After Dark Screen Saver: Marbles!

Over 30 minutes of the Marbles! screen saver from After Dark 4.0.  This module allowed for the customization of the layout.  I always liked the pinball bumpers because they increased the speed of the falling marble.

Marbles!

If you didn't have glass on your monitor, the marbles would jump out and bounce on your desk.

 

"Marbles" determines how many marbles appear.

"Pattern" determines which setup of pins will display on your screen.  "Random" displays the different setups randomly.  To customize your pins, choose one of the "Custom" settings, run the module, press "Caps-lock"and click and drag the pins on to the screen.  To delete a pin, drag it  to the top of the screen.

Check "Show Edit Message" to be reminded how to customize your pins.

Programming by Andrew Armstrong
Art by Joe Kauffman and Stephen Ekstrom
Sound by P.J. Sonnichsen
©1996 Berkeley Systems, Inc.

Diablo III FunPlay with Level 7 Crusader

After Dark Screen Saver: ComingSoon!

About 11 minutes of ComingSoon! taken at 1024x768.  Part of the Twisted set, this module shows off the satire that made some of the later savers so much fun.  The "cany" typo below is taken directly from the module.

Coming Soon

What's on the horizon for Berkeley Systems? What whacky, provocative, and thoughtful software products will those Toaster Kids think of next? What shining new stars will set in the firmament of the computainment industry? Well, probably none of these ... but it's a nice thought.

DISCLAIMER: Not too many cheezy sales guys were maimed in the making of this module.

Pace: How fast cany you read? Test your skill!
Show: You want that in order? Randomized? With fries?
Music: Yes, that's the Flying Toaster Anthem. Dig it.
CapsLock: Advances to the next product.

Art by Matt Small and Laurence Arcadias.
Programming by Jeff "Trurl" Thomas.
©1995 Berkeley Systems, Inc.

By L. Arcadias, M. Small, & J. Thomas.
©1995 Berkeley Systems, Inc.

Stunt Island: Challenge 1

Trials Fusion Review

I have a love hate relationship with the Trials franchise.  I absolutely love finally nailing a run I've been attempting over and over again.  I love the feel of smoothly landing on a steep downhill and carrying the momentum into a massive jump.

But there is no game that I have sworn at or been more angered by.  Trials can be a truly frustrating experience.  From missing a gold medal run due to being off by a fraction of a millimeter when approaching a specific ramp to attempting a hard transition over one hundred times in a single run, Trials can bring out the worst in me.

For the most part Trials Fusion is more of the same.  This is a good thing.  Fans of the series will feel right at home.  The new futuristic environments are a welcome change.  It seems like there's always something interesting in the background and the Tron-like tracks and buildings make for a welcome break from the dirt trails and pavement of usual Trials fare.

Here, a biker explores various Instagram filters.

Some of the tracks in Trials Fusion are brilliantly laid out.  The early tracks flow with a satisfying smoothness and later tracks seem to have a good pace of difficult sections and easier obstacles that give the player a chance to catch their breath.

The difficulty ramps up in a similar manner to other games in the series.  I always get to a point, playing through Trials courses where finishing the course means a bronze medal and nearly (or over) a hundred restarts along the way.  Though frustrating and the source of all my seething hate when being attempted, this is one of the reasons I play Trials and getting better at these insane courses is extremely satisfying.

What doesn't work for me are the added features.  The quad bike is a nearly meaningless addition.  It does feel weighty and therefore different than the normal motorbikes but the difference is slim and the few times it is used amount to little more than an extended skill mini-game.

I love the mini-games in Trials but the few available in the base game leave a lot to be desired.  Most are neither inspired nor fun.

The least successful addition is the new trick system.  This seems like the exact method of how not to create a trick system.  I understand what they were going for with a physics based system and I like the idea but it fails in execution.

The system does not work.  Some of the time the game does not recognize my input and the trick never starts.  If the trick does start, sometimes the game doesn't recognize the trick took place.  This was especially frustrating on one skill game level that has you perform tricks before you hit the ground.  It seems like half the time I performed a flip version of a trick, the game wouldn't see it and the trick would fail.

The good news is, there are only one or two trick tracks per section so like the quad bike, they amount to little more than an extended skill game.  I would have loved for the trick system to be button based.

The other mark against Trials Fusion is that it still feels like its in a beta state.  Some of the "Garage" screens will fail to load such as changing your rider's gear.  These screens will sometimes load without issue and sometimes just result in a wait cursor.  Similarly, when playing various tracks, the screen where you can choose what bike to use will be black.  You can still choose the bike but you do not see anything other than the bike's name.

The Factors

I only have an hour factor:

Great.  An hour may even be a little too long to play Trials Fusion.  It can take a while to get through a few of the hard tracks and an hour does give you plenty of time to trudge through a lot of resets when needed as well as download and try out a number of user made tracks.

I only have ten minutes factor:

Perfect.  Trials Fusion is well suited for a quick jump in and play.  A few easier tracks can be knocked out in ten minutes or a few skill games can be attempted. 

Kid walking in factor:

Great.  Very tame music and dialog paired with colorful visuals make this a great game for kids to watch or try themselves.  Trials Fusion is a great builder of hand-eye coordination for young and old alike.

Significant other factor:

Great.  Competing for a highscore on any given run or racing head to head on a multi-player track, Trials Fusion offers plenty to satisfy multiple users.

Final Verdict:

6/10 - The graphic and scenery changes are nice and this is still a Trials game but the bugs and the terrible trick system keep this game from being great. 

Developer link

After Dark Screen Saver: Fractal Forest

Fractal Forest draws random trees on your desktop. In a time when most trees in video games were hand drawn sprites, see a tree procedurally drawn was a unique and interesting experience. Well, at least as interesting as screen savers get.

FRACTAL FOREST (tm)

Use Fractal Forest to grow your own desktop forest.
Try Fractal Forest and Meadow together in Multimodule for a very calming effect!

Concept and original Mac version by Scott Armitage.
Windows version by:
Leif Wennerstrom
SAPIEN Technologies, Inc.
Richmond, CA

Fractal Forest by L. Wennerstrom, S. Armitage
©1992-93 Berkeley Systems Inc.

Tomb Raider Gameplay Part 2