+atari2600land Posted January 3, 2007 Share Posted January 3, 2007 I think we should change the name of this game to "Non-Infringing Russian Block Game." or NIRB, for short. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zach Posted January 4, 2007 Author Share Posted January 4, 2007 I think we should change the name of this game to "Non-Infringing Russian Block Game." or NIRB, for short. That title did cross my mind, but I still like "Chetiry". Note the similarity to the Greek-derived prefix "Tetra". Plus it's easier to fit on a title screen. If there is enough interest in NIRB, I may reconsider my decision. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bjk7382 Posted January 4, 2007 Share Posted January 4, 2007 I couldn't get it to fire up on the CC2 using the SuperCharger bankswitching and startup file. Cubis uses the same setup, and works fine. I like cubis for it's 2 player support, but it only has 1 color per scanline (and has some horrible music...) I like where you are going with this game and I will be sure to try and test any updates on the cc2. My idea that you probably don't need: -put a shadow on the bottom of the screen where the piece is going to fall. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diggs130 Posted January 4, 2007 Share Posted January 4, 2007 I think we should change the name of this game to "Non-Infringing Russian Block Game." or NIRB, for short. That title did cross my mind, but I still like "Chetiry". Note the similarity to the Greek-derived prefix "Tetra". Plus it's easier to fit on a title screen. If there is enough interest in NIRB, I may reconsider my decision. my vote is for NIRB. No cuttle cart here so I can not be of assistence there! Looks good so far............ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zach Posted January 4, 2007 Author Share Posted January 4, 2007 I couldn't get it to fire up on the CC2 using the SuperCharger bankswitching and startup file. Thanks for testing. You might have better luck with RAM+ bankswitching (same as Mountain King and other 12K CBS games.) I'm particularly interested in results from the Krok Cart because of trouble I'm having with my own. Maybe I should have used a surge protector with my KC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeaGtGruff Posted January 4, 2007 Share Posted January 4, 2007 I couldn't get it to fire up on the CC2 using the SuperCharger bankswitching and startup file. Thanks for testing. You might have better luck with RAM+ bankswitching (same as Mountain King and other 12K CBS games.) I'm particularly interested in results from the Krok Cart because of trouble I'm having with my own. Maybe I should have used a surge protector with my KC. I have a Krokodile Cartridge, so I'll try it tonight and let you know. Michael Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandmountainslim Posted January 6, 2007 Share Posted January 6, 2007 add up another vote for "NIRB" WP Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shawn Posted January 15, 2007 Share Posted January 15, 2007 (edited) Has anyone tried this out on a real 2600 with just an eprom board? Also name it whatever you want cause this game is S-W-E-E-T-A-S-S!!! Edited January 15, 2007 by Shawn Sr. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeaGtGruff Posted January 25, 2007 Share Posted January 25, 2007 I couldn't get it to fire up on the CC2 using the SuperCharger bankswitching and startup file. Thanks for testing. You might have better luck with RAM+ bankswitching (same as Mountain King and other 12K CBS games.) I'm particularly interested in results from the Krok Cart because of trouble I'm having with my own. Maybe I should have used a surge protector with my KC. I have a Krokodile Cartridge, so I'll try it tonight and let you know. Michael Okay, I didn't actually try it until tonight. In fact, tonight is the first time ever that I've used my Krok Cart since I finally got a USB-to-serial cable. I don't know if it's just my Krok Cart, or the software ("firmware"?), but your CBS-style program doesn't work right, and none of my M-Network-style programs work right. Chetiry starts out great, but it goes bonkers when you clear a row. Instead of clearing the row, each row on the screen with any blocks in it turns into a solid row stretching all the way across the screen (even across the left and right areas where you're using VBLANK), and any new blocks that fall land on the solid rows. My Sudoku WIP doesn't display the numbers right-- they're all doubled up (e.g., 11__33__55 instead of 14__36__52 or something like that). MY QFTLPOA prototype displays the playfield correctly, but the players and missiles are all wrong. On the other hand, programs that use other cart formats (e.g., 4K, F8, F6, and F4) display correctly. Michael Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kroko Posted January 25, 2007 Share Posted January 25, 2007 Firmware Revision 1.0 does not support M-Network. You would need 1.1 or 1.2 PM me if you want your device upgraded. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeaGtGruff Posted January 25, 2007 Share Posted January 25, 2007 Firmware Revision 1.0 does not support M-Network. You would need 1.1 or 1.2 PM me if you want your device upgraded. The cart I bought says (in the manual and on the Krok Commander screen) that it works with M-Network E7 and CBS formats. I have the 1.1 version I *think*, or maybe it's 1.2-- it's the version from the batch of carts assembled and sold last year. I'll do some further testing with different formats and trying the various features (e.g., the different expansion RAM banks) to see if I can determine anything more specific to report. Michael Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Jentzsch Posted January 25, 2007 Share Posted January 25, 2007 Works well on my Kroko Cart until a line is removed. Then this line stays black all the time and the pieces stop at the top of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeaGtGruff Posted January 26, 2007 Share Posted January 26, 2007 Works well on my Kroko Cart until a line is removed. Then this line stays black all the time and the pieces stop at the top of it. That sounds very similar to what I see, except the "cleared" line is brown instead of black-- although I'm guessing this is possibly because you're playing an NTSC game on a PAL Atari, so hue $1x and $Ex and $Fx are gray (B&W) instead of colored-- and when a line is cleared, that line and all lines below it become solid brown lines. Michael Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SeaGtGruff Posted January 26, 2007 Share Posted January 26, 2007 Firmware Revision 1.0 does not support M-Network. You would need 1.1 or 1.2 PM me if you want your device upgraded. I have the 1.1 version I *think*, or maybe it's 1.2 Confirmed, I have 1.1. What does 1.2 have that 1.1 doesn't have? I haven't tested it any further yet, and I don't expect to get to it tonight, but I have ideas on how to test M-Network E7 bankswitching. My initial hunch is that the behavior I'm seeing is related somehow to the extra RAM, perhaps the four 256-byte RAM mini-banks that are selectable at $F800-$F9FF. So I'm going to write a test program using the E7 method that will select and test the seven switchable ROM banks, plus do some read/write tests with all five RAM banks (the 1K chunk that can be selected at $F000-$F7FF, and the four 256-byte chunks that can be selected at $F800-$F9FF). Likewise, I'm wondering if the problem with Chetiry might be related to the extra RAM with the CBS bankswitching method. I've never learned the CBS method yet, but this is as good a time as any! Michael Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zach Posted March 28, 2007 Author Share Posted March 28, 2007 (edited) Unfortunately, it looks like I'm not going to have much time for Atari programming this year. I'm posting the source to the demo, in case anyone wants to pick it up. There are two source codes in the zip. One is playable but uses RAM+ bankswitching (same demo as posted earlier), and the other uses standard memory, but is unplayable. Also one uses PHP and the other uses SHX for clearing VBLANK. There are a few notes provided on the pros and cons of each approach. Maybe I'll get it back to it later, but in case I don't I hereby release this code for other programmers. I trust that if anyone finishes it, they will give credit where it is due. chetiry_source_28Mar07.zip Edited March 28, 2007 by Zach Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Nathan Strum Posted March 29, 2007 Share Posted March 29, 2007 Well that's a bummer. I know you were really looking forward to working on it, too. Hopefully you can get back into programming again when your schedule eases up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zach Posted May 17, 2007 Author Share Posted May 17, 2007 (edited) I found out that one of the traditional Russian songs used in other implementations of the game is called Korobeiniki. Certainly it seemed old enough to be public domain, but it appears to be trademarked, in the US at least. (See ELORG Company at the bottom of the page.) I'm surprised that a song that someone wrote 150 years ago could be trademarked. The good news is that there is still a lot of public domain Russian music. Edited June 18, 2007 by Zach Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zach Posted June 18, 2007 Author Share Posted June 18, 2007 UPDATE: Just wanted to let you know that I haven't given up. I've had more time for programming this summer and got a lot done this weekend. Mainly I've been busy adapting the game to standard memory, rather than the RAM+ bankswitching. With the latest demo you can move pieces and rotate them, but rows don't dissappear yet when they are full. Note that the score and next-piece icon are not active yet. Also, I took care of the wrapping problem when moving to the left or the right, but you can still wrap while rotating. Also, the shapes are not random now. Do any of you programming gurus know the mininum number of bits to seed a good pseudorandom sequence of seven numbers? chetiry_18Jun07.bin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+batari Posted June 18, 2007 Share Posted June 18, 2007 Also, the shapes are not random now. Do any of you programming gurus know the mininum number of bits to seed a good pseudorandom sequence of seven numbers? I'd say 8 bits is plenty if you also get and throw away a random number after every player move. As for music, I suggest Twelve Pieces for Piano, Op. 40, no. 6, Chant sans Paroles (song without words) by Tchaikovsky. I also kind of like Dance of the Sugarplum Fairies by the same, but it's hard to get past the Nutcracker thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+atari2600land Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 I also kind of like Dance of the Sugarplum Fairies by the same, but it's hard to get past the Nutcracker thing. Dance of the Sugarplum Fairies is used in the NES version of Txxxxx. Whenever I hear it around Christmastime in the mall or somewhere else, I think "Txxxxx music!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
supercat Posted June 19, 2007 Share Posted June 19, 2007 Also, the shapes are not random now. Do any of you programming gurus know the mininum number of bits to seed a good pseudorandom sequence of seven numbers? If your goal is not to produce a repeatable sequence, eight bits should probably be fine if you have some means of 'nudging' the generator based upon user input and game events. For example, you could run the generator 1x/frame plus another time on every frame where the joystick is pushed or held, plus another time every time a piece hits the bottom. If your goal is to have a repeatable sequence (e.g. one block game I have on the PC offers a "tournament" mode where the user specifies the random seed; if two people both play game #143 (or #57, or whatever) they'll both get the same sequence of blocks) then the simplest way to make things work well is probably to use a 24-bit generator. There are alternative approaches that would avoid the need for such a generator and could be used if RAM was very tight, but they're more complicated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zach Posted June 19, 2007 Author Share Posted June 19, 2007 As for music, I suggest Twelve Pieces for Piano, Op. 40, no. 6, Chant sans Paroles (song without words) by Tchaikovsky. I also kind of like Dance of the Sugarplum Fairies by the same, but it's hard to get past the Nutcracker thing. Great suggestions, Fred. Thanks! I'm all for Nutcracker music if we can get it in tune. I imagine we will have to try lots of musical pieces before finding ones that sound good on the Atari. I've also been looking into some excerpts from Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition: Market Place Bydlo Ballet of the unhatched chicks And another fun piece by the same composer: Sorochinsk Fair (Incidentally, I thought a platformer with the Nutcracker as the main character would make a nice Holiday cart, but since I'm not programming it, I won't push the idea too hard.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+thegoldenband Posted June 20, 2007 Share Posted June 20, 2007 You should totally use Unhatched Chicks. That'd map on very well to the 2600's sound capabilities. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandmountainslim Posted November 19, 2007 Share Posted November 19, 2007 Any updates on this one? I have been lookin for a Txxxxx type 2600 game for a long time and was hopin this one would make it to the AA Store. WP Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zach Posted November 20, 2007 Author Share Posted November 20, 2007 Thank you for your continued interest. Unfortunately my work takes all my energy these days (First year high-school teacher. Classes are Algebra II, Calculus, Introduction to Programming, and AP Computer Science.) Maybe I can spend some time on it during winter break, but it's more likely we'll have to wait until summer for an update. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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