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 Featured articles | The Amstrad CPC+ series phenomenal!
 In 1990, Amstrad decided to refresh the CPC model range by introducing a new range labeled as PLUS or CPC+. The main goals were numerous significant hardware enhancements to the existing CPC range. Regardless, this new version of the CPC didn't last long. The 8bit technology behind the Plus was starting to look a little out of date by 1990. But still, it was an amazing range of 8bit computers offering some state-of-the-art technology to the 8bit genre. | | |
The most notable are:
- a re-styled casework to provide a contemporary appearance much like the 16 bit Amiga and ST
- the redesigned video hardware allows for 16 hardware sprites and soft hardware scrolling (or pixel-by-pixel scrolling) which is smooth because it will scroll a pixel at a time
- an increased color palette to a maximum of 32 out of 4096 (remember the old CPC provided 16 out of 27 colors palette)
- an enhanced sound hardware that offered automatic DMA transfer, allowing more complex sound effects with a significantly reduced processor overhead
- the native support of cartridge media
- the BASIC command set for disc access was improved
One really notable advantage here is that, the Amstrad CPC+ offers 16 hardware sprites at a size of 16x16 pixels. The sprites are using 15 other colors than the 16 of the palette, and have x/y zoom! Thus, although the CPC+ displayed the same modes as the original CPC, it could use 15 more colors which could be displayed thanks to the Hardwired Sprites. This means 32 colors per screen with no tricks (including Border)! Also note that the color palette was also way expanded to 4096 colors. That is a 12-bit RGB color palette identical to the good old Amiga 500 palette! This places the Amstrad plus range at second place in palette capability in 8 bit computers area. Bested only by MSX 2+ and 3 series back then!
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12bit RGB Color Palette
Fire n Forget II sample screen
Fire n Forget II sample palette
Note that due the use of Rasters effect to add colours here, this game uses extra colours layer in the sky.
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Robocop 2 sample screenshot
Robocop 2 sample color palette
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Raster effects (or better, "Raster color changes") are used to enhance the actual number of colors used in the game's window. What does a traditional raster effect is that, The raster effect is used hugely in Fire n Forget 2 and Switchblade games for the CPC+ series. Here multiple raster interrupts are used to make the almost smooth shading in the sky whilst colors are taken from the enhanced 4096 colored CPC+ palette (that looks like 16bit home computer game sky sceneries)! Raster color changes are also used in Navy Seals, Robocop 2 and Wildstreets.
Note that the traditional raster is made by changing the color for one pen once each line creating a horizontal bar of color. But changing the colors can be used to have different areas of the screen in different colors, e.g. for a status panel and a game area. It is also a good technique to display very colored layers.
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| Hardware sprites are also widely used in CPC+ games such as Navy Seals (man and enemies), The Enforcer (the bird, the gun sights, the car and some sprites), Robocop 2 (Robocop, enemies, spikes, saws), Tennis Cup 2 (players), Pang (the balls and the man), Wildstreets (man and enemies), Burnin Rubber (player car, the shadow under the car), Prehistorik 2 (man, enemies) etc. Most of these games also use Raster color changes too. Soft hardware scroll is also used especially in Navy Seals, Robocop, Prehistorik 2.
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The Enforcer sample screenshot
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Pro Tennis Tour sample screenshot
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I will not go through the sound extra capabilities of the CPC+ series here. Just to mention that, the sound chip is the same AY as on the CPC, but controllable with a DMA (channel 0 is used for sound effects. Each sound effect is defined only by a list of DMA commands. e.g. no CPU driver is used to play them). DMA sound is used in Navy Seals and a few other CPC+ exclusive titles.
Well, regardless this new version of the CPC didn't last long. The 8bit technology behind the Plus was starting to look a little out of date by 1990. But still, it was an amazing range of 8bit computers offering some state-of-the-art technology to the 8bit genre.
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CPC+ vs CPC game graphics comparison:
Fire & Forget II
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CPC+ version
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CPC version
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Wild Streets
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CPC+ version
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CPC version
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Switchblade
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CPC+ version
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CPC version
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Batman The Movie
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CPC+ version
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CPC version
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