Danny Amor's Online Library/Danny Amor's Online Library - Volume 1.iso/html/faqs/faq/macintosh/games-faq

Text File | 1995-07-25 | 21.6 KB | 513 lines

Subject: comp.sys.mac.games FAQ
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac.games,comp.answers,news.answers
From: [e-mail] (Christina Schulman)
Date: 10 Nov 1994 22:52:48 GMT

Archive-name: macintosh/games-faq
Last-modified: 1994/11/10

comp.sys.mac.games FAQ List
(last changed November 10, 1994)

Welcome to comp.sys.mac.games!
If you're new to this group, READ THIS.  All of it.  Please.

[ Lots of changes this month; the FAQ got a facelift.

  First, the content changes:
     1.  I added a section on joysticks
     2.  I added a section on where to find Unlimited Adventures modules
         and patches.
     3.  I put the X-Wing section back in
     4.  I added a note to the section on mail order sources, stating
         that they are NOT to be trusted about release dates
     5.  Changed the DOOM section to reflect rec.games.computer.doom.*

  I've also reformatted the FAQ to be compliant with the RFC 1153
  digest format, which makes it easy for intelligent newsreaders to
  skip between sections.  (Use ^G in rn, trn, and strn.)  I also
  put all the http and ftp locations in URL format so that those of
  you who read news with a WWW browser can just click to reach these
  goodies.

  Forthcoming changes (they'll come forth when I have the time and
  definite information) will hopefully include sections on running
  PowerMacs at less than 256 colors, and when and if Colonization is
  coming out for the Mac (I'm getting conflicting information right
  now). ]

------------------------------

Subject: Introduction

This FAQ provides the answers to the most Frequently Asked Questions on
this newsgroup; readers new to this group should read it before posting.

It is posted every two weeks to comp.sys.mac.games and monthly on or near
the 10th of the month to comp.answers and news.answers.  New users of Usenet
news should be sure to read all of the articles in news.announce.newusers
to familiarize themselves with the general etiquette of communicating on
the net.

How to get this FAQ:
The latest version is available at the Usenet FAQ archive at rtfm.mit.edu as
<ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/comp.sys.mac.games/comp.sys.mac.games_FAQ.>
If you don't have ftp access, send mail to [e-mail] with
the line "send usenet/news.answers/macintosh/games-faq" in the body of
the message.  You can also send email to <[e-mail]>; please
include "Games FAQ" in the subject line.

WWW users can find it in hypertext at
<http://wcl-rs.bham.ac.uk/GamesDomain/macfaq/macfaq.html>
or in plaintext at the WWW Usenet FAQ archive at:
http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/hypertext/faq/usenet/macintosh/games-faq/faq.html

Corrections, suggestions, and large cash bribes are welcome; please send
them to Christina Schulman at <[e-mail]>.

------------------------------

Subject: Table of Contents

         Introduction
         Table of Contents
         0. A word about flaming.
         1. Where can I find Mac games available for anonymous ftp?
         2. What does .hqx mean?  What about .cpt and .sit?
         3. Where else can I get Mac games?
         4. What's the Patchlist/GPHL?  Could somebody please repost it?
         5. What's ResEdit?  How do I get it?
         6. I'm completely stuck in this game I'm playing.  Where can
            I get a walkthru?
         7. What's an easter egg?
         8. How do I fix the bug in Indiana Jones:  Fate of Atlantis?
         9. I just saw this really great game called "X-Wing" on the PC.
            When is it coming out for the Mac?
        10. I just saw this really great game called "DOOM" on the PC.
            When is it coming out for the Mac?
        11. I've done some programming on other machines, and I'd like
            to write a game on my Mac.  How do I start?
        12. I've written this terrific game for the Mac.  How do I get
            it out to the major ftp sites?
        13. What's "IMG"/"Inside Mac Games"?
        14. Are there any freeware chess games for the Mac?
        15. Are there any mahjong games for the Mac?
        16. Where can I find Unlimited Adventures updates and modules?
        17. I always loved playing [Pacman, Star Wars, Frogger, etc.]
            at the arcade.  Is there a Mac version?
        18. What games will fail to run on my [AV Mac, PowerMac,
            bizarrely configured Mac]?  How do I fix them?
        19. What joystick should I buy for my Mac?
        20. Is there a FAQ for [FA-18, Sim City 2000, Civilization,
            Pathways into Darkness, Spaceward Ho!,...]
        Credits

------------------------------

Subject: 0. A word about flaming.

Every now and then some moron posts something along the lines of "Mac
games suck!!!!!  Get a real machine!!!!!"  And immediately 30 or 40
people take the bait and post long, vitriolic replies and exhort everyone
to mail-bomb the perpetrator.

Please, please, please don't waste your time and our bandwidth replying
to this kind of idiocy.  More often than not it was posted as a practical
joke from the account of some hapless user who left themselves logged in
in a public computer cluster.  The owner of the account then logs back
in a day or two later to find several megs of hate mail and uuencoded
core dumps in their mail spool.

If you feel that you absolutely have to share your witty, concise flame
on the complete superiority of the Mac above all other gaming platforms,
take it to comp.sys.mac.advocacy, where it will be appreciated.

------------------------------

Subject: 1. Where can I find Mac games available for anonymous ftp?

The 3 major sites for ftp'ing Mac software are sumex-aim.stanford.edu,
mac.archive.umich.edu, and wuarchive.wustl.edu, which is a mirror site
of the first two.  (A mirror site is a site that contains an exact copy
of the contents of another site, in the hopes of diverting some traffic
away from the more popular site.  Wuarchive is updated daily; other
mirror sites are usually 1 to 3 days behind the "mother" site.)

Other mirror sites of sumex and umich exist at grind.isca.uiowa.edu (North
America), archie.au (Australia) and nic.switch.ch (Switzerland).  It's
more polite and generally faster to connect to a site that's on the same
continent you are.

Bruce Grubb periodically posts a comprehensive list of Mac ftp sites
to comp.sys.mac.games.  It is available via ftp at sumex as
<ftp://sumex-aim.stanford.edu/info-mac/info/comm/mac-ftp-list-391.txt>
and at umich as
<ftp://mac.archive.umich.edu/misc/documentation/macftplist3.91.txt>.
(The name will reflect the current version, which may be later than 3.91.)

------------------------------

Subject: 2. What does .hqx mean?  What about .cpt and .sit?

Files ending in .hqx are binary files which have been converted to
BinHex format so that they can be transmitted as ASCII text files via
the Internet.  There are various utilities that will BinHex and de-BinHex
files, among them Compact Pro and StuffIt (see below).  Some Mac ftp
clients such as Fetch will automatically de-BinHex files when you download
them.

Files ending in .cpt have been compressed by Compact Pro; files ending
in .sit have been compressed by StuffIt.  Compact Pro by Bill Goodman
and StuffIt Lite from Aladdin Systems are shareware; they can be ftp'd
from any of the major Mac ftp sites, and the registration fee for each
is $25.

StuffIt Expander is a nifty free utility from Aladdin Systems that will
uncompress StuffIt, Compact Pro, and Applelink archives.  It will also
decode BinHex 4.0 files without requiring you to first strip the
headers.  It's available at sumex as
<ftp://sumex-aim.stanford.edu/stuffit-expander-351.hqx> and at umich as
<ftp://mac.archive.umich.edu/util/compression/stuffitexpander3.51.sea.hqx>

------------------------------

Subject: 3. Where else can I get Mac games?

Well, you could buy them.  Most software stores have a section for Mac
games, but you can usually get better prices, a better selection, and a
better return policy from mailorder sources.  Each issue of MacWorld and
MacUser contains many, many ads for mailorder companies, between which
they occasionally sandwich articles.  The phone numbers for the biggest
sources in the USA are:

        MacConnection:       1-800-800-3333
        MacWarehouse:        1-800-255-6227
        MacZone:             1-800-248-0800
        Computer Outfitters: 1-800-249-0009
        (formerly Mac's Place)

If you call them and ask nicely, they'll be happy to send you a complete
catalog.

NOTE:  Mailorder sources are NOT the most reliable source of information
about release dates for games.  Games are often advertised in their
catalogs, usually with preliminary screenshots, months before they are
actually available.  Also, the sales clerks generally have no idea when
the game will be released.  If they tell you it'll be available in "two
weeks," that could mean two weeks, two months, or a year from next Tuesday.

Local Mac User Groups are another source for games; often shareware and
freeware games are distributed on disk at meetings or are available for
downloading on their bulletin boards.  Contact your local MUG for details.

If you can't find a game anywhere else, you can always order it from
the company directly.

------------------------------

Subject: 4. What's the Patchlist/GPHL?  Could somebody please repost it?

The Patchlist is a list of fixes that the legal owners of certain games
can apply to the programs to bypass the irritating copy protection
schemes.  Anthony Chan used to maintain it; Geoffrey Peters now maintains
it and periodically posts the latest version to comp.sys.mac.games.  To
get a copy, just send email to either [e-mail] or
[e-mail] with a subject along the lines of "Please send
me the GPHL," not just "Patchlist."  You can also ask Geoff to add you to
a mailing list so that you receive new versions of the GPHL automagically.

Geoff and Anthony have lives, and fairly busy ones at that, so don't be
too impatient if your Patchlist doesn't arrive immediately.  It may take up
to 2 or 3 weeks before they have a chance to send you a copy.  If you have
gopher, you can find the latest version by gophering to gwis.circ.gwu.edu
and looking in Student Organisations -> Sports/Hobby/Rec -> GWU Gamer's
Society.

WWW users can find it at
<http://wcl-rs.bham.ac.uk/GamesDomain/info/gphl.html>.

------------------------------

Subject: 5. What's ResEdit?  How do I get it?

ResEdit is a utility from Apple that lets you edit the resources of Mac
files.  (Hence the name.)  You will need it if you want to patch games
or extract beep sounds.  You can severely damage your software this
way, so you really shouldn't use it unless you more or less know what
you're doing.  (And even if you do, it's a good idea to use it on a
copy of the file.)

ResEdit can be ftp'd from <ftp://ftp.apple.com/dts/mac/tools/resedit>.

------------------------------

Subject: 6. I'm completely stuck in this game I'm playing.  Where can
            I get a walkthru?

Solutions and hints for many popular games are available via anonymous
ftp at <ftp://risc.ua.edu/pub/games/solutions> and
<ftp://ftp.uu.net/pub/games/solutions>.  There's also a large solution
site at <ftp://nic.funet.fi/pub/doc/games/solutions>, but you will need
gunzip or MacGzip to uncompress these files.  (Gunzip is available from
the GNU archives at prep.ai.mit.edu; MacGzip is available in
<ftp://sumex-aim.stanford.edu/info-mac/cmp>.)

If you can't find an answer there, post your question--chances are
*somebody* on comp.sys.mac.games has gotten farther than you!

If someone posts a question for which you also want the answer, instead
of posting "Send me the answer too!" send email to the original poster
and ask him or her to relay the answer to you.

------------------------------

Subject: 7. What's an easter egg?

An easter egg--the kind you find in Mac games, anyway--is any sort of
hidden surprise (hence the name) that occurs when an unlikely set of
conditions are met.  For example, when the system clock is set to
December 25, Maelstrom displays Christmas ornaments in the title screen.
Another example is the very large literal easter egg suspended over a
remote lake in F/A-18.  A list of Macintosh and Newton easter eggs compiled
by Brian Kendig <[e-mail]> can be found at sumex in
<ftp://sumex-aim.stanford.edu/info-mac/info/mac-newton-easter-egg-list-94.txt>.

Of course, if the programmer didn't put it in on purpose, it's not an
easter egg, it's a "feature."

------------------------------

Subject: 8. How do I fix the bug in Indiana Jones:  Fate of Atlantis?

There is indeed a bug in Indy Atlantis.  On the Team Path, when you land
the balloon on the "X" in the desert, the game hangs.  A patch for this
bug is available via anonymous ftp at umich in
<ftp://mac.archive.umich.edu/misc/update/indy.foa.patch.cpt.hqx>
and at sumex in
<ftp://sumex-aim.stanford.edu/info-mac/games/com/indy-foa-updt.hqx>.

It can also be obtained directly from LucasArts at:

    LucasArts Entertainment
    P.O. Box 10307
    San Rafael, CA   94912

    Phone (tech support only):  [phone]
    Fax:  [phone]

------------------------------

Subject: 9. I just saw this really great game called "X-Wing" on the PC.
            When is it coming out for the Mac?

Don't hold your breath.

LucasArts insists that there is no Mac version of X-Wing in development
and that there are no plans to start one.  Much of the code in X-Wing
is dependent upon the IBM PC processor.  Recently there have been hints
that there may be a Mac port of X-Wing under development, but it
definitely had not yet reached the coding stage as of July 1994.

X-Wing will run under SoftWindows on the PowerMac, but it's so glacially
slow that it's unplayable, and there's no sound.  Hopefully this will
improve with the SoftWindows 486 emulator, which is expected in early 1995.

LucasArts has, however, released a Star Wars-based game called Rebel
Assault, which is available for the Mac on CD-ROM only.

------------------------------

Subject: 10. I just saw this really great game called "DOOM" on the PC.
             When is it coming out for the Mac?

You can finger [e-mail] for the current status of the Mac
version of DOOM.  This is what it says as of 11 August 94:

"MAC: We have found a team to do this. There is no release date. No
 development has begun. We just got some Power PCs to test the beta
 version on. It should be here soon. Please do NOT ask to test
 this. There is no more info on this at this time."

Discussion of the Mac port of DOOM, and comparisons of DOOM to similar
Mac games such as Pathways into Darkness, Sensory Overload, Marathon,
and Wolfenstein 3-D are appropriate in comp.sys.mac.games, although I
think we're all getting rather sick of the subject.

Discussion of DOOM gameplay does not belong in comp.sys.mac.games until
there is a Mac version of the game.  Try rec.games.computer.doom.playing
instead.

------------------------------

Subject: 11. I've done some programming on other machines, and I'd like
             to write a game on my Mac.  How do I start?

To quote the Public Domain Mac Programming FAQ Answer sheet, you'll need
"a Mac, a lot of time, and a few hundred $."  Programming on the Mac
is not for the faint of heart.  Get the Programming FAQ via ftp from
<ftp://rtfm.mit.edu/pub/usenet/comp.sys.mac.programmer> and read it; any
questions it doesn't answer are probably best asked in
comp.sys.mac.programmer or rec.games.programmer.  And good luck!

------------------------------

Subject: 12. I've written this terrific game for the Mac.  How do I get
             it out to the major ftp sites?

Do NOT post binaries to comp.sys.mac.games.  The best way to release
your game to the csm.gamers is to make it available at an ftp site and
then post an announcement about it to comp.sys.mac.games with the
site name and path.  You might want to offer to email it to people who
don't have ftp access.  For the best way to send your game to sumex
and umich, see below:

[The rest of this answer was shamelessly stolen from L.H.Wood's
 Screensaver FAQ, with permission.]

If you want to spread good Mac shareware or freeware to the world, giving
millions of people, including me, the chance to see it, simply email a
binhexed copy of the compacted or stuffited archive to:
   <[e-mail]>
which will distribute it to ftp archives across the world, including
the big ones - info-mac, umich, their many mirrors, and comp.binaries.mac.
Remember to add a text description of the contents before that long binhex
column!

Don't send self-extracting archives (SEAs) - Compact Pro, Stuffit Expander
and Stuffit Lite are readily available from these ftp archives, and we all
know how to use them. Dial-up access to ftp sites is on the increase and
SEAs run up others' phone bills unnecessarily.

------------------------------

Subject: 13. What's "IMG"/"Inside Mac Games"?

IMG is Inside Mac Games, a monthly magazine dedicated to Macintosh
Computer Games.  A Free Preview Edition is uploaded monthly to sumex
in <ftp://sumex-aim.stanford.edu/info-mac/per/img>.
(It's also uploaded to AOL, Compu$erve, and GEnie.)

------------------------------

Subject: 14. Are there any freeware chess games for the Mac?

An unauthorized port of Gnuchess is available at umich
<ftp://mac.archive.umich.edu/game/board>.
There's also "Chess Set!", a shareware chess stack for Hypercard,
available at <ftp://sumex-aim.stanford.edu/Game/Board>.  Steve Bushell's
freeware "Chess++" is available at <ftp://ftp.std.com/pub/python>.

------------------------------

Subject: 15. Are there any shareware mahjong games for the Mac?

Sort of.  Shanghai II and its shareware clone Gunshy are excellent games, but
they are not actually mahjong, although Shanghai does use mahjong tiles.
Rumor has it that there is a commerical version of japanese mahjong that
is only available in Japan.

There is a freeware mahjong program called "Macjong 0.20a", but it is
reputedly buggy and incomplete.  It is available at umich in
<ftp://mac.archive.umich.edu/game/card/macjong0.20.sit.hqx>.

------------------------------

Subject: 16. Where can I find Unlimited Adventures updates and modules?

There is a large collection of freeware and shareware UA modules at
<ftp://ftp.csua.berkeley.edu/pub/frua/modules> (the mac modules' names end
in .sit).  Updates are in <ftp://ftp.csua.berkeley.edu/pub/frua/patches>.

------------------------------

Subject: 17. I always loved playing [Pacman, Star Wars, Frogger, etc.]
             at the arcade.  Is there a Mac version?

Probably.  John W. Komp maintains a list of Mac versions of various 80's
arcade games, send email with the subject "Mac Arcade List Please" to him
at <[e-mail]>.

------------------------------

Subject: 18. What games will fail to run on my [AV Mac, PowerMac,
             bizarrely configured Mac]?  How do I fix them?

Brian Lev maintains a "Broken Games List" of games that break on AV and
PowerMacs and any known fixes.  To get a copy of the list, send email to
[e-mail] with the subject "Broken Games List Please" or
ftp it from <ftp://ftp.csua.berkeley.edu/pub/jwang/broken-games.txt>.

------------------------------

Subject: 19. What joystick should I buy for my Mac?

It depends on what games you want to use the joysticks with.  The
Thrustmaster is generally considered to be the best joystick for
flight simulators, but it's rather pricey at about $115, and it's
not ideal for other games.  The Gravis MouseStick II has some problems,
but it works well with many games, and it's only about $50.  The
Flightstick Pro is also popular at about $90.  (These average prices
were determined through exhaustive research, which is to say, I called
MacConnection and MacWarehouse for the prices.  This doesn't constitute
any kind of endorsement from the FAQ maintainer, who doesn't even own a
joystick.)

------------------------------

Subject: 20. Is there a FAQ for [FA-18, Sim City 2000, Civilization,
             Pathways into Darkness, Spaceward Ho!,...]

There are FAQ's for many of the more popular Macintosh games.  Try looking
in the info or games directories at the major ftp sites.  Another good
place to look if you have WWW access is Dave Stanworth's Games Domain, at
<http://wcl-rs.bham.ac.uk/GamesDomain>.

Some are available directly from the maintainer:

Civilization FAQ:
    Send email to <[e-mail]> with the subject "Civ FAQ please",
    ftp it from <ftp://wcl-l.bham.ac.uk/pub/djh/faqs/civilization.faq>,
    or go to <http://wcl-rs.bham.ac.uk/GamesDomain/civfaq1.html> on WWW.

F/A-18 Hornet FAQ:
    Anon ftp it from <ftp://chemotaxis.biology.utah.edu/Public>
    or <ftp://williams.edu/pub/Hornet.Archive>.

Pathways into Darkness FAQ:
    Send email to <[e-mail]> with the subject
    "PID FAQ please".  There are also "Pathways into Cheating" and "PID
    Basic Survival Guide" documents available in
    <ftp://mac.archive.umich.edu/game/gameutil>.

Sim City 2000 FAQ:
    Send email to Kevin Endo at <[e-mail]> with the subject
    "SC2K FAQ please" or ftp it from <ftp://ftp.netcom.com/pub/thx>.

Spaceward Ho! FAQ:
    Send email to <[e-mail]> with the subject 'SPHO FAQ'
    (without the quotes, all uppercase), or anon ftp it from
    <ftp://ftp.cc.columbia.edu/pub/beecher/spaceward-ho-faq>.
    It's also available as a Web page at
    <http://www.columbia.edu/~beecher/ho/spaceward-ho-faq.html>.

------------------------------

Subject: Credits

This document is copyright 1994 by Christina Schulman.

Suggestions and additions to this FAQ have been contributed by:

Anthony Chan <[e-mail]>
John W. Komp <[e-mail]>
Hidetaka Mizohata <[e-mail]>
Bill Rausch <[e-mail]>
Ingemar Ragnemalm <[e-mail]>
Jeff Strobel <[e-mail]>
Dave Stanworth <[e-mail]>
Sherman Uitzetter <[e-mail]>
L.H. Wood <[e-mail]>

Thanks, guys!