Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!torsqnt!hybrid!torag!utdoe!generic!pnet91!ericmcg
From: ericmcg@pnet91.cts.com (Eric Mcgillicuddy)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.apple2
Subject: Re: Software rehash was: (Re: Egghead Drops Apple II)
Message-ID: <765@generic.UUCP>
Date: 24 May 91 04:15:05 GMT
Sender: root@generic.UUCP
Organization: People-Net [pnet91], Etobicoke, ON
Lines: 43

>>>90% of the "latest and greatest" IBM software is just rehash of Apple II
and
>>>Mac stuff years old. There are some very notable exceptions, but the
>majority
>>>is crap that would not sell on any other system.
>
>This is incredible bull.  It's like saying that Ultima VI is just a rehash
>of Ultima I, and therefore totally useless.  Or that the Apple IIgs is just
>a rehash of the original Apple II, and is therefore worthless.  I suppose
>you think that PageMaker 4.0 is just a rehash of the Print Shop?
>--
>+-------------------+----------------------+---------------------------------
>| JERRY J. SHEKHEL  | POLYGEN CORPORATION  | When I was young, I had to walk
|

That is not what I am saying at all ( iassume it was I you were responding
to). What I am saying is that a large number of IBM games essentially use the
pseudo-code of Apple II games of the previous decade, add some nifty graphics
and resell themselves. We're not even talking classic Apple II games. Ultima
VI is not a rehash of Ultima I, but it is not significantly better than Ultima
V on an Apple II, except for the details such as perspective and some
background sound (which I first saw used in Dungeon Master on the GS). Stellar
7 is the typical example, but there is Shanghai, Simcity and a dozen other Mac
games as well. (slight exageration, ther aren't a dozen MAc games. :)

Ther eare differences in the games, for instance the required hardware is more
extensive, bigger faster systems with hard drives mandatory. This is a bonus
for IBMers, but still hinders Apple II users significantly (the HD part). The
point is that the system price point is about the same for both sides, $2000
for the neccessary hardware to play the best of them at maximum enjoyment. 

BTW I've been playing Finest Hour quite a bit and the animation was done in
256 colour mode of VGA (MCGA) the resolution is 320x200, the same as the GS.
An interesting observation is that the true number of colours on the screen
are much less than 256, I have counted 16 distinct colours, although I would
estimate an error of plus or minus two colours. This means that the graphics
for this game are well within the realm of possibility of the GS. I guess that
calculating the animations would kill performance, but a ZIPped GS should
still handle it adequately, I estimate that the game runs effectively at 12MHz
since it doesn't seem to matter whether the host machine is 12MHz or 33MHz. 

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