"Refraction" – VCS Game and Write-Up

[NoLand]

I just did my first VCS game "Refraction". It's a two players game about a basic duel with a twist (6502 assembly, simple 4K cartridge).

 

The game can be found here (Javatari preview and binaries): http://www.masswerk.at/rc2018/04/refraction/

 

It has been done as part of RetroChallenge 2018/04 over the course of April, which might be of interest here insofar as maintaining a blog or some kind of write-ups on the subject of the project is a basic condition of RetroChallenge. So there's a dedicated blog, where I try to explain, what the VCS is all about and introduce some of the basic concepts:

http://www.masswerk.at/rc2018/04/

 

(I had some unexpected issues with the Battlezone repositioning routine and ended up with my own version and a some peculiar offsets for specific objects – 1px for missiles and the ball, 2 pixels for player sprites –, compare Episode 6. )

 

Finally, I did a small application for testing sound, "Studio2600": http://www.masswerk.at/rc2018/04/studio2600/

(If you're using this as a musical instrument on stage, be sure to post a video! )

 

 

Since this project has been some fun, others may follow. E.g., a Computer Space simulator for the Atari 2600.

(I have done one for the PDP-1 – running at 60 frames per second on a computer introduced in 1959! – and a character based one for the PET 2001. The Atari 2600 deserves a version of its own, for sure!)

 

 

P.S.: I also made a tiny, web-based sprite editor for this (maybe useful): http://www.masswerk.at/rc2018/04/TinySpriteEditor/

Edited May 9, 2018 by NoLand

[fluxit]

Is there a single player option?

[NoLand]

Is there a single player option?

 

Sorry to say so, no.

Quoting the blog, the general idea is about "Not another of the usual video games, but going back to the roots, when video games were about friends and family gathering in front of a TV set in cheerful exaltation. So it would be about two players facing directly in a noble, abstract competition, something about skill but also a bit of the unexpected for excitement."

I guess, a single player version would be rather pointless.

Edited May 9, 2018 by NoLand

[+ZeroPage Homebrew]

Hi NoLand! We'll be playing your game Refraction tomorrow (Friday May 11th) live on Twitch at 7PM PT/10PM ET on ZeroPage Homebrew! Looks like a super fun two player game, looking forward to it!

 

ZeroPage Homebrew Twitch: http://twitch.tv/zeropagehomebrew/

YouTube Show Archive: https://goo.gl/aPKSYy

Edited May 10, 2018 by cimmerian

[NoLand]

Great! Beta testing done live... :-)

I seriously hope, it's fun. May your joysticks never break!