Ultima Ultima IV Remastered now available for the C64

[Ladonna]

Yeah, sorry Luzur. As much as I love the C64, and as much as I will keep on enjoying my own, its official life ended back in the early 90's when no more were manufactured.

Now where the fuck were you earlier in the thread when I was defending it against those other two?

 

[Joined on the 4th of July]

Thanks for advice Daemongar and Ladonna, but having to acquire additional equipment might be a bit too much for me. Anyways, this thread inspired me to pull out my C64 and try it out. Seems to be working fine. (Played a bit of Maniac Mansion.) It also looks like I could use a VGA cable too...

Psytronik still sells new C64 games, although I think it's not a huge business.

 

[Luzur]

Yeah, sorry Luzur. As much as I love the C64, and as much as I will keep on enjoying my own, its official life ended back in the early 90's when no more were manufactured.

Now where the fuck were you earlier in the thread when I was defending it against those other two?

I am sorry, didnt noticed the thread before.

 

[Jarpie]

Now I'm going to go out on a limb, but I don't think the original U4 for the C64 was compatible with Epyx Fastload, nor did it include a Fastload routine (I don't remember, but this site says it didn't. I do remember that the game took a long time to get to the intro screen.)

I agree with you wholeheartedly on the programmers, though. It is pretty damn amazing what they could do with 4x 170k disks.

The same trick probably works as with Action Replay 6 and Ultima 5 : load game to the main menu, create savestate to another floppy disk, load the game straight to the mainmenu from the savestate and enable fastload from AR6.

 

[Daemongar]

The same trick probably works as with Action Replay 6 and Ultima 5 : load game to the main menu, create savestate to another floppy disk, load the game straight to the mainmenu from the savestate and enable fastload from AR6.

Interesting to think about but I don't think I'll ever find out - I'm pretty content to use a good emulator so I can enjoy the game without loosing my mind while it loads.

Also, anyone who is interested, there is a published list of the changes in this version of Ulitma IV - not quite enough to make me want to play the whole game over, but I may boot it up and see the conversations I missed for the sake of completeness.

Looks like there is a cheat menu in there which allows you to skip combat... now that would be nice to run through the game and just avoid combat entirely for those who have played it already. That may be how I'll do it if I play the game at all, but then how do you get an eighth in valor...

 

[Jarpie]

The same trick probably works as with Action Replay 6 and Ultima 5 : load game to the main menu, create savestate to another floppy disk, load the game straight to the mainmenu from the savestate and enable fastload from AR6.

Interesting to think about but I don't think I'll ever find out - I'm pretty content to use a good emulator so I can enjoy the game without loosing my mind while it loads.

Also, anyone who is interested, there is a published list of the changes in this version of Ulitma IV - not quite enough to make me want to play the whole game over, but I may boot it up and see the conversations I missed for the sake of completeness.

Yeah, my friend figured out that trick in the early 90s when he was playing it on C64 and hated the loading times. If I'll play Ultima 5 again, I think it'll be the patched PC-version from here.

But there are these things too, still needs fastloader afaik. Edit: Apparently SD2IEC is much faster than the regular floppies so no need for fastloaders.

 

[Ladonna]

SD2IECs are the same speed as a 1541 dd, however, loading becomes almost instant when a fast loader or jiffydos are used.

Just thought I would mention that I am fairly certain the Codex pic during rolls is from the C64 version of UIV if anyone can confirm.

 

[Jarpie]

SD2IECs are the same speed as a 1541 dd, however, loading becomes almost instant when a fast loader or jiffydos are used.

Just thought I would mention that I am fairly certain the Codex pic during rolls is from the C64 version of UIV if anyone can confirm.

That does look like C64 version.

 

[Grauken]

I don't really think efforts like that are futile, even if their target group is rather minimal. If you already played through the series via the upgraded PC versions a few times, want another run at them but this with a slightly different style, then having an upgraded C64 version is rather nice. And I really like the aesthetics, feels like a high quality demake

 

[Bumvelcrow]

That does look like C64 version.

I'd certainly play a slightly graphically enhanced C64 version with faster load times over any other version. I was very disappointed by the amiga version when I bought it - game and packaging. Looking at that image reminds me of faking injury and illness so I could play it when I should have been at school. Now I'm reading about it when I should be working - Plus ça change.

 

[Mermaid]

I'd try this and some other newer C64 games if there was some convenient way for me to transfer disk images to floppies.

I'd be happy to arrange a 5,25" disk with the game for you if you want to try our version on your C64. You can send me a pm here, or contact me on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cheesepirate

As for the comments about this being a waste of time, how only 27 people in the world still use their C64, etc., there are a few more active C64 users than you think - so far 1313 people have downloaded our new version of the game, in addition to all the people who got physical copies at the event where it was released. Magervalp loves this game, and we both love the Commodore 64, so even if that number was 27 and not 1313 we'd still have done it.

5,25" version, 3,5" version, cartridge version:

 

[Mermaid]

V2.1 was just released, with a few more bugfixes. It can be downloaded here: http://csdb.dk/release/?id=137617

What's New in v2.1:

* Saving to EasyFlash cartridges that don't use Am29F040 chips (including Chameleon) now works.
* Exit solo mode if character leaves combat.
* Don't spawn a ship when pressing B while standing on a ladder in a dungeon.
* Joshua courage -> canrage typo.
* Fixed east/west start positions in Destard rooms on level 8.
* Removed glitch when attacking sick people in townes.
* Play correct music after dying and being resurrected by Lord British.
* Fixed wind status after loading a game in a dungeon and then exiting.
* Clarified the recommendation for emulator users when flipping d64s.
* Proper error message in editor if no savegame is found in cartridge.

 

[Jarpie]

I'd love to get FM-Towns version of Ultima 4 as afaik it uses Ultima 5 engine, best of the both worlds.

 

[DwarvenFood]

Thanks for stopping by Mermaid and respect for this - The C64 will always hold a special place in my heart

 

[neilsouth]

Today's news sees the release of Ultima IV Remastered v2.1 with even further updates and fixes that is a recommendation for anyone currently playing Ultima IV.

http://www.indieretronews.com/2015/04/ultima-iv-remastered-v21-now-available.html#more


oops dupe of Mermaid :D

 

[Mermaid]

The source code has been released now, in case anyone wants to use it as a basis for fixing the Apple II/Atari 8bit versions of Ultima IV:

http://magervalp.github.io/2015/04/12/u4-remastered-on-github.html

 

[Ladonna]

A cartridge version? How much is that? And from where? And how would you update a cartridge version with bug fixes?

Another aside, did anyone 'attack' a chest dropped by one of the towns folk after killing them and have to fight an ankh? I remember doing that back in the day by accident. Is that supposed to happen?

 

[Luzur]

Looks like the C64 version was used for the Codex banner, atleast to my eyes.

 

[Unkillable Cat]

Really liking this version so far, and probably won't complete this, but still having fun. The part that jumped out the most so far is this

RG wrote this in 1984 or thereabout. He spoke of "the soil and stain of high tech living", when 300 baud BBS's were in their infancy, and most computers were C64s and every PC was running very early versions of DOS. Everything was still 6-8 weeks for delivery, and almost all printers were either daisy wheel or dot-matrix, and both were serial. It's shocking how far things have gone in the 30 years since he wrote that statement about high-tech living.

The writing was on the wall in the early 80s, though it seems very few bothered to read it. I lived through the 80s, and compared to today they feel like they were at the start of the 20th century, that's how fast society is going now. There's a term in Icelandic for old people that lived through the modernization of our society after WWII, it's said that they "have lived through two different eras". I'm 36 and I feel like I've lived through four different eras by now. And they keep getting worse.

 

[Mermaid]

A cartridge version? How much is that? And from where? And how would you update a cartridge version with bug fixes?

The game itself is free (we don't sell cartridges or disks, we're not making any money on this game) and the .crt image is included in the download, if you want to use the cartridge version you can either:

1) use the .crt file and mount it in a C64 emulator like Vice - unlike the disk images, loading will be instant, so if you're playing in an emulator I would use the cartridge version. You can find Vice for many different platforms here: http://vice-emu.sourceforge.net/ - after Vice has started, select File -> Attach cartridge image -> CRT image, and then select the Ultima .crt image in the file requester.

2) flash the .crt image on an EasyFlash cartridge or any other piece of C64 hardware that supports the EasyFlash cartridge format. These cartridges can be reflashed on the Commodore 64 with updated versions of the games (or new games when you tire of the old ones). The latest version (the Easy Flash 3) has room for 7 EasyFlash cartridge images - it supports other cartridge formats as well, and has a few additional features. The Easy Flash 3 will set you back ~$65 fully assembled while older versions can be found fully assembled on ebay or elsewhere for around $36, even cheaper if you buy a build-it-yourself kit (~$25) or just the PCB+case (~$13). You would also need a way to transfer the file to your C64 for flashing (usually onto an SD card using an SD2IEC or similar solution for the C64, or a 3,5" 1581 floppy disk).

A few old games have been fixed for the EasyFlash, and at least one was specifically written for it, the C64 version of Prince of Persia: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdwHe4lO8as - it can be downloaded for free from http://csdb.dk/release/?id=102540 if you want to give it a try in the emulator. Commando Arcade, a completely rewritten version of Commando also has an EasyFlash version: http://csdb.dk/release/?id=137173 - if you search for easyflash on csdb.dk you will find a bunch of fixed games and compilations of games for the EF.

 

[Luzur]

Really liking this version so far, and probably won't complete this, but still having fun. The part that jumped out the most so far is this

RG wrote this in 1984 or thereabout. He spoke of "the soil and stain of high tech living", when 300 baud BBS's were in their infancy, and most computers were C64s and every PC was running very early versions of DOS. Everything was still 6-8 weeks for delivery, and almost all printers were either daisy wheel or dot-matrix, and both were serial. It's shocking how far things have gone in the 30 years since he wrote that statement about high-tech living.

The writing was on the wall in the early 80s, though it seems very few bothered to read it. I lived through the 80s, and compared to today they feel like they were at the start of the 20th century, that's how fast society is going now. There's a term in Icelandic for old people that lived through the modernization of our society after WWII, it's said that they "have lived through two different eras". I'm 36 and I feel like I've lived through four different eras by now. And they keep getting worse.

Pretty much of how ive felt, so far, too.

 

[Ladonna]

A cartridge version? How much is that? And from where? And how would you update a cartridge version with bug fixes?

The game itself is free (we don't sell cartridges or disks, we're not making any money on this game) and the .crt image is included in the download, if you want to use the cartridge version you can either:

1) use the .crt file and mount it in a C64 emulator like Vice - unlike the disk images, loading will be instant, so if you're playing in an emulator I would use the cartridge version. You can find Vice for many different platforms here: http://vice-emu.sourceforge.net/ - after Vice has started, select File -> Attach cartridge image -> CRT image, and then select the Ultima .crt image in the file requester.

2) flash the .crt image on an EasyFlash cartridge or any other piece of C64 hardware that supports the EasyFlash cartridge format. These cartridges can be reflashed on the Commodore 64 with updated versions of the games (or new games when you tire of the old ones). The latest version (the Easy Flash 3) has room for 7 EasyFlash cartridge images - it supports other cartridge formats as well, and has a few additional features. The Easy Flash 3 will set you back ~$65 fully assembled while older versions can be found fully assembled on ebay or elsewhere for around $36, even cheaper if you buy a build-it-yourself kit (~$25) or just the PCB+case (~$13). You would also need a way to transfer the file to your C64 for flashing (usually onto an SD card using an SD2IEC or similar solution for the C64, or a 3,5" 1581 floppy disk).

A few old games have been fixed for the EasyFlash, and at least one was specifically written for it, the C64 version of Prince of Persia: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mdwHe4lO8as - it can be downloaded for free from http://csdb.dk/release/?id=102540 if you want to give it a try in the emulator. Commando Arcade, a completely rewritten version of Commando also has an EasyFlash version: http://csdb.dk/release/?id=137173 - if you search for easyflash on csdb.dk you will find a bunch of fixed games and compilations of games for the EF.

That is great mermaid. Thank you.

I normally use the real thing, but the thought of instant loading is hard to beat. I have used VICE plenty of times but never bothered with CRT files...

Which leads me to another question that perhaps you can answer; There are many CRPGs on the C64 which, while being great versions (my favourite versions usually), take a bit of patience in the loading department/disk swapping. How difficult is it to transform these games into cartridge file games as has been done with Ultima IV?

 

[Mermaid]

There are many CRPGs on the C64 which, while being great versions (my favourite versions usually), take a bit of patience in the loading department/disk swapping. How difficult is it to transform these games into cartridge file games as has been done with Ultima IV?

I passed your question on to Magervalp and he replied:

"I'm afraid that depends on the game and what you consider difficult. If you're comfortable cracking games, know how to incorporate a stream/level cruncher in your code, and understand the EasyFlash developer documentation all you need is some time and a game you care about. If you're looking for a good first EasyFlash RPG project I can recommend Ultima III, the loader is very straightforward."

 

[Joined on the 4th of July]

I'd try this and some other newer C64 games if there was some convenient way for me to transfer disk images to floppies.

I'd be happy to arrange a 5,25" disk with the game for you if you want to try our version on your C64. You can send me a pm here, or contact me on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/cheesepirate

Thanks for the offer, but I probably have to decline it for now.

VGA connector would make it much easier keeping my C64 set up and ready to go (as opposed to throwing it back into closet every time after use). Maybe a good enough excuse to finally start my soldering hobby...

How would this 'arrangement' exactly work out by the way?


---

(lol, I started doing some Basic and 6502 Assembler tutorials. only on emu though.)

 

[Luzur]

There are many CRPGs on the C64 which, while being great versions (my favourite versions usually), take a bit of patience in the loading department/disk swapping. How difficult is it to transform these games into cartridge file games as has been done with Ultima IV?

I passed your question on to Magervalp and he replied:

"I'm afraid that depends on the game and what you consider difficult. If you're comfortable cracking games, know how to incorporate a stream/level cruncher in your code, and understand the EasyFlash developer documentation all you need is some time and a game you care about. If you're looking for a good first EasyFlash RPG project I can recommend Ultima III, the loader is very straightforward."

Hold on, the coder is a swede? Not that im surprised considering the strong following Commodore still have in Scandinavia..