Ze_ro Posted September 6, 2005 Share Posted September 6, 2005 Important note: This weeks competition is over. If you still wish to discuss Frankenstein's Monster, 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! Hit as many falling, fast-moving targets as you can. Move your laser base to avoid being hit yourself. Keep shooting as long as your bases last, and try for a great Peak Score! Game Information Game Name: Astroblast Released By: M Network, 1982 Left Difficulty: Your Choice (B/Novice is for manual fire, A/Expert engages autofire) Right Difficulty: A / Expert - Accelerated Game Play Game Mode: Default Chosen By: shadow460 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 Tuesday, Sept 6th at 1:30 AM (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! As before, next week's game will be chosen by the next person in the member list, which happens to be LarcenTyler! Please send me a private message with your choice of game for next week! 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 score for this week's game, and I'll add you to the list! Current High Scores 999,990 (SpiceWare) [+11] 331,650 (shadow460) [+10] 131,200 (Recycled) [+9] 56,140 (Numan) [+8] 26,603 (keilbaca) [+7] 23,370 (the 5th ghost) [+6] 13,500 (brendano) [+5] 9245 (neotokeo2001) [+4] 5410 (scogey) [+3] 5255 (Keir) [+2] 4100 (arlo) [+1] 3550 (Omegamatrix) [+1] 2680 (mitsubachi) [+1] 2450 (supercat) [+1] 2270 (Goochman) [+1]2270 (khryssun) [+1] 2120 (LarcenTyler) [+1] 1650 (vdub_bobby) [+1] 1370 (durden26) [+1] 1020 (Mad Scientist) [+1] Best Tips shadow460 [+2] Bounties and Challenges Max The Score - Score 999,990 points to get 2 bonus points. (SpiceWare [+2]) TwinGalaxies Top 3 999,990 (Todd Rogers) 999,990 (Ron Corcoran) 999,990 (Stephen R Riesenberger) Current Standings Coming Soon Member List LarcenTyler, 128bytes, Goochman, mikeftrevino, StanJr, Osbo, Numan, vdub_bobby, Dones, Gamemaster_ca_2003, awsomo3000, Voch, Stingray, scogey, Bubbledragon, video game addict, pitfallaimee, Blackjack, racer raul, SpiceWare, Robert M, Lord Helmet, Lord Thag, Mad Scientist, Dan Iacovelli, iguana, Luigi301, Gateway, Damon Plus, gospeedde, Kepone, internetotaku, panda_racer, KaeruYojimbo, cyberneticimplant, bjk7382, davepesc, neotokeo2001, xeex, bmlbytes, Omegamatrix, the 5th ghost, Xebec's Demise, khryssun, vgcollector666, chadtower, moycon, Malc74, shadow460, Atarifever, Keir, supercat, FireTiger, Philflound, Fellow Atari Man, keilbaca, brendano, Cybergoth, durden26, sku_u, mitsubachi Scoring Points in Astroblast Coming Soon Hints and Tips As always, you really should read the manual. What's that? You don't have the manual? Well, AtariAge happens to have a typed version of it online for your reading pleasure. Here are the tips the manual provides: - Whenever you have a choice between big and small rocks, shoot at the small ones. - Don't shoot rocks very close to you - the explosion can blow up your base. - Remember: if any spinners land, you lose a base. Shoot at them as soon as they appear. - Don't try to run away from pulsars and UFOs.. Get directly underneath them fast - then shoot! If you suck at this game like I do, try avoiding the large rocks alltogether. I found that I would often shoot a large rock and then miss both the small ones it turned into, for a net loss of 50 points (50 - 2 x 50). If I had just let the big one go I only would have lost 25 points. My tip for those who struggle with this game is to shoot as many rocks as possible and not to be afraid to die. I've maxed this one out many times. I'll have to see if I have a chance to do so sometime this week. OK folks, it's time to talk shop.Rocks: It's been posted that you shouldn't shoot a large rock unless you can wipe out the two smaller ones it forms. Antoher reason to avoid shooting blindly at large rocks is that the two smaller ones could trap you into certain death from a different object. Try to track one of the smaller rocks with your paddle and keep blasting. Spinners: There are two types--those that fall freely and those that fall in a clump of rocks. Free falling ones are self explanatory. If one falls in a clump of stone, you'll need to zip under the clump and attempt to kill the spinner. NEVER let a slow moving rock formation land. If you do, a spinner will fall quickly from the opposite side of it where you can't target it without dying anyway. If you can't stop a spinner, just keep on wiping out other tagets 'til it lands and you die. Guided Missiles: Sit still and let these home in for a second. They will zig zag toward you, so you'll need to jitter the paddle a bit ti aim a shot on them. Once they start moving downward to you, blast them. If you can't do this, then move away instead. Remember that you DON'T lose points for these things hitting the ground. The UFO: Watch for the rocks to stop appearing. When this happens, a UFO will appear. Blast the final few stones, then move to one side or the other. If the UFO appears on the opposite side of the screen, slip between its bombs (you can destroy them if you need to) and track just ahead of it. If it appears on the same side, just start tracking. Either way, you'll teach it a lesson that it will soon forget. Finally, there are just times when the action gets too tough. That's when you switch from Astroblast mode to Night Driver mode and simply steer around everything you can until you get a break. My tip - Use a real paddle. I just tried playing with Stella and got 17,800 using a paddle(the range is different than on the VCS, will take a bit to get used to). In other words, if you're using an emulator it would be to your advantage to purchase a Stelladaptor before the next paddle game comes up on the HSC. Ok - there is a glitch around 100K. I imagine it happens around every 100K as I noticed something at 500K. at 100K I had 33 bases. I purposely killed a few to get my score under 100K. By the time I was back over 100K I had 62 bases! I did it again and got the bases to 99. They max at 99 - I feel silly now for purposely dieing yesterday the couple times I got in the 90s. Good luck everyone! --Ze_ro Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+SpiceWare Posted September 6, 2005 Share Posted September 6, 2005 Hmm - this game supports both the joystick and the paddle. Is the choice up to us? The instructions say "The paddle moves the base faster, and we recommend it for a better game. " Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Omegamatrix Posted September 6, 2005 Share Posted September 6, 2005 Damn! I was hoping no one would choose this game until I got my turn. Oh well I'll just have to enjoy it know. IMO the only way to really play this game is with the paddles. The joystick just doesn't move your base fast enough. We should be allowed to use both though, because some people don't have a good working set of paddles readily available. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Goochman Posted September 6, 2005 Share Posted September 6, 2005 1605 - I am missing something on how to score on this game........... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pacmanfevr76 Posted September 6, 2005 Share Posted September 6, 2005 Isn't it kind of of hard to get the bonus if the points stop at 999,990? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
khryssun Posted September 6, 2005 Share Posted September 6, 2005 1,120 Is this week's game a masochist experience ? I think I have to read the doc about scoring... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
khryssun Posted September 6, 2005 Share Posted September 6, 2005 I read the doc... ... well, another game with dec score features Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shadow460 Posted September 6, 2005 Share Posted September 6, 2005 (edited) I think it should be played with the paddles if you've got some. 23670 so far, but I had to give u the last few bases so I couls post this and scoot off to work. I will have six figures before the week's out. Edited September 6, 2005 by shadow460 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keir Posted September 6, 2005 Share Posted September 6, 2005 If you suck at this game like I do, try avoiding the large rocks alltogether. I found that I would often shoot a large rock and then miss both the small ones it turned into, for a net loss of 50 points (50 - 2 x 50). If I had just let the big one go I only would have lost 25 points. My high score: 5,255 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Omegamatrix Posted September 6, 2005 Share Posted September 6, 2005 (edited) Yeaaaahh!!! I love this game. Ze_ro you got the switches backwards. Switch B controls the accelerated/normal mode and switch A toggles between manual and autofire. I never even knew this game had an expert mode until this week either. The expert mode has a ufo that goes across the top of the screen dropping bombs on you that the normal mode doesn't (unless it's in the higher stages). I played three quick games and for a first post got 3,550 . Edited September 6, 2005 by Omegamatrix Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sku_u Posted September 6, 2005 Share Posted September 6, 2005 My tip for those who struggle with this game is to shoot as many rocks as possible and not to be afraid to die. I've maxed this one out many times. I'll have to see if I have a chance to do so sometime this week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keilbaca Posted September 6, 2005 Share Posted September 6, 2005 My tip for those who struggle with this game is to shoot as many rocks as possible and not to be afraid to die. I've maxed this one out many times. I'll have to see if I have a chance to do so sometime this week. 926284[/snapback] How long does it take to max out? And I'm sure the Bounty will count when you max it at 999,990. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shadow460 Posted September 7, 2005 Share Posted September 7, 2005 (edited) 161600. I kinda gave up at 125000. The UFO normally appears at 20,000 and up. Expert difficulty begins at 50,000. I'd played for years before I ever saw the UFO. Notice that the screen clears right before the UFO comes up, so when the rocks quit falling, be ready to shoot a UFO down. Edited September 7, 2005 by shadow460 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
durden26 Posted September 7, 2005 Share Posted September 7, 2005 5560. Is there a reason z26 keeps crashing all the time? I had 5 lives left. Poo! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keilbaca Posted September 7, 2005 Share Posted September 7, 2005 5560. Is there a reason z26 keeps crashing all the time? I had 5 lives left. Poo! 926559[/snapback] Try StellaX. It works better IMO, but the sound emulation lacks. At least it works right. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
durden26 Posted September 7, 2005 Share Posted September 7, 2005 I changed to the proper difficulty and got 1370. That's way less fun! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sku_u Posted September 7, 2005 Share Posted September 7, 2005 My tip for those who struggle with this game is to shoot as many rocks as possible and not to be afraid to die. I've maxed this one out many times. I'll have to see if I have a chance to do so sometime this week. 926284[/snapback] How long does it take to max out? And I'm sure the Bounty will count when you max it at 999,990. 926327[/snapback] It's been a long time (something like 20 years), but from what I remember, it takes about 90 minutes and the score maxes out, not flip. Of course my memory of 20 years ago is a bit clouded, so I could be mistaken. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keilbaca Posted September 7, 2005 Share Posted September 7, 2005 This is like the 2nd time ever playing this game. 12805 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brendano Posted September 7, 2005 Share Posted September 7, 2005 I'm glad I just recently refurbished my paddles because this game is extremly crazy go nuts on expert. My score is 3525. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lauren Tyler Posted September 8, 2005 Share Posted September 8, 2005 I have no idea why my screenshot didn't come out, but I can say my first score is 1800. And I can also say that playing on Expert mode... THIS IS INSANE!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+SpiceWare Posted September 8, 2005 Share Posted September 8, 2005 8655 with right difficulty = A for accelerated speed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
neotokeo2001 Posted September 8, 2005 Share Posted September 8, 2005 (edited) I was never very good at this one. If it looks weird, Thats because I did a vector hack of this one a long time ago. I think it is easier on the eyes with vectors and no mountains. The only changes are to the graphics and the screen always stays black during the game. Astroblast Vector BIN: Astroblast_Vector.zip Edited to add BIN Edited September 8, 2005 by neotokeo2001 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ze_ro Posted September 8, 2005 Author Share Posted September 8, 2005 Hmm - this game supports both the joystick and the paddle. Is the choice up to us? The instructions say "The paddle moves the base faster, and we recommend it for a better game. " That's right, the choice is yours. I think anyone using the joystick rather than a good set of paddles is probably at a disadvantage, but if that's all you have, then be my guest. Isn't it kind of of hard to get the bonus if the points stop at 999,990? Fixed. --Zero Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brendano Posted September 8, 2005 Share Posted September 8, 2005 13500 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mitsubachi Posted September 8, 2005 Share Posted September 8, 2005 2680 is my best so far. This is pretty addictive. I'll be trying some more before the end of the week. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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