D.K. VCS

[Joe Musashi]

After putting some time into playing, I have to take a few things back. I noticed the springs do vary in distance and it appears at 3 different areas just like the arcade game. When I played the other night I could have swore they dropped in the same location every time. I played up to 200,000 points tonight and did notice that at level 9 on up (9 being last level for counter) they appeared to only drop in one fixed location.

Yes, there is a little variation, but it's more a side effect. The springs drop when their x-position is greater than 95. Depending on the speed that can happen at different positions.

 

Also I did get hit by a spring while exiting the ladder at the safe spot but it may have been a fluke...then again I don't think that area is always safe in the arcade game?

This one is more serious, that spot should always be safe. It can happen from level 4 up. I already made a fix for the next release (which did cost a whopping 9 bytes, ouch).

[Andromeda Stardust]

Interesting, I tried the 2010 NES version, and you can easily get to the bottom platform. You can even get back if you walk over the left elevator engine and jump right before the platform appears.

Honestly I haven't screwed around with it too much. I died enough times just trying to get on the floor, then died attempting to jump up. I have an NES repro of the 2010 DK Complete Edition (a.k.a "Pie" Foundry), manufactured by RetroUSB. It's awesome. But I have yet to get a licensed digital copy of this game since Nintendo only seems interested in releasing it as limited promotional eShop download.

 

If you don't mind the Japanese screen order, you can use dkongj in MAME. This should support the ladder trick.

Sweet. I actually got better high scores playing in Retro Pie MAME with the Japanese stage order for some reason. I never even made it to the cement stage on the US version for some reason. Got as far as the barrel stage on loop 3, just one stage short of reaching it.

 

I hear the US version gets bonkers on the higher stages with 150 meters where you have to play the barrel stage in between the others three times each loop.

[Joe Musashi]

After some more testing of the latest experimental version here's now an "official" release. It's basically the test version without the cheat but with a few small additions. Compared to the last release version there are the following changes:

• Mario's horizontal jump distance has been shortened from 5 to 4 blocks.
• In the intro climbing sequence the girder below Kong gets lowered with each jump.
• The intermission sequence ("How high can you get?") can now be aborted with the fire button.
• Fixed a bug in the pie factory where the telescope ladders would not stop when Mario reached the top.
• Fixed a bug in the elevator stage where Mario could be hit by a jack in the save spot above a ladder.

 

D.K.VCS_160425_NTSC.bin

D.K.VCS_160425_PAL60.bin

[+save2600]

Ouch! Standing on a ladder, with one pixel of finger or knuckle over the girder, a barrel will knock you out.

 

Only played a few games, but really digging this latest version, thanks for the constant work Joe!

[Joe Musashi]

I made a couple of small additions. Most notably there is now a horizontal collision detection between Mario and the elevator. When you hit the elevator from the side, Mario will not fall through anymore, but will be blocked and fall straight down like in the arcade version.

 

To do this, it was necessary to make some dangerous code changes that may have broken something. I made this release another test version that has infinite lives enabled, so people can experiment with the elevator if they like.

 

Please give it a try. If you happen to spot a bug please let me know.

 

 

D.K.VCS_TEST_160525_NTSC.bin

D.K.VCS_TEST_160525_PAL60.bin

[Albert]

Awesome, look forward to testing this new version.

[Arenafoot]

Please give it a try. If you happen to spot a bug please let me know.

Played tonight.....I didn't find anything wrong. Awesome job Joe!

[Joe Musashi]

Since there have been no bug reports for the latest test version, I made it a regular release with the infinite life cheat disabled. Changes here (and in the previous test version) are:

• In the barrel stage there is now an animation when a barrel vanishes.
• In the barrel and elevator stages Mario is awarded 500 extra points if he takes the left ladder leading to Kong.
• There's now a horizontal collision detection between Mario and the elevator. When you hit the elevator from the side, Mario will be blocked and fall straight down.
• A first Easter egg. (Please don't post what it is, if you happen to find it. )
• Fixed a bug where the scrolling would not correctly follow Mario when jumping on an elevator.

And brand new in this version, there's a relatively big new feature:

• We now have a demo mode. The title screen doesn't just restart anymore, instead a short demo plays, showing Mario (not very successfully) trying to get to the top.

This is still labeled 'WIP' (probably for the last time). I plan to use the remaining bytes to add another Easter egg, but except for some tweaking this will probably be it.

 

Have fun!

 

D.K.VCS_160618_NTSC.bin

D.K.VCS_160618_PAL60.bin

[Shawn]

Amazing job.

[Jinroh]

Wow really great fixes updates, I really like the attract mode demo you added. Can't wait until the final release, but this one feels so polished already!

[+sramirez2008]

Just played a few games. Really, really great job! Haven't found the easter egg.

 

[Jackbtripper]

This may sound crazy but why the flicker? Also, does DK look kinda smooshed?

[+Random Terrain]

Thanks for the all-you-can-eat bread and fish and wine magically made from water, but I was hoping for pizza and beer.

[+iesposta]

This may sound crazy but why the flicker? Also, does DK look kinda smooshed?

The Atari 2600 is mid-1970's technology, with two, 8-pixel sprite objects, two 1-pixel missiles, a 1-pixel ball, a low-Rez playfield (20 wide pixels, doubled), and a background.

 

To get details and more colors, you can display different things every other frame which causes objects to flicker.

 

Atari 2600 was designed to play Tank (Combat) where 2 players fire at each other.

To create something like D.K. VCS takes tricks and lots of imagination to make this old hardware show things it was never designed to show

[Jackbtripper]

The Atari 2600 is mid-1970's technology, with two, 8-pixel sprite objects, two 1-pixel missiles, a 1-pixel ball, a low-Rez playfield (20 wide pixels, doubled), and a background.

To get details and more colors, you can display different things every other frame which causes objects to flicker.

Atari 2600 was designed to play Tank (Combat) where 2 players fire at each other.

To create something like D.K. VCS takes tricks and lots of imagination to make this old hardware show things it was never designed to show

Well it works and the game is beautiful. I am really enjoying it.

[Keatah]

It's Magic!

[atarilovesyou]

I gotta get off my ass and download this into my Harmony cart.

[Andromeda Stardust]

DK VCS makes a cameo in Polygon's Donkey Kong 35th anniversary video...

(The DK VCS homebrew appears in the first few seconds and last few seconds in the video. Seems the author of the video mistaken the Atari homebrew for arcade footage...)

[hizzy]

Awesome! I hope this ends up in the AA store!

[VectorGamer]

I just downloaded and played the latest ROM version. The jumps on the elevator stage just aren't right. I'm still jumping way over the elevators. That's really the only thing wrong I see with this game (besides having the barrels go all the way down to the bottom two girders on the girders screen but you said there was nothing you could do to fix that).

[Arenafoot]

I just downloaded and played the latest ROM version. The jumps on the elevator stage just aren't right. I'm still jumping way over the elevators. That's really the only thing wrong I see with this game (besides having the barrels go all the way down to the bottom two girders on the girders screen but you said there was nothing you could do to fix that).

same here too

[Steril707]

Damn, this is so incredibly awesome...

[Andromeda Stardust]

I just downloaded and played the latest ROM version. The jumps on the elevator stage just aren't right. I'm still jumping way over the elevators. That's really the only thing wrong I see with this game (besides having the barrels go all the way down to the bottom two girders on the girders screen but you said there was nothing you could do to fix that).

That's why I suggested shortening the jump length only on the elevator stage, though it may not be possible to change the physics for only one stage due to shared assets. I think Joe shortened the jump length on all stages and decreased the detection hitbox so barrels wouldn't be hard to clear. Still the jump is slightly too long. I still have step back from the edge of the platform to clear the gap without overshooting the elevator. Totally unintuitive. That said, the game is still awesome and I have faith this issue will be fixed prior to release.

[Joe Musashi]

According to Wikipedia, Donkey Kong was released in the US today 35 years ago (though the exact date is not clear). To celebrate this anniversary I'm happy to post another version of this port. Compared to the last version it includes the last (relatively complex) Easter egg. Actually, it's more of an achievement, i.e., you can only get to it if you get far enough in the game.

 

(I did some experiments with further shortening the jump, but I did not like it. I think I may be going to post an "inofficial" version with a 3 block wide jump for people who like that better.)

 

Guess, I now have to start thinking about a label and handbook

 

Have fun!

D.K.VCS_160731_NTSC.bin

D.K.VCS_160731_PAL60.bin

[Arenafoot]

I think I may be going to post an "inofficial" version with a 3 block wide jump for people who like that better.)

Please do!