Obliterator

Bloodwych · 12 December 2001, 15:29

I loved the feel of this game. Can't put my finger on it, but it just seems special.

The tune definitely had something to do with this, it was really atmospheric, as did the Roger Dean art on the box cover. The fact I received it for Christmas one year when I was really young also gives it that nostalgic feel.

The only problem is I have never been able to get this game to work on WinUAE. It crashes every time.

Has anyone got a working copy on an Amiga EMU? My original never liked my A1200.

If not I'll have to stick to the ST version.

Also, has anyone got an MP3 or MOD of the original tune?

If I can get the Amiga version working I'll make the MP3 myself

and post it here.

andreas · 12 December 2001, 16:08

Obliterator is a PSYGNOSIS game, and I bet they use the same loading routines like Barbarian Psygnosis.
Linux UAE freezes so badly that you have to KILL the application by hand.

Obliterator doesn't work, even though someone on this forum managed to get Barbarian Psygnosis to run. But this is pure coincidence, methinks.
Toni, if you need this game for testing, please drop me a note here, unless it might already work with your private unreleased source tree.

Drake1009 · 12 December 2001, 16:26

Obliterator works fine with Winfellow and a standard A500 setup. That one has a module ripper built in the debug button, and I think there's also a stream to wave.

andreas · 12 December 2001, 23:41

So we have a proof that this game loader needs special treatment. FWIW, this game has even worked on old DOS Fellow 0.3.2a. Petter seems to know how to handle this.

Toni Wilen · 13 December 2001, 18:17

This game's problem has nothing to do with loader.

Obliterator does some blitter DMA tricks. This can be fixed by adding hacks to blitter code but unfortunately it isn't possible to have 100% compatibility without (near) cycle-exact blitter emulation. But the problem is that cycle-exact blitter isn't easy to implement without huge performance loss.

I have a patch that fixes this problem (also fixes Kefrens Desert Dream that have different problem with blitter emulation) but it is ugly hack and probably won't be accepted to official UAE...

andreas · 13 December 2001, 18:33

Toni, the thing that's primarily confusing me is: why the hell does this affect the SOUND emulation so much? If you run the game using WinUAE, you *can* load it up to the point where the actual game loads. All of a sudden, the sound goes laa-nn-laa-nn-laa-nn-... -- just like a scratched record which is permanently repeating one and the same part. Over and over again.

Toni Wilen · 13 December 2001, 20:06

It is caused by stupid bug in UAE. This bug causes UAE to stop CPU emulation (custom chipset emulation stays running) -> no more updates from game's music player code to audio registers -> current sample stays looping forever.

Technical explanation: deadlock happens when program starts blitter in nasty-mode but blitter DMA is off.

andreas · 13 December 2001, 20:13

Ah, that lifts the fog.
Thanks Toni.

10 January 2005, 04:26

I can get it to run both on winuae and winfellow. UAE requires some messing with memory and speed settings but without constant results, winfellow on the other hand runs it like a dream w/o a problem.

I loved the game, the theme and the music but I never got around understanding how to play it I'm able to run around and shoot things but can anyone shed light on what to do.

I'm sorry if i'm a little out of topic here but thanks!

FromWithin · 10 January 2005, 12:30

Obilterator music is here. You'll need Delitracker or similar to play it.

12 December 2001, 15:29	#1
Bloodwych Moderator Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: I'm behind you! Posts: 3,763	Obliterator I loved the feel of this game. Can't put my finger on it, but it just seems special. The tune definitely had something to do with this, it was really atmospheric, as did the Roger Dean art on the box cover. The fact I received it for Christmas one year when I was really young also gives it that nostalgic feel. The only problem is I have never been able to get this game to work on WinUAE. It crashes every time. Has anyone got a working copy on an Amiga EMU? My original never liked my A1200. If not I'll have to stick to the ST version. Also, has anyone got an MP3 or MOD of the original tune? If I can get the Amiga version working I'll make the MP3 myself and post it here.

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12 December 2001, 16:08	#2
andreas Zone Friend Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Germany Age: 50 Posts: 5,857	Obliterator is a PSYGNOSIS game, and I bet they use the same loading routines like Barbarian Psygnosis. Linux UAE freezes so badly that you have to KILL the application by hand. Obliterator doesn't work, even though someone on this forum managed to get Barbarian Psygnosis to run. But this is pure coincidence, methinks. Toni, if you need this game for testing, please drop me a note here, unless it might already work with your private unreleased source tree.

12 December 2001, 16:26	#3
Drake1009 Registered User Join Date: Jul 2001 Location: Denmark Posts: 2,284	Obliterator works fine with Winfellow and a standard A500 setup. That one has a module ripper built in the debug button, and I think there's also a stream to wave.

12 December 2001, 23:41	#4
andreas Zone Friend Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Germany Age: 50 Posts: 5,857	So we have a proof that this game loader needs special treatment. FWIW, this game has even worked on old DOS Fellow 0.3.2a. Petter seems to know how to handle this.

13 December 2001, 18:17	#5
Toni Wilen WinUAE developer Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Hämeenlinna/Finland Age: 49 Posts: 26,502	This game's problem has nothing to do with loader. Obliterator does some blitter DMA tricks. This can be fixed by adding hacks to blitter code but unfortunately it isn't possible to have 100% compatibility without (near) cycle-exact blitter emulation. But the problem is that cycle-exact blitter isn't easy to implement without huge performance loss. I have a patch that fixes this problem (also fixes Kefrens Desert Dream that have different problem with blitter emulation) but it is ugly hack and probably won't be accepted to official UAE...

13 December 2001, 18:33	#6
andreas Zone Friend Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Germany Age: 50 Posts: 5,857	Toni, the thing that's primarily confusing me is: why the hell does this affect the SOUND emulation so much? If you run the game using WinUAE, you can load it up to the point where the actual game loads. All of a sudden, the sound goes laa-nn-laa-nn-laa-nn-... -- just like a scratched record which is permanently repeating one and the same part. Over and over again.

13 December 2001, 20:06	#7
Toni Wilen WinUAE developer Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: Hämeenlinna/Finland Age: 49 Posts: 26,502	It is caused by stupid bug in UAE. This bug causes UAE to stop CPU emulation (custom chipset emulation stays running) -> no more updates from game's music player code to audio registers -> current sample stays looping forever. Technical explanation: deadlock happens when program starts blitter in nasty-mode but blitter DMA is off.

13 December 2001, 20:13	#8
andreas Zone Friend Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Germany Age: 50 Posts: 5,857	Ah, that lifts the fog. Thanks Toni.

10 January 2005, 04:26	#9
EAGLE 5 Posts: n/a	I can get it to run both on winuae and winfellow. UAE requires some messing with memory and speed settings but without constant results, winfellow on the other hand runs it like a dream w/o a problem. I loved the game, the theme and the music but I never got around understanding how to play it I'm able to run around and shoot things but can anyone shed light on what to do. I'm sorry if i'm a little out of topic here but thanks!

10 January 2005, 12:30	#10
FromWithin Music lord Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Liverpool, UK Age: 50 Posts: 630	Obilterator music is here. You'll need Delitracker or similar to play it.

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