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#ZMachine

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Shawn Sijnstra

After much testing and code comparison, the new Feb 2025 Release of #Vezza - my #z80 high speed #zmachine is ready! Took way longer than expected to synchronize across all of the code bases, particularly making sure that all optimizations made it across all platforms - TRS-80 model 1, TRS-80 model 3, TRS-80 model 4, the CP/M versions (~18 platforms), the embedded versions (Spectrum tape, TEC-1G), and slowly pushing into the Agon Light version (which has even more updates still in progress). Lots of individual tweaks, and some major rethinks and rewrites have come together to accelerate game play.

The hardest part of rewriting in this update involved rewriting the dictionary search code. I ended up going back to the original jzip interpreter, written in C for Unix waaay back when. Jzip provided much of the logic that went into ZXZVM, which provided the base for #M4ZVM #M3ZVM and #Vezza. Going back to Jzip made sense as Jzip has an even longer history; and is highly tested and stable and still maintained. This research gave me the confidence that the streamlining and changes I was making to such a fundamental part of the game would work, making all inputted dictionary searching more efficient.

To work around how CP/M stores executable files I spent a lot of time re-organising the memory map to make the executable smaller. This involved rearranging where the initialization code was stored inside the increasingly complex layout. Support across multiple versions means I needed to break up variable sized code and strings to sit inside variable sized gaps, while still compiling all the CP/M versions from the same interconnected set of source files. It needed quite a few manual checks to ensure that it all worked.

What this all means is that your favourite #infocom #punyinform and other text adventures will all play on your favourite z80 #retrocomputing platforms even faster than before!

More details in the devlog and downloads can be found at:
#TRS80 versions sijnstra.itch.io/m4zvm
#CPM #CPM80 versions sijnstra.itch.io/vezza

Screenshot of Stefan Vogt's Ghosts of Blackwood Manor, played using Vezza on an Amstrad CPC
Public
SetSideB

A Complete Playthrough of the Original Zork Games
Three videos of a Youtuber called SwimYBO going through all three of Infocom's classic Zork games. Zork was originally made for the PDP-10 by a number of students at MIT as a larger and funnier version of Colossal Cave, and was made all as one game. When remade for a v
setsideb.com/a-complete-playth
#retro #adventuregames #infocom #retro #SwimYBO #textadventures #video #youtube #zil #zmachine #zork

Set Side B · A Complete Playthrough of the Original Zork GamesThree videos of a Youtuber called SwimYBO going through all three of Infocom's classic Zork games. Zork was originally made for the PDP-10 by a number of studen
Public
Shawn Sijnstra

I've been working on the my #Agon #Infocom interpreter to take advantage of the new VDP firmware, version 2.8.1. The new font manipulation has helped in 2 big ways:

1. The use of the semi-graphics font (called font 3) can be switched instead of dumped/reloaded.
2. I created an underline version of the system font (previously unavailable in native mode) in very few bytes.

More about my #retrocomputing #retrogaming #textadventure #zmachine Infocom interpreter Vezza here sijnstra.itch.io/vezza-agon

Public *
Stefan Vogt

After months of development, I released the Puny BuildTools 2.0, an #Infocom #Zmachine #development and project management solution based on the wonderful #PunyInform library. If you want to write a #text #adventure for 19 retro systems and compile it in only a few seconds... have a look :) intfiction.org/t/the-puny-buil

The Interactive Fiction Community Forum · The Puny BuildTools 2.0 are out! (Z-machine project management CLI)The Puny BuildTools provide a command-line interface to PunyInform, a lightweight but powerful Inform 6 library, optimized to perform well on old hardware. The Puny BuildTools assist interactive fiction authors as a project management solution for Infocom Z-machine games. They make the whole process of development fast, streamlined and accessible, from structuring your project to compilation, testing, building disk images for retro systems, converting pixel artworks to loading screens compatible...
#retro#interactivefiction#adventures
Public
SetSideB

Zork I and Planetfall With The Edge Taken Off
Infocom text adventures in the classic style have this interesting thing they do where you explore interesting locations and solve puzzles in the rooms, but there's also some miscellaneous things you have to do to keep yourself alive. Resource management.
setsideb.com/zork-i-and-planet
#niche #retro #github #infocom #interactivefiction #modernization #niche #planetfall #retro #textadventure #zmachine #zork

Set Side B · Zork I and Planetfall With The Edge Taken OffInfocom text adventures in the classic style have this interesting thing they do where you explore interesting locations and solve puzzles in the rooms, but the
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