pixelmischief

@ParanoidLittleMan How many watts will I need this thing to be? The system has a floppy drive, ET4000, and UltraSatan inside. I'll also run an optical mouse and NetUSBee externally.

Thanks, PLM. I'll hack up a connector from a Pico to the MSTe.

Will this work in my Mega STe? I'm really, really trying to avoid hacking up a Pico. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Atari-520-1040-ST-STF-STFM-STE-computer-internal-power-supply-PSU-240V-USED/324415222099?hash=item4b88a77153:g:ddQAAOSwDhFfAvKi

This seems to be the challenge with porting Karateka. The right port would start by recreating the exact same game and then making small, incremental changes, testing the gameplay after each change. It's definitely a "don't throw the baby out with the bathwater" situation.

Thanks, pop. You're kind of the patriarch around here, so it always feels good to get a pat on the head from you. 😃

The graphics and animation on IK+ are nice, although all the fighters do look like Mexican midgets. I would have said "little people", but I needed the alliteration to make the dig work. 😃

@Albert If this is more appropriate for the Atari ST forum, please feel free to move.

My response got away from me a bit =). So, instead of hijacking, I started another topic: https://atariage.com/forums/topic/314560-karateka-a8-vs-atari-st/

Preface In the ongoing thread covering the development of Prince of Persia for the A8, I happened to mention that I had never played it, but that I loved Karateka. Another forum denizen recommended the Atari ST version to me. Needless to say, my passion for the game resulted in a post that would have distracted from the conversation there. So, I have moved it here and am interested to know how others feel about it. Disclaimer Before I get up on my high horse and judge people who did something that I have failed at repeatedly, over several decades, allow me this disclaimer. Making a good video game is an extremely difficult thing to do, even today. Creating an effective cinematic experience is even harder. Doing both, at the same time, using 80's era hardware, software, and methods, was damned-near impossible. What follows is a critical analysis of the differences between Karateka on 8-bit systems and the Atari ST port; as well as support for my assertion that the 8-bit versions are the superior implementation, by far. That said, if I am going to ask you to entertain the distinctions I draw between the powers of the gods, I had better acknowledge my own relative impotence. Critique When I tried the Atari ST version of Karateka, I was sorely disappointed. There are three universal truths at play here. The first is that "disappointment is a function of expectation". The second is that "the book is always better than the movie". And the third, "Sometimes, less is more." Karateka on the Atari ST plays very differently than the A8 version. The control latency of the earlier game creates a timing challenge that is essential to the gameplay loop. Closing the distance and choosing the right attack are about anticipating the opponent's moves. I wonder if Mechner recognized this as a happy accident or the compromise he was forced to make. Either way, since this mechanic is inexorably bound to the limitations of the 8-bit platform, it is missing on the Atari ST. Without it, the game is transformed into an entirely different experience. When I first tried Karateka on the ST, I did so with the expectation that I was going to play an improved version of a beloved game. Instead, I got a fundamentally different game with the same name. If you've ever seen a documentary that covers the making of Karateka, you know that Mechner was fairly obsessed with the challenge of reproducing authentic human movement in a video game. In fact, after releasing Prince of Persia, Mechner took a break from game development to go to film school. Clearly, a life-long appreciation for cinematic presentation was a major motivation for his work on Karateka. The rotoscoped animations in the A8 version of Karateka are such a striking reproduction of natural motion that the imagination is inspired to see the low-resolution, 3-color sprites as real people, doing real combat. This raises the stakes of the game dramatically; increasing the excitement of playing, and satisfaction of winning, by an order of magnitude. The colorful, high-resolution sprites of the Atari ST version are a cartoon by comparison and don't evoke the same emotional response. Andromeda focused on doing all of the things in the ST version that couldn't have been done on the 8-bit platform. They raised the color count, used digitized voice samples, and added additional voices to the music. A particular example is the introduction scroll. They added a parchment paper background, persistent wind sound, and more complicated music. These things may increase the technical features of the presentation, but they simultaneously diminish the dramatic effect of the scene; as well as it's place among the scenes that form the entire introductory sequence. In the immortal words of Dr. Ian Malcom from Jurassic Park, "They were so preoccupied with whether or not they could, that they didn't stop to think if the should." I play though Karateka several time each year and love every minute of it. Sure, some of that is nostalgia. I propose, however, that most of my enjoyment is based on the enduring substance of the game. And, that substance having been changed in the Atari ST port, I simply didn't get what I expect Karateka to be. In addition, the limited graphical and audio fidelity of the original make room for the imagination to build the story better than the more explicit presentation ever could. In the end, I am certain that Andromeda meant to honor Mechner's game, but ultimately failed to understand what it is the man had set out to do. Despite being more impressive software, or perhaps because of it, Karateka on the Atari ST fails to be as good a game.

Damn, that's cool. I never played Prince of Persia. Been in my backlog for decades. Glad I can save myself for the A8 version. The A8 was always my favorite Karateka, by a long shot. Absolutely loved it. Only fitting that I get another Mechner classic on my all-time favorite platform.

Not sure if I am Snipe Hunting here, but I am looking for "Ruff 'n Tumble", CIB. If you have this fine title and would be willing to part with it, please PM me.

Oh...and I'm considering a sprite-rip/asset-flip of the game on Windows. Interest?

...is the prettiest platformer on any 16- or 32-bit system. And it has the best-tuned jump mechanics of every platformer I've ever played. That is all.

"I don't know what we're yelling about! Looooud noises!" - Brick, Anchorman

I checked the sellers other listings. He has 10 pages of stuff; a lot of similar items in the 10 to 20 range. It's a typo, man.

I'm always STUNNED at these discussions. I usually resist the urge to comment; mostly because I know that the analysis of my point-of-view will inevitably turn to the fact that I am an American, and therefore a heartless capitalist. This time, however, I just couldn't. Everyone, repeat after me: "The fair market price of ANYTHING is what someone is willing to pay for it." Period. End of story. To rail against the injustice of this is to presume there is any justice at all in a system whereby someone's own possessions should be sold for a penny less than it can draw from a fair market. Why, in the name of God, does the undeniable reality of these facts perpetually shock and dismay so smart a community of people!

You're going to sell it to me, obviously. 😃

#1 Thanks for all of the honest, kind, quality support. All of the named superstars - and several not here-named - that make an important part of a good life so much better. #2 Don't feed the trolls. Haters gonna hate. Dishonest sellers will always find dupes and bargain whores to sell to. Those are facts not worth expending any effort on. #3 I don't agree that the cessation of support for an entire community because of the dick-headery of a few bad actors is the right response, but oh...wait...it doesn't matter what I think because it isn't my hard work and kind service being stolen and exploited by some idioterous f%&ktard. Conviction is a luxury for those on the side-lines and I am definitely a spectator. I would say, however, that when you stop doing what you love for the people who love you for it, you let evil win; in your life and ours.

Anyone?

Did some research. So, I guess I am looking for the "pitch" of the pin row?

I have been listening to you people belly-ache and bad-mouth the XF551 PCB for over a decade. Waaaaaah, it's a shitty single-layer. Waaaaaah, the pads lift too easy. Waaaaah. Well, I desoldered the SIO ports from my XF551 last night in order to replace them with header pins so I can reroute the ports for a case mod. Let me just say... Waaaaah, this thing sucks horrible. Lifted two (2) pads; and that was WITH a Hakko desoldering gun. Freaking aweful. I'll have a waaaaaburger and wash it down with a Whineikin. But on to business. Does anyone know what the specification is for a pin row that will fit in the weird, diagonally oriented through-holes on the PCB for the SIO ports?

I'm thinking about rerouting the cartridge slot on my 1200XL with a ribbon cable; about 7 inches. Will this work?

Hey team, check out this mod on the printer. Anyone have an idea what this might be? The seller is in the UK, so I don't guess I'll be lucky enough that it is a voltage selector.

@800XLNZ Thanks and welcome!

@BillC Thanks! I don't read schematics, I'm ashamed to admit, but can probably find the component on the board if you mark it for me. Also, would you be willing to add a link to the part I would use to replace the 220V?