Spectrum LumASCII

[snicklin]

!

 

Watching a fair bit of this video, it shows how much gameplay variety that there is in this game.

 

This is something that I feel is missing from lot of A8 games, which tend to be very generic all the way through but just with different rooms etc.

 

The memory here that they've given up (on purpose I suspect) for redefined characters, they've donated into using for the different object types in the background.

 

What do people think of this game?

[Mclaneinc]

Its quite cute, not sure about the Lunar Leaper sfx

 

Not sure it would hold my attention tho...

[snicklin]

It would keep my attention for ages, not because of the sfx or the gfx as such but by the sheer game lends number of different types of enemy and background objects.

 

When I look at this through programming eyes, I just see a lot of interesting data structures.

 

I suspect that there are tables of object instances with object types and all their characteristics. Then with each there'd be code for if the object is destroyed. i.e. Some disappear, some explode etc etc.

 

This kind of game lends itself to me to a form of object oriented programming.

 

EDIT: And did you see the Pac-man reference at 20:18? There's tetris in there also.

Edited January 26, 2013 by snicklin

[TMR]

This is something that I feel is missing from lot of A8 games, which tend to be very generic all the way through but just with different rooms etc.

 

Not everybody can pull that kind of zany "throw everything in" approach though, and for the rest of us it just feels forced (or even worse, a cynical attempt to ape someone else) if we try.

 

The memory here that they've given up (on purpose I suspect) for redefined characters, they've donated into using for the different object types in the background.

 

The ASCII look was more about how Bob wanted it to appear, he's pretty big on trying different looks and i believe he does ZX81 code for a similar reason.

 

What do people think of this game?

 

i've played it quite a bit and found it very enjoyable (and for those who haven't, check Bob's other "lets use the Spectrum in an interesting way" shooter SplATTR as well) although the character cell step movement is a little harsh on the eyes and it might prove a little unforgiving with the collisions for those less experienced with shooters.

[snicklin]

Not everybody can pull that kind of zany "throw everything in" approach though, and for the rest of us it just feels forced (or even worse, a cynical attempt to ape someone else) if we try.

 

 

 

The ASCII look was more about how Bob wanted it to appear, he's pretty big on trying different looks and i believe he does ZX81 code for a similar reason.

 

 

 

i've played it quite a bit and found it very enjoyable (and for those who haven't, check Bob's other "lets use the Spectrum in an interesting way" shooter SplATTR as well) although the character cell step movement is a little harsh on the eyes and it might prove a little unforgiving with the collisions for those less experienced with shooters.

 

It's OK, it's appreciated that not everybody has this kind of creativity, I for one do not have so much as this author. I would expect though that there would be a certain percentage of us though that can pull it off. Even if that be 20% of us. If 20% of games were this creative, that'd be wonderful.

 

As for Callisto for example, in there, I guess that the level design is sort of generic, but I have to say that you've crammed in some amazing effects which for me makes your work creative, i.e. You've thought outside of the box. I was particularly taking reference to a game I can't remember the name of (maybe a Mirage Software game), it was a Polish game I think and it is a fighting game where you walk from room to room and nearly every room is the same or very, very similar. That game to me epitomises a lot of A8 games. Spectrum, C64, Amstrad (basically all other 8 bits) appear to have more variety to their games.

 

Thanks for the info, I'll take a look at the other game.

[snicklin]

And my credit goes to you for Callisto, not just because of the creativity of the effects, but because you've had to so carefully code it, dodging around the limits of the A8.

 

I'm not really into gaming that much nowadays, but what interests me with retro computers is how people manage to get around limitations and their thought processes in those. I'd love to read more about such things in Retro Gamer to be honest.

[TMR]

I'm not really into gaming that much nowadays, but what interests me with retro computers is how people manage to get around limitations and their thought processes in those. I'd love to read more about such things in Retro Gamer to be honest.

 

It's not something that the bulk of the readership'd go for i suspect, at least that's what the feedback we've received in the past would indicate; i included a "diary" for RG Rampage in issue 101 for example (i was going to do a Making Of interview but they didn't like the idea of me essentially talking to myself) and literally the only feedback i saw described it as "quite possibly the most boring thing [he'd] ever read in RG" so i've not tried anything since.

 

[snicklin]

Sorry to hear that! I think it'd be very interesting... oh well, we all enjoy different things!

 

As for LumASCII, I've sat back and watched the video several times now, thinking about how it's been created. I think I've overthought it as I've got to the point of implementing like a virtual machine with every bit of scenery as an object within that.

[+Gemintronic]

It's not something that the bulk of the readership'd go for i suspect, at least that's what the feedback we've received in the past would indicate; i included a "diary" for RG Rampage in issue 101 for example (i was going to do a Making Of interview but they didn't like the idea of me essentially talking to myself) and literally the only feedback i saw described it as "quite possibly the most boring thing [he'd] ever read in RG" so i've not tried anything since.

 

I love such stories! I think it's just a matter of reaching your target audience. Any links?

 

I've thought about making a Sega Genesis multi-game simulating IBM 40×25 Text mode. I doubt there's a target audience. I also know something was lost when games went pixel and never came back.

[TMR]

I love such stories! I think it's just a matter of reaching your target audience. Any links?

 

Not really, that "diary" (i keep putting the word in quotes because it was more a tidy up of the change logs i keep in the source code) was in print, a month after the game itself appeared in issue 100 as a type-in listing. i occasionally burble about programming on my blog, though.

 

[popmilo]

... i included a "diary" for RG Rampage in issue 101 for example ... and literally the only feedback i saw described it as "quite possibly the most boring thing [he'd] ever read in RG" so i've not tried anything since.

Maybe not the bulk of readers, but I thought it was really interesting to read. Bunch of readers are just that - readers. We read magazine, but don't necessarily write feedback on forum.

Feel free to include something like that again.

 

If they let you

[+Adam+]

!

 

Watching a fair bit of this video, it shows how much gameplay variety that there is in this game.

 

This is something that I feel is missing from lot of A8 games, which tend to be very generic all the way through but just with different rooms etc.

 

The memory here that they've given up (on purpose I suspect) for redefined characters, they've donated into using for the different object types in the background.

 

What do people think of this game?

 

Personally, I love this kind of approach to 8-bit games, like in LumASCII or SplATTR (of the same author) - to find a new, creative way of using graphics and then to build a fine gameplay on that basis.

Edited January 27, 2013 by +Adam+

[José Pereira]

Just couldn't resist to see how we can get something like this on the A8...

If someone get anything then for sure he must ask the ZX's guy but by now just a screen and the explanation about my idea:

 

Why I choose to have the Playing area using GR.1? Because that the only way on A8 we can have solid looking chars/gfxs and with 4colours +1 Black for the sky (and it seems enough) as we don't have Hi-Resolution ColourMap like Zx or C64.

 

 

On A8 we have 4colours in the Gr.1 chars, one different on each char (PF0,PF1,PF2,PF3 bit1 and BACKGR. on the empty/sky bit0 5th colour).

But we are reduced to only 64chars (because it's 64chars and they are the same/repeated for the 4PFs: 4x64 are the 256chars):

 

These 'only 64 chars' seems enough to have all the game needed different gfxs.

 

 

The ZXgame gfxs cells move in chars boundaries/steps so that they have the 'tradional ZX Spectrum colour clash'.

On A8 we can, this way do even beter because we can have all horizontal scrolling done in just one 2:1 ratio one pixel/colour clock but the moving guys still beeing moved in chars like ZX version.

To get the game better played/speed/better to avoid the Enemys and moving then our man use the 4PMGs.

this way it's independant from the gfxs, the scrolling, add more colours to the screen and he can move in 2:1 ratio/colour clock.

 

The screen in GR.1 it's also less bytes use as Gr.1 and Gr.2 are 1bit pixels then for an entire screen it's just 480bytes instead of Gr.0, Gr.12 or Gr.13 40bytes/chars wides because 1bit it's just 20bytes/chars wide.

I choosed to have the Status Area using GR.0 because we get the feeling of different than the Playing Area and the PMGs underlays gets a nice and a copy of the ZX ColourMap.

(Those lines of Blue and Pale Green are just BACKGROUND colourregister changing so they don'rt take or waste any char and can be at any scanline)

Here you can see:

-> Just the PFs:

(Our guys's shots it's just the '=' char taking White that I choose it as the PF2 colour)

And just the PMGs:

 

 

 

The ZX screen has 32chars wide and all things seems to move in chars but on A8 and using GR.1 we are limited to 24chars wide and normally only 21chars visible on most of the T.Vs. but no problem... even if less wide remember that on A8 the the guy moves 'smoothly' in an one 2:1 pixel so you end up with a more playable and speed game because we can quickly avoid/moving your man between the Enemys/gfxs.

Edited January 29, 2013 by José Pereira

[Synthpopalooza]

An additional idea:

 

Double buffer the Graphics 1 screen and print characters at the same location on both screens, but at different ranges ...

 

This will get you 15 colors of characters. I would suggest Red, Green, Blue, and Yellow for the color settings, keeping the brightest (yellow) no more than 2 steps luma from the darkest (blue or red). This should get you a grey plus a good variety of colors, without flicker. You can also do solid colors by blending chars on alternate frames.

 

Another idea: Engage Graphics mode 10 while in Graphics 1. This gives you seven usable colors spread out over three character ranges. The characters are designed in bit-pairs like in Antic 4, 3 to 4 colors per character cell. While this reduces your pixel resolution to 80 pixels across (96 in wide screen) you have a few more colors to work with.

Edited January 30, 2013 by Synthpopalooza

[snicklin]

Nice work as always Jose.

[_The Doctor__]

okay, I guess I'll do the necro bump honors on this one.... I missed the whole thread.... real life isn't nice sometimes... I was entangled at the time. Time to get this game on the A8 'cause it's great.... worth while project to see being done. You have my vote

[+therealbountybob]

Looks good - perhaps the thread could be sub-titled "which games have the most features"...

 

in Ramp Rage I tried to do this: each baddie has a set of parameters, multiple playfield collisions all used for different features (see docs on link below). I'm continuing this idea in Space Fortress Omega, and am going for the Frogger II:Threedeep (superb game) approach where each level has some additional features. I'm limiting SFO to 10 levels unlike RampRage which goes on foreverish, which is making it more interesting to pull together.

 

The concern for a new game with a limited audience is if you don't put all features on soon people don't get to see them or find it too easy/not challenging or it's too tough and overwhelming. I've got 3 difficulty levels in both games.

[_The Doctor__]

It can be a bear if you want all those goodies seen, but save something for the true player... hard fought for rewards are always savored the most!