LAST UPDATED ON 12th JUNE 1997
xfSIO version 1.19 available!
to the Atari 8Bit titles on this page. I have tested the links using Internet Explorer 3.01
and occasionally you will get an 'invalid handle' error. Just click on it again and it'll be ok.
If anyone knows why this happens or knows how to fix it then I would appreciate any info.
Here you can get links to the latest and graetest versions of both XL-it! (The premiere
Atari 8bit DOS emulator) PCXFormer, and Rainbow 95 (A very nice emulator for Windows/Mac)
You can also check out my front end for XL-it! and XFormer called
xfSIO, which can make your emulation life much easier, and far less annoying......
I have also asked a few choice Atari 8bit folk what their favourite games are. You can
see their selections and follow a link to ftp.hackerz.com to download their favourite games....
I also plan to provide a few more Atari bits and bobs as time goes on, maybe even 'Game
of the Week' and a 'Name That Game' contest if I get the time (and don't get flamed for even
suggesting that you all violate way old copyright notices by downloading software for a dead system!
The music you can hear (if you are running Internet Explorer) is the title song from
WawHawk, written by Rob Hubbard, and was converted to MIDI by persons unknown. More
high quality 8bit music (although not from Pokey!) can be downloaded from here! Some of the
songs have to be heard to be believed..... especially Zoids!
If I get the chance I may feature VSS, the Virtual Super System emulator
written by Dan Boris. Check his VSS homepage out by clicking on the link here!
XL-it!
 Author: Markus GietzenPlatform: MS-DOS |
This is, in my opinion, the best looking emulator at the moment. It supports direct SIO
disk access (meaning Alternate Reality!) and has incredible sound via Ron Fries' Pokey
emulation.
General emulation is also very stable, and the regular updates just keep making it better and better... eg, direct PC hard disk support through the H: devices! It's also free! All you need are the ROMs from a real Atari (which you'll also need for Rainbow) and some software to run..... |
Rainbow 95
 Author: Chris LamPlatform: MS Windows 95/NT |
What can I say about Rainbow apart from the fact that I registered it - It may need
Windoze95 but at least you can play Donkey Kong or DropZone while
downloading from the net.... Just like XL-it!, emulation is very stable, but you are going to need more horsepower in your PC case to get the most out of this one. My Pentium 100 gets full frame rate only at the smallest screen size. Unlike XL-it! Rainbow also emulates the Atari 5200 game console. Anyone got a Bounty Bob Strikes Back ROM dump that works? |
PC XFormer
 Author: Darek MihockaPlatform: MS-DOS |
This emulator has one major advantage over the other two.... It includes the
ROM files you need to run the others! Of course to legally own the ROMs with another
emulator you must have a real Atari lying around....... As far as speed goes, this emulator leaves the others for dust. However, IMHO the standard of emulation is much lower, having problems with a great many software titles. Sound is emulated using an Adlib, unlike the other two which use sample reconstruction, and is quite bad on the ear at the best of times. On occasion it manages to hit the correct notes..... |
xfSIO
 Author: Lawrence StaveleyPlatform: MS-DOS/Win95 |
This is my shell for the DOS emulators. It has way too many features to list here, but I'll
try to list a few of the main ones below. It works with XL-it!, PC-XFormer, A.P.E. and SIO2PC, and can handle D: and H: mounting for XL-it! All disk images can have comments up to 132 characters long, and error checking for incorrect disk formats (eg, no .PRO files allowed in XL-it!) is automatic.
Download xfSIO version 1.19 here! |
A.P.E.
 Author: Steven J TuckerPlatform: MS-DOS / Atari |
If you still use a real Atari 8bit (and there's no substitute for playing games!) then
you simply must get this program. It lets you use your PC resources as SIO devices, and
much, much more..... Of course, xfSIO fully supports APE, and can be used as a front end shell for it. The shareware version is slightly crippled, but it's still plenty useful. I strongly recommend registering this product. There aren't many developers for the 8bit still around and they need support. |
I'm in the process of asking some key dudes the following question:
"What are your ten favourite Atari 8bit games?
As the results come crawling back you can see them here......
With links to Jellystone Park (FTP) so you can get them as well!
 Black Lamp |
 Boulder Dash |
 Ballblazer |
 The Eidolon |
 Kik Start |
 Koronis Rift |
 Ninja |
 Rescue On Fractalus |
 Shamus |
 World Karate |
 Matchboxes |
 Realm/Impossibility |
 Exodus |
 Elektra Glide |
 Trivia Quest |
 Zenji |
 Behind Jaggi Lines |
 M.U.L.E. |
 Ixion |
 Pitfall II |
 Caverns of Mars |
Yogi selected his top 11 games....... Nobody else is going to get away with this! |
 Mr Do! |
M.U.L.E. |
 Schreckenstein |
Ballblazer |
Rescue On Fractalus |
 Tube Baddies |
 Drop Zone |
Elektra Glide |
 Chop Suey |
 Rally Speedway |
 Pastfinder |
 AR The City |
M.U.L.E. |
Ballblazer |
 Quasimodo |
 Agent USA |
 Jumpman |
Boulder Dash |
 Mountain King |
Pitfall II |
|
Drop Zone |
Rescue On Fractalus |
 Donkey Kong |
 Bounty Bob |
Ballblazer |
 Encounter! |
 Road Race |
World Karate |
 Spy vs Spy |
 Zone Ranger |
games then drop me a line and I'll make a 'visiter's choice' selection with links
to what you like to play! My e-mail address is at the pond.
Return to the pond |
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