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Feedback: Title Match Pro Wrestling & Kung Fu Master


nosweargamer

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Hey guys! I run the Atari 7800 Game By Game Podcast ( you can find it on iTunes or use this feed: http://feeds.feedburner.com/78gbg )

 

I'm looking for ways to increase the feedback on the games I cover, so I'm trying this thread to see if it helps.

 

What are your memories and/or thoughts on Title Match Pro Wrestling & Kung Fu Master on the 7800?

Also, how would you rate them? I use a system of 4 choices (From Best to Worst):

 

Hall of Fame Game (Top 5 game on the system)

"Meh" Game

Solid Game

Trash Game (Bottom 5 game on the system)

 

These games will be covered on Episode 6.

You can also e-mail text or audio to atari7800podcast@aol.com

Just keep it family friendly :)

You can also send feedback on previously covered games or the system itself. Thanks!

 

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My brother and I did the old lemonade-stand thing to earn money to buy Titlematch when we were kids in the late 80s. I believe we acquired Ikari Warriors in a similar fashion. Oh the memories! As far as the game itself, Titlematch leaves a lot to be desired. Still, I'm nostalgic for it, and I do still play it once in a while. I'd give it a 'meh' to balance my own emotions with the gameplay.

 

Kung Fu Master came later, during the ebay era. I believe it was one of the last 5 or so original 7800 games I had to purchase for my collection to be basically complete (I think only Mean 18, Tank Command and Motor Psycho came later for me). I do like it, but it seems like it should have utilized the 2nd button. No biggie. Somewhere between meh and solid.

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Hey guys! I run the Atari 7800 Game By Game Podcast ( you can find it on iTunes or use this feed: http://feeds.feedburner.com/78gbg )

 

I'm looking for ways to increase the feedback on the games I cover, so I'm trying this thread to see if it helps.

 

What are your memories and/or thoughts on Title Match Pro Wrestling & Kung Fu Master on the 7800?

Also, how would you rate them? I use a system of 4 choices (From Best to Worst):

 

Hall of Fame Game (Top 5 game on the system)

"Meh" Game

Solid Game

Trash Game (Bottom 5 game on the system)

 

These games will be covered on Episode 6.

You can also e-mail text or audio to atari7800podcast@aol.com

Just keep it family friendly :)

You can also send feedback on previously covered games or the system itself. Thanks!

 

I ranked Title Match "Low Meh", heading toward trash

 

Kung Fu Master "High meh", leaning slightly toward solid

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Title Match sucks. So much potential, so awful gameplay and programming. I've said on this forum for years how I wanted a playable and decent wrestling game for the system, something with a goal of sorts, and something that is halfway near Pro Wrestling for NES - which for their first effort was stellar. Kung Fu Master is fine - the graphics are decent other than the easy fixes that they could have made - the bodies falling off like the arcade, and the jump kick, etc.....so....

 

TM: 1

 

KFM: 3.5

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I have never spent enough time with Title Match Pro Wrestling to give it any kind of score. I think I played it when I got it and then put it away after I made sure it worked. Kung-Fu Master is a different story. I never played it in the arcade, but I was a fan of Kung-Fu on the NES from way back. I got 2600 Kung-Fu Master first and I enjoyed that one quite a bit. I was really impressed with what they pulled off on the 2600. When I first played the 7800 version, the first thing I notice was the control was the exact same as the 2600 version. They did not even change the controls to take advantage of the second button! Outside of that I think it is a fun game, but the one button control has always irked me. I would rate is a solid game, even with the control scheme being ridiculous.

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Haven't played 7800 Title Match, but I do have 7800 Kung-Fu Master:

 

I like the game in general (I've played quite a bit of the NES version over the years, and I even have the Japan-only Famicom sequel, which is a blast), but objectively speaking, the 7800 port is, upon first glance, a bit underwhelming. First and foremost, it plays (and, of course, sounds) exactly like the 2600 version; only the graphics have been upgraded. Only one button is used for attacking, and the enemies merely disappear when hit. It really does feel just like the 2600 version except with a fresh coat of paint. The 2600 port is good, but the 7800 is capable of so much more. And to add insult to injury, the character sprites are really on the ugly side.

 

But you know what? Even though it doesn't take more advantage of the 7800's power, 7800 KFM still manages to be pretty fun. The one-button limitation is really a blessing, since that means you can bypass the wrist-killing Proline joysticks and use something, anything, that's infinitely more comfortable. The sound is a wash; KFM never had that much going for it sound-wise in the first place, so unless you want the digitized voice bits from the arcade and NES versions (which are cool, but not exactly a deal-breaker), the 7800 version doesn't really sound too bad. Graphically, the character sprites may be blockier and uglier than those found in the NES version (given the 1989 release date, they really should have been better on that front here), but the backgrounds are actually better and much more detailed on the 7800. And even though defeated enemies simply disappearing looks pretty lazy, it's not something that hurts the core gameplay, which is fast-paced and fun. It might feel a bit 'loose', especially when compared to the NES port, but it's definitely playable and, as far as I'm concerned, pretty addictive.

 

It's not a masterpiece, and there are better versions out there, but 7800 Kung-Fu Master is still, IMO, a pretty solid game and a good (though not great) representation of the arcade original. If someone doesn't like any iteration of KFM, the 7800 version probably won't change their mind, but fans of the game (such as myself) should find it an acceptable port.

 

Though, to be honest, I'm a Beat-'Em-Up junkie, and the 7800 is a bit starved in that department, so 7800 KFM may very well rate higher with me than it would someone else.

Edited by King Atari
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I've never played Kung Fu Master for Atari 7800, but I like the 2600 version. The 7800 version looks like essentially the exact same game but with improved graphics.

Title Match Pro Wrestling never did anything for me. I wanted to like it, but I just can't do anything with that game.

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KFM is a disappointment on the 7800. The characters should be flung off-screen like in the arcade version instead of disappearing. The MARIA chip could handle such sprite movement; Food Fight - and Bob's upcoming Crystal Quest - are evidence of this. As such, it's a lazy port.

 

The audio is the same as the 2600. It really does need a POKEY chip to do it justice. Or they could've called up Activision and ordered some DPC chips for the audio for both the 2600 and 7800 versions.

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  • 4 years later...
On 3/27/2015 at 4:02 AM, jeremiahjt said:

I have never spent enough time with Title Match Pro Wrestling to give it any kind of score. I think I played it when I got it and then put it away after I made sure it worked. Kung-Fu Master is a different story. I never played it in the arcade, but I was a fan of Kung-Fu on the NES from way back. I got 2600 Kung-Fu Master first and I enjoyed that one quite a bit. I was really impressed with what they pulled off on the 2600. When I first played the 7800 version, the first thing I notice was the control was the exact same as the 2600 version. They did not even change the controls to take advantage of the second button! Outside of that I think it is a fun game, but the one button control has always irked me. I would rate is a solid game, even with the control scheme being ridiculous.

I coded Kung Fu Master for the 7800 and was a very straightforward port of the 2600 version. Due to similarities between the 2600 and 7800, it was relatively easy to use the same game logic code from the 2600 version and rewrite only the display portion. It took 10 weeks from start to finish. I used the same approach for Pete Rose Baseball -- direct port using the 2600 version game logic, also a 10 week project. This was the way that Absolute Entertainment wanted it done, to minimize development costs.

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On 4/4/2015 at 4:51 PM, Lynxpro said:

KFM is a disappointment on the 7800. The characters should be flung off-screen like in the arcade version instead of disappearing. The MARIA chip could handle such sprite movement; Food Fight - and Bob's upcoming Crystal Quest - are evidence of this. As such, it's a lazy port.

 

The audio is the same as the 2600. It really does need a POKEY chip to do it justice. Or they could've called up Activision and ordered some DPC chips for the audio for both the 2600 and 7800 versions.

Not so much 'lazy' as "budget constrained". 

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On 11/9/2019 at 10:44 AM, bobcurtiss said:

Not so much 'lazy' as "budget constrained". 


Apologies over those comments from 4 years ago... I can appreciate "budget constrained" as well as "time constrained". 

 

It is very interesting that you were able to port so much of the 2600 code over. 

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Hey, no worries. For 7800 ports of 2600 games it was only necessary to write new graphics code, all of the game logic could be copied and pasted with very minor edits. Of course, one needed to UNDERSTAND the logic code, and when another programmer had written it that wasn't always easy, LOL. But I did essentially the same thing for both Pete Rose Baseball and Kung Fu Master.

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52 minutes ago, bobcurtiss said:

Hey, no worries. For 7800 ports of 2600 games it was only necessary to write new graphics code, all of the game logic could be copied and pasted with very minor edits. Of course, one needed to UNDERSTAND the logic code, and when another programmer had written it that wasn't always easy, LOL. But I did essentially the same thing for both Pete Rose Baseball and Kung Fu Master.

10 weeks is a ridiculous time frame, kudos on getting anything out the door in that time.  I've been in the game industry for 25 years and I can count on one hand how many "lazy" programmers I've met.  You don't get into this business if you're lazy, and if you do, you don't last very long.

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Kung Fu Master: ‘Meh’ (if that is 2nd best category), since its not top 5.

 

Title Match: I can’t say either solid nor trash.

 

I’ve had fun with it, and like the graphics, and think it may be quite playable if one finds what is the ‘key’ to hold the opponent pinned-down on round two (intense wiggling after rapid beating + sudden grasp)

 

To me, personally: Solid - - (minus-minus)

 

But, if I have to choose for the sake of others money, or by more ‘objective standards’: trash; too difficult controls, but I don’t think its trash.

 

If two-player vs-mode, and both are equally good or bad , it may be solid ‘objectively’.

 

Edited by Giles N
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On 11/15/2019 at 11:22 AM, gambler172 said:

Title Match is trash...

KFMaster is a good game ?

 

I should try out Title Match.  But I'd reserve the "trash" label for Mat Mania Challenge. Holy krap, that game is abysmal. There's no reason why the 7800 couldn't have had a decent version of Mat Mania or Mania Challenge made for it, outside of development dollars and time, of course. Mat Mania Challenge makes me wish my 12 year old self didn't write to Atari Corp multiple times requesting they license both of those arcade games for the 7800. The local Shakey's Pizza had Mania Challenge and I'd hit that game up almost as much as Road Blasters, Kung-Fu Master, Ikari WarriorsRampage, Space HarrierXenophobeGauntlet II, Robocop, and Paperboy... [they had all of them at the time]. Oh, and a modded Ms. Pac-Man with the unauthorized Zoom! button added to it. I swear, not even Tengen's version of that title for the Sega Genesis had a "turbo" feature that sped the game up as fast as that infamous Zoom button did...

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11 hours ago, Lynxpro said:

 

I should try out Title Match.  But I'd reserve the "trash" label for Mat Mania Challenge. Holy krap, that game is abysmal. There's no reason why the 7800 couldn't have had a decent version of Mat Mania or Mania Challenge made for it, outside of development dollars and time, of course. Mat Mania Challenge makes me wish my 12 year old self didn't write to Atari Corp multiple times requesting they license both of those arcade games for the 7800. The local Shakey's Pizza had Mania Challenge and I'd hit that game up almost as much as Road Blasters, Kung-Fu Master, Ikari WarriorsRampage, Space HarrierXenophobeGauntlet II, Robocop, and Paperboy... [they had all of them at the time]. Oh, and a modded Ms. Pac-Man with the unauthorized Zoom! button added to it. I swear, not even Tengen's version of that title for the Sega Genesis had a "turbo" feature that sped the game up as fast as that infamous Zoom button did...

Title Match is ok on round one.

 

You punch or kick your opponent multiple times, at a frame where he’s stunned; grab him (push button and hold toward him. Release. Push button again and pull stick/pad upwards; you lift him over head. Then thrown him to the ground. Move over him. Press action button and down. Now you pin him down. Shake/wiggle fast to outperform him trying to break free.)

 

But... on round 2, it feels like the computer just ‘makes up its mind to break your pin.

 

Not knowing what one can do better makes it feel like its about luck...

 

 

Edited by Giles N
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