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using Manic Miner and Jet Set Willy game engines
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Message: 4751
Author: Daniel
Date: 30/03/2005
Subject: Andrew Broad's list of MM/JSW games and other matters
Hello Everybody,
First of all, thanks to DrUnKeN mAsTeR and Soa1000 for their replies
to my queries.
DrUnKeN mAsTeR, just for the sake of accuracy:
The "F. I. Remix", in my evaluation, has more "new" rooms than you
have mentioned. In fact, there are seven of them: "Entrance to Hades"
[06], "Satans Bog" [12], "Room above the Bitches lair" [13], "The
Shite Room" [29], "Hell the where is this?" [45], "Satans Chamber"
[46] and "Ezzies drink cabinet (sperm bank" [59]), plus there are two
rooms which I would describe as "heavily modified" ("MMMMMM!
Strawberry Mivvi's!" [25] and "The Long Forgotten Abbey" [19]).
In my very subjective evaluation, in "The F. I. Remake" out of the 60
rooms of the game (excluding rooms # 47, 61,62 and 63) there are:
- 14 rooms which I would describe as "new" (technical numbers: 0, 1,
6, 13, 29, 30, 36, 37, 44, 46, 55, 57, 59 and 60);
- 10 rooms which I would describe as "significantly modified"
(numbers 2, 12, 19, 20, 21, 25, 27, 28, 54, 58);
- 18 rooms which I would describe as "slightly or very slightly
modified" (numbers 8, 9, 11, 22, 26, 31, 33, 34, 35, 39, 41, 42, 43,
45, 49, 52, 53, 56);
- 18 rooms which I would describe as "unmodified" (numbers 3, 4, 5,
7, 10, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 23, 24, 32, 38, 40, 48, 50, 51).
If Andrew Broad would allow me to express another little suggestion
about *his* outstanding list of MM/JSW games - in the spirit of
achieving the highest possible "standard of completion", which Andrew
himself evidently professes - I feel that it should somehow be
stressed that "The F.I.T." are three separate games, to do justice to
DrUnKeN mAsTeR's creative effort. And so:
- The "F. I. Resurrection" is obviously a fully-developed game, and
if I might express my opinion, I would advocate that it should occupy
one number on Andrew's list. Perhaps not as "The F.I.T." though, but
under its autonomous name. The fact that the three games form a
trilogy and have been released as a box-set could certainly be
explained in the "Tidbits" section.
- The "F. I. Remix" is clearly a remix, so it should not be an entry
on the list of "proper" JSW 48k games. Honestly, I think it would
fall into a similar category as Darren McCowan's "JSW (Sunday
Afternoon Graphical Remix)", which Andrew describes in the "Tidbits"
section.
In my humble perception, the "Tidbits" section is extremely useful
and a great source of invaluable information. However, I think that
it is much more "nobilitating" for a game to be on a numerical list,
because then it is much more visible - someone just glances at any of
the lists (of Manic Miner, JSW 48k, JSW128k and soon JSW64 games)
and sees the titles immediately, while one has to read the "Tidbits"
more carefully to learn about other creative efforts.
So perhaps Andrew might kindly consider introducing a "subcategory"
of 48k engine games, which would be "remixes", or something like
that. A reasonable definition of "remix" in this case would be a game
generally based very closely on the original "Jet Set Willy", with
modified room graphics and / or sprites, and with some other changes
(like new rooms, but not many of them) which are visible, but not
major enough to consider it a separate game or a "remake". Also, a
finished effort, not just work in progress.
- The proper classification of "The F. I. Remake" is much more
difficult, I think, and I am glad in the end it is Andrew's task
:-) . That's because:
- on the one hand, I believe the game definitely deserves to be
classified somewhere as a separate entry, in order to do full justice
to the author's work, if nothing else. It would be nice to have it on
a numerical list, but:
- on the other hand, taking into account a very subjective criterion
of "fairness", one might wonder whether a 48k game with about 25 %
of "new" rooms, another 15% of "significantly modified" ones, and
around 60 % of "unmodified or very slightly modified" rooms should be
placed beside other games which have, say, 90 or 100 % "new" rooms.
A similar problem, incidentally, arises with Craig Rothwell's "Manic
Miner 7", which has only 5 new rooms, and the rest are the original
ones. So really it is 25% a new game, 75 % the original MM.
Apart from the above, I still think "Party Willy" should occupy two
numbers on the 48k JSW games list. There is also something else -
there are various "Lite" versions of the existing games (quoting from
memory: MM "The Hobbit", "Ma jolie" and " Neighbours - Allana
Truman", JSW: "LOTR", JSW128: "Frosya the Cat", I may have missed
something). Also, Sendy has just announced that "Manic Person" is
definitely going to have an easy mode with alternate colours. So we
have a number of final, but alternative versions. Andrew, I think it
would be nice if your list could reflect this fact as well, perhaps
in another "subcategory", if you decide to create such a thing, or at
least in the "Tidbits" section.
On an unrelated note, I've had a look at the two rooms from
Igor's "JSW64: Manic Miner" and I was very impressed by the graphics.
It's an excellent job, Igor, keep it up!
I've also had a look at Sendy's "The Unlucky Seven" and I see there
are a lot of very good rooms there! If you have no intention
whatsoever to finish the job, Sendy, I think I might have a go at it
and try and make one complete game out of the majority of this
material (probably expanding it in different ways), at some future
point when I have some spare time after polishing and releasing "JSW
- The 2005 Megamix". How about that?
Daniel
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