Game 2 Unit 6 of 6 1 hr learning time

Ask Again

Right now the Oracle answers once and stops. Close the loop — clear the screen and GOTO back to the question — and it becomes something you consult, not something you run. Your finished Oracle.

100% of Oracle

There's one thing between this and a real fortune-teller: it answers once, then drops you back at READY.. A fortune-teller you keep asking. So close the loop — after the answer, clear the screen and go back to the question.

10 PRINT CHR$(147)
20 DIM A$(8)
30 A$(1)="IT IS CERTAIN"
40 A$(2)="THE SIGNS POINT TO YES"
50 A$(3)="WITHOUT DOUBT"
60 A$(4)="ASK AGAIN LATER"
70 A$(5)="CANNOT FORESEE IT NOW"
80 A$(6)="DO NOT COUNT ON IT"
90 A$(7)="MY REPLY IS NO"
100 A$(8)="OUTLOOK NOT SO GOOD"
110 POKE 54296,15
120 PRINT CHR$(147)
130 INPUT "SPEAK, MORTAL";Q$
140 R=INT(RND(1)*8)+1
150 PRINT
160 GOSUB 300
170 CO=5
180 IF R>=4 AND R<=5 THEN CO=7
190 IF R>=6 THEN CO=2
200 POKE 53280,CO:POKE 646,CO
210 PRINT A$(R)
220 POKE 646,14
230 FOR T=1 TO 1500:NEXT T
240 GOTO 120
300 POKE 54273,20:POKE 54272,0
310 POKE 54277,0:POKE 54278,240
320 POKE 54276,17
330 FOR T=1 TO 800:NEXT T
340 POKE 54276,16
350 RETURN
A C64 screen with a green border, a second consultation: WILL I BE RICH answered IT IS CERTAIN in green.
The loop in action — a second question, a fresh answer, no READY in sight. The Oracle is something you consult now, not something you run.

The new lines are at the bottom. After the answer prints, line 230 holds it on screen for a moment (FOR T=1 TO 1500:NEXT — long enough to read), then line 240, GOTO 120, jumps back up to clear the screen and ask again. The setup at the top — the DIM and the answers — runs once; the loop goes back to line 120, after the array is built, so it never tries to DIM twice.

That single GOTO is the difference between a program and a toy. One sitting now holds as many questions as the player wants — ask, wait, read, ask again — the ceremony resetting each time.

That's Oracle. A question taken with INPUT, an answer chosen from an array by RND, a pause that builds suspense, a mood in colour, and a loop that never ends. The machine makes a decision, and you never know what it will be.

Try this

  • Pass it round. Hand the keyboard to someone and watch them ask it something real. The funny answers and the unlucky ones are why they keep going.
  • A way out. Add a check after INPUT — IF Q$="BYE" THEN END — so the player can dismiss the Oracle politely.

What's next

You've built a program that decides. Next in Volume 1 comes Reflex — the machine starts measuring, as you meet the C64's clock and learn to time the player to the jiffy.