From: rich.martin@gmail.com   
      
   Times of Lore is an action RPG from Origin late in the Apple II's lifecycle,   
   and it sports some really great graphics and gameplay, in fact, that last   
   batch of Origin Apple II games in the late 1980s were incredibly well done   
   (Times of Lore, Knight's of    
   Legend, Tangled Tales).    
      
   When it came out, I remember being in awe of the graphics and animation of   
   that opening title screen, and I would sit there looking at it, trying to   
   figure out how the code behind the scenes worked, all while it was looping   
   over and over. I vaguely    
   remember one time when it looped through the animation of the castle doors   
   opening, when I wasn't fixated on it, out of the corner of my eye, I noticed   
   that the door opening animation was longer than normal, and then I realized   
   something else was moving    
   in the background of the scene. I just missed it as the doors closed again,   
   and the next iteration of the animation showed nothing out of the ordinary. I   
   must have lost interest pretty quickly after that, or maybe decided I was   
   seeing things that weren't    
   there, and I moved on with life.   
      
   Decades later, I am looking through some disk images and come across Times of   
   Lore. That weird memory was still hiding under a loose floorboard in my mind   
   attic and never got tossed away, and as soon as I saw the opening animation it   
   sprug forth and    
   rattled my mind. But now this was different, I am older, (debatably) wiser,   
   and have emulation and a (slightly) better knowledge of 6502 assembly. It was   
   time to determine what the truth was- Does Times of Lore have a weird easter   
   egg in the title    
   animation, or not?   
      
   The answer is YES, it does, and it was absolutely magical to find it this   
   afternoon. If you would like to see it yourself then boot up Times of Lore for   
   the Apple II. Let it progress through the initial title screen where the words   
   "Times of Lore" are    
   being etched into a stone tablet and inlaid with the finest HGR-colored gold.    
   Then, wait patiently as the title animates into the doors of a great castle   
   opening up to expose the world that awaits you (and almost certain death).   
   Now, watch the    
   introduction animation scene 31 more times.   
      
   Or if you are like me and demand instant gratification, using the emulator of   
   your choice (or real hardware if that's your jam), pause the game and enter   
   the memory editor. Edit memory to set 1CBB: EA EA. Return to the game and   
   watch as the next (and    
   subsequent) animations will reveal what was hidden for so long. Thank you to   
   Chris Roberts and his team for a great Apple II game and a cool Easter Egg.   
      
   Oh, if this has already been found, then never mind.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)