Phantasie series

[KeighnMcDeath]

You own a msx & phantasie IV? I'd love to see an avid fan with a full collection of every port of the phantasie series.

Something that isn't talk about much is box art and the original work. Posters of those laminated or this awesom metal/magnetic ones would be awesome. I'm unaware of a site that has all vintage game box art in the original full glory.


Something you should also ponder is overland navigation and map orientation. APPLEII is different than some. Here are some examples:

C64, dos, and maybe some others like atari.

PC-88 and probably 97, 68000, MSX, f7

One of the views for AppleII (only i could safely identify as the point of origin start:

AppleII

Now, this is damn interesting and makes me ponder differences between each of the games. While minimal, there might be things to take note on. Each section needs a remapping imho and I suppose fully (non-blacked) is ok though I'd feel deprived not opening up each fog of war.

I have to ponder if mocagh has all manuals.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

And... if you are really interested (and assuming I didn't already mention it)
Kroah has an atariSt viewer

LOOK! A DUCKRA!

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

Nifty site:
RETROMAGS GALLERY

 

[Fluent]

Man, u guys are awesome. Haha! I LOVE the map and box for Phantasie that i see in this thread. Makes me want to play the game honestly, especially that map! So quaint, adventurous and lovingly made. I guess I will get into this series too sometime soon! Does it have loot/gear, leveling up, spells and stuff like Gold Box does?

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

It is sad that the black fog of war is missing in most rom copies (meaning it was explored before). Seeing a blank map really pushes you to search each square. You still can but I feel the sense of freshness is dispersed just a tad.

 

[Fluent]

It is sad that the black fog of war is missing in most rom copies (meaning it was explored before). Seeing a blank map really pushes you to search each square. You still can but I feel the sense of freshness is dispersed just a tad.

I see. that's okay with me overall, i guess i would get used to it. What system do u recommend I play on? Apple II? Thanks for the info and pics too!

 

[octavius]

Apple II is probably the most "authentic", but Atari ST is the most audiovisually stimulating if you can find the right ROMs.

All this discussion wants me to replay the whole series...

 

[mondblut]

Something you should also ponder is overland navigation and map orientation. APPLEII is different than some. Here are some examples:

C64, dos, and maybe some others like atari.

PC-88 and probably 97, 68000, MSX, f7

I thought PC88 and the rest are japanese, not australian?

One of the views for AppleII (only i could safely identify as the point of origin start:

AppleII

Someone must have flipped X and Y coordinates...

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

Even though those are pretty good maps (except the japanese script in that japanese one) they didn't put segment dividers for each section. I'd probably consider adding what randoms & set encounters are in each area/terrain which means a lot of grinding and data recording per platform per game.

The dungeons might have randoms in different zones so best to check the info on the AtariST deconstruction program and glean what you can. Pity Kroah didn't engineer similar programs for other platforms.

I tried begging him for such a program for Gateway to Apshai on the colecovision. I tried mapping that back in the 80s to failure. 8 levels & 99 dungeons per level.

 

[rusty_shackleford]

gemstone healer was awful, false advertising!

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

I couldn't get the d64 file to work. I haven't retried and I loved gemstone warrior.

 

[unseeingeye]

Apple II is probably the most "authentic", but Atari ST is the most audiovisually stimulating if you can find the right ROMs.

All this discussion wants me to replay the whole series...

I've not played any of them yet, though I've looked into them several times in the past, but my reaction to this thread is likewise.

Over the weekend I downloaded the first and third games through the eXoDOS lite and have them on the Launch Box, but evidently the second game was never released for DOS? If not then I suppose I ought to try the Apple II versions.

 

[newtmonkey]

Apple II is probably the most "authentic", but Atari ST is the most audiovisually stimulating if you can find the right ROMs.

All this discussion wants me to replay the whole series...

Try playing through the Apple II versions, it might be interesting to compare them with the Atari ST versions you completed.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

Good grief look at this shit:

Myabandonware Phantasie

"Download Phantasie
No file available as requested by the IP owner. Stay tuned for a Steam or GOG release!"

I bet it is the shitty dos version. Let's check 2-3.

Myabandon Phant 2 is gone

Myabandon Phant 3 is DL OK

Ok... 2 never was dos so what the fuck? Gog emu of what platform?

shard of spring gone
Demon's winter gone
Rings of Zilfin gone
Wizard's Crown gone
Eternal Dagger gone
Gemstone warrior gone
Gemstone healer gone

Basically I see SSI games all getting that message even the tactical war games. So my suspicions of GoG eating abandonware is true but my gut says it nay well be shit ports. I guess they hated phantasie 3.
Oh wait... only 68000 available. Ok...

There are hidden archives...

It is pribably my fault linking pics and maps and etc etc that they go
"OH NO YOU DON'T! Cha-ching time $$$$."

Damn my gaming enthusiasm for the old games....

Spoiler

DAMN ME TO HELL!!!

 

[newtmonkey]

It will be hilarious when whichever bottom feeder scooped up the rights to these games just throws cracked versions up on GOG/Steam, with all the maps explored and encounters triggered lol.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

They might just sit on it and not release them. Fortunately i probably dl'd these at one time or another (i hope). I know of other sites.

 

[mediocrepoet]

I'd buy a decent version of Phantasie again for nostalgia sake. The IBM version was ugly though.

I'd probably give 3 a miss, but maybe look at 2 if it was basically like the original.

The thing that was interesting to remember in this thread is how different all the various versions and ports of the games were and looked. Now everything is more or less the same across platforms, but back in the day, there were some major differences that made platform selection a far bigger deal than it is now.

 

[Morblot]

Of course the platforms were also very different from each other back then, unlike now, when everything is basically a PC. Working on the IBM PC port of a game back then must have felt like a punishment with its nasty beeps and eye-searing CGA graphics. :D

Anyway, I reckon it's high time for me to finally try this series, I've been meaning to for quite some time. Is the ST version easy to find? I reckon it'll be more manageable for my pampered millennial ass than the Apple.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

Most abandonware sites off the top of the list scrubbed their links. I'm looking but it isn't looking good.

GoG has basically started things like RETRO CLASSIX label games that are usually cheap. I still laugh at the god awful DOS MULE by EA. Bleck. C64/nes far better.

 

[mondblut]

So, uh... anyone ever dealt with MSX emulation? I found a translation for Phantasie 4 (MSX) by one Django, but I can't seem to make it work. It's in a dsk format and seems to be based on "Phantasie IV - The Birth of Hero (1991)(Starcraft)(jp)(Disk 2 of 2)(User Disk)" (whose header, strangely, reads "Scenario Disk #1"), but I can't for the life of me boot it. The booting is done from "Phantasie IV - The Birth of Hero (1991)(Starcraft)(jp)(Disk 1 of 2)(Scenario Disk)", but then the game is in moonrunes. WTF?

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

I haven't tried yet. I guess I will compile everything I can program/manual-wise and put them in appropriate folders and host the whole zip somewhere. I am still looking for the following rom/img/dsk files:
Phantasie 1
FM-7

Phantasie 2
FM-7, Sharp X1

phantasie 3
FM-7, Sharp X1,

Phantasie 4
All Found

Whittling it down. Seems the tosec/neo-kobe sets had no phantasie. Boo! I'll check my hard drives. I know they won't be new and might not even work. Just finding them is the bitch.

 

[Morpheus Kitami]

It is sad that the black fog of war is missing in most rom copies (meaning it was explored before). Seeing a blank map really pushes you to search each square. You still can but I feel the sense of freshness is dispersed just a tad.

That's very interesting. Given that I suspect that greatly effects the quality of the game, how hard is it to find one that isn't missing it? I've never touched the series before, being more of a '90s dude myself.

Of course the platforms were also very different from each other back then, unlike now, when everything is basically a PC. Working on the IBM PC port of a game back then must have felt like a punishment with its nasty beeps and eye-searing CGA graphics. :D

The funny thing is that people were perfectly capable of producing something good with the CGA chipset, its just everyone used the 4 color stuff as an excuse to make ugly-ass shit. The Apple Macintosh had some amazing-looking graphics and the DOS was just as capable of doing pure B&W as that system. See, Rise of the Dragon's CGA mode.

So, uh... anyone ever dealt with MSX emulation? I found a translation for Phantasie 4 (MSX) by one Django, but I can't seem to make it work. It's in a dsk format and seems to be based on "Phantasie IV - The Birth of Hero (1991)(Starcraft)(jp)(Disk 2 of 2)(User Disk)" (whose header, strangely, reads "Scenario Disk #1"), but I can't for the life of me boot it. The booting is done from "Phantasie IV - The Birth of Hero (1991)(Starcraft)(jp)(Disk 1 of 2)(Scenario Disk)", but then the game is in moonrunes. WTF?

I have some experience with it, but not with translated software. The issue with the version you found seems to be it isn't complete. You can find one that's complete here. It works...you might have to do frequent disk swapping though.

Whittling it down. Seems the tosec/neo-kobe sets had no phantasie. Boo! I'll check my hard drives. I know they won't be new and might not even work. Just finding them is the bitch.

There are places to get those that aren't those sets? Interesting...you wouldn't happen to know of any Japanese ports of western adventure games that aren't in those sets, would you?

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

I think most are torrents and i've successfully worked a totrent. I have found zips/rars and such but I haven't catalogued what is in them (some are even in full japanese or odd script so no clue)

 

[Morpheus Kitami]

I can see how that'd be a pain for finding stuff. I don't have much clue myself, I'm just looking for stuff from Starcraft right now, or スタークラフト in moonrune. I actually have a spreadsheet I found on the internet of what titles they released on the PC-98, I can feed you what I'm looking for if you're feeling generous towards a random internet dude.

 

[KeighnMcDeath]

Sure pm me the list.

Updated the found Phantasie list.

I am still looking for the following rom/img/dsk files:
Phantasie 1
FM-7

Phantasie 2
FM-7, Sharp X1

phantasie 3
FM-7, Sharp X1,

Phantasie 4
All Found

Assuming the ones I found work. Probably duplicate files and some manuals (I didn't put in MOCAGH books). Yeah, those F-7 starcraft are hard to find. The sharp X1 for 2-3 also elude me. I'm probably not finding the right archival sites (should look a japanese sites).