Any hacks that you’d recommend playing instead of the original?

[Razzie.P]

I’m checking out Trebor’s 7800 collection and scrolling though the “hacks” folder, and wondered which, if any, of these do you guys feel are now the “best way to play the game."

Possible Mission, for example, fixed the game so it can be finished properly, so (at least in my opinion and to the best of my knowledge) I have no reason to play the original now.  Any time I have a hankerin’’ to play Impossible Mission, I’m gonna pop in this cart, or load this rom.

 

Any other hacks you guys recommend as the go-to way to play a title? 
 

[+MattelAquarius]

Scrapyard Dog with infinite lives.

Double Dragon with graphics hack.

Donkey Kong PK

 

And more like that, which are escaping me at the moment.

[Trebor]

17 minutes ago, MattelAquarius said:

Donkey Kong PK

Donkey Kong PK is rightfully excluded from the hacks folder, and included in the homebrews folder.  At least 95% (if not 97-98%) is entirely new code.   What started out as a hack, became it's own standalone game with completely new graphics, sound, and completely reworked gameplay.

[Jouster]

I'll add these 2 to the list:

Xevious (Title and Color Hack)

Centipede Frameless (Trak-Ball)

 

[+MattelAquarius]

1 hour ago, Trebor said:

Donkey Kong PK is rightfully excluded from the hacks folder, and included in the homebrews folder.  At least 95% (if not 97-98%) is entirely new code.   What started out as a hack, became it's own standalone game with completely new graphics, sound, and completely reworked gameplay.

 

Yes, it is amazing; I should have clarified about that.  My intention was more to say there is no longer any need to play the original 7800 Donkey Kong. 

 

[KevinMos3]

If you're into graphics hacks:

 

Impossible Mission (whichever color variant you prefer. My favorite is the Blue) these hacks are all beatable

 

Choplifter (HUD - not a major overhaul, but a few nice touches, IMO)

 

Scrapyard Dog (graphics hack + infinite lives). Just tweaked the main character and colors on the first world... There's also the Scraps hack that gives a different flavor for the hero.

 

Tank Command (color + graphics hack) again, nothing major, but more pleasing colors, IMO

 

Kung Fun Master (graphics hack. Pacman Red teamed up with me on this one and we gave it a facelift)

 

Donkey Kong Jr (sprite + color edit) just tried to make it look a little closer to the arcade

 

Fatal Run (sports car hack) just my personal preference to have the car look more sporty

 

Water Ski (If you like brighter colors)

[Jaden (JRH)]

There's a Jr. Pac-Man hack that's meant to replicate the C64 version's maze. And while the original version is a near perfect arcade port, that's also kinda my problem with it. The original version is simply a flawed game IMO. And the C64 hack improves on it by not making the maze so damn big.

[edladdin]

There’s a hack of 5200 Popeye that improves graphics and colors toward arcade quality.

 

Miniature Golf Plus for the 2600 is not actually any better or worse than the original, but the nine holes are amusing and thus a little more fun to play.

[CaptainBreakout]

Well, although it's a 2600 game, Sprint Master DC is a great hack, allowing the driver controllers to be used on the original game.  I got permission from @Thomas Jentzsch for Al to make a cart for me in the AA store. One of my fav 2600 carts.

 

There's also all the 2600 games that feature options menus. (made by OmegaMatrix). Wish I had all those on a cart, but I think I'll let a little time go by and hopefully get carts made all at once of them.  They are an amazing effort.

 

 

[John Stamos Mullet]

Whatever happened to that Rampage graphics hack KevinMos was working on? Screenshots looked great, but no rom was ever posted?

[Lynxpro]

With the PokeyMax on the scene, I'm surprised nobody is asking for the SID audio and samples from the C64 version to be added to the Impossible Mission hacks. That and all of the other stuff that was in the C64 version that's missing in the 7800 version...

Edited April 8, 2021 by Lynxpro
Grammerly

[BrianC]

Is it possible to hack the jump kick back into 7800 Kung Fu Master? I know the 2600 version already has an excellent separate buttons hack for Genesis controller (though it's missing the jump kick, as well). 

Edited April 8, 2021 by BrianC

[+darryl1970]

On 4/4/2021 at 1:21 PM, Jouster said:

I'll add these 2 to the list:

Centipede Frameless (Trak-Ball)

 

The frame always bothered me, as well as the sound. I finally played this with a trakball, and it was great. Now that Concerto and Dragonfly are standard, it would be the ultimate translation if somebody could farm the 5200 Centipede sound effects. They are spot on.

On 4/4/2021 at 11:51 AM, Trebor said:

Donkey Kong PK is rightfully excluded from the hacks folder, and included in the homebrews folder.  At least 95% (if not 97-98%) is entirely new code.   What started out as a hack, became it's own standalone game with completely new graphics, sound, and completely reworked gameplay.

Definitely one of my favorites. This helped me to see the true potential of the 7800. The original code was very poor and lacked many of the things that made the arcade version special.

[Giles N]

I and @KevinMos3 made a hack of ‘Scrapyard Dog’ where you are the Dog on mission to save your owner...

 

Kevin did the major-part of the hacking; I drew the majorpart of the dog/scraps-animation.

 

This is pretty much the Scrapyard-Dog version I play, as a cute dog is more likable than a big-nosed, small-eyed ... guy...

 

 

 

Edited April 13, 2021 by Giles N

[christo930]

On 4/4/2021 at 11:23 AM, Razzie.P said:

I’m checking out Trebor’s 7800 collection and scrolling though the “hacks” folder, and wondered which, if any, of these do you guys feel are now the “best way to play the game."

Possible Mission, for example, fixed the game so it can be finished properly, so (at least in my opinion and to the best of my knowledge) I have no reason to play the original now.  Any time I have a hankerin’’ to play Impossible Mission, I’m gonna pop in this cart, or load this rom.

 

Any other hacks you guys recommend as the go-to way to play a title? 
 

 

There's Mario Bros Arcade hack I use. The sprites look better.