Now I'm out of the COVID closet and allowed to go near folk again I decided after the tier 4 news to not use my new found freedom and to actually just do all things C64. As Serena is now home (love her) and all toasty I felt happy enough to create the ultimate C64 Flash disk, its not perfect and there's stuff all over the place but it has pretty much every title that I own or have images of on it, its packed with files... Copying to a USB 3.0 with the tiny files is a pain as the poor old USB device never gets a head of steam so each transmitted file is barely hitting any speed before the next one while means a very long time to copy 61,000 files.. And then to run a dupe finder takes more time etc etc.. But after some hours I finally had everything including SID tunes on my flash drive and plugged it in to my 1541 Ultimate... Boy did it feel good to have it all at the press of a joystick on the real hardware, that is why I plug the 1541 ++ so much, its like a more beefed up Atari AVG cart. And then it was time to play and play I did until my neck started complaining rather painfully. Because I've mostly been on my Atari as of late it was just so nice to see all the C64 bits and bobs again, sure there's megs and megs of utter crap on it but there's so much that is just wonderful to play again. I also realised very quickly that my hand to eye these days has taken a big hit which becomes more clear on a real hardware setup but its didn't faze me, I was platforming and shooting like a mad man and loving every bit. So nice to fire up the old breadbon and just have fun, as said I have been on the Atari lately beta testing a game that I can't talk about (so James Bond, and that isn't a clue) and its coming along very nicely, as I'm the only beta bloke I can't even give clues but folks will love it. So to end this I can't but say that a C64 is a more than worthwhile retro machine to own, there's games / programs for every person and the new games as Richie will tell you as a buyer like me of the new stuff, that there's some great titles being made for it still. If someone offers you a cheap C64 then rip it out of their fingers asap....Its a lovely machine..
And back in I went after neck was better and found the multi pack I'd purchased from Psytronic (think it was them) where they did an 8 game pack for 4.99 I think so I got it just for Barnsley Badger but the other games are bloody good too.. Bargain..OK, its digital versions only but there's no reason to not buy it, I do get the odd title from scene places just to see if its worth the wonga and as many ARE I buy them, best buy so far, Sam's Journey, easily the most polished platformer on the C64 and they make the 64 do things like multi way scrolling, loads of character pick ups, great music and sound etc....Love it.. Reformed pirate, probably not but I appreciate the games more now and money allowing am willing to support that dev..
Sounds like a good way to spend the day Paul. I'm hoping to spend a good time on the Saturn over Christmas and catch up with some Atari action as well.
Go for it Alan, some good old Knights action etc, some great stuff on the saturn, had hoped my brother was going to donate his one to me (he's 9yrs older so now in his late 60's but as we have not spoken in nigh on 20 years I feel it may not happen). Will probably end up on a council tip... So unlike him you have a great one on it and do enjoy.... Merry Xmas to you my friend...As to all on here...
You too Paul. Bet you are glad to have your daughter home, hopefully a lovely Christmas for the three of you I'm an arcade racing fan so the Saturn has a big draw for me. Saying that today I've been using some CEX vouchers to pick up a couple of PSP bargains. There's so many great systems from yesteryear, always something new to explore!
Aye (allowed, I'm Scots Irish), some cracking arcade stuff on the Saturn, probably the best version of Daytona out there, and yeah, we have a PSP here that my daughter uses while I emulate, as you say, so much good stuff on the collection of machines out there, would be a shame to ignore them. So I don't I remember being in Florida when the Gamecube launched and I'm a huge Metroid fan with Metroid Prime being a huge title, my wife says well get one while you are here, was so hard to resist but I did and got a brit one when we came back, had to get an import Metroid Prime and an Action replay to play it through but boy was that game worth it. I spent ages in that big (and now gone) toy shop on International drive just playing the demo..Loved the shop, was like Hamleys on acid, huge, Serena loved it...
Great idea, Paul, collecting all the C64 library and slam it down on your flash drive. The U15412+ is absolutely fantastic, I own one too, and although it's not cheap at all, you can say it's worth every penny. I'm a C64er of the early 80s so, for me, it's even "cooler", since that is the machine I was grown with. And every week or month there are new titles. You can even say that a new videogames market is born again. The number of retro fans keeps growing with the arrival of the TheC64 series. I am currently messing up with alternative cheaper interfaces for the C64 such as UNO2IEC HOST and Pi1541 cable version, the latter presenting almost full compatibility with the original 1541 drive. More when I'll have some time to write on these interfaces, probably a couple of articles on RetroMagazine World out soon!
Must have a read up on the Pi1541 cable, just had another day of C64, loading tapes of all things...Hearing the farting of a Novaload was fun after all this time.. I was a little fortunate on the 1541++, they offered me a reconditioned one at a slightly discounted price, even gave me a choice of colours (went for clear). If it was reconditioned then I could not tell, was pristine..Still an expensive buy but every little helps as they say and its simply a genius cart as you know. I love all the built in carts and options but most of all just how compatible it is...The only issue I have ever had was down to a game not liking the fastloader being used. Obviously not having a whopping big disk drive and take deck on the desk is another big plus.. Ta for the info on the devices, must admit about not knowing about them, I keep up to date with game releases but not so much hardware.. Paul...
Enjoying the old C64 love-in here in this thread, fellas. I aim to properly explore the machine this time before any "clear the decks" urges hit me as I can see that it enjoyed amazing success in the huge range of software releases many of which I have never seen, heard of or played so I would definitely appreciate, say, a noobs guide to what the "basic" system with just a C2N and joystick can hope for. Is it just a case of try and buy a stack of cheap games tapes or can you stick one of these devices you mention directly into the C64's expansion port without the need of a disk drive and "Gotek" your way through that massive back-catalogue you mention, Paul? Also, two of you guys mention it being expensive but worth it so I'm guessing the 1541 Ultimate is probably over in the £50-100 range but are there cheaper SD/Gotek alternatives? Can you provide say a TOP FIVE C64 of must-have "boys toys" accessories which might be in the £20-30 range? Haha. I know I could look these up but I like to ask the experts on here, if that's OK with you, fellas? As I say, I'm an absolute beginner with the C64 but mates back then had them and I always thought it looked a damn good machine but being a biased barsteward, I will always prefer the 800XL as it was my Atari Classic of choice back then!
You know me by now Andy, if there's a machine with good stuff on it then I'm happy to have a looksee, one thing I have noticed about my habits is that I seem to favour custom chip machines but mostly machines with sprites. Now technically the ST has a single sprite, the mouse pointer but one sprite does not a game maketh Now there's nothing wrong with having no sprites as some crackers on the Speccy will prove but in the meat of all things, having sprites makes it easier for the programmer to calculate other stuff. But as said, if there's good games on it then I'm keen. As for basic hardware for the C64, its comes down to compatibility, things like the SD2IEC are cheap compared to the Ultimate++ but a lot of loaders that use the OS in direct ways fail, so a big load of fast loaders fail and anything that points hardware direct to a device can be problematic because the SD2IEC isn't connected to the drive bus in a normal way. Will games work on it, yes, many many do but there's a significant amount that won't. Tapecart SD seems a good tap file loader, not used myself but it opens up a lot of tap files for use. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Tapecart...er-tn-Tapuino-SD2IEC-PI1541-C64-/133442145850 David mentioned a Pi1541 lead which gets good reviews and has apparently very high compatibility but I did not know of it, to use it you need a Rasperby pi 3B which I believe are cheap so it seems a great semi cheap disk image loader. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Pi1541-f...359429?hash=item3b489d9d45:g:868AAOSwWoRe9RrS Me personally, I'd maybe get the tape device and save up for the Ultimate 1541++ which does tapes, carts, disks prgs and a host of other files while offering in built fast loaders and much much more, its the creme de la creme of devices but sadly the most expensive alternative but it is THE BEST. https://ultimate64.com/Ultimate2Plus_Black_Tape I'll have a bit more of a look around, I'm not as up on the new hardware as I might be so I'll have a scan and report back.. It all depends how much you find on the C64 to enjoy, I can promise that there IS stuff on it that will impress and there's a significantly massive database of software that sadly dwarfs the Atari and most other machines but its in a good way. I still love my Atari etc to bits but I can't turn down a machine that has stuff I love over love of a brand and I know you and all that I know off on here are the same. We have our little faves that will always feature in our playlist but there's a massive set of great software out there on others that just begs to be played with.. So do it, just think of it as music, some days you want a bit of rock and roll, some days a bit of jazz, some days a good old soul classic, its all music but there's nothing wrong in sampling it all.
If it helps, that's my personal chart about C64 modern mass storage devices: 1. 1541 U2+ - expensive but it's not only an emulation of the 1541 disk drive, it's much more than that (cartridge emulation, ROM emulation, fastloaders, tape images support, REU memory expansions, etc.) - around 120 EUR - 99% compatibility 2. Pi1541 Hat - this board couples with a RPI 0/1/2/3 through the GPIO expansion and offers SD data storage for PRG, D64, D81, G64 images. (Hat + RPI around 80 EUR) - 99% compatibility 3. Pi1541 Cable - a cheap cable that connects with a RPI (see above) - Uses the SD card of the RPI as a mass storage for PRG, D64, G64 images and more. (around 15 EUR + RPI cost) - 99% compatibility 4. SD2IEC devices - there are many versions on the market from 30 to 60 EUR - offers 65% compatibility with D64 and PRG images as it doesn't support games & demos built-in fastloaders or the possibility to run code by the 6502 embedded in a real disk drive. 5. UNO2IEC HOST cables - a simple cable (cost around 12 EUR) that you can use to simulate a disk drive through an Arduino UNO board that connects to a PC USB port and the Commodore's serial port. Same compatibility as the SD2IEC devices. Same limits. There are more solutions to load games and progs to the C64 memory and play. Cartridges that allows for PRG and D64 images or tape emulation devices such as those mentioned by Paul. The 1541U2+ is also embedded in the Ultimate64 board which is a complete motherboard replacement for the C64. It can even increase the overall clock up to 48 MHz - some have tried GEOS on it and the results are amazing.
Wonderful, fellas. I really appreciate that stack of recommendations, suggestions, pointers and prices. Plenty of explanation too for the likes of a Commodore layman like myself. I do believe that you have begun to set the foundations for me to properly explore this breadbin in the New Year and check out the full range of what software was released for the C64, rather than bin and sell as I have done previously after checking out say half a dozen games and quickly growing bored with it as it didn't feature on my nostalgia radar from back in the day. Cool - many thanks, Paul and Dave and like Paul says, I might start off with a cheap "pop" tape loading option and then go towards something more grander and "classical" when I've really started to cut my teeth on it. Whichever, I've got loads of options so thank you for showing me the way forward - cheers, lads!
Hey Baz, going for a tape loading option is ok and it's very nostalgic as basically, all the Commie users started their adventures in games land with a Datassette. The original price of a disk drive at the time was higher than the computer itself! If you would like to try a UNO2IEC HOST cable, I can send you one pretty soon, free of charge, of course. Recently @Klyde was so kind to build 3 of them for me and they are currently travelling all the way from Paris to Switzerland. One of them could simply bounce up in North Europ... oops, sorry, one could get through the English Channel and reach your HQ before shipping costs to BrexitLand become impractical. You just have to use your own Windows / MacOSX / Linux / RPI computer as a host for games and apps and get it connected to your C64. Just let me know.
Dave, that would be so good and so kind. Many many thanks and of course I will pay. Yes, the Brexit barriers seem to be activating and before long we will have barbed wire on the beaches, the navy mobilised to begin operations in the North Sea hunting down illegal rabid covid asylum seeking foreign looking retro computer games and Doris telling us Britons that Never, in the field of human stupidity did we owe so much to China for sales of PPE... It's ALL happening, folks. Bev due to have surgery tomorrow, btw, as I've just taken her in for assessments with the orthopaedic team. Oh, what a Christmas ahead - you aint seen the state of my culinary skills (around about zero) - that new kitchen will get blitzed!
Good to know, Baz. If we ever had the chance to meet for a dinner, I'll be the one cooking. Definitely. No doubt about it. Your comment about Brexit barriers are hilarious. Can't stop laughing. Carla just showed up in my studio room worried about me choking while laughing... All the best to Bev. I'm sure she'll be fine after surgery. Just don't... cook for her, breakfast aside. ;-)
Poor kitchen, an unskilled brute in residence, just remember Baz, if its still moving its probably not done yet!
Hehe, what you like Paul? I will incinerate all life forms in that kitchen including my own to ensure a good all round roast and deep stewed appearance (when I've got my mitts on the cooking sherry). My corden bleu cheese on toast is coming on great guns. I find the fondue effect disguises any mould I've forgotten to cut off and anyhow, HP sauce sprayed all over the dish covers up a whole host of sins. As for you Dave choking on my serving of mail, maybe it was the sprouts, buddy! Keep em coming and by all means send me a recipe or three for festive fun and frolics.
Yikes, Zorro has invited Growl Tiger round for lunch tomorrow. This is when he last put in an appearance, Paul... You couldn't make it up. Bev - hurry on home, I'm getting delirious.
Arghhhhh....A ginger cat....Never trust a ginger cat.... I think I may have told this story before, not sure... One morning I get awoken by the bed shaking, I'm face down and out of it but look across and my wife is just giggling to the point of making the bed shake, I notice she's looking at me and looking at something, I crane my neck and see there's a ginger cat sat on my bum area which is thankfully covered with eiderdown but he's shagging the area. I've jumped up and chased the bugger out. Its then I realise he's one of the kittens we sold to people around here and now he's back to play Deliverance with ex owner... I didn't squeal like a pig but I sure as hell chased / limped after him..
Ah, back on the C64 again, had a Bruce Lee day, played Return of the Fury and finished it and then had a crack at Bruce Lee II, II sorts the men from the boys (or possibly the other way around depending on how your reactions have stood the test of time). I got a way in (probably only touching the sides) but to the point my neck was aching so rather than start all again I went to do a save via action replay but it sodding stopped the action replay from kicking in, not only that it crashed the game...Boo Hoooo BUT, its such a fun game to play I'll be happy to start from scratch....(my neck may complain tho) If you love Bruce Lee (who does not!) then Return of Fury and Bruce Lee 2 will fill that Bruce Lee hole....And for the Atarians, Return of Fury I believe is still in the works somewhere..
