From keni@oasys.dt.navy.mil Fri Feb 5 15:49:42 1993 Received: from oasys.dt.navy.mil by toadflax.cs.ucdavis.edu (4.1/UCD.CS.2.0) id AA08819; Fri, 5 Feb 93 15:49:39 PST Received: by oasys.dt.navy.mil (5.61/oasys.dt.navy.mil) id AA14056; Fri, 5 Feb 93 18:49:33 EST Date: Fri, 5 Feb 93 18:49:33 EST Message-Id: <9302052349.AA14056@oasys.dt.navy.mil> From: Kenneth Lorber To: announce@cs.ucdavis.edu Subject: Amiga NetHack Official Binaries Now Available Cc: keni@oasys.dt.navy.mil Status: RO [ Note that this game is also available on Aminet (for example, ] [ amiga.physik.unizh.ch) in /amiga/new and /pub/aminet/game/role. ] [ please download the game from one of the Aminet sites (listed ] [ in the introduction to this group) instead of directly from ] [ linc.cis.upenn.edu. -Dan ] After two years of intensive effort, we are pleased to announce that NetHack3.1 is now available. The official binaries are now available for anonymous ftp from linc.cis.upenn.edu (130.91.6.8) in pub/NH3.1/binaries/amiga. The sources are also available on that system in pub/NH3.1/sources. Please restrict transfers to non-business hours (USA east coast time). The distribution consists of two .lzh files and a file called readmefirst. The sizes of the two .lzh files are: 415045 NH31P0-1.lzh 377367 NH31P0-2.lzh NetHack is copyrighted but freely redistributable - please see the file license in the distribution for details. Amiga NetHack 3.1 -- System Requirements Amiga NetHack requires: - Amiga 500, 1000, 2000, 3000, 4000 with WorkBench 1.3 or greater. - At least two meg of RAM. - A hard disk with three or more meg free, or two floppy drives (this will not be easy, but it should work). Amiga NetHack 3.1 -- Transferring Be sure to retrieve the two .lzh files in BINARY mode or they will not work. To set binary mode in most versions of ftp type: set binary Amiga NetHack 3.1 -- Unpacking The Amiga NetHack binary distribution comes in two .lzh files: If you are unpacking to floppy unpack each archive on a different disk; if you are unpacking to a harddisk unpack them both to the same directory. Installation instructions are in the ReadMe file in the top level directory of the second file. For problems with the archives or with the game please contact keni@oasys.dt.navy.mil or use the central address nethack-bugs@linc.cis.upenn.edu. Please mention that you are using the official Amiga binaries. Below is the general announcement for NetHack 3.1: NetHack 3.1 -- General information NetHack 3.1 is a new generation of the dungeon exploration game NetHack. It is a distant descendent of Hack, and a direct descendent of NetHack 3.0. It is the product of two years of very intensive effort by the NetHack Development Team and its porting sub-teams. Many parts of 3.0 were rewritten for NetHack 3.1, and many new features were added. There are a number of dramatic new additions or changes in the game: A general "mythology" was adopted for the game. The various tasks in the game are now articulated in the context of that mythology, and this gives the game a greater coherence and unity. The dungeon design was changed. Unlike the linear form of the dungeon in 3.0, the dungeon in 3.1 is tree-structured, with dungeons that branch off the "main" dungeon. These branch-dungeons have each unique features which distinguish them from one another. As a part of this new design, a dungeon "compiler" was added, which enables some control of the game's dungeon design from a data file. A goal for the future is making that control complete. The special levels facility of the game was greatly enhanced. It is now highly versatile, and we took advantage of its extended capacity to add many new special levels. The game's display code was completely re-written. The display is now based on a line-of-sight principle. It is much more efficient than the old display code, and a lot more interesting. Intelligent creatures in the game can now wear armor, and they can wield and use weapons in combat. They can also use wands, spells, and throw objects. This must be taken into consideration in choosing a game strategy. We sought to increase the differences between the various character classes, so as to make playing each of them a distinct experience. To this end, special character-specific tasks and dungeons were introduced into the game. These are some of the most prominent global changes. But there are many other changes in the game, and they are not less dramatic. To mention just a few: The shop code was revised. Shopkeepers are smarter, and they know how to repair damage to their shop. The endgame is now a multi-level dungeon, full of surprises. The artifact code was rewritten, and gaining access to the Amulet of Yendor requires the coordinated use of special artifacts. Many new creatures and objects were added to the game. We leave it to you to discover the rest for yourselves. We dedicate the game to the many players of 3.0, with special note of those who communicated with us and contributed their ideas to the development of this new version. -- Good luck, and happy Hacking -- Kenneth Lorber (for the Amiga NetHack Team)