Monday 23 January 2012

Mouse support for Tass Times in Tonetown

Does anyone know if a mouse is actually required to play Tass Times in Tonetown? I've managed to get the game to run in DOSBox, but my mouse has no effect, meaning I can't click any of the action buttons. A quick Google suggests that the game only supports an old school serial mouse, even when played through DOSBox. I don't have one and my laptop doesn't even have a port for one. I'm thinking I might be able to play the game using only the text parser if I have to, but obviously it would be much better to get the mouse working.

The below link is the best info I've found so far.

http://vogons.zetafleet.com/viewtopic.php?t=22032&sid=72a4e70849d4182e1d90403e4ad89f69

Any ideas would be much appreciated.

9 comments:

  1. It's probably a lot easier to run the Amiga version in WinUAE...

    ReplyDelete
  2. Here's the intro of a walkthrough that I found for the PC version:

    "The game is mainly played with the command input, but a mouse or joystick can
    be used for some aspects. Refer to the game's manual for more details if you
    wish to use these extra input options. This walkthrough uses commands only
    to finish the game."

    If you're stuck on using the point-and-click interface, I would try WinUAE, like MagerValp suggested. Otherwise, it seems like typing your commands would be the way to go. Good luck! :)

    That RPG Chick

    ReplyDelete
  3. Maybe try using a joystick? If you don't have one, there are supposedly various ways to map keyboard keys to a virtual joystick either in Windows or possibly in DOSBox itself.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Good luck getting this working. From screenshots, it looks like a text adventure rather than a graphical adventure though.

    ReplyDelete
  5. @MagerValp: That would be the logical thing to do, but I can't help feeling like I should do my best to play all of these games in the PC environment. Otherwise, I'm not really comparing apples to apples when it comes to the evolution of the adventure genre on the PC. That being said, if I simply can't play the game in DOSBox, I'll try the Amiga one.

    @Amy K.: Thanks for this. That gives me confidence that I might just be able to ignore the action interface and treat it like a text adventure with pictures.

    @HunterZ: I don't have a joystick and unfortunately you actually need one to map the keyboard in the first instance. Unless someone knows of a way?

    @Zenic: I guess if it has graphics and some form of point and click then it can't be considered a true text adventure. Deja Vu was very similar although the text parser usage was minimal in that game.

    I've got my hands on a very old but still functional laptop at work (the benefits of working in IT) that has a serial mouse port. Unfortunately, I can't find a serial mouse to try with it. I just spent my lunchtime being laughed at in a couple of IT shops when asking if they had any serial mouses (mice?) for sale. More and more I think I'm just going to be using the text parser.

    ReplyDelete
  6. @The Trickster: I think you can do this with DOSBox's keymapper:

    - First, open your DOSBox config/options file and change joysticktype to 2axis. This will enable joystick emulation in DOSBox, even though nothing is assigned to drive that emulation yet.
    - Launch DOSBox. While it is running, press Ctrl+F1 to bring up the keymapper.
    - Under "Joystick 1" (near the middle of the screen) click on "1" (button #1) then click on "Add" (bottom middle of the screen) and type a keyboard key to use for that button (I suggest using a key that seems to do nothing in the game).
    - Repeat the above step for "2", Y-/Y+ (stick up/down) and X-/X+ (stick left/right).
    - Click Save. This will make the setting take effect the next time you run DOSBox.
    - Click Exit. This will return you to normal DOSBox operations.

    If you want to reset the input mapping back to defaults, navigate to DOSBox in your Start Menu, then go to Options->Reset Keymapper. This will delete the mapping file and cause DOSBox to revert to its default settings.

    ReplyDelete
  7. @HunterZ: I think I'll have to start a new feature on The Adventure Gamer for people who assist in either getting the games to work or helping me get past game blocks without spoiling. You are going straight to top for this my friend as it worked perfectly! I can now use the action keys so will be able to experience the interface the way it was meant to be. :) Legend!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Glad it worked, as I didn't actually carry through with testing that approach myself before suggesting it :)

    ReplyDelete
  9. If you ever want a serial mouse again, and are willing to compensate me for shipping from Canada, I have a few of them kicking around I think. Also lots of PS/2 mice and keyboards of varying quality, and possibly a joystick somewhere.

    I'd also be interested in trading for C64 parts or cool gadgets (Anyone got a trackball they want to trade? I've heard they are a lot better, but don't want to drop a lot of money on one they discover I hate it)

    I love how helpful the blog comments on you and the addicts blog are. Nice feature on the side about helpfulness as well, should encourage good behavior.

    ReplyDelete