NE146 Posted October 2, 2014 Share Posted October 2, 2014 I think the point is we can assume that the majority of homebrew arcade translations today, with fan and other developer input, long dev cycles, more modern knowledge of how "classics" should and could be translated to old 2600 hardware (vs. at the time wondering how to fit a contemporary modern game into an available home console), compiled knowledge, etc. etc....... are nearly all going to be pretty much bad ass by default anyway Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Albert Posted October 2, 2014 Share Posted October 2, 2014 Good point but some homebrews use simple editor/assembler setups like bitd and intentionally don't take advantage of any modern tech. There are only a few homebrews that take advantage of "modern tech", by which I refer to the Melody board. They are: - Chetiry - Space Rocks - Epic Adventure That's it, as far as games that have currently been released. There are other games in the pipeline that will use the Melody (such as Stay Frosty 2). And several released homebrews use SARA RAM, but since that was available "back in the day", I don't consider that "modern tech". What makes a big difference is the open collaboration of information, fantastic emulators, flash-based carts for faster testing on real hardware, the Stella debugger, and so forth. ..Al Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassGuitari Posted October 2, 2014 Share Posted October 2, 2014 ...And not having to throw the thing together in a matter of months. Homebrewers can take all the time they need. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R.O.T.S Posted October 2, 2014 Share Posted October 2, 2014 (edited) Berzerk and Phoenix are the top direct translations for me , Frogger,Space Invaders and Galaxians next. Warlords on the Atari 2600 actually seems better than the arcade although I have only played the arcade version through emulation of course. Edited October 2, 2014 by R.O.T.S Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noah98 Posted October 2, 2014 Share Posted October 2, 2014 I like the 2600 version of Space Invaders more than the arcade version so that gets my vote! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Noah98 Posted October 2, 2014 Share Posted October 2, 2014 An old gem often overlooked, is Solar Fox. I actually prefer the 2600 version over the arcade/MAME release. The fact that you can't actually shoot in the 2600 version makes me prefer the arcade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
galax Posted October 2, 2014 Share Posted October 2, 2014 Pong (Video Olympics) captured the graphics of the arcade version. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lentzquest Posted October 3, 2014 Share Posted October 3, 2014 For original releases my vote goes to Lock 'n' Chase. I find the aesthetic and sounds of the arcade and other versions very unappealing, but the 2600 version is simply perfect. In fact it's still my favorite maze game for the system. For homebrews I absolutely say Juno First. That's in my top two for the system of all time! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
godzillajoe Posted October 3, 2014 Share Posted October 3, 2014 Warlords is not a port, the arcade game came later Also, no love for Vanguard? Berzerk and Phoenix are the top direct translations for me , Frogger,Space Invaders and Galaxians next. Warlords on the Atari 2600 actually seems better than the arcade although I have only played the arcade version through emulation of course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
R.O.T.S Posted October 3, 2014 Share Posted October 3, 2014 Warlords is not a port, the arcade game came later Also, no love for Vanguard? I had no idea the arcade Warlords came after the vcs , that means the arcade version has even less excuse. You know I had forgotten about Vanguard which is sort of embarrassing as I own an arcade cabaret of it , yeah I recall it being a pretty good port especially with the music although I have not played the Atari version for a few years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moycon Posted October 3, 2014 Share Posted October 3, 2014 The one title that really stands out, thinking back about the time Ms Pac-Man. Seems like prior to that, you just expected the Atari 2600 of any game to suck ass on the 2600. Arcade games like Pac-Man, Popeye, or Donkey Kong weren't necessarily terrible, but at the same time disappointed when "Game Reset" was pushed. Ms Pac-Man was one of the first games I remember thinking was pretty close to the arcade (compared to other games anyways) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VectorGamer Posted October 3, 2014 Share Posted October 3, 2014 The one title that really stands out, thinking back about the time Ms Pac-Man. I actually have more fun playing the VCS port of Ms. Pac-Man than I do playing the more arcade accurate version released for the 7800. I make the comparison because I use my 7800 to play 2600 & 7800 games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+SpiceWare Posted October 3, 2014 Share Posted October 3, 2014 I had no idea the arcade Warlords came after the vcs , that means the arcade version has even less excuse. A conversation with Carla Meninsky After Dodge ’Em, I went straight to Warlords which was on the list as Kings in the Corner break-out game. I would like to set the record straight here—I did the 2600 game before the coin-op game even existed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cynicaster Posted October 3, 2014 Share Posted October 3, 2014 Double Dragon, Rampage, Kung Fu... KIDDING, KIDDING. Seriously, though... Ms. Pac-Man Jr. Pac-Man Space Invaders Popeye Q*Bert Frogger If homebrews are allowed, Lady Bug, Space Rocks, and Juno First are easily the most impressive ports I've ever played on the 2600, by a hefty margin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
godzillajoe Posted October 3, 2014 Share Posted October 3, 2014 The thing that kills Q*bert for me is the jump through the snake trick. Makes it a bit too easy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VectorGamer Posted October 3, 2014 Share Posted October 3, 2014 The thing that kills Q*bert for me is the jump through the snake trick. Makes it a bit too easy. Doesn't 2600 Q*bert only have one enemy on the screen at a time? I honestly don't recall as I don't play it that much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retrogoober Posted October 3, 2014 Share Posted October 3, 2014 The thing that kills Q*bert for me is the jump through the snake trick. Makes it a bit too easy. what is the trick? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
godzillajoe Posted October 3, 2014 Share Posted October 3, 2014 Doesn't 2600 Q*bert only have one enemy on the screen at a time? I honestly don't recall as I don't play it that much. If you set the difficulty to "A" then you get the snake and the red balls. what is the trick? If you time it right, when Coily is about to jump on you, you can jump towards him and you'll pass through each other. Seen here Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
78001987 Posted October 4, 2014 Share Posted October 4, 2014 Kung fu Master isn't bad actually. It makes the 7800 version look feeble. Popeye, Phoenix and Pengo are the most faithful original releases. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
macdlsa Posted October 4, 2014 Share Posted October 4, 2014 Track & Field , certainly ! The only "flaw" is the lack of the coin-operated "easter eggs"... [ CVBS on Philips CRT and S-Video on Samsung LCD ] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianC Posted October 13, 2014 Share Posted October 13, 2014 Starpath Frogger Jr. Pac-Man Crystal Castles Millipede Ms. Pac-Man Gravitar Spy Hunter Tapper Omega Race Moon Patrol Dig Dug Galaxian Space Invaders Berzerk Hacks: Wizard of Wor Hack 'em Ms Hack Omega Race button/joystick hacks Berzerk VE Homebrew: Star Fire Pac-Man 2600 Pac-Man 4k Ladybug Star Castle Arcade Colony 7 Juno First Gunfight Space Rocks Medieval Mayhem Seawolf 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+FujiSkunk Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 Video Olympics, of course. Arcade-accurate Pong and a ton of variations, all in color! I've always said the silver-label era was really the sweet spot for arcade adaptations. Just about every one of those is "decent" or better. Centipede, Ms. Pac-Man, Dig-Dug and Moon Patrol are the best among the earlier titles, while Millipede, Stargate and Crystal Castles are the best among the later titles, and arguably the best arcade adaptations the system saw, period, at least until homebrews came along. Jr. Pac-Man from the red-label era is of course one of the highlights from that era. As for the earlier black-label games, I'll add my votes to Missile Command, Space Invaders and Berzerk being the best. Of course there are actually a lot of adaptations from that era, most of which did a pretty good job recreating the arcade game, from Canyon Bomber and Circus Atari to Night Driver and Dodge 'Em. It's just nobody remembers the originals, and Atari didn't always give proper credit to the original publishers. Even the first boxes of 2600 Space Invaders didn't mention Taito. As part of my web project, I've recently been playing through Activision's later arcade adaptations, that is, Commando, Rampage, Kung Fu Master and Double Dragon. Of course there are the obvious gripes, from the stupidly-hard difficulty of Double Dragon to the very abstract buildings of Rampage, but what disappoints me the most about those variations is how needlessly restricted they are. Every one of those games is darned impressive for what they pulled off, and yet darned frustrating for what more they could have been had the programmers not been hamstrung by Activision's "no flicker" policy. Because of that, enemies in Kung Fu Master attack from only one side at a time, helicopters never swoop down in Rampage, neither players nor enemies can gang up on the other in Double Dragon, and so forth. Among other third-party publishers, I think the best are Frogger and Q*Bert by Parker Bros., Wizard of Wor by CBS, and Tapper and maybe Spy Hunter by Sega. Among hacks, I think the best are PacManPlus's Defender, hacked from Stargate; Nukey Shay's Hack 'Em, a bundle of Pac-Man, Pac-Man Plus and Hangly-Man derived from Pesco; and Thomas Jentzsch's Missile Command TB and Asteroids DC+. Among new homebrews, Lady Bug, Space Rocks and DINTAR816's Pac-Man stand out. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZippyRedPlumber Posted October 14, 2014 Share Posted October 14, 2014 DINTAR816's Mario Bros, Space Rocks, Galaxian & Ms. Pac-Man are good examples. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chuckwalla Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 Ms. Pac Man and Missile Command. Because I suck at all others versions and the gameplay is awesome. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atarian63 Posted October 16, 2014 Share Posted October 16, 2014 Millipede Centipede Asteroids Omega Race River Raid Jr Pacman Home Brews Princess Rescue (aka Super Mario Brothers) Boulder Dash (too bad you cant get it anymore grrr!) Seawolf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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