Attention french patchers (CFou ?)

[CFou!]

Originally Posted by SquawkBox

Just noticed that after all these years, the slave was updated as of late to include Bivouac aka the French version of Final Assault / Chamonix Challenge. Thank you so much JOTD!

can you test WHDload version of french version in TheZone?

[Don_Adan]

Seems that exist Amiga english version too. Maybe is rare?

https://www.giantbomb.com/blueberry/3030-76600/images/

On the net spanish version for PC and Amstrad can be found. And perhaps exist Italian version too (mentioned on some game covers).

[CFou!]

Originally Posted by Don_Adan

Seems that exist Amiga english version too. Maybe is rare?

https://www.giantbomb.com/blueberry/3030-76600/images/

On the net spanish version for PC and Amstrad can be found. And perhaps exist Italian version too (mentioned on some game covers).

if somebody have disk image of file of ST version.

I will can test too

[CFou!]

Originally Posted by Don_Adan

Seems that exist Amiga english version too. Maybe is rare?

https://www.giantbomb.com/blueberry/3030-76600/images/

On the net spanish version for PC and Amstrad can be found. And perhaps exist Italian version too (mentioned on some game covers).

PC spanish TOT file works too (see in TheZone!)

But some files are missing.

It's perhaps because PC & AMSTRAD versions are released on 1987.

Game is perhaps more short than ST & amiga version...

Have somebody English PC version?

[SquawkBox]

I just played the French version from your test WHDLoad package for a few minutes, it works just fine. You're supposed to shoot down 15 Indians to complete the mini game (use directional keys to raise or lower your head from your hiding place and shoot), then you're offered to play a small puzzle game to bring together a torn map, I decided to quit the game at that point.
CPC version is easier, at least when it comes to shooting Indians. Shorter, why would it be shorter ? I wouldn't say so, just my 2 cent.

[CFou!]

Originally Posted by SquawkBox

Shorter, why would it be shorter ? I wouldn't say so, just my 2 cent.

on PC spanish version (on the net) there are 3 missing last TOT files. but it's just a supposition....

[SquawkBox]

Originally Posted by CFOU!

on PC spanish version (on the net) there are 3 missing last TOT files.

Maybe a playtest job for Señor SyX, as I don't speak Spanish fluently . Here is the walkthrough in 37 small steps.

[SyX]

Originally Posted by SquawkBox

Maybe a playtest job for Señor SyX, as I don't speak Spanish fluently . Here is the walkthrough in 37 small steps.

No problem, I can test...


A few minutes later...


I tried to follow the walkthrough (in reality you don't need spanish at all for following the walkthrough), but the first fire section agains the apache is awful, and I would say that it is totally unplayable (you need to press up for showing your head then move the cursor to the maximum to the left and with every fire the cursor goes to the right and of course, the apache fire you really fast and easy when you show your head :P). I am going to need a cheat for passing through those fire sections :P

[CFou!]

Originally Posted by SquawkBox

Maybe a playtest job for Señor SyX, as I don't speak Spanish fluently . Here is the walkthrough in 37 small steps.

for spanish version the 3 last TOT files are missing.

I am looking for full Spanish DOS PC version (with 7 files with TOT extension)

[SquawkBox]

I would say best option is to use the Spanish files you've got for a half Spanish, half French multilingual version. The Spanish version misses some TOT files because it's a demo, it never was made into a full game in that language presumably.

Originally Posted by SyX

I am going to need a cheat for passing through those fire sections

Instead of skipping the sequence as I suggested earlier, maybe an option to adjust the number of hits it takes to continue, e.q. between 8 and 12, 15 kills required makes it a chore really (but it can be done). In CPC version, you just move a colored pixel on each of the targets. I guess they wanted to mimic the recoil .

[SyX]

Originally Posted by SquawkBox

The Spanish version misses some TOT files because it's a demo, it never was made into a full game in that language presumably.

No, the game was published in Spain for DOS and CPC. I remember to see in shops and read the magazine reviews from those days.


The real problem is that the spanish DOS version is not preserved fully, the game came in two 5"1/4 floppies and the files missed are in the second floppy. I searched between the files in the Total Dos collection and said that too.



The fun thing is this engine in 16 bits uses the same data format and the data files can be interchanged between Amiga, dos and ST (as CFOU! confirmed). The graphics in those files are encoded in 16 colours and 320x200. The CPC games that uses this multiplatform engine (not all the games in CPC used that engine) have the same data files, although the CPC graphics of course are in 160x200 and 16 colours, and that it is the reason those cpc files are smaller, but the translation is the same than 16 bits (the games are not smaller). I don't remember if I already documented the data format, for example, first two bytes are the length of the file, ... I researched the format a long time ago for translating Amiga and CPC games to spanish, I will search for my notes when I get some time.

Originally Posted by SquawkBox

Instead of skipping the sequence as I suggested earlier, maybe an option to adjust the number of hits it takes to continue, e.q. between 8 and 12, 15 kills required makes it a chore really (but it can be done). In CPC version, you just move a colored pixel on each of the targets. I guess they wanted to mimic the recoil .

Yes, they should have use the cpc way, it is really unplayable in Amiga.

[CFou!]

on CPC there are more TOT files.

I guess script files are fragmented due to memory limitation (see attachement)

[dlfrsilver]

Originally Posted by SyX

No, the game was published in Spain for DOS and CPC. I remember to see in shops and read the magazine reviews from those days.


The real problem is that the spanish DOS version is not preserved fully, the game came in two 5"1/4 floppies and the files missed are in the second floppy. I searched between the files in the Total Dos collection and said that too.



The fun thing is this engine in 16 bits uses the same data format and the data files can be interchanged between Amiga, dos and ST (as CFOU! confirmed). The graphics in those files are encoded in 16 colours and 320x200. The CPC games that uses this multiplatform engine (not all the games in CPC used that engine) have the same data files, although the CPC graphics of course are in 160x200 and 16 colours, and that it is the reason those cpc files are smaller, but the translation is the same than 16 bits (the games are not smaller). I don't remember if I already documented the data format, for example, first two bytes are the length of the file, ... I researched the format a long time ago for translating Amiga and CPC games to spanish, I will search for my notes when I get some time.



Yes, they should have use the cpc way, it is really unplayable in Amiga.

The reason SyX behind all this is that they used the coktel vision engine.

It allows to port the game more easily on target machine, with common ressources.

[SyX]

Originally Posted by CFOU!

on CPC there are more TOT files.

Yes and no (*), in the spanish CPC version of Blueberry TOT files are very similar to the dos data files. I have attached them and you can see how the strings starts in the same offsets.


BlueBerry CPC files ES.zip


You can see that there is 3 extra TOT files, but only the ESPBLUE9.TOT has some text and the text is when you are captured and get the bad final (that you will be hanged, ...), maybe is an extra for the CPC version (those early games usually have extra features in 8 bits versions and the amiga versions were lazy fast ports).

Originally Posted by CFOU!

I guess script files are fragmented due to memory limitation (see attachement)

And this is related with the previous no, there is two (**) versions of the engine in CPC, it looks that Blueberry french used the previous version and when the game was translated to spanish the engine used was the last one in Coktel and no the used previously for the CPC french version.


(**) The french version looks more fragmented but because this crossplatform engine is based in the old engine from Coktel Vision (yes, Coktel made 3 engines for CPC) that it was used in CPC for: Freedom, Jungle Book, Robinson Crusoe and Lucky Luke - Nytroglicerim.


The crossplatform engine was used in CPC for: Blueberry, Asterix Chez Rahazade, 20000 Lieues Sous Les Mers, Au Nom De L'Hermine, La Mascotte, Mewilo, Monte Cristo and Peter Pan.


And there is different revisions of those engines, and at least the games that were officially translated to spanish used the last engine that Coktel had available in that time.

[SyX]

Originally Posted by dlfrsilver

The reason SyX behind all this is that they used the coktel vision engine.

It always to port the game more easily on target machine, with common ressources.

Sure dlfrsilver, for Coktel Vision those games were designed for systems with a disk drive and 320x200x16 screen mode.



But because it made sense commercially to releasea CPC version in France of those games and the machine could run this kind the games, the graphics were scaled to 160x200 but the rest of the engine is identical (my spanish translation of "Asterix en la India" for Amiga used the CPC data files).



Those CPC data files are identical to the 16 bits ones, except that they are logically smaller because the graphics takes less space, but that is all.



I suppose that it should be not very difficult to extract the last version of the Amiga engine and try to run the other games with that... maybe I can work in that... although I need to find my notes about this, because I work in those things before to come to Brazil, then I don't have the minor idea where they are, hehehe.

[CFou!]

Originally Posted by SyX

BlueBerry CPC files ES.zip

I can not download you attachement can you upload it in TheZone please?

[SyX]

And as I told you by email, I got some time for looking to the Thomson versions because they are interesting too in case that you want the french translations. After looking a little the thomson files, they are more like the 16 bits version than the CPC ones, just in case.

[SquawkBox]

@CFOU!
I zoned the Spanish version of the game, it contains 4 TOT files. It's the PC version from The Old School Abandonware Central (extracted with WinImage), sort of TOSEC imitators. This game can be played from DOSBox with the keyboard. I defeated the Indians and quit from there. It consists in one (1) disk image, not two. Might not be 100% safe. I mean, don't download if you have no use for it.

[CFou!]

Originally Posted by SquawkBox

@CFOU!
I zoned the Spanish version of the game, it contains 4 TOT files. It's the PC version from The Old School Abandonware Central (extracted with WinImage), sort of TOSEC imitators. This game can be played from DOSBox with the keyboard. I defeated the Indians and quit from there. It consists in one (1) disk image, not two. Might not be 100% safe. I mean, don't download if you have no use for it.

The 4 Pc files of the Spanish version was already included in the archive I had uploaded in TheZone! a few days ago but for me 3 files are missing

[SquawkBox]

I don't know about the other versions, but it's the full game all right, the TOT files are arranged differently that's all. A DOS version without any executable would miss some files (let's assume that particular version would require the French equivalent to work properly), but this one doesn't. It's a pirated copy from a pack assembled by an Argentinean team that contains only full games (some of which bear old viruses ).
Also, I don't think the game was ever released in English.

@SyX
It's easier to defeat the Indians in that version, the aim can be moved steadily. Just wait until the Indians have fired and shoot in a burst just before they arrive. use Directional keys and 2nd Enter key for dialogues, Space to shoot. Good luck!