______ ______ ______ .::::: .:: .:: :::::.
/ /_____ / /____ / \ .::.. .:: .:: ...:::
___ / // _ \ / / /__<_ -- >.:: .:: .:: .::
/ /_____/< ____>___/_____/ / /______/.::::::.:: .:::::: :::::'
< - / \_/ / /_____/ / ___ ___ ____ /_/___ ______ ____
\_____/ /_______/ /_____/ / _// __>/ / // // __>/ / / /< /
/_/ \___/\__//_/ \___/\____//___>
-- -- -< Demo Reviews from the Error In Line #3 >- -- --
Moving into darkness by Dead Hackers Society (Atari ST)
There's no doubt that the highly optimised c2p-routines available
by now have boosted ST-demo productions to new heights. By this
technique, effects so far only seen on the Falcon, can be run on
the ST just as well, with only a few minor deficiencies. First,
the ST will not only have to calculate the - usually - costly
effect but also convert it from the chunky format to the plane
format that the ST graphics chip "shifter" can display. To
cleverly implant the c2p-conversion into the effect, to cheat
a little and to optimise is the aim of demo-programming on the
ST today.
Entering the stage left comes DHS to show what they have
achieved in the meantime.
The demo begins by a funky looking bent/melting tunnel, mirrored
on the horizontal axis, with a very freaky texture while the
credits are being displayed in front of it as the music slowly
starts to play a rather sad chiptune.
After this effect had faded down, in moves a golden "Darkness"-
logo that is surrounded by something looking like a skeleton of
a reptile.
Probably not a reptile but an alien as a picture of an alien
head in pink appears on the left side of the screen while on
the right side, an environment mapped 3D object, star-shaped
which seems to be the fashion on Atari-computer currently.
The star-like object zooms in, rotates around for a while,
the disappears again ...
... to make room for a little window filled with a scrolling
bumpmapper. The bumpmapper halts all of a sudden and several
environment-mapped 3D-opjects appear. It looks like a silvery
stone which rotates while 4 little silvery stones orbit around
it until the bumpmapper starts moving again and so you have
a rotating 3D object with a moving bumpmapper beneath.
Probably the ST needs a bit of a rest by then because then
another picture is being displayed of something very insect-
like looking stuff when on the right side of the screen
a set of golden, environment-mapped stair appear and whirl
around the screen - but sadly, no little blobs start hopping
downwards on them.
Enough of the 3D-objects, so here goes another offset-effect.
This time it's something rather well known - but not very
common on Atari to be honest - a textured "column" in the
middle of the screen with the inner of a textured sphere
behind it and the movement creates the impression of being
moved around the column in the middle, again in golden and
brown colours.
Golden and brown colours also dominate the next effect where
an environment-mapped 3D-Object, looking like a solid frame
with a bolt in the middle, rotates on screen with some
ornament-like looking surroundings, then moves slowly into
the whole in the middle of the background, when light-rays
are emitted from the center of the screen, mirrored on both
vertical and horizontal axis.
The screen flashes and a face of a woman appears in the middle
of the screen where the 3D object has disappeared and where
the light-rays were emitted from and the music stops.
After a short period of loading - well, depending on the speed
of your diskdrive - the music starts to play a slightly more
cheerful tune and another table is being displayed, which is
a bit similar to the one with the column in the middle - It
kind of looks the center of the screen is the origin of a
texture and the viewer is being moved around this vertex.
This effect is being removed after a short while, too, to make
room for another background over which another silvery
environment-mapped 3D-object appears that also looks a bit
like a stone, which again rotates around a little before it
again disappears.
On screen appears then the face of a friendly looking monster
(kind of paradox in some way) while a little scroller moves
upwards on the left side of the screen. Most probably, this
screen runs in midres.
Right after this, a freaky background is being brought on
screen looking like an awful lot of blue snakes wound into
each other with a transparent 3D-DHS logo appearing over it,
that again rotates around for a while and is most probably
also environment mapped..
This final effect concludes the demo, as a freaky and alien
looking "68000"-logo appears on screen, fades to black, fades
in again in b/w when the end-scroller appears over it.
In the end-scroller, the story behind this demo is being
explained, and before one judges this demo, this story should
be read. It explains a few things. ;-)
Nevertheless, we're here for judging this demo so here we go.
If one is honest he'll have to admit that this demo doesn't
contain much that hasn't been seen before - at least effect-
wise. The 3D-routines most probably origin from DHS' very
own Don't break the oath and have been converted to run on
the ST by applying the c2p-technique to it and some 3D-objects
look like they origin from Don't break the Oath, too, even
if they are slightly simpler. You get to see a lot of either
star- or stone-shaped 3D objects, nicely environment mapped,
rotating around their own center mostly.
The offset-effects are nice-looking and haven't been seen on
the Atari too often, so they freshen up this demo in their
own way and you also get to see the combination of effects.
Nevertheless, it probably looks a bit too much like a slide-
show of 3D-objects in some sense, so probably a few more
interludes of other effects wouldn't have hurt, but then
again, that's also a matter of taste, isn't it ?
Also, the graphics window the effects run in is kind of
smallish on a large number of effects. And in some way,
that is a bit sad to see when you have a static, rotating
star-like 3D-object of which edges are being cut off when
it reaches a certain angle. On the positive side you must
notice that there's no serious breakdowns in speed - the
demo usually stays at a very very decent framerate all the
time, even on the simple little ST.
Graphics-wise, the demo is very consequent and excellently
done - whether you like the style or not, you will have to
admit that the graphics design is very well done on that
demo. Personally, i also respect the way that low-res (for
c2p) and high-res (well, ST-low to be precise) graphics have
been mixed in most effects. In some screens, when the back-
ground is being brought on screen is displayed in normal
ST-low resolution, then, when the real effect starts, the
part of the background where the effect is being displayed,
is converted to low-res (half the ST Low resolution both
vertically and horizontally) and on some screens, you have
to run the demo twice to see the transition - Excellent work.
The music of the demo suits the demo well, even if the second
tune doesn't fit the style of the demo as well as the first
one does. But everyone will admit that it's almost impossible
to make chip-tunes suit this style of darkness and gloom very
well, so that as a resume it should be noted that the music
is about as dark and gloomy as it can get on the YM2149.
All in all, Moving into Darkness is a demo that is nice to
watch a few times but since you have seen most of the effects
already this way or other, this demo doesn't knock you over
and make you beg for mercy.
It's a very stylish demo, especially if you like this gloomy
type and it's definetly a goody for the ST fanatics who are
hungry for new-school demos.
The Paranoid
Paranoia
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