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Atari 7800 homebrew scene article covered in Retromaniac


keitaro

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Hi, just to note an article about Atari 7800 homebrew scene has been covered in Retromaniac Magazine, a fanzine from Spain.

Curt Vendel, Bob DeCrescenzo and Mark Ball are interviewed to share their ideas, influencies and experiencies while developing their projects.

 

While the fanzine is starting to have more homebrew-related articles and more designer/developers are providing new games for the system, I hope to see more updates in the future.

 

Obviously it's in spanish but anyway you can view and download in PDF format for Free at:

http://retromaniacmagazine.blogspot.com.es/2013/01/retromaniac-numero-7.html

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Here is:

 

Curt Vendel

 

New York, USA

Favorite game/computer system: 1200XL is my favorite system. Star Raiders, Telenguard and Super Pac Man are some of my favorites.

Favorite all time game: 2600 Adventure

Favorite publisher/developer: -- Don't know....

 

- How XM idea was born and what was your goals creating it? When started to design this project?

 

I'd down the 7800 high score carts back in 2000 and did a few releases and people kept wanting me to make more. I decided to do a new design and not follow the original GCC design that had a battery flaw in it. Then I thought maybe it would be cool to add a Pokey audio chip and I considered perhaps some RAM. It was too big to fit into a cartridge shell and I thought it would be great to bring back a never released Atari computer module case design and house everything inside of it. Well, the developers wanted more features and since they were the ones who would take advantage of it, I let them take the lead. Pokey followed with a Yamaha arcade sound processor, the RAM would be game usable instead of just for code space, there would be an SIO port and a keyboard port, onboard intelligent BIOS and diagnostics. The design started to get rather complex, so then the whole thing got scraped and started over with a whole new design, bigger chip, now it had a bus partition to it, added stability, space for the coders to have scrolling assist hardware, its become a very powerful device, but all of it done only with technology that would've been available in one form or another in 1984-1985.

 

 

- What enhancements or features will it have over original 7800?

 

High score keeping, pokey audio yamaha arcade audio, 128K of game usable ram instead of the onboard 4k, scroll assist to allow for finer and faster scrolling of the screen animation. An SIO port for using peripherals and a keyboard port for more complex games and programs.

 

 

- And will be compatible with existing 7800 and 2600 games? Can original 7800 games use some of the features of XM, like sound?

 

We've gone to great lengths to maintain compatibility with almost all existing games. If a game doesn't have code to use features in the XM, then no it won't access them.

 

 

- XM will be have its own bios. What options can configure the users?

 

Yes, its mostly housekeeping and diagnostics, but there might just be an extra surprise hidden in it ;-)

 

 

- XM is designed to be an expandable system. What peripherals can be used? Will XM user find other applications asides games?

 

Well, the SIO is a basic implementation. SIO2PC, disk drives, printers and perhaps a modem could be used if games/apps are coded for it. With the keyboard usage it could be possible to see non-games, things like a terminal program, basic programming, a wordprocessor or developer tools.

 

 

- Designing an hardware project like this would be very complex process. Can you tell us what most technical difficulties you had while developing it? Any anecdotes?

 

Not knowing the yamaha at all and not being an analog person has caused a great deal of problems in the audio portion of things. Space got chewed up fairly fast, surprising given how much space is in the system. Having to move to 3 different CPLD designs over the course of the development was a bit of a hassle.

 

 

- Is there a game or application would you wish to see in XM?

 

I am hopeful that games like Zaxxon, Frenzy, Battlezone and maybe even Marble Madness will find their way onto the XM.

 

 

- Future plans for XM after It will be released?

 

Not sure, but if I do make anything else, I think I will be keeping it secret and only release it when its fully done next time.... I'm thinking of perhaps something for the 8bit computers or perhaps something for the 5200 next, I don't know just yet.

 

 

Background: Bachelors in Computer Science, self taught EE. High Score cart, IDE interface for 800 computers, Flashback console line, USB joystick controllers, arcade/mame interfaces, Awesome Arcades machines (2 designs) and the 7800 XM

 

 

Bob DeCrescenzo

 

Long Island, New York,USA

Favorite game/computer system: Atari 7800, Apple Iic

Favorite all time game: Pac-Man Plus

Favorite publisher/developer. Classic: Atari Current: id games

 

- Do you remember how was your first contact with computer and videogames? Did you develop for other systems before 7800 and XM?

 

Wow... I've been around these systems for as long as I can remember. My father had an electronics repair shop when I was very little and he brought home the first Odyssey in '73 or '74 (It was released in '72) I then had a stand-alone 'Stunt Cycle', and then my 2600. A few years later I got the 5200, and then got into computers. The first assembly I did was for the Apple IIc (like the 2600, also a variant of the 6502 processor - the 65C02 - although I didn't know it at the time). Then, in 2001, I found Atari Age, and figured out how to program in Assembly for the 2600 first, and did a few hacks (nothing from scratch). Then I found a partial disassembly of the 5200 version of Pac-Man done by AA user Bryan, and I ended up making Pac-Man Plus for the system. Then I started looking at the 7800...

 

 

- When you decided to start developing for 7800? What tools or languages you use to develop?

 

I started developing for the 7800 back in 2005, because of three reasons: 1) It was the only one of the 'big three' (2600, 5200, 7800) that I never had 'back in the day', 2) My favorite game, Pac-Man, wasn't ported to it, and 3) Nobody else was really doing it (other than Combat 1990 - that I know of).

 

 

- Asteroids Deluxe has an easter egg to play original Asteroids. Are there more easter egss in other of your games? Any tips?

 

There's an easter egg in Space Invaders, Jr. Pac-Man, and maybe one in a forthcoming game I'm working on... ;)

 

 

- Scramble is an impressive and very accurate port from original arcade. It's uses a 320 resolution mode when almost all games used the lower 160 mode. What technical limitations you found when using this mode and, in general, porting this game?

 

Basically the colors. The main playfield only has 4 colors on it. You are only allowed two palettes of three colors each in that mode... and that's if you don't use transparency (look at Pac-Man 320 / Ms. Pac-Man 320 for an example of that). I *needed* transparency in this one and Moon Cresta, so I was stuck with only two palettes with two colors each. In Moon Cresta, I did some color changing in the DLI to get some more color out of it. Couldn't do that effectively with Scramble.

 

 

- Failsafe show maps with scrolling, instead static screen from classic arcade games.

Atari 7800 doesn't have the facilities like tile system in NES. Is in fact hard to do a scrolling game in 7800 as people usually said?

 

At first, I thought it was difficult; but like anything you learn once you know how to do it, it gets easier. :)

 

 

- Asides classic systems, you have ventured to develop to modern platforms. How was the experience?

 

Very nice. XNA Game Studio is a pleasure to work with. :) I ported my 'Super Circus Atari Age' game over to Windows Phone under the name 'Balloon Pop'

 

 

- What arcade game would you like to see ported to an Atari system?

 

Both for the 7800: Sinistar and Stargate.

 

 

- And any plans for future projects? Another game for 7800? and for XM?

 

I'm working on a game at the moment (XM will be required for the location of the Pokey as the game uses the $4000 address for other things). I'm hoping to have it completed (or at least close to completion) for the Vegas CG Expo.

 

I will also be working on a new game for Windows Phone soon as well.

 

 

Background: Various controller / video hacks for the 2600/5200/7800, produced over 15 games for the 7800 with more on the way... One produced for Windows Phone platform.

 

 

Mark Ball

 

Favorite game/computer system: In equal first place would be the Atari 7800 and the Atari ST.

Favorite all time game: That is a tough one to answer but I'd have to say Lemmings.

Favorite publisher/developer: Psygnosis (now SCE Studio Liverpool) and DMA Design (now Rockstar North) for the game Lemmings.

 

Do you remember how was your first contact with computer and videogames?

 

I remember playing on a friends VCS in the very early 80s and thought that the games were fantastic. At that time we only had a family console that played in black and white and had a fixed number of games like tennis and football on it. I don't remember the model but it was probably made by either Binatone or Grandstand. My own first console was a Philips G7000 which I bought second hand. I sold the G7000 and put the money towards buying a 48K Spectrum through mail order. The Spectrum was a ton of fun. Playing games, writing my own games in BASIC and typing in listings from both C&VG and books. By the mid 80s I'd upgraded to a Spectrum+ keyboard, thermal printer and a microdrive. By that time some of my games had simple assembly language routines in them too.

 

Did you develop for other systems before 7800 and XM?

 

After the Spectrum I had a 520 ST and then a Mega ST. I also tinkered around with the Oric Atmos and Acorn Electron. The STs were much more fun than the Spectrum to code on. I was into sprite demos, scrollers, 3D graphics and all sorts of other things too. Development on the ST was done using Devpac, GFA BASIC or Sozobon "C". For several years after the ST I didn't develop on any platforms. Towards the very end of the 90s I was coding games for mobile phones.

 

When you decided to start developing for 7800?

 

Winter 2008.

 

 

What tools or languages you use to develop?

 

For development tools I use CC65 and Microsoft NMAKE (to handle the project's makefile), Paint Shop Pro 7 and several of my own custom tools written in either C/C++ using Microsoft Visual Studio or PERL. I also use a78sign for signing game binaries so that they'll run on NTSC machines. All source code is written in my favourite text editor. For games that need larger levels I use TileStudio with custom exporting scripts.

 

Some of my 7800 games are written in a combination of "C" and 6502 assembly language and others purely in assembly language. I have developed my own game utility library written in assembler which means that a game's logic and AI can be written in "C". The games library handles sprites positioning, clipping and animation, palette effects, joystick and TIA/POKEY/YM2151 sound and music amongst other things.

 

For testing on real hardware I use both PAL and NTSC consoles, my prototype XM and a CC2. All game testing is done on PAL hardware with occasional NTSC tests to ensure compatibility.

 

 

What influences do you use design your games?

 

I used to love playing the Ultimate games including Jetpac, Atic Atac, Sabre Wolf, Knight Lore and Alien 8 on my Spectrum. Those games really raised the bar in technical achievement and playability on that platform. The game levels felt like they were huge too. Manic Miner, Technician Ted, Jet Set willy, Starion and Way of the Exploding Fist were firm favourites too. In the arcades the only game I really played was Gauntlet because nothing else really interested me.

 

 

Is it hard to create a game for Atari 7800?

 

Once you understand how MARIA's Display List List (DLL) and Display Lists (DLs) are formed and you can look at your game idea and divide its playfield into "zones" vertically (so it can be processed by MARIA) then game development is pretty easy. The hardest part is coming up with ideas and then implementing them to make fun games.

 

 

After a first contact in 7800 releasing two games, Worm and Wasp, you're working hard to release new exclusive games for XM, even working at various projects at once. Can you tell us what projects you are developing now? What of them are your personal favorite?

 

So far this year I've worked on Halloween, Outpost 26, Fruitarian, Apple Snaffle and coded a few simple tech demos too. I don't really have a personal favourite. If I didn't like a game style it would never get started or finished.

 

All my XM games are a team effort and have a pixel artist and a musician working on them too. I'd like to thank (in no particular order) sh3-rg, nonner242, PAC-MAN-RED, Espire8 and Miker for their help making the games look and sound better than I could ever make them.

 

 

Some of them were exhibited in events. How was the feedback from the public to them?

 

The feedback has been very good. The best feedback is watching people play the games and the person saying "one more go" after their on screen character dies. To me, that is the sign of a good game.

 

After looking at my games and tech demos a few people have been quite surprised at what the 7800 can do. One of the big problems with the 7800 is that it was never pushed by its programmers back in the day. On a system like the NES the game programmers came back time and again with new releases. In that time they got better and better, understood what the hardware could do and pushed the machine even more. In the case of the 7800 its programmers never got the chance to come back or weren't very good in the first place.

 

 

Are there more people currently developing for this new system? Any tips or suggestions to somebody that wants to start to develop to XM? Where is a place to find information?

 

I know several people that are either working on a game or interested in working on a game.

 

If new developers want to start an XM game I'd say start with understanding how MARIA's display lists work along with learning 6502 assembler and then get something going on a stock machine. The XM just gives you "more" of what you have already.

 

Soon after the XM is released I'll be providing example code to help people use the new features in their games.

 

 

Any future plans asides current projects.

 

I have some more games in mind for both the 7800 and the Intellivision and I'd also like to do something for the Jaguar, NES and the Philips G7000 too. I've also got some hardware projects on the back burner.

 

 

Background:

Work in Progress (WIP) games for the XM: Halloween, Outpost 26, Fruitarian, Dungeon! and Apple Snaffle will all be XM mandatory releases.

Work in Progress (WIP) games for the Intellivision: Mystery Castle and Apple Snaffle.

7800 Carts:Wasp! released on cart as part of the system's 25th birthday in 2009, Worm! released in cart in 2010.

7800 Programmer tools: G2F graphics ability in 2010, 169C - A high colour graphics mode like A8's APAC in 2010, a78psd - Utility for analysing ProSystem emulator game saves in 2010.

Hardware: GB-XC1 PlayStation controller interface in 2010, XM - Started in May 2010

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