Rhomaios
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Posts posted by Rhomaios
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13 minutes ago, Revontuli said:
I'm trying to avoid having the backgrounds be the exact same color as the red and blue dragons - in addition, I'm color cycling to the sprite, ramping from near black to near white, which should help differentiate the player from the background about. This is something I've been thinking about a lot - on top of trying to manage it with differences between NTSC (Never The Same Color) and modern displays. I'll also have to see how people track the dragons while playing.
I think the example you're referring to is the crystal cave one - I'm going to adjust the colors on that one a bit, but the captured gif is also at an odd framerate and didn't capture much of the color cycling, so for all the depth the dragon itself looks a bit flatter that it probably would be during gameplay.
Glad to hear it! Yeah, don't get me wrong, I really like that cave. This is all very impressive, but that's the one thing that immediately stood out to me. Thanks for the response and for the game!
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This game is shaping up fantastically. I'm eagerly looking forward to it! One little nit visually, if you don't mind. I noticed that in one of the videos (the one with the amazing depth!), the blue sprite gets a bit lost with blue backgrounds, or at least it looks that way watching it on my laptop. Is that something you've noticed in actually playing it? Have you considered/is it even possible to make the sprite stand out a bit more? I'm recalling like in Dragon Spirit, which also has a blue dragon, its hue was a different shade of blue than the water, so there is no difficulty in discernment when you get blue on blue.
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My first real "wow" moment was a fake. Up until 1997 or so, I actually thought that everything was progressing normally. The Genesis and Super Nintendo were not incredibly different from the NES before them, PS1's Oddworld wasn't leaps and bounds better than Donkey Kong Country. Mario Kart 64 was certainly better than Super Mario Kart, but not mind-bogglingly so. Moreover, the PS1 and N64 games were, with a handful of exceptions, quite ugly compared to the excellent pixel art that preceded it. I was also generally unimpressed with 3D fighters (because they controlled terribly and I thought the 3D plane was a gimmic — I think Mortal Kombat 4 was the first time I realized I was a 2D gamer for life!). But I was truly impressed with the FMV graphics for Final Fantasy VII. That was my "wow" moment and I instantly regretted getting the N64 instead. However, when I first saw advertisements, I didn't realize that the actual gameplay was nothing like the video being shown! It did sound better than the SNES, but I liked FFII/FFIII's tunes better than FFVII. My "wow" quickly turned to relief as I still didn't own a PS1.
The true "wow" moment wasn't until the Xbox 360 came out. While the DC and PS2 graphics (and Xbox after it) were excellent, I never really mistook them for real football. But when I saw a game, similar to the one OP describes, being played in a game store, it wasn't a quick glance that had me fooled. I had to seriously look at it to tell it wasn't real. I think that was the first time I thought the graphics were realistic enough to fool someone. Not indefinitely, mind you, after some seconds you'll start to notice little things (and of course, no faces were shown yet), but I seriously thought that we had reached the pinnacle of graphics, that we were done with the major improvements. Before, the advances were large but logical, yet nothing came close to looking just like a person or real life (sorry, not even the Dreamcast 2K games). But now we were bordering on uncanny valley territory. That part was crazy to me.
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I re-bought Sega Rally. Street Racer actually looks pretty cool, so I might pick that up and save NFS1 for the PS1. Thanks for the advice, everyone!
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Thanks for the recs! It's said that the Saturn didn't get more racers, but that's true for all the genres. I should have mentioned I already knew about Outrun, though these days I think I prefer turning on Outrun 2 instead.
Is there a difference between the US and JP versions of Sega Rally like there is with Need for Speed?
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Are Saturn topics ok here? Not sure where else they might go. I've been getting into Dreamcast racers lately courtesy of a fellow AA member and some free time this week, and it made me wonder about Saturn racers as well. What are the best arcade racers for the system? Any that are worth getting over the PS1/N64 or DC/PS2? For what it's worth, I'm a big fan of games like Need for Speed Hot Pursuit II (best in class). As soon as I got it, I put quite a bit of time in Vanishing Point on the Dreamcast, which is definitely a blast to play, even if it feels a bit grind-heavy. Any more like these? Thoughts? Favorites? Games you detest and I should stay away from?
The one I had my eye on so far is the US version of Need for Speed. I never actually played the original.
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Did a big trade with Zeptari1. He's very communicative and a real pleasure to trade with. Couldn't recommend anyone more. Thanks!
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16 minutes ago, AtariBrian said:
Good god after less than five minutes of watching that video I had to click it off.
Lasted longer than me. 20 seconds in and I had to say no thanks.
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16 hours ago, H454 said:
Yea, Hit and run gets to be a real slog in the last 3rd of the game. I seen some youtube vids where the devs said that they had a time crunch and the last levels were repeats with stupidly short time limits. I beat it, but I had a couple moments of rage quit.
I don't remember what it was called, but the Simpson platformer that came out on everything (360 etc.) was pretty good.
That game was good? I remember it getting middling reviews and so I skipped it. But now I don't even have a 360/PS3 anymore and likely won't have a Wii soon, too. It did look neat, but I've been burned by too many bad Simpsons games!
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3 hours ago, H454 said:
I feel about the same way Rhomaios does.
If had played Hit and Run, Then asked for "that driving Simpson's game" for Christmas and got Road Rage, I'd be real disappointed.
Road Rage seems like a good "first try" or tech demo. Having said that, I appreciate Road Rage for what it is and that it paved the way for Hit and Run.
The biggest problem with Simpson's games is the best ones only get about 70 - 90% "the way there".
Road Rage is about 50% of a game. And most of that opinion is that it seems like its only 75% of a crazy taxi game.
The transition into 3D for the Simpsons was not an easy one. Just look at the skateboard game that came before Road Rage.
Honestly, I also got really bored with Hit & Run. But there's a point in GTA where I just can't stand to do another timed race, so I think that's where my frustration lies with these games. Crazy Taxi stays fun doing it, and GTA has the atmosphere. But while I love (early) Simpsons, and have great nostalgia for Bart's Nightmare, the PS2 games I felt were just too boring. H&R was the better game, but not by that much. More frustrating than fun, and for me that's a no-go with a game unless it really does something special.
I really wanted these games to be great. I think was more disappointed with them than most other highly anticipated duds.
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On 11/6/2021 at 4:05 PM, slydc said:
How about an NES/Famicom to ColecoVision adapter ?
Why stop there? I want my Dreamcast adapter for the ColecoVision!
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[Can't edit, but for reference...]
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3 hours ago, Keatah said:
Shit.. when it comes to morality and money and trying to do the right thing - no one ever got rich by being a goody two-shoes. Sell for the highest price possible or forever regret it!
You know, we're living in a society! We're supposed to act in a civilized way!
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8 minutes ago, zzip said:
Sometimes I feel like the only person who feels that Activision is a bit overrated for just this reason. Sure they have awesome gems, but most of their early games are derivative or extremely basic. Freeway is Frogger, but worse. Sky Jinks, Barnstorming, Grand Prix, etc very simple. They wowed us with their graphics. We hadn't seen graphics like that on the 2600 before them. But a lot of times the gameplay doesn't hold up after the wow is gone.
I believe E.T. predated Swordquest though. Clearly Atari learned some lessons, but I'd argue the Swordquest games themselves were frustrating and not much fun.
I was being a bit flippant, and didn't mean to imply they weren't in the game, but rather that I don't feel they were utilized well. Agreed on the bike riding scene. And yeah, Swordquest were not fun games, but they did try something.
Simplicity is a virtue, though. Wasn't that the whole point of Space Age v. Pong?
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This is the one I have as well. Whatever I had before wouldn't fit all my carts. Even this one some of the FC carts are very tight (Battle City comes to mind, maybe others).
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30 minutes ago, MrTrust said:
Yeah, I don't know. You say "flying bikes", and I can already picture a bog standard Barnstorming-type thing. Maybe they'd even have E.T. throw Reese's Pieces at enemies so they can shoehorn a combat mechanic into the game. Might have been a good game if they'd done that, but how would it have been anything other than 1 of 1,000 same-game-different-graphics things that always gets blamed for the crash anyway?
Activision... I mean, those guys have beaten their chests a lot over the years, but what's MegaMania? Space Invaders with quirky graphics. What's Chopper Command other than low-rent Defender? Love me some Kaboom!, but come on, it's cute Breakout. Star Master is store brand Star Raiders, which was basically a fancy version of the old mainframe Star Trek game.
Seems to me HSW was intentionally trying to not to do that with E.T., and he's been kicked in the danglies for it for 40 years. People complained then about all the derivative me-too titles and have ever since and still do, but you look back at what everybody praises over the years in each era, and it's always derivative stuff. You look back on the 2600 years, and almost none of the common favorites are that imaginative or creative. Who's going ga ga over Space Shuttle, or Krull, or Tax Avoiders? I suppose those games have their fans, but they're not making many people's Top 10s even though they were unique.
Seems like people actually appreciate innovation 1 out of every 100 times it happens, and other than that, they just want refinements of things they already like. It's almost 2022; I guarantee you there will be 15 games releases that year, that will be well recieved and make money, which are essentially Robotron 2084 with some kind of twist.
Fair points, especially about HSW doing something different, but different isn't always good. I'm not necessarily laying all the blame on him (he's obviously talented, and Yar's is fantastic), by the way, but rather on the industry behind Atari back then, which stifled creativity and didn't give enough time for a game to be workshopped, storyboarded, fleshed out, and polished. But by 1982, Atari should have known better. I mean, look at the scope of Swordquest!
ET could have been something much bigger and better than it was, although perhaps that's my hindsight talking. (This is, after all, an alternate history timeline!)
18 minutes ago, RJ said:Alternate Atari History:
Shortly after Gauntlet releases to arcades, Atari beats everyone else to the finish line & creates a Gauntlet-themed Kart racing game. Tracks take place in existing Gauntlet levels ported from the main game, lobbers throw hot dogs & beer cans from the stands, & the game includes a variety of spoken dialog, including:
"Green Elf needs fuel, badly"
"Red Warrior...NOW has...extra braking power"
"Yellow Wizard...is about to crash"
Now this is an alternate history I can get behind!
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Not only a rip-off of Crazy Taxi (which isn't all that bad, and in my non-legal opinion, should be allowable), not a very fun game. I really wanted to like this game, but I just was never having fun with what were basically fetch quests with a time limit. After the charm wore off, I just found it to be more tedious than fun. Can't remember at what point I quit, but at least I got back what I payed for it.
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On 12/3/2021 at 3:26 PM, zzip said:
ET was about as complicated as "Haunted House": find 3 pieces of an object and escape while avoiding "spooks". Sure they could have made some adjustments.. like making the pits less sensitive.
I see this a lot, but I think the fundamental mistake made in this line of thinking is that this game should have been what it was at all. You had glowing fingers, flying bikes, aliens with wigs, Reese's Pieces - why do we have some stupid object and some pits? The game design is the most unimaginative. Atari should have hired some proper people to make a real game, but they weren't about that. Just ask Activision.
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On 11/22/2021 at 5:52 PM, Cobra Kai said:
I'm not going to crap on Ebay. I would never have obtained the collection of video games that I own, if it wasn't for Ebay. It's been a great tool over the years. No one is forced to pay an 'ebay price'.
I dislike local shops who expect to get the current hot prices and wait until you ask 'how much', then they say just a minute while looking up the item on Ebay. When I go into a game store, I expect the price up front, then I decide whether to buy or not. Waiting for me to inquire on the price is shady. I think overall Ebay is a valuable resource, I mean I had to use Price Charting (which uses Ebay) to determine fair value for my sale thread, I mean I don't know how else to do it.
I generally took a rough average of ebay sales, round down and knock a few percent off to account for ebay fees and whatnot. I also find that forum sellers are much more inclined to make deals than "RARE! NO COMBINED SHIPPING!" sellers on ebay.
I sold my fair share of games on ebay, but no more. Now it's all AtariAge and few other select forums. I wish it were always the same.
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I'll also second how absurd some game stores are run, and when they close due to lack of business I shrug my shoulders. Most businesses are run by people, and most people aren't very good business owners. Just kind of a fact that almost half of all businesses fail within their few five years or so: https://www.investopedia.com/financial-edge/1010/top-6-reasons-new-businesses-fail.aspx
Because of how insane the game market has become, I also have largely checked out. I can count on my fingers how many games I've purchased in the past...4 years or so? Now, I don't want to "collect" anything at all. I just want what I want and to hell with anything more than that. When I don't want a game anymore, I'll sell it. When I no longer want a book, I'll sell it or give it away. I'm not quite a minimalist, but I do really believe that less is more. Just enough to keep us happy and the rest can rot.
Remember, you can't take your video games with you to your grave (or at least if you try, you can't take them to the afterlife).
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3 hours ago, Mikebloke said:
Too Long Didn't Watch version:
The web of who worked/was a director of/funded Wata, Heritage Auctions and associated groups is far more complex than first thought (but not very exciting and mostly predictable).
Various members of these organisations tried to claim they weren't working for that organisation, despite pictures, videos, newspaper articles and TV programs showing and listing them as employees
A youtube Lawyer (a real lawyer, but one who does videos for youtube, does that make sense?) looks into the legality of whether it is price fixing, false advertisement (sad news: Its still pretty grey, and not clear cut).
Both Wata, Heritage Auctions made dull statements in response - including how it was a shame that Karl hadn't contacted them first for comment, despite the fact that Karl had contacted them first for comment.
And in the process potentially violated FTC regulations by not disclosing their affiliations. Why is it so hard for some people to be ethical?
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7 minutes ago, DrVenkman said:
Why don't you just HAVE one for all the other awesome stuff it already does so well? (Food Fight, Commando, Joust, ANYTHING by Bob D. ...)
Plus it plays 2600 games.
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8 hours ago, Zeptari1 said:
What’s (no cardboard) mean?
Dragon Quest VIII came with a cardboard sleeve that the DVD case slipped in. That's the part of it that's missing.
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2 hours ago, newtmonkey said:
The cheapest way to play Saturn on a modern TV is the levelhike/hyperkin/pound/etc products, which you now know are horrible. They use hardware meant to scale VHS tapes and DVDs, not games. If you care about quality, you need to be willing to spend a bit more. There is sadly no cheap+good option available.
The cheapest GOOD option is the RetroTINK series of products. RetroTINK 2X-SCART (which appears to be in stock) is the cheapest option ($95) if you have SCART cables. If not, you would need the RetroTINK 2X-PRO (also apparently in stock), which is a bit more expensive ($130) but supports composite, S-video, and component. It's a bit of an investment, but you are definitely paying for quality—and besides, once you buy one device, you can then use it for any of your consoles with just standard cables you can find nearly anywhere.
The 5X is great, but it's very expensive and can be hard to get. I wouldn't recommend it just for one system, as that's a $300 device.
If anyone is into the Saturn, $130 is chump change in comparison to some games for the system.
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Mine's an s-video modded 7800 with a Competition Pro and on a Trinitron. Crisp, clean graphics and of course the ability to play 7800 games, too.
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