Resource centre for ZX Spectrum games
using Manic Miner and Jet Set Willy game engines
II. Jet Set Willy (JSW48)
A. New games using Matthew Smith's original Jet Set Willy game engine for the 48K Spectrum and its modifications
50. Madam Blavskja's Carnival Macabre 48K Edition
Author of the original 128K game: Fabián Álvarez López (Adban de Corcy)
Year of release of the original 128K game: 2002
Author of the transfer to 48K: Daniel Gromann
Year of release of the 48K edition: 2020
Language: English
The original edition of Madam Blavskja's Carnival Macabre is a JSW128 game. This engine was chosen by the game's author, Fabián Álvarez López (Adban de Corcy), "to include more graphics for guardians, not more rooms". The game indeed features more guardian sprites than can be fitted into a standard JSW48 game using JSWED's GUI; it also uses other features requiring additional memory space, such as two guardian tables and teleportation. However, it has "only" 61 rooms (well within the standard capabilities of the JSW48 game engine) and it does not use any features that would be hard to reproduce in the JSW48 game engine, such as diagonal guardians.
Since it seemed possible to squeeze all of Madam Blavskja's Carnival Macabre into 48K, Daniel Gromann undertook this challenge for the sake of the owners of 48K Spectrums and the users of emulators which only emulate 48K machines. He carried it out using various optimisations both of his own invention and created previously by other authors. This exercise in efficient use of memory space resulted more successful than initially planned. As a result, not only was the whole original game packed into 48K, but it was also enhanced with new elements, such as a custom-made title screen, a total of eight in-game tunes (including a victory tune), and a special Game Completed screen.
Enough memory space was also found for several new rooms. After pressing ENTER to start the game, the player is given a choice to play either the original game or with extra rooms. The former is a faithful rendition of the 128K Madam Blavskja's Carnival Macabre. The latter enriches it with five additional rooms and some new guardian classes and sprites.
Ian Rushforth collaborated with Daniel during the later stage of the project, making significant contributions to its various technical aspects, providing a new title-screen tune and valuable input to the Readme.
Fabián Álvarez López kindly supported the release of the 48K edition of his game and provided a description of the original rooms (which was not included with the 128K edition) and some current comments.
Madam Blavskja's Carnival Macabre 48K Edition was first announced publicly on 1st March 2020, 18 years to the day after the release of the original 128K edition, and gamma-released ten days later.
When the player chooses to play the original game:
Number of rooms accessible without cheating: 61
Number of rooms which need to be visited to complete the game: 61
Number of items to collect: 246
Bugfix needed after original release? NO
Spare lives at the start: 7
Completable without loss of life? YES
Starting time: 7:00 am
Best documented completion time with no loss of life: 7:55 am
When the player chooses to play with extra rooms:
Number of rooms accessible without cheating: 66
Number of rooms which need to be visited to complete the game: 65
("The Carnival's macabre fence" [55] can be omitted as the items visible there can be collected in other rooms thanks to the 'bilocated items' effect.)
Number of items to collect: 256
Bugfix needed after original release? NO
Spare lives at the start: 7
Completable without loss of life? YES
Starting time: 7:00 am
Best documented completion time with no loss of life: 8:03 am
Download links
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The game's home page on JSW Corner |
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48K Edition ZIP file, including the game file in TAP and TZX formats, the Readme, a ZXK file for playing on the Vega/Vega+, a 2020 Readme written by Fabián Álvarez López, the original 128K edition game files in TAP, TZX and Z80 formats, bugfixed 128K edition game files in TAP and TZX formats and some historical screenshots |
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Game file in TAP and TZX formats |
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The page of the original 128K edition on WoS (does not include the 48K edition yet) |
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The game's page on Spectrum Computing |
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The map of the original 128K edition on Speccy Screenshot Maps |
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RZX walkthroughs of the game, played both with the original rooms only and with the extra rooms |
Videos
A walkthrough of game while playing with the five extra rooms on the JSW Central YouTube channel
A walkthrough of game while playing with the original rooms only on the JSW Central YouTube channel
Screenshot gallery |
Rooms from the original 128K edition
New rooms
The game's endings
