42 replies to this topic

[rmaerz]

Alien Syndrome

Travel to several alien-infested space stations to rescue children. Defeat the end boss before returning to your ship. Pick up a variety of weapons to help you eliminate your foes.

Game Information
Game Name: Alien Syndrome [Set 4, System 16B, Unprotected]
Released By: Sega, 1986
MAME ROMset: AlienSyn
Dip Switches: Lives: 3; Difficulty: Normal; Timer: 150 seconds
Chosen By: bigbee99
ROM Location:
AtariAge Arcade/MAME HSC Record: n/a

Competition ends Sunday, December 18 @ 12PM EST

Leaderboard
1. 405,300 bigbee99
2. 306,500 Cynicaster
3. 293,900 M.A.M.E Offender
4. 116,500 JohnnyBlaze
5.   93,000 patbb
6.   85,700 acelkin
7.   31,800 LarcenTyler  
8.   20,800 roadrunner




Hopper Robo

A cute robot must jump between platforms carrying boxes that he must drop onto a conveyor belt.

Game Information
Game Name: Hopper Robo
Released By: Sega, 1983
MAME ROMset: HoppRobo
Dip Switches: Lives: 3, Bonus Life: 20000 50000
Chosen By: bigbee99
ROM Location:
AtariAge Arcade/MAME HSC Record: n/a

Competition ends Sunday, December 18 @ 12PM EST

Leaderboard
1. 216,800 bigbee99
2. 134,620 M.A.M.E Offender
3.   89,080 mr. toast  
4.   58,940 Cynicaster  
5.   57,720 acelkin  
6.   35,380 patbb  
7.   27,260 roadrunner
8.   23,100 mr. toast  
9.   11,940 LarcenTyler


Season Standings
Calculations through round 14
1. bigbee99 242
2. M.A.M.E Offender 212
3. Cynicaster 208
4. patbb 191
5. mr. toast 124
6. richard stewart 78
7. roadrunner 67
8. Barra 51
9. LarcenTyler 48
10. kojr 39
10. keilbaca 39
12. mightymage 23
13. JohnnyBlaze 18
14. retrorussell 15
15. rmaerz 11
16. NE146 8
17. acelkin 6
18. onmode-ky 5
19. Fres 1

Edited by rmaerz, Mon Dec 19, 2011 9:50 AM.

[bigbee99]

Oh man!  Now I am excited!  I have put a good bit of time in on Alien Syndrome.  You can't use save states with it to study levels.  At least not with .106.  I never thought to try it with a different version when I was playing the crap out of it.  So, I would play each level just to get to the next level so I could walk around in them to find the stuff.  I have some maps I made of the levels I can upload later tonight.  Only have level 1-4 completed though.  Personal best was 444,700.  Which I never sent into TG.  It's still in a folder inside this machine.

Hopper Robo is another great one.  It's one of those games I found while looking at other peoples scores over at everyone's favorite TG.  I tried it out and had the WR beat in 5 mins or so.  Then I really wanted to set a mark for the game so I found myself hooked on it.  After about 1000 rage quits, I hit my new score of 273,920.

http://www.twingalax...00075624387&d=4

Now granted there are only 2 scores submitted for this game over there but I enjoyed learning it.  You can get my inp from there off of their scoreboard.  MARPs scores for the game are much more impressive from what I remember but I have no desire to look them up over there.



Now to find the time to play them both again...

B

[rmaerz]

bigbee99, on Sun Dec 11, 2011 4:29 PM, said:

Now granted there are only 2 scores submitted for this game over there but I enjoyed learning it.  You can get my inp from there off of their scoreboard.  MARPs scores for the game are much more impressive from what I remember but I have no desire to look them up over there.

Well none of this matters because MightyMage is going to put up a score that's 10x what you put up.

I don't like MARP because about 90% of the INPs I've downloaded didn't work or weren't the right game despite having the correct version of MAME installed. And aside from that, I don't want to have to download every version of MAME to view an INP.

[bigbee99]

rmaerz, on Sun Dec 11, 2011 6:09 PM, said:

bigbee99, on Sun Dec 11, 2011 4:29 PM, said:

Now granted there are only 2 scores submitted for this game over there but I enjoyed learning it.  You can get my inp from there off of their scoreboard.  MARPs scores for the game are much more impressive from what I remember but I have no desire to look them up over there.

Well none of this matters because MightyMage is going to put up a score that's 10x what you put up.

I don't like MARP because about 90% of the INPs I've downloaded didn't work or weren't the right game despite having the correct version of MAME installed. And aside from that, I don't want to have to download every version of MAME to view an INP.

He can post whatever score he likes.  It does not mean I will believe them.  I would like to think someone who is basically unknown within the gaming community (at least to me) has the skill set for these games.  Enough so that he can blow 50% of them out of the water.  If they are real, I'd like to see them in data bases other than AA.  If they are not real, what is there to gain by posting the scores on AA with your only proof being a SS?  Just to bug the crap out of people?  I have to admit, I've trolled before.  I'll even go as far to admit that I found it fun and amusing   But the internet is not as anonymous as it once was.  Especially when you use your "real name" or the same screen name over and over.  The tricks catch up to you eventually.

So post a score oh great MM.  Drop a inp or youtube clip if you want people to believe it.

Now back to the event   I'll hop on Robo 1st.  104140

B

[Barra]

Dont know if I'll be able to play these games, having laptop issues.

rmaerz - Are MM's scores going to count? I.e you have put his/hers/its 10million as number 1 for Cosmo Gang, but will he/she/it be awarded the 15pts?

[rmaerz]

Barra, on Mon Dec 12, 2011 5:20 AM, said:

Dont know if I'll be able to play these games, having laptop issues.

rmaerz - Are MM's scores going to count? I.e you have put his/hers/its 10million as number 1 for Cosmo Gang, but will he/she/it be awarded the 15pts?

I will let majority rule on this. I won't update the season standings until a decision has been made. Wednesday at the latest. If I don't get a response then the assumption is made that his scores count.

I want to hear from all the regulars:
bigbee
patbb
roadrunner
LarcenTyler
MAME Offender
Cynicaster
mr. toast

Weigh in: Should MightyMage's scores count? Yes/No

Quote this post with your answer. No explanation required.

[Cynicaster]

rmaerz, on Mon Dec 12, 2011 9:43 AM, said:

I want to hear from all the regulars:
bigbee
patbb
roadrunner
LarcenTyler
MAME Offender
Cynicaster
mr. toast

Weigh in: Should MightyMage's scores count? Yes/No

Quote this post with your answer. No explanation required.

My $0.02.

If you become familiar with a certain game, obviously you have a much stronger appreciation for what constitutes a fair score, a good score, a great score, and an incredible score.  When I first saw some of MM's scores, my knee-jerk reaction was "having played these games myself, some of these scores do not pass the sniff test".  

Then I caught myself, and thought "well that's kind of presumptuous of me to conclude that somebody is cheating just because they outright trounce my best submissions--even if it is by a full order of magnitude."  So, I've kept quiet since.

But since it's been brought up and openly discussed recently, I guess I'm starting to reach the limits of my ability to give the benefit of the doubt.  Here's why.

If I busted my ass at a certain game, achieved a ridiculous score, posted a screenshot here and had people insinuate that I was cheating, I'd probably be a bit annoyed, but I also know I'd savor the opportunity to have people eat their words by posting corroborative evidence (i.e. conclusive proof) of my talents.  And, as has been mentioned, MM has so far not even acknowledged that this discussion is happening, let alone made any attempt whatsoever to hush the skeptics among us.  That's a bit strange.

I feel extremely silly even having this discussion, to be honest.  A bunch of full grown men playing 30 year-old videogames in a friendly competition and we can't even take it for granted that everybody is playing by the rules.  I'm pretty sure no number of instances of having my lunch money stolen from a schoolyard bully would have driven me to cheat in a just-for-fun videogame contest.  I mean, when I played Pepper II and had that glitch happen, I could have posted that ridiculously high score and taken credit for it, but I'm not a complete wanker.

I guess my vote would be to have the scores count, contingent upon MM submitting a video/INP of an exceptional run on at least one of the games that has come into question recently (Do's Castle, Pepper II, Gaylaga, whatever..).

[acelkin]

Never seen this Hopper Robo game before. It helps to know you can 'kill' the bad guys by jumping on them!  I submit a score of 33,280.  Might have to give this one a chance later.

Attached Files

•  hopprobo.png   1.17K   1 downloads

[rmaerz]

Cynicaster, on Mon Dec 12, 2011 11:18 AM, said:

If you become familiar with a certain game, obviously you have a much stronger appreciation for what constitutes a fair score, a good score, a great score, and an incredible score.  When I first saw some of MM's scores, my knee-jerk reaction was "having played these games myself, some of these scores do not pass the sniff test".  

Exactly. If someone told me that they never heard of or played Reactor before and they put up 90,000+ I just don't see that as believable. It's not impossible - just not likely to happen.

Quote

If I busted my ass at a certain game

And from my perspective, that's why it's being discussed.

Now, let me put my HSC Moderator hat on: No rules have been broken by MightyMage. EOL

Now my HSC Player hat: Not everyone approaches the HSC the same way. Some people will play a game once, submit a score and move on - to them this isn't a big deal. Other players, for the fun of it, will slug it out on a title until the HSC round is over. So, in my mind, the HSC should be accommodating for all players no matter their level of interest.

For those people that are competitive and want to measure their abilities against another player, how fun would it be if every week I put up a score that's not reachable by majority of players?

Quote

achieved a ridiculous score, posted a screenshot here and had people insinuate that I was cheating, I'd probably be a bit annoyed, but I also know I'd savor the opportunity to have people eat their words by posting corroborative evidence (i.e. conclusive proof) of my talents.  And, as has been mentioned, MM has so far not even acknowledged that this discussion is happening, let alone made any attempt whatsoever to hush the skeptics among us.  That's a bit strange.

Yep...

I don't want to have this discussion either - it would be much easier to get an INP file (showing the correct initials on the high score table) saying "here I told you so." Since that's not likely to happen, let's not let it fester, take a vote and move on.

[acelkin]

I really need to invest in an arcade stick, the Logitech Dual Action and or keyboard arrows just aren't conducive to many of the MAME games.  Alien Syndrome score 69,300

Attached Files

•  aliensyn.png   8.73K   2 downloads

[bigbee99]

rmaerz, on Mon Dec 12, 2011 9:43 AM, said:

I want to hear from all the regulars:
bigbee
patbb
roadrunner
LarcenTyler
MAME Offender
Cynicaster
mr. toast

Weigh in: Should MightyMage's scores count? Yes/No

Quote this post with your answer. No explanation required.

I hate to kick the guy out but those scores are too amazing not to question.  I know Barra has played Cosmo Gang a good bit with a personal best up around 5M.  I've went head to head with him on games before and he's a force to be reckoned with.  With out something better than a SS, I say NO.  Fess up, show proof, or get off the pot MM.

B

[roadrunner]

rmaerz, on Mon Dec 12, 2011 9:43 AM, said:

Barra, on Mon Dec 12, 2011 5:20 AM, said:

Dont know if I'll be able to play these games, having laptop issues.

rmaerz - Are MM's scores going to count? I.e you have put his/hers/its 10million as number 1 for Cosmo Gang, but will he/she/it be awarded the 15pts?

I will let majority rule on this. I won't update the season standings until a decision has been made. Wednesday at the latest. If I don't get a response then the assumption is made that his scores count.

I want to hear from all the regulars:
bigbee
patbb
roadrunner
LarcenTyler
MAME Offender
Cynicaster
mr. toast

Weigh in: Should MightyMage's scores count? Yes/No

Quote this post with your answer. No explanation required.

I gotta say no too, unless we see some INP's of Mr Dos Castle, Gaylaga...etc.
His scores have been in question for about a year now, it's time we get this thing settled.
I sure there's games he's? good at, we all have games we can do well at,
but to get such high scores for almost every game raises a red flag.

[patbb]

rmaerz, on Mon Dec 12, 2011 9:43 AM, said:

Barra, on Mon Dec 12, 2011 5:20 AM, said:

Dont know if I'll be able to play these games, having laptop issues.

rmaerz - Are MM's scores going to count? I.e you have put his/hers/its 10million as number 1 for Cosmo Gang, but will he/she/it be awarded the 15pts?

I will let majority rule on this. I won't update the season standings until a decision has been made. Wednesday at the latest. If I don't get a response then the assumption is made that his scores count.

I want to hear from all the regulars:
bigbee
patbb
roadrunner
LarcenTyler
MAME Offender
Cynicaster
mr. toast

Weigh in: Should MightyMage's scores count? Yes/No

Quote this post with your answer. No explanation required.

I also just want to see an INP...using Wolfmame 106 if possible.
I was actually surprised that he submitted a score on Cosmo gang after the discussion we had during the Burgertime week.
It looks like he just doesn't read the threat at all.

I had the chance to see some of the best players in the world at Funspot during the last two tournaments and from the scores he submitted he will beat them all !!!
But I guest that it's possible but I need to see something.

[rmaerz]

patbb, on Tue Dec 13, 2011 6:12 AM, said:

I was actually surprised that he submitted a score on Cosmo gang after the discussion we had during the Burgertime week.

Echoing bigbee99, why isn't the score verified on TG? He would make the parade of champions for that one.

[roadrunner]

Alien Syndrome

20,800


Hopper Robo

13,660

I never heard of this one.

Attached Files

•  alie0004.png   5.54K   1 downloads
•  hopp0003.png   1.59K   1 downloads

[mr. toast]

89,080

One of my better games. There must be some type of pattern to get through all this.

It's nice to know I'm a regular now. I feel loved

I think MM should post a pic when requested as hard evidence. Maybe some DIP switch and Cheat mode pics would help too.

In other news, I scored myself some Starcade memorabilia.

Attached Files

•  0000.png   2.91K   5 downloads
•  starcade win 1.JPG   135.98K   7 downloads

[bigbee99]

I made a slight improvment on Hopper Robo.  As pointed out by acelkin, you can kill the enemies by jumping on them.  You can even jump into them.  As long as you are higher than the other robots it will kill them.  Also you get more points if you get all of the boxes in order.  And of course, there are patterns you can learn

122,760



I had a pretty good run on Alien Syndrome.  I was getting nervous that I was going to beat my personal best and I wasn't recording.  So now I am going to be recording, just for personal reasons if nothing else.  There are ways to get bigger points of course.  As you save everyone, their point value increases by 200 points each.  If you die the counter resets back to 200.  After you save 10 guys on one man on one level, they increase by 1000.  The time bonus goes up to 60k.  If you beat a level with 100 or more left on the timer you get the 60k.  99 on the timer gets you 29,000 or so and it goes down from there.  Of course there are paths you can learn to maximize points.  I have attach my old inp so youz guys can take a look at the paths I use.  I had to revisit it myself since it had been a while since I last played it.

405,300

 alienSy405300.jpg   107.8K   2 downloads
 aliensyn444700.zip   32.77K   1 downloads

B

[M.A.M.E Offender]

rmaerz, on Mon Dec 12, 2011 9:43 AM, said:

Barra, on Mon Dec 12, 2011 5:20 AM, said:

Dont know if I'll be able to play these games, having laptop issues.

rmaerz - Are MM's scores going to count? I.e you have put his/hers/its 10million as number 1 for Cosmo Gang, but will he/she/it be awarded the 15pts?

I will let majority rule on this. I won't update the season standings until a decision has been made. Wednesday at the latest. If I don't get a response then the assumption is made that his scores count.

I want to hear from all the regulars:
bigbee
patbb
roadrunner
LarcenTyler
MAME Offender
Cynicaster
mr. toast

Weigh in: Should MightyMage's scores count? Yes/No

Quote this post with your answer. No explanation required.

I vote we see a minimum 2 INP's that contain scores in the vicinity of what he has claimed.  
If we see the INP's, to make it easier on you Rob, then all scores remain in tact and we carry on.
If there is no response by the end of this week, which around here would be Sunday at noon EST, then we will assume he is dodging the issue and his scores will be revoked.

I hope we can get this resolved soon.  Having a player flick the cheat switch on, rack up ridiculous scores, and get even an ounce of credit for it is intolerable.  However, if MM has a "gift to game" and is not cheating, then he has the same right to this High Score Club as any other does.

It is unanimous.  We all want proof.  No proof, no scores.  

Plain and simple.

[rmaerz]

The season standings have been updated.

MightyMage has been online since this HSC week has started. With that, I put a strike-through for his score last week. If he can prove his gaming abilities then he will be awarded the points.

Until INPs are submitted, I am not recording his scores.

Moving on...

[LarcenTyler]

Alien Syndrome: 31,800

Hopper Robo: 11,940

[patbb]

Alien: 93,000
I only played the C64 version of that game until now!
I usually don't like this type of game but I like this one ... probably nostalgie!


Robot: 35,380
Is it possible to kill the enemies by jumping on there head or something?
I think I did something to eliminate one of them but I'm not sure what I've did!!
Edit: Just saw BigBee99 message at #17

Attached Files

•  alie0001.png   9.86K   2 downloads
•  hopp0002.png   1.14K   2 downloads

Edited by patbb, Thu Dec 15, 2011 3:05 PM.

[JohnnyBlaze]

 0005.png   20.42K   1 downloads

116,500

Believe it or not, this is my BEST score on a single credit!

[roadrunner]

Good Hopper tips guys!   


27,260

Attached Files

•  hopp0010.png   1.55K   1 downloads

[rmaerz]

Voting ends for the Holiday Season Craptacular this Sunday at noon EST. We have two ties that need broken in pools III and V.

[Cynicaster]

Can somebody tell me what the point is of those little "buddy" things that follow you around in Alien Syndrome?  I've played about 5 games now and I still have no idea.