Arjak

FAIL. EDIT: I would also love to see that Donkey Kong II hack availble in some form. I don't have any way to play it! From what I've heard, you need to have an original Donkey Kong arcade cabinet and buy an upgrade board to play it. I don't think it's available on MAME either. I think it would be amazing if you included it, Eduardo! It would add greater incentive for people to buy the game and SGM. As someone else had stated, Donkey Kong is available (for better or worse, gameplay wise) on many systems. If you included the hack, which not many people have had a chance to play, it would make the package MUCH more desirable. Just a thought...

Oh, come on! Am I really the only person here willing to show some love for Lolo? Eggerland Mystery is a classic! My second-place choice is Zanac.

That's good to hear. Perhaps the best thing to do is not think of it like a business, but just let the CV owners know that you're there when they need you. Thanks for sticking with it, Yurkie. If my Coleco ever breaks down, you'll be the first to know!

Actually, it turns out the problem was me being a moron. I was browsing a Commodore forum for answers to my problem and someone with this problem was recommended to flip the RGB/Video switch on the monitor. I didn't even know there was one on the monitor! Sure enough, after a little feeling around, I found the button in question, and pressing it fixed the problem. Doh! Give the monitor mode switch a try, gamezmaster!

I just found and bought a Commodore 128 in my own town, no eBay! Unfortunately, I'm having trouble with something. I've found that while the system works in 80 column mode on the monitor I got with the computer, 40 column mode and Commodore 64 mode do not work. I've tried plugging in the computer to a different display, I've tried using a different A/V cord, but nothing works. When I try to use these modes, I get either a blank or glitchy display. Please help me, guys!

Ah, yes. I think I might have considered using a sub-routine to hand all of that, but didn't think too much about it. I'll implement that; it'll save me time and memory space. Thanks!

Thanks, Synth. Your suggestion should save me some unnecessary instructions (and grief) down the line. I'm making progress...here's what I've got now: 10 REM INSTRUCTIONS FOR 'SUPER STAR TREK' 20 FOR I=1 TO 12:PRINT:NEXT I 21 PRINT " *************************" 22 PRINT " * *" 23 PRINT " * *" 30 PRINT " * * SUPER STAR TREK * *" 31 PRINT " * *" 32 PRINT " * *" 35 PRINT " *************************" 36 PRINT:PRINT " ORIGINAL PROGRAM BY DAVID AHL" 37 PRINT " AND MARY COLE" 38 PRINT:PRINT " ATARI CONVERSION BY COLLIN PIERCE" 39 PRINT:PRINT:PRINT 40 DIM K$(1):PRINT "DO YOU NEED INSTRUCTIONS (Y/N)":INPUT K$:IF K$="N" THEN GOTO 2000 45 PRINT 50 PRINT " INSTRUCTIONS FOR 'SUPER STAR TREK'" 60 PRINT 70 PRINT "1. WHEN YOU SEE 'COMMAND ?' PRINTED," 80 PRINT " ENTER ONE OF THE LEGAL COMMANDS" 90 PRINT " (NAV, SRS, LRS, PHA, TOR, SHE," 100 PRINT " DAM, COM, OR XXX)." 110 PRINT "2. IF YOU SHOULD TYPE IN AN ILLEGAL" 120 PRINT " COMMAND, YOU'LL GET A SHORT LIST" 130 PRINT " OF LEGAL COMMANDS PRINTED OUT." 140 PRINT "3. SOME COMMANDS REQUIRE YOU TO" 150 PRINT " ENTER DATA (FOR EXAMPLE, THE" 160 PRINT " 'NAV' COMMAND COMES BACK WITH" 170 PRINT " 'COURSE? (1-9)'). IF YOU TYPE IN" 180 PRINT " ILLEGAL DATA (LIKE NEGATIVE" 190 PRINT " NUMBERS), THAT COMMAND WILL BE" 200 PRINT " ABORTED." 210 PRINT:PRINT "PRESS ANY KEY TO CONTINUE." 220 IF NOT PEEK(555) THEN GOTO 220 230 PRINT:PRINT " THE GALAXY IS DIVIDED INTO AN 8 X 8" 240 PRINT " QUADRANT GRID, AND EACH QUADRANT" 250 PRINT " IS FURTHER DIVIDED INTO AN 8 X 8" 260 PRINT " SECTOR GRID." 270 PRINT 280 PRINT " YOU WILL BE ASSIGNED A STARTING" 290 PRINT " POINT SOMEWHERE IN THE GALAXY TO" 300 PRINT " BEGIN A TOUR OF DUTY AS CAPTAIN" 310 PRINT " OF THE STARSHIP 'ENTERPRISE';" 320 PRINT " YOUR MISSION: TO SEEK AND DESTROY" 330 PRINT " THE FLEET OF KLINGON WARSHIPS" 340 PRINT " WHICH ARE MENACING THE UNITED" 350 PRINT " FEDERATION OF PLANETS." 360 PRINT:PRINT "PRESS ANY KEY TO CONTINUE." 370 IF NOT PEEK(555) THEN GOTO 370 380 PRINT:PRINT " YOU HAVE THE FOLLOWING COMMANDS" 390 PRINT " AVAILABLE TO YOU AS CAPTAIN OF" 400 PRINT " THE ENTERPRISE:" 410 PRINT 420 PRINT "'NAV' COMMAND = WARP ENGINE CONTROL" 430 PRINT " COURSE IS SET UP IN A CIRCULAR" 440 PRINT " NUMERICAL VECTOR ARRANGEMENT AS" 450 PRINT " SHOWN. INTEGER AND REAL VALUES" 460 PRINT " MAY BE USED. (THUS COURSE 1.5" 470 PRINT " HALFWAY BETWEEN 1 AND 2)" 480 PRINT 490 PRINT " VALUES MAY APPROACH 9.0, WHICH" 500 PRINT " IS EQUAL TO 1.0." 510 PRINT 520 PRINT " ONE WARP FACTOR IS THE SIZE OF" 530 PRINT " ONE QUADRANT. THEREFORE, TO GET" 540 PRINT " FROM QUADRANT 6,5 TO 5,5, YOU" 550 PRINT " WOULD USE COURSE 3, WARP FACTOR" 560 PRINT " 1." 570 PRINT:PRINT "PRESS ANY KEY TO CONTINUE." 580 IF NOT PEEK(555) THEN GOTO 610 590 PRINT:PRINT " IF CONFUSED, CONSULT THE" 600 PRINT " FOLLOWING DIAGRAM:" 610 PRINT 620 PRINT " 4 3 2" 630 PRINT " \ | /" 640 PRINT " \|/" 650 PRINT " 5 ---*--- 1" 660 PRINT " /|\" 670 PRINT " / | \" 680 PRINT " 6 7 8" 690 PRINT 700 PRINT " COURSE" 710 PRINT:PRINT "PRESS ANY KEY TO CONTINUE." 720 IF NOT PEEK(555) THEN GOTO 720

Alright, I've finally found a project that I think will make lives better for both my programming skills, as well as gamers (and Trekkers) everywhere. I am currently attempting to port the seminal classic BASIC game, Super Star Trek, to Atari BASIC. Here is my code so far (I haven't gotten too far): 10 REM INSTRUCTIONS FOR 'SUPER STAR TREK' 20 FOR I=1 TO 12:PRINT:NEXT I 21 PRINT " *************************" 22 PRINT " * *" 23 PRINT " * *" 30 PRINT " * * SUPER STAR TREK * *" 31 PRINT " * *" 32 PRINT " * *" 35 PRINT " *************************" 36 PRINT:PRINT " ORIGINAL PROGRAM BY DAVID AHL" 37 PRINT " AND MARY COLE" 38 PRINT:PRINT " ATARI CONVERSION BY COLLIN PIERCE" 39 PRINT:PRINT:PRINT 40 DIM K$(1):PRINT "DO YOU NEED INSTRUCTIONS (Y/N)":INPUT K$:IF K$="N" THEN 2000 45 PRINT 50 PRINT " INSTRUCTIONS FOR 'SUPER STAR TREK'" 60 PRINT 70 PRINT "1. WHEN YOU SEE 'COMMAND ?' PRINTED," 80 PRINT " ENTER ONE OF THE LEGAL COMMANDS" 90 PRINT " (NAV, SRS, LRS, PHA, TOR, SHE," 100 PRINT " DAM,COM, OR XXX)." 110 PRINT "2. IF YOU SHOULD TYPE IN AN ILLEGAL" 120 PRINT " COMMAND, YOU'LL GET A SHORT LIST" 130 PRINT " OF LEGAL COMMANDS PRINTED OUT." 140 PRINT "3. SOME COMMANDS REQUIRE YOU TO" 150 PRINT " ENTER DATA (FOR EXAMPLE, THE" 160 PRINT " 'NAV' COMMAND COMES BACK WITH" 170 PRINT " 'COURSE? (1-9)'). IF YOU TYPE IN" 180 PRINT " ILLEGAL DATA (LIKE NEGATIVE" 190 PRINT " NUMBERS), THAT COMMAND WILL BE" 200 PRINT " ABORTED." 210 PRINT:PRINT:PRINT:PRINT:PRINT "PRESS SPACE BAR TO CONTINUE." 220 IF PEEK(764)<>33 THEN GOTO 220 The hardest part by far was trying to get the program to wait for input from the player at Line 220. I finally, after much research on atariarchives.com, learned how to take a PEEK at the keyboard input. The reason I went through so much trouble is because this isn't even all of the instructions program! There's not enough room to have all of the instructions on the screen at once, so I had to find a way to allow the player to read before moving onward. PEEK was the answer. If you try to enter this code or just know how BASIC works, yes, I am aware that typing "N" at the instructions prompt causes a fatal error at this point. I haven't gotten far enough for the code to point anywhere! I plan to do more porting today.

I bought a copy of Sky Jaguar. I also plan on buying Magical Tree when I get paid at the end of the month.

Holy F***ing S***! I usually don't care about ports, but if Sega was putting in this kind of effort today, they probably wouldn't have so many disillusioned fans. After watching the video and having my jaw drop several times, I must say that this is beyond professional quality. I don't think anyone would have bothered putting in the time and effort to make such an excellent port for a real company, because it would've had to be out by 'next Christmas.' This is what I love about people who program on old systems for fun. Here's what made me excited: 1. Perhaps the title screen is a little too dark (it might be Youtube), but it is still an incredible recreation of the original version. By this point, I was somewhat impressed. 2. The voices. Just...the voices. When I heard, "Welcome to the Fantasy Zone! Get ready!" for the first time, I freaked out a little. I then had to rewind and watch it several times. Except for a slight change in sound quality, it sounds arcade perfect. I then started wondering about the other two pieces of voice. Yep, "You're doing great!" and the Harrier's death scream were also present. Even with the initial excitement gone, hearing the voice effects still brings a smile to my face. 3. The music. In retrospect, there definitely had to be a downgrade in quality from the arcade, but I was still very impressed with how faithful it was to the arcade original. All the songs were there, and all of them sounded as great as I could imagine coming from the system. 4. The graphics. They look amazing. 5. The gameplay. Holy... I can't believe how smooth and quick it is! I don't know how the programmer did this, but I hope one day that I can come anywhere close to this level of quality! I felt my heart cheer in excitement when Level 4 started and the ceiling came down, just like it should. Overall, this is probably the closest this game could come to being arcade perfect on the Atari 8-Bit. Congratulations to everyone who made this port possible! In my mind, you are all programming geniuses.

Yay! It's finally happening! Definitely count me in for one when they're ready.

Eduardo, thank you so much for continuing your projects. It means a lot to all of us who love the ColecoVision. I'm sure that the SGM and the games that use it will be well worth the wait!

Having just gotten an Atari XEGS, I decided I might as well TRY to learn BASIC so I could explore everything the system has to offer. My first program went off without a hitch, and my dad was quite impressed. Here's my first program in Atari BASIC ever! 10 DIM NAME$(25) 15 PRINT "WHAT IS YOUR NAME?" 20 INPUT NAME$ 25 PRINT "HELLO, "; NAME$;"!" It's not much, but it's a start! I've already begun work on a much more complex project. Please check this thread every once in a while to see my progress!

Not long ago, I bought an Atari XEGS from Crickster. It arrived today, well packed and working great! I've already played a little of the games he sent with it and even wrote a modest Basic program. Thank you, Crickster!

I agree! I only own one OpCode Game, Yie Ar Kung-Fu, but it is so high-quality and so much fun that I can't wait to see what Eduardo is capable of when the SGM comes out! I hope that it gets released in the near future.

YAY! I just purchased an XEGS, so I can't wait! Thank you so much! BTW, nice quote. Field of Dreams is an awesome movie.

I do not have an Atari 5200, and I am not planning on getting one. I am considering buying an XEGS at the moment, though. The problem is, I really, REALLY want to play Adventure II! Would it be possible to make a port of it to Atari's 8-Bit Computers? If I buy the XEGS, and if a port of Adventure II was made that was compatible with it, I'd buy that port in a heartbeat! Is there any hope for me?

Welcome back, Eduardo! Question: Do you have a mailing list and/or pre-order for the SGM? I've been looking forward to this for a while and want to be kept up to date on when I can buy one.

Well, I can answer Question 1, at least. When you first start a file, you pick a game. After that, you are stuck with that game until you beat it. The game saves after each level you beat. Once you win the whole game, the game saves, and you can select one of the other two. When you beat all three, you get...a surprise. By the way, be absolutely sure to use the Wily Wars SRAM patch from romhacking.com; the original ROM uses a weird saving system that is hard to duplicate on a cart, and makes it impossible to save in an emulator. The SRAM patch allows you to save using the traditional battery system.

I received my copy of Gulkave today, and I must say, the quality is absolutely amazing! The box was top notch, and I really enjoyed reading the manual; the text was so well-translated that you would think it was specifically written for an American game! There wasn't even a hint of Engrish! So, I hooked up my Coleco to an old CRT TV I have in my room (I got it from a friend of my Dad's so I could play light gun games), started up the game, and WOW! This game kicks ass...especially mine! It's a lot harder than the video linked to on the Team Pixelboy site makes it look! After many continues, I finally threw in the towel (for the night) at Act 3. It's amazing to me that there is so much happening on the screen with very little slowdown. The graphics are well-rendered. The weapon system is interesting and unusual. Compile and Sega made quite a fun little gem, here. This is a superb game you've ported, Pixelboy! I love shooters, and this is the best one I've played on the Coleco! Bravo!

Sweet! I have some of those! In another city near me, there is an arcade run by Namco at the mall, and they used tokens with Pac-Man engraved on them.

I've placed an order for a copy of Gulkave. I can't wait to play it, Pixelboy! From the video on your website of the SG-1000 version, it looks like a lot of fun!