Gloom Amiga 2000

[Matt_H]

I think you need more chip RAM. With some motherboard jumper adjustments, you should be able to convert that 512K of slow RAM into chip RAM to give yourself a full megabyte. (You can do this if SYS:Tools/Showconfig shows "ECS Agnus")

I used to run Gloom Deluxe on an 030 A500 with 1MB of chip RAM and 8MB of fast RAM, so I'm sure your machine can handle it.

[Matt_H]

Thanks,

Is there a tutorial somewhere on how to do this.

This info used to be much more common. Seems to be largely buried these days. I think this is what you're looking for. Hopefully you already have the 8372A Agnus installed. (Again, if Showconfig reports "ECS Agnus," you do.)

[Matt_H]

Thanks
 
I find this a bit weird.  My Amiga 2000 is faster then 90% of the Amigas back then and yet it can't play one of the iconic games from that era.  How did the developers make any money selling a game that does not work on the majority of the market.  I can understand the AGA version but this is the non AGA version designed for slower Amigas.  Very strange.

CPU speed isn't everything. We're working on the assumption that the problem is with your unusual chip RAM configuration. I think it was quite common for dealers to perform the 1MB chip RAM modification when A2000s (and A500s) went in for service, especially the upgrade to Kickstart 2. I was actually very surprised to see that your machine was still configured the old way - 1MB of chip RAM has been effectively considered the base minimum for quite a long time.

But, also be prepared for the possibility that changing to a full meg of chip RAM won't fix it. It could be a good ol' software issue - some other program or utility running in the background that's causing a conflict. The chip RAM thing jumped out at me as an important variable to eliminate, but there could be others!

[Matt_H]

Showconfig shows:

CUSTOM CHIPS: Normal NTSC Agnus (id=$0010), Normal Denise (id=$00FF)

I am not sure what to do now.

Thanks

Darn, that's a setback.

First, check your motherboard. If it says Commodore 1986 and the silkscreening is yellow, you're unfortunately out of luck - that's the very early German/4-layer model, and no newer Agnus chip exists for that motherboard revision.

If it says B2000 and the silkscreening is white, you can follow the instructions I linked above, except you'll need to do the chip-replacement part, too. Fortunately, Vesalia has some 8372A Agnus chips in stock. Agnus is the square chip in the socket labeled "Fat Lady." Use a PLCC chip extractor - not the screwdriver method mentioned in the link above - to carefully remove the old chip (probably an 8370) and pop in the new one. The socket is very fragile, so use caution.

[Matt_H]

Good point from Oldsmobile_Mike on the MegaChip - a little harder to find and more expensive, but will open up some more doors of software compatibility for you. There's also a functionally-identical product called MegiChip from another manufacturer. One thing to be aware of is that I think these things come in NTSC and PAL specific versions, so make you get the right one if you decide to go this route.

And a general housekeeping tip: while you've got the machine open, take a look to make sure your clock battery isn't leaking.