Ghouls - The Next Generation

Play the original in your browser: http://bbcmicro.co.uk/game.php?id=2506

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Run

Grab latest-dated .ssd file from the wip_builds folder. (Click on the .ssd, then use the download link. Don't right click. GitHub is annoying like that.)

Shift+Break to boot.

Adventurer

Select 1 to play the game. Enter name of levels file created using editor (see below), or leave blank for the default.

Architect

Select 2 to create levels.

From the editor menu, press 1/2/3/4 to edit that level.

Press N to set a level's name. Select level number then type in its new name. There's a limit of 16 chars.

Press R to reset a level's data. The level will be emptied, leaving just a row of blocks along the bottom.

Press L to load levels. Enter file name.

Press S to save levels. Enter file name.

Press * to get a prompt for entering OS commands. Change drive and dir and so on. Press ESCAPE to get back to the editor menu.

When editing:

• Z/X/*/? move the cursor. CUR shows the item under the cursor, and its creation value (see below)
• DELETE deletes the thing under the cursor
• ←/→ select the NEW thing's type
• ↑/↓ select the NEW thing's creation value (see below)
• RETURN adds an instance of the NEW thing to the level
• C changes the level-specific colour
• R redraws the level
• S sets the player's start position
• TAB lets you test the level. Testing ends with ESCAPE or when you die or complete the level
• ESCAPE takes you back to the main menu

The creation value is a number associated with some types of object:

• For moving platforms: the platform's speed
• For spiders: the spider's speed

There are two types of spider: a solid one (always present), and a masked/dimmed one (appears only when playing with 2+ ghosts).

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Build

Prerequisites

Windows

• Python 3.x

Additional dependencies are provided as EXEs in the repo.

POSIX-type

• GNU Make (make)
• Python 3.x (/usr/bin/python3)
• 64tass (64tass) - version 2974 works
• Working C compiler (basictool is compiled automatically as part of the build)

Clone the repo

This repo has submodules. Clone it with --recursive:

git clone --recursive https://github.com/tom-seddon/ghouls-tng

Alternatively, if you already cloned it non-recursively, you can do the following from inside the working copy:

git submodule init
git submodule update

Build

Run make in the working copy. (A make.bat is supplied for Windows, which will run the supplied copy of GNU Make.)

The output is a .ssd file, ghouls-tng.ssd, suitable for use with an emulator.

The output files can also be found in beeb/ghouls-tng/y/. If you use BeebLink, configure it so it can find this folder - the output will be available in drive Y of the ghouls-tng volume.

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Branches

main

Branch used for active development.

unmodified

Latest version that promises to build to something bit identical to the starting point: a minified version of Ghouls, loaders stripped out, unmodified machine code parts, BASIC unmodified other than replacing embedded control codes with appropriate CHR$.