Archives of Genesis8 Amstrad Page from 1999 to 2024 about developpement, page 11 / 19






Disark by Targhan (Arkos), a disassembler/source converter

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After the release of Arkos Tracker alpha 5 andt 6 by Targhan, it's the turn for the Disark utility.

Disark is a new cross-platform software (for Windows/Linux/MacOsX) developed because it was needed for Arkos Tracker 2, it is a Z80 disassembler/source converter.

Besides the disassembling part, the main goal of Disark is to convert a source into any other assembler's source. For example, AT2 Z80 sources heavily rely on RASM macros, which are not understood by other assemblers. So the trick is:

  • Assemble the player/music with Rasm (this gives a binary and a symbol file)
  • Use Disark on the binary to recreate the source, without all the bothersome macros!



RASM v0.113 by Roudoudou, a multi platform assembler for Amstrad CPC

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The last version of RASM is v0.113 (26th April 2019). This multi platform assembler (linux, windows, but not only like MorphOS on Amiga) let you program for Amstrad CPC.

The online documentation is available.

  • trigger an error when dynamic LZ section cannot crunch
  • bugfix when trying to crunch an empty section
  • dynamic debug options removed
  • snapshot & cartridge summary by default
  • embedded rasm export all labels and EQU in the info struct
  • new math function CEIL
  • rasm may handle generated name with INCBIN directive


RASM v0.112 by Roudoudou, a multi platform assembler for Amstrad CPC

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The last version of RASM is v0.112 (5th April 2019). This multi platform assembler (linux, windows, but not only like MorphOS on Amiga) let you program for Amstrad CPC.

The online documentation is available.

update v0.111

  • error management code cleanup
  • new options with directive INCBIN for wav import
  • allow EDSK with invalid track sector size or supernumerary tracks if sectors are DATA compliant
  • bugfix confusion between generated global labels and local labels for export
  • bugfix EQU with generated names AND curly brackets formulas inside a loop
  • bugfix invalid REPEAT values will increment the error counter

  • update v0.112

  • bugfix single NOP wasn't increment nop counter ^_^
  • bugfix NOP count with ADD/SUB/XOR/AND/CP (IX+n)/(IY+n)
  • bugfix in WAV importv


Creation of Adventure games, something old, something new, something borrowed

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In quite old times, creating a new adventure game without programming it from A to Z meant using programs like :

  • The Quill written by Graeme Yeandle and published by Gilfsoft (a british company created by Tim Gilberts in the early 1980s) on ZX Spectrum in December 1983. With the success of the tool Gilsoft released Illustrator to add graphics to games written by the Quill. First published on ZX Spectrum, it was also released on Amstrad CPC, C64, Atari 8bit, Apple 2, BBC Micro and Acorn Electron. It was using a parser with only verb noun understanding
  • Professional Adventure Writer (PAW) sometimes called PAWS for Professionnal Adventure Writing System is also written by Graeme Yeandle, Tim Gilberts and Phil Wade, still published by Gilsoft in 1986. It featured graphics directly without an addon, a better parser, could use 128 Ko (at least on ZX Spectrum). It was released on ZX Spectrum and other CP/M computers but did exclude the BBC Micro and C64. An updated CP/M version of PAW was ported for MS-DOS under the name PC Adventure Writer. A bit more history about Quill and PAW on Graeme Yeandle's website and Stefan Vogt's website (including download of the Quill and PAW for several computers) and an interesting interview of Tim Gilberts by Stefan Vogt. PAW was used recently for the game Doomsday Lost Echoes in 2016 (original web site of the game). Check Gilsoft's Text Adventures' Engines Reservoir if you want to write a game with PAW
  • Graphic Adventure Creator (GAC) written by Incentive Software in 1985 by Sean Ellis on Amstrad CPC initially and later to ZX Spectrum, BBC, Acorn Electron (without graphics), C64 and also at STAC (ST Adventure Creator) on Atari ST
  • DISEÑADOR DE AVENTURAS DE AVENTURAS AD (DAAD) or Adventure Designer for Aventuras AD was written by Tim Gilberts in the late 1980s for the company Aventuras AD. So he wrote a new multi platform adventure writer which could target 8bit and 16 bit computers like C64, ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC and PCW, MSX, Atari ST, Amiga and MS-Dos. It was programmed from 1988 to 1991 but development stopped with the banruptcy of Aventuras AD. DAAD was used recently for the game PANDEMIA XXI

DAAD could have been lost forever, except that the systems disks were found in 2014 by Mr. SAMUDIO and released in the public domain sadly without english support which was missing. Happily Tim Gilberts teamed with Stefan Vogt (author of Hibernated 1 released in 2018, a science fiction adventure) and restored and extended the english language support, and letting use a modern editor. The new version supports the same platform than the original DAAD. A new version of DAAD (v2 R2) (all tools to create a new game) was released in 2018 and a DAAD compiler v2.42 update in 2019. DAAD also supports the german language now.

But today you can use other tools than excluding or complimentary to DAAD :

So want to write game, what about reading tips about using Quill/PAW/DAAD by Stefan Vogt ?



Arcade Game Designer v0.7.3 for Windows by Jonathan Cauldwell

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Arcade Game Designer v0.7.3 is a Windows (32/64) utility by Jonathan Cauldwell to write games for Timex/Next, ZX Spectrum, Amstrad CPC, Acorn Electron, Dragon/Coco and Enterprise, without any knowing of programmation.

This new version adds : Windows 32 bit version, option to import AGD/AGDX games from TAP files, new options in the script generator, new tool to check for mistakes, 2 default fonts, numerous bug fixes, support for Acorn Electron, Dragon/Coco and Enterprise, updated documentation.

There is a forum about AGD.




RASM v0.110 by Roudoudou, a multi platform assembler for Amstrad CPC

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The last version of RASM is v0.110 (27th February 2019). This multi platform assembler (linux, windows, but not only like MorphOS on Amiga) let you program for Amstrad CPC.

The online documentation is available.

update v0.109
- bugfix crash when trying to save with a negative size
- bugfix crash case with macro and wrong parameter number
- bugfix EDSK update
- IFDEF/IFNDEF now scans for macro names
- TZX/CDT output support (not working)
- RUN directive may use unknown var as parameter
- embedded Rasm may return info struct about errors and symbols

There is more different files to download:
- msdos version
- windows 32bits executable
- windows 64bits executable (20% faster than 32bits version)
- sources

update v0.110
- allow numeric expression beginning with +
- bugfix uninitialized memory reads and memory leaks with embedded Rasm






Jarlac, an Amstrad CPC game for CPCRetroDev, teaser, loading screen

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Jarlac by Jose A. Martin is an incoming Amstrad CPC game written for the CPCRetroDev competition, you can :





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