Disassembling Crossroads, Part 1

Dan Sanderson's article discusses the classic Commodore 64 game "Crossroads," originally published in Compute!'s Gazette in December 1987. The game, designed by Steve Harter, is a single-screen maze shoot'em'up where players collect items called "spars" while battling various enemies. Sanderson reflects on the challenges of learning programming through type-in listings from magazines, noting that while BASIC programs were accessible, assembly language programs like "Crossroads" were not fully published in magazines. He plans to reverse engineer the game over the next two issues of his digest, starting with an overview of the game mechanics and using modern tools like Retro Debugger for analysis. The article also highlights new features for the MEGA65, including high score tables for competitive gaming and updates on arcade game cores. Additionally, it mentions the availability of Real-Time Clock replacements for R3 mainboards and the success of a project to connect Sega Genesis controllers to Commodore computers. Sanderson encourages readers to engage with the game and consider their own questions for the reverse engineering process.

- "Crossroads" is a classic game for the Commodore 64, published in 1987.

- The game involves collecting "spars" while battling various enemies.

- Sanderson will reverse engineer the game using modern tools over the next two issues.

- New features for the MEGA65 include high score tables and updates on arcade game cores.

- Real-Time Clock replacements for R3 mainboards are available until the end of 2024.