SPACE Newsletter

SPECIAL SPACE ELECTION EDITION 2017 Jaguar. Many details are at my Atari history timelines website! Thanks, keep using that Atari, and come to your next SPACE meeting, Friday, November 10, 2017.

It is SPACE Annual Meeting time! The SPACE November meeting is where we hold annual elections for one-year terms as SPACE club president, vice president, secretary, and treasurer. We also take the opportunity to thank the volunteers serving as Membership Chairman, NewslettermEditor, DOM Librarian, BBS Operator, and Webmaster, and check in with them and their interest and willingness to serve in that capacity for another year. To that end, thank you to Glen Kirschenmann, our current membership chairman, Steve Peck our current newsletter editor, Glen Kirschenmann our current DOM librarian (8-bit), and Mike Allard our current ST DOM librarian. (And I am currently serving as Website and Facebook manager.) The club wouldn't be what it is without you! Then there are the all-important officer positions that make up the executive board, currently myself as president (the VP position is currently vacant), Steve Peck as secretary, and Greg Leitner as treasurer. Critical roles all, thank you for this most recent year. I hope everyone involved, whether in an elected role or in one of the volunteer roles, considers continuing to be active with SPACE. If you are a SPACE member and I haven't mentioned your name yet, please consider getting more involved! SPACE can only be what you make it! Since last month my Atari research has led me into a deep dive sorting out several of the UK companies that worked as close partners with Atari Corp. UK. Perihelion, as the two separate companies Perihelion Hardware (later just called Perihelion) and Perihelion Software, were the developers of the Atari Transputer Workstation (ATW). Atari's head of technology Richard Miller was hired away from primary business, ongoing development of the ATW for Atari. No matter, in another year Atari cancelled the ATW and shut down the ARCC by mid 1991. (Perihelion Software continued developing the HeliOS operating system for the ATW and several other hardware platforms for a few more years.)

that we had a $108.00 windfall with DOM and membership sales, which is a record sale by the way. Also, the Membership Count is at nine paid memberships Lance was stating that conversions of various games Video 61 have made for the Atari 8-bit to the 5200 is commencing. The production is really humming along, too. There was talk of the pitfalls of the Atari 5200, how the 7800 was to remedy the ills the 5200 brought along with it, and there was even an Atari Jaguar game on Walmart’s website recently. Strange, but true.

From rags to riches is what you could call the August/September to October SPACE meetings. With just four members at the October meeting we had receipts that I have not seen in more than a year. It was great to see Lance and Steve back after being missing the last two months. We had a great talk about the new Atari 8-bit hardware and especially the old Atari 5200 gaming system. We all know about the problems with the 5200 game controllers and Lance laid out the reasons very well.

There was even talk of the SNES Mini, the upcoming C64 Mini in 2018, and the mistakes of Jack Tramiel while at Atari. It was an interesting time that Friday night, that is for sure. Let me tell you. The meeting adjourned at 8:30 PM. Well, this concludes the Secretary’s Report. I will close, quoting the closing salutation of Stan Lee... EXCELSIOR!

Here is how our treasury looks after the October meeting. With Steve and myself renewing our SPACE memberships that gave us $30.00 right away before getting to the DOMs. We got ST DOMs for five months bringing us up to date and with three members buying all five months we took in another $45.00. Also, we had good 8-bit DOM sales due to Lance and Steve buying the current month DOM and also the two months that they missed. That brought in another $33.00 for 8-bit DOMs for a grand total of $108.00 for the month of October. Since we started the month with $474.54 and now have added $108.00 for October SPACE now has a whopping $582.54 bank balance. This covers not only our room rental for this year but we now have next year’s room rental almost covered with two months yet to go. A very important meeting coming up in November as we vote for SPACE board members and DOM/ membership positions. Also our Xmas party is coming up fast for December and we need to nail the specifics down next month for the December party. So, mark your calendars down for November 10th, the next SPACE meeting, and I hope to see you all there.

Message from Captain Irata: “Don’t picket! Vote a ticket! Happy Election Day, SPACE Cadets!” HOO-RAH! TRIVIA TIME! The Atari 2600 has only 128 bytes of random access memory (RAM). Table of Contents The President’s Corner; Treasurer’s/Secretary’s Reports: SPACE Bylaws: Atari 8-bit DOM Reviews: Atari ST DOM Review:

1 2 3

Meanwhile, also in the UK, Flare Technology was a technology developer, made up of former Sinclair engineers, that had developed a potential home video game hardware platform, and was also earning money doing consulting for other companies. One engineer from Flare was hired by Atari to help Atari make progress on their own new home gaming console project, something to supersede the 2600/7800/XEGS and sell alongside the Lynx. That project would soon be known within Atari as "Panther". Soon after, Flare and Atari agreed that an even more advanced platform was within reach, and together they formed another development firm to make it happen, called Flare II. Flare II's efforts resulted in the Atari Jaguar. Once the Jaguar was complete, Flare II was shut down, and John Mathieson of Flare and Flare II joined Atari in California to set out to design a successor to the

HELLO WORLD! Sorry for the hiatus due to my lack of attendance. But, I am back, and with another Secretary’s Report. So, off we go with it. The meeting commenced at 7:41 PM. Although Greg has told everybody about it in the Treasurer’s Report, I am just as pleased as he is about the fact

Yes, please come to the Meeting. I don’t think that Dr. Doom is playing games here, folks!

Section 3. The Treasurer shall be responsible for the duties of managing the club’s monetary assets. ARTICLE V: NEWSLETTER

As amended by the membership, September 13, 2002 BYLAWS FOR THE SAINT PAUL ATARI COMPUTER ENTHUSIASTS CLUB OF SAINT PAUL, MINNESOTA ARTICLE I: NAME AND OBJECT Section 1. The name of the Club shall be the Saint Paul Atari Computer Enthusiasts, or SPACE. Section 2. The object of the Club shall be to bring those with a common interest in Atari computers together for the purpose of sharing hardware, software and information related to Atari. ARTICLE II: MEMBERSHIP Section 1. The number of members of SPACE shall not be limited. Section 2. Any person or family interested in Atari computers shall be eligible for membership upon payment of the annual dues for the first year. Section 3. The annual dues shall be $15.00, payable on the anniversary month of the member’s joining date. Section 4. Unused portions of dues are not refundable. Section 5. Any member found to be in violation of the rules or spirit of the club may be expelled by a majority vote of the Executive Board. Section 6. The Membership Chairman shall be responsible for collecting membership dues and managing the current membership list. ARTICLE III: MEETINGS Section 1. SPACE meetings shall be held at 7:30pm on the second Friday of each month, at the Falcon Heights Community Center, unless otherwise directed by the Executive Board. Section 2. Club business cannot be conducted without at least one Officer and one other member present. Section 3. All club meetings shall be open meetings.

Section 1. The club shall publish the SPACE Newsletter on a monthly basis. Section 2. All currently paid club members shall receive a copy of the Newsletter by mail each month.

Section 5. The Executive Board shall also seek volunteers for other ongoing administrative duties, such as meeting location arrangements and post office box maintenance.

Section 4. The Newsletter Editor shall be responsible for the duties of collecting articles from the membership, publishing, and distributing the Newsletter.

Section 6. Officers shall be subject to a Recall Vote if a majority of the membership so decries. The Recall Vote shall not take place until it has been announced in the newsletter.

ARTICLE VI: DISK OF THE MONTH

Section 7. The rules contained in the current edition of “Robert’s Rules of Order” shall govern the club unless they are in conflict with the bylaws, in which case the bylaws shall take precedence.

Section 1. A new SPACE Disk Of the Month (DOM), readable by a standard Atari 1050 disk drive, shall be produced on a monthly basis. This is for the purpose of raising funds for the club. Section 2. DOMs shall include shareware, freeware, or public domain software or other files for the Atari. DOMs shall not include pirated commercial software. Section 3. The price of the DOM shall be $3.00. Section 4. DOMs shall be available for sale at each club meeting, and may be sold to members and non-members. Section 5. Other clubs may trade DOMs with SPACE on a one-for-one basis. Section 6. The DOM Librarian shall be responsibile for the production and sales of the DOM. ARTICLE VII: BULLETIN BOARD SYSTEM

Section 2. Provided that a quorum is present, and provided that the amendment proposal has been communicated to the entire membership in writing in advance, the Bylaws may be amended at any meeting by a two-thirds vote of the members present. Section 3. Voting shall be by consenting AYE or NAY if a two-thirds vote can be confirmed, or by a show of hands for a precise tally. Section 4. Proxy voting is not permitted for Bylaws amendment votes. ARTICLE XI: CLUB DISSOLUTION

Section 2. The BBS System Operator shall be responsible for maintaining a friendly and welcoming environment on the BBS. Illegal software or offensive language shall not be tolerated.

Section 2. In such an event, the Executive Board members shall be responsible for the proper and orderly closing of accounts, arrangements, and all normally ongoing club activities.

ARTICLE VIII: WEB SITE

Section 3. Any remaining material assets of the club shall be distributed evenly among the membership, as best as this is possible. Historical club materials shall be preserved if possible.

Section 2. The Webmaster shall be responsible for maintaining the web site, and keeping the information presented there current.

Section 2. Prior approval by the Executive Board is required if the club is to incur any expense.

Section 1. A Quorum shall be defined as either a minimum of 50% of the entire membership, or 10, whichever is smaller.

Section 1. The club may elect to disband itself by a majority vote of the current membership, provided the proposal has been printed in at least one issue of the newsletter.

Section 5. The Annual Meeting shall be held each November. At the Annual Meeting, Officers shall be elected and volunteers for other ongoing club duties shall be secured.

Section 1. An accounting for all incomes and charges to the SPACE balance sheet shall be published in the newsletter each month.

ARTICLE X: AMENDMENT OF BYLAWS

Section 1. A Bulletin Board System (BBS) supporting Atari computers shall be made available by the club. The BBS provides an online forum for Atari discussions, and an optional communications medium for club matters.

Section 1. The club shall maintain a home page on the World Wide Web. The site shall be primarily designed to attract new club members, and provide online access to club information.

ARTICLE IV: TREASURY

Section 4. The Executive Board shall actively seek volunteers to fill the following positions: Membership Chairman, Newsletter Editor, DOM Librarian, BBS Operator, and Webmaster. These volunteers shall be subject to the approval of the club membership.

Section 3. Newsletters shall also be sent free of charge each month to other Atari clubs which are able to return the favor.

Section 4. Minutes of each club meeting shall be recorded by the Secretary and published in the club newsletter.

Section 6. The President shall preside over club meetings. In the President’s absence, the Vice-President shall preside. In their absence, the Secretary shall preside. If the first three are all absent, the Treasurer shall preside.

person is running. The term shall be for one year, or until a successor is elected. The term of office shall begin at the close of the annual meeting at which the officer is elected.

Section 4. When all outstanding charges are paid, the Treasurer shall distribute any remaining club funds evenly among the final group of club members.

ARTICLE IX: OFFICERS AND EXECUTIVE BOARD Section 1. The Officers of the club shall be President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer, and shall be referred to collectively as the Executive Board. Section 2. The Executive Board shall collectively supervise the affairs of the club, shall be responsibile for proper and orderly club operations, shall be responsibile for upholding the rules of the bylaws, and shall at all times make decisions with the best interests of the membership in mind. Section 3. The officers shall be elected by a majority vote of those present, or by acclamation if only one

The SPACE Election Meeting is on Friday, November 10, 2017. We hope to see you there!

Atari 8-bit DOM Review By Steven Peck I am going to fulfill my promise to my fellow Atarians now. Remember when I had said we were going to have a special MEGA DOM Review? Well, it is Election Time, so here we will have a full and complete QUADRUPLE DOM Review. You heard me correctly. Four Reviews are in this Newsletter because I have to catch up. I decided to keep the best for last. So without further interruptions, let’s get started, now that I am caught up on buying all of the DOMs from June to September of 2017.

HNY 2017 is an intro from ABBUC in Germany. It shows simple graphics, like fireworks that spell “ATARI” over a cityscape. In my opinion, I think that ABBUC should have gone for broke and made it look monumentally better looking. It looks too simple. But, maybe they were pressed for time. It gets the message out anyway. Graphics: Sound: Animation:

7 7 7

TOTAL:

21/30

Last Christmas (Lastxm00) is a SID emulation of the classic George Michael song. It is pretty good, being that it comes from a Commodore 64 computer and that it is emulated on the A8. It is a little bit more peppy than the original, but that is OK. It is a great little tune, as it always has been.

NOTE: I also will reprint the part of the June DOM Review I did already, but it will this time be in its entirety. If it looks like a broken record sounding off, it isn’t. Also, due to technicalities, October’s DOM Review will be in December.

TOTAL:

Hence, that is why we have this note. Also, I apologize for that unforeseen interruption. My bad, so let’s get started now!

Androprotodroid shows a giant robot on a beach with a couple looking at it. It is in black-andwhite. It is pretty good, but could be a little better.

June 2017 DOM, SIDE A:

Here is my score on that.

Blue Sky Action is the first file on the DOM and it is a music track. I like the mellow, smooth music and it has a nice beat on top of it. It may not be perfect, but it ranks right up there anyway. It’s a good tune overall. TOTAL:

8/10

8/10 Side B:

TOTAL:

8/10

A Pack of Xmas Tunes is a SID emulation and has great sound to it, as always. NOTE: Since it has the same graphics and animation for all the SID demos, I will no longer rate the visual effects as this seems redundant and unfair to the artists.

Star is a childish-looking picture of an anthropomorphic pig holding a star at night. For a kiddishlike drawing, it looks OK. So, I will score this graphic accordingly:

Now, with that being said, I extend my apologies for my past comments.

TOTAL:

Breeze is a picture showing a dude with a small head sitting on an island while a jet streaks by him. It is sepia-colored and looks OK for the most part, so kudos to the artist.

7/10

Bad Joke shows a warning about a group named P.H.A.T. saying that they will hack your Atari. It has animated steam and a radiation warning sign flashing in the intro. This is a pretty good demo, and the most graphically put together file so far on Side A of this DOM. This is mint! Oh. Another thing. This really is a bad joke. Harhar! But, seriously, it’s a great demo. Thanks. Graphics: Animation: Sound:

10 10 10

TOTAL:

30/30 (perfect score)

Gunfight is the first game on this side of the DOM. The player plays a bounty hunter and needs to hunt down a certain outlaw. I don’t know how to play this game. I think it needs instructions. Graphics: Gameplay: Animation: Sound: TOTAL:

7 7 6 6 26/40

Happy New Year is an intro showing a bunch of balls in singlefile, swirling around a Happy New Year sign with delightful music.This is an awesome demo and well crafted. KUDOS! Graphics: Sound: Animation:

10 9 10

TOTAL:

29/30

TOTAL:

TOTAL:

9/10

8/10

Chilltro is a music track. It sounds mesmerizing. I like the music and sound. The artist, AceMan, knows his stuff. I will score accordingly. TOTAL:

9/10

Dark Invitation is a creepy into to an Atari party. It looks Halloweenish, black-and-white, foggy, and definitely creepy. Magnificent! I love it myself. Pretty cool stuff. Graphics: Animation: Sound:

10 10 10

TOTAL:

30/30 (perfect)

Flowerbed 01 is that, a picture of a flowerbed. It’s nothing special really, just a doodle. But, it is a good attempt. It is great that we can draw on a computer screen at all. It’s nice.

Sound: Animation:

8 10

TOTAL:

26/30

Hot Punk shows a racy pic of a sexy young lady underneath the blimp from Pole Position as it flies by, with the banner “Mario130XE” above. It is a great looking pic, and the artist spent time creating it. Here is my score: TOTAL:

9/10

I Am Blind is a music track that is slow and foreboding, like something sinister is about to happen. Then, the tempo picks up and it gets more urgent. It is a neat little tune. I will score it this way. TOTAL:

8/10

Merry Xmas, yet another SID demo, is a jazzed-up and peppy version of Jingle Bells. It is quite impressive, actually. It has a delightful beat and is very smooth sounding. TOTAL:

9/10

Monster S—t is Coming is a picture of an alien relieving itself on the ground underneath its UFO. Strange pic, for sure, and I think it’s just toilet humor. So, here we go with this. TOTAL:

6/10

PLA1024b is a fractal-like, real time demo, and it is great looking. It is relaxing and pleasing to the eye. So, kudos to the creator of the demo, and I will score accordingly. TOTAL:

10/10 (perfect)

Santa’s Christmas Capers is a SID that is impressive and played to the tune of a hip Joy to the World. It is good, and I enjoyed it immensely. TOTAL:

8/10

Zoo Food is a twist on Concentration. Instead of matching like items, you match the animal with its favorite food. I was only able to win once so far. I have one other thing: Har-har, folks, with the lion’s food being a human. But, really, it truly is quite funny. Actually, it is an enjoyable game. Kudos! Graphics: Gameplay: Animation: Sound:

6 10 7 7

TOTAL:

30/40

Well, that concludes the June DOM. Now, onto July’s DOM entry! July 2017 DOM, Side A: In Hot and Cold Adventures, you play a polar bear, and you have to collect coins. Avoid everything else, including the stars as they are deadly! If you fall, you never die, but you have to start over from the beginning of the level.

TOTAL: 7/10

Done in Super Mario fashion, I think that this is a great game. The graphics are well done and so is the music. This is a difficult game, but it’s a fun one. So, here’s how I rate it accordingly.

Grawitacja is an invite to a party in Krakow, Poland, to play A8 video games. It looks primitive, but the sprites are large. It is also in real time. I think that it is great.

Graphics: Gameplay: Animation: Sound:

8 10 8 8

It shows a little spaceship flying around. Then, the text showing the invite is on the screen. I think it is a cool little intro.

TOTAL:

34/40

Graphics:

8

I Met You in Tokyo is a music track. It is techy, mellow, and soinds nice overall. It sounds like it has a Japanese feel to it. It’s a great tune. Here’s my score

for this tune. Jajo war is a pic showing a guy in cowboy garb shooting at an alligator in a desert. I like the graphics and it looks great. It is visually appealing and not hard on the eyes. Good job. TOTAL:

8/10

Last Xmas is a SID chip simulation and another rendition of the classic performed by the late George Michael. It isn’t a bad rendition, and it has pep. Mellow and fun. TOTAL:

7/10

I think that the next file is a take on the Lego logo, because it looks like it. Nuller is designed to look like the classic logo from Lego, but it has the word NULL inatead of LEGO. It is nice, but I think it needs more, like color maybe. However, it is pretty good. TOTAL:

7/10

Podskoczek is a Polish game where you jump on platforms to the top of the screen. You are, however, in a bottomless pit. If you fall, that’s all! It is a great game, but I think that it could have better graphics. Nevertheless, it is challenging and addictive. Thumbs up! Graphics: Gameplay: Animation: Sound:

7 10 10 8

TOTAL:

35/40

TOTAL:

8/10

Coming Home (Major Tom) is a take on the Peter Schilling version of David Bowie’s Space Oddity. It’s more upbeat becaus eof the beat added into it. It’s not a bad little tune, especially for it being from the 1980s. TOTAL:

8/10

New Year 2, another SID tune, is funky, upbeat, fast, and cool. It certainly works as a celebratory little tune. I like the beat on it. TOTAL:

9/10

Another pic, Plaza (Beach), shows a woman with a dog on a beach, with a hot-air balloon floating over the ocean water in the distance. I think it could use some improvement, but it does look nice. TOTAL

8/10

We have another pic here, Black Rescue. It shows a U-boat on the sea before it submerges. It is in black-and-white and looks murky in appearance. But, still, it looks great. TOTAL:

8/10

TOTAL:

24/30

White Bear, the final file on this DOM, is peppy upbeat, comical music. It has finesse, for sure, and I enjoyed it. TOTAL:

8/10

This concludes the July Review. Now, onto the next DOM. August 2017, Side A:

9/10

Diamondz 2 is a game by the venerable Fandal, and it is excellent in graphics, sound, and gameplay. It is a puzzle game where you have to find the right path to collect diamonds and get to the exit. The path is predetermined and must be followed exactly. Great game, Fandal! Send us more! Thanks. Graphics: Animation: Gameplay: Sound:

10 10 10 10

TOTAL:

40/40 (perfect)

Ironia 2K17 Invitation is an invite to one of the European Atari shindigs in 2017. I love the text warps, the animation, the music, and the visual effects. Clever programmers did this, and for that I extend the utmost kudos. Good programming!

Crazy Cat is a platform game where you play a cat that has to collect rings and avoid obstacles, like water. it is challenging, due to the controls. But, I like the challenge. It is set just right in difficulty.

Graphics: Animation: Sound:

10 10 10

Graphics: Gameplay: Animation: Sound:

TOTAL:

30/30 (perfect)

NOTE: I tried to load Mortal Coil, the next demo, but it crashed on me. I think it’s a PAL problem. I cannot rate this at this time. My apologies.

TOTAL:

7 9 9 9 34/40

Clubbed to Death is a music track. It feels sinister and foreboding at first, then it picks up and is gritty. I liked this tune and it sound cool. So, here’s my take on that. TOTAL:

9/10

Guru, yet another pic, shows a spiritual guru by incense, a cup of tea, and some scriptures, meditating. It looks good, and is colorful. It could use some improvement. But, overall, it’s good.

TOTAL:

9/10

Yet Another F(h)air in My Light is music taken from a game released on the ZX Spectrum computer from Europe. It is pulse-pounding, with a great beat to it. It sounds medieval, so I assume it is a game with magic and other things related.

Dark Wing 2 is a pic that is derived from the Disney animated series Darkwing Duck. I remember watching it before, too, and this graphic look quite appealing. If it were not for the rasterization of the image, I would even say flawless. Very nice job!

9 6 9

TOTAL:

8/10

So, with that challenge, here’s how I rate it.

Graphics: Gameplay: Sound:

TOTAL:

TOTAL:

Scapeghost is a three-part text adventure, found in the next three DOMs. You play the spirit of a recently murdered person. I always find text adventures difficult to play because you have to guess your way around, without visuals.

But, it’s great music. I am impressed.

Tento rok je slabsi is a fast-paced dance track with lots of pep. It’s a great little tune, and will rank high in my book. I like it. Vintage 2077 shows a domed car on another planet heading to a domed city, 160 years into the future at this writing. I like the colorful graphics and the look of the pic. It’s imaginative. That’s for sure.

36/40

Now this game, Vox Regis, wa a game I could not understand because it is in Polish. So, I didn’t get it. But, it has great graphics and sound.

Deep Space is a pic that shows a young spacefaring woman, in spacesuit, at the helm of her ship. It is detailed and I like the colors and blending style. It is going to get high marks here. So, let’s do that.

8/10

TOTAL:

Miniloops is a multi-player puzzle game where you have to move pieces on a game screen to complete what looks a looping path, not unlike Snafu for the Intellivision, where you have to change the track constantly to save the train. Great looking and great playing. It’s a must. Graphics: Gameplay: Animation: Sound:

9 9 9 9

TOTAL:

TOTAL:

9/10

10/10 (perfect)

Shower is a pic in a castle where a young lady is going to the shower. It looks cruder than the last one, but still has quite the finesse. But, you are somewhat limited on an 8-bit machine and you have to make do with what you have available. Good work, nonetheless. TOTAL:

7/10 Side B:

The entire B side of the DOM is one program: Hardcore Music Box. It have mutiple music tracks, including the music for Frogger, the smash arcade hit. It’s good, but I think it can be more. However, it takes up a lot of space, so I understand. TOTAL:

7/10

Now, onto the September DOM, and it does have good stuff in it. So, here we go reviewing it. September 2017 DOM, Side A: Ninja Gajden is based on the game Ninja Gaiden, here as it is spelled in the US. It show a ninja warrior, complete with katana sword and a shuriken (or, a bladed throwing star). It could be much better, but it is still a good pic. Here I score it: TOTAL:

7/10

Nordlicht 2017 Invitro is a party invite to an Atari gathering in Bremen, Germany. I adore the realtime 3D image and animation. This is a great technical demonstration. KUDOS! Graphics: Animation: Sound:

10 10 10

TOTAL:

30/30 (perfect)

We also have the text adventure Scapeghost, Part 2. I will rate this accordingly, as all text adventures are somewhat more difficult. TOTAL:

9/10

Spellbinder is a really cool game where you play a wizard in a castle that has to collect items and cast spells with them. The graphics astonied me, as they were excellent. I can see this game being very addictive to people. It’s that good. So, what that being said, I will score this game accordingly, and it going to be a great rating. Whoever programmed this game did an extrordinary job, abd I am glad it is in my DOM collection.

Graphics: Gameplay: Animation: Sound: TOTAL:

9 9 9 8 35/40

WannaClone is a ransomware joke. It has great music and a real-tine text ticker. Again, very funny. Har-har. But, seriously, good work. Graphics: Animation: Sound:

8 10 9

TOTAL:

27/30

Wyginam smialo cialo is another music track, reminiscent of the classic instumental Popcorn. It does sound fun.I actually enjoyed it. It needs some more, but it is OK. Pretty fun. TOTAL:

7/10 Side B:

Side B of the September 2017 DOM is all one game: Johnny the Ghost. It is a puzzle where you plat to collect chalices and find your way out of the rooma safely. It is quite challenging, and you have blocks that you need to use to get out. It’s a fun game and I am sure you would enjoy it as well. Here’s my score. Graphics: Gameplay: Animation: Sound: TOTAL:

8 8 7 7 30/40

through levels to reach the people in distress. Instead you are wondering around each level to locate items required to advance. You will need to find the jump suit to rescue people, cards to unlock doors and to activate elevators, and other items. The joystick is used to interact with our character on the screen. Left and Right moves our character in the desired direction. Up does a couple of things like checking lockers for items, using computers to load and save game progress, use cards to open doorways and activate elevators, and to climb out of pits. The fire button is used to perform long jumps across gaps. You do have a timer (red bar at bottom of screen) that once it is gone the game is over. The game is self-loading. Simply insert the disk in to your ST and fire up the computer. You don’t even need to press a button to start the game. It will go to a title screen momentarily and then load the game itself. Graphics are great with animations that are very fluid. Sounds are OK, but after a while the music can get annoying. I have not found a way to turn it off.

I am having fun discovering the ST for the first time in great depth. When I found this game I simply had to make it a DOM even if it was the only game I could put on the disk. It really is a lot of fun and it’s been a lot of fun discovering these. I would like to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving! I will be back with another ST DOM Review next month. Keep playing those Atari computers.

It’s that time again… ELECTION TIME! Come one, come all to the SPACE Election: Friday, November 10, 2017. BE THERE! WE NEED YOUR VOTES!

Well, we are at the end. I will present Three more DOM Reviews in one in December. Thanks for looking. Carpe diem, folks!

You hear that? Let’s vote! By Michael Allard (Image Credits: Bill Bertram/Wikipedia) I don’t know about the rest of the club members but I am ready for Thanksgiving! I can already smell it now. Turkey with all of the trimmings, cranberry sauce, sweet potatoes topped with brown sugar and marshmallows. And there is always something leftover to have later for when the full belly decides it is hungry again. And that is where we are at with this month’s ST DOM. One of the games I picked for this month was so huge it took up a whole disk by itself. Without further ado let’s dig in to this month’s ST DOM.

This public domain version of the 2600’s game of the same name that was published by Activision takes that game play concept and adds to it. Unlike the original you are no longer falling

Oh, wait a minute. WE CAN’T TALK! Well, we encourage you to be there, anyway. VOTE!