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Avalanche


johnnywc

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Hahah, we actually played it back on July 11, 2018 on the show! (Direct Time Link)

 

We'll definitely play it again once the updates are done on it and again when it gets released on cartridge. icon_winking.gif

 

Skip to 1:18:17 for Avalanche

 

 

 

 

Really digging this game icon_thumbsup.gif I already like it more than Kaboom! Never seen or heard of the arcade version. I'll have to play some more and see if I can come up with some suggestions

 

This game needs some air time on ZeroPage Homebrew. icon_biggrin.gif

 

attachicon.gifAvalanche HS.jpg

Edited by cimmerian
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I played this a while back and it was fun. It's interesting because its really hard with a joystick but almost too easy (for the first 3 loops) with the paddles. I'm curious as to what this update will bring on release because it sure seemed finished to me after the b/w switch update.

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I played this a while back and it was fun. It's interesting because its really hard with a joystick but almost too easy (for the first 3 loops) with the paddles. I'm curious as to what this update will bring on release because it sure seemed finished to me after the b/w switch update.

 

Thanks for the feedback! I agree, the game is too hard with a joystick and I'm considering removing joystick support completely since (a) it really isn't fun playing a game like this with a joystick and (b) I could really use that extra ROM to add a few more bells and whistles.

 

As for the color/bw option, that has been removed; instead the color/bw switch will now pause/unpause the game as it does with other Champ games. The bw option was more of a novelty and doesn't make much sense as even the arcade wasn't played in black/white as it had color overlays.

 

Does it have difficulty levels? As mentioned it's very easy out of the box. IIRC the coco version called "popcorn" was like this as well but selecting a higher difficulty made the game a lot more fun.

 

The game plays much more like the arcade now; the paddle starts at 16 pixels wide and then goes down to 12 for the 3rd and 4th rows and down to 8 for the last two rows. You can also use the difficulty switches to have paddle sizes of 12, 10 and then 8. Also, the # of paddles to start a level goes down from 6 to 3 to 2 to 1, so the game naturally gets a bit more difficult with more paddles. The rate at which rocks are dropped increases slightly each level, and the minimum delay for a level decreases also, plus the interval itself increases during a level. This means that the rocks will drop more frequently as the game progresses. Lastly, the max speed that the rocks drop also increases with each level. I may make this a bit faster, but to me the game gets pretty challenging on the 3rd board. Of course, NOVICE setting will give more misses, lower score for a bonus, slower paddle progression per level, slower rocks, slower delay,etc. while ADVANCED will increase them.

We'll be sure to deliver a game that has difficulty settings for all skill levels! :)
Thanks for the feedback!
John
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Everything said above sounds amazing. That's a lot of changes! I really liked the option to use a joystick or paddle... I hadn't seen that in a game before and I thought it was super cool, but if you need the space, a paddle only game is probably best IMHO.

 

I'm pretty excited about this now :)

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I'm good with your removing joystick support in Avalanche, especially if it means you can add additional polish and/or features. You can only get so far with a joystick before it becomes impossible. Can you imagine playing Kaboom! with a joystick? I love paddle games, and there aren't enough of them! The analog nature of paddle controllers (as well as the driving controllers) makes the game control more...intimate.

 

..Al

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  • 2 months later...

We'll be featuring a brand new UNRELEASED build of Avalanche (thanks John!) LIVE on tomorrow's (Friday) ZeroPage Homebrew stream on Twitch at 12PM PT | 3PM ET | 8PM GMT! Hope everyone can watch!

Twitch Stream: http://twitch.tv/zeropagehomebrew/

Game Lineup:

- Avalanche (2019 WIP Update) by Champ Games
- Upp Plus (2019 ZPH Edition) by Jason Santuci aka Jason Schelhorn aka theloon aka Gemintronic
- This Planet Sucks (1998) by Greg Troutman
- Space Rocks (2015 Tournament Edition) by Darrell Spice Jr. aka Spiceware

 

post-37205-0-73869400-1554416239_thumb.jpg

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EDIT: The latest BIN can be found in this post.

 

 

Does this rom natively support paddles? On my FB9, it only works with a joystick (though I have working paddles through modding). On my Stella emulator, I have to manually select paddles through Game Properties - it defaults to joystick otherwise.

 

A default paddles version for FB9 would be cool unless it's an FB9 issue. No worries either way, it's still a great port!!

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Does this rom natively support paddles? On my FB9, it only works with a joystick (though I have working paddles through modding). On my Stella emulator, I have to manually select paddles through Game Properties - it defaults to joystick otherwise.

 

A default paddles version for FB9 would be cool unless it's an FB9 issue. No worries either way, it's still a great port!!

Hello there!

 

The final version of Avalanche (ROM not available yet) will only support paddles (joystick support was removed to fit in more important features). Once I have the final version, I will let the Stella team know so they can update their config file and have Avalanche default to paddles on start up.

 

 

Glad you're enjoying the game!

 

John

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Please let us know when you're ready. That being said, I suspect the new controller auto-detection code in Stella will automatically pick up that it uses paddles. That won't be available until Stella 6.1, though, but maybe your ROM won't be ready before then either??

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  • 8 months later...

Hello all,

 

Last February, TJ (Thomas Jentzsch) and I spent a few weeks polishing up Avalanche for it's eventual release in Spring of 2020.

 

Here are a list of the changes: (while still keeping the game 4K), most of which would not have been possible without the wizardry of TJ and his uncanny knack of finding 'one more byte'.  Thanks so much Thomas! :thumbsup: 

 

Aesthetic changes:

  • added Atari Age splash screen with start up tune. SAVEKEY FOUND will be displayed if a Savekey/Atarivox is detected.
  • updated copyright (2019) and added proper CHAMP GAMES logo (removed ATARI copyright)
  • updated AVALANCHE logo on title screen
  • added 3 skill levels (NOVICE, STANDARD and ADVANCED)
  • press select to change skill level and # of players (1 - 2)
  • paddle(s) displayed on title screen to show players and their colors.
  • left/right difficulty set the starting size of the paddle for each player (visibly displayed on the title screen with the size of the paddles). A = small B = large
  • slight modifications to the score font
  • modified the GAME OVER and 1/2 PLAYER font and color (now white, was blue). Also, GAME OVER will flash per the arcade.
  • bottom bar color matches the current skill level (GREEN = novice, YELLOW = standard, RED = advanced)
  • player 2 paddle is now orange (was green)
  • rock graphics have been modified to be more arcade-like
  • removed color/bw option (the arcade was never b/w - it always had a color overlay)
  • created a PAL60 version (not included below)

Functional changes:

  • Removed joystick support (the game was not fun with a joystick, so we use that saved ROM for other features :))
  • added Savekey support. This will save the top score for each skill level (displayed in the proper skill color on the top of the title page). It also will save the last # of players and skill level. Hold down reset on startup to reset all scores.
  • press SELECT to cycle through skill levels and # of players on title screen, press paddle button or reset to start.
  • pressing RESET will cycle through up to 4 types of sound fx (similar to Super Breakout). A short tune is played at the start so the player can hear what type of sound fx will be used.
  • player can pause during a game by pressing the paddle button. press it again to continue
  • added the correct paddle size progression per the arcade. Paddles for the first two rows are 16 pixels wide; 12 for the second two rows and 8 for the last 2 rows. In the B position, the sizes are 12, 10 and 8 respectively.
  • added the correct # of paddle progression during a level, per the arcade. For standard, level 1 - 4+ start with 6, 3, 2 and 1 paddle. For NOVICE, it's 6, 5, 4 and 3. For Advanced, it's 5, 2, 1, 1. A paddle is removed after a row is cleared.
  • max 3 rocks on screen for novice, 4 for standard, 5 for advanced
  • rock delay (delay between rocks being dropped) changed to match the arcade. Novice drop delay is slower, advanced faster
  • rock speed starts slower for novice, faster for advanced. Rock speed increases each time 2 rows are cleared.
  • added a DEMO mode that will start after 16 seconds have passed on the title screen. If a game was previously played, the game will display the GAME OVER screen after DEMO to show the previous score before returning to the title screen.
  • # of misses to start are 5, 4, and 3 for NOVICE, STANDARD and ADVANCED, respectively
  • first bonus is awarded at 250 points, 450 and 750 for NOVICE, STANDARD and ADVANCED
  • additional bonus awarded at +1000 from previous bonus (i.e. 1250 for novice, 1450 for standard, 1750 for expert, ...)
  • rolling score (9999) displays a special message and ends game for current player
  • end of game GAME OVER screen alternates between scores (if two player) and displays HI plus score if new hi score has been reached

Best of all, we managed to fit all of this in 4K! :D

 

A HUGE thank you to Thomas and all of his help and suggestions.  Most of these updates would not have been possible in 4K without the technical wizardry of TJ and his uncanny knack of finding 'one more byte'.  Thanks so much Thomas! :thumbsup: 

 

Here are the updated demo ROMs (NTSC and PAL60).  These are fully functional with the following restrictions:

  • Two player support has been disabled (one player only)
  • Savekey support has been disabled
  • The game ends when 2 levels have been cleared.

 

:idea: NOTE: If you are using an emulator, please be sure to enable Paddles for controller 1 

 

As stated above, we are planning a release sometime in early 2020.  We are also considering a label contest for any artists that may be interested (details to follow). ;) 

 

Any feedback is appreciated!

 

Thanks,

John

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

avalanche_demo_PAL60.bin avalanche_demo_NTSC.bin

Edited by johnnywc
Added reminder to enable paddles
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  • 1 month later...

CONGRATULATIONS to Avalanche for being nominated in the 2019 Atari Homebrew Awards!

 

Be sure to vote for your favourite homebrew games of 2019 with the links below and watch the awards LIVE on February 1, 2020!

 

Awards Show: February 1, 2020 @ 12:00PM PT | 3PM ET | 8PM GMT LIVE on the ZeroPage Homebrew Twitch Channel!

 

Atari Homebrew Awards Categories (VOTE IN ALL!!):

939625451_2019AtariHomebrewAwardsLaurel-Nominated-BestWIPHomebrewAtari2600.jpg.14a5228c4c16b6e81a2a3ef024b11725.jpg

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