Bart Vs the Space Mutants (SPS 1936) does not work!

Codetapper · 12 May 2007, 04:44

According to the SPS site, ID 1936 is the Cartoon Classics compilation of Bart Vs The Space Mutants.

Disk 1 is poked. Pure and simple! It loads the initial file, decrunches the FIRE packed data and jmps to $500. At $572 it starts what looks like should have been a copy loop that has a blank value in a2 (depending on your config, and seems they used d7 instead of d1 for the loop counter) causing the game to erase itself from $0 and crashes neatly after a few milliseconds. If you skip that code, it runs the copylock which seems to crash after it gets into an infinite loop of illegal commands at $1708. If you skip the copylock, it looks like it's wanting disk 2, so you switch disks, hit fire and it gets stuck.

Disk 2 (the game) is not bootable. Where an AmigaDos bootblock should be present is an ID tag "TWO!" followed by what looks like some kind of loader/disk change routine. The rest of the disk is the correct disk format as the other versions. This suggests you are forced to load disk 1, switch to this disk and then it might work.

It looks to me that some absolute lamer at Ocean tried to make this 2 disk version (minus the intro?), but completely cocked up the code and I cannot see how this game would have worked on any Amiga! Has anybody managed to get this to work?

Based on the above, I say release 1936 is a dud game. It might be preserved perfectly, but the original is screwed and doesn't match the Cartoon Classics version 2 people supplied me.

Retro-Nerd · 12 May 2007, 05:05

Yes, you are right. The second disk is not bootable. You have to boot the intro disk and after watching it you have to insert disk two and the game loads straight into level 1. You have problems to write a proper slave for SPS 1936?

Codetapper · 12 May 2007, 05:12

Retro-Nerd: Have you actually managed to get this version to work? All other versions work fine, showing the intro then the game, but this one I can't get to work at all. Fire it up, you'll see!

Retro-Nerd · 12 May 2007, 05:16

Mmh, you meant this one, right? I've tried it with WinUAE some minutes ago. It worked without any problems, strange.

Quote:

Simpsons, The - Bart vs. The Space Mutants (1991)(Ocean)[compilation Cartoon Classics][1936]\

Codetapper · 12 May 2007, 05:42

I grabbed the newest WinUAE, and it somehow loads, but it is buggy. It is illegally buffering about 500k of data at $10000000 which doesn't exist on a real Amiga!

Retro-Nerd · 12 May 2007, 05:46

Maybe a emulation bug? Can you do a WHDLoad slave for this version, to check if it works on a real amiga?

Codetapper · 12 May 2007, 05:47

Yeah that's what I was doing, but when it didn't work on the Amiga I tried it on WinUAE to see what was going on, but found it wasn't working properly either!

Retro-Nerd · 12 May 2007, 05:50

Quote:

Originally Posted by Codetapper

Yeah that's what I was doing, but when it didn't work on the Amiga I tried it on WinUAE to see what was going on, but found it wasn't working properly either!

Aah, you used rawdic, with the IPF plugin on your real amiga? Is there no way to patch your disk imager? Or is it a slave only problem?

Codetapper · 12 May 2007, 09:24

I've gotten the intro working correctly now by hard-wiring the memory in at $4 where the game expects it. On WinUAE it you can see the original is bugged:

Load the game on an A500 config with only 1Mb chip memory. It will crash.

Load the game on the same config, while it's loading, hit Shift-F12 to enter the debugger, type "W 4 0" and "W 5 8" which will simulate expansion memory at $80000. Hit "g" to continue and the intro will work correctly!

Someone at Ocean really cocked up! It probably worked by luck as on some configs, exec would be in slow memory and get a value like $c00276 for exec. On machines without slow memory = crash.

AmigaBoy · 12 May 2007, 10:08

um....
It works fine here.

Disk 2 is indeed not bootable, however if you boot off disk 1, it will load the intro. Eventually it'll ask for disk 2. Insert it and it works.

This is using SPS 1936, WinUAE 1.4.2 public beta 11 and whatever config GBAmiga uses.

musashi5150 · 12 May 2007, 10:39

Interesting find Codetapper. Really makes you wonder sometimes how things manage to hang together despite the most awful coding

Toni Wilen · 12 May 2007, 12:49

I have seen something similar (execbase used as a pointer to expansion memory). Nothing interesting or special

musashi5150 · 12 May 2007, 19:35

I love dirty code

Galahad/FLT · 02 September 2007, 19:48

Quote:

Originally Posted by Toni Wilen

I have seen something similar (execbase used as a pointer to expansion memory). Nothing interesting or special

I believe Dan Scott (Dan/Anarchy) used it on one of the Core Design games.

moveq #0,d0
move.w 4.w,d0
swap d0
on a slow mem machine d0 would then equal $c00000

On anything other it wouldn't detect fuck all.

12 May 2007, 04:44	#1
Codetapper 2 contact me: email only! Join Date: May 2001 Location: Auckland / New Zealand Posts: 3,182	Bart Vs the Space Mutants (SPS 1936) does not work! According to the SPS site, ID 1936 is the Cartoon Classics compilation of Bart Vs The Space Mutants. Disk 1 is poked. Pure and simple! It loads the initial file, decrunches the FIRE packed data and jmps to $500. At $572 it starts what looks like should have been a copy loop that has a blank value in a2 (depending on your config, and seems they used d7 instead of d1 for the loop counter) causing the game to erase itself from $0 and crashes neatly after a few milliseconds. If you skip that code, it runs the copylock which seems to crash after it gets into an infinite loop of illegal commands at $1708. If you skip the copylock, it looks like it's wanting disk 2, so you switch disks, hit fire and it gets stuck. Disk 2 (the game) is not bootable. Where an AmigaDos bootblock should be present is an ID tag "TWO!" followed by what looks like some kind of loader/disk change routine. The rest of the disk is the correct disk format as the other versions. This suggests you are forced to load disk 1, switch to this disk and then it might work. It looks to me that some absolute lamer at Ocean tried to make this 2 disk version (minus the intro?), but completely cocked up the code and I cannot see how this game would have worked on any Amiga! Has anybody managed to get this to work? Based on the above, I say release 1936 is a dud game. It might be preserved perfectly, but the original is screwed and doesn't match the Cartoon Classics version 2 people supplied me.

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12 May 2007, 05:05	#2
Retro-Nerd Missile Command Champion Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Germany Age: 52 Posts: 12,438	Yes, you are right. The second disk is not bootable. You have to boot the intro disk and after watching it you have to insert disk two and the game loads straight into level 1. You have problems to write a proper slave for SPS 1936?

12 May 2007, 05:12	#3
Codetapper 2 contact me: email only! Join Date: May 2001 Location: Auckland / New Zealand Posts: 3,182	Retro-Nerd: Have you actually managed to get this version to work? All other versions work fine, showing the intro then the game, but this one I can't get to work at all. Fire it up, you'll see!

12 May 2007, 05:42	#5
Codetapper 2 contact me: email only! Join Date: May 2001 Location: Auckland / New Zealand Posts: 3,182	I grabbed the newest WinUAE, and it somehow loads, but it is buggy. It is illegally buffering about 500k of data at $10000000 which doesn't exist on a real Amiga!

12 May 2007, 05:46	#6
Retro-Nerd Missile Command Champion Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Germany Age: 52 Posts: 12,438	Maybe a emulation bug? Can you do a WHDLoad slave for this version, to check if it works on a real amiga?

12 May 2007, 05:47	#7
Codetapper 2 contact me: email only! Join Date: May 2001 Location: Auckland / New Zealand Posts: 3,182	Yeah that's what I was doing, but when it didn't work on the Amiga I tried it on WinUAE to see what was going on, but found it wasn't working properly either!

12 May 2007, 09:24	#9
Codetapper 2 contact me: email only! Join Date: May 2001 Location: Auckland / New Zealand Posts: 3,182	I've gotten the intro working correctly now by hard-wiring the memory in at $4 where the game expects it. On WinUAE it you can see the original is bugged: Load the game on an A500 config with only 1Mb chip memory. It will crash. Load the game on the same config, while it's loading, hit Shift-F12 to enter the debugger, type "W 4 0" and "W 5 8" which will simulate expansion memory at $80000. Hit "g" to continue and the intro will work correctly! Someone at Ocean really cocked up! It probably worked by luck as on some configs, exec would be in slow memory and get a value like $c00276 for exec. On machines without slow memory = crash.

12 May 2007, 10:08	#10
AmigaBoy Registered User Join Date: Aug 2004 Location: 19 Jump Street Posts: 238	um.... It works fine here. Disk 2 is indeed not bootable, however if you boot off disk 1, it will load the intro. Eventually it'll ask for disk 2. Insert it and it works. This is using SPS 1936, WinUAE 1.4.2 public beta 11 and whatever config GBAmiga uses.

12 May 2007, 10:39	#11
musashi5150 move.w #$4489,$dff07e Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Norfolk, UK Age: 42 Posts: 2,351	Interesting find Codetapper. Really makes you wonder sometimes how things manage to hang together despite the most awful coding

12 May 2007, 12:49	#12
Toni Wilen WinUAE developer Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Hämeenlinna/Finland Age: 49 Posts: 26,506	I have seen something similar (execbase used as a pointer to expansion memory). Nothing interesting or special

12 May 2007, 19:35	#13
musashi5150 move.w #$4489,$dff07e Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Norfolk, UK Age: 42 Posts: 2,351	I love dirty code

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