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Updated "Encore" Hacks These are updates of my previous hacks. I did this for a variety of reasons. I included some of my "Personal" hacks. They are hacks of Pac-Man games. I use these on my personal systems. I decided to polish them a little and share them with the community. These are located at the end. Popeye When Playsoft & I originally hacked Popeye (2015), we had a version with a "mono" punch. I have since regretted not releasing it. It was NOT popular in the forum, but I always felt it might have caught on if we'd finished it. Development shifted to the popular forum choice. Years later, @TIX asked me if I still had it. I looked; I could find the final A8 version, but I couldn't find the source. People seemed to like the mono punch in Tix's hack (Popeye sacrifices color for a higher resolution punch), so it inspired me to finish mine. I started by porting the rest of my final graphics to the "mono" version. While I was porting the graphics, I noticed little areas I wanted to tweak. I had always disliked my climbing and death frames. I also felt that Olive didn't translate well from emulation to CRT. Since I tweaked some of the graphics, I also updated the original punch version too, for those who still prefer the double-resolution/multi-color punch. I really like Tix's version. His was based off of the NES port, while I grew up with the arcade version; so each offer a unique graphic experience. I thank him for the inspiration to unearth the mono punch and for the angled bottles. Thanks to Playsoft for finding the original source AND adding the animated bottles! -- When I first saw Popeye in the arcades, I was amazed. I never thought games could look this "real". The Atari resolution is lower, the players are limited to 8, fat dots wide, and they're not very tall. The characters are also limited to 3 colors each. Colors are limited to what two colors will overlap to simulate a flesh tone. However, I do not see any competitor, of the time, coming this close. While I love the NES version, it could have been much closer to the arcade original. I would love to see this on the 7800, using 320 mode. (The arcade version actually boxes out when sprites overlap!) I think the C-64 could have had a much better port, but the release was an early titele Atari 8-Bit Computers PopeyeA8_EncoreM.xex (Mono Punch) * (Intro of the MonoPunch - Click Here) PopeyeA8_Encore.xex (Original Punch) Atari 5200 SuperSystem PopeyeEncoreM_5200.bin (Mono Punch) * PopeyeEncore_5200.bin * The original punch uses two overlapping players, since that is the only way to get multi-colored "sprites". One is blue, and the other is flesh colored. When the blue and flesh color overlap, it creates white. The programmer was pretty ingenious in making the flesh color double-width, so the arm could stretch out. He left the blue as low resolution. It allows more detail than if the two were both expanded. However, it sacrifices detail for color. In the "mono" punch, both players are made white, and they are placed side-by-side, allowing for a wider version of Popeye, in greater detail. This thread goes into more detail! Click here! ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Donkey Kong (Encore) / Encore RMT (8-bit only) I was pretty happy with the Donkey Kong port. In some of the YouTube comments, I read that some were not happy with the colors I chose. This is a delicate situation, as many do not realize how limited the colors are. Mario's flesh is made up of two overlapping players. Tweaking the colors makes one character look better, and the others look worse. I played around with the colors, and I think I like this better. (Mario's flesh color is a result of red and blue overlapping, so this is truly the best compromise.) I focused on tweaking the contrast. I think this makes the game "pop" a little more. Colors have been slightly adjusted in doing so. I've tested it on real NTSC hardware (5200/800XL), and I am happy. Now there are two color sets to choose from. There was something still not right with Mario's steps and jump. Mario's jump is limited, because Mario is only 8-pixels wide. I think I improved it over the previous. I also improved his walking. Other insignificant changes were made. I hope you enjoy this. Thanks again to @playsoft for making this possible. I believe @Kjmann made the original RMT sound hack, with help from @tep392. Atari 8-bit Computers DKA8_Encore.xex DKA8_RMT_Encore.xex Atari 5200 SuperSystem DKEncore5200.bin ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Donkey Kong Jr. Encore(Arcade) / Donkey Kong Jr. Encore (Enhanced) This is one I was never really happy with. I got tired of "playing" with this back in the day. I tried to add all of Jr.'s arcade detail, but it ended up making his head too big. This update was focused on trimming the "fat" off of the sprites. Due to the lower resolution, I needed to sacrifice detail for proportion. I made a few color tweaks. This game has the most graphic updates of the "Encore" tweaks. Notice Donkey Kong's hands in the cage. I had some downtime, so I was able to focus on detail that I couldn't before. Thanks to @playsoft, for all the help. @tep392 helped tweak the floor and vine boundaries, back when we first hacked this. It's not as easy to slip off of the floors, and the red snapjaws can't get Junior at the bottom of a vine. The game still takes some adjustment, but it's a lot more forgiving. The Atari 8-Bit version was always a little touchy, due to the graphics mode used, but it captures a few of details that other versions are missing. Atari 8-bit Computers DkJr_Arcade_Encore.xex DKJr_Enhanced_Encore.xex Atari 5200 SuperSystem DKJr_5200_Arcade_Encore.bin DKJr_5200_Enhanced_Encore.bin ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mario Bros 5200 Encore / Encore-Improved I was pretty happy with the Mario Bros hacks. I did tweak some of the colors, especially in the ice ages. The regular "Encore" version includes graphic and color tweaks. The fighter flies are redrawn. The Encore-Improved version includes tweaks by @playsoft, that reduce slowdown in areas. The 5200 version included more arcade details than the NES version, which is what the poor 7800 version was based off of. It just needed a graphics overhaul to realize its full potential. Mario Bros52 Encore MarioBros52_Encore.bin MarioBros52_Encore.car Mario Bros52 Encore Improved (Less slowdown) MarioBros52_Encore_improved.bin MarioBros52_Encore_improved.car ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Mario Bros XE Encore Mario Bros XE is, in my opinion, the most accurate home port of the Mario Bros. I recall that there is only one other home port of Mario Bros that includes the icicles (No, I am not talking about the Slipice. Even the 2600 has Slipice!) I think that version might be the Apple II, and it isn't even close to this standard. I made some tweaks to Mario. I think it makes his running a little more fluent. I added the pupil up to his jump. I carried the improved fighter flies over from the 5200 version. That can't always be done, because the software sprites are configured differently on each version. I was able to do so. They look better in this version, however, due to more animation frames. I adjusted the contrast and colors a little, to make things POP. I REALLY wanted to make the Shellcreepers jump OUT of their shells. There just wasn't enough room. Atari 8-Bit Computers (need 128K or 128K Cartridge) MarioBrosXE_Encore.car MarioBrosXE_Encore.bin MarioBrosXE_Encore.xex --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- These are the Ms Pac-Man versions I use on my Atari 800XL & 5200. Atari Computer Ms Pac-Man Encore I always wondered why GCC didn't try to add red "lips" to Ms Pac-Man, especially in the 7800 version. I figured A8/5200 suspected it was a hardware limitation for this machine. When I realized that the A8/5200 versions had full player width available for the bow and lips, I made it happen. On a CRT, the lips can be hard to notice, especially if the signal isn't great. I suspect that might be the reason. Plus the red and black (eye next to red lips) tend to look like holes. I doubled the lips a little from the arcade for emphasis. I think they add and anti-aliasing effect, which "fakes" a higher resolution. I had to move her dimple down, because it interfered with the wide open mouth, due to the lower resolution and size. The monsters must remain 8-pixels wide, to hide the quad-width missile. It is behind their eyes, to make their eyes white. Thinner eyes are either off center or too far apart, due to the odd-numbered full-width players. I used a full "v" shape for years. I recently removed the inside pixel, to give them an angle, and I think it makes a subtle improvement. I wasn't going to post these, since there have been so many Ms Pac-Man hacks; plus I am not SURE who all have contributed to the various hacks that this is based off of. While I was cleaning up my other hacks, I decided to finally tackle all of the fruit prizes. I figure I will include these, since I didn't before. I will do my best to give credit where due. This A8 game already had the dot slowdown adjusted, Pokey sound was tweaked, and there are noticeable improvements in the monster logic. It plays more like the 7800 counterpart. Somewhere along the lines, I saw credits by @MrFish and @tep392. These are just my graphic edits. If anybody else needs credit, please let me know. Of all the monster eye hacks I've tried, below is my favorite for the A8/5200 tweak. I would like to round the monsters' "head", but that would reveal the white missiles behind the monsters. I am not sure who made the splash screen. It's pretty cool! Note: The 5200 version is slightly different. It only contained updated sound effects, which are slightly different than the A8 version's sound. @playsoft helped merge the dot slowdown fix, from the A8 to the 5200 version. Somebody had added a Ms Pac-Man splash screen to the 5200 ROM, but the game would freeze when I'd press Pause on real hardware. @playsoft stripped that off, and all works fine. It's a shame, because it was cool. I'd rather be able to use my pause button. Atari Computer Ms Pac-Man Encore Ms. Pac-Man_Encore.xex 5200 SuperSytem Ms Pac-Man Encore Ms Pac-Man Encore 5200.BIN --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pac-Man Collection 7800 Hack I bought Pac-Man Collection at the Cleveland Classic Gaming Show (CCAG). It was the first and last time AtariAge had a booth there, so it was a long time ago. I loved @PacManPlus's creation. It was exciting to have Pac-Man on the 7800, but Hangly-Man is one of my childhood favorites! The lack of Pokey sound kept me from playing it as much as I would have. When I found the Pokey enhanced version, I was pumped. The graphics had also been updated, but there were some things I preferred from my old A8 hacks. I used "Pac-Man Construction Set" to hack this. I found I was able to fine tune the monsters even more than the A8/5200, since I didn't have to worry about exposing the big white rectangle behind the monsters. I was able to thin them a little. I tried to make Ms Pac-Man as close to the arcade as possible. It looked great in emulation, but it was blurry and awkward on my actual system and Sony CRT. I tweaked it a little. I felt the result played to the strengths of the RF output on my 7800, and this is the version I have been using for years. As I was cleaning up old hacks, I decided to update the fruit prizes, as I had not done that in the hack I was using. I decided include this with my full-blow hack collaborations, because I enjoy it. I appreciate Pac-Man Plus's blessing to share this. I would ultimately like to update Ms Pac-Man to resemble my A8/5200 main characters, as they seem to be a better average for CRT and emulation. I was tired after hitting the fruits for all the different versions. If I update the main characters, I will add them here. I don't know when I'll have the time again, and I don't know if my A8/5200 main character will look the same on the 7800. 7800 Pac-Man Collection Pokey, with my graphic hacks. Pac-Man Collection Encore.a78 Pac-Man Collection Encore.bin 7800 Pac-Man Collection Pokey, with updates from the A8/5200 version. Not sure how they will look on a regular CRT. Not yet tested on actual 7800 hardware. Pac-Man Collection Encore(Alt).a78 Pac-Man Collection Encore(Alt).bin PacManPlus, @tep392, and @Defender_2600 have created a NEW 7800XM Pac-Man Collection, Pac-Man Collection XM. It has taken everything up a notch. It uses 320 mode, so there's very little need to approximate the graphics. Click the link to check it out. The TIA sound is mind-blowing, but Perry also added Yamaha sound for the XM Expansion. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Atari Computer / 5200 * Unplayable * Baby Pac-Man maze concept When @PacManPlus was working on Baby Pac-Man, I couldn't help but think that the A8 would be a perfect candidate for the game. Since the arcade monsters do no have whites in their eyes, it would be much like the original A8/5200 Pac-Man. Four Players could make up the monsters, and the "5th" Player could make up Pac-Man, or Pac-Man could be a software sprite. I shared a few Baby Pac-Man sprites with @playsoft, and he sent back a maze with wandering monsters. I proceeded to fine-tune some of the playfield elements. The monsters move randomly. They are lacking any personality. This was just a quick demo for fun. There is no plan to work on this, but maybe it will inspire somebody to bring Baby Pac-Man to the A8/5200?? I personally got a kick out of running this on my A8 and 5200 hardware. There is a regular version and enhanced. The enhanced version uses software sprites to create the monster's eyes. That was @playsoft's idea. I have a thing for arcade purity, and he wanted to see real eyes. It would be cool to have a toggle option for "Arcade" or "Enhanced" mode. Atari Home Computers BabyPac-Man_A8.xex BabyPac-Man_A8(Enhanced).xex Atari 5200 SuperSystem BabyPac-Man_5200.bin BabyPac-Man_5200(Enhanced).bin

Many thanks to all who contributed (see credits below) and voted. The final version includes a Novice, Arcade, and Expert difficulty. Novice - Rev F Popeye Faster; Spinach resets after losing a life; Extra @ 26,500 Arcade Comparable to arcade difficulty; extra life at 40,000 Expert Brutus is faster and more aggressive; Bernard is craftier; Items fall really fast Credits: Thanks to all who voted Popeye as 2020's "Best Homebrew Atari 7800 (WIP)". A SPECIAL game demo is available on the JS7800 emulator. This demo includes Novice & Expert. Popeye gets 2 lives, but he can earn a 3rd. The game ends after the ship, so POINT PRESSING IS A MUST! The game is 1 or 2 player alternating. Red background can be removed in the full version: right, down, right, up, up down Video: Below is the DEMO version (Most recent to oldest). Players can play 1 or 2 player. Players now get 2 lives and can earn a 3rd. Players cannot unlock the cheat mode in the demo. Arcade mode is the only level available. Novice and Expert are exclusive to the final version and the version on the JS7800 emulator. 3/3/2021 - Demo of version 2.40! For Concerto compatibility, I have to run firmware .95. Added High Score Cartridge header for use on 7800GD No slowdown Better collision detection Brutus throws 4 bottles, regardless of whether Popeye leaves his line of sight. Revision F is now pink, like the arcade. It can still be turned off with the code. Unlocked Novice and Expert levels Popeye now has 3 lives for all demo difficulty levels. (Full version offers 5 lives on Novice.) Still limited to 3 levels of play. Points awarded for punching bottles on the See-Saw level. Popeye_2.40_Demo_8-8-23.a78 3/3/2021 - RC3.5 Concerto still has issues at times. Dragonfly now seems stable. These issues do not happen on the final cart media. The mcpdev is also very stable. There are some minor cleanups. Fixed the color on the high score erase screen. This is it, unless some bugs come up that need attention. Popeye(RC3.5_Demo_NTSC-PAL).a78 Popeye(RC3.5_Demo_BUP).a78 2/25/2021 - RC3.4 Fine tuning. Brutus now jumps at an angle, like the arcade. It's not quite as drastic. Popeye(RC3.4_Demo).a78 Popeye(RC3.4_Demo-BUP).a78 2/22/2021 - RC3.3 Tile change on first level. Was able to add a rail to the ship's crow's nest, during the intro and level clear. I also found out that Olive doesn't scold Popeye if a Letter falls into the water, on the ship level. I have corrected that inconsistency. I assume it doesn't make sense, since she's captured in this level. Popeye(RC3.3_Demo_NTSC-PAL).a78 Popeye(RC3.3_Demo_BUP).a78 2/21/2021 - RC3.2 More minor graphical changes. Now the title Popeye head has a brown pipe, like the arcade. Tile tweaks on the first level. Also reversed the ship mast shading, to match the arcade. Popeye(RC3.2Demo_NTSC-PAL).a78 Popeye(RC3.2Demo_BUP).a78 2/21/2021 - RC3.1 Minor update. Has a few tile changes Popeye(RC3.1_Demo).a78 Popeye(RC3.1_Demo_BUP).a78 2/20/2021 - RC3.0 This version has a lot more changes than a "release candidate" should have. From this point out, I would like to stick to bug-fixes. Fixed a high score issue, which was introduced by adding the High Score Clear. I noticed this while watching the @ZeroPage Homebrew stream. Each difficulty should line up properly now (Novice, Arcade, and Expert). No high score device should read "Top 5 Chart". That is the header for the arcade table. High Score Clear is accessed by holding RESET and pressing both buttons on the first stick! Also seen on ZPH: Brutus doesn't get stuck in the bottom left corner when Popeye has the spinach. (He gets stuck in the bottom left corner of the Notes board, but that is by design. That happens in the arcade.) @Defender_2600 had color suggestions: Popeye's drawn with a different hue of blue. The ship has a more midnight blue background, and the floors are more golden than yellow. (The arcade is a dark blue-ish purple when I play on an actual arcade machine. It seems similar in MAME.) Defender2600 had level suggestions: The Notes screen tower is now slightly thinner. The floor that leads to the see saw no longer extends to the end of the building. This required a lot of work in adjusting the logic. (See below) Fixed some tiles on the ship level. More color adjustments. REV F ROM set (Novice is based off an easier Popeye arcade ROM) has more of a burgundy background, on the Hearts level. The arcade REV F has a pink-ish background. I think this works well. The old "brown" was mistaken for green. Popeye now turns red, instead of pink, when he eats the spinach. Logic adjustments with see saw logic: This was about 8-10 hours consuming. I had some logic in place. Moving the floor exposed a couple holes in that logic, given a very specific alignment of the stars. In making the level adjustment, I got to recreate the 1%. It was still extremely hard to recreate. If Brutus kicked into pursuit mode, right as Popeye jumped onto the see saw, Brutus could still jump on top of Popeye. I believe I worked this out. I can't seem to get it to happen again. Tune adjustment: If the last item gets collected from the water, the game does not revert to the level tune. Last Note & Last Letter would sometimes still be present. I think I took care of that issue. Fixed some garbage that would flash after dying on the Notes stage. Popeye(RC3_Demo_NTSC-PAL).a78 Popeye(RC3_Demo_BUP).a78 2/9/2021 - RC2.9 Many fixes and updates. I am concerned that "Arcade" difficulty feels a little easier to me. That might encourage more people to play the arcade difficulty. I do want it to feel like the arcade challenge though. I can run this for hours on my Dragonfly and versa-cart, without any issues. It does crash at times on Concerto. It seems to be when idling in attract mode. 1. Fixed remaining issues with Brutus's pursuit music. 2. Colors and spinach timing are different for NTSC and PAL systems. 3. Reduced slowdown by limiting collision detection-per-frame. 4. Better proportioned Bucket. @KevinMos3 5. Adjusted the better proportioned bucket to fit Brutus's head 6. Lessened the use of flicker in some areas, due to the overhead saved in adjusting the collision. 7. Minor bug fix: Popeye disappears if collecting the last note when starting up or down the ladder. 8. Updated the Windows on the Notes Level. 9. Found duplicate tiles, and used the extras for "Thru" posts on level 2. 10. Last player 1 and player 2 scores display in blue during demo. 11. Fine-tuned Popeye's punch. ** 12. Popeye walks off the screen when wrapping around on the levels. ** 13. Brutus doesn't gain super speed when Popeye gets the spinach. 14. Brutus imitates the quirky behavior of the arcade when he's stuck in the corner, by the see saw. (When Popeye has spinach) 15. Brutus logic tweaks. 16. Fixed some artifacting when returning from demo play. Popeye(RC2.9_Demo-NTSC-PAL).a78 Popeye(RC2.9_Demo-BUP).a78 Most will not notice this change. Eliminates a flash of garbage after Popeye dies on the notes and ship levels. Popeye(RC2.9a_Demo_NTSC-PAL)s.a78 Popeye(RC2.9a_Demo_BUP).a78 2/1/2021 - RC2.8 Update. Only need one version for A7800, Concerto, and Dragonfly. BUP has a special version. I can play this version all day on my Dragonfly or versa-cart, and it doesn't crash. It plays pretty long on the Concerto, especially once things are warmed up. There's nothing I can do about that at this time. That was the inspiration to clean much of the back code up. A LOT of behind-the-scenes cleanup & some polish The bottles rotate slower - @tep392 Olive doesn't constantly walk on the Notes and Ship. (This affects game play in other ways that I won't disclose.) When Brutus gets his burst of energy, the bottle throwing music now plays, like the arcade. Popeye's house now has window panes. I can't believe I missed that. Popeye's now falls below the water line when he dies. On the arcade, Popeye reappears at the waterline, following the splash. I made Popeye bob back to the top. I like arcade purity, but I think they did it that way for sprite overlap issues with the water. The demo play scene is now more versatile. Popeye gets scolded often, like the arcade. Fixed rare combination that would silence music on the Notes level. Popeye(RC-2.8_Demo).a78 Popeye(RC-2.8_Demo-BUP).a78 As always, play the point-pressing version on JS7800! 1/26/2021 - RC2.7 The levels are now more in-line with the arcade aspect. Many tiles were re-drawn and repurposed. This was a 14-hour day (with hour break) and a few hours the following evening. The characters now know the levels, the attract modes are up to date, and everything seems fine. Let me know if there are any issues. @Defender_2600 suggested that I address the issue with the crammed levels. I didn't think I'd have enough tiles, but it worked out in the end. I think it was worth the effort. He also recommended toning down the yellow a little. Redrew the tiles Reprogrammed the tile graphics to line up with the new tile indexes (Hearts in the house, Whimpy and the see saw, etc.) Reset the coordinates for the staircases Reworked the self-play intro Cleaned up some sprite plotting. Adjusted some areas where the text colors were not flipping correctly. Popeye(RC2.7_Demo).a78 Popeye(RC2.7_Demo-BUP).a78 Popeye(RC2.7_Demo-Concerto).a78 1/23/2021 - RC 2.6 This version has major tile re-work. I started cleaning up the first level. This simulates the lower-res look of the arcade. In doing so, this cleans things up. Bricks are no longer 1px apart vertically, the stairs have 2px underneath. The floors are thicker, including the bottom level. I am unable to color the bottom blue, but I have a water shadow of sorts, to keep in the arcade spirit. On the logic side, I adjusted Brutus's randomness. He is less likely to jump down, based on difficulty, round, and number of items collected. This may not be obvious, because he will still jump down a decent amount of the time. Changing logic meant adjusting the demo play. The demo play now starts with an example of a heart falling into the water. Popeye(Beta2.6_Demo).a78 Popeye(Beta2.6_Demo-BUP).a78 Popeye(Beta2.6_Demo-Concerto).a78 1/16/2025 - RC 2.5 I wasn't going to do this, due to the amount of work, but I had to. New upper playfield on Level 1. The tileset with the grass are now one row lower, allowing more arcade-accuracy. Transferred tiles from one tileset to another, which caused an offset in tiles re-aligned plotted tiles (hearts in Popeye's house) Olive will now center herself after throwing the last heart. This keeps the large heart from being drawn off-screen. Fixed the staircase "bricks" to be blockier, like the arcade Revision F has a plum background, to match the arcade ROMs Flower doesn't disappear when level 1 is cleared Popeye(RC2.5_Demo).a78 Popeye(RC2.5_Demo-BUP).a78 Popeye(RC2.5_Demo-Concerto).a78 1/14/2021 - RC 2.4 Got rid of random off-pitch item collection noise, @playsoft This makes the game more stable using the Concerto. The sound seems to behave similarly to other games I tested. This has gotten rid of complete songs playing out of tune or missing parts. Updated sprites and palettes Title music plays every other loop; Atari Today only plays when the game is turned on. Olive doesn't walk in space after scolding Popeye Popeye's footsteps are closer to the arcade pattern. Overhaul of Popeye's ladder climb Fix some reset behavior The JS7800 Demo will also be updated, which allows Novice & Expert to be played. Popeye(RC2.4_Demo).a78 Popeye(RC2.4_Demo_Bup).a78 Popeye(RC2.4_Demo-Concerto).a78 1/2/2021 - Beta 2.9 Two-Player with shared joystick option. I figure this will be helpful for people with only one joystick. Sometimes I just like to play a two player game by myself. This should also help @ZeroPage Homebrew too ;). New death sound by @Synthpopalooza Updated the credits page More Popeye sprite tweaks Updated self-play sequence Brutus is smarter when Popeye has the spinach. Olive screams "HELP!" on the ship level. "Popeye Catch!" call out is present on the Notes level now. (Yes, the gray does show through the letters on the arcade too!) If the punch button is pressed during an intro or pause before a level starts, Popeye will punch when the level begins. This is a personal detail I wanted to include from the arcade. I am out of space in the hearts bank, so that level doesn't have a pause after the intro. No room. Shifted some code for less bank switching on the hearts level. Brutus is back to throwing a minimum of 2 bottles, instead of 4. This reduces slowdown, which is a better experience. All systems of the day made exceptions. He will still throw up to 4, if Popeye is in his line of site. Popeye(Beta2.9_Demo).a78 Popeye(Beta2.9_Demo-BUP).a78 Popeye(Beta2.9_Demo-Concerto).a78 12/25/2020 - Beta 2.8 - Many Changes. Merry Christmas/Happy Holidays Thanks to @tep392, I have confirmation that POKEY sound on actual hardware matches emulation. Just in time for a late Christmas release! Sound will still cut in and out on the Concerto, but some sound is better than none! Since it's Christmas, I have changed the "DEMO" version to include 2 lives (an extra life can be earned). The game now ends after clearing the SHIP. Updated sprites and colors Brutus has different color outfits to match each level Other various changes *** Brutus now throws all 4 bottles, like the arcade. I am not sure that I want to keep this, but I wanted to try it for a version. In a previous version, I added code to allow Brutus to stop throwing bottles after the second one, if Popeye leaves his line of sight. This helps eliminate some minor slow down. Also, there are certain areas where Brutus and the bottles will cause sprite overload. This is found on the Notes level. Should I sacrifice arcade pureness for this to eliminate slowdown and what ends up being flicker? I might go back in the next version. Will that be the final version? Updates some of the self-playing demo routines. Updated the credits. That still needs tweaked and cleaned up, but I wanted to get it out there. Popeye(Beta2.8_Demo).a78 Popeye(Beta2.8_Demo_BUP).a78 Popeye(Beta2.8_Demo-Concerto).a78 Popeye(Beta2.8_Demo).bin 12/8/2020 - Beta 2.7f - Fixes and clean-up. Popeye(Beta2.7f_Demo).a78 Popeye(Beta2.7f_Demo_BUP).a78 Popeye(Beta2.7f_Demo-Concerto).a78 Popeye(Beta2.7f_Demo).bin 11/27-2020 - Beta 2.7 Popeye(Beta2.7_Demo).a78 Popeye(Beta2.7_Demo).bin 11/24/2020 - Beta 2.6 Updated high score routines No High Score device - "Todays Top 5" will be stored with initials until power off. High Score device - "Novice Top 5", "Arcade Top 5", and "Expert Top 5" saved permanently. Brutus will wait for Popeye to clear the see saw, like the arcade. He did before in most cases. I fixed this when Brutus is in pursuit mode. Fixed artifacting on Title screen, found when level was selected in 2.5b Popeye(Beta2.6_Demo).a78 Popeye(Beta2.6_Demo).bin 11/23/2020 - Beta 2.5b - Update Popeye's fall (slower), fix bottle collision at far left, align some title elements. Popeye(Beta2.5b_Demo).a78 Popeye(Beta2.5b_Demo_BUP).a78(BUP disables high score saving, to work with BupSystem emulator) Popeye(Beta2.5b_Demo).bin 11/23/2020 - Beta 2.5a - Fix collision issues with items (still broken on some far-left bottles); Set Popeye stance after punch; slowed notes on higher levels Popeye(Beta2.5a_Demo).a78 Popeye(Beta2.5a_Demo).bin Popeye(Beta2.5a_Demo_Bup).a78 11/09/2020 - Original public demo Popeye(Beta2.1_Demo).a78 Popeye(Beta2.7f_Demo).bin Older revision screenshots

I’m Popeye the sailor man. Toot toot!

This is NOT the Popeye arcade game!!!!! Please do not expect the arcade version. This was my learning tool. There is a history of my journey below the latest version. When I finally figured out how to plot a background, I made Popeye follow the board. Brutus just went back and forth, jumping up occasionally. ...Then I added extra punch frames. ...Then I added Olive. ...Then I made Brutus follow the screen, collision detection, spinach, a heart, etc. ...It would require almost a full re-write to change this up, because there wasn't a lot of planning behind the current code. I just kept adding things. It would take planning to consolidate and add anything more. I also lack the time to dedicate. I wasn't planning on releasing this, but I figure somebody might enjoy it. It's almost like having Popeye. In the past 3 days, I've added basic logic to Brutus, scoring, sound, and cheesy title/level end screens. It's become kind of an obsession. Every time I think I am content, I decide to add something new. This doesn't play like Popeye. It is a little faster. Just try to see how much you can score before Brutus gets you. The hearts will also fall into the water. You have one life and one level, so it's like an Odyssey 2 game with better graphics. The scoring is based on the arcade 24 hearts clears a level. Level 2 adds some additional logic to Brutus. I added basic sound, because I felt it was too quiet. 9/1/2020 -- Minor Updates. PopeyeMiniGame.beta3-1.a78 PopeyeMiniGame.beta3-1.bin Used "double buffer" to get rid of the random garbage (Cannot shake the screen with the double buffer) Added proper heart for level clear Cleared the screen on "Game Over", like the arcade (Clear with yellow text) Added pauses before rounds ------------- End 9/1/2020 ------------- 8/31/2020 -- Added Sea Hag, bottles, up to 3 hearts at one time, and other adjustments -- More Info Here PopeyeMiniGame_beta3.a78 PopeyeMiniGame_beta3.bin 8/25/2020 - Full screen adjustments and tweaks PopeyeMiniGame_beta2.a78 PopeyeMiniGame._beta2.bin Added Utilized full screen width. This compromised the number of sprites per row. To remedy this, I drew the hearts, spinach, bucket, and punching bag on the correct size sprite, instead of using an entire 16x16. I redrew the spinach platforms as part of the screen, instead of using sprites. Added screen shaking when Brutus hits the wall Made adjustments to find the top and bottom of steps easier Cleaned up some sound effects Re positioned the heart count. I tried to draw all of the hears, but it cause major slow-down. I might try a couple other ideas later, but this is on hold. Eliminated the 30pts when punching the bag. Sprites were not getting drawn. Slowed down the speed of the hearts on the first two levels. This makes it easier to camp out, but doing so will lose out on a chance to use the spinach and bucket. Tweaked jumping off the top levels Adjusted the punch to lunge less, like the arcade. Considerations As time allows, I will consider adding bottles. I am not sure what the sprite limitation will be. As time allows, I would like to consider multiple hearts. I'd like to clean up the sprites. If the above go well, I may consider refining the logic, to consider a full game. End 8/25/2020 8/23/2020 Bugfix I consider this a beta, because I might take some time to fix some of the quirks. PopeyeMiniGame_beta1.a78 PopeyeMiniGame_beta1.bin End 8/23/2020------------------- Update 8/24/2020 -- ** Bug Fix **: I figured out how to reproduce the bug. It occurred if Popeye started up stairs just as the spinach wore off. I think this has squashed it. PopeyeMiniGame_beta1b.a78 PopeyeMiniGame_beta1b.bin End 8/24/2020 HISTORY: I didn't set out to make this into a game. Here is the general order of things. I wanted to learn about the 7800, so I downloaded 7800Basic on the 9th. It took me 3 days to figure out how to create a PNG file that would display on screen. Once I figured that out, I created a really rough Brutus sprite. He was animated for left and right movement, but moved anywhere on the blank playfield. Eventually, I made Brutus go back and forth. Popeye was controlled by the stick, and Brutus would jump up if Popeye got too close. It took me another 3 days to figure out how to draw a playfield. Even after that, it was pretty ugly. I had given up, but decided to start over on the 14th. By the 15th, I started to get it. On the 16th, I finally got it. The steps looked kind of narrow. On the 17th, I decided to start the playfield over. I changed it up a little By the 18th By the 19th, it resembled the current version. I started adding play elements. Once I finalized the background, I started adding things. I decided to add sound yesterday, 8/22/2020. I used the samples from Atari Basic. Today, 8/23/2020, I learned how to tweak the sound. It isn't much, but it's better than silence. --Darryl PopeyeMiniGame_beta1a.a78 PopeyeMiniGame_beta1a.bin PopeyeMiniGame_beta1b.a78

Courtesy of Homesoft. Enjoy! Popeye.zip