ugBASIC is an isomorphic and open source language, fully documented and designed to develop portable programs, without sacrificing efficiency. With a single source it is therefore possible to create games for numerous 8 bit platforms.
MOS 6502 Zilog Z80 Motorola 6809
Amstrad Atari ColecoVision Commodore Dragon MSX Olivetti Radio Shack Thomson SEGA ZX Spectrum
CC65 Z88DK ASM6809
You can download the official ugBASIC compiler (ugbc), which directly converts a program written in ugBASIC into the assembly equivalent for the given CPU / computer. The compiler is free, open source and licensed under the Apache 2.0 license. You can download or recompile the latest version from the GitHub repository.
ugBASIC is able to handle graphics with double buffering, to use directly PNG/JPG and other standard image formats, to manage additional RAM banks, to read multiple keyboard keys at the same time and to do inline assembly. The labor and time saving is such that it allows to create professional and high performance games in a short time.
On this video, you have the example of a real-time animation of 4 fairly large sprites on Thomson MO6. Sprites can also move in a full background setting. This new language will allow for hyper-fast game development on all 8-bit consoles and computers.
This is an example of vector graphics render with ugBASIC. The characteristics of the language are such as to allow fast execution of the same BASIC source on various home computers and consoles.
Full and complete support for console hardware features on ColecoVision, SEGA SC-3000 and SEGA SG-1000. Automatic graphic conversion from modern graphical formats included.
Each target can have a dedicated optimizer, which allows to achieve very interesting
results while leaving the BASIC code fully readable.
Here we see the peephole
optimizer for Motorola 6809 in action.
With ugBASIC is simple to write multitasking programs using parallel programming, available "out of the box". In systems with severe memory constraints such as computers based on 8 bit processors, a mechanism based on protothreads has been implemented.
Compile your ugBASIC sources efficiently and effectively for multiple retrocomputers: ugBASIC IDE makes it easier to download and install the various software required for one or more retrocomputers, all just one "click away".
At the moment there are two manuals available: the user manual, with which you can start developing using this language, and the reference manual, useful for those wishing to modify and/or to extend the language.
c64reu
), the Thomson MO6 (pc128op
), Thomson TO8 (to8
), and the TRS-80 Color Computer 3 (coco3
) have automatic loading into the memory banks, even if the resource is not marked as BANKED
. This allows a lot of space to be automatically recovered. The available memory for parsing has been increased of a 10x factor, and dynamic strings are more space efficient thanks to string tranpilation.PLACE
, CMOB
, MOB ON/OFF
, LOOP...EXIT IF...END LOOP
, CHECK
, ROT
, DRAW
, CSET
, CGOTO
, HIRES
, MULTI
, MOD
(as a command), COLOR
, WAVE
, PAUSE
, ENVELOPE
, DUP
, INST
, FILL
, CIRCLE
, INSERT
, DRAW TO
, JOY
(with TSB convention), %%
, $$
, CENTER AT
, ON KEY
, CHAR
, PROC
, NRM
, AT
(string swap), KEYGET
, PAINT
, DO NULL
, D.POKE
, D.PEEK
, REC
, BLOCK
. The project aims at portability rather than implementation: therefore, you will have access to all the more advanced features, while being able to recompile your Simons' BASIC projects (this is driven by OPTION DIALECT
pragma).
Moreover, this is the first version to implement the DOJO protocol. The ugBASIC language is now equipped with primitives capable of communicating with an external server, called DOJO, which is a system for creating virtual "game rooms" online.cpc
) with the PALETTE PRESERVE
pragma, and it is possible to enable keyboard / joystick management directly under interrupt, to ensure that the value readings are performed at a constant speed. In this regard, a specific keyboard driver has been implemented for each target, with a support for keyboard queue.zx
) compiler now emulates key directions using the world wide WASD standard, and random number generation has been made more compatible with other BASICs, if the parameter 0 or 1 is used (RND(0)
, RND(1)
), with "out of the box" generation of floating point numbers between 0.0 and 1.0. Disk image generation for the TRS-80 Color Computer 1/2/3 (coco
, coco3
) has also been enhanched, along with disk image generation for the C64 with REU memory expansion (c64reu
). The DATA
instruction is now able to manage binary strings.
Finally, from this version onwards, "retro compatible hacks" have been implemented which ensure that previously written games can run without any issues, although there have been some small changes in the specifications.DEFINE PROGRAM START
pragma, and to differentiate procedures if a joystick is not present. WAIT VBL
instruction.CONSOLE
, CONSOLE SAVE
, CONSOLE USE
commands has been added, to have up to four different virtual consoles; CLINE
command has been extended, to support graphical modes; ENABLE INTERRUPT
/ DISABLE INTERRUPT
, that are able to enable or disable interrupts at CPU level; COMBINE NIBBLE
, that can combine two 4 bit values in a single 8 bit value; LINE
, as alias of DRAW
, but with a more standard BASIC compatible syntax; PLAY
, to play a string as a music; DEFINE AUDIO TARGET
and DEFINE AUDIO SYNC / ASYNC
pragmas, to select the output for audio and synchronized play; the BIT
data type has been optimized; WRITING
instruction has been deprecated, and not more supported.to8
) target. It is currently in beta stage. more...FLIP IMAGE
command has been introduced, in order to reduce the memory footprints for graphical images.BANKED
keyword, if available. A way to play native PSG files has been added, as well. From this point on, the static and dynamic hardware integration and configuration will be available directly from ugBASIC by using the CONFIGURATION
instruction.EXP
and LOG
instructions. Added instructions VARBANKPTR
and VARBANK
, to allow access to banked memory. c64reu
) target. more...LOAD IMAGES
/ LOAD SEQUENCE
.WAIT VBL
, as well as the possibility of knowing whether you are operating with a LITTLE ENDIAN
or BIG ENDIAN
system. Now it is possible to redefine, at run time, the characters of the font loaded via the DEFDGR
command, as well as load an external one with the LOAD FONT
command.IMAGE
/ IMAGES
/ SEQUENCE
starting from strings, makes it possible to participate in programming competitions where it is necessary to be able to draw nice graphics without being able to load them from storage media.FORBID
and ALLOW
keywords to (RE
)SPAWN
a set of threads at the same time, assigning the handle of each of them to an element of a previously declared array, and to KILL
threads in the very same way. The SOUND
command has been extended to allow you to output a sequence of sounds with a single instruction.
The current version adds support for the TRS-80 Color Computer 3 (coco3) and
is able to generate disk images for ATARI, MSX and Commodore VIC-20.
Further optimizations have been introduced in the generated code, in particular for CPU Z80. Several commands have been added,
and there is also better compatibility with 1980s BASIC syntax. Moreover, it can
load and save data to mass storage.
Use IDE
Installation
The current version adds preliminary support for inline assembly, software for map tiling, system calls, the floating point data type, for the Commodore 128 target with the Zilog Z80 processor and for graphics blitting operations.
Further optimizations have been introduced in the generated code, in particular for the Olivetti Prodest PC128 home computers, which is now able to handle banking at the single frame level instead of the whole image, and for the COCO TRS-80 computer,
which can now make use of almost all available memory, including that under the ROM banks.
Use IDE
Installation
Happy birthday ugBASIC! Today (24/04) we celebrate two
years since the first commit, and with this milestone in
mind let's take a look at some of the results obtained by
the development team.
From a qualitative point of view, the system
supports as many as 26 heterogeneous systems,
ranging from ATARI to Olivetti Prodest, passing through MSX, TRS-80 and,
obviously, Commodore computers. A dedicated page takes into account the
actual list of supported targets.
From a quantitative point of view, ugBASIC is composed of over
156,000 lines of C code and about 43,000 lines of assembly code
(MOS 6502, Zilog Z80 and Motorola 6809), where the lexer and the
parser occupy 7,559 lines!
For published data: generated using David A. Wheeler's 'SLOCCount'
Use IDE
Download executables
Targets
The current version (1.13.1) introduces support for Radio Shack TRS-80 Color Computer.
Use IDE
Installation
The version (1.12.1) introduces support for Amstrad CPC 664 target.
Use IDE
Installation
The version 1.11.2 introduces support for audio and the Commodore 128 target.
Use IDE
Installation
Usage
Happy birthday ugBASIC! Today (25/04) we celebrate one
year since the first commit, and with this milestone in
mind let's take a look at some of the results obtained by
the development team.
From a qualitative point of view, the system
supports as many as 14 heterogeneous systems,
ranging from ATARI to Olivetti Prodest, passing through MSX and,
obviously, Commodore computers.
From a quantitative point of view, ugBASIC is composed of over
137,000 lines of C code and over 36,000 lines of assembly code
(MOS 6502, Zilog Z80 and Motorola 6809), where the lexer and the
parser occupy 6,408 lines!
Following the sizing indicated by the "COCOMO model", to redevelop
ugBASIC from scratch it would take 55 man-months or, if you like,
two and a half years of development. Alternatively, having 22 developers,
it would be done in a year.
For published data: generated using David A. Wheeler's 'SLOCCount'
Use IDE
Installation
Usage
The version 1.10.3 introduces support for SEGA SC-3000 home computer and SG-1000 console.
Use IDE
Installation
Usage
The version 1.9.1 introduces support for ColecoVision console architecture.
Use IDE
Installation
Usage
An interesting competition is held at the beginning of each year: the BASIC 10Liner Contest,
and it is possible to use ugBASIC to join in the next competition with your preferred home computer.
How to join
Use IDE
executables
The version 1.8.2 introduces support for MSX home computer architecture.
Use IDE
Installation
Usage
The version 1.7.2 introduces various improvements and bug fixes.
Use IDE
Installation
Usage
A brand new IDE has been released for ugBASIC: ugBASIC IDE
makes it easier to download and install the various software required for one or more
retrocomputers, all just one "click away". It offers syntactic highlighting,
multiple windows, file history, online help and an integration for error
diagnostics. With just one click you can see your program running directly
on one of the supported emulators.
Download executables
The current version (1.6) introduces various improvements and bug fixes.
Installation
Usage
The version 1.5 introduces support for Commodore VIC-20, film strip animations and multitasking.
Complete list of targets
How to use multitasking
Installation
Usage
The version 1.4 introduces support for Olivetti PC128 Prodest and Thomson MO5 computer.
Complete list of targets
Installation
Usage
The version 1.3.2-beta introduces various improvements and bug fixes.
Installation
Usage
The version 1.3.1-beta introduces various improvements and bug fixes.
Installation
Usage
The version 1.3-beta introduces support for Dragon 32 computer.
Complete list of targets
Installation
Usage
The version (1.2-beta) introduces various improvements and bug fixes.
Installation
Usage
The version 1.1-beta introduces support for the Atari 8-bit family of computers, such as Atari 400/800, Atari 600XL / 800XL / 1200XL and XEGS.
Complete list of targets
Installation
Usage
Overscan: Yep, another One These @#$%!! Podcasts (Plus Atari Hidden Gems)
In this episode the brothers find a hidden gem for each of Atari’s classic systems and even a few divisions like the Arcade division and APX.
Show 013 - ugBASIC
Randy and Earl talk about ugBASIC, and Randy interviews the author/creator!
Un BASIC per gli 8-bit degli anni '80! / Retrocomputing
Grazie a ugBASIC è possibile creare programmi in BASIC per tutta una serie di computer a 8-bit degli anni '80. Vediamo alcuni esempi grazie al suo comodo IDE
The CoCo Nation Show Episode 365
AJ & Tim cover Erico's 'Savage Sword of Cocon'
BrewOtaku #002
ACME, Inc. has been reviewed on BrewOtaku, "The Homebrew Gaming Magazine", that covers new games for old consoles, handhelds and computers. Dead ones live longer.
Basic et ugBasic : recherches de chaines et autres fonctionnalités
Recherche de chaine en basic standard, explication sur recherche dichotomique, conclusion sur efficacité en fonction du volume de données, comparaison des performances obtenues sur ugBasic (compilé), mesure du temps avec les vecteurs system, instruction FILL avec un vecteur system, instruction DRAW string en ugBasic
ugBasic, assembleur et basic classique
Nouveautés d'ugBasic: Data, DECLARE SYSTEM PROC, Intégration de l'assembleur dans ugBasic, Instruction PAINT / FILL, DRAW STRING (fail effet démo ;) )
ugBasic, aperçu de nouveautés et essais des autres plateformes
Démonstration d'un programme ciblé sur VIC 20 (tilemap, midi et multithread). Démonstration de deux programmes en multiplateformes lisant des données et affichant des graphismes. Démonstration d'un programme combinant en multiplateforme, gestion d'une tilemap et déplacement d'un sprite.
Scorched Earth ugBasic : La reprise des streams
Présentation des évolutions du programme Scorched Earth en ugBasic (avec rappel des anciennes évolutions). Démonstration du jeu en l'état. Conclusion et raid.
Programming in basic (compiled) on many computers with ugBASIC by Marco Spedaletti
This compiler write the code so a program works whatever the features of the targeted computer, a feature who doesnt exist in hardware will be managed by software.
ugBasic a maintenant son forum
ugBasic est un langage isomorphe et open source, entièrement documenté et conçu pour développer des programmes portables, sans sacrifier l’efficacité. Avec une seule source, il est donc possible de créer des jeux pour de nombreuses plateformes 8 bits.
The CoCo Nation Show Episode 322
Learn more about everything old and new for the Color Computer by tuning in to: The CoCo Nation Show (TCN) - a weekly live and interactive discussion about the Color Computers, Dragons, MC-10, clones, and cousins!
The CoCo Nation Show Episode 321
Learn more about everything old and new for the Color Computer by tuning in to: The CoCo Nation Show (TCN) - a weekly live and interactive discussion about the Color Computers, Dragons, MC-10, clones, and cousins!
ugBASIC v1.14: A New Era for Commodore 64 Programming
The Commodore 64 is one of the most popular home computers of all time, and it is still enjoyed by many people today. However, the original BASIC interpreter that came with the C64 was not very powerful or versatile. This is where ugBASIC comes in.
ugBASIC
ugBASIC is a modern, open-source, active (as of March 2023) BASIC cross-compiler able to generate machine code for multiple computers built around the Motorola 6809, Zilog Z80 and MOS 6502 8-bit processors which were popular both in the USA and European markets in the 1980s and 1990s.
ugBASIC
If there's one language that just can't be killed, it's BASIC. Not that there aren't others, but BASIC has a very special status.
ugBASIC:一個跨平台的 8 位元編程語言
ugBASIC通過使用單一的源代碼,可以讓開發者快速開發跨多個8位元家用遊戲機和電腦的遊戲。目前支持的CPU有NMOS 6502、Zilog Z80和Motorola 6809。開源編譯器ugBC可以將ugBASIC編寫的程式轉換為目標CPU/計算機的組合語言等效程式。該編譯器是免費的,遵循Apache 2.0許可證
ugBasic Compiler Testing - Day 149
A BASIC compiler for compiling to various retro computers and consoles.
7 x Atari 8-Bit 10 Liner Contest Entries
ZeroPage Homebrew: Your BEST source for the NEWEST Atari games! Twitch Livestream: 20230328 with Pick The Star and Tic-Tac-Toe
Les dernières avancées dans scorched Earth en ugBasic
Présentation du problème de gestion des couleurs dans Gimp, Présentation du contournement du problème de la fonction Point avec Peek, Présentation des évolutions (placement tank aléatoire, gestion des tirs pour les 2 tanks), Présentation du bug de saturation de la RAM.
Rettangoli colorati con ugBASIC
Da tempo desideravo provare ugBASIC, linguaggio isomorfo compilato, che permette di produrre programmi per una moltitudine di piattaforme (computer e console) a 8 bit a partire da un unico codice sorgente.
ugBasic – A BASIC compiler for Commodore, ... and Atari, ... and CoCo, ... and ...
Recently I learned about an exciting project that started a couple of years ago: ugBasic. ugBasic is a cross compiler of BASIC dialect specialized in programs that are very efficient by design on various 8-bit platforms built on top of 6502, Z80 and 6809.
ugBasic retour sur le projet scorched earth
Rappel sur la gestion des variables d'ugBasic, Variables globales / locales, Typage dynamique, Affichage d'un paysage généré, Problème de gestion de couleurs, Problème de calculs en nombres entiers au lieu de flottants. Conclusion
Faisons des rasters avec ugBasic !
Rappel sur l'exemple précédent, Démonstration de la proposition de l'auteur, Approfondissement et expérimentation pour déterminer le timing de l'instruction COLOR. Conclusion
Dernières nouveautés d'ugBasic
Présentation des nouvelles fonctionnalités, instruction relative, ORIGIN, RESOLUTION, FONT LOAD, Proof Of Concept : Scorched Earth gestion de trajectoire de tir, Instruction OUT : 2 exemples, Ondulation d'écran, Caméleon en mode 2, 27 couleurs en Basic !!!! Conclusion
ugBasic : gestion des planches de sprites et essais de calculs de trajectoire
Introduction sur les problématiques du calcul sous ugBasic, Introduction sur la fonte standard d'ugBasic, Illustration de la fonction LOAD IMAGES et son utilisation pour afficher les fontes identiques à l'amstrad CPC, Test en direct d'un correctif innatendu de dernière minute d'ugBasic !, Démonstrations de 4 méthodes différentes pour calculer des trajectoires paraboliques avec seulement des entiers en ugBasic, Illustration des difficultés rencontrées, Conclusion.
ugBasic : Gestion de scroll et du joystick
Introduction, Présentation d'une première instruction de scroll, Démonstration des avantages par rapport au scroll texte standard, Explication des limites (consommation de temps), Démonstration d'un Scroll horizontal surface d'eau avec vague + robot célèbre ;), Démonstration d'un Scroll Vertical d'un fond marin avec modif 48 lignes * 64 pixels, Démonstration de ce même scroll avec robot célèbre, Démonstration de ce même scroll avec robot célèbre et incrustations de soucoupes ennemies, Démonstration Instruction EVERY, Discussion sur le langage Basic, Conclusion
ugBasic : Détection des touches, gestion de la palette des couleurs, gestion des images
Introduction, Détection des touches et du joystick (avec accident félin sans gravité ;) ), Gestion de la palette de couleurs, Instructions GET IMAGE et PUT IMAGE, Petits bugs rigolos sur instruction Ellipse, Conclusion
Soko64 con ugBASIC
Soko64 è la dimostrazione che a un redattore di Zzap! non si dovrebbero mai dare del tempo libero e uno strumento di sviluppo come ugBasic. Potrebbe uscirne fuori qualcosa di diabolico.
ugBasic : continuons la découverte
Introduction, Draw et polyline, Cercle plein, explication sur le typage dynamique des variables, les contraintes du mode 0 et de l'absence de nombres réels, Tracé du paysage précédent avec Draw corrigé, Démonstration de l'affichage d'image, Démonstration de l'affichage d'images avec gestion de la transparence, Nouvelle approche avec paysage dessiné dans une image pour fixer la palette, Conclusion
ugBasic : continuons la découverte
Explication gestion mode, Gestion des couleurs, Instructions graphiques, Procédures, Chargement images, Conclusion
ugBasic : continuons la découverte
Présentation ugBasic (logiciel, fonctionnalités, exemples, portabilité, syntaxe)