newcoleco Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 Hello everyone, Daniel Bienvenu aka NewColeco here. Some may not even know who I am, it's ok, I expected it since I kinda left the active scene for a few years. I'm sorry for not giving much news for the past years. After my mother died of cancer in 2013, my life felt apart. I'm struggling with a debt and no job, but my immediate family is supporting me (for now) and I should be back on my foot soon unless something terrible happens. I'm not aware of every new ColecoVision game, new technology, and big events, but as I see the homebrew community is well diverse and active. My personal opinion about the ColecoVision homebrew scene hasn't changed. I am all for exploiting the game system as being more than an arcade machine at home, make the "your vision is our vision" slogan means also exclusive titles, originality, exploring new genres, new games. I don't know if we are done already with the variety but I really want to see more games like tower defense, worker placement, storytelling, choose your own adventure, simulation, physics games like a pinball simulation or bridge builder game, hack and slash, roleplaying, social games, cards and board games, Yahtzee, UNO, Battleship, "Would you rather?"... but I'm just a dreamer. I've missed my own celebration time of 15 years anniversary in 2015 of my first ColecoVision game published in cartridges: it was DACMAN v1.0 during the CGE2K in Las Vegas at John Dondzila table and I believe only 6 to 8 copies were sold of this buggy version that a week later I've fixed as DACMAN v1.3. Also, 1997 was the year people started to notice my presence on the internet, with my website hosted by the university that I dedicated to emulation and games, with one of my tools being ICVGM, my graphics editor, a DOS version coded in QuickBASIC with mouse support and could edit characters, tiles, screen, and also sprites if you opened it with John Dondzila's Purple Dinosaur Massacre ColecoVision ROM file. So I've been into ColecoVision homebrew scene for 20 years already, and this year 2017 is also the 35th anniversary of the game system itself and I'm very enthusiast about it. During the past 17 years or so, I've started numerous projects that I've not even finished, and every year I say to myself that it is time to go back to this and this project. I've done that with one successful title Jeepers Creepers that I started in 2001 and finally completed years later after multiple attempts, adding and improving the project slightly through time. Sadly, due to multiple computer failures, I've lost a lot of data including source files of my projects, backup of my websites, my documents, making me almost restart from scratch if it wasn't for some copies here and there of some files including the SVN server hosted by Dale Wick. Lately, someone asked me for Easter Bunny game, the Canadian's Minigame version, and I couldn't find the source files at all... I sent the devkit version and the person seems not happy, I'm sorry. During years 2015-2016, I've coded another data compression format to be used in our future homebrew games and you may have experienced it already without knowing it. My previous attempt was named DAN0 and used in some homebrew projects such as Smurf Challenge, and I think also in Gamester81's CV game (don't quote me on this), and last year I released DAN1 to compress a bit more data, allowing to get even more fancy graphics into our projects. I know that memory space seems not to be an issue anymore with bank switching method used in modern CV game cartridges, but I love the challenge of optimization and data compression is sure not a simple one with space versus speed dilemma. I'm working on a DAN3 version using a slightly different algorithm that seems to compress (in average) more than DAN1, but it depends highly on the source data itself. I am happy to see the ColecoVision homebrew community growing, I see new faces, new programmers, and new ColecoVision fans. I hope to release something in cartridge this year, but I make no promise. I proposed a social experiment using Twitter and I think I just don't get what Twitter is for to get such poor results, but I've made contact with some in there that makes me think it's not a fail. And I am sorry that you guys cannot download much from my website (they have been deleted binary files for unknown reason), and cannot purchase Flora and the Ghost Mirror file anymore on Scubbly (they are shutting down the website). You can ask me or a friend for these files I've made during years, I don't mind that you copy but I would appreciate you do only for personal use, in a homebrew fan spirit way, don't make fake cartridges and sell on eBay to exploit ColecoVision fans - it's so wrong. Practically all my CV games are copied all around the world, downloadable on various sites, and I'm sure you will find someone to help you get the missing files that you are looking for. Thanks for the donation on my Paypal account, Steve G., I've no idea what is that for and who you are but I appreciate it. For the ones curious about it, I've received a donation last month, less than $20, no message, nothing, I am wondering if I've missed or forgot something. This 2017 Easter time, I'm getting rid of loads of PC vintage stuff. I'm not using eBay, my digital camera is broken anyway, so taking picture and typing descriptions for everything is out of the question. I know there is a strong vintage computer enthusiasts group in Quebec city where I live and I would like to make a deal with some of them to come get this stuff (or just part of it) for very cheap in a win-win way. For example, I have a bunch of PC games on floppies and CD-ROM discs still complete in box, one even claim to be the very first SVGA PC game that looks like a chess game and is playable on a 286 PC with EGA/VGA video card using their own SVGA driver that somewhat worked to display the higher resolution that we now take for granted on modern PC. I'm looking for a job, even a tiny contract, I try to pay my bills, life as usual for me. Follow me on Twitter and be part of the social experiment #colecome @DanielBienvenu Thanks everyone and have a nice day! Daniel Bienvenu 16 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digress Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 Glad you are still interested in the colecovision. It's something I expect to still like 40 years from now. Every project I've made relied upon the tools you created and the devkit. So we all appreciate your work. I did purchase Flora from scubbly years back and the cart version too. I would recommend that you set up a paypal button on your website and sell the roms from there with maybe a pdf manual if its goes along with it. It's pretty easy to setup. Put up a few screen shots. Have a software for sale section and post it to twitter too. What vintage pc stuff you got? I'm always looking for tandy 1000 stuff , Apple II or 80's stuff. Why don't you post some of it here or in the marketplace. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retroillucid Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 Always a pleasure to see you back here Daniel! We (CollectorVision) might have something for you to do if you want to It's paid works of course 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 I would also have some paid work for you to do for Team Pixelboy, Daniel. Send me a PM if you want to know more. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AtariBrian Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 If you were able to reprogram jeepers creepers to be played with atari paddles I would buy a cart of it , and maybe others would also 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted April 12, 2017 Share Posted April 12, 2017 If you were able to reprogram jeepers creepers to be played with atari paddles I would buy a cart of it , and maybe others would also Atari paddle controllers don't work on the ColecoVision. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kamshaft Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 Hope things work out for you Daniel! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Yurkie Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 Hope things improve for you Daniel. Your a great guy and a huge asset to the ColecoVision community. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColecoFan1981 Posted April 13, 2017 Share Posted April 13, 2017 (edited) Daniel, Nice to hear back from you again, and that I wish you all the best... I just followed you on Twitter! ~Ben Edited April 13, 2017 by ColecoFan1981 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newcoleco Posted April 14, 2017 Author Share Posted April 14, 2017 Daniel, Nice to hear back from you again, and that I wish you all the best... I just followed you on Twitter! ~Ben Hope things improve for you Daniel. Your a great guy and a huge asset to the ColecoVision community. Hope things work out for you Daniel! I would also have some paid work for you to do for Team Pixelboy, Daniel. Send me a PM if you want to know more. Always a pleasure to see you back here Daniel! We (CollectorVision) might have something for you to do if you want to It's paid works of course Glad you are still interested in the colecovision. It's something I expect to still like 40 years from now. Every project I've made relied upon the tools you created and the devkit. So we all appreciate your work. I did purchase Flora from scubbly years back and the cart version too. I would recommend that you set up a paypal button on your website and sell the roms from there with maybe a pdf manual if its goes along with it. It's pretty easy to setup. Put up a few screen shots. Have a software for sale section and post it to twitter too. What vintage pc stuff you got? I'm always looking for tandy 1000 stuff , Apple II or 80's stuff. Why don't you post some of it here or in the marketplace. Thank for all your kind replies! I've read again my long letter and it's not in perfect english. Regardless, I gave news about me and it felt really good, overdue perhaps but it's done now. Your messages about paid work intrigue me, please send me more details by email if possible. Happy Easter everyone! 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SiLic0ne t0aD Posted April 14, 2017 Share Posted April 14, 2017 Hey Daniel, good to see you around here. I've been a long time fan and admirer of your work..since 2001 or so actually. I hope you become more active around here again, we all miss your work. Good luck with everything and I hope things turn around for you. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newcoleco Posted April 15, 2017 Author Share Posted April 15, 2017 If you were able to reprogram jeepers creepers to be played with atari paddles I would buy a cart of it , and maybe others would also Technically, the trackball (roller controller module) can be used in joystick mode, but it makes the game even harder to play. As for a paddle version, I was thinking an Atari 2600 simplified version of Jeepers Creepers can be done for paddles, but I'm not a Atari 2600 guru. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leonardo Biagi Posted April 15, 2017 Share Posted April 15, 2017 Hello Daniel, you don't know and I'm pretty new to the scene, like really new, and I' m yet to start to understand what you guys do. One thing I know is that is huge. What you guys do to keep the community alive and running, and to keep everyone else from people that just play once in a while, to great fans, is something simply unbelievable. I'm not just a fan of games, I'm a fan of you guys who keep it all alive. Thank you for that. And I hope all the best on you're comeback and unfotunately I don't have a job to offer you, but I offer any help I could do that you may need and I can provide. All the best to you, sir 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newcoleco Posted April 16, 2017 Author Share Posted April 16, 2017 Hello Daniel, you don't know and I'm pretty new to the scene, like really new, and I' m yet to start to understand what you guys do. One thing I know is that is huge. What you guys do to keep the community alive and running, and to keep everyone else from people that just play once in a while, to great fans, is something simply unbelievable. I'm not just a fan of games, I'm a fan of you guys who keep it all alive. Thank you for that. And I hope all the best on you're comeback and unfotunately I don't have a job to offer you, but I offer any help I could do that you may need and I can provide. All the best to you, sir Hello Leonardo, Nice to meet you. Happy to see you part of this fun and active community. During years actively coding new games for the ColecoVision, I tried to bring others to make CV games too, using my knowledge and tools, giving support by Messenger (for chat and file sharing capability during my dial-up Internet time). Some results of this period were: 421, Amazing Snake, Battle Ship (incomplete), and Maze Maniac. When I started making my own CV games, there was nothing organized like now, everything needed to be discovered, software to be developed, ways to make cartridges and published in a professional way was still to come. Now, one makes a box art, one makes a manual, one does beta testing, one does level design, one publish and distributes,... it is more team effort coming from a more mature homebrew scene. For me, I am very happy to see this very active CV homebrew scene that evolved so quickly and in a time I was mostly inactive myself, dealing with personal and financial issues. I know it's not the case, but it's as if I needed to go to let others shine and give their vision to it. I love seeing so many new CV gurus around and newcomers giving the homebrew community a chance; playing the games, forging a friendship, and coding new games. There is still a lot to discover, I'm sure of that. And the visit of CollectorVision at my door this Sunday, Easter time, really warms my heart and boost my energy, my enthusiasm even more. Huge thank you to everyone, yes everyone! Daniel aka NewColeco 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kiwi Posted April 16, 2017 Share Posted April 16, 2017 There is still a lot to discover, I'm sure of that. And the visit of CollectorVision at my door this Sunday, Easter time, really warms my heart and boost my energy, my enthusiasm even more. Collectorvision are awesome for doing that. They are really nice people. As myself completed few original game and released 4 of them on this forums. Rockcutter 32K, A Sparrow goes Flapping, Star Ocean, and Text Adventure. Adventure of a Witch: Flightful Night isn't complete but can be found on the forums. I still use your tools for my game. Hopes everything gets better for you. Enjoy your holiday. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retroillucid Posted April 17, 2017 Share Posted April 17, 2017 Collectorvision are awesome for doing that. They are really nice people. As myself completed few original game and released 4 of them on this forums. Rockcutter 32K, A Sparrow goes Flapping, Star Ocean, and Text Adventure. Adventure of a Witch: Flightful Night isn't complete but can be found on the forums. I still use your tools for my game. Hopes everything gets better for you. Enjoy your holiday. Thanks Chris, we certainly appreciate having you working with us! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retroillucid Posted April 17, 2017 Share Posted April 17, 2017 ... And the visit of CollectorVision at my door this Sunday, Easter time, really warms my heart and boost my energy, my enthusiasm even more. Respect 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TPR Posted April 17, 2017 Share Posted April 17, 2017 This thread is all kinds of awesome! Nice to see you posting again Daniel. I'll continue to do what I can to help promote your Twitter account! Look forward to playing new games! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coleco_master Posted April 17, 2017 Share Posted April 17, 2017 And the visit of CollectorVision at my door this Sunday, Easter time, really warms my heart and boost my energy, my enthusiasm even more. Huge thank you to everyone, yes everyone! Daniel aka NewColeco It was a pleasure meeting with you Daniel And Like I told you, we have work for you! We can do a lot together! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RayXambeR Posted April 19, 2017 Share Posted April 19, 2017 Nice to see you again, involved in CV scene, Daniel. Hope you will add lots of new original and exclusive games to the CV library! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CV Gus Posted April 19, 2017 Share Posted April 19, 2017 Hope things are going better for you by now. Good luck to you. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newcoleco Posted April 22, 2017 Author Share Posted April 22, 2017 Nice to see you again, involved in CV scene, Daniel. Hope you will add lots of new original and exclusive games to the CV library! It feels nice to see all the messages here. It means a lot to me to see all the support, good words. I know there are some expectations. No promise, but I am giving it a try for sure and celebrate ColecoVision 35 years too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newcoleco Posted April 22, 2017 Author Share Posted April 22, 2017 (edited) Hope things are going better for you by now. Good luck to you. Thanks and I hope for better too. Edited April 22, 2017 by newcoleco Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newcoleco Posted April 22, 2017 Author Share Posted April 22, 2017 Nice to see you again, involved in CV scene, Daniel. Hope you will add lots of new original and exclusive games to the CV library! I've also replied to your private message. I hope it's what you asked for. My mailbox is full again, I need to clean up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jess Ragan Posted April 22, 2017 Share Posted April 22, 2017 You've been at this for a while, designing ColecoVision games. I'm sorry life has dealt you a lousy hand and hope things improve for you. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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