Zauberball

Zauberball (often referred to as "ZauberBall '23") for the Atari 800 is a modern homebrew game released for the ABBUC Software Contest. Developed by Olivier Cyranka, it uniquely combines fast-paced shoot 'em up mechanics with strategic gameplay.

Key Game Details

• Developer: Olivier Cyranka.

• Genre: Shoot 'em up / Strategy.

• System Requirements: PAL or NTSC compatible, 64 kB RAM (requires a memory upgrade for a stock Atari 800; runs natively on most XL/XE models).

• Players: 1 to 2 players (Joystick control).

This is the release version of Zauberball’23, my contribution to this year’s ABBUC SW-Contest 2023. In the release version, there are some important additions, namely an animated scene in the wizard’s house, and a closing scene when all levels have been colored. Also, the game ends as soon as all game levels have been completed. So the game has a defined end and can be ‘won’.

Zauberball is a reinterpretation of the game Wizball, known from the C64, with new gameplay, graphical and acoustic elements, such as new background graphics, additional parallax effects, many extra colors of the Atari palette, countless moving objects and enemy sprites. Filters and alternative POKEY clock rates were used for the sound effects, which makes the sound effects sound more transparent.

Compared to the original version of Wizball, the game flow of Zauberball was slightly revised to allow for an easier start difficulty level. I think that the game is not a copy of the original, but rather is an independent variant with its own charms.

Game Description:

A game with a mix of 'Shoot 'em up' and strategic elements, for Atari 8-Bit PAL/NTSC/64k RAM, 1-2 players (joysticks). The space bar in the start screen displays a short game instruction.

The player controls the magic ball, which initially only jumps. By collecting bonus elements '(B)', you can acquire additional powers ('Power-Ups'). A flashing 'Power-Up' in the status bar at the bottom of the screen can be selected by quick left-and-right movement on the joystick ('wiggle'), or a short circular motion.