Action SuperCross

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Across screenshot 01.gif
Across screenshot 02.gif
Across screenshot 03.gif

General

Action SuperCross (later referred to as Across), programmed by Balázs Rózsa (Hungarian), was first published in February 1997 and it was pretty soon chosen as the shareware game of the month in a Finnish hardware and software magazine named MikroBitti. This award has most likely been contributing to the wide and fast spreading of Across and the attention it got throughout the world, among young computer users. After the advertisement in MikroBitti, the Across community, including the first teams (first of which was ASC - Acrossive SuperCrossers, soon followed by EMT) and sites concerning Across began to develop.

Across is based on a real physical model, but to be honest, the physics could as well be from another planet. In the game, you have to complete various levels by collecting all the apples as fast as possible and finish the level by touching the flower. The basic idea of it is very simple and Across might sound a bit boring, but it's definitely not once you get the hang of it. People are either big fans of Across and Elma, or despise it for being a waste of time. Maybe it's just the simple idea which makes the game so addictive, or the very dedicated community that has developed in the time passed after the game was released.

Also you can save replays (.rec file extension) of your drives, and watch how you drove. This is very useful if there was something in your previous drives you had forgotten. You copy those replays to/from other people as well. Actually this is a very important part of the community and also a big help in the learning of new ways to complete the levels.

Shareware versions have less levels than the registered ones, details are on the development of internal levels page. The shareware version of Across 1.2 had the level editor for the first time, even though with only limited features.

Across is not actively played anymore. Therefore you might also want to read about Elasto Mania and the Across and Elma community expansion on our community history page.

Controls

When playing Across you have three choices for the keys you use:

  • The arrow keys: pressing up-arrow accelerates, down-arrow brakes, left-arrow rotates left (counterclockwise) and right-arrow rotates right (clockwise) and of course you have space to turn the bike around
  • The numpad: as usual, the 8-key has the same function as the up-arrow, so 8-key is accelerate, 2-key brake, 4-key rotates left and 6-key rotates right
  • The alternative or alias keys: use A-key to accelerate, Z-key to brake and N-key to rotate left and M-key rotate right and again the space to turn the bike around

Test what's the best combination for you so that your computer won't BEEP when pressing many buttons simultaneously.

Additional keys: T-key enables and disables timer, V-key does same for navigator. Also note that you can hold down Page Up and Down in menus to make the cursor go faster. Across also has a supervolt bug. If you press both rotate keys at the same time the bike rotates faster clockwise. Usually a normal volt is needed in advance unless you manage to press the buttons exactly at the same time (varies in different computers), then the volt is called an alovolt (supervolt alone). This bug actually just increases the complexity of the game play. In menus you navigate by ESC, ENTER and arrows, as usual.

System requirements

Official requirements from the game's README.TXT:

  • DOS 5.0
  • 486DX-33, 66 highly recommended
  • 16MB RAM
  • VESA for SVGA modes
  • Sound Blaster compatible sound card
  • 4MB hard disk space (replay and level files space excluded)

mr has written instructions to get Across working in DOS in XP.

Installation

The shareware version is freely distributable, but remember to include all the files in the right-named ZIP file and not touch the file names.

To install the game you need to run the INSTALL.EXE you see in the ZIP file.

If you're willing to get a registered version of Across you must first order Elasto Mania. After that you can ask for Across from Balázs, the author of Across and Elma. Mail balazs2 from elastomania , com and ask him to send you the registered version of Across. In your email please include your Elasto Mania order number, your name and street address. You can read these same things on the official site.

Version history

1.0

11. Feb 1997

  • The first released version of Across.

1.1

24. Mar 1997

  • Bug fixes

1.2

23. Mar 1998

  • Bug fixes
  • Zoom feature removed
  • Options and Help merged in menu
  • Ability to change a player inside game
  • Level editor
  • New internal levels
  • Possibility to skip 5 levels instead of just 3

1.3

06. Jan 1999

  • New registration information

The next versions are listed under Elasto Mania information page.

Bugs

Across has a few more bugs than Elma, but none of them are radical.

  • Supervolt or also known as alovolt was originally a bug
  • Bounces are a result of the elasticity of the bike, just a positive bug, argued if even can be called as bug
  • Rotating insanely stretches the bike and might cause a crash with an internal error message
  • Wheel can get stuck on tight places like in Elma but not so easily; instead the wheel jams a bit on every vertex; compare playing Double Trouble in Elma and Across
  • Corrupted levels and replays crash Across
  • STATE.DAT is modified only after closing the game so it's highly recommend to quit the game after getting a new best time
  • Across is very laggy under XP
  • Graphical bug lines in levels can be removed easily: move a pixel of one of the vertexes which seem to be causing the bug
  • A famous start bug (even used to cheat WRs in the past) can be done by doing crazy rotating and pressing brake while you die in some big level (like Freefall) and after that switching to another level (Uphill Battle for example) and starting the level by pressing brake again and you will get a nice push

Files

The needed files to run the game:

  • ACROSS.EXE (executable program that the compiler produces)
  • DOS4GW.EXE (a part of the Microsoft DOS Operating System and acts as a 32-bit extension for the kernel, non-essential process to the running of the system, but should not be terminated unless suspected to be causing problems)
  • SETUP.EXE (sound and graphic settings)
  • ACROSS.RES
    • Contains the graphics, sounds, internal levels (res as resources)
    • Not allowed to be distributed
    • The only file which is different in shareware version
  • SETUP.SND (sound card configuration information)
  • STATE.DAT
    • Contains the player data, times, key settings
    • Automatically created if it doesn't exist
  • Replay (.rec) and level (.lev) files are stored in the same directory
  • Bunch of txt files such as README.TXT, EDITOR.TXT, TIPS.TXT, TECH_INF.TXT (recommended, not compulsory)
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