Game Demos at the 2013 Portland Retro Gaming Expo

Albert · September 24, 2013

As with previous years, we'll have a large number of classic Atari game systems setup for play at the 2013 Portland Retro Gaming Expo. By my present count, we'll have nearly 30 systems setup in the AtariAge booth! Many of these systems will be demoing new games as well as games presently in development.

Here's a list of games in development we plan on having available available for play at the show:

Bentley Bear: Crystal Quest - Atari 7800 superstar Bob Decrescenzo announced he was working on an original platform game for the 7800 over a year ago. At 144K in size (over four times the size of most 7800 homebrews!), to say this is an ambitious project is an understatement! Bentley Bear: Crystal Quest will be running on a prototype 7800 Expansion Module (XM Module) to take full advantage of the XM's built-in POKEY audio. You can read about the game's development in our Atari 7800 Forum.
Zippy the Porcupine - After the success of his first homebrew project, Princess Rescue, Chris Spry set his sites on an even more difficult conquest and the result is Zippy the Porcupine. While the engine for Princess Rescue was impressive, the engine for Zippy has to be seen to be believed--you won't believe you're playing a 2600 game!
Star Castle Arcade - Once discussed to be an impossible game to tackle on the Atari 2600, there have been TWO versions of this arcade classic ported to the Atari 2600. Star Castle Arcade is the second version of Star Castle for the 2600, the first being a port that gained much attention on Kickstarter last year. Star Castle Arcade is a remarkable effort by 2600 veterans Chris Walton and Thomas Jentzsch that is very faithful to the original vector arcade game. We've uploaded a video of the game to YouTube, and you can read about the game's development in our forum here and here.
The Byte Before Christmas - The Byte Before Christmas is our second collection of holiday-themed minigames, following the footsteps of Stella's Stocking from several years ago. The four games in this collection tell the tale of a Christmas that almost never was, saved only by the hands of a few good people who stood up to an evil army. You can watch a video of the game over on YouTube.
D.K. VCS - If you're an Atari 2600 fan, you know that Coleco's version of Donkey Kong for the Atari 2600 is a rather poor version of the game. Joe Musashi has taken it upon himself to create a version that is much truer to the arcade. He succeeded so well that you'll find it hard to believe you're playing the game on a 2600! You can learn more about the game's development in our Homebrew Discussion forum.
Dead of Knight - Based on the film of the same name, you play Sir Gasparay, a cursed medieval knight whose spirit has been released in present day. You must regain your chivalrous virtues by killing victims who represent those traits - Wisdom, Culture, Skill at Arms and Charity. Once you face the queen, you must redeem yourself to ascend into the heavens.
Circus AtariAge - AtariAge member Omegamatrix is writing a much improved version of Circus Atari for the 2600! While the version we'll be demoing at the show is still fairly young, you'll see that Circus AtariAge is already an impressive effort. The final game will include a large list of multiplayer modes and mini-game modes, power-ups, music, option screens, high-score support, AtariVox support, animations, surprises and more! You can follow the game's development here.
Assembloids 2600 - Assembloids 2600 is a fast-paced reaction puzzler in just 4K. Your screen shows five windows, one central and one each in the four neighboring sides. You must place corner pieces that appear in the center with empty spots on one of the four sides, trying to match colors if you can (for more points!) All while a timer is ticking down faster and faster. How long can you survive? Learn more in our Atari 2600 Forum.
Donkey Kong XM - An amazing rendition of Donkey Kong on the Atari 7800, Donkey Kong XM takes advantage of the XM Module's built-in POKEY and High Score support to fully replicate the arcade experience. Donkey Kong XM contains all four levels from the arcade (including the Pie Factory), game options (such as choosing the US or Japanese board order), and even contains the animation of Donkey Kong scaling the building at the beginning of the game. Watch a video captured just a few days ago over on YouTube.
Evil Magician Returns II - On your last Adventure many years ago, you slayed the Evil Magician's three dragons and reclaimed the Enchanted Chalice, bringing peace to your Kingdom. Now, the Evil Magician has returned and stolen the chalice back, plunging your Kingdom into darkness. With his dragons dead, the Evil Magician and his apprentice now personally guard the chalice. Rumor has it that the Evil Magician has been creating a new creature even more powerful than his previous dragons to guard the chalice as a last defense. You can learn more about Evil Magician Returns II in our forum here.
Omicron - A team of four agents, each a specialist in one of the four elements - water, air, fire and earth - have been miniaturized to microscopic size in order to investigate a mysterious new virus that appears to be of alien origin. The virus mutates rapidly, mimicking each of the four elements. But something went horribly wrong, and contact with the team was lost. Now the virus threatens to grow out-of-control. You are the last hope to stop it. Having been miniaturized yourself, you now board the Omicron - a microscopic vessel designed specifically to counter the alien virus and stop it from spreading. Can you battle your way through each iteration of the virus and rescue your team?
Froggie - While the Atari 7800 had many arcade ports, one notable omission from Atari's lineup was Frogger. AtariAge user Schmutzpuppe sought to remedy that problem, and released his first playable demo of Frogger for the 7800 back in 2005! Since then, the game has evolved into a full-fledged Frogger port, complete with XM Module support to take advantage of POKEY sound for the game's music.

This list is not comprehensive, and in particular we'll be demoing a new game that we plan on releasing this holiday season! More information on that game will be posted in due time, but it will be available for the first time to play at the Portland Retro Gaming Expo!

..Al