New release: VICtoria Deluxe Edition for VIC +8K

[orion70]

HERE's a new game: VICtoria Deluxe Edition. The zip file contains a disk image, the cover and the game manual.

VICtoria is a turn-based strategy game set in ancient Rome, between 200 b.C. and 800 a.D. It is programmed in pure BASIC and requires a VIC-20 equipped with 8K RAM expansion. To play it in the VICE, you simply have to set the VIC memory at +8K and autostart the d64 image.

The game includes management of your army, troops transfer between provinces, war to enemy empires, and variation of tax rate (more taxes, more troops, but also more revolts). After each turn, you watch other empires fight one another (or attack Rome), and eventually collapse. Name of empires and strenght of your legions vary as time passes. Please, refer to the manual for more info.

I think the plus of this game is a graphic map of the Roman world, divided into several regions (provinces), in which you can highlight three empires at a time, with different colors. The map is loaded separately, due to memory limitations; thus, the program automatically saves and loads the status every time you switch from management to map and vice-versa.
You can also save and load the game during play.

The map was entirely created by "herr VIC" Mike, whose Mini-Grafik extension allowed high-res 4 color mode, without requiring any supplementary cartridge. THANKS MIKE!

Critique and suggestions are welcome.
Have fun!

[Mayhem]

Unfortunately Gamebase can only handle one PC file at a time... so I can't add this sadly. Unless someone can write a loader to boot the Super Expander into memory before loading the first part of the game on the same disk image...

[carlsson]

Wow, you're all so productive! Before looking at the code, would it be possible to rewrite the game using e.g. Mike's Mini-Grafik to reduce the need for Super Expander? While it is a relatively common cartridge - just until recently I owned three copies - unless you're using a lot of features from SE it may be a challenging task.

Anyway, VICtoria is so .. obvious. I'm still waiting for someone to make a vikings game called VIC-Odin.

[orion70]

would it be possible to rewrite the game using e.g. Mike's Mini-Grafik to reduce the need for Super Expander?

Of course I could, if only I knew how (I don't know anything about MG, but I know it was discussed in a thread some time ago).
The game uses graphic commands only in the map part, where draw, color, and paint instructions can be easily translated into their MG counterparts. Therefore, the real challenge and drawback of this operation would be to convert all the coordinates, as Super Expander uses a strange 1000x1000 virtual pixelization, and converts it automatically to the actual resolution of the graphic mode you're in.

Anyway, VICtoria is so .. obvious. I'm still waiting for someone to make a vikings game called VIC-Odin.

Too bad Veni, vidi, VIC was already copyrighted...

Unfortunately Gamebase can only handle one PC file at a time... so I can't add this sadly. Unless someone can write a loader to boot the Super Expander into memory before loading the first part of the game on the same disk image...

If you want to put it in the GB, I can produce a reduced version for VIC+3K, with only the managerial part in it (no map); although it would be quite hard to figure out the evolution of empires without it, or at least without the last page of the manual and some color pencils.

[Mike]

would it be possible to rewrite the game using e.g. Mike's Mini-Grafik to reduce the need for Super Expander?

This would need some preprocessing of vertical lines, to replace the PAINT command (used for filling the areas), but it is doable. As I see, only the "MAP" program needs to be adapted.

The data for the co-ordinates would consist of single bytes, and could be stored either in a SEQ file, or - even better - in a REL file. Latter would allow direct access to the data of a single province.

Greetings,

Michael

[PaulQ]

Got to love these new strategy games for a change.

[Mike]

Therefore, the real challenge and drawback of this operation would be to convert all the coordinates, as Super Expander uses a strange 1000x1000 virtual pixelization, and converts it automatically to the actual resolution of the graphic mode you're in.

I'm on the way doing that first.

The map will be resized to use the full MG 160x192 resolution. I'll then send you the result via e-mail.

[orion70]

I'm eagerly waiting!

[Mayhem]

Obviously I'd like to keep the map in there... if the game can be rewritten to remove the need for the SE, then all the better for me including it

[d0c]

so there will be a version for us unlucky that dont have the super expander?....

[Jeff-20]

There's something novel about a game that makes use of the Super Expander. I always wanted to make a game that uses the Atari Keypad controller.

[orion70]

so there will be a version for us unlucky that dont have the super expander?....

Hopefully yes, because Mike is working on a Mini-Grafik version of the Map program. As soon as a graphic part elaborated with MG will be implemented, I will rewrite the whole thing in a single-filed program for the VIC+16K, no Super Expander required. It will be at higher resolution and maybe it will include new management options.
The name of this new version - if we succeed - will be: VICtoria Deluxe.

PS- I don't have the Super Expander, either. I programmed and tested the game on VICE. I'd really like to see how it looks on a real VIC.

[nbla000]

Very nice game, my compliments Orion !!!

[orion70]

IMPORTANT! The game VICtoria Deluxe is now already done, thanks to Mike's effort to port the whole graphic part to the Mini-Grafik extension. You can download the game HERE; all the links and the entry in the General Topics thread are updated.

Thanks again to Mike, Mayhem can now include the disk in his Gamebase, as everything will load automatically in a VIC +8K RAM, no carts required.

[Mayhem]

Well that seems to work okay in Gamebase! I'm curious though, was there no chance to make it +16K RAM and put all the program in one file without the need to multiload?