cd-w Posted May 14, 2005 Share Posted May 14, 2005 (edited) I have attached a copy of my third 2600 1K minigame to this message. It is not quite finished yet, but I though it would be good to get some feedback on the gameplay and general concept. Unlike my previous minigames, this one is an attempt to do something more original. The aim of the game is to steer your motorcycle over the terrain while avoiding the pursuing helicopter. The controls are Left (Brake), Right (Accelerate), and Fire (Jump). You can jump higher by holding down the fire button. I have attached a screenshot below: The cool Helicopter and Motorcycle sprites were created by the fantastic forum member jussts. The crap explosion effect was my own creation (and will be improved later). Both NTSC and PAL versions are included in the archive (if unsure, you probably want the NTSC one). The full source code is also included as usual. Anyway, let me know what you think of the game, and if you find any bugs. Also, if you have any suggestions then I will be happy to hear them! Chris P.S. The latest version can now be found here. nightrider01.zip Edited May 20, 2005 by cd-w Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Jentzsch Posted May 14, 2005 Share Posted May 14, 2005 Anyway, let me know what you think of the game, and if you find any bugs. Also, if you have any suggestions then I will be happy to hear them! It plays a bit like Moon Patrol, but still very nice. Suggestions: - IMO the acceleration and brake are reacting much to hefty. - The helicopter sould always be faster than the Motorcycle and patrol the sky. - How about combining two sprites for the helicopter? - How about a nice shadow effect for the Motorcycle? BTW: Can you reach the upper plattform? If not, then you should use a different color there, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cd-w Posted May 14, 2005 Author Share Posted May 14, 2005 Hi Thomas, Thanks for the quick feedback (the game would not have been possible without your excellent SwitchDraw and High Score routines!). Can I ask you to clarify a few of your suggestions? IMO the acceleration and brake are reacting much to hefty. Do you mean that they react too fast? There is a delay factor in the code that can be increased, but I found it difficult to dodge the missiles this way. Ideally this would be done properly with intertia, but I couldn't find the space for it (if you have any suggestions for making the code tighter then I will be happy to hear them). The helicopter sould always be faster than the Motorcycle and patrol the sky. I will do this in the next version. I was planning to have several levels of difficulty where the missile frequency and helicopter speed increase over time. How about combining two sprites for the helicopter? Do you mean combine the sprite data as it is largely the same for both frames, or making the helicopter wider using two sprites (as in your Cave 1K game)? How about a nice shadow effect for the Motorcycle? Yes, I will ask jussts if this is possible. BTW: Can you reach the upper plattform? If not, then you should use a different color there Yes, it is possible to reach the upper platform. Thanks, Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rom Hunter Posted May 14, 2005 Share Posted May 14, 2005 (edited) Promising, Chris! The timing of holding and releasing the jump button in the NTSC version gets frustrating, because the motorcycle is jumping up too fast. The PAL version plays smoothly all the way. Tip: How about letting the cyclist duck by pressing the joystick down? Good luck! BTW: I like the funny fact that you're still able to jump while you're already exploded. Edited May 15, 2005 by Rom Hunter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+batari Posted May 14, 2005 Share Posted May 14, 2005 Very cool! I like the sounds - The explosion reminds me of Air-Sea Battle. As far as changes go, it seems that you get the same points for distance no matter how fast you go - I think it would be better to give more points per distance if you are going faster to encourage higher speeds and higher difficulty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandmountainslim Posted May 15, 2005 Share Posted May 15, 2005 (edited) NightRider?? Damn, you tricked me!! I was thinking "Knight Rider" Ever thought of making this game about Fonzie Edited May 15, 2005 by sandmountainslim Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Jentzsch Posted May 15, 2005 Share Posted May 15, 2005 Do you mean that they react too fast? There is a delay factor in the code that can be increased, but I found it difficult to dodge the missiles this way. Ideally this would be done properly with intertia, but I couldn't find the space for it (if you have any suggestions for making the code tighter then I will be happy to hear them). I'll have a look at the code. Do you mean combine the sprite data as it is largely the same for both frames, or making the helicopter wider using two sprites (as in your Cave 1K game)? Something like that, yes. Yes, it is possible to reach the upper platform. Then you might want to use color gradients (if you have enough CPU time), to make the platforms looks a bit less blocky. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Jentzsch Posted May 15, 2005 Share Posted May 15, 2005 BTW: CF is not a perfect value for random numbers. Only these values generate complete 255 bytes sequences: 8E, 95, 96, A6, AF, B1, B2, B4, B8, C3, C6, D4, E1, E7, F3, FA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Jentzsch Posted May 15, 2005 Share Posted May 15, 2005 Instead of using FineTune you can use: eor #$07 asl asl asl asl And you all 16 bit maths (including BCD), you could use a subroutine like this: Add16BCD: sed Add16: clc adc $00,x sta $00,x tya adc $01,x sta $01,x cld rts This code should be useful for adding inertia too. If Xposition does the inx, you can save another byte. For the score pointer setup code, you should have a look at my Cave1K or Splatform 2600 code. This might save one or two bytes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cd-w Posted May 15, 2005 Author Share Posted May 15, 2005 BTW: CF is not a perfect value for random numbers. Only these values generate complete 255 bytes sequences: 8E, 95, 96, A6, AF, B1, B2, B4, B8, C3, C6, D4, E1, E7, F3, FA 855526[/snapback] OK, I will try these other values and see how they appear. I got the $CF value from this page: http://members.lycos.co.uk/leeedavison/6502/code/prng.html Thanks for your other suggestions also. Unfortunately I don't have any spare cycles in the kernel for a colour gradient without moving to a two-line kernel. Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Jentzsch Posted May 15, 2005 Share Posted May 15, 2005 OK, I will try these other values and see how they appear. I got the $CF value from this page:http://members.lycos.co.uk/leeedavison/6502/code/prng.html Don't worry, my fault. I missed that you are using ASL and not LSR, like I do. I got my info from here: http://www.ece.cmu.edu/~koopman/lfsr/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gambler172 Posted May 15, 2005 Share Posted May 15, 2005 I have attached a copy of my third 2600 1K minigame to this message. It is not quite finished yet, but I though it would be good to get some feedback on the gameplay and general concept. Unlike my previous minigames, this one is an attempt to do something more original. The aim of the game is to steer your motorcycle over the terrain while avoiding the pursuing helicopter. The controls are Left (Brake), Right (Accelerate), and Fire (Jump). You can jump higher by holding down the fire button. I have attached a screenshot below: The cool Helicopter and Motorcycle sprites were created by the fantastic forum member jussts. The crap explosion effect was my own creation (and will be improved later). Both NTSC and PAL versions are included in the archive (if unsure, you probably want the NTSC one). The full source code is also included as usual. Anyway, let me know what you think of the game, and if you find any bugs. Also, if you have any suggestions then I will be happy to hear them! Chris 855267[/snapback] Hi Chris nice game greetings Gambler172 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cd-w Posted May 15, 2005 Author Share Posted May 15, 2005 Very cool! I like the sounds - The explosion reminds me of Air-Sea Battle. As far as changes go, it seems that you get the same points for distance no matter how fast you go - I think it would be better to give more points per distance if you are going faster to encourage higher speeds and higher difficulty. 855326[/snapback] Thanks for the feedback, I will make this change in the next version. Hass anyone managed to get more than 2000 points yet (I haven't)! NightRider?? Damn, you tricked me!! I was thinking "Knight Rider" Ever thought of making this game about Fonzie 855356[/snapback] Yes, I did think of it after reading the Fonz thread. However, I don't remember any episode where he was chased by a Helicopter! Perhaps a shark instead Promising, Chris!The timing of holding and releasing the jump button in the NTSC version gets frustrating, because the motorcycle is jumping up too fast. The PAL version plays smoothly all the way. Tip: How about letting the cyclist duck by pressing the joystick down? BTW: I like the funny fact that you're still able to jump while you're already exploded. Good luck! 855309[/snapback] Thanks for the feedback - I think the jumping problems could be solved by using gravity, rather than a fixed increment, but I haven't figured out how to code this properly yet. I have spent hours trying to get the controls to feel right, but I see that there is still some work to do! I'm not sure what the benifit of allowing the cyclist to duck would be? I did think about using the down direction to make you land faster after a jump. The jumping explosion is a space-saving feature - you can also move the helicopter with right/left after you die! Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+batari Posted May 15, 2005 Share Posted May 15, 2005 Unfortunately I don't have any spare cycles in the kernel for a colour gradient without moving to a two-line kernel. 855546[/snapback] It seems to me that this can be optimized: DrawTerrain ; Draw Missile tya ; [2] + 2 lsr ; [4] + 2 cmp MISSY ; [6] + 3 php ; [9] + 3 It looks like you are comparing MISSY with Y/2, but it seems to me that you could easily keep a copy of MISSY*2 somewhere and you wouldn't need the tya,lsr in the middle of the kernel. This doesn't give you much, but it does give enough to replace these two instructions with sty.w COLUPF which will give some gradient effect. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cd-w Posted May 15, 2005 Author Share Posted May 15, 2005 It seems to me that this can be optimized: DrawTerrain ; Draw Missile tya ; [2] + 2 lsr ; [4] + 2 cmp MISSY; [6] + 3 php ; [9] + 3 It looks like you are comparing MISSY with Y/2, but it seems to me that you could easily keep a copy of MISSY*2 somewhere and you wouldn't need the tya,lsr in the middle of the kernel. This doesn't give you much, but it does give enough to replace these two instructions with sty.w COLUPF which will give some gradient effect. 855572[/snapback] Unfortunately, I don't think so. The lsr is used to make the missile appear on two scanlines in succession, while the optimisation would only make it apper on a single scanline and this would be too small. The /2 value is also used below to calculate the PF display line (cmp #PFKERN), so it can't esily be removed. Thanks anyway! Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rom Hunter Posted May 15, 2005 Share Posted May 15, 2005 (edited) I'm not sure what the benifit of allowing the cyclist to duck would be? To allow his head to stay on his body when entering a corridor that is too low. Play this game to know what I mean: http://www.gb64.com/game.php?id=696&d=18&h=0 Keep up the good work! Edited May 15, 2005 by Rom Hunter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vdub_bobby Posted May 16, 2005 Share Posted May 16, 2005 Excellent game! Reminds me of this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cd-w Posted May 16, 2005 Author Share Posted May 16, 2005 Excellent game! Reminds me of this. 856156[/snapback] Oops, it does look very similar Purely coincidence though as I hadn't played this before! I guess there are only so many ways that you can do sideways scrolling using PF graphics. Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keilbaca Posted May 16, 2005 Share Posted May 16, 2005 But, don't you know, you already made it and its already on ebay! http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewI...8190283834&rd=1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vdub_bobby Posted May 16, 2005 Share Posted May 16, 2005 Excellent game! Reminds me of this. 856156[/snapback] Oops, it does look very similar Purely coincidence though as I hadn't played this before! I guess there are only so many ways that you can do sideways scrolling using PF graphics. Chris 856233[/snapback] Nah, I was only joking. I'm glad to see more sidescrollers for the 2600. Someday I'll get around to finishing that other thing... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+batari Posted May 17, 2005 Share Posted May 17, 2005 Oops, it does look very similar Purely coincidence though as I hadn't played this before! I guess there are only so many ways that you can do sideways scrolling using PF graphics. I'm also working on a side-scroller motorcycle game, also a total coincidence. I think it is different enough from this one, as it's a motocross racing course, and I'm trying to use a player, a missile and the ball instead of playfield graphics since it's slower-paced and must scroll smoothly (though this is proving to be painful...) On another note, good news about the Minigame contest has finally arrived: they are keeping the 1k and 4k categories, so our work is not in vain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cd-w Posted May 17, 2005 Author Share Posted May 17, 2005 On another note, good news about the Minigame contest has finally arrived: they are keeping the 1k and 4k categories, so our work is not in vain. 856647[/snapback] That is great news - now I need to go back and polish my other minigames ... Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cd-w Posted May 20, 2005 Author Share Posted May 20, 2005 I have attached a small update to NightRider, based on some of the suggestions here. The changes in this version are: The helicopter moves faster. Your score depends on your speed (faster = more points). The acceleration and braking are slower (proportional to speed). There is a new explosion effect. I will hopefully be able to include more changes in the next version. Enjoy! Chris nightrider02.zip Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vdub_bobby Posted May 20, 2005 Share Posted May 20, 2005 I have attached a small update to NightRider, based on some of the suggestions here. The changes in this version are: The helicopter moves faster. Your score depends on your speed (faster = more points). The acceleration and braking are slower (proportional to speed). There is a new explosion effect. I will hopefully be able to include more changes in the next version. Enjoy! Chris 859029[/snapback] Fun stuff. Hard, too. I haven't been able to get much more than 600 pts. I'm too impatient. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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