Welcome back to the Mac Games on the Internet column. Now that I’ve got my top ten picks and my affinity for 3D games behind me, it’s time to shift gears and find the best online sites for Ambrosia’s newest action/adventure game, Escape Velocity. When it was released at the beginning of the summer, Escape Velocity was an instant hit among Mac gamers due to its gigantic universe, nonlinear gameplay, and extensible architecture. With support from creators of EV editors and the game’s creators themselves, many people have taken it upon themselves to expand the EV universe by creating and distributing EV plug-ins. What better way to distribute these plug-ins than making them available via the World Wide Web?
At any rate, Escape Velocity, in the few short months since release, has inspired several people to set up and maintain Web pages for all types of EV info. You’ll find in this article a list of the best all-around sites; these are the must-have bookmarks for an EV fan.
But First...
A few people wrote to me in response to my previous article on 3D Games Resources on the Internet, and some letters contained important information or corrections.
First, I received an e-mail from Dave Coufal himself (if you remember, he maintains that huge set of Mac 3D Games pages). Apparently, I was using an archaic version of his URL. It still works, but it’s ugly. The URL should be <http://www.mit.edu:8001/people/dcoufal/mac3d.html>. Thanks, Dave.
Second, I received a letter from a Dark Forces fan who gave opinions about the sites I mentioned. According to the author of this letter, Ackbar’s Main Frame <http://www.muzik.com/ryloth/ind1.htm> is the best Web page for Dark Forces levels because of its frequent updates (as I mentioned, this is where all the new DF levels arrive). You’re also encouraged to stop by the author’s own Dark Forces page at <http://www.contact.net/judo/dark.html>.
Escape Velocity Web Sites
Now that we’re back on topic, I’ll start with the biggest and most popular Escape Velocity sites around.
• Ambrosia Software <http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/>: This URL will take you to Ambrosia’s own Web site. You can get info on their current and upcoming releases and read about company news in the online Ambrosia Times. You can download the latest versions of their software via links from this server or by going to <ftp://ftp.AmbrosiaSW.com/> directly.
• Jay Tingley’s Unofficial EV Web Pages <http://www.globalnet.ca/ev/>: Since EV’s release, this has been the largest and best maintained site. It’s huge. Really huge. There’s tons of information about the main Escape Velocity scenario, but more importantly, it houses the most recent plug-in and editor releases as well as a few plug-in reviews. If you’re looking for late-breaking news or a plug-in you can’t find elsewhere, this is the place to be. If you have a small monitor, you might want to check out the alternate site at <http://www.globalnet.ca/evv/>. If you don’t have a frames-capable Web browser, go to <http://www.globalnet.ca/evx/>.
• EV Central <http://www.grayphics.com/~jamess/>: This site mimics the
“Marathon Central” that is a hub of Marathon activity on the Web. EV Central has links to and brief descriptions of the largest EV Web sites around. It has a Web discussion board (post messages and receive replies via the Web) and it has a Web-based interface allowing the user to download files from the Grayphics EV FTP archive at <ftp://ftp.grayphics.com/pub/ev/>. Of course, you can always access these files directly via FTP if you’d like.
• Adam Alperns’s Escape Velocity Page <http://hampshire.edu/~adaF92/EV/>: These pages have been recently revamped with professional-looking graphics and titles. The layout is simple and unpretentious, which will be appreciated by those without frames-capable browsers. There are listings of ship and weapon specs as well as game strategies and plans for a galactic map (should be available by the time you read this). Worth a look.
• EV HyperArchive <http://indy.mvbms.com/~pulse/ev/>: Another site that took a hint from one of the Marathon world’s favorite sites, this is a small set of pages with some useful information. It never quite made it off the ground, but nevertheless it contains a very informative (but unofficial) FAQ document and a large list of links to other EV sites.
• Escape Velocity Files <http://www.rpi.edu/~bluea/EV/>: A small and unpretentious site, this page caught my attention because it had some very useful information available: you can download a guide to the EV universe and a galactic map, both of which are great for intergalactic exploration and could save your pilot’s life in a time of need...
EV FAQs and Forums
Confused? Lost? Having any kind of trouble playing or editing EV? Try these sites...
• The Official EV FAQ <http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/Ambrosia_FAQs/EV_FAQs/EV_FAQ.contents.html>: Maintained by Ambrosia Software, this document presents answers to the most frequently asked questions relating to EV. Some people have taken it upon themselves to expand this document (see below), but this remains the official one.
• The Unofficial EV FAQ <http://indy.mvbms.com/~pulse/ev/faq/>: Located at the EV HyperArchive, this Web-based document expands on Ambrosia’s FAQ in areas where it was lacking.
• The Delta-V FAQ <http://sebago.internet.com/ev/delta_v.html>: This document contains some of the most frequently asked questions on the delta_v mailing list (see below). If you’re just starting to edit EV resources, look here for answers to some of the more popular questions.
• The EV Bug Page <http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/~mburch/bugpage.html>: This page is maintained by Matt Burch himself. It lists the currently known bugs in the latest version of EV. If you think you’ve found a bug, look here to see if it is known or has been fixed before you report it.
• Ambrosia Mailing Lists <http://www.AmbrosiaSW.com/Lists.html>: For devoted fans of Ambrosia games, Ambrosia has established several mailing lists to which users can subscribe. For EV users, the relevant lists are discussion_list, which is intended for general discussion of anything related to Ambrosia, and delta_v, which is a forum allowing designers of EV plug-ins to ask questions and help others. (A word of advice: delta_v is not for discussion of EV itself but for questions about EV plug-in development. If you just want to chat about EV, try Usenet newsgroups, IRC, or the discussion_list mailing list.)
• Usenet: Of course, there are several newsgroups where EV discussion takes place. <news:comp.sys.mac.games.action> is one of the most popular, though EV-related posts also appear in <news:comp.sys.mac.games.adventure> and <news:comp.sys.mac.games.strategic>. Also, check to see if your Usenet server hosts <news:alt.games.mac.escape-velocity>, a new newsgroup created especially for discussion of all things EV.
• IRC #ev: The #ev channel was created at the time of the game’s release to facilitate real-time EV chats with people from around the world. The channel has died down a bit since the game’s initial release, but there are usually a few knowledgeable people on the channel at any given time if you have a question or a comment...
EV Editors
Though all your EV plug-in designing needs can be satisfied with the latest copy of Apple’s ResEdit, there are a few third-party utilities for editing EV the latest versions of which are always available from their respective Web pages.
• EV-Edit <http://www.grfn.org/~climax/evedit.html>: This editor is the most popular, due to the fact that it edits most parts of the EV data files. Like all editors in this list, though, it’s still in development.
• Schmelta-V <http://www.afn.org/~afn02635/ev/>: This EV editor (written by yours truly) provides a friendly user-interface though it is more limited in the number of EV data types it can edit. Like EV-Edit, it’s still in development. Those of you who like to use multiple plug-ins simultaneously will should also download the EV Plug-In Auditor, a utility which will check your currently installed plug-ins for conflicts.
• EEEV <http://www.ai.mit.edu/people/jknight/EEEV.html>: Written by the guy who ported DEU to the Mac, the Everything Editor for Escape Velocity is a promising entry into the group of EV editors. It only edits about half of the EV resources, but the interface is slick and well-designed.
Had Enough?
Didn’t think so. Ambrosia’s next game, Avara, though it hasn’t yet been released, has already inspired a few folks to create Web pages. Though it may have already been released by the time you read this article, here’s a great site that’s sure to whet your appetite for Internet combat:
• The Avara HyperArchive <http://indy.mvbms.com/~pulse/avara/>: Maintained by the same guy responsible for the EV HyperArchive, this is a very promising center for Avara info. It has lots of goodies: a player registry, a bragging page, and several documents providing help for beginners.
So Long...
So ends Mac Games on the Internet article. Once again, here’s the standard disclaimer: there are plenty more sites for you to visit and enjoy, and I don’t pretend to have found them all. Let me know if you find something that you think should have been mentioned in this article, and I’ll consider adding it to the next article. Comments and suggestions can be e-mailed to me at <afn02635@afn.org>... ‘Til next time!
