level code  inside the level chucks..  but never again..

And the editor - dear god! Thinking back on it it seems so impressive that we did such a nice job on - especially all the code work you did.
(and hand adding each wave of ships

Speaking of the editor. We were just wondering what happened to Simon Beggs a few weeks back. I dunno if you remember the story or not. But i put an ad in the local paper looking for an artist and he called.   He didn't have an Amiga, and the only editor he's used was one that queztal wrote for doing chr maps on the c64.  So thats how the backdrop editor came about.  I've still got the levels he made and even one that i made with gavin.. I was really proud od this hand i drawn as final gaurdian..  

There's a whole collection of little helper tools/sources on my hard drive. Not really sure what some of them do now..

Not having the right tools from the get go, that really killed us.. I really regret not building a stand alone object placement editor...

I spent some time (far to long) on the weekend with UAE so I now have it running fine and working with a big solid playstation joystick -> so I can play Amiga games the way they were intended to be played

:)   it's a bit of time trap isn't it..  I've spent most of today playing with everything i should be..  

Anyway i've got an ADF version, but it only works with OS3.0 at the moment, a bit of waste when that game runs on OS1.2. Got side tracked when looking for a replacement boot up OS1.2 or OS1.3 .

[kevin]

Thesius XII 2003 FULL


 Well, theres now a version on the site.  I couldn't fit speech on the floppy version, and i didn't feel like trying to write a loader for it now.  This version has everything else though.  

 I've left the Trainer keys active in the release, just so you can skip though the entire game as you wish.  

 Keys
  t= trainer
  f9/f10 set fixed weapon status..
  1,2,3  = skip levels.

 There's a strange thing that happens with the Game Complete part though when run though the emulator, For some reason it basically exits without showing the scroller.. No idea why.  :(

 
 Download Thesius XII Home Page

[Benguin]

That is sooo cool :)

I feel all warm and fuzzy being able to play with our baby again.

Although I get an immediate twitch result to want to fix some parts up (unfortunately I think the first level - the city, is the least visually nice)

It still is hard though :)

I don't recall any speech anyway.  Thanks so much for pulling that out of the closet.

[kevin]

Yeah it's funny how the first reactions i had to seeing it again were about things i wanted to fix also.. But after looking at the source, i went .. nah that's not going to happen... :)

The speech was just for the picking tokens.  You prolly never saw a version with that in actually.  Hardly a must have a feature though.

Found a few frames from queebie (war of the talesman) the other day.  A guy and asian character.   Ah well

[Black]

shit me..  after 10 years..  you release it.. I remember when you first started working on it..

after jumpman-uc I plan to work on freditor! which was an old map editor I did on the amiga.. this time would be a lot more powerfull..  might interest a few people

[kevin]

Ahh Zaphod returns..

yeah T12 been a while in the making.. :)..  i remember Freditor, might even have an ADF that someplace too.  Made heaps when my A1200 dropped dead.  

So hows sunny perth going anyway..  ?

[Black]

perth is as sunny as it is always..

I am getting back into old school type programming at the moment.. lapping up every bit of openGL that I can..  (personally I think its better the direct X)

after working on visual pinball for 2 years going back to basics is a lot of fun..  :D

[kevin]

It's funny how thing cycle around.  A few years ago i would never have imagined i'd be  sitting in front of a pc for hour on end toying with routines..

Posted a thread here about Jumpman after getting your last new letter/mail out..