pocketmego

The technique used for the vines in Pitfall and the missiles in Missile Commnad is pretty restricted. It would only really be usable if there were a lot of parallel lines at intervals of 16 or 32 pixels. Unfortunately, that's not really the situation in Tempest. The only ways I can imagine a Temptest game looking halfway decent would be if it used an SDI-style hires kernel (needs at least 2K RAM) or if it were limited to either a fixed horizontal or vertical arrangement (no perspective view). Turmoil would be an example of the former. Now, please pardon my lack of programming knowledge... What if you took an old LCd Game and Watch approach? By that I mean you make the design a part of the background and and not something that actually interacts with the on-screen sprites. Then you do what the other poster said, you hack the play mechanics and sprites from Gyruss. Then you have a game that plays and looks similar to Tempest, but doesn't work the same as the arcade version. So the character sprite will move in a circel no matter what shape the background is, and not in the shape of the tube. The effect will still be there. Is this possible? -Ray

This game, to me, is the perfect kind of just CRAZY, insane, off the cuff, idea that might have helped seperate the 7800 from the NEs and Master System. Crazy Niche gamers would have gone to Atari for their gaming needs as opposed to the other systems. Activision built an empire on programmers just going ahead with their unique visions and this game shows me that Atari could ha ve developed that same sort of thing, even without thrid party support. Good luck in finding this game, man. It's a necessity. Oh and that link was FREAKIN' hilarious. "Pushy woman from human resources will never know how closely death's shadow hovered over her. I am baffled still that she would question the job history of one who lists "neck snapping" as foremost skill." LOL -Ray

He was a very gifted singer/songwriter that did most of his best work in the late 60s through the 70s. The Beatles were among his biggest fans (he and Lennon used to hang out a lot, and I think Ringo may have been his best man) Anyway, he put out an album called "The Point!" which I highly recommend. The album is remarkable, and he narrates between each song. That's why I thought the video game narrator sounded like him. Somebody recently did a documentary about Nilsson, and the title is: "Who is Harry Nilsson?" (which is what cracked me up ) There's a little trailer about it here: http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fusea...iendid=73921244 Most people know other songs he did like the "Lime in the Coconut" song, and "Without You" (later redone by Mariah Carey) But again, my favorite is his album "The Point!" It just puts me in a very nice place. "Nilsson Schmilsson" and "Son of Schmilsson" are also recommended. LOL, I see. Lime in the Cocanut Guy, that is all I needed to know. I was also born in 1974. Seems to be a good year for Atari-Fans. -Ray

How about using rhe source code from Gyruss (altering the sprites to look like Tempest) for the movement and variety of enemies. Then it would play at a decent speed and feel like Tempest over those backgrounds. Like you said it seems pretty do-able. Atari thought so at first, they were considering making the thing. -Ray

I actually did do that for the Star wars game with the special Demo Disc that had the original Star Wars Arcade game on it for the game cube. Rebel Strike I think was the game I "pre-Ordered". -Ray

So having determined that Forbidden Forest is at least partially possible, it would look decent too, as the original was considered a bit chunky by the later graphics standards of the C-64. In fact the lead character really looked quite a bit like he came from the 2600, or at least 5200. -Ray

I have not played many 7800 games. But, one I did play ranks as the coolest classic game of ALL TIME. NINJA GOLF!!!! I mean how ridiculously funny is this game. A ninja out for a nice relaxing game of golf, assailed by his mortal enemies while trying to find his ball. CLASSIC!!! -Ray

This all makes a lot of sense. because even though Sega's Star trek Arcade features way more ACTION than TMP did, it still feels more like TMP then it does Wrath of Kahn. I think the sound effects are what causes that feeling. -Ray I think you're confusing the first and second movies. The first movie was actually a spin-off of an attempt to revive the Star Trek TV Series. It was going to be the crown jewel of the new Paramount Television Network. The backup plan was to ramp up the costly production into a feature movie. When the Television Network idea died, Paramount expected that the Star Trek Motion Picture would help them recover costs so that they wouldn't lose quite so much money. There was not going to be another movie. Instead, they made oodles of money on the Motion Picture, and immediately began plans to launch another movie. For the second movie, everything was begun as a movie rather than a television show. Industrial Light and Magic was hired for the effects, the uniforms were redesigned for the big screen rather than reusing the Motion Picture uniforms that had actually been intended for television use (and reuse. ), and the story was written as a feature film rather than the extended episode format that had been used in the first movie. In case this all sound familiar to anyone, it should. While Paramount cancelled their plans for a television network, they would later revive the plan as the United Paramount Network in the 1990's. Star Trek Voyager ended up being the "crown jewel" as opposed to the original Star Trek: Phase II series that had been planned. As for the Motion Picture itself, many of the elements and story lines :!: were later reused for Star Trek TNG: The Will Decker character became Will Riker Lieutenant Ilia became Deanna Troi the "unnamed Vulcan Xon" (who died in the transporter accident in the movie, once Nimoy learned that the plans for a series were cancelled and decided to sign on) became Data The "virgin birth" episode was reused in the TNG second season, VERBATIM. All that changed was the names of the characters. The title music by Jerry Goldsmith was reused as the TNG title music In case you're interested in futher reading on the subject, there's an excellent book called Star Trek Phase II: The Making of the Lost Series. It covers everything from the timeline to the production, and even includes many of the lost scripts. A fascinating book for trekkies. Although most of what you said is correct, there are some little bits and pieces which I don't think are. Of course Star Trek:TMP was a follow up to the original TV show. It also had the albatross around it's neck that it had been birthed as the Star Trek Phase II series for the failed first Paramount network. However, when TMP actually started its formal development, it was known that it was going to be a theatrical motion picture, and a date was set around Christmas of 1979. (A date which eventually meant the film had no pre-screenings and was shipped "wet" and without a proper sound mix.) TMP was a critical failure. And, since it had to carry the financial weight of the failed TV series and network, it was said to be a financial failure as well. But, by most other measures of the time, it was a blockbuster. It basically had to be a wild moneymaker in order to break even due to all the baggage attached to it. When Star Trek II was planned, several things changed. Gene Roddenberry was stripped of his producer role, and the movie was conceived as a made for TV movie with the option for theatrical release if deemed "good enough". This was a way for Paramount to pull the plug easily should the production start generating the kind of problems the first feature film did. Milton Bradley may not have even had a license for Star Trek II. It doesn't seem that anyone really jumped on it as a licensing bet. Even the arcade game only ties itself to the second movie by way of the cabinet art, but not the name. As far as I know, there's almost no licensed material directly tied to the second movie. The USS Enterprise model by AMT/ERTL didn't have a Star Trek II version. There were no action figures at the time of the film. DC started a comic some time after the film, but never did a comic adaptation of Trek II despite numerous fan requests. So, back to the video game, it was probably all some goofy licensing mess.

Yeah, no really, who is that? -Ray

Who is Harry Nilsson? You can actually see the narrator in the Atlantis one. He has a big White man's 70's Fro. looks a bit like Napoleon Dybamite actually. Here is a master search list page for all of these that YouTube has on file. Apparently they also did them for the Coleco and Atari 5200. http://www.youtube.com/results?search=How+...e=search_videos -Ray

That is what I paid for mine and the same person has a second one I will probably buy for the same price. The games they have range from 5 and up usually the 10 to 20 range is pretty average for the good but common games. So I think you did just fine. But, I'm no expert. -Ray

Same here. Like vintage toys, sometimes the commercials could be better than the games. You Tube has a tone of Atari commercials available and a few of these. I just posted the Demon Attack one and I'll repost it here for you if no one minds... Remember to draw a chart for those firing demons. LOL Here is the one for atlantis as well... Enjoy -Ray

I've said it before and I'll say it again... This Commercial is all that is needed to see which is clearly the cooler of the 2 games. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4878-oObPls...0Attack%20Atari As a bonus I am also including the very first how to beat video games featurettes, Deomon Attack. Remember to draw a chart to help you against those firing demons. -Ray

Thanks for suggesting Gyruss by the way. I played this thing a billion times on my old C64, but never played the 2600 version. IT ROCKED. It was a lot of fun and kept so much of the original gameplay intact. You are a good dude, Zylonbane. -Ray

Yep, they're hacks. http://www.salemfrostgames.com/ Are they both Hacks of Haunted House or just the Blair Witch one? -Ray

Jungle Hunt did parallax scrolling. I was just about to say the same thing. I also hope that a homebrewer picks up on my Cauldron idea, because both of those games were classics on the C64 and are dying for conversion to the 2600 and would look great. I would gladly do it myself if I had the ability. Oh and I love that Under 50 bucks commercial. I think of it everytime I hear or read the word Atari. -Ray

RG is definately a major player in keeping the retro-gaming scene alive and kicking, but there are other factors, like those European music groups that specialize in remixing video game tunes. They're always a major draw to retro-gaming conventions in that part of the world. There's nothing like that in the US, AFAIK. There's also eBay, which makes classic game collecting available to everyone in Europe. If eBay didn't exist, retro-gaming wouldn't be as big as it is now. Oh, BTW, don't let RG fool you into believing retro-gaming is bigger in Europe than the US. It's mostly just as big in North America, only different and more quiet. I see what you are saying. That the magazine is Eurocentric, it gives the impression that the hobby is bigger there. That actualy makes sense. -Ray

The problem is a year subscription to Retro Gamer is like 100 US. That is a lot of money to pay all at once. However, scarcity of the magazine is going to force my hand before it's over. -Ray

LOL Ok, I meant original lifespan. In truth I wouldn't mind getting my hands on Jr. As well, I like its sleeker look. -Ray

Please forgive me if this has been posted before. I've found a couple of these on You Tube... It is a How To video segment release in the 80's showing how to beat certain games. The two I have seen so far are this one and one for Atlantis (which actually comes out and says Atlantis is a prequal to Cosmic Ark). My favorite part of this video is how the narrator keeps dramatically calling the Crocodiles "YOUR WORST ENEMIES..." -Ray

Back when the 2600 first came out, the games didn't use bankswitching and the developers didn't know everything that the 2600 could do. Also, not getting the games completely accurate (which would be impossible on the 2600 anyway) is not the same as getting the games wrong. Combat, Indy 500, Video Olympics, Circus Atari, Dodge 'em, Maze Craze, Sky Diver, and a couple others captured much of the fun of the arcade, despite not being extremely accurate. Space Invaders is a great game in its own right despite being different from the arcade. I wouldn't call a game that is often considered better than the arcade "wrong". Star Trek is on the C64, Vic 20, TI-99/4a, Colecovision, and Atari 800 (which is probably the same as the 5200 one) too. You know I like to think I am man enough to admit when I am wrong. You make an excellent point about a non-accurate game not necessarily being wrong. In point of fact, I would even go so far as to say that my initial response to this topic was even a bit closed minded. I also never knew that many versions of the Star Trek arcade game existed. Still, I do love the 2600 version. -Ray

Solely based on the fact that Europe has an actual magazine based on the hobby of Retro Gaming and numerous store fronts dedicated to it, it appears to be massive there. Especially in the UK. Where as in the US, it took me a while to find stuff even on the web when I went looking, of course this site changed a lot of that and has lead me to a lot of stuff. But, am I wrong in this assesment? Will it ever get big enough in the US to merit its own publication, because I gotta say that current game Magazines in the States, suck. -Ray

I love this magazine and I grab every issue i can get my hands on. It is extremely well written and even makes me interested in stuff we never had in the US, such as the computer game translations for things like the ZX81 and Amstrad. I want very badly for a subscription to the magazine, but it cost a hundred bucks for a year subscription which is too rich for my blood all in one chunk. I do believe that particular magazine is why retrogamming is SO HUGE in Europe right now. Far bigger than it is here in the States. -Ray

What amazes me are some of the games they didn't have to get wrong. Why was an arcade perfect port of Space Invaders so difficult. The homebrew guy did it exceptionally well. Space War was made in 1967. I gotta think that even just adding a black background screen would have legitimized Atari's version a bit. Even Freakin' Pong wasn't accurate. It was PONG!!!! On the other hand I see how much more forgiving of graphics we were as children and players than kid's today are. I mean you really had to take a HUGE jump to get the jist of what the Atari version of some of those was going for. Congo Bongo comes immediately to mind. Star Trek was a great Arcade game and I was always very happy with the strong translation on the 2600. Especially, given that it is like the only home version of this game short of the 5200 version. -Ray

When Tramiel brought the Atari Jr. out in the late 80's as a budget system i was always very suprised by the game choices that were made for the admittedly underpowered system. The very idea of putting games like Rampage and Double Dragon on the 2600 was just ludicrous. So, I got to thinking about a more accessible approach that would have worked better for the 2600 capapbilities in that era. What i think they should have done and what might have been more successful was not take these advanced arcade games and port them to the 2600 (although even I admit Xenophobe was an incredible translation), but instead go with the Commodore 64 and other 8 bit games that had never been converted for the 2600. Right off the top of my head, I can envision a whole list of very workable games from those machines onto the Atari's limited memory capacity. Cauldren 1 and 2 Forbidden Forest Batman the Movie Impossible Mission Barbarians (possibly) Aztec Challenge (Of course Simon has already proven this can look even better than the C64 version) Atomic Robo Kid etc The commodore used the exact same Joystick interface as the 2600, so no changes would have to be made to gameplay (save for exces stuff using the C-64's keyboard ala Ghostbusters). This direction, i think, would have given Junior a much longer lifespan. -Ray