Starting Pool of Radiance From Scratch in 2011

[BydoEmpire73]

Started a new blog at Atari Age, thought some people here might find it fun. Over the weekend I started Pool of Radiance from scratch on my Amiga 500. It's fun to look at a game like this and see how some things have held up really well over time, but other haven't aged well. I did play it a bit back in the day on the c64, but I know I never finished it, and I don't think I spent much time with it.

http://www.atariage.com/forums/blog/...amiga-in-2011/

[garetjax]

Enjoyable blog, I have great memories of the "Gold Box" games.

[frootloop]

Loved the blog! Inspired me to go back to some of the Gold Box games I missed. I just finished Buck Rogers: Countdown to Doomsday on Megadrive, and am trying to track down Matrix Cubed for PC on Ebay (shipping costs are always a bitch to South Africa though). BR stands up well even today. Terrible graphics and sound even when it was released, but great gameplay!

[bill_loguidice]

The Amiga version is the version I beat Pool of Radiance on back in college. Though it may not be comparable to other titles on the system, the Amiga port is the best looking and sounding port of all the versions of Pool of Radiance. Sadly, later games in the series would not receive Amiga-specific graphics or sound.

[BydoEmpire73]

D'oh - the 512k memory expansion died on me, so just when I was really getting into it I had to stop (game crashed and I can no longer boot because it requires 1 meg). I might start up the PC version in DosBox on my Mac if I can get it to run, or maybe get another memory expander for my Amiga... it was certainly a fun ride and I'm itching for more of that style game. I tried to start Might & Magic on my Apple 2, but even though I was a HUGE fan of it back in the day, I found it really tedious to play now. PoR I found easy to get back into after all this time, and despite a few annoyances, it was still a blast. I didn't spend a lot of time with Might & Magic, but it feel like a much bigger commitment (no auto-map, no gold to start with, etc).

I have Countdown to Doomsday for the Genny - I picked it up at a flea market a couple years ago. I did start the game, but never got very far. Maybe I should give that a try again.

[frootloop]

Condolences on the death of the 'miggy RAM expansion. Must be really frustrating mid game! Are the Amiga Goldbox game graphics and sound significantly better that the PC versions? I was under the impression the Amiga version was just a PC port? Have to agree on Might & Magic. Recently bought the 6-Pack from www.gog.com. Just could not get into M&M 1 or 2. Three is pretty decent - streamlined interface and automap. I find these days playing any of my older RPG's that lack automapping generally doesnt work out - its just too much work drawing paper maps with the time I have available for gaming. The Gennie Countdown to Doomsday is a good choice. No automap, but the adventuring is shown in a third person view and given the size of the maps, its pretty easy to get around.

[BydoEmpire73]

I was under the impression the Amiga version was just a PC port?

I have not played the PC version so I can't do a side-by-side, but my impression of PoR on the Amiga was that it seems a straight port. Compared to, say, Psygnosis games or games like Dungeon Master it looks pretty barren. Still absolutely fun, but it didn't seem to take advantage of the Amiga at all. I would assume Bill is right in that there are improvements in the Amiga version.

[frootloop]

Hmm.... I might just run a side by side with dosbox vs WinUAE when I have a moment. I'd love to play through PoR, I never did complete it first time round. Not to mention the Savage Frontier and Dragonlance Goldbox stuff. Thanks for t he heads up!

Hey Bill, if you are lurking this thread - could you perhaps eleborate on the Amiga enhancements over the PC versions?

Cheers!

[bill_loguidice]

Hmm.... I might just run a side by side with dosbox vs WinUAE when I have a moment. I'd love to play through PoR, I never did complete it first time round. Not to mention the Savage Frontier and Dragonlance Goldbox stuff. Thanks for t he heads up!

Hey Bill, if you are lurking this thread - could you perhaps eleborate on the Amiga enhancements over the PC versions?

Cheers!

The Amiga version of Pool of Radiance has enhanced (and slightly different) graphics - particularly the portraits - and enhanced sounds over the PC version. The Amiga version uses a full 32 color palette, while the PC version uses EGA's 16 color palette (which is alway a bit garish). I recall most of the other Amiga ports being straight up EGA ports and suffering for it, but SSI definitely enhanced things with the first game. Again, we're NOT talking a huge difference here, but it is noticeable even though it's not really up to what the Amiga is truly capable of.

EDIT: You can see some screenshots here to see what I mean: http://www.mobygames.com/game/pool-o...ce/screenshots

[frootloop]

Thanks Bill! I think that answered my question - time to find a copy of PoR for Amiga