Ramses Posted November 1, 2017 Share Posted November 1, 2017 (edited) I'm curious to hear what other people do to keep track of their high scores on old games. I've been playing a lot of Atari 2600 and Colecovision as of late, and I've been trying to figure out a good system. Right now I just take a picture of the screen with my phone which worked well at first, that is until the number or pictures increased and I had to dig through the old ones to see if the score was beaten. I might just go back to old way of just righting them down on a piece of paper though it would probably get lost eventually. Maybe there's a database app or something that would make it easier? Edited November 1, 2017 by Ramses Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gabriel Posted November 1, 2017 Share Posted November 1, 2017 I have a hardcover journal where I list games and update my scores as well as the game variations (if applicable) and dates I achieved them. I don't worry about screenshots. My scores are for me. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jaybird3rd Posted November 1, 2017 Share Posted November 1, 2017 Same here. Just a small notepad, with one page devoted to each game. If I beat an old record, I scratch it out and write in the new score, along with the date. If I don't already have a page for a game, I start a new one. Simple and inexpensive. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fiddlepaddle Posted November 1, 2017 Share Posted November 1, 2017 I usually write it on a 3x5 card and include it with the cartridge, sometimes I just use a post-it for small carts like GB. Too often over the years I've had too much work to convert a file format or media format. Sometimes, paper is better, especially for simple things like this. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djour Posted November 1, 2017 Share Posted November 1, 2017 I never have, maybe I'm lazy, but mostly I just don't think it's important. Maybe I should start and include the scores on my YouTube channel? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cynicaster Posted November 1, 2017 Share Posted November 1, 2017 Most of my gaming is MAME and I have my cabinet set up to save high scores, which is great. Sometimes I'll fire up a game that I haven't played in years and see one of my old scores up there and find myself thinking "how on earth did I get that score?" Then I'll spend an hour or two trying to beat it again, which is really fun, and kind of rewarding when you succeed. IMO, you need score goals to get the most out of most old games--otherwise you're just doing repetitive things over and over again at a gradually faster pace. For stuff where autosaving is not possible, I find an app like OneNote on a phone or tablet is great solution. You log the scores right after you achieve them, they sync to the cloud automatically, and you can then access them on any device. You can even include screenshots next to the scores for posterity. Of course the good ol' notebook and pen works, too. But I play games often when I travel, and I'm not going to carry a score book around with me. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VectorGamer Posted November 1, 2017 Share Posted November 1, 2017 There's an app for pinball scores called Pindigo. You take a picture of your score and upload it to the app. You can follow other people, comment on their scores and compare your scores not only with your followers but with everyone that uses the app. Someone needs to develop an app like this for classic video games. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silverfleet Posted November 1, 2017 Share Posted November 1, 2017 Ever since digital cameras became a thing, I just started taking pics of them. I use my smartphone these days because it's always the closest camera. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Skippy B. Coyote Posted November 1, 2017 Share Posted November 1, 2017 (edited) I store all my high scores in text documents on my computer, with the games ordered alphabetically and a different document for each system. For example, here's a copy/paste of my Atari 7800 high score list: Jin's Atari 7800 High Scores --------------------------------------------- Asteroids: (Intermediate) 46,590 (Advanced) 21,480 Astro Fighter: (Normal) 6,780 Beef Drop: 46,300 Centipede: (Novice) 400,205 (Standard) 227,992 (Advanced) 127,520 (Expert) 122,136 Choplifter!: 62 Commando: (Standard) 92,500 Crossbow: (Joystick) 575,500 Dark Chambers: (Standard) 503,350 Dig Dug: 86,530 Donkey Kong: (Standard) 111,100 (Advanced) 50,300 (Expert) 42,600 Donkey Kong PK: (Arcade) 96,600 Donkey Kong Junior: (Standard) 142,900 (Advanced) 88,700 (Expert) 88,000 Double Dragon: 113,900 Dungeon Stalker: (Standard) 22,700 FailSafe: (Intermediate) 65,200 Food Fight: (Intermediate) 173,300 (Advanced) 361,600 Frenzy!: 9,654 Frenzy! - Berzerk: 2,370 Froggie: 10,290 Galaga: (Advanced) 171,110 Ikari Warriors: (Intermediate) 65,300 Joust: (Intermidate) 91,950 Mario Bros.: (Standard) 95,290 Motor Psycho: (Track 1) 508,113 Ms. Pac-Man: (Cherries) 78,290 Ninja Golf: (Easy) 154,850 (Normal) 159,940 (Hard) 181,650 Pac-Man Collection - Ms. Pac-Man: 48,960 Pac-Man Collection - Ms. Pac-Man (Fast Mode): 127,080 Pac-Man Collection - Ms. Pac-Man Plus: 21,490 Pac-Man Collection - Pac-Man: 27,260 Pac-Man Collection - Pac-Man Plus: 37,980 Pete Rose Baseball: 13 to 10 Planet Smashers: (Easy) 193,025 Pole Position II: (Test) 72,100 (Fuji) 70,100 (Seaside) 65,400 (Suzuka) 30,080 Robotron 2084: (Intermediate) 10,003,600 (Advanced) 719,900 (Challenge) 205,575 Scramble: (Normal) 120,680 (Hard) 94,800 Space Invaders: 3,900 Super Pac-Man: (Apple) 38,038 Xevious: (Intermediate) 222,080 (Advanced) 211,600 If I had a copy of AtariWriter and a 1050 disk drive I'd keep backups of all my high score lists on 5¼" floppy disks like a real pro retro gamer, but sadly I'm not quite cool enough for that yet. Edited November 1, 2017 by Jin 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramses Posted November 2, 2017 Author Share Posted November 2, 2017 There's an app for pinball scores called Pindigo. You take a picture of your score and upload it to the app. You can follow other people, comment on their scores and compare your scores not only with your followers but with everyone that uses the app. Someone needs to develop an app like this for classic video games. Yeah, that would be really nice. I'm surprised no one has made an app like that for classic video games yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramses Posted November 2, 2017 Author Share Posted November 2, 2017 (edited) Most of my gaming is MAME and I have my cabinet set up to save high scores, which is great. Sometimes I'll fire up a game that I haven't played in years and see one of my old scores up there and find myself thinking "how on earth did I get that score?" Then I'll spend an hour or two trying to beat it again, which is really fun, and kind of rewarding when you succeed. IMO, you need score goals to get the most out of most old games--otherwise you're just doing repetitive things over and over again at a gradually faster pace. For stuff where autosaving is not possible, I find an app like OneNote on a phone or tablet is great solution. You log the scores right after you achieve them, they sync to the cloud automatically, and you can then access them on any device. You can even include screenshots next to the scores for posterity. Of course the good ol' notebook and pen works, too. But I play games often when I travel, and I'm not going to carry a score book around with me. Yeah, that's why I've started keeping track of my scores as well. Also, some games play a lot differently when you play that way instead of surviving as long as you can. It becomes more strategic and you can discover more depth in the gameplay (if the game has a good scoring system). I'll have to mess around with OneNote. Sounds like it's what I'm looking for. Edited November 2, 2017 by Ramses Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cynicaster Posted November 2, 2017 Share Posted November 2, 2017 (edited) Yeah, that's why I've started keeping track of my scores as well. Also, some games play a lot differently when you play that way instead of surviving as long as you can. It becomes more strategic and you can discover more depth in the gameplay (if the game has a good scoring system). I'll have to mess around with OneNote. Sounds like it's what I'm looking for. That's a very good point about how playing for score reveals a game's true depth. If all you care about is beating as many levels as you can, then you lose that risk/reward dynamic that really amps up the tension in lots of games. I am running the free OneNote app on my iPhone, I have to believe there is also one for Android and Mac. For any Windows 10 systems you have (PC, tablet, laptop, etc.) you can get a free OneNote app from the Windows store. It doesn't have the full functionality that comes in the full MS Office suite, but it's fine for most purposes. Lastly, you can use your Windows ID to log in to the OneNote "web app" at www.onenote.com. The nice thing about that is it means you can use any computer with an internet connection to access/edit your notebooks. These all sync together automatically so once you enter info to your notebook from any of these sources, all of the others will instantly have it as well. I use it for pretty much everything, both at work and in my personal life. Edited November 2, 2017 by Cynicaster Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Mr. Video Posted November 5, 2017 Share Posted November 5, 2017 I write them down using a good ol' pencil and notepad. Mainly because the notepad's small enough for me to quickly jot down high scores and I don't have to turn on a computer or anything to look at them. As of now my high score list is about 5 and a half pages long! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tanooki Posted November 5, 2017 Share Posted November 5, 2017 When I was a kid I did this. If any of you ever had Nintendo Power magazine in the 80s/early 90s they gave out this lime green looking small journal and I took all sorts of notes in it. Passwords, max stats for certain stuff, various useful codes, and other good information for all the games I was playing at the time (mainly SNES stuff.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Neo 64 Posted November 5, 2017 Share Posted November 5, 2017 (edited) I don't keep track of high scores, I don't see the need. Can someone tell me the benefits of keeping track of your scores? Edited November 5, 2017 by Neo 64 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Video Posted November 6, 2017 Share Posted November 6, 2017 I rarely keep track of scores, but would probably write them in a game journal like how I do with passwords, hints, cheats etc. One of my copies of pitfall 2 has scores written on the back in old school permanent marker, you know those old school silver and brown ones that are actually permanent. I see little need for high scores, even bitd because, that was a public bragging rights thing for arcade games, not home games. Most those could be beaten, error scores, crashing, have an end etc. My goal was always to play better, and longer, and chasing a high score, even in games where that is the intent of the game, is often detremental to that objective. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cynicaster Posted November 6, 2017 Share Posted November 6, 2017 I don't keep track of high scores, I don't see the need. Can someone tell me the benefits of keeping track of your scores? Well, "benefit" is in the eye of the beholder, I suppose... if you see no value then there is none. I agree that score doesn't mean a whole lot in post-SMB platform games and the like where "finishing the game" is clearly the goal. But if you play late 70s to early 80s games, I'd wonder why you even bother if you don't think score matters. In most of those games, there is no "finishing the game" and you quickly reach a point where there is nothing further to "explore." So what's left? If you're not trying to improve your score, you might as well be playing with a fidget spinner. I see little need for high scores, even bitd because, that was a public bragging rights thing for arcade games, not home games. Most those could be beaten, error scores, crashing, have an end etc. My goal was always to play better, and longer, and chasing a high score, even in games where that is the intent of the game, is often detremental to that objective Huh? High scores not being a thing with home games is news to me. You must not play much pre-crash stuff. If somebody asked you back then how good you are at Pressure Cooker or Demon Attack, you're saying you'd answer "my personal best is screen #37"...? I'm not being a smart ass, I'm genuinely trying to understand your point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VectorGamer Posted November 6, 2017 Share Posted November 6, 2017 I see little need for high scores, even bitd because, that was a public bragging rights thing for arcade games, not home games. Huh? High scores not being a thing with home games is news to me. It's not like gaming magazines of the era kept track of scores or you can earn patches from software companies. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eltigro Posted November 7, 2017 Share Posted November 7, 2017 First, let me say that I haven't actively kept track of high scores in quite a while, but I get it. I don't know what the first arcade game to save high scores was, but I guess for those, it would be more about bragging rights. The games are there at the local hangout, and people see the high scores and get to put in their initials when they get in the top ten or whatever. Everyone guns for the top. If someone is dethroned, they fight to try to get back on top. At least, that's how I imagine it would have been for serious gamers playing the most popular game at the arcade... For home consoles, I see it more as a way to track your skill progression. Those high scores will creep upwards... at some point, you will rarely score below what was previously a personal best. Most of these games were games that didn't have an end. No final level or whatever. So keeping track of a high score was the only way to really track how good you had gotten at a game. (Admittedly, some do have an unintentional ending, like the 256th level in Pac Man or whatever... but it's mainly because, I think, the programmers originally thought that players would never get that far, so they didn't bother to fix any issues that would arise from such a high level.) Then games started to have "endings" or a defined goal to work towards. The aim could be just "beating" the game, like in games such as Mega Man or similar games, where you progress though levels toward a game ending. Then, when someone talks about a game, you can say you've beaten it. It's changed, but it's still the same idea. A way of measuring skill progression. Taking that further, there are speed runners. Nowadays, many people can say they've beaten Super Mario Bros for the NES, but now it becomes how fast can you do it? Again, it's all about a way of measuring skill progression. Today's modern games? How do we know when we've "finished" a game like GTA V? Is it when we completed the main story missions? Is it when we've won all the races? Is it when we've bought all the different guns, have a full garage, and a big house? More and more often these days, for games on modern consoles, the way to track skill progression is through achievements or trophies. I don't know how many times I've seen pictures on Reddit of people showing how they've finally Platinum trophied a game or one hundred percented a game. There's The Completionist on YouTube who will play a game and often considers himself finished when he's gotten all possible achievements. But we can look at how many trophies we've earned, or which achievements we've earned. And... other people, our friends online can also see what we have accomplished. I can even get updates when a friend gets an achievement on XBox Live or whatever. And there's a monthly tally of who has gotten the most achievement points each month (last month I was second out of all my friends... not a great accomplishment, because I've not got many friends on XBox Live, but whatever). So... we've gone from getting a high score that shows up on a list on an arcade game so we can be proud or have bragging rights to getting a high achievement number on XBox Live that shows up on a list online so we can be proud or have bragging rights... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cynicaster Posted November 7, 2017 Share Posted November 7, 2017 Actually, the lack of meaningful merit systems is one of the primary gripes I have with modern games. A traditional numeric score wouldn't make much sense in most of them, and the trophy bullshit is pointless, IMO, because it usually says more about how many hours somebody has wasted on a game than it says about their skills. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eltigro Posted November 7, 2017 Share Posted November 7, 2017 (edited) As far as the trophy thing goes, it's really, I think, a combination. Sure some are just ones that anyone can get if they spend enough time playing. For example, there's one in Forza 6 that is something like "Race 300 laps in multiplayer. You could lose every race and still get that one eventually. Some, though, are more skill based. For example, there are often ones for something like completing the game in hard difficulty. Some are a combination of the two. One that comes to mind is one where you get an achievement for winning a match/race against a member of the development staff. You could win race after race after race and never get matched up with a development staff member. So you'd need skill and luck/time playing to get one like that. I will say though, that comparing achievement point totals (I'm more familiar with the XBox achievements than the Playstation trophy stuff) is weighted. More difficult achievements are usually worth more points while easy stuff is less. I think I've seen a range of something like from 5 points to upwards of 300 or 400 points. And yes, some of these are just a time spent playing kind of deal. (There's one in Madden '06 worth 400 points for going through 30 years worth of football seasons. I've never played a Madden game... looked this up online.) But really, it's about as close as we have right now. Other than that, there are some games that have online scoreboards or whatever. In Forza, there are leaderboards that show lap times. In games like Call of Duty, there are stats kept for players like kill/death ratios (again, don't play them, but I've heard of such a thing). These are definitely skill based (unless someone is cheating... I've seen some lap times that are impossibly low...). My main point is, the old arcade high score table is kinda still around. It has just evolved/mutated into something else. And if someone says they don't get the point of keeping high scores, but they know what their Playstation trophy count is, they need to rethink things. Edited November 7, 2017 by Eltigro Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Video Posted November 8, 2017 Share Posted November 8, 2017 My only experience for a pressure cooker, outside of a steam engine project bitd but that didn't work to well. I do know the vast majority of people when asked, say, how good they are at pacman, will say something to the extent of "oh I can usually get to the fifth key levels" rather than "I get x hundred thousand" or whatever. Tetris would be a good example. I can go for 50 levels, or go for a high score, which will be higher, but likely kill me off by level 10. I guess it depends on the game, but most you can have fun with, or go through pre scripted dance moves for a score, but very few are well enough designed to do both. I just never particularly gave two craps about scores. I'm not an achievement chaser either, honestly I'd like the option of opting out of that crap. I play games to have fun, and limiting to a meer score just isn't for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pjs Posted January 26, 2018 Share Posted January 26, 2018 I started using Highscore.com. I can honestly say that it has put a lot of new life into my old games. Especially 7800 and 2600. The site is easy to use, and adds a bit of competition. (Whether it be with yourself or the other gamers on the site.) I was using a notebook but pages would get torn, it would disappear, etc. At least I know those scores will be out there for a while, as long as the site is up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keatah Posted February 3, 2018 Share Posted February 3, 2018 I keep track of only a few games' hi-scores. So either a simple free-form text file works or a piece of paper and pencil. I dislike specialized apps for something like this because you never know when it'll be shut down, or upgraded into something you don't like, or all-of-a-sudden require a subscription fee. And all the motions you have to go through to make it all work, setup, accounts & passwords, and all that. It's too much for something simple like this. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StickerPeeler Posted February 7, 2018 Share Posted February 7, 2018 I didn't see anyone mention the VG Collection Tracker app yet. I use it for inventory and for high scores and completed games as well. The way I do it is to snap a pic of the screen or just scribble it down and then just jot it down to the app. It depends on what game I'm playing. Speedy games like Fast Food and Yar's Revenge tend to lock me into scribbles more than not. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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