Lemmings "Book Club" version - has it been preserved? [EDIT: Oops! Solved!]

[Prob Lem]

Just a quick topic of curiousity, here - I hope it's ok to post this...

I just saw the "Book Club" version of Lemmings for sale on eBay, and further research indicates that this is a limited edition Lemmings title, issued by the Home Computer Club, which contains some exclusive stages. The version I saw for sale is for the Amiga, and the aforementioned research reveals that there was also an Atari ST version, at least.

This is actually the first time I've ever heard of this version of the game, and I just wanted to know if this (or at least the levels from it) has been preserved in some fashion. Does anyone know?

The reason I ask is because I don't have the means to dump old game disks, and I don't want to buy it if it would leave this version lost to time, especially since the media that it's on won't last forever.

EDIT: Bah, never mind. I feel stupid, now. Adjusting my Google-Fu revealed that the Book Club release has indeed been preserved. False alarm, sorry chaps! While I'm here, does anyone have any info on this version's stages, please?

[Tsyu]

It's good that you mentioned this! I searched for this just now and managed to find a download of this (it wasn't difficult to find).

The only levels I tried so far were Fun 1 and Tricky 20 and 21. (I figured that if one level were different, it would be Tricky 21, since that was the infamous 666 level.) Fun 1 and Tricky 20 are the same as the ones in the original version, but Tricky 21 is different: "Through the graveyard," a completely new level that uses the dirt set. I will attach some screenshots soon. I'll also play through the game to see if there are more new levels.

EDIT: The preview and an image of the full level are attached. The available skills aren't shown in these pictures, so here they are:

Climbers: 2
Floaters: 0
Bombers: 5
Blockers: 5
Builders: 25
Bashers: 8
Miners: 2
Diggers: 0

[Prob Lem]

Oh, wow, thanks for checking this out, and major thanks for the screenshots. I know that the download is out there (it's how I realised that it has indeed been preserved ), but I don't emulate stuff that I don't already own, so I was ridiculously curious about it.

Are those gravestones normally in the dirt tileset? I don't remember ever seeing them before...

Also, I would have guessed that the special-graphics levels might also be changed (though perhaps those would be altered only to what they were changed to in the "budget" version, which I assume is actually the Award Winners Platinum release), too - might be worth a look!

[DragonsLover]

Would have been nice if the ST version would be available for download, but anyway. Do you think it may be possible to extract this level so that it becomes playable under Lemmix/Dos? Thanks!

[Tsyu]

I looked at all of the levels in the Book Club version, including the 2-player levels, and found only one other new level, "Something weighing on your mind?," which replaces Taxing 20. Images of the preview and the full level are attached.

Here are the available skills:

Climbers: 1
Floaters: 1
Bombers: 6
Blockers: 2
Builders: 14
Bashers: 1
Miners: 1
Diggers: 1

Are those gravestones normally in the dirt tileset? I don't remember ever seeing them before...

Yes, they are, although only a few levels, if any, use them.

Also, I would have guessed that the special-graphics levels might also be changed (though perhaps those would be altered only to what they were changed to in the "budget" version, which I assume is actually the Award Winners Platinum release), too - might be worth a look!

The special levels are unchanged in the Book Club version. Also, the "budget" version is actually the "Free with Commodore Promotion Pack" version, which came on one disk instead of two; the special levels apparently had to be replaced to get the game to fit on one floppy. (The Award Winners Platinum came on two disks. I will, however go through that version to see whether any of its levels are different.)

Would have been nice if the ST version would be available for download, but anyway. Do you think it may be possible to extract this level so that it becomes playable under Lemmix/Dos? Thanks!

Mindless did rip the levels from various releases of Amiga Lemmings a few years ago, including the "budget" version. Maybe he can rip the levels from the Book Club version...

[Prob Lem]

I looked at all of the levels in the Book Club version, including the 2-player levels, and found only one other new level, "Something weighing on your mind?," which replaces Taxing 20. Images of the preview and the full level are attached.

Thanks very much for doing this.

Also: Yay! It's got the son of the original 10-Ton Weight, which is quite possibly the second-best thing I've seen all day (aside, of course, from these awesome screen-grabs you've posted here ).

Yes, they are, although only a few levels, if any, use them.

I'll have to put this one down either to a slightly fuzzy memory, or a lack of their use in-game, I guess.

The special levels are unchanged in the Book Club version. Also, the "budget" version is actually the "Free with Commodore Promotion Pack" version, which came on one disk instead of two; the special levels apparently had to be replaced to get the game to fit on one floppy. (The Award Winners Platinum came on two disks. I will, however go through that version to see whether any of its levels are different.)

Ahh! Thanks very much for the clarification! I suspected that the Commodore Promotion Pack version* might be the altered one, but I've never actually encountered it in person, oddly enough...

*(I know of two one-disk versions, each with different labelling, though the other one doesn't proclaim that it's from such a pack - any idea if the Commodore Promotion Pack version is related to the Amiga Cartoon Classics hardware bundle, which came with Lemmings, in a miniaturised version of the original big-box?)

Would have been nice if the ST version would be available for download, but anyway. Do you think it may be possible to extract this level so that it becomes playable under Lemmix/Dos? Thanks!

Mindless did rip the levels from various releases of Amiga Lemmings a few years ago, including the "budget" version. Maybe he can rip the levels from the Book Club version...

I must admit, getting the levels from this one noticed and ripped, if they haven't been already, was one of my reasons for posting about the Book Club version to begin with. (To Mindless: I truly hope you don't mind!)

[Tsyu]

I finished checking the levels in the Award Winners Platinum version; nothing appears to be different there.

If nobody has done so already, I will PM Mindless soon to see whether he can rip the Book Club levels (assuming he responds).

[Prob Lem]

If nobody has done so already, I will PM Mindless soon to see whether he can rip the Book Club levels (assuming he responds).

I can confirm that I haven't. I don't quite feel confident with PM'ing anyone yet, for some reason... I don't want to impose or anything.

[Mindless]

The book club version is there now.  For your convenience, I believe the files of interest in that version are Level001-2.lvl and Level009-1.lvl.

[Prob Lem]

Thanks so much, Mindless! Really glad to see that these levels have been preserved along with the rest.