Editorial: Scene+ #8

Editorial

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Hello!

In the previous issue, an error crept in: the issue number shouldn't have been 006, and that wasn't due to a missing license (from 007, James Bond).

Talks regarding SCORPIONS are still underway. However, since I don't know the exact demand yet, I cannot say whether I can afford the licensing fees. In any case, the translation is already 99% done, the cassette inlay is ready, and I will only start working on the manual once everything is cleared up. The whole point of this effort is to give me the opportunity to distribute Russian software in Europe, as hardly anyone else has the means to obtain these games (and translated, no less!), and at a price that would be nearly impossible with other companies for such complex software! So whoever is interested in buying the game, please contact me — whether from Austria, Germany, England, or anywhere else in the world. The price will be around 10 DM, and anyone who misses out has only themselves to blame if no new games are offered in the future.

What will I code once Legacy is finished? I have a few ideas, but the one I like most is making a monthly "soap opera" computer game that would appear inside SCENE. It would be unique in the computer world and replace the worn-out cliché of standard storylines. There are several proposals, but the one with the most potential is expanding a rather old idea from my childhood: CHRONOION, the tale of a time traveler. I will share more details once the time comes. In any case, I'll use the same engine as in Legacy.

This month, I attended the Spectrum Party Summer'96 in Lubań (Poland), where members of Illusion (I'm one of them, after all!) held a meeting. Two Exodus members were also present, and had I stayed longer, I would have met Omega as well. Unfortunately, I couldn't stay a whole week, as SCENE still needed to be finished. Jordan brought his latest demo: Dies Irae. Sadly, my copy was poorly recorded, so it will appear on SCENE+ later. It is an unbelievable demo! The 3D part alone is Oscar-worthy!

Nevertheless, I didn't come home empty-handed: Ravers Paradise is the newest demo from Illusion, which SCENE+ readers get to see exclusively first, and Auto Concentration, which I got from Maniu, proves that Polish coders appreciate games as well. As far as I know, this game wasn't widely distributed, so it's exclusive too! Jordan somehow convinced me to brush up on my assembly skills; what he achieved in Dies Irae alone proves that machine code allows for far more than I previously thought possible.

Now to a point from SUC-Session 8/96: I was quoted in connection with SPC in the article "SPC versus SUC", claiming that next time I would attend the SUC meeting instead of the SPC club meeting. That is largely true, but the context was somewhat distorted. When comparing driving distances (and thus fuel costs), I have to cover about 1000 km to Cologne, whereas Stuttgart is only about 600 km away — and my car certainly doesn't belong to the fuel-efficient category. Furthermore, I thought Wolfgang would be coming to Filderstadt anyway; now he mentioned that it won't work out due to moving, which changed the situation in retrospect. Thus, I am not taking an anti-SPC stance; I'm simply trying to save some money. I remain fully PRO both clubs, and if finances allow (new job!), I will also attend the SPC meeting. In other words: just like last time, I'll try to be the first to arrive and the last to leave.

A sensation is also brewing from Russia: the Spectrum Pentagon can now be ordered. Specs: 3.5–7 MHz Z80H CPU with turbo switch!, no slow RAM throttled by the ULA, 128 KB RAM (expandable!), built-in Beta Disk interface, AY sound chip, and a special multicolor mode like in Timex. All specifications without guarantee. The price is around $100 plus shipping. Once I get a sample, detailed tests will follow, and I wouldn't be averse to organizing a bulk order. If only for the 7 MHz mode, these machines will likely sell out quickly. By the way, in Russia, the Spectrum is the most popular platform and even outshines the PC (Yeah!). By now, there are many Speccy-compatible clones like Hobbit, Scorpion, and Pentagon, so the Speccy will probably remain #1.

More NEWS: Contrary to claims in Satisfaction, Code Busters from Russia have released another new demo. What they offer is phenomenal! The 3D tunnel is one of the best parts; anyone seeing it will be stunned. More details once I receive the demo from Jordan of EXODUS.

WoMo Team has moved; the new address is:
Penningsfelder Weg 98 a, D-51069 Cologne.

The situation regarding SUC remains tense.

Karl Ranseier is dead! More details on the RTL Saturday Night Show.

Recently spotted at BILLA: "Mega Basic Driver in cans" (according to the ingredients, it's an energy drink); unfortunately, it cannot be copied to cassette or disk.

Last Minute: Members of Exodus and Illusion are working on ProTracker, which will support samples. As far as I know, it will be distributed free of charge. Since members of both groups want to buy an MB02 and were equally thrilled by the +D, my pleas for mercy might be answered with an MB02/+D version.

ZX Land 6, which should most likely appear this year or next, might finally feature 42 characters per line instead of 32, but the editor's author seems to have issues with some special characters. Unlike our 4 special characters, the Polish language has 9! I have already seen Polish Tasword and must say it turned out better than ours, as the special characters (all placed below CHR$ 32) remain visible in 32-column mode as well. An absolute novelty in ZX Land 6 will be that it loads files from BASIC, making it easily adaptable for +D (my request was heard).

The Illusion part for First Association is ready and looks very good, as do the 1 KB intros for Demobit, scheduled for October.

Not for Children II is in preparation! It will feature even better graphics than Part 1. It is already strictly forbidden to load NFC II if you are under 16!

For those interested: the Timex has a design flaw — the Hi-Res/Multicolor ULA is an SMD chip, making it hard to replace, and running it on a standard Speccy is still impossible; thanks to the Pentagon, that might not even be necessary!

Starting with SCENE 10/96, there will be some cosmetic changes to the text viewer, and possibly to the main menu, mainly inspired by ZX Land.

Well, that's the news. Hopefully, I'll have even more next month, but that won't happen without your participation. If you think what you're doing is interesting, let me know! If it weren't for WoMo, FPD, Technium 220, ILSN, and Exodus, these pages would look pretty empty...