accousticguitar Posted March 9, 2013 Share Posted March 9, 2013 So in other words you no longer have to go through a castle to get to other castles? If that is the case it is an improvement for randomizing objects since the key for the first castle has a much smaller area to hide in in the former layout. It is much nicer if each castle key can be located anywhere in the kingdom. That makes things more challenging. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Cafeman Posted March 10, 2013 Share Posted March 10, 2013 So in other words you no longer have to go through a castle to get to other castles? If that is the case it is an improvement for randomizing objects since the key for the first castle has a much smaller area to hide in in the former layout. It is much nicer if each castle key can be located anywhere in the kingdom. That makes things more challenging. Yes, you understand it correctly. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
accousticguitar Posted March 10, 2013 Share Posted March 10, 2013 That is fantastic! I'm looking forward to this game even more now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Cafeman Posted March 11, 2013 Share Posted March 11, 2013 (3/10 update: One-Button control now functions. I am thinking this should be the only control scheme, for simplicity's sake. It doesn't take long to get use to holding the button for a moment to DROP, or tapping it to MANIPULATE. ) 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Cafeman Posted March 11, 2013 Share Posted March 11, 2013 That is fantastic! I'm looking forward to this game even more now. You are going to enjoy the changes. I have been making this port with the goal that even somebody who is very familiar and perhaps tired of 5200 Adventure II will find something fresh here. Even I enjoy playing the game now - and I was *so* burned out of "Adventure II" from all the hours I spent desigining/coding/debugging/ play testing it over the years. The more open nature and more randomized hiding of items and secret dots, along with a few new sounds, certainly gives it a fresh coat of paint on XE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Cafeman Posted March 12, 2013 Share Posted March 12, 2013 (edited) (3/11 update: Not too much else to tweak. I finally got down on my list to add the "Adventure Time" statistic to the Game Win screen, and did 2 other little things that bugged me. Next I will test a bunch myself to ensure the hiding rules seem to work (there are a lot of levels) and then on to the final stages of dual bank switching routines (so people can play demos on their RAM cart) and one or two other little things. ) http://cafeman.www9....v/AdvII_XE.html 3/19 update: By the way ... you will never get that low of time , nor will those stats earn you Chalice Master, in the final game. I have cheats turned on , to test the game. Just sayin'.... (_)3 Edited March 19, 2013 by Cafeman 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
accousticguitar Posted March 12, 2013 Share Posted March 12, 2013 This is going to be a great addition to my Atari computer game collection! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+wood_jl Posted March 12, 2013 Share Posted March 12, 2013 (3/11 update: Not too much else to tweak. You, sir, are a wizard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Cafeman Posted March 20, 2013 Share Posted March 20, 2013 (edited) Update: I've been playing the various 22 levels , looking for problems with the item hiding, and looking for any other problems. There are two more little changes I need to make, and then I'll post an emulator-only demo and would like feedback. One of the things testing on my own has revealed - in Very Random mode, there are unsolvable games. I programmed VR mode so a key couldn't be in its own castle. But what if all the keys are in other locked castles! You can't open that first castle to get the first key. Technically, you *could* find a hidden dot and "cheat" by flying into a locked castle during your FLIGHT powerup, if you could get to the castle before it ran out. But I don't like that. So I am putting a control mechanism so that all keys can't be locked up. The other change I'm working on is an extension to something you could do in 5200 Adventure II involving wood planks. Then, while people test the demo, I'll do the final stuff - dual-bank switching schemes; tweaks to the final rankings rules and verbiage; add more sounds; fix any bugs found. Then after that, there should be a more full demo that is playable on RAM carts too. Edited March 20, 2013 by Cafeman 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
accousticguitar Posted March 20, 2013 Share Posted March 20, 2013 The original Adventure had unwinable games but it was not intended to be that way. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
accousticguitar Posted March 23, 2013 Share Posted March 23, 2013 I am so looking forward to this. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Cafeman Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 The other change I'm working on is an extension to something you could do in 5200 Adventure II involving wood planks. Okay, I got this done. The pic illustrates what I was working on - there is a difference here to the "broken islands" screen compared to the 5200 version. I still need to tweak hiding rules a bit more to prevent unwinnable games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
accousticguitar Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 Thanks for all the hard work Cafeman. I am so looking forward to this! :thumbsup: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+wood_jl Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 Music to my eyes, cafeman! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Cafeman Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 Wow. It took me 25 minutes to beat this round of Adventure II! I was playing Game 09 - Vast maze , Intermediate difficulty. Things were very well hidden here - it had selected "Random Hide Rules C" . Ice Key was in Red Castle. Red Key was in hedge maze. Chalice was inside Ice Castle, which (on Vast) is the largest area. I forgot my own mazes and kept going in circles, and then the Troll stole my Chalice and I had to go find it again. Plus I had to search for Gold Key and sword early on . I used the magnet and bridge a lot. I was pleased to find 2 secret dots as I explored - I don't know where the secret dots are in each game variation either, there is so much potential variation in hiding them across the levels now. It wasn't difficult to kill the 3 dragons early on, although I did get eaten by the Green Dragon 3 times, as you can see by Game-Win Stats in the picture. During the prior testing of Game 09 (which I play to test Random Rules C) , I found a bug and fixed it. The problem was that the chalice was nowhere - I had basically forgotten to load the X register in the "Hide Chalice Rules C" bit of code. That is something the eyes never see when you are looking at code - you have to test the game to spot these little bugs. Once I am satisfied I can't see any further problems, I'll release a demo for anybody to play on emulator. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
accousticguitar Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 Very nice! This will be fun to play for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DracIsBack Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 I cannot wait to get this game! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Cafeman Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 (edited) I always wanted to give the "Alternate Icons" their own special abilities, and I've just completed a few of these. To me, "classic Adventure gameplay" is to be the square. But if you want to try something different, you can play as one of the others. If you unlock them. Bat - when you play as the bat, everytime you get a PowerUp (speed, shield), you also get the ability to fly free over the background. But I didn't want the Bat icon to always have this ability - then where would the gameplay be? Blue Knight Helmet and Walking Knight - these guys now have more health than the other icons. Plus, when a dragon bites one of these metallic dudes, there is a 1/32 chance it will hurt itself and flee. This makes up a bit for how clumsy it can be controlling the Walking Knight , especially in tight areas. Crab - he can cross over logs, water, or any background objects - any of them. But it isn't like "free flight" - he has to force his way over, at a slower pace. So be careful you don't get stuck in the middle of the sea and a dragon shows up - you'll get eaten for sure. Edited March 25, 2013 by Cafeman 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DracIsBack Posted March 25, 2013 Share Posted March 25, 2013 Any thoughts on an ETA? Not like we're paying you a gigantic salary to do this or anything, but I can't contain myself enough to resist asking ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Cafeman Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 (edited) Any thoughts on an ETA? Not like we're paying you a gigantic salary to do this or anything, but I can't contain myself enough to resist asking ... Something ought to be posted soon with that information. I realize most of you guys would have been happy if I just ported the 5200 game over - that has been done for a year and a half. But that isn't what I wanted. I am trying to finish all the final tweaks by end of March. The only mandatory things left are changes to the ranking system and the rankings themelves, and also to finalize which sounds and music I'll use. Then there should be a period of testing. Albert and I and others have already started the discussions about packaging and art. So its a fairly safe guess to say "2nd quarter 2013", but I can't guarantee if that'll be April, May, or June. Adventure II 5200 started shipping from the AA store on May 7 (2007). It would be interesting if Adventure II XE launched May 7, 2013 ... has it really been SIX YEARS??! Edited March 26, 2013 by Cafeman 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phonedork Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 At first I would have been ok with a straight port. But now the port has more then exceeded my imagination. I dont mind the wait. It seems the more the wait... the better it becomes. Its too bad you cannot use any of the original pixels. The Silver Dragon in the original Atari 2600 form would have been a nice surprise! But I know you cannot do that. Thanks for all the hard work Cafeman! I look forward to the final product! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shannon Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 Schweet! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+wood_jl Posted March 26, 2013 Share Posted March 26, 2013 It's obvious you're working hard on this. I don't think it matters when it releases! It's going to be great! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtariBrian Posted March 31, 2013 Share Posted March 31, 2013 I am going to have to get a 8 bit now . I like the look of the xe so maybe I will be looking to buy one . Hoping there will be a nice setup like the 5200 version when the cart is released . Those nice glossy maps were really cool along with everything else ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Cafeman Posted April 1, 2013 Share Posted April 1, 2013 Hoping there will be a nice setup like the 5200 version when the cart is released . Those nice glossy maps were really cool along with everything else ! There is an all-new package for Adventure II XE! The artwork and label/manual are new. The original 5200-version maps needed to be adjusted since there is a slight - but pretty important to gameplay - change in the XE version. Status update: Well, I didn't meet my goal of finishing coding / debugging by March 31, but regardless much progress was made in March. Over the past week, I played a bunch of the game, testing and tweaking little things as I find them. All the tweaks needed were caused by the changes to code from the 5200 version - mostly tweaking the new hiding spots. When I defined them, I estimated where the X,Y coordinates of each hiding spot should be , and via testing I've realized a few items end up in a wall or shrubbery, so I had to adjust the exact spot of a few. Right now, I'm working w/Tep392 to get the 'dual bank-switching' thing done. Once that gets done, I'm going to post a demo that I hope many will play and report back feedback. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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