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hepcat

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Posts posted by hepcat

  1. Posted

    Overrated: Pitfall! I can't deny how influential it was, and it certainly isn't a bad game. However, it's very repetitive and not particularly challenging (unless you're going for a perfect score, of course.)

     

    Underrated: Eggomania. The standard line on this gem is that it's a ripoff of Kaboom! However, I'm not even sure that Kaboom! came out first (did it?) Also, while Eggomania never gets as insanely difficult as Kaboom! I can assure you that it is also extremely challenging when you make it to the highest level. Eggomania's graphics are comparable to Kaboom's, and I think Eggomania's sound effects and music are much better.

     

    --Jason

  2. Posted

    I think the $25.00 you paid for the cart is reasonable. It's in the range of what I've seen Frogger II go for in the past, when sold by itself anyway. However, the $4.00 shipping charge for a single cart is, as always, outrageous. :ponder:  

     

    --Jason

     

    Not to say that this guy might charge $4.00 and you will receive a $0.90 cent bubble envelope but I don't get it in general. :ponder:

     

    This is exactly what I'm talking about. I've paid $4.00 shipping for a cart only to receive a package with .75 cents postage on it. Bubble mailers don't cost that much.

     

    It's gotten to the point where the shipping charges prevent me from bidding on single carts I need, even if they're in great shape. Since I'm not going after 9's and 10's, the carts I want are going to show up time and again and I can wait for a seller who's not going to gouge me on shipping charges.

     

    However, I probably shouldn't have used the phrase "as always." Your items are predominantly big ticket items, and if I was in that market, I wouldn't mind paying more to make doubly sure the item reaches me safely.

     

    --Jason :)

  3. Posted

    I think the $25.00 you paid for the cart is reasonable. It's in the range of what I've seen Frogger II go for in the past, when sold by itself anyway. However, the $4.00 shipping charge for a single cart is, as always, outrageous. :ponder:

     

    --Jason

  5. Posted

    I can't decide between Pac-man and Ms. Pac-man. Ms. was more challenging, and I've played it more, but the original was just so cool, and the first video game I really got into.

     

    3d place--Pac-mania

    4th place--Pac-man Plus (Broke 250,000 on this last week... 8) )

    5th place--Jr. Pac-man

     

    --Jason

  6. Posted

    I'm looking for a fully functional Suncom Tac-2 or Starfighter joystick. I've already got one of each but neither works very well at all. :(

     

    Would anyone be willing to trade a Spectravideo Quickshot controller in the box for one of those two Suncom joysticks? The controller is in excellent condition and works great. The box shows some wear, but has all its flaps and is defintely useable.

     

    Thanks!

     

    --Jason

  8. Posted

    Two words:

     

    Cosmic Ark

     

    :x :x :x

     

    I can't believe no one mentioned this one yet. What got me so mad that I slapped the cartridge out of the console on several occasions was the asteroid section. Time and again I would shoot the asteroids well before they hit my ship, but it was like the bullets went right through them!! I have reacquired this game since I started collecting three years ago, but I haven't played it again other than to test it.

     

    As for Pitfall II, it is tricky, but I 've gotten a perfect score on several occasions and have never thought it was that hard. :ponder:

     

    --Jason

  9. Posted

    To answer the original question about Checkers, I have it, but haven't taken the time to really play it so I can't say. :roll:

     

    A sealed Beamrider for $10 is pretty good. :o I got my boxed HERO in excellent condition for about $12 and consider myself very lucky.

     

     

    --Jason

  11. Posted

    I've heard LocknChase referred to as a "poor man's Pac-man," which is strange because it's a much better game than 2600 Pac-man. The cops are MUCH smarter than Pac-man's ghosts, and you can't kill them, only trap them one at a time.

     

    I like LocknChase and would rank it as the best M Network game after Astroblast.

     

    --Jason

  12. Posted

    My vote for best Atari 2600 controller remains Suncom's Slik Stik, although I can see how it would be tough to use for people with bigger hands.

     

    My second place vote goes to the Sega Genesis controllers, ironic I know, but hey, they work great!

     

    Third place goes to the NES style contollers, although I find they hurt my thumb a bit, even with the tiny joystick attachment.

     

    I've heard great things about Suncom's Starfighter and Tac-2 joysticks as well, but I haven't been able to obtain fully functional examples of those yet.

     

    --Jason

  14. Posted

    A couple more points: As far as the number of different boards there are, I think it's 12. The last new one appears (I think) on the last board of level 8. After that the boards keep repeating with the monsters appearing in different combinations on each.

     

    Another reason why the game gets so difficult is the reduction in bonus points after clearing level 16. The bonus for getting the last gem increases by 100 each board, so by the time you reach level 16 it's over 7,000 points and you're getting a free man every two boards. Beginning on level 17, the bonus drops back to 1000 points and monsters continue moving at warp speed. I think that's one of the reasons I like this game so much; no matter how far you get a new challenge keeps presenting itself.

     

    Hmm...I think I'm gonna take a break from Mame and dig this cart out tonight. :)

     

    --Jason

  15. Posted

    I was randomly looking through some of the older topics here and stumbled across this one. Crystal Castles has always been one of my favorite 2600 games, (definitely in the top 5) and I think I can shed some light on this topic.

     

    The game doesn’t seem to have an ending. The speed of the monsters seems to max out on level 16, which BTW, also has the game’s most bizarre board. (It’s either the second or third board on level 16, I can’t remember which.) Three ghosts and three skeletons appear, and it’s actually quite difficult to clear this board because they all move very quickly and unpredictably and you can’t count on the gem eaters, trees, etc to help you clear out the gems before the swarm appears.

     

    If you do make it past level 16, the levels repeat. So, board 1 of level 17 (board 65 overall) is the same as the first board with its three crystal balls, except they’re MUCH faster. This also makes board 66 (a tree board) extremely difficult. The next major hurdle is getting past level 22 (same as level 6) with its two consecutive, insanely difficult tree boards. I have made it past these a few times, but usually with only a couple of lives left. I think that level 25 is the farthest I’ve ever made it with no end in sight.

     

    My high score on the game is about 670,000 which I got both in high school and a few years ago when I started collecting 2600 games. This was the highest score I’d ever heard of, but I recently saw on Twin Galaxies that the official high score for Atari 2600CC is over 800,000. I’d love to hear from whoever got THAT score, and ask them what level they made it to and how they handled those blasted level 22 tree boards! :?

     

    --Jason

  17. Posted

    My favorite joystck is Suncom's Slik Stik. I use it for both Atari games and Mame on my PC (with the PC Competitor Interface...) I've never had one break, and the response is incredible. It's pretty small though, so if you have big hands it might not be as effective.

     

    You can usually find a few of them on Ebay, but I also have a couple extras at home if you're interested.

     

    --Jason

     

    P.S.--Sega controllers also work great in my experience. The "B" button is your fire button.

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