Cyningstan
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cyningstan.bsky.social
Cyningstan
@cyningstan.bsky.social
Hobbyist retro-game developer. Writing for the ancient IBM PC of 1981: fun in all four colours. I appreciate the Sinclair ZX Spectrum and Psion pocket computers too. Also an ancient board game nerd.

Website: http://dos.cyningstan.org.uk/
Pinned
Now that 2026 is underway, it's a good time to post an updated collage of my DOS games. Since I have nine out now, that fits into a nice neat rectangle. So here are all 9 #msdos games I released from 2020 to 2025. All #cga, all running on an #ibmpc, all available from cyningstan.itch.io
Looks like having two instances of copy trying to copy the same file to the same place confused it. Hopefully the remaining instance should complete successfully. May be worth checking the size of the destination file from time to time to see if/how it's progressing.
February 10, 2026 at 5:00 AM
The battleaxe is the largest blade in the #Ossuary, useful for combat against more powerful monsters with its +6 bonus on attack strength. cyningstan.itch.io/ossuary #ibmpc #msdos #cga #zxspectrum
February 9, 2026 at 4:09 PM
Rescue missions are subtly different. With multiple hostages to find, some of whom have useful skills, you can recruit the hostages themselves to help. You also score per hostage freed. cyningstan.itch.io/star-cadre-c... #starcadre #ibmpc #msdos #cga
February 7, 2026 at 2:01 PM
Reposted by Cyningstan
Brand new Spectrum game: Welcome 2 The Machine, by Radical Reflux.

Download:
https://radical-reflux.itch.io/machine

#zxspectrum #retrogaming
February 7, 2026 at 12:23 AM
By 2024 I decided the time was right for an #msdos version of #Barbarians. I'd already ported my third ZX Spectrum game Ossuary. I decided to start work on an MS-DOS port before the idea gets eclipsed by a more complex game on the same subject. cyningstan.itch.io/barbarians-dos
February 6, 2026 at 1:24 PM
Plate Mail is solid metal armour providing good protection against body injuries, but requiring skill Dodging:5 to use effectively. Get The #ChambersBeneath from cyningstan.itch.io/the-chambers... #roguelike #ibmpc #msdos #cga
February 5, 2026 at 2:26 PM
The first DLC for #TeamDroid was Double Trouble, every level having 2 droids, 2 cards, 2 readers. The first level requires droids to cooperate, passing cards out of the middle chamber. Download the game and the Double Trouble level pack from cyningstan.itch.io/team-droid #ibmpc #msdos #cga
February 4, 2026 at 2:27 PM
Destroyers are the smallest sea combat units. They have little firepower and a short range, and are lightly armoured. They can navigate deep and shallow water, but they can't navigate too close to the sandbanks. cyningstan.itch.io/waterworld. #ibmpc #msdos #cga #BarrenPlanet #Waterworld
February 3, 2026 at 3:21 PM
The iron shield adds a +4 bonus to your defence state, parrying blows from the more powerful monsters in the #Ossuary. cyningstan.itch.io/ossuary #ibmpc #msdos #cga #zxspectrum
February 2, 2026 at 2:37 PM
The Hostage mission has a clear focus: find the named individual and get them out alive. Hostages need to be cut free; if your team doesn't have a blade you'll need to find one. cyningstan.itch.io/star-cadre-c... #starcadre #ibmpc #msdos #cga
January 31, 2026 at 1:30 PM
The #ZXSpectrum had such affection among its former owners that it maintain its popularity to the present day. So in 2012 when I released #Barbarians for the Spectrum, the game attracted much more attention than the original Psion version ever did. cyningstan.itch.io/barbarians #gamedev
January 30, 2026 at 2:43 PM
The Plate is a fine and costly dining vessel made of precious metal and gemstones, found down in the dungeon. Sometimes a particular plate is the object of your quest. Get The #ChambersBeneath from cyningstan.itch.io/the-chambers... #roguelike #ibmpc #msdos #cga
January 29, 2026 at 5:22 PM
Reposted by Cyningstan
And, my precious children, it delivered. And the ZX81 birthed the Spectrum; the Spectrum laid the ground for the Psion 3 and 5mx.

And then the Single Pane of Glass extremists stole that future from us.

But we can - we must! - restore what was lost! #ReadTheALT
January 28, 2026 at 6:56 PM
Reposted by Cyningstan
On Fantasy Grounds and looking to fill the spacelanes of your Traveller campaign?

Adventure Class Ships has arrived!

60+ ships with deck plans ready to be used or encountered by your Travellers.

www.fantasygrounds.com/store/produc...

#ttrpg #TravellerRPG #FantasyGrounds
January 29, 2026 at 9:17 AM
You can emulate #Dragonfell on modern systems via DOSBox and a free #Psion Series 3a emulator for #msdos. There's an emulation package with setup instructions and a version of the game packaged specifically for emulation. Get it from cyningstan.itch.io/dragonfell-p...
January 28, 2026 at 2:22 PM
Air Fighters are another unit brought over from Dapra. They can fly over anything except volcanoes, whose eruptions are too dangerous to venture near. Air Fighters have a longer attack range than Hoverbugs or Ports. cyningstan.itch.io/waterworld. #ibmpc #msdos #cga #BarrenPlanet #Waterworld
January 27, 2026 at 2:49 PM
As monsters get more powerful in the deeper levels of the #Ossuary, you'll need the sword, as it adds +4 to your attack strength. Available at cyningstan.itch.io/ossuary #ibmpc #msdos #cga #zxspectrum
January 26, 2026 at 2:44 PM
Reposted by Cyningstan
January 24, 2026 at 3:21 AM
Reposted by Cyningstan
January 24, 2026 at 6:43 AM
If you like games where you kill everything that moves, the Annihilation mission is for you. Hunt them all down, and leave none alive! In this mission, every kill contributes to your score. cyningstan.itch.io/star-cadre-c... #starcadre #ibmpc #msdos #cga
January 24, 2026 at 2:36 PM
I limited myself to the 16k #ZXSpectrum, to prevent feature creep, and decided that a good first #gamedev project would be a port of my Psion game #Barbarians. This took me only a month, and was based on the look of the 16-bit Psion versions. cyningstan.itch.io/barbarians
January 23, 2026 at 3:43 PM
Reposted by Cyningstan
Hello #PortfolioDay ! I make pixel art.
October 10, 2023 at 6:25 PM
The Net is a trap that, when sprung, can hold an enemy in one place for a number of turns. Players with Stealth:3 skill can set this trap. Get The #ChambersBeneath from cyningstan.itch.io/the-chambers... #roguelike #ibmpc #msdos #cga
January 22, 2026 at 3:13 PM
Still CGA, and still the same palette, as it's fixed in the game. It's quite a good palette as long as you don't want to change the setting to a forest planet. Well I suppose you could have an alien forest planet with odd coloured plants.
January 22, 2026 at 10:13 AM
Some time in the future I do hope to release a campaign editor though, with a built-in sprite/tile editor, which will make these things much easier.
January 21, 2026 at 2:46 PM