September 2023
•September 2023 Edition•
Today’s Atari has been unveiling a number of new products lately. They have not been releasing traditional press releases, at least not where I’m used to finding them, so I don’t have those to contribute to our newsletter like I’m used to doing.
What a pleasant surprise at the August SPACE meeting! Tom, out of the goodness of his heart, took it upon himself to drive up north to pick up Steve and Brian so they could attend the August SPACE meeting!
Instead, a very quick rundown right here. In actual 2600 cartridge format they have recently released Berserk - Enhanced Edition, Outlaw Limited Edition, and the brand-new game Mr. Run And Jump (which is also released on modern platforms).
So, Glen and I were early at the meeting and we were just about to go through the monthly DOM when Tom, Steve, and Brian made the surprising entrance! So, the five of us made for a very satisfying meeting and I look forward to more months like this one. Steve and Brian are looking into other options for getting to future meetings.
They have released the Arcade1Up Atari 50th Anniversary Deluxe Arcade Machine and they have released the new 2600+ console (completely different from the modern Atari VCS platform), along with the new CX40+ Joystick. The 2600+, as I understand it so far, looks just like the old 2600A four-switch wood-grain 2600, but somewhat smaller. It emulates both 2600 and 7800 hardware, uses actual 2600/7800 cartridges and controllers, and outputs modern HDMI video. The new CX40+ works with the 2600+, or with any device that would use the original CX40, including our 8-bit Atari computers. Some of these products are out already, others are coming yet this fall. My question regarding the 2600+ is, if you’re going to do this, why wouldn’t they just use actual 2600/7800 hardware instead of emulation? Is modern hardware actually cheaper that the old hardware? I’m sure they had their reasons, I’m just curious how they came to that decision, especially when you’re going to support actual 2600/7800 cartridges and controllers. Do you suppose if these products are successful for Atari, that a new 8-bit Atari computer version could come along down the road? Thanks, keep using that Atari, and come to your next SPACE meeting: Friday, September 8, 2023.
Our treasury made out very well also, as we sold twelve DOMs and Steve brought funds for his membership plus Lance and our two out-oftowners. Add in Tom’s membership renewal and we had a total of five renewals for the month. So, we ended up with a total of $111.00 for our monthly receipts. $75.00 for memberships and $36.00 for DOM sales. Add that to our beginning bank balance of $1,217.45 and we now have a SPACE bank balance of $1,328.45. WOW!!! With a few more membership renewals still due for this year and DOM sales we should easily pass the $1,400.00 mark! Unbelievable!! I hope everyone makes it to the September 13th meeting. Roger and now Tom have FujiNet and they both have shown demos. Monthly meetings have been fun to see the new things that an 8-bit ATARI can do! So, I hope you can all make it next month.
HELLO WORLD! Well, I finally made it to SPACE Meeting! Have I got a Secretary’s Report for you! So, I will get started and report about the August Meeting. The Meeting commenced on Friday, August 11, 2023, at 7:43 PM. We had five members present. Our emmebership at the beginning of the meeting was seven paid-up people. Well, it grew to ten with Lance’s renewal and the out-of towners’ renewals as well. The DOM was inpressive and will be reviewed in this month’s Atari 8-bit DOM Review. It will be a bang-up Review, too! WEBSITE REPORT: Since we had nothing to report, the report on the SPACE Website was unavailable. OLD BUSINESS: There was talk of the SPACE Birthday Party last month. It was, as always, a successful meeting because of the Party. The dinner was to die for, and there were plenty of leftovers. NEW BUSINESS: Tom demonstrated a FujiNet for the Apple IIGS computer. Although not an Atari computer, it was still very impressive to see the IIGS in action with the FujiNet. We saw in action the Merlin Pro assembler and the Apple IIGS version of Dig Dug. Tom also demonstrated the Wombat device, which I believe gives the IIGS USB capabilities. It was definitely the highlight of the evening. Now, I would love a FujiNet for the 130XE and XEGS I own. This would be a neat thing to get.
–TABLE OF CONTENTS– PAGE ONE: The President’s Corner Treasurer’s Report Secretary’s Report PAGE TWO: Atari 8-bit DOM Review PAGE FOUR: SPACE Comics Section
There was talk about the CosmosEx floppy drive emulator. They still seem to be having supply chain issues, but I want to ask about how everything is progressing on that next month. Hopefully, they will resume production soon. The Meeting adjourned at 8:10 PM. Well, that concludes the Secretary’s Report. I will return in October with another Report and I should be able to get to the next Meeting to report it accurately. In the words of the late, great Stan Lee… EXCELSIOR! TRIVIA TIME!
Message from Captain Irata: “Are you enraged, SPACE Cadets?! Take it out on Evil Otto and his robots in Berzerk!” HOO-RAH!
Apple co-founders Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak were originally employees at Atari before they formed their now iconic computer firm, now considered one of the world’s most valuable companies today.
It looks like the heads are hugging each other. It’s almost all one line. It’s a nice design. It’s like an optical ilusion. One would have to stare into it to see the effect. Nice job. I will score it now. SCORE: Welcome to another edition of the Atari 8-bit DOM Review! In this Review, we will have the December 2022 DOM, completing the year of 2022 for DOMs. So, let’s get started! December 2022 DOM, Side One
8/10 (80%)
The next file is called ‘Chryzantemy 256,” a 262byte file by Jakub Husak showing blinking pixels and characters on the screen. But, it has a nice musical tune with it. In fact, the music is really good and peppy, plus the fact that I like the tune.
Music:
10
TOTAL SCORE:
20/20 (100% perfect score)
Phaser Cat Games has come out with a game called “Rob ‘N Banks,” a game that is really “Lock and Chase.” “Lock and Chase” is a classic arcade game from Data East that is also for the A2600. This is a clone of that game. It’s like Pac-Man. Avoid the police and grab the loot while robbing the prizes in the middle of the game screen. You play a bank robber, by the way.
The first file on this DOM is called “4Xeen,” by Tr1x. It only shows a blue ready screen and has eight short beeps. It’s only an 8-byte file size. So, there isn’t much there. As of that, there’s not much to tell about it. It’s just beeps. There could be the possibility there is more, but it could be a PAL issue. So, I don’t really know how to score this file. I don’t have enough information. Sorry about that. There’s nothing to score. Therefore, I must apologize for the inconvenience. The next file is called “Las Vegas” by Xeen and Agenda. It shows flashing graphics on the screen. and they are animated at first. This is only 37 bytes in file size. I understand that. It’s flashy and it looks cool. It’s also quiet. Although there’s no sound, it’s actually impressive graphically. It’s also has fluid animation.
The music really carries it well. It’s the best music I have ever heard in a file this small in size. The graphics are simple, yet flashy. Actually, it’s pretty fun to hear it. I will scrore the file now. SCORE: I like this file despite its tiny size. It even reminds of a screen saver for a standard computer. It isn’t much, but it will do in a pinch. I will score this file now. SCORE: Graphics: Animation:
8 10
TOTAL SCORE:
18/20 (90%)
The next file is called “With Eyes No Show.” This is done by an anonymous artist. It is 127 bytes in size and shows two faces locked together in a hugging pattern. It looks simple, yet artistic. I like this. It’s actually elegant in its appearance.
Graphics: Animation: Music: TOTAL SCORE:
8 8 9 25/30 (83%)
The next file is by Peter Dell & Buddy76CD, called “Hawkeye Tunetro.” It has an awesome loading screen showing the Atari 50 logo, commemorating the 50th anniversary of Atari’s founding in 1972. Then it plunges into the Hawkeye Theme. It looks great and sounds better. Great music and graphics make a great file. This is a great file.
This is a conversion from the A5200, which is basically the same as the A8 anyway. I always loved the original version of this game. It’s pretty fun on the old A2600 system. It’s actually pretty slick. The graphics are great and the screens look good. It is definitely a good-looing game. I will score this game now. SCORE:
The loading screen is animated with the beating heart. This is all the graphics there are in this file. I like the file’s looks with the logo. It may be digitized, but that would make it look even better. I will score this file now. SCORE: Graphics:
10
Graphics: Animation: Gameplay: Music/SFX:
9 10 10 10
TOTAL SCORE:
39/40 (98%)
The next file is another game called “Cartfall,” by Bocianu, Tatqoo, and Kaz. In the game you control a shopping cart and guide it through three floors in the level collecting coins before time runs out. This is a fun game, but it’s hard. It’s also got great graphics and sound. It is a challenge. I like this game. It has a great WOW factor. Sure, the game looks simple. But, when you play it, you will find out how tough it is.
I will score this game now. SCORE: Graphics: Gameplay: Animation: Music/SFX:
8 9 10 9
TOTAL SCORE:
36/40 (90%)
“Tale of an Unreleased Space Shooter” is the next file on this DOM, and it is a music track by Roland Voss. It’s a great tune and it is foreboding and full of action. It is a fun tune and great to listen to. Here’s my score: TOTAL SCORE:
10/10 (100% perfect score)
The final file on Side One is called “Laglance,” a picture. It shows two people near a rocket ship that has landed on an unknown planet. It looks interesting. It’s black-and-white in appearance. It looks interesting and strange, but it’s good.
Despite the challenge, it seems a pretty fun game to play. Now, let’s look at the score. 9 10 10 10
TOTAL SCORE:
39/40 (98%)
The next file is another game is called “Pelx and Vox,” by Pawel Banas. You play a little character trying to collect money inside buildings while avoiding the other little character chasing you.
It’s a cool game and an amazing feat in programming. Nice game! I will score this game now. SCORE: Graphics: Gameplay: Music:
10 10 10
TOTAL SCORE:
30/30 (100% perfect score)
Well, this now concludes the Atari 8-bit DOM Review for this month. I will be back with another Review for October. See you then, and Carpe Diem, fellow SPACE Cadets! Thanks for reading.
SCORE: Graphics: Animation: Gameplay: Music/SFX:
The game is slow because of the graphics.It’s very detailed. They is definitely a lot of information in this game, being it takes one whole side of a disk.
It’s a good rendering. I will score this pic now. TOTAL SCORE:
9/10 (90%)
Now onto Side Two of this DOM, which is very interesting.
There is also a car that you must avoid, or it’s game over for you. Actually, it really good.
Side Two:
It looks like a cute and funny game, plus it seems a little challenging. It has funny music and it’s cool. I think you’ll like it. After all, I sure did.
The final file on this DOM takes up all of Side Two. It is a game called “The Neverending Story II,” based on the movie, by Tomas Kratochvil, Pedro, and Gyro, with the English translation by Martin Nemecek. It is a graphics and text adventure game. You play Atreyu, the hero in the story. You play the game like a text adventure, but there are graphics in it in the form of still pictures.
SPACE COMICS SECTION! The Misadventures of A-Man and C.D.
Ferret Fracas!
WANTED! Ideas Suggested for Comics! Please feel free to email The Newsletter Editor! Email Address is on the Last Page of the Newsletter! Thanks!
Vice President: Brian Little E-Mail: demomantna@gmail.com The next SPACE meeting will commence on Friday, September 8, 2023, at 7:30 PM, local time! We hope to see you there! Thanks for coming!
Another Message from Captain Irata: “That’s all she wrote, SPACE Cadets!” HOO-RAH!