Adventure II XE demo and testing

[+Cafeman]

One thing I did notice is on the first screen with the gold castle, there is a misplaced tile in the tower in the upper left hand corner. Another thing that I thought was odd is on one of the fountain screens it looks like you should be able to take a path down, but you can not advance to a new screen.

Hmmm... all I can say is good observation, and find more dots!

 

Also, you make your own wood planks . Grab the sword and touch a log for a moment (stay still). A plank will be cut. Once that plank is used (or off-screen) you can keep cutting more. This may not seem obvious, hence the need to read the instructions / manual when the game is released.

[JT Cook]

That would explain why I only found the plank once, it was probably just by accident that I bumped the sword into a log when I did find it. It is a very nice power up when you did get it.

 

One thing I have tried to do is map the beginnger lever and it is certainly not easy! You have unuqie way of wrapping the game world.

[KevinMos3]

Finally getting to test this out on my XEGS. Looks good from what little I've played so far. Although, I would like to the bridge item aligned like your sprite guy suggested a while back. It never looked right to me in the 5200 version and this is a great opportunity to fix that.

 

One thing I noticed when using the knight helmet alternate icon is that it doesn't change direction when moving right and left. It only changes when up or down is used in conjunction with right or left. Not sure if this is the intended behavior, but it seems like it should face right when moving right and vice-versa.

 

Strange occurance: The sword was placed on an island at the beginning of the game. I brought the bridge to the screen so I could cross over and get it. A dragon appeared as soon as I entered the island screen and when I tried to let go of the bridge, I somehow ended up in possession of the sword which was on a far island. When I went up one screen, the sword was still under my control and about 2/3 of the way across the screen (as it had been on the previous screen). I dropped it and went over and picked it up. I know weird things like this would happen in the 2600 version, so I like it, but it does seem like a bug.

edit: Just had a similar occurance. In this pic, I was in using the bridge to check out the banners. The red key was in the lower left of the screen. Somehow, I became in possession of the key and it's now toward the top of the screen. I'm currently holding the red key even though I'm not (and haven't been) anywhere near it.

 

The bridge seems really quirky in general. In this pic, I should have been able to use the bridge to get the dot, but no matter how I tried to position it, I could not move onto the bridge at all.

edit: I ended up being able to move onto the water by positioning the bridge over the log above. Even though the bridge wasn't even touching the water, I was then able to move freely in the water and get the dot.

Edited July 15, 2013 by KevinMos3

[+Cafeman]

Thanks KevinMos3 for taking the time.

 

When I went up one screen, the sword was still under my control and about 2/3 of the way across the screen (as it had been on the previous screen). I dropped it and went over and picked it up. I know weird things like this would happen in the 2600 version, so I like it, but it does seem like a bug.

 

Yep, its a collision bug that also exists in the 5200 version. It seems to happen rarely, but usually in the exact same situation you described. The general problem is that I'm taking too much time in Vertical Blank Interrupt and the game gets confused as to which item you've picked up - usually only when a creature like dragon appears, and usually if the items are at the top of the screen AND there is a color-changing DLI at the top of the screen too - like the broken islands screen. I don't like the bug - but similar to your observation, 2600 Adventure (and many games) have weird things like this - so I never fixed it.

 

 

The bridge seems really quirky in general.

 

Especially with certain alternate icons the bridge does seem more annoying. This is because of the different heights. I had thought about tweaking the bridge logic to be smarter, but until this post, I had totally forgetten it. Let me look into it, and the left/right thing.

 

The bridge sprite can NOT be aligned as you suggest (widened using a missile), for technical/engine reasons I explained in the other thread. Sorry.

[+Cafeman]

From the screenshots different folks have taken, it looks like the hues of the colors are different on XEGS vs the 5200, or perhaps my 5200's. Kingdom 1 has a bit more of a green hue on 5200 AdvII. I like the look of these XE shots of the "Seashore Kingdom" better. Maybe I changed the color and just don't remember?

[phonedork]

I wish I could try it! :-(

 

I have a MAC using Atari800MacX and it crashes when I start it.

[Goochman]

I finally got some time to try this again. I didnt run into anything new but here are my notes:

 

1. Tested on a 130XE Rev-D OS

2. I couldnt find any dots, though seeing the screenshot above I know where 1 is . Besides dragging 3 items to a screen to find a 'blink' - how else can one try to find a dot?

3. I cut some wood and built a bridge on the fountain screen - process is a bit weird, figure I would need to bring the wood plank to the opening to make a crossing, however as soon as I enter the screen the plank is positioned.

4. I did read the manual - however it shows 5200 controls and is not updated for the 8bits yet.

5. Understand that 'shield' and 'speed' are special items. It seems I get shield when entering the green castle (atleast the key kinda looks green) and I get speed when I get the Chalice. Can you acquire these special skills anywhere else?

6. Not sure if this was mentioned but the color of the keys are really close and sometimes hard to tell which is which. The green and white keys look almost the same with the gold key a bit better differentiated.

 

Thats it from here!

[Goochman]

I got a little more time to play and ran into something interesting - I was trying to get one of the dots(still havent gotten it) and placed the bridge across the water. I went across and didnt find a dot so I crossed back to the dirt side and wasnt able to pick up the bridge. That was a bit frustrating so I crossed the river to the bottom bush side and after bumping around a bit I was able to grab the bridge and then was able to walk through the water. I was not able to get back.

[Nerf Herder73]

I wish I could try it! :-(

 

I have a MAC using Atari800MacX and it crashes when I start it.

It works for me. Try selecting "ATMAX 128 KB Cartridge" in the Cartridge Type window.

[+Cafeman]

I finally got some time to try this again. I didnt run into anything new but here are my notes:

 

1. Tested on a 130XE Rev-D OS

2. I couldnt find any dots, though seeing the screenshot above I know where 1 is . Besides dragging 3 items to a screen to find a 'blink' - how else can one try to find a dot?

3. I cut some wood and built a bridge on the fountain screen - process is a bit weird, figure I would need to bring the wood plank to the opening to make a crossing, however as soon as I enter the screen the plank is positioned.

4. I did read the manual - however it shows 5200 controls and is not updated for the 8bits yet.

5. Understand that 'shield' and 'speed' are special items. It seems I get shield when entering the green castle (atleast the key kinda looks green) and I get speed when I get the Chalice. Can you acquire these special skills anywhere else?

6. Not sure if this was mentioned but the color of the keys are really close and sometimes hard to tell which is which. The green and white keys look almost the same with the gold key a bit better differentiated.

 

 

2. are you sure there's a dot there? (I can't remember.) There is one in this demo's level right above the lone island that you drag wood pieces to to build a bridge to reach it. Build the bridge over water, bring the magic bridge, and climb above the island towards the upper screen edge. Also - dots usually 'glow' when the troll is on-screen. By default, they are black , but they change colors when 3 objects are on screen, or when a creature is on-screen - but I usually see it when the troll is there. Probably because I'm too busy running if its another creature.

5. In the Beginner levels (such as this demo), your description sounds correct. You get the Shield if Minotaur grabs you too (100% in easy, but 50% of the time in higher levels). In non-Beginner levels, the Troll can steal your carried item. If he does, you are always rewarded with a burst of speed. (thus you can purposely let him steal an unwanted item, to get the free speed boost - I do it all the time when I play). You get Speed when you slay a dragon too.

 

The game is expected to be at the PRGE and be sold by years end here at AA. real life is taking all my time for the past few months so I don't check here as frequently. thanks for the feedback.

[AtariBrian]

Wasnt a picture of what the label art might look like posted somewhere ? I cant seem to find it .

[+Cafeman]

Wasnt a picture of what the label art might look like posted somewhere ? I cant seem to find it .

Here is what was posted in the other thread. I imagine the full image will be shown soon.

[AtariBrian]

Thanks !

[KevinMos3]

The bridge sprite can NOT be aligned as you suggest (widened using a missile), for technical/engine reasons I explained in the other thread. Sorry.

 

I understand the missile part, but what about just aligning the sprite without using a missile as suggested in the other thread here:

 

 

I probably have OCD or something, but I just like things to be perfect.

 

Would it be possible to edit the bridge sprite like so:

 

Also, I don't know if it would be a bother or not, but I'd really like to see the sword handle 2 pixels wide like in the example picture, even if it is yellow in color.

 

I think the game looks great as-is, but I'm just a perfectionist.

 

 

I edited/enlarged his pic for clarity and added one more option which just shifts the existing pixels on the right side down, without making any other changes. Ideally, I think his version is best since it's perfectly aligned without using a missile.

 

 

Each example uses the same pixel constraints as the current sprite.

Edited September 30, 2013 by KevinMos3

[AtariBrian]

Not sure if someone already mentioned this or not about the 5200 version . I was holding the sword and when going to another room I was moving it from side to side and when I entered the next room I was holding the sword but it was way across the other side of the screen . I kept doing it over and over to make sure it wasnt a fluke thing . Its just like in the original when you could hold the bridge like that . Just something I thought should be mentioned if it hasnt already

[DracIsBack]

Bump! Cannot wait for this coolness!

[+Cafeman]

Bump! Cannot wait for this coolness!

I guess the game is on hiatus. I'm sure I'll get back to finishing it someday soon. It's like 99% done too. Maybe by responding to this post it will motivate me to get organized again! But my house is all torn up and my prior homebrewin' room is gone, and my PC with the homebrew files isn't even plugged in. I need a new laptop, that's the ticket.

[AtariBrian]

Get it done quick since you have another game your supposed to be working on for the good ole 5200 ! Maybe that will motivate you

[Nognir]

I guess the game is on hiatus.

 

That's some kind of sad to read

[accousticguitar]

Bummer!

[+wood_jl]

I guess the game is on hiatus. I'm sure I'll get back to finishing it someday soon. It's like 99% done too. Maybe by responding to this post it will motivate me to get organized again! But my house is all torn up and my prior homebrewin' room is gone, and my PC with the homebrew files isn't even plugged in. I need a new laptop, that's the ticket.

 

Since I've been wanting this since 1980 and this game is still nearing completion, I see this as good news. If there's some final tweaking to be done, it might be best to take a break and finish up with fresh eyes, after a pause. As much progress as you've made, I have little doubt you'll finish. That it turns out as best as possible (given reasonable constraints) is of the most concern. That it turns out next week is of considerably less concern. But there's definitely interest, and when you can get back to this, YOU WILL FIND IT!!!!!!!

 

Thanks for taking on this project, in the first place.

[Goochman]

Nooooooooooooooooooooo.......laptops are pretty cheap these - look at a Chromebook for $250

[DoctorTom]

Great game! Please, please release a full ROM!

Edited February 5, 2014 by DoctorTom

[Goochman]

Knock Knock

[AtariBrian]

Knock Knock

Who's there ?