High Score Club Week 16: Taz

[Ze_ro]

Important note: This weeks competition is over. If you still wish to discuss Taz, then feel free to do so, but no further scores will be accepted. Thanks to everyone for all their contributions! Please join in on the latest High Score Club competition!

 

You're hungry, and you're in a hurry! Quick, eat everything in sight, but keep an eye out for sticks of dynamite! They give a new meaning to the term "heart burn"! This week's game is Atari's Taz!

 

Game Information
Game	Taz
Left Difficulty	N/A
Right Difficulty	N/A
Game Mode	Game 1: Single Player
Chosen By	liquid_sky

 

Post your scores right here in this thread, and I will add them to the list. Remember to play the game with the recommended game mode and difficulty settings as shown above so that your scores will be consistent with everyone elses. The deadline for posting scores will be approximately Sunday, July 25th at midnight (CST). In case you haven't already done so, please read the High Score Club rules. There is other useful information contained in that previous link, including a list of previous High Score Club games!

 

In case you don't have this game, you can find a copy of the ROM at AtariAge's Profile Page for this game. You can also find such things as a typed copy of the manual, reviews, screenshots, and other information there.

 

If you are not a member of the High Score Club, but would like to be, then all you have to do is post a reply saying so, and I'll add you to the list!

 

Next week's game will be chosen by intvgene! Please send me a Private Message letting me know which game (and difficulty settings) you've chosen as soon as possible intvgene!

 

High Scores	Other Info
High Score Club:

• 
  [*]363,500 (the 5th ghost)

[+10]
[*]330,500 (Jeffy Arensmeyer) [+8]
[*]307,500 (keilbaca) [+7]
[*]129,000 (Malc74) [+6]
[*]121,000 (gospeedde) [+5]
[*]77,000 (Robert M) [+4]
[*]76,000 (Numan) [+3]
[*]74,500 (Ze_ro) [+2]
[*]72,100 (Chris++) [+1]
[*]68,000 (Kurushimi)
[*]62,500 (tin)
[*]53,500 (khryssun)
[*]48,500 (Kepone)
[*]48,100 (LarcenTyler)
[*]40,500 (Tsukasa)
[*]35,300 (Shannon)
[*]34,300 (liquid_sky)
[*]14,100 (Gamemaster_ca_2003)
[*]12,900 (sabeen557)
[*]3900 (vb_master)
[*]3100 (Dan Iacovelli)
[*]2100 (dykesr)

• :
  
  • 330,500 (Todd Rogers)
    [*]166,000 (Mike T Ashton)
    [*]154,000 (Brian Gilman)
    • 
      

Best Tips:

• 
  

Score Statistics

• Average Score: 131,855
  [*]Std. Deviation: 47,023
  [*]Total Score: 2,900,800

 

Current Standings

Member List intvgene, InanimateCarbonRod, pmpddytim, Xot, Scooterb23, Dan Iacovelli, LarcenTyler, sku_u, Luigi301, Max-T, adams_ale, gamerz, Christophero Sly, Trooper, Nateo, homerwannabee, lost child, Happy_Dude, video game addict, Spirantho, bobafett07728, mikefrevino, Paul Slocum, fsuinnc, Gamemaster_ca_2003, Robert M, DeV0, Gateway, Mendon, Fretwobbler, PaulEMoz, killersquirel, shining slade, chadtower, gospeedde, stayrunner, Big Player, Swingtown, Chris++, hotpants, hobbles, taxman, Ze_ro, maibock, moycon, somePUNK, Saldo, Stingray, Kepone, xmetalhedx, chrisbid, Kialan, Jeffy Arensmeyer, Keir, ToddRogers, Numan, iguana, LU8, jeepnut24, Albert, Tsukasa, Adrian M, dykesr, EricDeLee, Thomas Jentzsch, The 8th Passenger, the 5th ghost, Bunsen, atari_wizard, jedijeff, davepesc, maximebeauvais, buzzguy, bjk7382, khryssun, HermChase, wiz21mx, karnov, Goochman, NE146, Sora, Malc74, sabeen557, 128bytes, Kurushimi, Fellow Atari Man, liquid_sky   Scoring Points in Taz Action Point Value Eat a Hamburger 50 Eat a Root Beer 100 Eat an Ice Cream Cone 200 Eat a Fudgesicle 300 Eat an Apple Core 400 Eat a Turnip 500 Eat a Tomato 500 Eat a Sundae 500 Surprise? 500 You win bonus lives at: 10,000 points, 30,000, 50,000, 80,000, 110,000, 150,000, and every 40,000 points thereafter. You can have a maximum of 8 lives at a time, although only 4 can be displayed on the screen. Score Rolls? - Yes, after 999,999   Hints and Tips As always, you really should read the manual. What's that? You don't have the manual? Well no problem, because AtariAge has a typed copy of the manual available online right over here. What's that? You're too damn lazy to click that link? Well, here's what it has to say: Don't stay near the edge of the screen. This is where an item first appears and you won't have time to see if it's food or dynamite. When dynamite comes between you and food, wait until the path is clear to move up or down the screen. [*]Remember that you can wait in a single path as long as you like. You won't be penalized, and it may give you more time to plan your strategy. (the manual) Tips: Stay in the middle. You won't get hit by the dynamite coming onto the screen. [*]Be patient. If you follow any tip, let it be this. Its better to wait and survive then to risk it to get those few points that comes back with the next swipe of dynamite/food [*]Precise controls. Hold the joystick a little too long and Taz is all blown up. [*]Once you eat food, the score will stay on that row. As long as the score is on the row, nothing will go on that row, so for that time, that row is safe.   Good luck everyone!   --Zero (keilbaca) Once you hit the Crazed Wave, keep your cool for the first few seconds until your eyes adjust to the speed of the moving objects, in other words, DON'T PANIC! Also, you don't want to pull up or down on the joystick. Instead, TAP the joystick up and down so you can better control your movement up and down. During these fast stages, I find it best to stay within 2 to 3 rows. Don't even worry about the other rows, just focus on the 2 or 3 and in time you will eat enough food points to advance to the next round. Remember to TAP up and down on the joystick! Once you get into the groove of staying withion 3 rows, (I prefer the bottom 3), if a stick of Dynamite appears in the row you are in, move away from it horizontally (you will always move faster) then wait for a safe opening up or down one row to escape it, preferrably into a row with food in it! (the 5th ghost) On the faster levels I try to use either the top or bottom row as a base so that I can only accidentally move too far in one direction, plus I try to time my moves (whenever possible) so that if I do accidentally move too far there isn't anything in the next row to hit. (gospeedde) Being i'm a spaz at times, I just can't be contained in 3 rows. If you can't do it either, this is what you can do on the craze levels. Chomp down on food, then being the score is on the screen, you're safe from that row until the score is gone. Wait until you can make a good sweep say from bottom to top. Wait, and repeat. That's how I got my score. (keilbaca) After the 2nd (or 3rd) Sundae Wave, the speed will once again increase (when your score is roughly a little over 300K.) You can still outrun the Dynamite if one is chasing you but you have to make your escape up or down a little quicker now so keep your cool! At this point you get an extra man every 40K. (the 5th ghost) Because the objects travel left to right/right to left in alternating rows, if you get chased down by the Dynamite, make your escape route in the shape of a rectangle. In other words, if you are in a row and the Dynamite is approching from right to left, move left away from the Dynamite till the row above (or below) is clear, then move up (or down) one row and move right back across the screen, then move back down (or up) one row back where you started. This takes practice and has to be done fairly quickly but once you get the hang of this escape tactic, it should come in very handy! (the 5th ghost) Tips: since the foods just merely begin to repeat)... Food Item Hamburger - 2500 Root Beer - 7500 Ice Cream - 17500 Fudgesicle - 32500 Apple Core - 52500 Turnip - 77500 Tomato - 102500 Sundae - 127500 Hamburger - 152500 Root Beer - 177500 Ice Cream - 202500 Fudgesicle - 227500 Apple Core - 252500 Turnip - 277500 Tomato - 302500 Sundae - 327500 Hamburger - 352500 Root Beer - 377500 ...and so on... [*]At the beginning of the third hamburger wave, your score will be 327500. The game will speed up again, almost like a "Hyper Crazed Wave". It's noticeable, and almost as much a difference as going from normal speed to "Crazed" speed. [*]On the "Hyper Crazed Wave", limit yourself to one or two lanes, and watch for openings to get away. Opportunites are few to come at these speeds, so make as many points as you can before you get to stages where it's difficult to distinguish the food from the dynamite, like root beer and fudgesicles. [*]If you're moving up/down to get a food item and there's a dynamite on the other side of it, let it go. Control of Taz vertically is a bit clunky at times. If someone could check the code, I suspect that there's some "K saving" calculations done inside the joystick input routine that sometimes causes you to overshoot or undershoot your marks. [*]Work your "screen loops" from the very top to the very bottom (and vice versa), while always looking ahead. Since it's difficult and unpredictable to stop Taz on a certain lane, you're guaranteed you'll stop at the top or bottom lanes. [*]Stay Frosty (Jeffy Arensmeyer) [*]the 5th ghost [125] [*]Jeffy Arensmeyer [111] [*]sku_u [85] [*]jedijeff [63] [*]Stingray [48] [*]Ze_ro [43] [*]Chris++ [39] [*]Saldo [28] [*]bobafett07728 [27] [*]stayrunner [24] [*]bjk7382 [24] [*]taxman [23] [*]Shannon [21] [*]NintendoDieScreaming [21] [*]crsdawg [20] [*]homerwannabee [17] [*]The 8th Passenger [17] [*]Robert M [17] [*]Fellow Atari Man [17] [*]Numan [16] [*]Tsukasa [15] [*]Malc74 [15] [*]HermChase [13] [*]NovaXpress [12] [*]Kurushimi [12] [*]Christophero Sly [12] [*]Thomas Jentzsch [9] [*]keilbaca [9] [*]Goochman [7] [*]Keir [7] [*]dykesr [7] [*]khryssun [7] [*]mikeftrevino [7] [*]NE146 [7] [*]EricDeLee [6] [*]Paul Slocum [6] [*]StanJr [5] [*]DeV0 [4] [*]gospeedde [3] [*]tin [3] [*]maibock [2] [*]Nateo [2] [*]Sora [2] [*]LarcenTyler [1] [*]InanimateCarbonRod [0] [*]shining slade [0] [*]Kepone [0] [*]Saikyo [0] [*]Scooterb23 [0] [*]moycon [0] [*]gamerz [0] [*]128bytes [0] [*]Dan Iacovelli [0] [*]video game addict [0] [*]LU8 [0] [*]Gamemaster_ca_2003 [0] [*]fsuinnc [0] [*]iguana [0] [*]davepesc [0] [*]Albert [0] [*]pmpddytim [0] [*]karnov [0] [*]pitfallaimee [0] [*]Happy_Dude [0] [*]Kialan [0] [*]xmetalhedx [0] [*]Adrian M [0] [*]intvgene [0] [*]ScottHuggins [0] [*]jeepnut24 [0] [*]figgler [0] [*]Old_Atarian [0] [*]hobbles [0] [*]Spirantho [0] [*]johnnywc [0] [*]PaulEMoz [0] [*]FireTiger [0] [*]BigFairy321 [0] [*]vb_master [0] [*]atari_wizard [0] [*]sabeen557 [0] [*]lost child [0] [*]AcidTone [0] [*]Bunsen [0] [*]chadtower [0] [*]Big Player [0]

Standings are current as of the beginning of this week, and do NOT include points from this week's game. If you think there has been a mistake in any of the scoring, please contact me.

[khryssun]

Hi Ze_ro,

 

I don't own Taz but but I own Asterix (AFAIK it is the same game with modified graphics). May I play Asterix on my real VCS or I'am obligied to participate playing Taz on an emulator ?

 

I definitely prefer to feel the thrill to play games on the real 2600...

 

Please let me know,

 

Thanks

[Brad2600]

This is my first attempt at Taz.

 

I didn't have much luck on the frenzy stage. I'll be trying to beat this score as much as I can.

 

[Edit - Screen shot yanked for size. Score was 34,500 --Ze_ro]

[keilbaca]

Tips:

 

Stay in the middle. You won't get hit by the dynamite coming onto the screen.

 

Be patient. If you follow any tip, let it be this. Its better to wait and survive then to risk it to get those few points that comes back with the next swipe of dynamite/food

 

Precise controls. Hold the joystick a little too long and Taz is all blown up.

 

Good luck to all.

[keilbaca]

Gah, no edit button

 

One more tip. Once you eat food, the score will stay on that row. As long as the score is on the row, nothing will go on that row, so for that time, that row is safe.

[Shannon]

[sabeen557]

first time ive played

 

12900

[Lauren Tyler]

Well, I'm off to a good start.

[Malc74]

Me too!

Although controlling the game using the keyboard is a complete pain in the backside.

[Tsukasa]

What's going on?!?! In Ze_ro's last post in week fifteen, he said the game was skydiver.

[Ze_ro]

I don't own Taz but but I own Asterix (AFAIK it is the same game with modified graphics). May I play Asterix on my real VCS or I'am obligied to participate playing Taz on an emulator ?

I thought about this too... can anyone confirm that the only differences between the two games are the graphics? That is' date=' all the scoring, speed, and so forth are the same? If so, then I suppose it's alright.

 

What's going on?!?! In Ze_ro's last post in week fifteen' date=' he said the game was skydiver.[/quote']

Oh, that was just a joke... nobody likes Skydiver

 

--Zero

[Malc74]

Had another couple of tries and boosted my score to 85500.

[Brad2600]

My latest attempt. The Frenzy wave is still a bitch.

[Tsukasa]

I don't own Taz but but I own Asterix (AFAIK it is the same game with modified graphics). May I play Asterix on my real VCS or I'am obligied to participate playing Taz on an emulator ?

I thought about this too... can anyone confirm that the only differences between the two games are the graphics? That is' date=' all the scoring, speed, and so forth are the same? If so, then I suppose it's alright.

--Zero[/quote']

 

According to atariprotos.com, the graphics were the only thing changed....

[ToddRogers]

Greetings all

I forgot how tricky this game can be so far im at 277,100 im not sure yet if ill break my record of not but ill keep trying thru the week.

 

Todd Mr Activision Rogers

[keilbaca]

Gah... i got to go to work. Anyone finding this game a bit uneven on the controls? like up one time won't move you up, but the next time it takes you up two. Oh well. I'm off to work, here's my latest score, a nice even 64,000.

[Dan Iacovelli]

another game I have use the emulator on.

[Dan Iacovelli]

my first score (as small as it may be):

3100

[Tsukasa]

40,500

[khryssun]

I don't own Taz but but I own Asterix (AFAIK it is the same game with modified graphics). May I play Asterix on my real VCS or I'am obligied to participate playing Taz on an emulator ?

I thought about this too... can anyone confirm that the only differences between the two games are the graphics? That is' date=' all the scoring, speed, and so forth are the same? If so, then I suppose it's alright.

--Zero[/quote']

 

According to atariprotos.com, the graphics were the only thing changed....

 

Thanks !!! indeed it's said :

"Since Taz was based of a popular American cartoon, Atari thought that overseas players might not know who Taz was. So Taz was changed to Asterix for European audiences. Asterix is a French cartoon character who was very popular over in Europe and Atari felt that European players could identify with him better. The game is exactly except for the graphics which were changed to match the new cartoon license. "

 

So if everybody is agree I'll play Asterix on my VCS. If don't, please let me know.

 

Thanks all and good game

 

Chris

[GrizzLee]

Touchy subject.

 

PAL TVs scan at slower rate. PAL games alsways seem to play at a slower rate than NTSC. Do PAL Gamers have an advantage?

 

Just some thoughts.

 

-Lee

[khryssun]

Touchy subject.

 

PAL TVs scan at slower rate. PAL games alsways seem to play at a slower rate than NTSC. Do PAL Gamers have an advantage?

 

Just some thoughts.

 

-Lee

 

Pertinent suggestion

 

So, I just downloaded both roms and tried them with the last version of stella : it seems the programmers have made somes modification to the timing code because asterix run faster than taz and makes the game harder !!!

 

have a try and you'll see the difference is significant.

 

As I'am not an expert gamer and I don't want to be penalized I'll play Taz.

 

Thanks Lee

 

So

[keilbaca]

You tried the ROM, right? Remember how you said about PAL games running slower? Games run automatically in NTSC... so if Asterix is PAL, then it would run faster. Force PAL on Asterix and see what happens.

[gospeedde]

42500, I love this game.

[Ze_ro]

My first real attempt: 44,500.

 

--Zero