"Thayer's Quest" laserdisc control disk

[AtariFan]

In the early 90ies, the German company "LDG - Software Corner" offered the chance to play laserdisc based arcade games at home by connecting your computer to your Pioneer laserdisc player (Flyer). A software would be required to control each laserdisc game. The most famous one is "Dragon's Lair". While AMIGA control disks for "Dragon's Lair" can be found online, I've never found any ATARI ST control disks.

Today, I obtained "Thayer's Quest", another laserdisc based arcade game sold by "LDG - Software Corner". Control disks for this game never came up online.

This is why I'd like to share my "Thayer's Quest" laserdisc control disk for the Atari ST with the community. It's useless without the laserdisc, but by posting it here, I hope

a) to help others to end their search for this obscure software
b) it gets archieved by circulation

The MSA-image is attached to this message.

[lotek_style]

Interesting... I remember that I read something about that and Dragon's Lair... How many laserdisc games are out there? Are those freeware now?

[AtariFan]

The flyer (linked above) displayed some planned laserdiscs, but I've only found "Dragon's Lair" and "Thayer's Quest" in "LDG - Software Corner" packaging. An American company also distributed a control software for "Dragon's Lair" - years before "LDG - Software Corner".

There were other laserdisc based arcade machines like "Space Ace" and "Dragon' Lair II", etc. but IMHO they were not adapted for home use.

Are those freeware now?

Concerning the control software, I don't know.

[AtariZoll]

Actually, all Donald Blut (Space Ace, Dragon''s Lair serial) games were released on modern medias - DVD, in HD resolution, and playable under Windows for instance.
Earlier some people digitised laserdisc video output, and there was player SW capable to use those mpg files for playing.
Even Firefox - Atari console laserdisc game was digitised.
Hardly that anything of it is freeware.

[ICS]

Only Dragon's Lair and Thayer's Quest were released by "LDG - Software Corner".
Other planned titles:
Space Ace (Prototype LD exists! -> will be next to impossible to find - software will be even harder to find most likely)
Shadow of the Stars
Firefox
Voyage to the new World
-were not released by LDG - Software Corner.
Maybe they ran out of funds to produce discs/control software or pay licenses.

Other game LaserDiscs exist, but there is no control software for them to use with home computers.
The games were originally for arcade machines. Without the control software you can watch the LD
on a LaserDisc player and see the whole game play - but without interaction. Like a movie so to say.

[Xadhoom]

Hi, i'm new here. I Washington looking for the software corner software for Atari St.
I have space ace, Dragon's lair and Tq with the connection kit but no software.
Anyone has fine out more ?
The tq software si extremely rare!
Thank to all.

[AtariFan]

@Xadhoom

The control software for Thayer's Quest is attached to my first message and can be downloaded. Atari ST control software for Space Ace and Dragon's Lair is IMHO not available online atm.

[Xadhoom]

Hi do you play with it ?
Can you send me picture of the kit ? Or a little movie on youtube displaying it ?
Best regards

[Jake/Depression]

Interesting... Mayby it is possible made them... It need Start disk vol 4. no 6. January 1990, because in there is Laserdisk remote control software...

http://www.atarimagazines.com/startv4n6/laserdisc.html

http://www.atarimania.com/atari-magazin ... 6_228.html

Soft download here: http://www.atarimagazines.com/software/ ... tware.html

[AtariFan]

Hi do you play with it ?
Can you send me picture of the kit ?

Here are some images of the TQ kit I bought:

Or a little movie on youtube displaying it ?

Here's a YouTube video about the laserdisc releases by Software Corner (in Italien): Video

[Xadhoom]

Hi to all ! Just find out the dragon's lair software to use with Atari ST , laserdisc player and the software corner disc

[lotek_style]

In wonder if it is possible to image the laserdisks?

[Xadhoom]

No you can't do an image. It is an analog video. Something like a vhs.
You need the laserdisc and a pioneer player like cld 2600.
Than you play that game using a tv and the Atari

Look here https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=KAZVJeIHLcc

[AtariFan]

Hi to all ! Just find out the dragon's lair software to use with Atari ST , laserdisc player and the software corner disc

Great, thanks alot!!!

[AtariZoll]

No you can't do an image. It is an analog video. Something like a vhs.
You need the laserdisc and a pioneer player like cld 2600.
Than you play that game using a tv and the Atari

Look here https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=KAZVJeIHLcc

Well, you can not do image, but can record video - and that is done with many laserdiscs. There is SW to play such games on PC. It is DVD format in some cases, but I seen Space Ace in HD. And it is still laserdisc -- since DVD and Blue Ray is laser too

[ICS]

I would assume, that in order to play this game "the recorded video" alone won't be sufficient.
The software probably relies on frame numbers/chapter markings/and other "codes embedded into the LD",
and not on the video alone. If you just want to watch the video, sure someone could record it. Then you can watch
it like a film.

[AtariZoll]

Of course that recorded video is not enough for playing. Control part is what is attached here in Xadhoom's post. If I remember correct, Atari did game Firefox, based on Clint Eastwood movie, so no wonder that they used ST too for control of such games.
It's just that computers of that time were not capable to produce such level of video/animation quality, so they used laserdiscs - which have '"little" better access time than VHS tapes .

[ICS]

"Little" better access time, lol.
Have you ever seen a LD in action? Probably not.
It has the same access time as "track/chapter/time" jumping on a audio cd.

But besides that, if all you need is the video part for playing, I would
assume someone on some emulator site somewhere already ripped
all the videos, and with the control program attached here it should
be fully playable. So why has nobody tried it yet, if it is so easy?

[mjvans]

Firefox is playable on M.A.M.E https://youtu.be/ncl4lGl2CZ4 roms are on emuparadise.
maybe we could make the ST control a pc emulating a ld with the roms

[AtariZoll]

"Little" better access time, lol.
Have you ever seen a LD in action? Probably not.
It has the same access time as "track/chapter/time" jumping on a audio cd.

But besides that, if all you need is the video part for playing, I would
assume someone on some emulator site somewhere already ripped
all the videos, and with the control program attached here it should
be fully playable. So why has nobody tried it yet, if it is so easy?

You really don't get that quoted thing ? - in compare to winding some tape, access time is some 1000x faster
I said that video + control SW is needed, but U talk ... I really don't see what you want. Use Google, and will see that there is lot of laserdisc titles ripped. and you can play them on PC, practically same as original.

[ICS]

I don't want anything.
Especially not from "you".
Nuff said, I'm outta this quality thread.

[AtariZoll]

Jesus ... Some people really have issues.

[Xadhoom]

Hi to all, i have found the software for dragon's lair and Space ace software corner LDG for the Atari St.
As soon as possible i'll post them here

[AtariFan]

Hi to all, i have found the software for dragon's lair and Space ace software corner LDG for the Atari St.
As soon as possible i'll post them here

That would be great, thanks .

[Xadhoom]

Here are the DL software. I have not yet tested.