Iron Sphere Mapping Tool

Here is a screen shot of the mapping tool I wrote in C#. It converted the data file from the Z80 version of the game. Now it saves the data as a json file which is easily read in by the Python code.

Iron Sphere for the PC ?

Here is my first blog post of 2016. I had planned to spend the year playing games rather than writing them. Of course that was never going to happen but for a change it's not a ZX Spectrum game. Well it's not written in Z80. As I decided to learn Python, what better way than by writing a game using it? But what to write? It didn't take long for me to decide to rewrite one of my early games, Iron Sphere. Where as the original was a flip screen game, my PC version would be a fully scrolling game. I extracted the original game data and converted it in to a json file. This is loaded in to the game along with other data files that describe the graphics and their functionality. This makes the game very data driven and should allow modifications to be made without the need for code changes. When this is finished, I may well rewrite it again using Unity (the game engine not the dependency injection framework). Here is a screenshot of the game. I'll upload a short video at some point to show the movement.

 

 

Free Download of the Infeasible Game

The Infeasible Game can be downloaded here: One Drive

 

Run this on a ZX Spectrum emulator set to emulate a 128k version for in-game music. It's free so why wait.

The Infeasible Game - Ready for release.

My new ZX Spectrum game is now ready and is shared on the internet. I have only given the details to Cronosoft for the moment. This will be a free download for everyone to enjoy. I had planned to release it almost a year ago for Christmas 2014. As always, things didn't go to plan and then I moved house. After dealing with a few bugs it is now in a state where I am happy to let the public play it. As far as I can tell there are no show-stopper bugs but if any get reported I'll update the game on the share. Keep watching for more news soon.

The Infeasible Game - Level editor

Here is a picture of the tool I use to create the levels. I produced it quickly so the tiles on the main grid are letters rather than the actual tile images. If I can be bothered I'll fix this but at the moment the tool is fine for creating and editing the levels.

The level data is output in a format I can past into my assembler. One byte is used for each tile. This byte holds the type of tile, its vertical position and whether there are other tiles in the same column. It also holds some other details that I'll be keeping to myself :)

The tool is a winform application written using C#.

The infeasible game - new for 2015

I've almost finished another game for the ZX Spectrum. This will be two games in twelve months. A first for me. It is based on "The Impossible Game" which can be played on mobile devices and PC. I decided the Spectrum needed a version so I created "The Infeasible Game". Here is a short video taken from the first level (the easy bit). It is also running at "easy" speed. Give it a go on infeasible speed if you want a challenge.

 

 

ShapeShifter now available to buy

ShapeShifter is now available to buy from Cronosoft: http://cronosoft.orgfree.com/ I received my copy a few days ago and will be adding it to my growing collection. If you want to try before you buy there is a playable demo here: http://1drv.ms/UIuGYo