Tron 2600

[Thomas Jentzsch]

Ok...

So Can Someone Hack It To Look Like My Idea?

And Have A Tron Color Scheme? (Blueish)

And Have The LightCycles Be Blue And Yellow?

Been there, done that.

Tron.bin

[Atariboy2600]

For years I love to see one of my fave part of Tron Arcade level is the Light Cycle level and I try to use the screen shot of the 2600 game with grids that could fit right plus I also know that you can overlay two colors on top of the same sprites on the cycle is the black windows over the cycle so theres no gabs on edar side of the cycle sprite like how they done them on any Activision game. Can anyone turn this fantasy into a realty

[supercat]

For years I love to see one of my fave part of Tron Arcade level is the Light Cycle level and I try to use the screen shot of the 2600 game with grids that could fit right plus I also know that you can overlay two colors on top of the same sprites on the cycle is the black windows over the cycle so theres no gabs on edar side of the cycle sprite like how they done them on any Activision game. Can anyone turn this fantasy into a realty

 

Without memory expansion, Surround/Chase or Warring Worms is as close as you're going to come. Those types of games use up a LOT of memory, and the Atari doesn't have much. Adding a SuperChip might help things out a lot, though.

[Atariboy2600]

[jbanes]

Cool mockups! Unfortunately, they look more like an Odyssey 2 game rather than a 2600 game. There's no good way of making a grid on the 2600 without either thick lines or lots of flicker. Certainly, you can't have both the bikes and a thin grid. Do away with the grid, make the trails four pixels wide by 8 tall, and you'll pretty much have it.

[Retrofan]

Tron is not my favorite game but maybe I can help with mockups:

 

The playfield is not good for grids but what about a chess like background?

I don't know if the other graphics can be done. the lines eventually can be done with routines á la Missile Command?

 

 

[Cybergoth]

I think supercat can answer the lines question best

[pocketmego]

Of the two tron games that were released on the 2600, deadly Discs is my personal favorite. Although, from what I understand there are many who enjoy Adventures of tron, although I am not necessarily one of those people. The Intellivision of all things got more versions of Tron than any other system. probably due to the cozy relationship that Disney and mattel have always enjoyed.

 

However, what we never really got was a an arcade tron game that was up to snuff. In fact I had a mini-LCD arcade game when I was a kid that was closer to the arcade machines than what was available on most systems.

 

So in this new era, with up to 16k of memory and more available to Homrewers for 2600 game prodcution, how hard would a proper Arcade Tron be?

 

Is there any possibility that this game could even be made?

 

-Ray

[Lord Thag]

Yeah, it's doable, though the gridbug level (due to the sprite limitations of the vcs) would have tyo be hamstrung. The tank and cycle levels would be pretty easy, and the CPU level would probably be doable too, as it's basically breakout. You would have to either come up with a way to get around the rotary knob for aiming (probably just do what Coleco did with Front Line), or program some kind of paddle/joystick setup. I never thought about it before, but it actually would be doable on the 2600 with enough RAM and someone with enough time and enegry to code it.

[pocketmego]

I assumed it might be possible. The mini-games in the Arcade machine are not all that advanced. I could understand the difficulty in doing it back in the day, but in our new era of Homebrews and multicarts, anything is possible.

 

-Ray

[Urchlay]

Back when I first saw the thread with the mockups, I got all inspired and started coding...

 

Unfortunately work got really busy, and I haven't yet found the time to pick it back up.

 

Anyway, here's what I have so far... it's the MCP cone, with a few bricks pre-destroyed so you can see that it's rotating. Also there's a rough Tron guy sprite you can move up & down with the joystick (he starts out invisible, above the bricks, just pull down for a second to see him).

 

This is nowhere near finished... I was going to spring it on the world with no warning when I got the complete MCP level done, but... as long as people are talking about Tron on the 2600, I might as well post this here for people to see.

 

Link: http://www.hardcoders.org/tron_mcp_demo.bin

[Vic George 2K3]

Not bad so far, Urchlay. Can only wonder how the I/O Tower stage might be pulled off.

[Urchlay]

Can only wonder how the I/O Tower stage might be pulled off.

 

Yah, me too...

 

One way would be to limit the gridbugs' horizontal motion, and draw groups of bugs using NUSIZ to draw multiple copies of the players.

 

Each group of bugs would have 0 to 3 bugs that are alive. The screen would be split into 4 or so vertical bands, and each band would contain one group (which would be able to move around within its band, but not able to leave it). That gives 12 bugs on screen at once, using only one player to draw them (the other player could be used for bugs, too, but it's also needed to draw Tron himself... trying to avoid flicker if possible). 12 bugs isn't much, though...

 

Maybe each group could be (up to) two rows of 0-3 bugs. That'd limit their vertical motion even more (they'd be twice as tall).

 

If some flicker is allowed, the number of bugs can be doubled. Any time Tron horizontally overlaps two groups of bugs, there'd be 30Hz flicker (Tron would be visible every frame, the two bug groups would alternate frames).

 

Heh, maybe I could represent Tron as a blue square (like the Adventure guy).

 

Of course, I'm actually talking out of my @$$... I haven't even finished the one Tron level I started on a year ago, so I shouldn't be dreaming about the next one I might one day write...

[Gregory DG]

Has there ever been a home port of TRON (aside from the version in the GBA TRON 2.0)?

 

As popular as that game was, I'm surprised it wasn't ported as often as KLAX was...

[Lord Thag]

Back on topic, another option for the grid bug level would be to use playfield graphics. Sure, it wouldn't be pretty, and you'd have to be creative due to the three pixel horizontal width, but you would eliminate the flicker and low sprite limits.

 

Another route would be to use the venetian blinds technique like Chess does to allow more bugs on the screen.

 

And since I've actually seen a demo of frickin' BOULDERDASH on the VCS, I'm convinced someone clever enough can pull off damn near anything on the beast.

[Urchlay]

 

Back on topic, another option for the grid bug level would be to use playfield graphics. Sure, it wouldn't be pretty, and you'd have to be creative due to the three pixel horizontal width, but you would eliminate the flicker and low sprite limits.

 

So, instead of making your Tron guy a block like the Adventure guy, make the gridbugs into blocks? That could work, except their movement would be jumpy (they'd have to move one PF pixel (aka 4 color clocks) at a time horizontally).

 

Another route would be to use the venetian blinds technique like Chess does to allow more bugs on the screen.

 

Hm, given the choice between venetian blinds and 30Hz flicker, which is easier on the eyes?

[Vic George 2K3]

The gridbugs don't have to move, they just simply have to multiply.

[Lord Helmet]

I don't find the venetian blinds approach bad on the eyes at all. The graphics are drawn for each character on every other scanline, so they don't flicker.

[pocketmego]

We all have some great ideas on HOW to make this happen and that it CAN happen. So, how do we find a Homebrewer to help make this a reality?

 

Is there anyone currently even considering the project?

 

-Ray

[Big Player]

I love Arcade Tron but the main reason the game was never ported to any of the classic systems is the control issue. As batari said in the other thread, without the spinner, it isn't Tron.

 

You could use the driving controller in port 2, not a paddle as some have suggested. But it would be awkward to play, you would want to use one of the flight type joysticks with the button on top.

[Lord Thag]

You could use the driving controller in port 2, not a paddle as some have suggested. But it would be awkward to play, you would want to use one of the flight type joysticks with the button on top.

 

Yeah, the driving controller is what i was thinking. You could rig up a holder similar to the ones you get to play Robotron or Space Dungeon on the 5200. A wico stick would work great.

 

After thinking some more, I really like the idea of using playfield graphics for the grid bugs. You could alternate frames where you had diagonally spaced playfield pixelsthat reversed each frame to make it look like a spider/bug type of thing. You could have a ton of them too.

[Shannon]

You don't necessarily need a spinner style. A two joystick robotron style control would work well.

[Zonie]

Hmmm.... Gets me thinking.

 

A holder for a driving controller and a wico bat. I could make them with a CNC Mill and basic grey PVC or Polyethelene cheaply enough. I usually have a some scrap material 1-inch thick and that would be usable.

 

Better yet, a project box with the holes predrilled for folks to cannibalize a driving controller, a CX-40, a ski-pole or BMX handle grip, and a firebutton atop that and you would have all you need.

 

If the game gets made, I'll look into making the holder or the empty boxes in quantity for the masses.

[pocketmego]

Back when I first saw the thread with the mockups, I got all inspired and started coding...

 

Unfortunately work got really busy, and I haven't yet found the time to pick it back up.

 

Anyway, here's what I have so far... it's the MCP cone, with a few bricks pre-destroyed so you can see that it's rotating. Also there's a rough Tron guy sprite you can move up & down with the joystick (he starts out invisible, above the bricks, just pull down for a second to see him).

 

This is nowhere near finished... I was going to spring it on the world with no warning when I got the complete MCP level done, but... as long as people are talking about Tron on the 2600, I might as well post this here for people to see.

 

Link: http://www.hardcoders.org/tron_mcp_demo.bin

 

Wow, this is really good, you are definately on to something. It looks really nice so far.

 

-Ray

[Vic George 2K3]

Thw two-joystick control scheme might work if both controllers are the same size as an Amiga Powerstick controller, though the Light Cycle stage only needs one controller.