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intric8
Seattle, WA, USA

Posted Mon Oct 29, 2018 3:04 pm

Quick update. Today I asked Andreas Larrson (aka JackAsser) if his EotB game would also support the numberpad found on the C128/D models.

He quickly responded:
Screen Shot 2018-10-29 at 2.25.38 PM.png
Simply fantastic news!

User avatar
intric8
Seattle, WA, USA

Posted Thu Jan 17, 2019 5:50 pm

Latest teaser video showing the work being down for the Intro. Just epic.

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Zippy Zapp
CA, USA

Posted Fri Jan 18, 2019 7:43 am

That is simply stunning. Fantastic work so far.

Keep up the good work.

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G8rduc
North Florida

Posted Mon Feb 11, 2019 6:37 am

intric8 wrote:Latest teaser video showing the work being down for the Intro. Just epic.

Curious, I don't know the back story, is there a rift with Ubisoft and they don't want a retro release?

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intric8
Seattle, WA, USA

Posted Sun Oct 27, 2019 7:40 am

This project has entered the final stages. Some fully playable demos are starting to leak. Andreas Larsson (aka JackAsser) told me yesterday that he expects the final port to ship in early 2020.

He first started tinkering with porting the game way back in 2006, and has several off and on attempts since. But in 2018 he decided to go all-in now thanks in no small part due to the rise of Ultimate carts and other solid state storage solutions.

Larsson:
Intro and ending animation scenes are done now graphically. I just need to pull my lazy ass together and actually code them. THEN the game is done.

So I do these two public beta tests now to iron out some more bugs. Then I suppose we need some more rounds of beta testing. Each time I've done a full run of the game I've always found a hand full of bugs. They are getting quite minor now, but still.
I offered to be an NTSC 128DCR beta tester, if he's looking for any help in that department. :)

We're really close! As such, I installed it on my A1000 to refresh my memory.
eotha1000.jpg

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intric8
Seattle, WA, USA

Posted Fri Oct 08, 2021 12:32 pm

One more update as this amazing port gets closer to an official release.

It's actually going to be *THE* KILLER APP for C128 users (in 64 mode)!
  • FULL 1351 mouse support
  • NUMPAD support for movement
  • 2Mhz support!
And... (drumroll) Larsson has implemented full c128 VDC-CHIP support for a 2nd screen, so you can then use the (new) auto-map feature on a 2nd screen in REAL TIME! BAM!

:commodore: <3 :joystick:
EotB-dualScreen.jpg
Photo by Andreas Larsson. Please don't re-use or distribute w/o permission.


Worth noting: Larsson has also made it so that you can run this game in 48 Mhz mode if you have a C64 Ultimate. (!)

I'll be going the C128 route with that dual screen action, but 48Mhz? Holy smoke!

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fxgogo
Twickenham , U.K.

Posted Mon Oct 11, 2021 3:24 am

Oh no!!! You now have driven the prices of C128's even higher. He He. Defintely will be running this on my emulation station.

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intric8
Seattle, WA, USA

Posted Mon Nov 21, 2022 7:15 pm

It has been released for FREE download as of today!

If you get on their email newsletter list, you'll get notified about a possible physical cartridge kickstarter later. But for now download and enjoy.

Some C128 Bonuses:
- 2Mhz!
- 1351 Mouse! (works with C64, too)
- Dual Monitor support, for the auto-map!

intro_throne_room_bo.png
dungeon_red_02_bo.png
dungeon_blue_03_bo.png
dungeon_map_bo.png

User avatar
intric8
Seattle, WA, USA

Posted Wed Nov 30, 2022 9:14 pm

If you haven't had the chance to download this game and run it (either on real hardware or emulation) I can't stress hard enough what a stunning achievement this work is. The technical and artistic brilliance of this game are staggering, and honestly hard for me to even comprehend even when I'm watching it in real-time on my own machines. It looks like an Amiga game!

The music in the intro is so beautiful, and so hard to believe what I'm hearing, it puts a lump in my throat.

I made a quick 1-minute "short" of the intro for those that haven't had the time to check this game out yet. It's easily one of the most remarkable things I've ever seen (and played) on Commodore hardware.

User avatar
intric8
Seattle, WA, USA

Posted Fri Dec 02, 2022 6:23 pm

Is anyone else here playing this game yet?

I'm playing on my C128D(cr) and Ultimate II+. As such, I ran into a weird “bug” with Eye of the Beholder last night.

Because EotB is so large it is suggested to use an EasyFlash or Ultimate ii+. However, with EasyFlash “C128/C128D use is not currently supported.” In theory that’s not actually true, but I don’t have one anyway.

So for me that leaves the Ultimate ii+. However, if you enable EotB’s Turbo Mode, this will cause an instant crash when combined with the Uii+ (the screen text even warns users of this; I tested it and it was indeed true). Unfortunately, that means I can’t use the 2Mhz mode (supposedly a fix is in the works).
Anyway, there are still huge advantages to using the C128/D, however. So I’ve been playing off the Uii+ and having a lot of fun.

The problem with using the Uii+, however, is you only get one save slot. At least, that’s what I read. If you want additional save slots you’re highly encouraged to save to a real floppy disk.

In order to do so, I learned you need to format a floppy disk first then go for it (making sure you select the correct Device # when you’re ready to save your game’s progress).

All this makes sense, right?

Here’s where things get strange.

Last night I’m playing and I go to save my progress. This is the 5th or 6th Save I’ve made on my 5.25" disk. I’m on Level 2 and like to do periodic saves in case I feel the need to backtrack. It’s a habit of mine with most Dungeon Crawlers. :ghost:

I’m told my Save Disk is Full. I didn't have the ability to create a newly formatted disk so I lost my progress.

In this version of EotB, you don’t select save slots like in a lot of games. You literally save to a blank disk and it just keeps adding file one after another. So now, in order to continue, I need to either scratch/delete files on my save disk (hope I pick the right ones!) or format a 2nd disk. Load from Save-Disk 1 and save to Save-Disk 2; then re-Format Save-Disk 1 again and be prepared to manage these disks this way going forward.





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