Old game that used upside-down characters...

[eccofonic]

Trying to remember the name of this game that was released in the early 1980's. An adventure game I think.

 

One of the only games I've ever seen that used Antic's ability to invert the screen font.

 

Specifically in the game, you would become drugged from a monster or a trap or a treasure chest (don't remember which), and the screen would say "Drugs" when this happened.

[mgr_inz_rafal]

Just a side note: Simple BASIC game FAC has also used the ability to flip the chars (http://atarionline.pl/arch/F/Fac/Fac%20%28-%29%28-%29%28PL%29%5BBASIC%5D.atr)

[firebottle]

Crypts of Terror

 

http://www.atarimania.com/game-atari-400-800-xl-xe-crypts-of-terror_1437.html

[Rybags]

Possibly plenty of games, but if it's only in use for graphics you could miss it entirely.

[José Pereira]

It isn't old but me and Xuel's game X:8 has that. The top and botton are exactly the same and alligned but invert:

www.google.pt/search?tbm=isch&hl=pt-PT&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=x%3A8+atari+8bit+abbuc

Humm... is it possible that I never said it? Although you guys never get it seems totally possible ...

Edited April 7, 2016 by José Pereira

[eccofonic]

Yep, Crypts of Terror is what I was thinking of.

 

Has anyone ever been able to list the main program? It's in BASIC, but has some kind of listing protection (if you have the diskette version, it's name is "PART.TWO").

 

The loader program is listable, but the variable names are random characters.

[eccofonic]

Used a BASIC deprotection program,LISTBAS.COM that was in this thread:

 

http://atariage.com/forums/topic/194219-suplist-basic/

 

And it generated perfectly usable code for both the loader and the main game.

 

The main game has some sort of machine language disk protection routine, that if it doesn't return 0, the game goes into an infinite loop.

 

There are one or two other lines to comment (REM) out.

 

I don't recall the game being so impossibly bad & buggy, but it really is. I guess nobody had game testers back then.

 

Anyway, I found the 'codes' for the 10 levels:

 

NEOPHITE = MAGIC
ZELATOR = BOAZ
THEORICUS = THLMA
PRACTICUS = AGAPE
PHILOSOPHUS = IAO
ADEPTUS MINOR = ALIM
ADEPTUS MAJOR = ALHIM
ADEPTUS EXEMPT = AUM
MAGISTER TEMPLI = AUMGN
MAGUS = AGLA
IPSISSIMUS = YHVH

 

Can't imagine wanting to play more than 1 level, much less 10 of them... 50 rooms each is waaaay too much.

 

Oh, and there's the "secret" you supposedly receive after playing the 10th level, spelling errors left in:

 

"Let it be known: That there exists an ancient Order of sages. This Order has existed in the most remote times and has manifested its activity secretly under different names. It has caused social and political revolutions and proved to be the rock of salvation in times of danger. It has always upheld freedom against tyranny. The truths of the universe lie burried in a secrete system of study called the "OCCULT". The Truth is thereby kept from vulger eyes by a veil of superstition and study. The symbol to look for is a single eye! (check the american $1 bill!)"

 

Like, wow man, I played all ten levels for that?

[bugs]

We/society had a lot more patience in the early 80's.....

 

thanks for the codes

[eccofonic]

I should also mention there is an object in the game not mentioned in the manual (found on Atarimania).

 

It looks like the 2600 Adventure chalice. When you touch it, everything in the room turns invisible.

 

You end up walking around with it if you don't touch any other object. Other rooms you walk into sometimes go invisible, sometimes not.

 

Object handling in this game isn't the best (buggy). This is bad because objects will randomly drop.

 

Sometimes the game places the object onto another non-movable object, like a grave or a wall, and you have to reset the game at that point.

Edited April 9, 2016 by eccofonic

[eccofonic]

On level 1, the magic ring is always in room 12.

 

All other levels use this formula: 10+10+INT(RND(1)*3*level-4)

 

So never less than room 16...

Edited April 11, 2016 by eccofonic