Cornucopia

Games for Spectrum, C64, Amstrad, Amiga, Apple ][ and the rest of the 8-bit and 16-bit platforms. Pleas for help, puzzles, bug reports etc.

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Uka
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Location: Kiev, Ukraine

Re: Cornucopia

#16 Post by Uka » Thu Nov 25, 2021 2:36 pm

Alex wrote:
Wed Nov 24, 2021 11:35 pm
I have uploaded the map to the site and will replace it with a complete map when I have a new version.
Now, that's a BIG game :shock:
Thanks for the map!

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Alex
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Re: Cornucopia

#17 Post by Alex » Thu Nov 25, 2021 6:07 pm

I've updated the map a bit.

Without spoiling anything a few comments about the other sections:

-I think I have solved all puzzles in the sections of the idol. Only thing I didn't use was the wooden pallet, but maybe that is not needed.
-I did solve all puzzles in the frozen section.
-Apart from getting the opal rod I have no idea what to do in the wood section.
-In the "door room" section I did manage to solve the puzzle to obtain the horn of plenty, but I have a "little" problem obtaining the gold bar. Edit: solved the "little"problem
-I have no idea what to do in the square room, but maybe you shouldn't go there at all.
-I did solve the limbo section.

However the biggest problem is to learn how to reach these sections :). I must learn how to "focus".
Last edited by Alex on Fri Nov 26, 2021 12:51 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Alex
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Re: Cornucopia

#18 Post by Alex » Thu Nov 25, 2021 6:28 pm

Alex wrote:
Thu Nov 25, 2021 6:07 pm
-I have no idea what to do in the square room, but maybe you shouldn't go there at all.
It appears you do have to go there, but it also appears I found a bug :( . Hopefully if we manage to play the game normal this will not occur or maybe I have to do something more.

This also makes me wonder if you shouldn’t use another way to reach the underground area. For now I use the gold card and the dispel illusion spell to get there, but you get a lot of points for leaving the card in your cottage and also now you will need the dispel illusion spell to reach the square room (you can only use this spell once).

Also, if you go back to bring treasures to your cottage, you can't go back to the subterranean section again using the same way (because you don't have the card or dispel illusion spell any longer). Maybe there is another way to enter without using these commands, but I didn't find it yet. The only other possible entrance appears to be the grating in the culvert.

Talking about bugs, using the word SMASH or BREAK will destroy things but not solve problems. For instance at a location an exit is blocked. You SMASH the object but you still get the message the exit is blocked.

Canalboy
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Re: Cornucopia

#19 Post by Canalboy » Fri Nov 26, 2021 1:12 am

Somehow I knew it was going to be buggy. It does raise the question of how a string of commercial software titles could have been okayed for release without being competently and thoroughly tested. I know it was still fairly early in the history of microcomputer software but basic production and marketing tenets should still have prevailed.

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Alex
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Re: Cornucopia

#20 Post by Alex » Fri Nov 26, 2021 12:35 pm

I'm definitely running out of ideas with this one. Much harder than catacombs. I managed to do something with the pixie today, but I don't know what is the use of it.

@Alastair would be nice if you can make a text file for this one as well, maybe it will reveal something. The structure of the code is the same as Catacombs.

If I could learn how to travel to the other locations I think I could finish the game, but not with all the treasures because there are a lot of puzzles which have to be solved before.

I did solve a few of my earlier questions but not the most important ones.

Canalboy
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Re: Cornucopia

#21 Post by Canalboy » Fri Nov 26, 2021 1:07 pm

It sounds like the game would be more than difficult enough without the bugs. I can only imagine trying to solve a buggy version of Acheton or Quondam.

I am having enough problems with a bug-free version of Excalibur.

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Alex
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Re: Cornucopia

#22 Post by Alex » Fri Nov 26, 2021 1:16 pm

Canalboy wrote:
Fri Nov 26, 2021 1:12 am
It does raise the question of how a string of commercial software titles could have been okayed for release without being competently and thoroughly tested. I know it was still fairly early in the history of microcomputer software but basic production and marketing tenets should still have prevailed.
There are several commercial games with fatal bugs which definitely not have been tested before releasing it commercially. Temple of terror (1987) being a known example where the locations at the beginning are a later addition in the game if you look at the game code and probably no one took the trouble to replay the entire game to see if everything was still working. Therefore not noticing they used the same flag for a puzzle. I know several others. It's unfortunetely not a rare thing,

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Alex
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Re: Cornucopia

#23 Post by Alex » Fri Nov 26, 2021 1:18 pm

Canalboy wrote:
Fri Nov 26, 2021 1:07 pm
It sounds like the game would be more than difficult enough without the bugs.
Yes this one is definitly not for beginners.

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Strident
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Re: Cornucopia

#24 Post by Strident » Fri Nov 26, 2021 1:26 pm

To be fair, that is how the game was originally sold back in 1982... :)
cornucopia.PNG
cornucopia.PNG (110.67 KiB) Viewed 1437 times

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Alex
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Re: Cornucopia

#25 Post by Alex » Fri Nov 26, 2021 1:28 pm

Strident wrote:
Fri Nov 26, 2021 1:26 pm
To be fair, that is how the game was originally sold back in 1982... :)
cornucopia.PNG
Does this inlcude using bugs :lol:

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Alex
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Re: Cornucopia

#26 Post by Alex » Fri Nov 26, 2021 1:32 pm

Hopefully together we will solve some more puzzles and beat the game.

I do think some puzzles like using the gold card are not to be used but are only there to make the game more complex.

Another thing which makes this game hard is, it is huge. It takes a lot of time to try things in all locations like digging, using spells, pressing buttons (if you play the game you learn what I mean with this) or using an object like blowing a whistle.
Last edited by Alex on Fri Nov 26, 2021 1:40 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Canalboy
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Re: Cornucopia

#27 Post by Canalboy » Fri Nov 26, 2021 1:39 pm

Alex wrote:
Fri Nov 26, 2021 1:16 pm
Canalboy wrote:
Fri Nov 26, 2021 1:12 am
It does raise the question of how a string of commercial software titles could have been okayed for release without being competently and thoroughly tested. I know it was still fairly early in the history of microcomputer software but basic production and marketing tenets should still have prevailed.
There are several commercial games with fatal bugs which definitely not have been tested before releasing it commercially. Temple of terror (1987) being a known example where the locations at the beginning are a later addition in the game if you look at the game code and probably no one took the trouble to replay the entire game to see if everything was still working. Therefore not noticing they used the same flag for a puzzle. I know several others. It's unfortunetely not a rare thing,
Yes I have come across several myself. I found two bugs in Sphinx Adventure that made the game unwinnable. Also in Steve Blanding's Demon Questtrilogy off the top of my head.

Canalboy
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Re: Cornucopia

#28 Post by Canalboy » Fri Nov 26, 2021 1:41 pm

Alex wrote:
Fri Nov 26, 2021 1:28 pm
Strident wrote:
Fri Nov 26, 2021 1:26 pm
To be fair, that is how the game was originally sold back in 1982... :)
cornucopia.PNG
Does this inlcude using bugs :lol:
:thumb:

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Alex
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Re: Cornucopia

#29 Post by Alex » Fri Nov 26, 2021 2:01 pm

Luckily until now the bugs don't seem fatal. The one I encountered (apart from the SMASH and BREAK things) prevents you from reaching two treasures which don't seem to be needed for anything else then taking them to the cottage. Therefore as I stated earlier. As soon as I learn how to travel to the other locations I think it will at least be possible to solve the game. Doing it with a maximum score will be a problem.

Canalboy
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Re: Cornucopia

#30 Post by Canalboy » Fri Nov 26, 2021 5:16 pm

Perhaps any as yet undiscovered teleportal method will enable you to retrieve the treasures in question. Thank goodness none of the bugs you have encountered as yet make the game unwinnable.

I like to think your efforts are the text adventuring equivalent of 'flu research. They are certainly appreciated.

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