LOL I was doing quite well, then pressed ESCAPE out of frustration and the game froze. Then on level 3, I used the shield and it stayed locked on and the bar reached zero and it locked up. It seems a little buggy, what I figured out is, don't press ESCAPE as the game seems to randomly crash afterwards. I've been playing it on and off for a week or so, it is finicky and feels a bit like Last of the Free - the number of zeros on the level counter made me chuckle. I got stuck on level 6 (9994 short of the wrap-around) and died p*ssing around. I started to lose my mind and the colourful metaphors poured out, so that's it. I'm done. I'm never playing this again, it is just too frustrating and unrewarding. I guess it is OK for a budget title. The question is, is Peter Scott "hunky"? Maybe he was in 1986 (hopefully he was over 16 at the time )
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Venger wrote: ↑Tue Feb 07, 2023 6:57 pm
I like Peter Scott's games but the one thing that takes the shine off them is the fiddly jumping. A lot of the time, when you're trying to jump onto a moving platform, you end up going through it and not ending up on it, sometimes causing an untimely death.
Heartily agreed. Controls can also be a bit hit & miss as everything happens so rapidly - or not at all. There's a spot or two on level 2 where you try to move just one position away from an oncoming baddie and either don't move or overshoot into a spike.
I gave this quite a few tries but could only get to level 3 without save states - and once I took a look at level 4 I had no interest in continuing
Bravo to everyone that'd persevered further
So here's my score: 13135
hunki.jpg
Anyone else encounter strange behaviour when Escape is pressed?
I found this weird ghost level from it:
escwtf.jpg
Yes I've seen this level when Escape has been pressed , I have also seen extra valves appear when you 'collect' one it doesn't actually disappear, it also seems the sheild isn't 100% effective either, I have stood there pressed SHIFT and can see the red square but still get killed .
I've found the game to be very predictable for the most part.
The crashing mostly happens when you press ESC WHILE the sound for dying happens. That's been my experience.
As for the jumping through the platforms, it does happen but not if you land on the middle of it. It happens because you have tried to go through the 'edges' of the platform and that should be expected really.
I find this to be a pretty good game with a high frustration level if you don't like puzzling platforms. I find this one very enjoyable and would play any of his games (as we have in the past)
As has been said, it's not a perfect game but it's pretty good, certainly much better than many of the last few 'clunkers' that we've had.
Ed......
3 working Beebs, 1 RetroClinic Master, 1 normal Master, 1 A3010, 1 Pi2 RISC OS, 2 broken Beeb Motherboards, 1 Omnibus A7000+ server, 1 A7000+ Desktop, 1 PET, 1 C64, 1 C128, 1 Amiga 500 and 1 Roamer.
maniacminer wrote: ↑Mon Feb 13, 2023 12:44 am
LOL I was doing quite well, then pressed ESCAPE out of frustration and the game froze. Then on level 3, I used the shield and it stayed locked on and the bar reached zero and it locked up. It seems a little buggy, what I figured out is, don't press ESCAPE as the game seems to randomly crash afterwards. I've been playing it on and off for a week or so, it is finicky and feels a bit like Last of the Free - the number of zeros on the level counter made me chuckle. I got stuck on level 6 (9994 short of the wrap-around) and died p*ssing around. I started to lose my mind and the colourful metaphors poured out, so that's it. I'm done. I'm never playing this again, it is just too frustrating and unrewarding. I guess it is OK for a budget title. The question is, is Peter Scott "hunky"? Maybe he was in 1986 (hopefully he was over 16 at the time )
Talking of buggy, there have been quite a few times when I've pressed Shift for shield and nothing happens. I also think that Level 7 may be impossible (although I'm willing to be proven wrong if anyone else gets there).
Venger wrote: ↑Mon Feb 13, 2023 11:24 pmI also think that Level 7 may be impossible (although I'm willing to be proven wrong if anyone else gets there).
Despite my intention not to go back to this one, I was intrigued by that, so I went back to my save states. Actually didn't find the going as rough as I initially thought but you may be on to something with your assertion here. It's the row at the top of the screen that's the problem, isn't it? It is possible to use the shield to batter through that one problematic spike, but it's tricky to accomplish and leaves you quite drained for the rest of the level. Jury remains out.
Venger wrote: ↑Mon Feb 13, 2023 11:24 pmI also think that Level 7 may be impossible (although I'm willing to be proven wrong if anyone else gets there).
Despite my intention not to go back to this one, I was intrigued by that, so I went back to my save states. Actually didn't find the going as rough as I initially thought but you may be on to something with your assertion here. It's the row at the top of the screen that's the problem, isn't it? It is possible to use the shield to batter through that one problematic spike, but it's tricky to accomplish and leaves you quite drained for the rest of the level. Jury remains out.
Yeah it is the spike on the ceiling, stopping me getting on to the moving platform that goes over to the top right-hand of the screen. I tried using the shield to sort of "glitch" my way past it but I didn't have any luck, I just kept catching my head on the spike or activating the shield on the moving platform, just out of reach of the spike. I'm wondering how you managed to batter through the spike?
Venger wrote: ↑Tue Feb 14, 2023 5:26 pmI'm wondering how you managed to batter through the spike?
I think it's your "glitch" with the shield that is the same thing I was referring to - how the shield has a slightly larger outline box than that of your Dungdroid so, by positioning yourself right next to a spike, part of it will be removed when the shield is triggered. It needs to be done twice to clear the lower part of that spike but, with the very narrow windows of opportunity (and the constraint of being on a moving platform at the time) this is pretty tricky.
This is it cleared - and yes, I have then been able to get to the valve over at the top right:
But if the shield does not contact an enemy then it drains something like 1/6 of your energy. Using a whole 1/3 of it just to pull off this trick does not leave much gas in the can for the trials of the rest of the level. Might have to be a pacifist speedrun after that!
Last edited by Cybershark on Tue Feb 14, 2023 11:35 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Venger wrote: ↑Tue Feb 14, 2023 5:26 pmI'm wondering how you managed to batter through the spike?
I think it's your "glitch" with the shield that is the same thing I was referring to - how the shield has a slightly larger outline box than that of your Dungdroid so, by positioning yourself right next to a spike, part of it will be removed when the shield is triggered. It needs to be done twice to clear the lower part of that spike but, with the very narrow windows of opportunity (and the constraint of being on a moving platform at the time) this is pretty tricky.
This is it cleared - and yes, I have then been able to get the value over in the top right:
hunki l7.jpg
But if the shield does not contact an enemy then it drains something like 1/6 of your energy. Using a whole 1/3 of it just to pull off this trick does not leave much gas in the can for the trials of the rest of the level. Might have to be a pacifist speedrun after that!
For some strange reason, it won't work for me. I get as near as possible to the spike on the moving platform and it does nothing. I tried facing forwards and backwards but the shield won't overlap with the spike. I can't get any nearer without hitting the spike and dying
Right... I can see that you have to do it whilst walking forward. So basically jump up on the platform, press shield and then walk forward. It uses up a hell of a lot of energy though!
Back in the day I used to be so much better at hacking around inside games - certainly ones that have a BASIC framework. Was planning on removing the problem spike from level 7's map data but found the program listing a bit opaque to my eyes these days. Instead, I came up with a much sneakier "could this actually work??" method to fix the problem, and I overwrite that one bothersome prong (with a couple of spaces) after the level has been drawn
No other changes have been made to the game, so perhaps this SSD could be adopted for the remainder of the round (for anyone who cares to journey past level 6).
Meanwhile, I tried save states to try and see whether the level was possible using the "glitch" method. It turns out that it is! Everything has to be absolutely perfect though and there's no way in the world anyone would be able to do it on the fly. Even with save states it took me an hour and what seemed like hundreds of goes. So we may as well just say that the end of the game for us, as high score competitors, is level 7 (which is a shame as I got there days ago).
I videoed the save state method, just to show how seemingly impossible it would be to complete level 7 without effectively cheating (it was damned near impossible WITH save states). I'll probably upload it to YouTube and post the link in the morning.
Venger wrote: ↑Wed Feb 15, 2023 12:42 am
Even with save states it took me an hour and what seemed like hundreds of goes.
Wow...
I'm somehow reminded of the Capaldi Doctor Who episode, in which he spends several billion years chiseling away at an impenetrable object, until he ultimately breaks through.
You, sir, are a hell of a bird!
Venger wrote: ↑Wed Feb 15, 2023 12:42 amSo we may as well just say that the end of the game for us, as high score competitors, is level 7 (which is a shame as I got there days ago).
As far as calling time on the game at level 7? Well... nowhere was it stated that the game had to be played from level 1, and the game does feature a level skip option
Maybe start another run from level 8?
Venger wrote: ↑Wed Feb 15, 2023 12:42 am
Even with save states it took me an hour and what seemed like hundreds of goes.
Wow...
I'm somehow reminded of the Capaldi Doctor Who episode, in which he spends several billion years chiseling away at an impenetrable object, until he ultimately breaks through.
You, sir, are a hell of a bird!
Venger wrote: ↑Wed Feb 15, 2023 12:42 amSo we may as well just say that the end of the game for us, as high score competitors, is level 7 (which is a shame as I got there days ago).
As far as calling time on the game at level 7? Well... nowhere was it stated that the game had to be played from level 1, and the game does feature a level skip option
Maybe start another run from level 8?
If you want to skip all the crap of me dying (A LOT!!!), fast forward to about the 56 minute mark. You'll see that, even with save states and everything done optimally (or as near as damn it!), there's only a miniscule amount of time left at the end.
Venger wrote: ↑Wed Feb 15, 2023 12:42 am
Even with save states it took me an hour and what seemed like hundreds of goes.
Wow...
I'm somehow reminded of the Capaldi Doctor Who episode, in which he spends several billion years chiseling away at an impenetrable object, until he ultimately breaks through.
You, sir, are a hell of a bird!
Venger wrote: ↑Wed Feb 15, 2023 12:42 amSo we may as well just say that the end of the game for us, as high score competitors, is level 7 (which is a shame as I got there days ago).
As far as calling time on the game at level 7? Well... nowhere was it stated that the game had to be played from level 1, and the game does feature a level skip option
Maybe start another run from level 8?
Typically we start all games at level 1. The reason starting at level 8 wouldn't be that good on this game is the difficulty ramps up fairly quickly and most wouldn't have time I would bet to even figure out level 8. However, give it a try and let us know how it works out.
Ed......
3 working Beebs, 1 RetroClinic Master, 1 normal Master, 1 A3010, 1 Pi2 RISC OS, 2 broken Beeb Motherboards, 1 Omnibus A7000+ server, 1 A7000+ Desktop, 1 PET, 1 C64, 1 C128, 1 Amiga 500 and 1 Roamer.
Many games, and many more restarts , finally got through to level 7 at last - level 6 was tricky (those spikes right at the top got me a few times) but level 7 is harder still, not sure if I can better this especially as it seems Level 7 isn't possible to complete, but I didn't manage to get that far into the level.
MatthewThompson wrote: ↑Thu Feb 16, 2023 12:52 pm
Many games, and many more restarts , finally got through to level 7 at last - level 6 was tricky (those spikes right at the top got me a few times) but level 7 is harder still, not sure if I can better this especially as it seems Level 7 isn't possible to complete, but I didn't manage to get that far into the level.
Well, at least technically, it is "possible" to complete; it's just so impractical as to be "effectively" impossible. My video proves that it is possible but you have to employ the glitch to get rid of the spike as soon as possible, by spending the least amount of shield possible, and then get everything else done perfectly in just one life. It took me over 57 minutes to do this using save states and it's something that, once you do it, it doesn't make it any easier to do again through repetition, mainly because the method to get rid of the spike is so inconsistent, but also because of the problem with falling through moving platforms. I don't really buy into Ed's idea that the platform business is fair, and that you have to jump squarely in the centre, as many times I've done this and still fallen through. Obviously Peter Scott never play-tested level 7 as there's no way he'd include a level that required a glitch to get through.
MatthewThompson wrote: ↑Thu Feb 16, 2023 12:52 pm
Many games, and many more restarts , finally got through to level 7 at last - level 6 was tricky (those spikes right at the top got me a few times) but level 7 is harder still, not sure if I can better this especially as it seems Level 7 isn't possible to complete, but I didn't manage to get that far into the level.
Well, at least technically, it is "possible" to complete; it's just so impractical as to be "effectively" impossible. My video proves that it is possible but you have to employ the glitch to get rid of the spike as soon as possible, by spending the least amount of shield possible, and then get everything else done perfectly in just one life. It took me over 57 minutes to do this using save states and it's something that, once you do it, it doesn't make it any easier to do again through repetition, mainly because the method to get rid of the spike is so inconsistent, but also because of the problem with falling through moving platforms. I don't really buy into Ed's idea that the platform business is fair, and that you have to jump squarely in the centre, as many times I've done this and still fallen through. Obviously Peter Scott never play-tested level 7 as there's no way he'd include a level that required a glitch to get through.
Who'd of thought a Bug Byte game would have issues with glitches and bugs etc . I seriously wonder if they play tested any of their games past the title page/first screen, even this one which I thought looked bug free initially now appears to be bugged !
I agree, I doubt Peter Scott knew about it as none of his other games (not on Bug Byte) had any glitches that I can remember.
If I get time I will give Level 7 another go with this method.
Who'd of thought a Bug Byte game would have issues with glitches and bugs etc . I seriously wonder if they play tested any of their games past the title page/first screen, even this one which I thought looked bug free initially now appears to be bugged !
I agree, I doubt Peter Scott knew about it as none of his other games (not on Bug Byte) had any glitches that I can remember.
If I get time I will give Level 7 another go with this method.
[/quote]
Surely somebody back in the day must've gotten to level 7 and noticed (not that it'd be documented anywhere). I find it hard to believe that it's taken 37 years for someone to find it out
I really wouldn't waste your time trying to get past level 7 using the glitch method, it'll drive you insane.
To be honest, I don't remember any of Peter Scott's games having bugs in them, and I had quite a lot of them. I remember completing Thunderstruck and Thunderstruck 2 and don't recall any major bugs in those (although you could probably get stuck in the wall or something if you tried hard enough).
I was just having a go at level 8 and I think that may be impossible without using the glitch method too. It's bizarre. I can't imagine Peter Scott deliberately incorporating things like this into the game. This time there's a spike that can't be gotten past, right by where you start.
Yep, it turns out that the only way past it is by glitching the spike. You have to glitch 2 spikes in this one but one doesn't require the use of the shield. Here's the link to the walkthrough of level 8 : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMSZToR0eoc
Venger wrote: ↑Thu Feb 16, 2023 1:03 pmI don't really buy into Ed's idea that the platform business is fair, and that you have to jump squarely in the centre, as many times I've done this and still fallen through.
If anything, I've found the opposite to be true - that it's far more likely that you'll make it onto a platform when jumping at it from the sides.
Interestingly, Peter Scott's "Yoyo!", which looks very similar - and has identical looking platforms - has a far more functional lift-jumping mechanic.
MatthewThompson wrote: ↑Thu Feb 16, 2023 1:10 pm
I agree, I doubt Peter Scott knew about it as none of his other games (not on Bug Byte) had any glitches that I can remember.
I think the key difference here is that the screens in this are standalone levels and - with his included level-skip option - it's easy enough to just give them a quick once-over and say "looks alright to me" whereas, with most of his other games (that feature interlinked screens), you'd have to play through the entire game to playtest.
I certainly found a glitch in one of his earliest games - Wendy/Wally Goes Walkies, whereby high scores get entered in the wrong place.
Venger wrote: ↑Thu Feb 16, 2023 3:56 pm
I was just having a go at level 8 and I think that may be impossible without using the glitch method too. It's bizarre. I can't imagine Peter Scott deliberately incorporating things like this into the game. This time there's a spike that can't be gotten past, right by where you start.
Ah... I played that one quite a few times, and planned to come back to the valve on the other side of that spike as my final move - coming at it from the other side - but I now see that's not actually possible, as it's too high.
I suppose this makes my earlier patched version somewhat moot then.
Venger wrote: ↑Thu Feb 16, 2023 3:56 pm
Yep, it turns out that the only way past it is by glitching the spike. You have to glitch 2 spikes in this one but one doesn't require the use of the shield. Here's the link to the walkthrough of level 8 : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hMSZToR0eoc
Didn't realise until I saw this that you can safely walk through the base of a spike (if the pointy part has been removed)!
Have removed level 8's stray spike from my "fixed" version now:
Cybershark wrote: ↑Sat Feb 18, 2023 11:25 pm
Can report that level 9 is possible, but level 10 looks like absolute hell!!
I've actually completed both level 9 and level 10 a couple of days ago. I also recorded both of the walkthroughs but I haven't gotten around to posting them yet on YouTube. I'll probably do it tomorrow.
I had a sneaky go at level 20 too but it seems that you can't get one of the valves on the upper left-hand side, at the end of some brick steps, without hitting your head on the spike. The spike is "unglitchable" too.
Then on level 3, I used the shield and it stayed locked on and the bar reached zero and it locked up. 
It seems a little buggy, what I figured out is, don't press ESCAPE as the game seems to randomly crash afterwards. I've been playing it on and off for a week or so, it is finicky and feels a bit like Last of the Free - the number of zeros on the level counter made me chuckle. I got stuck on level 6 (9994 short of the wrap-around) and died p*ssing around. I started to lose my mind and the colourful metaphors poured out, so that's it. I'm done. I'm never playing this again, it is just too frustrating and unrewarding. I guess it is OK for a budget title. The question is, is Peter Scott "hunky"? Maybe he was in 1986 (hopefully he was over 16 at the time 
)
