April 2022
•April 2022 Edition•
The President’s Corner By Michael Current
Well, the projects I mentioned last time have been delayed, as I have instead found myself revisiting everything Atari Adventure in recent weeks. Not the 2600 game, but rather the arcade game rooms Atari opened from 1982-1984. There’s precious little known about them, but there is indeed a little bit more available than last time I worked on it. I think I’ve got a stronger beat now on when exactly each location opened than I did before. However, some mysteries remain, such as why the November 1983 opening of Atari Adventure at Northwest Plaza in St. Louis (the first of two in St. Louis) was billed as the “first” Atari Adventure, when by my count that was location #8 to open! It may have been the first Atari Adventure with a computer classroom, but that is not a certainty. Another curiosity about that location is that many of the reports describe the computer classroom computers as being 800XLs, yet all of the photos of the classroom clearly show the computers were not 800XLs but 1200XLs. I imagine they were originally 1200XLs that were swiftly swapped out for 800XLs, but one can only guess. Thanks, keep using that Atari, and come to your next SPACE meeting: Friday, April 8, 2022.
The Secretary’s Report
The Treasurer’s Report
By Steven Peck
By Gregory Leitner
HELLO WORLD! Welcome back to the SPACE Secretary’s Report. I am running into an issue here. The main reasons why I don’t go to the SPACE Meeting as much are these. First, lack of my own vehicle & transportation. Second, COVID-19. Third, high gasoline prices and the skyrocketing inflation. It’s getting to a point where you have to spend an arm and a leg to go places. So, needless to say, I have to devise a way to get to the Meetings. This may mean my paying people to get there, and I am stymied as to who I could ask. I would ask my dad, but he has his health issues and I don’t know if it’s a good idea to ask him. So, I am stuck here and without my own vehicle. So, there you have it. Until I think of a good way to get over there, I am stuck up the creek without a paddle. Sorry, guys, but I hope to get there soon. Until then, I have to be more frugal and try to brainstorm a way to get there. With that, I close, hoping to resolve this soon. In the words of the late, great Stan Lee… EXCELSIOR!
Only three of us showed up for the March SPACE meeting. Glen, Tom, and myself held a very short meeting. Most of our time was spent reviewing the March DOM. A couple of tough games were looked at and it was hard to figure both out. We needed Steve or Lance to try these two games out and maybe they could get somewhere with them. At least they both looked good. Tom brought in his 800XL to show the red screen he was getting when he powered on. First it was thought that the power supply was bad, but to cover all bases we hooked his 800XL up to our setup and with our power supply. As it turned out, the screen came up red again so we assumed that Tom’s power supply was probably good, but a chip in his 800XL was probably the culprit. We didn’t want to try his power supply with our regular setup. We didn’t want to take any chances with our Club’s computer. Tom’s power supply was one that he constructed and not an Atari original. For our treasury we had a beginning balance of $1,091.74, and we only had two DOMs sold for an additional $6.00 for an ending bank balance of $1,097.74. I hope we are not getting to the point that our balance would trigger an IRS warning. We haven’t been at this level for many years. The only reason we have this balance now is that with COVID shutting us down for almost two years we did not have to pay for our room rental, but Glen kept up with the DOMs all the way through. So, a few members bought all the DOMs while we did not pay anything out. This meant we gained all the revenue for the DOMs and our membership renewals and no expenses to offset the revenue, the result is the fact we gained a few hundred dollars, and it ballooned our bank balance.
Message from Captain Irata “Give me Atari games, or give me death, and I don’t want death!” HOO-RAH!
We are sitting almost too good and we still have the balance of this year to increase that amount. Know that we now pay our room rental in advance so we are paid up through this year. I hope we can get more members at the meeting next month. See you all April 8. Have fun watching March Madness! TRIVIA TIME! The music that plays at the Atari Jaguar startup screen is the jingle from the old Atari commercials, minus the lyrics “Have You Played Atari Today?” Table of Contents: Page 1: President’s Corner/Treasurer’s Report/ Secretary’s Report Page 2: A8 DOM Review Page 6: SPACE Comics Section
The next file is called “Australian Bushfires,” a picture by Snicklin. It shows a silhouette of a person, saying “2021: Our Beds are Burning.” It could have been better, but I thought it did have some detail to it. It seems simple, at best. Hello, again! Welcome to the April edition of the Atari 8-bit DOM Review, and we will be looking at the February 2021 DOM this month. It has some dynamite-looking demos and music, so let’s get the show on the road and take a look at them!
The picture I am about to show is a screenshot of the file in action. Then, you can see what I mean.
I will score this file now: TOTAL SCORE:
10/10 (perfect score)
The next file is a picture called “Mono 2021,” by Miker. It shows a sign with fireworks, saying “Happy New Year.” It is black and white, where the name of the picture comes from. It looks great, and reminds me of a TIP animation. The fading in and out of the picture gives it some detail and pizazz. I like it. I love the detail. The picture you are about to see will show you how good this looks.
February 2021 DOM, Side A: The first file is a demo called “16 Bars,” by PPs. It’s a cool demo that shows colored bars moving all over the screen. It’s bright and fun to look at, and it has all the colors of the spectrum in it. It’s a great-looking demo, as you can see in the picture. It is startling and has fluid animation to boot along with it. It really is great to look at!
The file looks nice, as stated, but simple. I think it needed some more to it. But, it’s still OK. I will score now. TOTAL SCORE:
8/10
The next file is called “Harry and Rachel,” another picture by Snicklin. This is detail that I was alluding to. They look like digitized 3D CG graphics and they are caricatures of Prince Harry and Rachel, who looks like his wife, Meghan Markle.
It kind of reminds me of the cover of a book I have seen about the Atari 2600. It looks almost the same as that book. I will score the demo now.
I like the look! It looks funny and it has great diction. It is witty and I quite enjoy the visage of the picture. Well, the picture will show you what I mean. Judge for yourselves.
SCORE: Graphics: Animation:
9 10
TOTAL SCORE:
19/20
The next file on this side of the DOM is a demo called “Happy 2021,” by Desire. It’s a neat little demo that has an image of a heart warping in real time and an animated text ticker. The music is great and the visual effects are outstanding. As you can see in the picture, you will be able to judge this outstanding graphics for yourself. But I suggest you look at the demo to see it in action because the picture does it no justice.
10 10 10
TOTAL SCORE:
30/30 (perfect score)
The file deserved that type of score as well, as it was very well done to boot. Nice job!
10 10
TOTAL SCORE:
20/20 (perfect score)
The next file, and the last file on Side A, is an intro, called “Noistro,” by Emkay. This is another spectacular file. It shows colorful and digitized graphics, fluid animated text ticker, and outstanding music. Marvelous job!
10/10 (perfect score)
The picture will give you a great idea on what is going on here.
Graphics: Animation: Music/SFX:
Graphics: Animation:
Come to think of it, I know Meghan Markle’s first name isn’t really Meghan. That is her middle name in reality. I think it looks hilarious. Maybe, Rachel is her first name, but I forget. Anyway, here’s my score for the file: The next file is another picture, called “Mein Schatz,” by Mario 130XE. It shows Gollum from The Lord of the Rings holding a roll of toilet paper. It’s crude toilet humor, at best, and I love the detail in the picture. It is very well imaged.
SCORE:
SCORE:
The following picture shows the detail in this intro. Judge for yourselves.
TOTAL SCORE:
Yes, you definitely have to see it in action to believe it. I will score this demo now.
Great job, Miker, on this file. I will score it now.
Again, it truly is a marvelous job. I love the picture. Here’s my score: SCORE: Graphics: Animation: Music/SFX:
10 10 10
TOTAL SCORE:
30/30 (perfect score)
You know, I have NEVER score so many perfect files in one DOM. I think these guys were saving the best for last. After all, it is a New Year DOM. Anyway, I hope you liked Side A. Now, it’s onto Side B, and there are other files there to be scored. So, let’s get to them!
Side B: The next file on this DOM is called “Hybris Level: NYD 2021 Edition,” by Emkay. It is a music track. It has a lot of range in the tones, with a peppy, pulse-pounding beat. I like the music as it is. It has great sound effects and tempo. I will score this music. But, please hear it, and you will see what I mean. Anyway, the score. TOTAL SCORE:
10/10 (perfect score)
The next file is called “Thumb 2021,” a TIP animation by Miker. In the animation, it shows a Happy New Year 2021 message with an emoji giving a thumbs up. It’s really good and the TIP animations never cease to amaze me. The color and digitized detail are amazing. These TIP animations remind of animated GIFs. They seem similar in execution. Anyway, I love it. The following picture will show you what I mean.
It looks nice in other ways than with fancy graphics. it totally makes up for that with the digitized music, which you would have to hear. I will score this demo now. SCORE: Graphics: Animation: Music/SFX:
9 10 9
TOTAL SCORE:
28/30
The final file on this DOM is called “Quak Quak,” by Tomasz Biela. It is a picture of none other than Daffy Duck, and it looks pretty good. it shows Daffy smiling with a hat on. The colors need work, but overall it looks quite spiffy.
The typography and colors are spot-on, and so are the graphics. Good going, Miker. I will score this file now for everybody.
I like the drawing. It looks accurate to the cartoon. Nice detail and effort on Mr. Biela’s behalf. The picture coming up shows the detail in the screenshot. Nice work, by the way.
SCORE: Graphics: Animation:
10 10
TOTAL SCORE:
20/20 (perfect score)
The next file is a demo called “Info Demo II,” by Datri Software, courtesy of David Spilka. It looks like an advertisement for software from this company. It has great digitized music complete with voice, and flud text animation. This is not meant to be as detailed, but it is a greatsounding demo with the music, even though the music is only in short spurts due to memory constraints. But, it’s good. These screenshots will show you what I mean.
I would make the eyes white with black pupils, keeping the white gleam in the pupils, but it actually is very close. Being an animation buff, I admire this drawing. Again, very nice work. Here’s my score for the picture. TOTAL SCORE:
9/10
Also, this concludes the A8 DOM Review. I hope you have enjoyed it. I enjoyed creating it. Anyway, I will see you all again with another DOM Review in May. Carpe Diem, fellow Atarians, and thanks!
One quick note: this file is in Polish, so I couldn’t understand it. But, even though it has simple graphics, it does deliver in other ways.
SPACE COMICS SECTION! The Misadventures of A-Man and C.D. By Steve Peck
Ferret Fracas By Steve Peck
President and Web Page Manager: