This will be a short update. I have included the title song from the original 8-bit game, it randomly plays the title song in the text with the song. On average it plays once every 10 to 15 minutes. You can start the title song or stop it at any time from the main menu, using the key ‘S’ to stop playing the song or ‘P’ to start playing the song.

Check out the short video showing the title song playing in the Java Edition.

This update is about the configuration screen. I’ve made a few changes to the original ARX. It still uses the ini file, but it is no longer needed that you edit the file and a text editor. All of these options are changeable from the main menu of the game, once you exit the game the configuration file will be saved. Also, there is no need to select something exit and restart. So if you select 8-bit graphics and then 16-bit graphics and start the game it will run properly.

One of the new features is viewport size, you can select two different sizes from the viewport. You have small which is the original style layout, and you also have large which is the full screen below the stats. The bottom status is overlaid on top of the graphics. This feature was added just for people that might want a large if you port and also the small is in there for if you want authentic to look and feel.

Another new feature is screen size, you have three different choices. You have the original ARX format, the next size is double the ARX normal format and you also have full screen. Selecting any one of these screens will change it immediately without any need to restart the application.

There will be other options in the future that are coming, one of them will be able to select between 8-bit guilds versus 16-bit guilds. Since those two guilds are so different on how they play in the game. Once you create a character under oneguild type you will not be able to switch to the other guild type. Your characters save data will indicate which Guild type to use when you reload the character.

This is is about the process of converting from C++ to Java. I took over fixing alternate reality X. I found this game a couple of years ago, Acrin has done a great job recreating alternate reality. This is a game I played many hours during high school as an young adult. When I found this game on the internet several years ago, I was very excited. The Acrin started this but is  not able to complete it, so I’ve taken up the quest to complete it. Not being able to complete it is no surprise to me,  the original was not completed either.  Maybe it is devine to not be completed.  The Acrin had many visions for alternate reality, one of those visions was to be able to play it on multiple operating systems. I have taken it over and decided that I will try and continue his visions. So I have converted the game to Java, this way it will be an easy switch to other operating systems. I’m using the Java Light Weight Gaming Library, it has support for Windows, Mac and Linux. This way as the programmer there is nothing to be done to support all three different operating systems we will not have to maintain any differences between revision.

I have been programming since the 80s but as graphical programmer. My background is business software and website design. I started converting this back into in December. It took me several weeks of looking into openGL. During this time I wrote several test applications to figure out how to use opengl and LWJGL.

The major challenge in the conversion was the opengl and the sound libraries. Java lightweight Java gaming Library did not have support for PNG picture files and OGG audio files. I wanted to use version 3 of the library to be current with openGL and with the library.  So I had to take the time to learn to go to read those in and convert them into it opengl format. Between the graphics Library the audio library that took the better part of  December.

So all of the opengl code has been changed and rewritten into JAVA,  the openGL calls are the same but little to no of the original code is left.  All the drawing of thecity walls have be deleted and created into a new classes and more optimize.  Not really need since when it comes to openGL this game is very little of a challenge.  This is not a true 3D world,  what you see is the only part of the world that is draw.  I think that is GREAT, Acrin kepted it like the original concept.  Many pluses to the attention to details of the original 8-bit game.

The Next Step was converting C++ to Java. That part was not to hard of the project, luckly this is a very small project from what I’m used to handling.  So it only took about 2 weeks to convert the entire project.  Some of the bigger things to convert into Java is that there is no “STRUCT” in Java.   Closest thing is a class,  so I converted all the “STRUCTS” into a Java class.  The next things is the lack of UNSIGNED variables in Java.  This made reading in the binary files handling to be rewritten.   Because when using a byte to read in a single byte, it converted it to a SIGNED number so many values end up negative.  So every byte had to converted so you cast bits to prevent a signed value.

Nice thing about the conversion and being simply is String conversion.  Strings in Java are use easy to use and do much more then C++. 

Check out my short youtube video of a small clip of the game running in Java.

This is my first release of Alternate Reality X.  This is version 0.83.3.   I picked this up from Arnic that has been working on this for years to get to this point.  It is a great game.   I found ARX about 3 years ago and tried it for a bit, but I didn’t find it very playable at that time and game back in 2017.  I found it in a very playable state but then I found out that we had personal things going on and was unable to complete the game.  So I decided to fix some of the bugs and then that evolved in completing what he started.

My goals are simple, that is to complete The City.  There are many things missing from the City.   Like weather, need for wearing Clothing.  Spells, curses, poisons and many other items. Once, the city is complete, then I’ll look into completing the Dungeon.

If bugs are reported, then I will look at fixing them.  If the bug is related to unfinished code, then nothing will be completed until the city is completed.

You can download the release here.

Version 0.83.3 – 14th Feb 2018
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• * Fixed – Graphics mode Alternate would cause a crash on start.

Version 0.83.1 and .2 – 13th Feb 2018
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• * Fixed – Game crashed when entering the city
• * Fixed – New Character Immobilized, clothing caused this when inserted into inventory.

Version 0.83 – 4th Jan 2018
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• * Fixed – Hours in certain Inns wrapped over to the next day and you where not able to enter that inn.
• * Fixed – Player position on automap being off by one.
• * Added – A timeout option during fight, opponent will not do something instead of waiting forever.  
            If player leaves,  it will timeout after 20secs and clear the screen.
            No more locking up the games in waiting for keyboard inputs.
• * Added – when you try to flee an encounter there is a chance it doesn’t work.
• * Added – Added 16bit graphics to the graphics Mode
• * Added – When you charm,trick or attack certain opponents, causes alignment decrease
• * Added – Ghost attach can now be the “Bone-Chilling” attack.  Certain percentage. Reduced STR by one if was successful.
• * Added – 2 new diseases.  Mold and fungus from MOLD, slime.  Slime will foul your food once it becomes active.  These takes 48hrs before they become active.    
• * Added – Sun set and sun rise to 16bit graphics.  It is not done by still graphics. Drawn on the screen based on time.  that way it moves like a real sun.
• * Fixed – Ghost information was not correct on armour.  He is suppose to be invulnerable to blunt, sharp weapons.
            you need magical weapons for the most part.  Fixed that.
• * Fixed    – put back in the weapon selection for opponent when they attack.  Many opponents have different attacks was hard coded to just the first weapon.
• * Fixed – Armour ability to handle different weapons is back into the system.  If using a blunt weapon and the armour is invulnerable to blunt.  You will not be able to do any damages with that kind of weapon.
• * Fixed – Certain armour is vulnerable to certain weapons, and these weapons cause double damage.
• * Added – Added in 3 missing encounters from binary, Cutthroat, Brigand, Master Thief
• * Added – Put these encounters into possible city/dungeon encounters.
• * Added – capture the number of encounters variable from binary.  When in the dungeon you can have multiple encounters now, up to the max defined in binary.  City still is only allowed 1
            encounter at a time.  The number of encounter is affected by your level, dungeon level. your alignment
            vs. encounters alignment  will increase or decrease your chances for more monsters at once.
• * Added – Started loading in attributes for weapons. Its loads in weapons that causes curses and dieseases.
•           Not active in the code yet. Have not loaded the weapon attributes values into the system yet.  Like, How long it last.
• * Adjust- Adjusted the Treasure finding stats.  Potion should only be in affect until you find treasure and then it should go away.  In the code, the treasure just kept getting higher.
            Adjust treasure.  You got a weapon on almost every encounter.  The original game was not like this.  It was much hard to get weapons.  The chances for finding a weapon is much higher now.
• * Adjust- Treasure Torch and Keys will not show up in the city anymore.  The city didn’t have these items.
•           You end up with so many of these items you never have to want for this.          
• * Added – When you find a potion you get 120xp points like the city gave you.
            You get 255xp for each Jewels,  128xp for each Gems
• * Fixed – Fixed Weapon damage.   It was calculating weapon damaged wrong.  Way to high.
            It was doing a bit check for number of dice and number of sides to the dice.
            This was not correct. a Value of 36 would be 3 dice and 6 sides.  bit check would turn this into      a different value.

                    
Notes:
    Graphics Mode is now  
        0 – 8bit,
        1 – 16bit (Amiga),
        2 – Alternate Small,
        3 – Alternate Large                
    16bit Amiga has a sunset.  Added sun to the game.  You can see the run rise and
    set.

* Charm,Trick, Attack – on certain good characters causes your alignment to decrease.
     first time cause a huge decrease before good no matter what your score was.  Once below
     good, then each act causes it to go down a bit.

Alternate Reality X – Development Status