Alien Breed 3D II: The Killing Grounds CD version

TCD · 07 July 2023, 15:58

Just found this ad in Amiga Format 122:

A 'new enhanced CD version'? Does anybody have more information about this?

fryguy · 07 July 2023, 19:33

PPC enhanced* too. No explanation of the * though.

Karlos · 07 July 2023, 19:36

Pretty sure this was vaporware. I recall this being advertised but it never materialised.

We got the source code though, so it could be PPC enhanced if someone doesn't mind converting huge swathes of 68K assembler.

TCD · 08 July 2023, 08:56

Quote:

Originally Posted by Karlos

Pretty sure this was vaporware. I recall this being advertised but it never materialised.

It seems like that is the case. They stopped publishing games in 2000, so they might have planned to release it but didn't manage before they went under.

Karlos · 08 July 2023, 11:21

I did wonder at the time what they meant by PPC enhanced. I had my BlizzPPC by then.

Amigajay · 08 July 2023, 13:43

Just because there is no dump doesn’t mean it wasn’t released back then, don’t forget by this time sales numbers were in the handfuls, and even less so for a re-release.

In my trek for other Amiga CD titles, its very to find any evidence on a number of titles, even more so as the years go by as some folk probably chuck old discs mixed in with PC stuff etc.

TCD · 08 July 2023, 13:56

Quote:

Originally Posted by Amigajay

Just because there is no dump doesn’t mean it wasn’t released back then, don’t forget by this time sales numbers were in the handfuls, and even less so for a re-release.

But it's a PPC enhanced CD re-release. The Superfrog re-release on the same page was found, so no it's not hard evidence, but I'd say if Superfrog sold and was kept by somebody it's likely that Alien Breed II in an enhanced edition would have been too.

TCD · 08 July 2023, 14:01

On a related note: Anybody knows something about Adventurer's Lair mention in this ad https://hol.abime.net/1695/miscshot

Matt_H · 08 July 2023, 19:20

I remember this ad, but I don’t recall any of the magazines ever doing a review nor seeing it listed for sale at any of the dealers. Whereas I think the Superfrog re-release did get reviewed, so it existed in some form.

My guess is that they saw that the AB3D2 source code existed, announced an enhanced PPC version (“How hard could it be?”), then had someone look at the code and realized what they were trying to do was nearly impossible.

Karlos · 08 July 2023, 19:23

Ironically, if the game had been written in C, I'm sure we'd have had a PPC version within a month of the source release.

Seiya · 08 July 2023, 19:27

this is a collection cd-rom that i think to have downloaded from EAB Server. Now i have made a search, but i don't find it, but Amiga CD-ROM i have downloaded only from EAB. Some rare CD maybe from other sources, but 99% from EAB.

edit:
not 100% sure it is the same Adventure's Lair CD becuase the only game in demo version is Sixth Sense Investigation. The Other are full, shareware or P.D. Adventures.

Matt_H · 08 July 2023, 19:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by Karlos

Ironically, if the game had been written in C, I'm sure we'd have had a PPC version within a month of the source release.

Probably. The RTG patch came easily enough, so PPC shouldn’t be too hard, right? …Right?

Karlos · 08 July 2023, 20:09

Quote:

Originally Posted by Matt_H

Probably. The RTG patch came easily enough, so PPC shouldn’t be too hard, right? …Right?

Once the last metal bashing bits are done, I don't see why it won't be possible to run on PPC under emulation

Matt_H · 09 July 2023, 02:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by Karlos

Once the last metal bashing bits are done, I don't see why it won't be possible to run on PPC under emulation

I agree! Kudos for working on turning this into actual system-friendly software.

But remember at the time of this ad there were no integrated 68k emulation layers, so “PPC enhanced” would have to mean PPC native.

Karlos · 09 July 2023, 02:12

Quote:

Originally Posted by Matt_H

I agree! Kudos for working on turning this into actual system-friendly software.

But remember at the time of this ad there were no integrated 68k emulation layers, so “PPC enhanced” would have to mean PPC native.

Yeah that's what I assumed at the time.

TCD · 09 July 2023, 11:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by Seiya

this is a collection cd-rom that i think to have downloaded from EAB Server. Now i have made a search, but i don't find it, but Amiga CD-ROM i have downloaded only from EAB. Some rare CD maybe from other sources, but 99% from EAB.

edit:
not 100% sure it is the same Adventure's Lair CD becuase the only game in demo version is Sixth Sense Investigation. The Other are full, shareware or P.D. Adventures.

Could you upload it to the file server? I would like to have a look at it.

Seiya · 28 July 2023, 19:00

i will upload it very soon in my folder in "uploads". i see your post only now

edit:
i tried to copy from Filezilla, but it said that i cannot copy because i have not rights to upload in the server
i will send you a pm with link

TCD · 28 July 2023, 19:06

Quote:

Originally Posted by Seiya

i will upload it very soon in my folder in "uploads". i see your post only now

Thank you

pixie · 28 July 2023, 19:08

My guess is that Karlos get a time machine in the future and get back in time to release the version for PPC

Karlos · 28 July 2023, 20:03

Quote:

Originally Posted by pixie

My guess is that Karlos get a time machine in the future and get back in time to release the version for PPC

The real solution is to decouple it from the rest of the hardware (cia, serial, paula), then you have a version that runs fine on PPC: the 68K/RTG one

07 July 2023, 15:58	#1
TCD HOL/FTP busy bee Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Germany Age: 46 Posts: 31,608	Alien Breed 3D II: The Killing Grounds CD version Just found this ad in Amiga Format 122: A 'new enhanced CD version'? Does anybody have more information about this?

07 July 2023, 19:33	#2
fryguy Registered User Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Skarabörg, Sweden Age: 44 Posts: 1,020	PPC enhanced* too. No explanation of the * though. Last edited by fryguy; 08 July 2023 at 18:38.

08 July 2023, 19:27	#11
Seiya Registered User Join Date: Nov 2014 Location: Italy Posts: 2,367	this is a collection cd-rom that i think to have downloaded from EAB Server. Now i have made a search, but i don't find it, but Amiga CD-ROM i have downloaded only from EAB. Some rare CD maybe from other sources, but 99% from EAB. edit: not 100% sure it is the same Adventure's Lair CD becuase the only game in demo version is Sixth Sense Investigation. The Other are full, shareware or P.D. Adventures. Last edited by Seiya; 08 July 2023 at 19:45.

28 July 2023, 19:00	#17
Seiya Registered User Join Date: Nov 2014 Location: Italy Posts: 2,367	i will upload it very soon in my folder in "uploads". i see your post only now edit: i tried to copy from Filezilla, but it said that i cannot copy because i have not rights to upload in the server i will send you a pm with link Last edited by Seiya; 28 July 2023 at 19:14.

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07 July 2023, 19:36	#3
Karlos Alien Bleed Join Date: Aug 2022 Location: UK Posts: 4,167	Pretty sure this was vaporware. I recall this being advertised but it never materialised. We got the source code though, so it could be PPC enhanced if someone doesn't mind converting huge swathes of 68K assembler.

08 July 2023, 11:21	#5
Karlos Alien Bleed Join Date: Aug 2022 Location: UK Posts: 4,167	I did wonder at the time what they meant by PPC enhanced. I had my BlizzPPC by then.

08 July 2023, 13:43	#6
Amigajay Registered User Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: > Posts: 2,889	Just because there is no dump doesn’t mean it wasn’t released back then, don’t forget by this time sales numbers were in the handfuls, and even less so for a re-release. In my trek for other Amiga CD titles, its very to find any evidence on a number of titles, even more so as the years go by as some folk probably chuck old discs mixed in with PC stuff etc.

08 July 2023, 14:01	#8
TCD HOL/FTP busy bee Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Germany Age: 46 Posts: 31,608	On a related note: Anybody knows something about Adventurer's Lair mention in this ad https://hol.abime.net/1695/miscshot

08 July 2023, 19:20	#9
Matt_H Registered User Join Date: Jul 2008 Location: Boston, MA Posts: 945	I remember this ad, but I don’t recall any of the magazines ever doing a review nor seeing it listed for sale at any of the dealers. Whereas I think the Superfrog re-release did get reviewed, so it existed in some form. My guess is that they saw that the AB3D2 source code existed, announced an enhanced PPC version (“How hard could it be?”), then had someone look at the code and realized what they were trying to do was nearly impossible.

08 July 2023, 19:23	#10
Karlos Alien Bleed Join Date: Aug 2022 Location: UK Posts: 4,167	Ironically, if the game had been written in C, I'm sure we'd have had a PPC version within a month of the source release.

28 July 2023, 19:08	#19
pixie Registered User Join Date: May 2020 Location: Figueira da Foz Posts: 365	My guess is that Karlos get a time machine in the future and get back in time to release the version for PPC

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