Various bits and pieces are in development at the moment here are a few screenshots to show the world what I’ve been doing recently. The front screen of jetpac which is a development of the original Ultimate loading screen on the speccy. Also in the same vein is my reworking of the spectrum original to add my logo and alter the colours a little to change it from an excellent loading screen in 1983 to a good on in 1988 just in case I decide to port my python fake spectrum loading routines to
Yes I know RARE did an offical version for Xbox Live but I don’t have a Live connected 360 but I have had a hankering to remake this title for years having loved both the original and the remakes. It’s one of those things that I have to do eventually and it’s been a project I’ve started and then left several times in the past. I found some old source code buried on a machine that looked like one of those aborted attempts but when I fired it up all it did was open an opengl window and allow me
Richard Jordan is the creator of the fantastic Skool Daze remake Klass of ‘99 and Jetpac, a remake of… Well, you know. I decided to give him a shout through the medium of interwebbing to see, as a retrofile, what his views on the modern world of video game shenanigans were. It’s not without controversy, [...]
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Jetpac is a ZX Spectrum and BBC Micro video game developed and released by Ultimate Play The Game in 1983. The game is the first in the Jetman series, and was the company's very first release. The game was written by Chris Stamper with graphics by Tim Stamper. Jetpac was one of the very few Spectrum games also available in ROM format for use with the Interface 2, allowing "instantaneous" loading of the game when the normal method of cassette loading could take several minutes.
In 1999, Jetpac was introduced to a new generation as Rareware included it in Donkey Kong 64. It could be unlocked to play in Cranky Kong's lab, and if players successfully got 5000 points, they would be rewarded the game's Rareware Coin. After taking pictures of 6 Banana Fairies, the player would be able to play it and Donkey Kong any time they wish by going to the mystery menu of the main menu. An updated version of Jetpac, entitled Jetpac Refuelled was released to Xbox Live Arcade on 28 March 2007.
Introduction
Typically for an Ultimate release, players are given a tantalising and cryptic introduction :
Gameplay
In the game, Jetman has to first assemble his rocket (which comes in kit form), and then fill it with fuel before taking off to the next planet (where the procedure is broadly repeated). Along the way Jetman has to fend off the attention of intelligent (and not-so-intelligent) aliens, while making off with their valuable resources.
After the first level, the rocket stays assembled and just requires refuelling. However, every few levels, the rocket that Jetman flies in on is changed and the new model which replaces it has to be built from scratch before it can be fuelled up to take off. Each new model has a higher number written on it and has a new design, although the gameplay is unchanged.
The screen consists of three platforms on which Jetman can stand, with the area "under" the platforms usually considered to be the most dangerous area in which to hang about. The screen "wraps", so if Jetman or an alien go off one side of the screen, they reappear on the other.
The enemies change every level (however, they eventually cycle) and each alien has a different pattern of movement which means they can be dealt with in a different manner. For instance, the "dart" enemy tends to hover in a vertical column on the left-hand side of the screen until it "fires" across the screen. However, this level can be easily completed by always staying on the middle of the three on-screen platforms and firing to the right. However, the "flying saucer" aliens will follow Jetman and so will require a different strategy to avoid.
