TXmarsh
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Posts posted by TXmarsh
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2 hours ago, Linndrum said:Is The Heist based on Cops N Robbers on the C64? That was one of my favorite games, this looks a lot like it
Nope, but I just looked up that game and I see the resemblance. It was really inspired, if at all, by bezerk. That said, the original ideas was that you would not only have to get out of the building but also outrun the police in your getaway car before successfully 'winning' the money. This, however, proved a bit too ambitious for me at this time and I dropped the getaway car idea.
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Source code added to download section (above).
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Final version released unless bugs identified. Thanks!
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14 hours ago, Random Terrain said:If you eventually use a pause feature that also works with the Atari 7800, remember to mute the sound while the game is paused. The way it is now, if a sound is playing while the game is paused, there will be a constant annoying noise.
7800? What kind of advanced alien tech are you talking about?!
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20 hours ago, azure said:I caught the ZPH episode on this. I was thinking it would be more intense gameplay if there's an alarm claxon after the money is taken. I used to play Splinter Cell years ago and that would happen when you got spotted.
If I understand what you are saying, it actually already has this feature. Initially, the police will not pursue you unless you get close to them. However, once you take the money all the police begin chasing you regardless of how far away they are. Another officer also comes after you through the exit door. I could add an alarm sound if that would amp up the intensity. Thanks for the feedback!
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Ok, rev 1-2 will be posted soon. It adds game options 4, 5, and 6 which are the same as games 1, 2 and 3 but with 3 lives. Thanks.
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I thought that having a single life would add to the challenge but perhaps some feel that it is simply too frustrating. So, here's a poll... who wants the option to play with a total of 3 lives? - Thanks!
1 = It's fine with only one life... it adds nicely to the challenge
2 = The constant restarting is driving me nuts... give me more lives!
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This has a lot of potential. Very cool work.
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9 hours ago, chad5200 said:I like it!
But I recommend following the standards with Pause:
https://www.randomterrain.com/atari-2600-memories-standards-and-procedures.html#pause
Thanks. I'll think about modifying the pause in a future update.
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12 minutes ago, Random Terrain said:Might want to redo the pause code. On Stella, the game starts out paused. Took me a while pressing F keys to figure out why nothing was moving.
Ah yes... updated in v1.1 so that left switch B = play and A = Pause. Thanks!
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Unless bugs are identified this will be the final release of Heist. This release fixes a number of small bugs and implements a few additional features such as Bezerk style directional shooting (selectable via the Left Difficulty Switch). This release also makes (3) lives standard. Single life games are still selectable as games 4-6. I hope you enjoy. - Tim
Gameplay
Capture the money while avoiding the police and laser defenses. Once the money is in your possession a door will open. You still need to make it out of the bank to clear the level. All of this must be done before time runs out. Some levels are easier than others and the time is adjusted accordingly. Note that the police will not notice you until you are in their general proximity or you have taken the money. Once you capture the money all police become aware of your presence and they move with an increased sense of urgency (i.e., faster). There is a total of 20 levels using 10 playfields. Each playfield is displayed twice. The second time through you are given less time and the police move faster. If you complete all twenty levels you will flip the game and have the chance to play through them again. This time, however, the police will move faster and you will be limited to (4) bullets.
Controls
Movement: Use the left joystick to move left, right, up, down and on diagonals.
Pause: Set the COLOR/BW switch to BW to pause the game. The playfield walls will turn lite gray and the player will face left to indicate that the game is paused. Set the switch back to COLOR to continue gameplay.
Shooting: Behavior dependent upon position of Left Difficulty Switch. In either mode, the bullet travels in the direction that the player is presently moving.
Mode A (Left Difficulty Switch A): If player is standing still then the bullet moves in the direction that the player last moved. This is similar to the behavior implemented in Berzerk released by Stern Electronics, Inc. in 1982.
Mode B (Left Difficulty Switch B): If player is standing still then the bullet moves horizontally to the left when the player is facing left. Similarly, the bullet moves horizontally to the right when player is facing right.
Game Variants
Use Game Select switch while on Title Screen to cycle through game variants
Game 1 – (3) Lives, Limited Time, Limited Bullets (Normal Game)
Game 2 – (3) Lives, Unlimited Time, Unlimited Bullets
Game 3 – (3) Lives, Unlimited Time, No Bullets
Game 4 – Single Life, Limited Time, Limited Bullets
Game 5 – Single Life, Unlimited Time, Unlimited Bullets
Game 6 – Single Life, Unlimited Time, No Bullets
Scoring
$1000 for each money bag stolen.
On games where you have more than one life you will lose the money if you are caught/die before clearing the level by making it through the exit door.
Hints
It may help your overall strategy to get the police to chase you. You can get their attention by moving close to them. This works even if you are protected behind a wall.
Level Timers (Games 1 & 4)
Level
Time
1
30 seconds
2
24 seconds
3
30 seconds
4
24 seconds
5
20 seconds
6
16 seconds
7
28 seconds
8
24 seconds
9
14 seconds
10
12 seconds
11
20 seconds
12
16 seconds
13
20 seconds
14
16 seconds
15
36 seconds
16
32 seconds
17
20 seconds
18
16 seconds
19
24 seconds
20
20 seconds
I'm including the source code as it may help someone. I'm sure there are plenty of areas where the code could have been written better. Sometimes the 'hack' is actually a means of doing something without using additional variables. Other times what looks like a hack is truly a hack. It can be a little intimidating showing how the sausage is made... and there is no claim that anything performed by the code is the best way to do it.
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Ok, got it working. I reflashed BIOS and that solved the problem. I guess I assumed that since the SD card came pre-loaded it was loaded with the latest software. Anyway, works great now. Very cool to see my work on an actual TV!
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Well, I've tried all sorts of little tweaks to the code and file naming convention but still no luck. I've also tried on another 2600 console. No luck. This is very frustrating as there doesn't appear to be any way to track where the load is hanging. Thoughts? Thanks!
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I just revceived my Harmony Encore to test my DPC+ based homebrew. I purchased the SD card with the unit so it came pre-loaded. The preloaded games work but my game won't load at all... I just see a spinning logo. Once, upon turning off the atari, I swear I saw my title screen for a millisecond. I have the temp1=temp1 harmony fix in the code. The .bin is only 32k (that said, I don't think the Encore is size limited like the prior Harmony). The game runs fine on Stella. Any ideas what might be going on?
Thanks!
Tim
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Oops... corrected. Thanks for pointing that out.
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Aswome... thanks!
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9 minutes ago, TwentySixHundred said:Im fairly sure @Karl Ghas covered this before if you have a dig around on related posts. There is also the ability to use status bars which can work nicely too
Thanks. I saw that and have implemented the status bar for the count down timer but I'm really looking to use the score display to show numeric data associated with the timer and score (both). Maybe I don't even know enough to ask a good question but I guess I'm trying to figure out how to modify the score value so that it shows whatever data I want.
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I working on a game using the DPC+ kernel. I'd like to use the score at the bottom of the screen to display both a score and a timer value (0-99 seconds). That is, the left most digits would be the score and the right most digits a timer value. Of course, I'd like to use one of the digits as a space (i.e., displays no number) to seperate the values. Do you think it is even possible to insert a space into the score? I havent found any information on how, exactly, the score display works. Thoughts? Thanks.
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It seems that Stella has been modified to work with the DCP+ kernel. Am I correct that the Z26 emulator won't work when developing with the DCP+ Kernel?
Thanks!
Tim
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Ok, thanks! That is very helpful.
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Is there a good summary of the various bAtari kernels and their strengths and weaknesses somewhere? I have to believe there is... but my search is coming up empty. Thanks so much.
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That looks good. I think I'll do something similar. Thanks for the idea.
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I have no problem with soldering.. I just didn't want to hack my childhood 2600. Maybe I'll pick up a second unit to hack... Or mount the plugs in a seperate box (with slim cable running between it and 2600) so that everything would be reversible.
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Just an fyi (and maybe this has already been discovered), but I picked up one of these Super Video To VGA Converter With External Cable TV Tuner 1920x1200 Pixels in an attempt to connect my 2600 to the VGA port on my projector (also tried an LCD tv). No good. The Composite out worked better but still not good.
I really don't want to mod my 2600 in order to get it to work with my projector but maybe that's the only way. 
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Need Help - Joy0up + Joy0left = no shoot
in batari Basic
Posted
I haven't looked at your code but I recall as similar issue when I was working on my game 'Heist'. When running in stella and using the keyboard as joystick inputs, it wouldn't fire in that one combination either. If I plugged a usb joystick into my computer and used that... it worked. I believe it has something to do with the way the keyboard buffer works on some computers.