Roland P-6

Roland P-6

This is a Roland P-6 Creative Sampler. I'll make some notes about it in case I forget how to use it, as it's quite a complex device with a limited interface. Actually, the interface is already notorious. But I'd argue P-6 is on the right side of challenging, I keep finding out new things weeks and months after arrival.

Why this instead of Korg Volca S or struggling with the old Korg Electribe ES-1?

Well, the P-6 can go on for hours on its built-in USB-rechargeable battery, so no hassle with wires or external PSU. It actually works as a sampler (unlike the Volca S), it packs almost everything the Electribe did, and it's still quite small.

I thought I'd occasionally produce sample sets for it and then use it as a mobile sketchpad. Afterwards the output could be recorded on a MIDI-sync'd multitrack recorder, with the possible addition of more organic synth sounds. In turn, the multitrack material can be chopped and re-edited in Ardour on Linux. Maybe more about that later.

I did notice the workflow is quite different to Electribe, and I'm bound to draw some comparisons between the two.

Overall map of Sample and Pattern/banks.

The P-6 has a total of 48 sample instruments divided into 6-pad banks (A-H). The samples largely have their own characteristics, so adjusting a sample parameter like pitch, start, end, level, pan... will affect all the patterns the sample is used in. A pad can also have sub-samples.

The P-6 idea is quite useful for structuring songs out of patterns quickly, or for live playing with as little pre-preparation as possible. It can also make sense to fiddle with these parameters after creating a song structure (=multiple patterns) without having to tweak all sample data in all patterns. 

However, working with multiple track ideas on different patterns, I'm bound to change the parameters of a sample so it will sound more appropriate for that pattern. It's easy to forget this will also change how it sounds in the other patterns which might be intended for something else entirely. 

It's also unclear which parameters are pattern-specific, and which are not. For example the VOICE and MIXER are both under SAMPLE EDIT line, but only VOICE is pattern specific, whereas MIXER parameters for granular synthesis are not. Yet MIXER parameters for normal samples are again, sample-specific.

Four of the banks are immediately present through the four keys, but to switch between groups A-D and E-H the currently selected bank key needs to be pressed again. It's not instantly clear which half is currently active. A flashing button indicates the second half. 

It's possible to mute individual pads, but also groups, which is neat. So if the percussion are organized at bank A, they can be shut easily with the bank mute.

When playing, the sample that is playing will make the relevant group flash a little, and a group is selected the used pads are flashing as they are played. It's not especially easy to find samples in the pattern in this way, but again this can be helped with using some rigor in placing similar-type sounds in similar banks.

Also, it may be a good idea to have some hygiene between the A-D and E-H bank sets, because it's annoying to switch between them when making a complex track.

My experiences so far have led me to think I'd probably sketch only one prototype on the device at a time, output it as audio tracks, and then erase and start afresh. Or even work on the patterns, record, and not save any changes. I can give up the idea of archiving any small variant I ever did.

The minimal connectors behind the box

The Sequencer

There are 4 banks with 16 patterns each, and these 64 patterns can vary in length. While playing, the next pattern can be chosen by punching any of the 16 keys. Sadly there's no option for instant change. The value knob can also select another pattern, or a pattern from another bank.

When out of the pattern select mode, the 16 keys represent 16 pattern steps for the selected sample pad, out of a maximum of 64. So editing is basically turning those lights on and off. If Play and Record are on, the sample pad presses and any knob twiddling are recorded to the pattern. 

Turning "keyboard" on, the current pad can be played chromatically from the 13 keys, and even chords are possible. (When the POLY parameter for the sample has been set). So far so simple.

Using the bare patterns easily leads to the chug-chug 16/16 aesthetic of an amateur Amiga module, which can be fun, but often more nuance and variety is needed.

Sequence steps, instrument pads and their parameters

One way is to just extend the pattern. SHIFT+MENU, choose DUPL and the length of the pattern will be doubled, for example a 16-step pattern will become 32 steps with the 16-32 steps duplicating all the data of the first 16 steps. Then changes can be made to the overall pattern, using SHIFT+PAGE keys.

Or just create another pattern with different contents and swap between them while playing. Note there is no way to "build song" as in Electribe, the P-6 is more directed to a "live" play situation. Not that I used the song structure much on the Electribe.

Each individual note can be adjusted by holding down that note and turning the relevant knob. This way pitch, start, end and level can be fixed for any note. The subsequent notes will assume the same parameter, so it's more like adding a parameter change to that specific spot.

Hitting the GRANULAR key while holding down the note switches between different interesting parameters. (This doesn't activate the granular sample engine, it's just that the key needs to be used to access different options.) The note position on the pattern can be micro-adjusted, and they can be rapidly played in a kind of micro sub-pattern.

The "probability" tool is neat because it's not only about adding randomized notes, but notes that are played 1/2 times the pattern is played, 1/3 etc., so it's possible to do a single 16-step pattern that has something of the variety of a, say, 64-step pattern. Depending on the genre of music and the role of the P-6 in the overall song, this could be enough. The downside is that this can distract from the pattern content, as each note is still visualised whether it's going to be currently played or not.

It looked to me there's a limit to how many such edits can be added to a pattern, and it was unclear to me if this applies to the pitch/start/end/level just as well as to the parameters behind the step/GRANULAR menu.

Another means to adjust the track is to record the knob twiddling while playing. This way the pitch, start, end and level and various other mix parameters can be attached to the pattern. However, it's not especially easy to micromanage.

Messing around with the sample start position was quite a powerful tool in Amiga tracker music, and it should be here too. Suppose I have a long filter sweep baked in the sample, but only play a tiny slice of it, constantly varying the start position. Modulation wheel fiddling for free. This doesn't work all that well in realtime, but the step-edit appears ok to me. Electribe certainly can't do it at all.

And this was only the sequencer. The track can be positively mangled using Granular Synthesis, MFX and Scatter functions. More about these further below.

Sampling

Moving samples over to the P-6 is much less of a hassle than with the ancient Electribe. It still doesn't work exactly as a USB memory stick would, but in appearance it sort of does. I hold the SAMPLE key and turn on the P-6 power while connected to the computer. After a moment the drive appears on my Linux Mint and I can browse it.

These folders don't show the sample contents of the P-6. They are folders for "importing" new samples over to the P-6 relevant pad positions. After I have added 16-bit wav samples into the folders, I can eject the drive and press KEYBOARD on the P-6. If all is fine then the device visualizes the importing process. If even a single sample is bad (wrong format) there will be an uninformative ERR signal and everything has to be done again, starting from shutting down the P-6.

Oh, and before importing the samples the pad slots need to be really empty. So use that DELETE key, select a pad, press DELETE again.

When making a serious sound palette, I'd recommend using a decent soundcard on a computer to actually record and adjust the samples, as the samples made on P-6 are likely to be less than perfect. I did find the resampling useful for recording a distorted or otherwise mangled loop, then laying it as a basis for another pattern, with non-effected sounds on top. 

There appears to be some lag between pressing the SAMPLE key and the P-6 actually starting recording, so it's better to be generous and then adjust the start position afterwards.

Just when I thought the sample/pad structure is too limited, in step the ... step samples. So, a sample pad can be dedicated to a long sample with maybe 8 sounds, evenly spaced inside the actual sample. These can easily be different percussion sounds, so instead of wasting a bunch of pads for drum machine sounds, one pad could hold Kick, Snare, Hihat, Tom, Clap etc.

After the sample has been set as a Step Sample, each of the sub-steps can be invoked by pressing the relevant note/step keys, and the same goes for editing. Obviously the sample parameters cannot be adjusted for each sub-step, but with correct decisions it might be more powerful to make sweeping changes to the entire set of sub-samples.

Granular Synthesis

The granular sample tool has been touted as a powerful element of P-6, a selling point even, but mostly I've only achieved some background gibberish with it. Whether it is really a "synthesis" may be a matter of debate.

The idea of granularity is that if a sample is seen as a series of tiny "grains", there's in theory no reason why they couldn't be played in a non-linear fashion. The granular engine plays the grains in various other, "creative" ways, for example, generated semi-randomly along time as the sample plays.

To me it's like one more special-case sample in addition to the 48 pads samples, although it doesn't actually have its own recorded sample data. What makes it interesting, is that it's pattern-specific.

If I hold the PATTERN, the intended pad, then the GRANULAR key, I can change the granular source sample from the already existing pads. So it only works with an already assigned sample pad.

Pressing these key together is somehow very messy and I still don't always get there. Seeing as how important the granular synthesis is supposed to be, it's been made really uncomfortable to use.

Hitting the GRANULAR key plays the currently organized granular sound, it can be added to the pattern sequence, played chromatically, etc.

The adjustments to the pattern's Granular Synthesis parameters are made from a menu dive. SHIFT+VOICE EDIT, then turn the menu knob to reach various arcane parameters.

VIEW   CC
hPoS=0x13=Head (start) Position 0000-
hSPd=0x14=Head Speed -400-400
SPrd=0x19=Spread 0-100
GrnS=0x15=Grains Density generation 05-80
GShP=0x0F=Grain Shape OFF,1-49,50,1-100
GSiZ=0x17=Grain Size 0000-
GruS=0x03=Grain Reverse Probability 0-100
GtNJ=0x44=Grain Timing Jitter 0-100
GTYF=0x10=Grain Time Key Follow 0-25
StMd=0x4F=Start Mode COLD/HOT

Basically, the start position can be set to inside the chosen sample, and then this "playhead" can move either forwards or backwards in different speeds after the granular sample has been triggered. In this process the playhead reaches either the start or the end of the sample. During this time, "grains" will be generated according to the rules set in the other parameters.

I'm not especially thrilled about it yet, but perhaps I need time and experimentation. The granular synthesis might be seen as one way to counter the usual repetitiveness of samples, but it really depends on the source data too.

Another example of how the device is quite deep despite simple appearances. So, another challenge to overcome.

The Effects and Bus

It's become granted these days a sound source or mixer of this size holds its own effects processor. No exception here.

There's some terminological overlap here, as "effects" generally refers to the section near the top left, with six keys and three Control knobs. But these aren't the only effects in the box, as the MIXER section (hidden) hosts Delay and Reverb too.

But the main effects are available from the Looper, Pitch, Delay, Filter, Scatter and MFX keys.

MFX in itself holds 15 different effects behind the key, ranging from isolator, resonator, filter, reverb, chorus, phaser to "vinyl" and "cassette" simulations, each with 3-6 parameters. 

MFX Key+Tempo switches FX, keys 1-15 can also be used. SHIFT+Ctrl for further parameters.

Holding PATTERN and using any of the six keys will activate the effect only for the duration of the keypress. Generally the section caters for more live play situation.

As mentioned, there's also the FX "bus", where reverb/delay type effects can be mixed in. However, it's only possible to select if a sample (one of 48) is directed to the bus or not, individual effects cannot be assigned to the pads. This isn't that much different from the Electribe, but again it's sample- and not pattern-specific.

The relation of the Mixer and the Effects portion are some of the more confusing aspects of P-6, at least initially. But it's really just a choice of an overall sound-mangling effect, and then the more generic option of reverb, delay and filter. Even the six "main effects" can be turned on and off per sample, by diverting the audio output to BUS A or B.

It's a pity that a generally useful effect like the Compressor, is under one of the MFX options.

Some End Notes

It's quite interesting that the Roland P-6, if I were to compare it the Electribe ES-1, isn't in all respects superior to that Korg offering from 25 years ago. No wonder many suggest getting a second hand ES-1 rather than the Volca S.

One thing is quite obvious. As the P-6 is quite small, it is physically unimpressive and this also has implications for the user interface. In nearly all categories of action, it feels there are always twice the amount of options than there are keys or knobs.

Electribe is quite intuitive, and even if it also uses a limited 7-segment display, there's an itemized table of all the functions on top of the box itself. Electribe's huge jog wheel is also quite helpful, and things like effects are easy to access. There are benefits from being simple, as there's not that many parameters to tweak.

Another problem is the weak MIDI implementation on the P-6. Whereas the Electribe had quite a comprehensive mapping of each imaginable parameter, using both CC and more device-specific NRPN codes, the P-6 bluntly refuses to do much else than delay and reverb parameters. There's quite a lot of CCs for the Granular engine though, which could make it more interesting.

This also means the P-6 refuses to perform as a full external sound engine to a MIDI sequencer. This is because even if all the pads play through MIDI, and the one pad plays chromatically via MIDI, all pads cannot be played chromatically at the same time.

With the Electribe, it was possible to hack the NPRN pitch parameter to provide note pitch to all the pattern samples, but P-6 has no such backdoor. The CCs do not help and the Program Change only addresses the pattern number.

But the P-6 might be seen as a mobile sketchpad, a part which the ES-1 plays poorly. So I shouldn't be too sorry I can't hack it to act as a versatile melodic sample player for a computer-based sequencer.

In fairness it has to be said the Electribe could only play a handful of samples simultaneously, and even this came with limits. The PC-connections and memory card usage are ancient, and the PSU plug is in constant danger of falling off.

The output format for the P-6 pattern data is in ASCII readable format, and presumably it can be also rewritten. Every note and note parameter that can be adjusted, is there for view. So, theoretically, some of the shortcomings of the editor could be by-passed. It's just a matter of when and how, as this is quite far from doing things live and on board.

More Burning Issues

Fighting the cold while cooking outdoors in the niches and nooks of Helsinki.

It's surprising in hindsight how poor gear and clothes were in use last winter. (Another post here, and one more.) Instead of an everyday winter jacket with a broken front zipper, there's now a parka-style proper outdoor clothing, thermal shoes with teeth, and additional layers of clothing.

The crab-style gloves have been adequate for warmth, but they are not ideal for handling pots and utensils. Having lighter gloves underneath didn't help all that much. Possibly something to improve in the future.

I initially had some doubts about the light-weight collapsible chair, but it has served me fine enough for a year.

Kuusiluoto

Last winter saw a number of interesting exercises with gas and spirit burners. I thought most problems and beginner mistakes would be in the past, but new gear brings new opportunities for making mistakes.

This time around the walking distances have been short, but the snow on ice made walking much heavier. Christmastime and the illnesses of late have confined me to the sofa, so I'm not especially fit for the part of a snowplough.

Trangia the trustworthy. The Winter gas canister was maybe excessive.

The first session at Kuusiluoto had no problems, the Trangia was used for a number of tried and tested ready-made meals. The temperature was well below -10°, but this gave no trouble as the sun was shining and the air was practically still. It was still nice to get moving in the end.

With the second session at Kivinokka, though the weather wasn't as cold, closer to -5° or -7°, spending more time in a slightly more windy weather did take its toll. It was silly to have lighter clothing after all.

Potatoes were boiled with a Jetboil 0.8L kit, vegetarian "meat balls" were fried on a pan, and even some thin spinach pancakes were warmed. These were both made with the Outzone spider burner. 

For boiling the water, the remains of a gas canister tried bravely but didn't really cut it in the sub-zero weather. A full newly opened Jetboil canister did more than enough work and the taters were soon a-boiling.

All gear out, a sign of trouble?

The Outzone burner behaved weirdly when the gas was running out, something that might not have happened in warmer seasons. Again, the full canister gave much better heat. I'd still say the Outzone is hardly optimal for winter. Much of the time the output didn't feel appropriate for a gas burner, but more like a candle flame. Question arises how much more gas does the Outzone waste in trying to produce the heat, compared to a Trangia or the Jetboil.

I've begun eyeing burners with gas regulators, it did not occur to me the more costly burners might be expensive for a reason...

Some happenstances: I managed to trip the loose Jetboil burner so the inlet caught a tiny amount of snow. This resulted in sputtering and coughing, but it was soon up and running in full speed.

Kivinokka

Again, all the experiences tend to highlight how well thought out the classic Trangia kit is. For snowy terrain, it's good to have that stable round stand and the wind shield. Sure, after working with tinier and lighter gear it might feel a little bulky, it also fits quite many things inside.

The winter season isn't closing quite yet, but soon the ice might not provide safe shortcuts to islands.

Killingholma, only a few degrees below zero.

Some customization is always in order. I mentioned the "thermal" shoes with built-in metal teeth. I have protective covers for the shoes when visiting shops or other inside space, but they tended to slip off.

Well, I shouldn't use the covers so much on the streets, but it would be uncomfortable to just put them on for few minutes.

For most of the time the studs are not all that useful really, but they do give good grip when going uphill or downhill on a packed-snow route.

Quick fix

I used carabiner clips and key rings to tie the heels more tightly to the shoes. Even then I've had one of the covers slip off after a longer walk. 

The loop on the shoe is likely a weak point, not intended to handle weight, so I'll figure out something else eventually.

The Shrimp

The Shrimp in its half glory

I've come across this fun-sized keyboard on occasions. The idea is at least partly sound: if you don't need all the keys for games, why pay for those extra keys? 

Well, I'm half-joking. A real use case might be playing games with mechanical keys on a laptop, but without taking along a full-sized keyboard. 

The problem was the Shrimp was quite expensive for what it seemed to deliver. But now I could have it for a reasonable price (20€) so I was more than tempted.

It's quite thick.

Yes, there are also other problems with the idea, such as that keys 1-5 might not be enough for weapon selection in some games. Redefining keys can help there.

The other problem might be that you can't use it for chat, but it doesn't matter as I don't use the chat. Pros will use headsets anyway?

Unboxing reveals a carry bag, a USB cable (USB-C shape at the Shrimp end), and a bulky wrist rest which is attached to the keyboard with a magnet.

Many keys have double functions built-in, using the fn key. I didn't even notice at first there's an Enter/Return key accessible with fn+ESC.

The WASD highlighted

Connect the keyboard and it begins to flash in all colors of rainbow, as gaming keyboards tend to do these days. With the button on the top-left knob, I can turn the lights off or switch between configurations. The knob also seems to control the light level. My favorite is the fairly muted option with only WASD and ESC keys lit in blue.

Just trying it on a text editor or a terminal proves the keys work just as well as a normal keyboard would. It's just missing a bunch of keys.

As the manual says nothing about further customizing the key lights, I assume it can't be done with OpenRGB and such.

The other knob controls volume, albeit quite badly on my Linux Mint/Mate. I have to sort of click-click it with care in order to change the volume, rotating didn't work too well. The small "minus" key works as a mute button. Using the knob hidden button, Mint launched the control center window. Not sure what it would do in Windows.

The knobs come loose quite easily, which I guess is meant to support portability. Otherwise something nasty could happen to them in a bag.

Everspace 2 highlights the typical problem: weapon/item activation keys

I did try a few games quickly.

After a short session of Half Life 2, I thought the keyboard did okay. At first there's a strange phantom limb sensation, as if the right side of the keyboard were missing. This, even if the game mostly doesn't need the keys there. At this point I didn't have the full weapon set (1-6) or the Gravity Gun (G), which would have needed more keys than the Shrimp provides. The keys can be redefined, but HL2 keys are kind of an institution.

Edit: After playing HL2 further, I found I don't really need to redefine keys. I can use the gravity gun fast enough by flipping the crowbar key. Later, I used the mouse wheel to select the pheropods. Not perfect, but quite possible.

With Control, all the essential movement and combat keys are present, and it was quite pleasant to fight with the Shrimp. I've lost the touch for this game in a very short time, though. I had to redefine a key to get to the loadouts and missions, because they normally open from G, M or I.

Popping over to Everspace 2, the strafe, pitch, yaw, hover and thrust nicely fit in the cluster and actually give something of a "hey I'm controlling a space ship" feel. TAB brings the menu screen. The consumable/one-off items are activated using keys outside the number range. These could be mapped to the "function keys" (behind fn) but it's perhaps less than ideal. The ULT key default is G, again outside the Shrimp horizon.

With a ZX Spectrum emulator, so many games have redefinable keys that Shrimp kind of works, although this is quite nonsensical experiment.

I suppose the Shrimp would work 100% with Fortnite.

The cosy wrist rest

To be honest, I haven't much reflected on how I use my everyday keyboard, HyperX Alloy, when playing games. So, having a keyboard like this makes me more conscious of the hand and wrist placement, resulting in uncomfortable positions even if this might not be the device's fault. Time will tell.

A minor point against the wrist rest is that taken together, the two parts are going to occupy as much room as a small keyboard anyway.

Still I believe it's a good idea to use the wrist rest. Although the magnets are not super strong, combined with the rubber feet the keyboard and the rest stay put. Maybe it ought to be a little lower.

There are no tilt adjusters, which might be another tiny minus. Such an option could have complicated the magnet connection.

Separated

Well, does The Shrimp provide a smaller number of superior keys? It does, even if I don't see them as better than the HyperX Alloy keys.

The Shrimp can be considered a space saver, both in a bag and on the table, but as the full-sized keyboard is going to be here anyway, it's not going to help in decluttering the desk. One more curiosity to the collection.

Some ideas also loom in the horizon, such as using this keyboard for a custom-built software, but we'll see.

Quick Edit: I tried the Shrimp with an Android Galaxy phone, and it works. Game support for keyboards is quite limited, but just to test I downloaded Asphalt 8 Airborne. Not too bad, even if not my cup of tea of game. Oh and Sonic the Hedgehog Classic. So perhaps this is one more use case for the Shrimp.

Luban 043 plough plane

Facebook ads kept teasing me with a beautiful image of this plough plane, and without much research I purchased it. Hey, I could have an occasional need to create grooves! Well, despite the larger freedom of an electric router, it would be too noisy and dusty in an apartment. I have to admit I don't have a proper workbench, so my experiences are limited.

I only learned afterwards that although designed in the UK, the Luban is made in China. But I'll make it very clear this is not some kind of Temu disappointment story. It's not a cheap carbon copy of an existing design. (For example, I've seen a lot of cheap Woodpeckers look-a-likes.)

Apparently, it's a re-invention of an old British Record No. 43, a plane people still keep buying from second hand sellers. This can turn out to be an expensive process if you need 2-3 in order to get all the necessary parts! So why not offer something similar.

How it works is the chosen blade is set to a suitable take, the depth limiter is set, the fence is set and then, pressing the plane fence against the piece, start planing. The pushes are initially made towards and over the end of the piece. Then, working backwards the groove is completed when the depth limit has been reached for the whole length.

As usual, I get critical at first. The kerfing blade mounting piece came with incorrect size bolts. Which is just as well as I didn't get any kerfing saw blades. They were not promised in this set, so I can't complain in that sense. It could be that only when the planes are packaged in the UK, the blades are included. I'll eventually try to find the blades. 

Eyeballing the tool, it looks sturdy enough but the finish of some parts did raise questions. What in the images is a finely lacquered/oiled wood, isn't quite as pretty and the finish is uneven. Well, it could be replaced or improved by, you know, a woodworker.

It's a good idea to loosen the two screws that keep the sled rails in place. Adjusting and wiggling the rails to a better position made the sled slide smoother for me. Fine-tuning like this is to be expected, of course it's not perfectly adjusted out of the box. After fiddling with it I began to feel positive about the plane.

Luban 043 is a small plane with a sense of weight that gives it credibility. I find the overall ergonomics sound for my not so large hands. There are thoughtful details, like a rounded out space where you'd expect to put your finger to, and so on. The blade is really quick to readjust.

I've seen a commenter suggest the blades need sharpening out of the box, or that they should be changed altogether to Veritas blades. Then again there have been claims they are just fine as they are. Obviously, the more narrow the blade, the easier it is to work with. The first strokes are quite precarious as it is easy to make a mess of the groove.

It's too long since I have tried a plane, so I don't have a firm opinion on the quality or the condition of the blades, but they seemed to do their job. Planing always requires some skill, and the choice and use of material is an ability in itself. At times, what begins as working along the grain, may turn into working against the grain. Wood's like that sometimes. A special attitude and sharp, well-adjusted blade is needed.

2025

Uhh, 2025, the same as before? Just a short recap at the very end.

Trangia camp stove became a new hobby. This started with the alcohol stove gift of last Christmas. I hoped the spirit burning would become a thing, however, as many before me I had to accept gas is simply cleaner and faster.

I didn't give up entirely on the alcohol stove, but the practice would need more time than I really have. Gear acquisition threatened to escalate, but as I used them less than expected during the summer, I also refrained from buying too much.

And what's that again?

On the retro front, The Spectrum entertained me at the beginning of the year, but as usual, that's about it. There is a bunch of new gear, which I've not yet discussed much. Partly games devices, but also a Raspberry 5 which needs to be put through its paces.

The new "official" Commodore 64 sounds attractive but as the C64C model was not available, I chose not to buy it as of now. Sure, the board can be bought separately and I actually have an extra case I think. But it would be nice to have the whole shebang without having to hunt new parts, or combine new boards with old plastics.

Time will tell what the "new" Commodores will bring. Now it looks like many new users are having the feels of keeping up with the Commodore, but as happened with the Spectrum Next I suspect a healthy percentage of these new users may end up being quite passive.

Raspberry Pi 5

I was able to find time to play some bigger games. For instance, I replayed Control and it was worth it. Then I continued with Everspace 2 and Carrier Command: Gaea Mission. The last game I completed was Invincible. I did start with The Last of Us, but looks like it'll have to wait. Nowadays Linux has far too many games to choose from!

The last weeks of the year saw me coding a new game for Commodore 64. I even relived the geeky teenager experience of using most of the new year's eve for it.

Not to jinx it, I won't show anything. Ok there's the memory usage.

I'm usually not one to promote anything before it's fully complete, but it's safe to say this one will become finished. The game is basically there, it has the winning and losing conditions and it can be played through. The rest is more about adding visuals, sound and music. We'll see when it comes out.

Not much at TV and film front, apart from the weird project of watching A Different World in its entirety. Well, ok Star Wars: Andor season 2 delivered. As it leads to Rogue One, I can't shake the feeling it's still a story that really didn't need to be told. Anyone who felt the scene in the original Star Wars with the imperials bickering around a table needed expanded to a full series, must have been satisfied. It was entertaining.

One of the number of tools I could talk about.

The end of Stranger Things is upon us. The fifth season had to carry the burden of having to reignite the interest of those viewers who will not rewatch the previous seasons=most people probably. The three-year gap did not do good here. It looks like the stakes have been reinvented and basically the same story is told again: Kids are in danger. The 1980s leanings have been practically forgotten, unless we're talking 1980s style action.

I did get to see both Jarre and Kraftwerk at the same year.

The Invincible

This game is based on Stanislaw Lem's The Invincible, although it uses different characters and a different scenario.

Proton again offers this experience for Linux players. Surprise of surprises, it becomes choppy and slow at times, evident when I first time entered a camp. There have been claims that switching to Proton Experimental could improve things, but I saw no real difference. I downgraded a few graphics settings, which I shouldn't really need to do, but the effect mostly persisted and I just persisted with it.

What about the game? The Unreal engine visuals are nice, replete with retrofuturistic old-timey equipment, trackers, telescopes, scanners. As a member of an impromptu expedition to the planet Regis III, the player has to reconnect with the other crew and begin unraveling the mystery of what has happened.

It's immediately clear you are not a free explorer of a planetary environment. Often items tend to work only for the "event" at hand. For example, the beginning where the backpack condition and contents are meticulously inspected, suggests the backpack could be an integral part of the gameplay, but it isn't. Finding your bearings is a contained task, not something you figure through the geometry and the maps on your own.

Using the tracker

Although the tracker, scanner and telescope can be used nearly all the time, the points where they can meaningfully forward the plot, are automatically activated or otherwise made very clear.

It's of course possible there are many secret locations and easter eggs that require more creative uses of the tools, but I'll reserve this for some later time.

The Invincible is best seen as a walking simulator, a game genre which generally conflates a rigid narrative with travel. One could almost say the player character is the playhead of a narrative, but these games tend to obfuscate and produce enough choice so the player feels there's perhaps more agency than there really is.

Exploration continues...

As in Firewatch, much of the play is about moving from one place to another, while communicating with one person through radio. Similarly, you can choose what to say on occasions, but it is always uncertain whether this affects the overall narrative much.

Typical to this genre, there really aren't any complicated puzzles, so it's not like a point'n'click adventure in first person. Occasionally things and locations need to be figured out, and some tools and interfaces might prove to be tricky, but that's it. Anyway, difficult puzzles might break the story flow and trivialize the more important themes.

A vehicle is on offer too

Having read the book a few times, the secret of Regis III wasn't much of a mystery to me, but the story could still throw a few surprises. It is also interesting to see the way the game meshes with the book. Some of the story elements are almost inevitably the same as in the book, and although I didn't explore every nook and cranny, I feel some topics were also left untouched so it won't "spoil" the book.

Kung Fu Flash

Kung Fu Flash

I got the Kung Fu Flash cartridge for the Commodore 64, even if I already have the 1541Ultimate II and a couple of other solutions. (SD2IEC, IRQHack64)

Kung Fu Flash has been already around for many years, but I'm not familiar with it. It can run PRGs directly, mount and load disk images and cartridge images from a microSD card.

It's nice that whatever is run, is also booted after resetting or after shutting down the computer. (Except files loaded from inside mounted disk images). So either you can really focus on that one game, or use the C64 in a "kiosk" capacity, easily re-starting the intended software. Sure, other carts can be rigged to do these things but here it is very simple and effective.

Sorry, my setup wasn't the best possible

A minor inconvenience is that if you again want to reset to BASIC, this needs an additional step. A few "d'oh, I forgot it boots to that game!" moments are to be expected.

Cart images like the massive 500K Prince of Persia can be flashed with this system, any old 8K or 16K cartridge ought to work too. The cart has no REU memory expansion, so REU-reliant projects like the Sonic the Hedgehog conversion won't be possible.

Mounting D64 disk images has limited uses as anything containing non-standard files probably won't run (scene demos). The cart doesn't connect to the IEC as the Ultimate does, so I suppose it relies on its own driver. Anything that does load, loads extremely fast.

Size comparison with the Ultimate II

The cart is tiny, smaller than the most common cart size back in the day. This came in a 3D printed case but it looks ok and feels sturdy enough. The size can be considered as a plus.

The file list is navigated almost the same way as in Ultimate. In fact I tried the card from my Ultimate and it's all fine, including the folders. A minus point for not sorting the files alphabetically, at least I couldn't see any related setting. This isn't a huge problem, and the search function is pretty good.

There's a C64-PC connection, but it doesn't sound it would work the way I want, so trying that will have to wait.

Can't deny the Ultimate is still the most comprehensive cart, but Kung Fu Flash looks like it does enough and for some the simplicity might even be a bonus. It's cheaper of the two by far.

https://github.com/KimJorgensen/KungFuFlash