Quarter (GLODIA) Memorial

[D--]

Amiga is definitly a computer.

In the old days on systems like the (totally unemulated) IBM PC Jr, you had to put disks in one at a time and the game would prompt you to change to the next disk. It was fairly common for systems with hard disks under 12MB and RAM under 2MB, which describes the first several lines of X68000 systems. it never really became a powerhouse until the X68030 line. Another similar system in that behavior was the Apple ][ GS seen in every USA school. Whenever you played The Oregon Trail, halfway through the game, it made you eject the big 5.25" floppy, turn it over, and re-latch the drive (to play the data on the back side of the disk).

TOSEC rarely changes disks in the set. They just add new ones as alternate dumps. Often they add bad disks that were dumped incorrectly, just so they can catalog everything. Much like how the BadXXXX tools catalog bad and unplayable dumps of ROMs. Even if TOSEC did change, new disks wouldn't be any more or less compatable with emulators. The files on those disks are the same as the ones released for the computer 12 years ago, so what difference would it make if someone made a disk image this week or 6 years ago?

Yeah, GLODIA's opening disks are often self booting. i never figured out why they never prompt you for the opening dik when you start a new game in ED, or why the opening disk doesn't prompt you for the system disk when it ends. Idiocy on their part is all I can assume. Even if you hack the shit out of Emerald Dragon's .inf file to make a hard disk install (don't get existed, it still bitches at you to put your system disk in drive A to prove you have the game and to use for saves), it won't do anything with the opening.

Check your XM6 settings ... I had no problem at all playing Die Bahnwelt on that emulator.

Now that I'm thinking about the old days, is it me, or is the invention of the 1.44MB floppy the lamest thing the computer industry ever did? They tried to make everyone go out and buy new disks, when all you had to do was PUNCH A HOLE in the top left of your 512K floppies and reformat. I remember ordering a "disk puncher" in a mail order catalog because it was cheaper to buy a glorified, square, hole punch than it was to buy a box of 10 floppies.

[Nightcrawler]

The 1.44MB floppy REFUSES TO DIE!

I just ordered parts for a new computer the other day.  I got an SATA hard drive.  The Windows XP install doesn't recognize those kind of drives(so I read) and won't let you load the driver off of a CD. You have to use the freakin' floppy drive!

I wish we could kill that thing off already.  I don't have to use mine often, but I still have the necessity to  once or twice a year and just can't get rid of it.

[KingMike]

This laptop I bought last year doesn't have a floppy drive.
So, I had to go out and buy a flash drive (yeah, it has a CD-RW/DVD-ROM, but it's of course stupid to burn a CD for a few files).
Though I had to copy some old full version of Word from floppies, until I realized that the only difference between Word 97 (yeah, it sucks, but I'm too cheap to buy a new version) upgrade and full apparently is the CD-Key. Lovely MS, charge more for the same product.
Kinda wonder why nobody bothered to make the floppy drive faster at least (I know they made 2.8MB drives, why did people still prefer the lower capacity?)

[thimble]

Finished Die Bahnwelt.  Or so it seems...



The saves that came with the downloaded system file load to this bizarre point.





It appears to be an all boss run through with limited bullets, guns, and choice of partners.  Is it actually worthwhile to beat all of these bosses in one go?  Do you get something better if you just go headfirst without any partner aid?  Do the three different doors mean anything more than having different backgrounds for when you fight the bosses?  And most importantly, how the hell is this place unlocked to begin with?  


I really hope there are not multiple endings to this game and I got a bad one.  

[DraconicBlessing]

Rather off-topic, but I've never really had a need to buy a floppy drive for my computer (assembled it about a year and a half ago). XP with system pack 2 built-in should recognize SATA drives, if memory serves.

[Nightcrawler]

Well I'll have all my parts in next week, so I'll know for sure soon enough.  If I don't need a floppy for that, I'm going to try not to put one in my system this time!

While we're on the off-topic of antiquation, the board I bought also doesn't have a serial port.  I still have several things that work on the serial port. That's a pain as well.  However, we sell USB to serial adapters here at work which work pretty well.  They work with all the programs I have professionally designed thus far that use the serial port. Every now and then the adapter drivers(third party) get hung up, but other than that it's an acceptable substitute.

[DraconicBlessing]

Heh. Serial port - another thing I've never had a need for.

[KingMike]

Only need was when I bought a no-brand PC in like 2000 (but it had a K6-2 CPU, which itself was a big step up from the 486 I had been using until the HD died shortly before, and I figured it was about to time to modernize ). Still, it only had a couple serials and a parallel port. The motherboard schematic suggested there was USB support, port (or whatever you the part that links a USB device and the motherboard) sold seperately.
So, I had to use a serial mouse and AT (?, whatever was popular in the 1980s) keyboard (luckily the PS/2 keyboard and mouse I bought had adapters).

[Nightcrawler]

I've got a Dexdrive that uses the serial port.  I also had a smart card reader that was serial port.  And since I code applications at work that interface with our handheld meters via serial, I usually bring some of those home to test out.

Guess it depends on who are you and what your needs are.

[thimble]

Got around to trying the boss run through out.  It actually only goes up to Death Hearn.  And all you get after every time you win, no matter who you choose to be a partner with or even if you don't choose one at all, is basically nothing.  That musical note lady just seems to congratulate you with a message and then a smiley face.  Then she displays the time you took to do it in and displays a frowny face.  You are also unable to save this entire time, even after you win.  So, it may seem like you are stuck after beating the all boss run through at the end, but you're not.
You just reload and try again.  





My best time was 5 minutes and 23 seconds.  Use the blue-haired one; she is the best.  NEVER use the robot.  It's better just going on your own than having that thing tag along with you.  All pairs get the same bosses.  However, if you just go on your own, you get this extra incredibly easy boss just before Death Hearn.  I have no idea why.  It's a good thing that musical lady does not let you in with just your one gun.  I'm guessing it would take over 30 minutes to beat the bosses that way.  





The two doors to the right are pretty much the same thing; just different backgrounds.  The door to the left has a different background and is rather cramped.  Thus, the left door will ensure the hardest difficulty.  Dodging those missiles is a real annoyance in there.  




I still have no clue how this boss run through is unlocked but it really seems like you can only get it after beating the game, especially when noting the save that got me there had over 17 hours of play on it.  






About a week ago, Radical R released another patch.  It translates the menus and most of the system messages.  

[D--]

He should try to fix up the font a little. If it uses the 68k system font, just hack the BIOS.

It's always nice to see someone working on GLODIA games. Maybe some day someone will attempt Emerald Dragon or Vain Dream.