tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6264881409789872629.post111858744039284617..comments2024-03-28T18:16:41.746-04:00Comments on Data Driven Gamer: Ultima III: Won!Ahabhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04131989140638867919noreply@blogger.comBlogger11125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6264881409789872629.post-30493940954528918722021-06-28T19:38:03.671-04:002021-06-28T19:38:03.671-04:00"Voyager Dragon"? What are you talking, ..."Voyager Dragon"? What are you talking, man? It's the Exodus Project upgrades.<br /><br />http://exodus.voyd.net/projects/<br /><br />Also, thinking again and seeing that the project also fixes quite a few U2 bugs and UI improvements while still offering original CGA support, it may be worthwhile to check them out with the CGA Composite DOSBox version if you want to get the original look and feel.schrottvogelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08633709582603706577noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6264881409789872629.post-28978105022573722012021-06-28T19:35:51.692-04:002021-06-28T19:35:51.692-04:00This comment has been removed by the author.schrottvogelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08633709582603706577noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6264881409789872629.post-21493781925836202882021-06-28T19:30:54.664-04:002021-06-28T19:30:54.664-04:00I really respect the Voyager Dragon upgrades, but ...I really respect the Voyager Dragon upgrades, but I just want to play the originals, so I stuck to the bloody CGA palette. However, a few weeks ago, I stumbled upon a new DOSBox branch that features decent Composite emulation that can be switched on or off. It works great and playing U2 and U3 with it is much, MUCH more pleasant. <br /><br />https://www.vogons.org/viewtopic.php?f=41&t=12319&start=740<br /><br />It was created by none other than VileR, Reenigne and Trixter -- the geniuses [genii?] who showed how to get 1024 colors on the much-maligned original CGA card a few years ago:<br /><br />https://int10h.org/blog/2015/04/cga-in-1024-colors-new-mode-illustrated/<br />schrottvogelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08633709582603706577noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6264881409789872629.post-82505963922215099462021-03-04T19:40:45.001-05:002021-03-04T19:40:45.001-05:00Yes! Enjoyed seeing one of the early ones from my...Yes! Enjoyed seeing one of the early ones from my own timestream!<br />arthurdawghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04269435724709435094noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6264881409789872629.post-19382394675608543102021-03-01T23:40:38.982-05:002021-03-01T23:40:38.982-05:00I think I loaded up an upgraded version for a few ...I think I loaded up an upgraded version for a few hours maybe 4-5 years ago that was in EGA or VGA. Primitive, but anything beats CGA. I had forgotten about even playing around with it until you mentioned the composite option.<br />arthurdawghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15045699163846794998noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6264881409789872629.post-17987365801836288572021-03-01T13:33:48.375-05:002021-03-01T13:33:48.375-05:00FWIW, it looks better in composite. There's al...FWIW, it looks better in composite. There's also an upgrade patch by Voyager Dragon that includes a graphics mode that simulates the 16-color CGA composite look, but without the slightly fuzzy look that comes with actual composite graphics.Ahabhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04131989140638867919noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6264881409789872629.post-61911903736730351372021-03-01T01:02:07.776-05:002021-03-01T01:02:07.776-05:00Oh yeah... I played Ultima III with good ole CGA g...Oh yeah... I played Ultima III with good ole CGA graphics... yech!<br />arthurdawghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15045699163846794998noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6264881409789872629.post-77664699846523595992021-03-01T01:01:30.602-05:002021-03-01T01:01:30.602-05:00I think I mentioned earlier in your series that Ul...I think I mentioned earlier in your series that Ultima III was basically the first real CRPG I completed... previously I had played a ton of Tunnels of Doom on my TI, but was basically a neophyte at CRPGs till then. I played the IBM conversion when it came out in 1987 and finished in 1988. I haven't seen most of those screenshots in 33 years!<br /><br />I've read a good deal about the Ultima series over the year, and often Akalabeth, Ultima I, and Ultima II are mentioned as Garriot developing the programming skills to give us the Ultima III to VII Part 2 run that was the golden age of the series.<br /><br />But... in reference to your comments about the pacing of the game... and the limited interactions of the game... I've always felt III was really more the final learning effort before we saw the mature efforts and development of the later titles.<br /><br />None the less... enjoyed your recent blog series on III and the good memories it brought back!arthurdawghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15045699163846794998noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6264881409789872629.post-56741252365208621672021-02-28T18:25:24.149-05:002021-02-28T18:25:24.149-05:00My guess is the ease of programming 6502 assembly ...My guess is the ease of programming 6502 assembly and also saving memory. With exact string matching you would need a dictionary of verbs in RAM at all times, but with this approach each "word" only has to be two bytes.Ahabhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04131989140638867919noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6264881409789872629.post-85886704199731066522021-02-28T13:48:37.955-05:002021-02-28T13:48:37.955-05:00An excellent series of articles as always. I, too...An excellent series of articles as always. I, too, had this on the NES, and basically never got much of anywhere.Phil B.https://www.blogger.com/profile/05475356898895545940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6264881409789872629.post-47377471742514105822021-02-28T12:38:54.407-05:002021-02-28T12:38:54.407-05:00I wonder why they would code the game that way (re...I wonder why they would code the game that way (re: EVOCARE). Did it have something to do with difficulty of doing string comparisons in whatever language they were using, or did they just want to make it so a typo didn't ruin your experience? <br /><br />I first played this game on the NES; a friend owned it but we never figured out how to get very far.Kurisuhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00132568197501054206noreply@blogger.com