r_type2600

It works fine graphically and adds some extra arcade feeling to the game, but the feature would fully shine if accompanied by the mood-setting (arcade) intro jingle. Hoping that you'd find the motivation to add this sometime - it may appear like a trivial and superfluous extra now that 95% of the game has been so smoothly implemented, but such apparently dispensable spleens often are the spice that elevate a flawless entertaining game to an exciting and captivating experience, bringing back the player again and again, long after he's mastered it. (a good example is the funky intro siren in Manuel's Colony 7 )

Great to hear that you reconsider investing more time to fine-polish this masterful creation Can only second Mos6507's comments about the difference such attention to detail often makes... Although one can all too well understand the tedious aspects of this, it's always rejoicing to see a vailliant homebrewer going that extra mile to deliver a masterpiece My (revised) suggestions: backgrounds: I still think red as a signal color should generally only be used for critical phases (I wouldn't describe missing out a bonus opportunity as such). But on the basis of arcade authenticity, I guess I am sold on keeping things as they are. After discussing this, the red hyperspace background has become a characteristic of Juno First anyway.. ship animation: I really like espire8's animated cockpit ship, I think it could further (subtly) enliven the game. Hopefully you could give it a try... deletions: glad to hear the title music will be kept in full. speech: I'm not really convinced of the need of speech. Unless it serves any functional purposes, I feel it would (ironically) be just one of those dispensable features Mos6507 was alluding to. In games like Juno First, at best a gadget, eventually a nuisance. How much fun is it to listen to a repetitive wave announcement over and over, especially when it breaks the flow of a fast-flowing action game? It may be entertaining the first few instances, but a curse in the long run... intro music: ok, that would be my main new request for an extra feature:a replication of the taunting atmospheric intro jingle that plays in the (seconds 8 -10) It really sets the mood. Even better would be to also duplicate the arcade intro, e.g. displaying a "Player One" or similar message ("Ready" or "Start") before moving to the actual game screen. fuel gauge: I wonder whether it wouldn't clean up the display to move the fuel gauge below the score/ships display? As it is now, it tends to blend with the planet surface lines, which a) affects the gauge's readability and b) disrupts the fluid effect of the planet surface by somehow framing it.

Cool! I suspected that...still, even if it's directly taken from the arcade, it seems like a design error IMO (for the reasons given). The red horizon during the "bonus" phase just feels contradictory and unnatural. Certainly this is a matter of taste - maybe test it out in an alternate bin and gauge the reactions? Thought there must a be technical reason for that Hmm, maybe an alternative approach would work?: Have the player re-enter right away but disable the collision routines until the player starts shooting. That way he would have a chance to dodge any overlapping alien. Automatically reactivate the collision detection after a few seconds. The player's ship could eventually also be marked in white to signal the "shielded" status.

I'd also prefer the foreseen original 5200 fonts for more authenticity. It would be cool however to get the arcade fonts as a switchable/hidden option, provided there's enough ROM and programmer motivation left!

Sorry to drop a few polish comments at this late stage, but I feel they should be reasonably simple to implement (if considered) ... 1) wave transitions: the short jingle that plays before each wave is a good indicator, however it is too feeble IMO to really be noticed - maybe you could you raise its volume (and perhapts pitch)? Not only should that mark the transitions much stronger, but also increase the adrenalin factor. 2) horizon colors: ..not sure whether they were chosen in analogy to the arcade version, but: Could you swap the Red signaling hyperspace with the Blue for the game over? It's odd that hyperspace, in principle a bonus phase, gets marked by red, the alarm color. Incidentally, red would be much better fitting to signal the end/ game over. 3) next life starts: might just be me, but it feels awkward that you have the choice to continue playing whenever you like. That tends to break the high intensity of the game, and takes away from its arcade feel, IMO. The game should carry on automatically after a short while, like the arcade version. At least as a default setting. (The pseudo-pause life break could be provided as difficulty switch option) - ship animation: my vote's also for the more authentic original version. The only thing I noticed watching the video, is that the cockpit of the ship seems to flash. Maybe that could be emulated to provide for some extra animation? Just an observation. Awesome game anyway, programmed to climb the homebrew charts quickly

Pure pleasure, always great to see and play a game with so much attention to detail and charm! I'd really love to see it re-released as a standalone game for the 2008 winter season. Such a full-blown and enjoyable original effort just deserves more exposure than to be hidden in a collection cart. Besides, I believe reading in one of your (or Nathan's) earlier comments that you had to cut some corners due to time pressure. So - that would be the perfect opportunity to revisit the game and fit in those elements and extra levels. What's more, Frosty is quite a character, so he really should get the honor to establish himself in a respectable manner, e.g. on his own cart Wishful thinking, but I'm keeping my fingers crossed!

Hmmm, I played the game some more, and think I have to correct myself - the shooting-delay actually makes sense, since the player should be discouraged of using the border. The game otherwise certainly would become too easy. I think what irritates the synapses (maybe just mine) a bit is simply the circumstance that the player after reentering looks normal despite behaving differently (e.g. doesn't shoot for a while). There should be something intuitively signaling this different status. :!: suggestion: change the player color while he's on the border and as long as the shooting is disabled. Red would be the ideal color for this phase to emphasize the state of alarm. I know it has already been assigned to mark one of the difficulty levels, but it should be easy to select another color for that (say green) Another idea in this connection: (gradually) increase the flashing rate while on the border to warn the player of the impeding death. (though I have a feeling that's not as easy to implement) Just a couple of superfine polish suggestions

Great new version! If anything, is there a chance you could reduce the shooting-delay after the player detaches from the border (or maybe get rid of it altogether)? I think it could make the gameflow even more intuitive. Might be worth a try... (if technically possible) Anyway - a brilliant, smooth, high action game and a prime contender for the compo! Eric

Thanks for the in-depth review, gives a really good idea of what to expect! I would have bought it anyway though

Awesome! Juno First is set to become for shooters what Lady Bug is for maze games on the 2600. One observation on the Juno18 version: I noticed that at times enemy shots seem to follow the player's movements - don't know whether that's intentional or a bug? Feels a bit odd, but does not distract much, actually. Just a couple of additional polish comments: - you earlied had asked about the hummering sound. I find it rather cool, adding tension to the atmosphere - it could IMO however be a bit louder to optimize that effect. - the alternating blue and red background colors (I've seen so far) provide some very welcome and enjoyable visual variation - any chance to introduce more background colors in later levels? - just wondering if there is/will be opportunity to collect an additional life at some score? (must admit I havn't really played too far into the game..)

Yeah! To keep it short: great new version, should now have the perfect balance and options to satisfy everyone! Just a couple of minor comments/suggestion: - what about also changing the shape of the player from a "T" to a (blocky) "C" during the "collecting" phase? That would provide an additional visual clue, and at the same time accentuate the sensation of "munching" -in this connection, what about doubling the cell score value during the collecting phases? That would provide additional incentive to hunt them... - there's one minor rough edge in the gameplay (actually ever since the first border version) that feels a bit unfair:the game detects a colission with the border, where the player intuitively feels to still be within the last playfield line (at least 2 thirds of his sprite actually still are). This gets particularly annoying when you try to align with border cells to shoot them. I believe I lost more than half of my games due to this... Would be great if that could be fixed somehow Other than that, not much more one could wish for the 2k version!

I don't disagree - but actually that's precisely my issue. I experience the balanced version more like a nice walk in an amusement park (entertaining but a bit shallow), while the "shooting" version feels more like a wild downhill run, keeping you constantly on your toes, making you sweat and hold your breath -> pure excitement!. IMO, the spectacular thing about the previous shooting-focused versions is the high-density non-stop action, something very unique and unexpected on the 2600. It comes amazingly close to duplicate a level of intensity only known from much more powerful platforms. In fact, in this regard it already surpasses the 8-bit Robotron translations, IMO. So that's why I think this should not be sacrificed... Of course, ideally we could have both (in analogy to Lead) - a comprimed raw amalgam (the 2k version) and a refined full-blown experience that polishes and accentuates particular gameplay elements in distinct levels...

Simone, you're churning out new versions faster than one can catch up! The audiovisual effect for picking up an egg is in principle perfect, and expanding it into a twist to the gameplay is a great idea Only thing is that, IMO, this new "(PacMan) energizer" mode considerably cuts on the heartbeat pace that made the previous versions so exciting. Neutralizing the risks for lengthy periods and silencing the player's cannon takes out too much of the tension and breaks the gameflow before it can really captivate the player. Now, this isn't to say that it's not fun, to the contrary. But could it be incorporated into the gameplay without jeopardizing the spectacular Robotron style gameplay? solution: turn it into a separate level! In that case, the idea should be pushed to the fullest - drop the shooting altogether, let the player only score by picking up cells while "immunized". Such a level would then last until the player has scored a target number of points... The two resulting quite distinct and contrasting game paces (regular shooting levels and occasional "immunization" levels every 4th or 5th level, to keep the emphasis on the high-adrenaline shooting) should make for a nice emotional rollercoaster ride, further enriching the overall gameplay experience! The icing of the cake of course would be a bonus/boss level at the end of a world Thinking this to the end: the audiovisual effect in the shooting levels should be shortened (about half the length of the March10 vers.), so it only serves to signal the successful pickup of an egg. In short, my feeling is that it would be better to have several, distinct, sharply profiled non-stop action modes instead of cramming everything into a single one.

Another great update! - the growth effect is a clever refinement. Yet another factor that could be used in level difficulty design - happy about the new eggs pattern! I find myself chasing them far more than before now It would be very nice if you could add some audiovisual effect that would confirm to the player that he has successfully picked up an egg. That should take out any hesitating moments and further smoothen the game flow. A short sound and briefly flashing the player in the root color would be cool. That simple visual clue would, as a side-effect, also be a neat evocation of the immunization principle (e.g. voluntary taking small doses of the poison) - the new color shading is just beautiful Eric

simply - WOW! The game was already fun, but this represents a quantum leap - now we're facing a threatening, living, very real menace! I actually enjoy all 3 root classes so far (dumb, smart, and corner) and think they should all be kept in the game (at least in the full version). That would not only allow to address the difficulty issue raised by some, but also to design a multitude of increasingly difficult levels playing with a combination of the various roots and their respective speed and quantity! suggestion for possibly another enemy type: indestructible "bacteriae". The idea is that these would be short (2-4 cells long and half a cell thick, solid for graphical distinction) "worms" that wander the playfield aimlessly (not hunting the player), basically only being obstacles that the player has to avoid. Touching them could either slow down (=sticky) or kill (=lethal) the player. These living obstacles could be introduced later in the game for added difficulty... egg sequence: I finally noticed that the egg is undergoing two stages before finally hatching into the root - blinking and then for a short while solid to warn the player of the eminent hatching. I think the (firelight) concept is perfect, but it would be far more intuitive to revert it: e.g. solid first, and blinking in the last few seconds. IMO, the solid egg gets noticed much faster than the blinking one, giving the player a more likely option to go for it. Also, I find that the sequence solid-blinking-root, would make for a more realistic recreation of the hatching process (egg-crack-birth) Cool, the spawn, fire control, and grow borders would make for some nice extra variations. The spin one sounds fun, but would be too erratic for regular gameplay, IMO. However it could be a great fit for the suggested egg bonus/boss level (where the player would not risk much) I would drop the reverse one though, as it would make the game impossible in view of the frantic fast-reflex gameplay, IMO. wrap would also be cool:- no borders, the player reenters the playfield from the opposite side, risking to run into cells waiting there. bonus round: it would indeed be very cool to see bonus/boss levels in omicron; hopefully in a full-blown version, where it could then crown the end of each (themed?)world... Maybe as a symbiosis of the evocated Joust bonus round and Centipede idea - which could look something like this: multiple eggs appearing in short intervalls, blinking, and then dying (=they disappear without hatching): logical explanation -> the player has mastered the world, the contagion can no longer spread, he only has to clean up the world from the last remaining, dead, eggs. The bonus challenge for the player is to rack up as many eggs as possible for a maximum of bonus points. To make it more challenging, these bonus levels would have a number of "indesctructible (sticky) worms". Each subsequent bonus level would then have more/faster such worms...

Feedback on the latest version: - really like the eggs concept, does indeed add variation. One problem though - it makes the game much easier and waters down the frantic nature of the gameplay: if you choose not the hunt the eggs, you have now far more time to focus on new roots and shoot them all down before they can spread. The playfield now often remains almost empty for looong periods.... Hopefully there's a way to keep both - the eggs and the 'frenzy' - slower ship: YES! - no-corners border: hmm, must say I preferred the original full border, which IMO looked smoother and more elegant. Since the game graphics already are blocky (= imperfect), the full border (= perfect, in its limited way) makes for a refreshing contrast for the eye - IMO. - inspired by the corner gaps in the border: what about instead opening a 'door' (maybe 3 cells wide) at the end of a level somewhere in the border (at random)? The faster the player would then 'escape' through this door to reach the next level, the more bonus points he would rack up: introduces a bonus/chance element to the scoring.. Later levels could then built upon the idea, by introducing wandering doors, etc. Sure enough this and other ideas would cry for a full-blown (8k?) version of Omicron Keeping my fingers crossed

Great to see that the above concerns have already been fully addressed by the solid and lowered border in the latest version

Hi Simone - good to see you back after your well-deserved break! Cool new version! The new cell-behavior is definitely an improvement, the gameplay now is quite intense and addicting. Also, the borders are a great new gameplay element , opening up a lot of possibilities to broaden the game experience and gradually build up the difficulty: - amount of borders: the game could start with no borders, then introduce horizontal/vertical borders, finally moving to full borders. - border characteristics: increasingly dangerous: sticky at first (e.g. delaying player movement for a few moments), bouncy after that (throwing the player back into the playfield, with the risk of landing right into an enemy), more bouncy after that (e.g. throws the player twice as far back, and so on), and finally, as the ultimate challenge, "deadly". - border size: In reply to Devin's comment, I would actually prefer a smaller border (e.g. half-size): on one hand to make it graphically distinguishable from the enemy cells, on the other hand to preserve some more of the actual game area. ... however - gradually increasing the border size could serve as yet another difficulty operant EDIT: comments are referring to the 29Feb version...

...the only jump I noticed is after losing your last life. I guess you will add some game over message before returning to the title screen, later in the development? In view of your obvious drive for perfection, I'm sure this has already been looked at before, but just in case, this might be the right time to drop a small wishlist of polish features. None of these are essential, nor very original, but would be nice to see (if implementable): - score amount displays after an alien has been shot, like in the arcade game. (btw, I stand corrected, I finally realized the arcade indeed has changing level colors ) - the attract mode could be pushed to 150% perfection if it also included a (gameplay) demo screen: the sequence then going: title/demo/title/highscores/...repeat Since I havn't done it before - a big thumbs up, great to see another spectacular arcade conversion gracing the 2600 soon!

Beautiful - glorious, arcade quality title screen/sequence! I specially like the cycling logo colors - a simple effect which adds a lot of life to the whole sequence! In that vein (not sure if that has already been considered): would'nt it be cool to apply the color cycling to the game itself ? e.g. change the "planet" colors every new(/few) levels, to avoid monotony? Sure the arcade game itself sticks to the same color all the time (at least as far as I got), but here's a spot the 2600 could easily outshine its inspiration

I'd say the Atari crowd is a really patient one and a few weeks (or even couple of months) delay will hardly minder the anticipation and enjoyment of a very promising new release!

One logic error here - you are assuming an existing ability?? Agree though that the gameplay almost imposes itself for the "contagion" theme. Not only in the medical field, it would also beautifully evocate the dangers of computer viri, political doctrines, religious fanatism, philosophical credos, etc. If it is technically possible to include sprites in the action, their graphical appearance could then serve as the bearers of the respective theme by using typical/credible symbols. The various themes would then make the framework for different set of levels. Such extra dimensions would foster a free-floating aura similar to Lead, built upon a strong underlying message: "contagion" is bad, enslaving you physically and mentally.

But while you are playing, you look at Jumpman all the time... wouldn't that justify to try hard to let him look as nice as possible ? Maybe a different approach to make him look "nicer" in view of the apparent color limitations: (butter)smooth animation? That could boost Jumpman's personality and make him as likable and memorable as the famous Game & Watch stickmen, despite being only monochrome... If there's room for such, why not improve on the originals in spots?

This is neat and a rather good approximation of the original, IMO. Pretty convincing, especially if that "gap" gets animated (e.g. moves up and down between frames).

#67 and #137 for me please!