186 replies to this topic

[Lynxman]

Hi all,

  I would like to start a Lynx coding contest. The idea is to have people create a brand new game, demo or application.

Here are the rules:

- Start: Now

- End: July 31th 2010.

- Winners will be announced by the end of August, 2010.

- This contest is open to everyone, regardless of past Lynx coding history.

- The use of my FlashCard is not mandatory for developing, but certainly use it if it helps.

- Though I would prefer all entries to be brand new and never-before-seen, if it is something previously released, the submitted version must be improved in some significant way(s).

- The game/application/demo must be able to run on real hardware.

- I will not accept any music/sprites, etc ripped out of existing games/applications/demos. They must be original.

- I will be the judge, so all decisions about the winner(s) will be solely up to me. (for german lawyers: der Rechtsweg ist ausgeschloßen!) All decisions are final. However, I reserve the right to ask others for their opinion(s).

- the winner(s) agree to give me the right to make up to 50 Carts with the winning game/application/demo, if I so choose. I reserve the right to give these carts away for free, or If I sell these carts, monetary compensation will be discussed with the winner(s) prior to any sales.

Once this run is completed, the ownership rights to the game/application/demo reverts back to the creator(s).

  

PRIZES

1st prize: the FlashCard alpha prototype Number 2 - this FlashCard was used by Matshen during the development of Lynxopoly. This Card has the same specifications as the Board 1 FlashCards. It uses the same Firmware. The main difference is the physical size of the card. It is more than twice as long than the other FlashCards. Please see pictures.


2nd - 10th prize(s): Depending on the quality of the entries, there may prizes awarded up to 10th place. These prizes include: Yastuna 1 & 2, Rygar's competition cart, Lynxopoly etc. Decisions as to which prizes each winner receives will be made by me, on a case-by-case basis.




NOTE – I reserve the right to not declare any winner(s). If the quality of the entries is deemed too low, if no entries are considered original enough, etc, no prizes will be awarded.




To join this contest, please send me a PM with a basic description of your intended entry.

I would like to know ahead of time what you plan to create, to avoid any possible duplication of effort(s). I don't want all entrants making the same game. :-)

There will be a list of the entrants posted in this thread, and i will post updates inside this thread as the contest progresses.




The ultimate goal is to promote development on our beloved Lynx system. This way, we all are winners in the end!




Good luck everyone!

  

Kind Regards

Lynxman

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[GroovyBee]

Good luck contestants! Does it matter what language the game is written in? E.g. "C" using CC65 or directly in assembler.

Maybe if you provide some links to tutorials and documentation it will help programmers not familiar with the Lynx hardware get going on their entry quicker.

[Lynxman]

GroovyBee, on Wed Feb 3, 2010 7:51 AM, said:

Good luck contestants! Does it matter what language the game is written in? E.g. "C" using CC65 or directly in assembler.

It should work. The language do mot matter.
But i think assembler is the best solution for 8-Bit computers. With assembler there is no overlay etc pp. fastest code, shortest code...

Quote

Maybe if you provide some links to tutorials and documentation it will help programmers not familiar with the Lynx hardware get going on their entry quicker.

I never coded for the Lynx. Maybe Matashen, Fadest, Karri, Sage etc pp can provide some links.

[matashen]

Lynxman, on Wed Feb 3, 2010 8:47 AM, said:

GroovyBee, on Wed Feb 3, 2010 7:51 AM, said:

Good luck contestants! Does it matter what language the game is written in? E.g. "C" using CC65 or directly in assembler.

It should work. The language do mot matter.
But i think assembler is the best solution for 8-Bit computers. With assembler there is no overlay etc pp. fastest code, shortest code...

Quote

Maybe if you provide some links to tutorials and documentation it will help programmers not familiar with the Lynx hardware get going on their entry quicker.

I never coded for the Lynx. Maybe Matashen, Fadest, Karri, Sage etc pp can provide some links.

you find useful things at www.md-games.de (the website of Matthias Domin)
and the website of Björn spruck björns page

[EricDeLee]

Well... I guess this is the time to start working on that "I want to learn how to code for the lynx" thing I've always talked about.
Sounds really neat!

[rygar]

Great this concour Bernd the first prize really gives urge it is a very beautiful collector's item.

I would try to participate and try to make somthing.

[Shawn Jefferson]

I was thinking of trying to write something... now that I have the flashcard.  The only problem is that as an artist, I really suck.  You can't "borrow" graphics from anywhere, and the prize is somewhat hard to split between a programmer and an artist...

Well, I might give it a try anyway (depending on how much time I have been now and then.)!  Graphics can always be fixed later, I guess.

[matashen]

Shawn Jefferson, on Sat Feb 6, 2010 12:13 AM, said:

I was thinking of trying to write something... now that I have the flashcard.  The only problem is that as an artist, I really suck.  You can't "borrow" graphics from anywhere, and the prize is somewhat hard to split between a programmer and an artist...

Well, I might give it a try anyway (depending on how much time I have been now and then.)!  Graphics can always be fixed later, I guess.

I think graphics are not the important point if the game is great.
On the otherside good graphics and poor game may also have a chance.

Lynxman is the own who decide about the 1st price. He is the judge, so ask him about having a chance with a project.

[EricDeLee]

What about boobs?  Does he like boobs?!  Perhaps I can code something... perhaps the big boobed masked lady takes revenge on strip club.
If he likes boobs.... perhaps I can win!  

[Thorsten Günther]

EricDeLee, on Sat Feb 6, 2010 2:36 PM, said:

What about boobs?  Does he like boobs?!  Perhaps I can code something... perhaps the big boobed masked lady takes revenge on strip club.
If he likes boobs.... perhaps I can win!  

How about Popo Club - the Game?

[Lynxman]

Thorsten Günther, on Sun Feb 7, 2010 3:27 AM, said:

EricDeLee, on Sat Feb 6, 2010 2:36 PM, said:

What about boobs? Does he like boobs?! Perhaps I can code something... perhaps the big boobed masked lady takes revenge on strip club.
If he likes boobs.... perhaps I can win!

How about Popo Club - the Game?

Stop talking, start coding!

[Ninjabba]

Lynxman what great initiative! I will do my best here, but its a shame I'm having 3 projects running at the same time for my studies. I should be able to create something in those months tho

[Atari Smeghead]

I'm not a coder (my programming skills peaked with BASIC, COBOL and RPG back in the 80s ) but as a Lynx fan, this contest is very good news indeed!   In a few months, we might have several new games to play! How cool is that?

Thanks, Lynxman, for doing this for the community. You, sir, are a class act!

Good luck to everyone!
Smeg

[108 Stars]

GroovyBee suggested it, so I just want to say that if anyone interested in the contest wants help with pixels I´d be willing to help. Just give me half of the flashcart if you win

[nonner242]

I will also be available if someone need a pixel artist.
Good luck guys!

[EricDeLee]

108 Stars, on Thu Feb 18, 2010 9:29 AM, said:

GroovyBee suggested it, so I just want to say that if anyone interested in the contest wants help with pixels I´d be willing to help. Just give me half of the flashcart if you win

Do any of you have tips or tricks or a starter guide to something like starting pixel projects?
(in other words... how the hell do I do it?  What are the best programs to use for designing for the Lynx?)

[nonner242]

EricDeLee, on Thu Feb 18, 2010 7:01 PM, said:

108 Stars, on Thu Feb 18, 2010 9:29 AM, said:

GroovyBee suggested it, so I just want to say that if anyone interested in the contest wants help with pixels I´d be willing to help. Just give me half of the flashcart if you win

Do any of you have tips or tricks or a starter guide to something like starting pixel projects?
(in other words... how the hell do I do it?  What are the best programs to use for designing for the Lynx?)

I like more complex programs like Photoshop/Paintshop Pro/and some like simpler MS paint types for the PC.
On my Amiga I choose Dpaint 4, Aegis or Brillance.
There are a slew of other out their too.

[karri]

nonner242, on Thu Feb 18, 2010 7:15 PM, said:

EricDeLee, on Thu Feb 18, 2010 7:01 PM, said:

108 Stars, on Thu Feb 18, 2010 9:29 AM, said:

GroovyBee suggested it, so I just want to say that if anyone interested in the contest wants help with pixels I´d be willing to help. Just give me half of the flashcart if you win

Do any of you have tips or tricks or a starter guide to something like starting pixel projects?
(in other words... how the hell do I do it?  What are the best programs to use for designing for the Lynx?)

I like more complex programs like Photoshop/Paintshop Pro/and some like simpler MS paint types for the PC.
On my Amiga I choose Dpaint 4, Aegis or Brillance.
There are a slew of other out their too.

My personal favourite is Gimp. If I still had an Amiga I would use that paint program from Cloanto (can't remember its name). It was the best program ever with very intuitive single key macros + drag functions.


Most of the time I work in RGB until the final stage when I let Gimp optimize the colors for the Lynx.

Gimp is free and it works on Windows and Linux. Probably Mac too.

--
Karri

[matashen]

EricDeLee, on Thu Feb 18, 2010 7:01 PM, said:

108 Stars, on Thu Feb 18, 2010 9:29 AM, said:

GroovyBee suggested it, so I just want to say that if anyone interested in the contest wants help with pixels I´d be willing to help. Just give me half of the flashcart if you win

Do any of you have tips or tricks or a starter guide to something like starting pixel projects?
(in other words... how the hell do I do it?  What are the best programs to use for designing for the Lynx?)

i use 108Stars as pixel program

Otherwise i use gimp

[dan h]

Hi,
well, for the creation of Lynx or Jag gfx I use the classic Photoshop 7 with a Wacom tablet in indexed mode so you have some control over your colors. I also recommend a tool called "Promotion" from Cosmigo which is excellent for low res painting and sprite animation. Promotion has mighty color pal options and is ideal for 4 or 8 bit images as the tool runs in 8bit mode only.
Promotion is the standard industry pixel tool for GBA development as it truly masters color pals because it breaks down the 8bit masterpal into 16x 4 bit colour pals. Its a little oldschool and takes some time to get familiar with but once you know how to handle the color options you dont wanna miss that tool for any low-res works.
Cheers

[Fadest]

Atari Smeghead, on Sun Feb 7, 2010 9:20 AM, said:

I'm not a coder (my programming skills peaked with BASIC, COBOL and RPG back in the 80s )

RPG is really good, one don't need graphism skill when he codes in RPG
ust to say I started something tonight, don't know what will come from this silly idea, but at least, it should be different from my previous games...

[carmel_andrews]

Lynxman, on Wed Feb 3, 2010 7:40 AM, said:

Hi all,

  I would like to start a Lynx coding contest. The idea is to have people create a brand new game, demo or application.

Here are the rules:

- Start: Now

- End: July 31th 2010.

- Winners will be announced by the end of August, 2010.

- This contest is open to everyone, regardless of past Lynx coding history.

- The use of my FlashCard is not mandatory for developing, but certainly use it if it helps.

- Though I would prefer all entries to be brand new and never-before-seen, if it is something previously released, the submitted version must be improved in some significant way(s).

- The game/application/demo must be able to run on real hardware.

- I will not accept any music/sprites, etc ripped out of existing games/applications/demos. They must be original.

- I will be the judge, so all decisions about the winner(s) will be solely up to me. (for german lawyers: der Rechtsweg ist ausgeschloßen!) All decisions are final. However, I reserve the right to ask others for their opinion(s).

- the winner(s) agree to give me the right to make up to 50 Carts with the winning game/application/demo, if I so choose. I reserve the right to give these carts away for free, or If I sell these carts, monetary compensation will be discussed with the winner(s) prior to any sales.

Once this run is completed, the ownership rights to the game/application/demo reverts back to the creator(s).

  

PRIZES

1st prize: the FlashCard alpha prototype Number 2 - this FlashCard was used by Matshen during the development of Lynxopoly. This Card has the same specifications as the Board 1 FlashCards. It uses the same Firmware. The main difference is the physical size of the card. It is more than twice as long than the other FlashCards. Please see pictures.


2nd - 10th prize(s): Depending on the quality of the entries, there may prizes awarded up to 10th place. These prizes include: Yastuna 1 & 2, Rygar's competition cart, Lynxopoly etc. Decisions as to which prizes each winner receives will be made by me, on a case-by-case basis.




NOTE – I reserve the right to not declare any winner(s). If the quality of the entries is deemed too low, if no entries are considered original enough, etc, no prizes will be awarded.




To join this contest, please send me a PM with a basic description of your intended entry.

I would like to know ahead of time what you plan to create, to avoid any possible duplication of effort(s). I don't want all entrants making the same game. :-)

There will be a list of the entrants posted in this thread, and i will post updates inside this thread as the contest progresses.




The ultimate goal is to promote development on our beloved Lynx system. This way, we all are winners in the end!




Good luck everyone!

  

Kind Regards

Lynxman

Lynxman, hope you get lots of entries

just a suggestion though

As someone here seemed to intimate, some programmers aren't good in the sprite designing or gfx department and conversely some pixel artistes aren't good in the programming or coding department (irrespective/regardless of programming language)

So the suggestion is, that you have 2 competitions, one for the best game engine/game logic etc and one for the best gfx/sprite designs etc, it might foster co-operation betw. programmers and pixel artistes and that will benefit you since you get more and better quality entries

In regards to 'original' gfx/sprite designs etc i think you have to be a bit more flexible, since if you think about it, you can trace practically any games gfx or sprite design to something that appeared previously, so i guess you won't entertain a BBSB/miner 2049'r inspired game or a marble madness inspired game or a turrican inspired game or an elite etc etc inspired game (since these games would essentually be borrowing designs or concepts from the very games that inspired their creation etc (or to be a bit cynical here, you won't entertain a pacman clone, an SI or SR clone or a DK/DK Jnr clone etc)

[matashen]

Hey Coders whats going on,

are you already finished with your projects, or iam the only one who codes for the lynx.

Let me know the progress of your works...


Regards
Matthias

[sage]

matashen, on Thu Jun 24, 2010 1:19 PM, said:

Hey Coders whats going on,

are you already finished with your projects, or iam the only one who codes for the lynx.

Let me know the progress of your works...

.. working ... on ... some projects ... you know

[Lynxman]

Hi all,

please send me your work. Maybe some of you need more time.
I would like to decide it after a short look to your projects.

Kind Regards

Lynxman