Pixelboy Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 Happy New Year, retro-enthusiasts of the ColecoVision alignment! Last week's news bulletin was a bit light, because that day I worked feverishly in the morning and the afternoon to contact everyone who placed pre-orders for Team Pixelboy titles, and then I had a Christmas party to go to in the evening. This news bulletin will feature everything I didn't have time to cover last week, and much more. So I hope you're a patient reader, because I've got a lot of things to say today! ORDERS First of all, I'd like to mention that I've been keeping up with e-mails pretty well this past week, but as of right now, I still haven't contacted anyone yet to provide them with shipping options. The main reason for this is that I've been busy with all kinds of things this past week, including having to go to work three days in a row (not fun, but the boss wasn't there, so it was pretty relaxing, at least). But there's another reason too: I've been stalling a little bit. You see, there's a nasty little bug in Pitfall II Arcade, which can cause the game to freeze up in a very specific spot within the game. It's a totally avoidable bug, fortunately, but I need to include an addendum in the manual to explain how to avoid it. I would have had this addendum printed right away, but the print shop (which printed all my game manuals) is currently closed for the Holidays and will reopen on January 4th. The print shop is usually pretty quick on the job, so it shouldn't take more than a couple of days for me to get the addendums, and then I'll be able to push Pitfall II Arcade and the other games out the door. I'll start contacting customers this week-end to provide shipping options and get the ball rolling again with proper invoices and payment instructions. I have already bought a good number of shipping boxes and a couple of rolls of bubble wrap, and I'll buy more on Monday, so I believe I'll be able to start shipping games early next week. Thanks for your patience. ABOUT TRACK & FIELD... The most surprising aspect of my recent simultaneous release of six ColecoVision games has been the popularity of Track & Field. I thought it would sell reasonably well... But when it managed to out-sell Pitfall II Arcade in the last few days, I had to admit that "reasonably well" was quite an understatement. The orders for this game keep coming in even today, including confirmed orders from people who placed an actual pre-order for Track & Field within the last few months. A few of those people were a little upset when I told them that all copies were gone, even though they had placed a pre-order specifically for it, and they asked for an explaination. I think I should give this explaination here, for all to read and understand. I was in an unusual situation leading up to the release of my six games: Many people on my waiting lists were only contacted about Gulkave, Girl's Garden and Peek-a-boo last February, and a lot of those were not informed that I had postponed the release of those three games (to get the boxes reprinted) and that three more games were coming later in the year. Back in November, I had problems getting the cartridges assembled for Pitfall II Arcade and Track & Field. I was losing precious time, yet I really wanted the official release to happen before the end of the year, and the only way I could make that happen was to get only 30 copies of Track & Field and 50 copies of Pitfall II Arcade assembled. It all worked out in the end, but in the days leading up to the official release, I had a bit of a dilemma: Some people had placed a pre-order for Track & Field, but as I mentioned above, many more on my waiting lists weren't even aware that Track & Field was coming. I felt that the fair thing to do (especially since I released my games on Christmas day) was to send the same notification about all six games to everyone on my waiting lists, and to work on a first-come-first-served basis. Less than 10 hours after I started sending out e-mails to people, all copies of Track & Field had been snatched up with confirmed orders. I definately didn't see that one coming! And then I had to disappoint everyone else afterwards. It was indeed unfair to some, however I believe I would have gotten a LOT more flak if I had prioritized those who had actually placed a pre-order for Track & Field and Pitfall II Arcade in the last few months. I do have some good news though: For the next run of Track & Field and Pitfall II Arcade (which will come in February or March 2011) I will NOT be working on a last-minute first-come-first-served basis like I did this past week. Those who place their pre-orders now for Track & Field and Pitfall II Arcade will be guaranteed to get their copies. You have my word on that. The only unfortunate downside is that I will not be able to include an Atari 2600 Track & Field controller, as they are all spoken for. LOOKING BACK ON 2010 All I really want to say is that I won't have very fond memories of 2010, especially where Team Pixelboy is concerned. There were several victories (getting Pitfall II Arcade ported in just a few months, getting beautiful boxes printed in Germany, getting Destructor SCE done in record time, seing my Activision PCB pass the prototype stage, etc.) but I will remember 2010 mostly for its setbacks, delays, let-downs and lost friendships. Releasing six games simultaneously is no easy feat, believe me. I'm a guy who likes to meet deadlines and get things done on time, so excuse me if I need to vent a little... WHAT'S IN STORE FOR TEAM PIXELBOY IN 2011 So what can you expect from Team Pixelboy in 2011? Not much, I must admit. The recent simultaneous release of six games was the result of a rare alignment of planets, so to speak, and it will surely not happen again in 2011. But that doesn't mean I'll be resting on my laurels, far from it in fact! My main hobby project for 2011 will be BasicVision, a programming language tailored specifically for the ColecoVision. After coding the basic language parser in Java, I will need to learn how to program in Z80 assembly language in order to create a compiler that will transform BasicVision source code into straight assembly source code, which will then be compiled into a cartridge ROM using an existing assembly compiler (like TASM, or whatever else is out there). I currently know next to nothing about Z80 assembly, so it will be an interesting challenge. Add to that the design and implementation of graphic and sound editing tools, and you have quite a major project. If I manage to get it all working properly, I will surely use BasicVision to program lots of ColecoVision games afterwards! Better yet, it will hopefully encourage others to use BasicVision to program their own games. Another project of mine for 2011 will be to pick up the port of The Black Onyx done by Bruce Tomlin a few years ago. Mainly, I want to replace the clunky password system with a savegame chip, and tweak a few things here and there in the software. My good friend Stephen Seehorn (the guy who brought you Pitfall II Arcade and Destructor SCE) has already volunteered to implement the changes, but what will set this project apart from the others is the fact that I will NOT be participating to the beta-testing phase myself, because I want to devote as much time as I possibly can to BasicVision. This implies that I will need beta-testers, several of them. I was told by Steven Tucker that his AtariMax SD cartridge could be configured to emulate the EEPROM savegame chip on my Activision PCB, and anyone who wishes to be part of the Black Onyx beta-testing team will need to own such an SD cartridge. And they will also need to have a lot of free time on their hands, because this isn't Pac-Man, people, it's a full-blown RPG with lots of nooks and crannies to explore. Bruce Tomlin did an excellent job with the port already, but still, testing this game for "just a few hours" isn't going to cut it. And if I can't find at least three highly-motivated beta-testers, then this game is not going to happen, period. Even if The Black Onyx is done and working before the end of this year, it will probably only be released in 2012. Aside from the two projects outlined above, I'll put some effort into documenting the Activision PCB, so that other Colecovision homebrewers may use it if they're interested in it. I will also ask Albert to ship all those 1500+ Activision casings (which are currently stored in his garage) to me and I'll have PCBs manufactured for each of them. Also, if I'm in the mood, I'll work a little on Boxxle this year too. So from everyone else's point of view, 2011 will be a slow year for Team Pixelboy. But a lot of things will be brewing behind closed doors! This concludes this Team Pixelboy News Bulletin. We now return you to your regular forum activities. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rev Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 nice update. and a very interesting read. sorry to hear about the bug though. but just as long as it can be avoided and is still playable it dont bother me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Yurkie Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 sorry to hear about the bug though. but just as long as it can be avoided and is still playable it dont bother me! As Pixelboy stated the bug in Pitfall II arcade is very avoidable. By adding an addendum to the manual, he is going the extra mile to save gamers some frustration. Pitfall II Arcade is a fantastic game, and in my opinion, a must have for homebrew collectors. Thanks for all your hard work. +1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newcoleco Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 Happy New Year, retro-enthusiasts of the ColecoVision alignment! Happy New Year and best wishes to you too, Last week's news bulletin was a bit light, because that day I worked feverishly in the morning and the afternoon to contact everyone who placed pre-orders for Team Pixelboy titles, and then I had a Christmas party to go to in the evening. This news bulletin will feature everything I didn't have time to cover last week, and much more. So I hope you're a patient reader, because I've got a lot of things to say today! Hope you will take time now to relax a little bit. Yes, it's a very long message to read with a lot of informations. So, you were busy at work while others enjoyed the end of the year with their families... and also you sent emails to those who paid for the CV games you just released in the end of 2010... and even the print shop wasn't able to be fast enough for you... I hope you will take a break eventually in 2011. ABOUT TRACK & FIELD... The most surprising aspect of my recent simultaneous release of six ColecoVision games has been the popularity of Track & Field. I thought it would sell reasonably well... But when it managed to out-sell Pitfall II Arcade in the last few days, I had to admit that "reasonably well" was quite an understatement. ... I do have some good news though: For the next run of Track & Field and Pitfall II Arcade (which will come in February or March 2011) I will NOT be working on a last-minute first-come-first-served basis like I did this past week. Those who place their pre-orders now for Track & Field and Pitfall II Arcade will be guaranteed to get their copies. You have my word on that. The only unfortunate downside is that I will not be able to include an Atari 2600 Track & Field controller, as they are all spoken for. It's kinda fortunate that I didn't publish a video yet regarding your incredible release. All this new information is like a great story to tell. LOOKING BACK ON 2010 All I really want to say is that I won't have very fond memories of 2010, especially where Team Pixelboy is concerned. There were several victories (getting Pitfall II Arcade ported in just a few months, getting beautiful boxes printed in Germany, getting Destructor SCE done in record time, seing my Activision PCB pass the prototype stage, etc.) but I will remember 2010 mostly for its setbacks, delays, let-downs and lost friendships. Releasing six games simultaneously is no easy feat, believe me. I'm a guy who likes to meet deadlines and get things done on time, so excuse me if I need to vent a little... Ho yes, I believe you are a guy who likes to meet deadlines... but try to not burn yourself in the process. I rarely respect my own deadlines concerning my coleco projects, even if I try very hard. In a sense, it's understandable because I program games for fun, as a hobby. WHAT'S IN STORE FOR TEAM PIXELBOY IN 2011 So what can you expect from Team Pixelboy in 2011? Not much, I must admit. The recent simultaneous release of six games was the result of a rare alignment of planets, so to speak, and it will surely not happen again in 2011. But that doesn't mean I'll be resting on my laurels, far from it in fact! My main hobby project for 2011 will be BasicVision, a programming language tailored specifically for the ColecoVision. After coding the basic language parser in Java, I will need to learn how to program in Z80 assembly language in order to create a compiler that will transform BasicVision source code into straight assembly source code, which will then be compiled into a cartridge ROM using an existing assembly compiler (like TASM, or whatever else is out there). I currently know next to nothing about Z80 assembly, so it will be an interesting challenge. Add to that the design and implementation of graphic and sound editing tools, and you have quite a major project. If I manage to get it all working properly, I will surely use BasicVision to program lots of ColecoVision games afterwards! Better yet, it will hopefully encourage others to use BasicVision to program their own games. I know that there is not much information about coleco programming in assembly language. Norman Nithman was the first I know to give it a try and even released a demo game "tic tac toe" in 1996 with source code. Meanwhile, adamites had already the knowledge, the official "colecovision programming" document by Coleco Industries. And I used this knowledge to publish a few listings, even in video format, which I hope will help a few programmers for getting started. I personaly still use documents about Z80 (particulary "How to program the Z80 (Rodnay Zaks)" which I even mention on my Youtube channel) to figure out which opcodes do exist and what they do... mostly when it comes time to try to save a few bytes and cpu cycles like when I programmed my libraries (was first in C, but optimized in assembly very early), Reversi (I optimized the AI in assembly codes to speed up the thinking process), some 4K minigames and of course GhostBlaster (my first game engine entirely in assembly codes). Another project of mine for 2011 will be to pick up the port of The Black Onyx done by Bruce Tomlin a few years ago. Mainly, I want to replace the clunky password system with a savegame chip, and tweak a few things here and there in the software. My good friend Stephen Seehorn (the guy who brought you Pitfall II Arcade and Destructor SCE) has already volunteered to implement the changes, but what will set this project apart from the others is the fact that I will NOT be participating to the beta-testing phase myself, because I want to devote as much time as I possibly can to BasicVision. This implies that I will need beta-testers, several of them. I was told by Steven Tucker that his AtariMax SD cartridge could be configured to emulate the EEPROM savegame chip on my Activision PCB, and anyone who wishes to be part of the Black Onyx beta-testing team will need to own such an SD cartridge. I don't have the SD cartridge model, sorry. Aside from the two projects outlined above, I'll put some effort into documenting the Activision PCB, so that other Colecovision homebrewers may use it if they're interested in it. I will also ask Albert to ship all those 1500+ Activision casings (which are currently stored in his garage) to me and I'll have PCBs manufactured for each of them. Also, if I'm in the mood, I'll work a little on Boxxle this year too. So from everyone else's point of view, 2011 will be a slow year for Team Pixelboy. But a lot of things will be brewing behind closed doors!Wow, too many good things in perspective... I can't wait! Seriously, I can wait, I'm just too excited seeing all the efforts you put in the ColecoVision scene. Soon, people will even forget that I exist because of all the work you put forward to keep the ColecoVision scene alive. All this information starts well a new year! Thank you from a Coleco fan and homebrewer! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted January 1, 2011 Author Share Posted January 1, 2011 Sorry to hear about the bug though. but just as long as it can be avoided and is still playable it dont bother me! The addendum will feature a portion of the game map and a clear indication of where the bug occurs. From there, it's only a question of remembering this special spot whenever you play. Stephen tried to fix it, but it was too complicated to fix properly without turning the source code upside down. We determined that the game freezes up because too much is happening on the TV screen at that specific spot of the map. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+evg2000 Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 Happy New Year Pixelboy (and everyone else), thanks for all you did in 2010 and I hope you have a great 2011! charles Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted January 1, 2011 Author Share Posted January 1, 2011 So, you were busy at work while others enjoyed the end of the year with their families... and also you sent emails to those who paid for the CV games you just released in the end of 2010... and even the print shop wasn't able to be fast enough for you... I hope you will take a break eventually in 2011. Oh, I'll take a break alright, in late January after most of the orders will have shipped. These last few years, I had this tradition of watching all 24 episodes of the latest season of "24" on DVD, over a couple of days during the Holidays, but I had to postpone watching season 8 this year because I simply had too many things to do with my Team Pixelboy operations. But I'll watch it in about a month, as part of the little vacation I'll take after the sales rush is behind me. Ho yes, I believe you are a guy who likes to meet deadlines... but try to not burn yourself in the process. I rarely respect my own deadlines concerning my coleco projects, even if I try very hard. In a sense, it's understandable because I program games for fun, as a hobby. Setting deadlines is part of the fun, in my point of view. Otherwise, when things drag on for too long, the wait gets tedious and it sort of kills the enjoyment of it all. When you have a lot of interesting projects lined up, like I do, you want to get the current project done ASAP so that you can move on to the next. That requires a certain degree of discipline, and sometimes you have to cut a few corners and make uneasy decisions. And sometimes you also have to be a bit of a pest with the people who help you out. It's all part of the homebrewing game, as far as I'm concerned. In the end, it's the result that counts. I know that there is not much information about coleco programming in assembly language. Norman Nithman was the first I know to give it a try and even released a demo game "tic tac toe" in 1996 with source code. Meanwhile, adamites had already the knowledge, the official "colecovision programming" document by Coleco Industries. And I used this knowledge to publish a few listings, even in video format, which I hope will help a few programmers for getting started. I personaly still use documents about Z80 (particulary "How to program the Z80 (Rodnay Zaks)" which I even mention on my Youtube channel) to figure out which opcodes do exist and what they do... mostly when it comes time to try to save a few bytes and cpu cycles like when I programmed my libraries (was first in C, but optimized in assembly very early), Reversi (I optimized the AI in assembly codes to speed up the thinking process), some 4K minigames and of course GhostBlaster (my first game engine entirely in assembly codes). I don't want to think too much about Z80 programming right now, I have enough on my mind, but I'll get around to it. I'll have to if I want BasicVision to become reality. Aside from the two projects outlined above, I'll put some effort into documenting the Activision PCB, so that other Colecovision homebrewers may use it if they're interested in it. I will also ask Albert to ship all those 1500+ Activision casings (which are currently stored in his garage) to me and I'll have PCBs manufactured for each of them. Also, if I'm in the mood, I'll work a little on Boxxle this year too. So from everyone else's point of view, 2011 will be a slow year for Team Pixelboy. But a lot of things will be brewing behind closed doors!Wow, too many good things in perspective... I can't wait! Seriously, I can wait, I'm just too excited seeing all the efforts you put in the ColecoVision scene. Soon, people will even forget that I exist because of all the work you put forward to keep the ColecoVision scene alive. I won't let them forget. In fact, there's an extra project I'd like to spend some time on this year, and it relates to the source code you gave me very recently... All this information starts well a new year! Thank you from a Coleco fan and homebrewer! Thanks! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+thegoldenband Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 Is the Pitfall II arcade bug present in the original SG-1000 version? Can it be reproduced on the original platform, or is it caused by some difference between SG-1000 and CV hardware? Just curious, since if the SG-1000 original is bugged too it'd be good to add that information to the SMSPower wiki. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted January 1, 2011 Author Share Posted January 1, 2011 Is the Pitfall II arcade bug present in the original SG-1000 version? Can it be reproduced on the original platform, or is it caused by some difference between SG-1000 and CV hardware? I'd like to say the bug stems from hardware differences between the SG-1000 and the CV, but the truth is I'm really not sure. I have no SG-1000 here to do tests on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+thegoldenband Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 If you're willing to PM me with the details of the bug, I can ask if anyone at SMSPower can check it out on real SG-1000 hardware and see what happens. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted January 1, 2011 Author Share Posted January 1, 2011 If you're willing to PM me with the details of the bug, I can ask if anyone at SMSPower can check it out on real SG-1000 hardware and see what happens. I'm caught up in order processing right now, but I'll get back to you on that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King_Salamon Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 Thanks for the PixelBoy newsletter! Very informative I must say and I appreciate all the hard work and dedication you've put into this! Have a Happy New Year! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+5-11under Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 A couple of notes... I put in a couple of buttons for left and right on my arcade controller, specifically for games such as Track & Field. After playing, however, for me anyway, the joystick works better (faster). Also, one good(?) thing about Track & Field is that you can't cheat by holding down the left button while simply pulsing the right button. Newcoleco, don't worry, you won't be forgotten. Many of the games created over the last several years or so have relied heavily on the work that you've done. There may be the next generation of programmers, but you're still one of the godfathers (in a good way)! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retroillucid Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Newcoleco, don't worry, you won't be forgotten. Many of the games created over the last several years or so have relied heavily on the work that you've done. There may be the next generation of programmers, but you're still one of the godfathers (in a good way)! I second this! Daniel, you're a pionneer of CV homebrew scene.... How can we forget you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Yurkie Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Speaking of the Godfather. Any chance Daniel that you would port Missile Command for use with the Roller Controller? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retroillucid Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Speaking of the Godfather. Any chance Daniel that you would port Missile Command for use with the Roller Controller? Please, Please... Please! Would be AWESOME!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NIAD Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Speaking of the Godfather. Any chance Daniel that you would port Missile Command for use with the Roller Controller? Doesn't someone have the Missile Command prototype (possibly Willie B.)? Thought I saw mention of this somewhere on Digital Press a while back. Would be nice if this was true or if it could be confirmed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingofcrusher Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 No, the Pitfall II bug is due to the NMI on the Coleco. It wouldn't happen on the SG-1000 because you can mask the interrupt. I couldn't fix it without breaking other things unfortunately. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rpgcollector Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Thanks for the update. I appreciate all the hard work and dedication you put into your games! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
youki Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Newcoleco, don't worry, you won't be forgotten. Many of the games created over the last several years or so have relied heavily on the work that you've done. There may be the next generation of programmers, but you're still one of the godfathers (in a good way)! I second this! Daniel, you're a pionneer of CV homebrew scene.... How can we forget you? May be Daniel , you should change your Nickname to OldColeco now. Concerning my personnal case, i would never start coding on Coleco if i didn't find your work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Tomlin Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 bug is due to the NMI on the Coleco Thanks again, Coleco, for that brilliant bit of engineering. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kingofcrusher Posted January 3, 2011 Share Posted January 3, 2011 bug is due to the NMI on the Coleco Thanks again, Coleco, for that brilliant bit of engineering. Haha! I owe you a big thanks; I studied how you dealt with the NMI in your source code for Black Onyx, without that knowledge I probably would never have forged ahead with the conversion out of sheer frustration at how stupid that feature is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Tomlin Posted January 4, 2011 Share Posted January 4, 2011 Haha! I owe you a big thanks; I studied how you dealt with the NMI in your source code for Black Onyx, without that knowledge I probably would never have forged ahead with the conversion out of sheer frustration at how stupid that feature is. Black Onyx was relatively easy, because it kept VDP access to a few subroutines that did their thing and got the hell out of there. Also, it helped that IY always pointed to a flags byte, so I could use IY-1 for its more efficient addressing mode with BIT/SET/RES instructions. Girl's Garden was much worse because it had DI/EI instructions scattered all over the place, enabled and disabled the VDP interrupt in many places, and would poke addresses and data bytes to the VDP as the code went along. And it even used the HALT instruction to wait for an interrupt. I had to use macros to map RST instructions to EI and HALT just because I ran out of ROM space if they were changed to CALL instructions. (Oddly, DI ended up mapped to an empty macro.) I was constantly worried that I wouldn't be able to make it work. I just kept tweaking things until it stopped flaking out, then played it a lot with my fingers crossed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted January 4, 2011 Author Share Posted January 4, 2011 Girl's Garden was much worse because it had DI/EI instructions scattered all over the place, enabled and disabled the VDP interrupt in many places, and would poke addresses and data bytes to the VDP as the code went along. And it even used the HALT instruction to wait for an interrupt. I had to use macros to map RST instructions to EI and HALT just because I ran out of ROM space if they were changed to CALL instructions. (Oddly, DI ended up mapped to an empty macro.) I was constantly worried that I wouldn't be able to make it work. I just kept tweaking things until it stopped flaking out, then played it a lot with my fingers crossed. I have to say you did a really great job with Girl's Garden. The game plays very smoothly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King_Salamon Posted January 5, 2011 Share Posted January 5, 2011 Thanks Bruce for the great work! I'll be sure to let you (and everyone else) know how Girl's Garden turned out when I get mine in the mail. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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