Title – ハミングボール (Humming Ball)
System – Fujitsu FM-77AV
Author – 高橋暢生 (Haruo Takahashi)
Publication – Login – October 1986
Preserved By – Dustin Hubbard (Hubz)
Recommended Emulator – XM7
Loading the Game –
– Run your emulator and load the tape file.
– Type LOAD and wait for tape to load.
– Type RUN
Game Instructions –
First off huge thanks to Bugfire2009 for helping me figure out how to finally get this running.
This one is tricky to get going. You have to use an emulator that supports weird keys by default. I know of none, but XM7 lets you map keys so I recommend it. ESC key starts the game, numpad enter launches the plunger, and numpad ‘ pulls back the plunger. However you have to manually map this in the XM7 emulator.
Go to Tools – Configure and go to the Keyboard Tab scroll down to Number 41 for DIK_COMMA. Double click it and press whatever key you want to use for pulling back the plunger. Then Right click to commit the change and hit okay.
That should store it from then on so you won’t have to do that step again.
Hummingbird Soft’s entry into the Login Program Olympics in 1986! A pinball-like game but with no flippers. Launch the ball and try to land it in the holes. If you get lines of them in a row you’ll be rewarded with extra balls. Once you run out of balls the game is over. Hit ESC to restart it.
Controls –
ESC – Starts Game
(Whatever you map the comma key to) – Pulls back plunger.
Numpad Enter + Comma Key – Launches ball while you pull back plunger.
Magazine Article Translation from Google Gemini (FYI This may not be 100% accurate!)
There’s something about this Smart Ball game! A harbinger of HummingBird’s great leap forward!?
Now, this time’s Olympic entry is “Humming Ball.” It’s exclusively for the FM-77AV. It’s a “Smart Ball” game, like that pinball but with the flippers removed, done up in the HummingBird style. The Smart Ball machine is drawn at a slight angle to the screen, giving it a design full of three-dimensional presence. When you launch the ball, it flies with a ponn sound, hits pins, and travels all over the machine. Hmm, the ball actually has really nice movement, and the graphics are beautiful, too.
It’s so well-made, it makes you wonder if maybe they’re in the middle of developing a 3D pinball game and are also using this as a subroutine test. Mr. Imanishi just laughs, but hmm, this guy is different. I can smell it now~.
The person in charge of the programming is Haruo Takahashi, age 23. He’s a student at Osaka University’s Faculty of Engineering Science. At first glance he seems mature, but you can feel a sense of style radiating from within. “My, he’s a kid who really gets things done~,” says Mr. Imanishi with a gentle look. His tone makes it sound like he wants him to come work for them by all means after he graduates university. It’s okay, Mr. Imanishi. HummingBird’s employee benefits are perfect, aren’t they!?
