9 Lives

Guwag · Post by **Guwag** » Sun Nov 27, 2005 1:51 am

Hi Everyone!

I've been searching everywhere for a copy of 9 Lives and was wondering if any of you out there have it? My original disk got lost a few years back and I'm dying to play it again!

Thanks in advance!

aktiv8 · Post by **aktiv8** » Sun Nov 27, 2005 5:19 am

A quick check at http://www.geocities.com/bpadinha/ and its on the following disks:

Automation menu 376
Fuzion 57

check threads on forum for download links

Baz · Post by **Baz** » Sun Nov 27, 2005 8:24 am

Due to a mix up, Automation 370 and 376 were released with the numbers switched. There are copies with 376 and Nine Lives but I havent found one that works yet (menu is duff but if you rename 9 lives as .PRG, it runs). Any one able to post one here?

In the meantime heres 370 with Nine Lives

Guwag · Post by **Guwag** » Sun Nov 27, 2005 1:03 pm

Yeah, I had the problem with 376 and the duff menu but didn't realise that it would run if you renamed the file to .prg

Many thanks for pointing me in the direction of 370 though! I'll never get my coursework done now

Qube · Post by **Qube** » Wed Jan 04, 2006 10:34 pm

If you create the following steem patch you'll have more than 9 lives

[Patch]
0023c6 = $4e71 $4e71

Q;

Post by **Mug UK** » Thu Jan 05, 2006 8:05 am

I might take a look at 9-Lives and make it a proper trainer (away from the A370 disk) as the one I released on Regression Therapy disk seems to be a demo or cut-down version according to someone who played it years ago

Heavy Stylus · Post by **Heavy Stylus** » Thu Jan 05, 2006 8:56 am

Here's 9 Lives from the Gamebase ST project.

Womble · Post by **Womble** » Thu Jan 05, 2006 9:11 am

Seem to recall that it had really cool music - might dig it out myself

Heavy Stylus · Post by **Heavy Stylus** » Thu Jan 05, 2006 9:48 am

If anyone feels like playing the game, please test the Gamesbase ST zip above - I'm concerned that with a filesize that small it may be only a demo...

Unless it's packed really well.

Cool music for the time, agreed, and damn catchy too. I haven't played it properly for about 10 years and I still remember the tune...

Post by **Mug UK** » Thu Jan 05, 2006 10:06 am

The one I had on a Regression Therapy disk was also very small for a game of the time.

Has a full-disk crack been released in an unpacked form at all as that would be a base-version to compare this one against.

Post by **Mug UK** » Thu Jan 05, 2006 11:29 am

Right .. the Gamebase ST and the Automation ones are both single-file versions of the game.

But there's a file-difference of less than 256 bytes between the two, so I need to do a little bit more in-depth investigation.

Neither version have any trainer code on the front, so I can only assume that it was this version I used to make my own trainer version from.

Does anyone have an original in Pasti format and/or a full-disk version cracked for comparison?

I'm not saying the Automation version wasn't cracked but we need to confirm that they didn't put out the same demo level version....

Post by **Goldrunner** » Thu Jan 05, 2006 1:16 pm

Hi Muggy

Here is a Pasti image of the game as requested:

Post by **Mug UK** » Thu Jan 05, 2006 2:25 pm

Thanks (once again) to Unseen for bunging the file across.

I did a MSA file of the Pasti Image (I knew it would fail due to it having Rob Northen's protection on-disk) but this was purely to have a nosey at the code via WinHex.

There's (in my mind) two possibilities:

a) the code from the .PRG files above is on the disk and ends with the same bytes. Hence the crackers ripped off the main program, tested it and released it.

b) looking through the disk image after the main program and it's not full of empty sectors. There's lots of info on there (if only we knew what it was).

Once thing I did find is that ... the labels were left in!!!

OK, someone will have to re-create the .PRG and work out where the data and BSS sections start / end (should be too hard) but we could end up with a fully working copy of the game from which the source code could be created

Take a look yourself at the disk image (it won't work, so don't try and load it into STeem).

Search (in your favourite Hex Editor) for "WAREHOUSE" and look what follows it

Qube · Post by **Qube** » Thu Jan 05, 2006 9:08 pm

It would be good to get a full trainer for this game, it was always so tricky due to its trial and error gameplay.

I've also just realised my patch above is a bit screwed, it just resets the counter to 0 and you eventually die. The lives memory byte is at 66f7 I'm sure, if you set it to "0D" then the game shows 9+ lives on your counter so it must be right.. back to do some monitoring

Update - this is the correct patch I think :

[Patch]
005b0a = $4e71 $4e71

Q;

Qube · Post by **Qube** » Thu Jan 05, 2006 10:20 pm

Infinite lives patch for the Pasti version..

[Patch]
0064b2 = $4e71 $4e71 $4e71

Apply at title screen, seems to be ok.

I think the Auto and Fuzion versions of this game are the demo.

Q;

Heavy Stylus · Post by **Heavy Stylus** » Mon Jan 09, 2006 11:27 pm

So is anyone up for cracking this? It looks like it's not been done properly before if all the other releases are the demo...

Post by **Doctor Bob Gordon** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 5:59 am

9 Lives, cracked by Empire...

Post by **Mug UK** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 8:15 am

Nearly but not quite

Yes it's cracked and trained but it's not 100% complete ...

Qube · Post by **Qube** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 8:15 pm

Perhaps a full 100% crack + train could appear Dbug 190?

Theres an idea to honour this little gem..
Q;

Heavy Stylus · Post by **Heavy Stylus** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 8:37 pm

I would really like to see that!

Post by **Mug UK** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 8:59 pm

Patience .. all will be revealed

Klapauzius · Post by **Klapauzius** » Thu Jan 12, 2006 9:10 pm

muguk wrote:Patience .. all will be revealed

There might not THAT much patience be required

Klaz

Post by **Brume** » Fri Jan 13, 2006 10:40 am

Check Atari Legend

Game has been tested on various configurations and it works very fine. Thanks to Avenger, Mug UK & Klapauzius for this fast release!
Also Thanks to Goldrunner for uploading the Pasti version

Showaddywaddy · Post by **Showaddywaddy** » Fri Jan 13, 2006 11:27 am

AL

That's more like it

Shw

Post by **Mug UK** » Fri Jan 13, 2006 11:30 am

Now it's available and it's 100% complete with the sampled sound-track (not sure if it's spooled off the disk or it's a mod/quartet tune - not looked properly myself).