Tempest 4000

[negative1]

It sounds like -1 doesn't/didn't much like Tempest, then or now. That's fine to have opinions ... I don't much care for Final Fantasy, but that doesn't mean other people aren't enjoying it. Tempest is always among the top sought-after games on KLOV, the people who hunt down these machines and collect them. http://www.arcade-museum.com/game_detail.php?game_id=10065

 

I personally would consider Mr. Do, Super Cobra, Popeye, et al to be hits. I remember them fondly, they're still fun to play, they got a lot of home ports which reinforced their popularity.

 

Tempest is abstract and weird, and less inviting than something like Centipede, but it was definitely a hit. Atari wouldn't have bothered to distribute 29,000 Tempest cabinets if no one was playing the game.

 

That number is funny though ... 29,000 copies sold would be a best selling book, but a failure for something like a mobile game or movie launch. Isn't it weird how we essentially had to go to "movie theaters" (arcades) to play high end games back then?

 

i played tempest a handful of times in the arcade when it originally came out, it was a very minimal shooter, and living in a big city with many arcades, there were better games to play. again, never saw anyone playing it or mastering it.

 

tempest is one of my favorite games now. i've discovered it 10 years ago on the xbox 360, and have played it to death. getting up to the light blue levels and 450k on arcade mode. with savestates, i have gotten to level 99 and the random waves.

 

i have played tempest 2k, and other minter clones. i have championed the game on other forums, and in many ways, so i'm not sure why you think i don't like it. it's an underrated classic. but again if it weren't for jeff minter, no one would remember it,

or still be talking about it.

 

later

-1

Edited October 17, 2017 by negative1

[Bill Loguidice]

i have played tempest 2k, and other minter clones. i have championed the game on other forums, and in many ways, so i'm not sure why you think i don't like it. it's an underrated classic. but again if it weren't for jeff minter, no one would remember it,

or still be talking about it.

 

later

-1

 

We'll never really know if that statement is true because the Minter games did happen. With that said, again, I think it's quite telling that it was included with Battlezone, Asteroids, Centipede, and Missile Command on Microsoft Arcade in 1993. That's not light company. The fact is, all of those games are undeniable classics and all of them have had new entries in their series, including Tempest. I think all evidence points to it being remembered and being talked about regardless.

[negative1]

 

I just don't see the point you're trying to make here. There were many factors that went into whether or not an arcade game had a sequel, not the least of which is the fact that there were very few direct sequels back then. You often had offshoots or re-imaginings, but rarely anything like direct sequels. One "problem" with Tempest was that it was a hard game to port to the home at the time, even though several attempts were made by Atari, just not released (of course, several clones for home computers were released). It's telling that despite this - and obviously only on the strength of the arcade original - that it was one of the few games chosen for a re-imagining on the Jaguar, then ported or made as a direct sequel on multiple other systems. It's silly to say the original wasn't a well-known, widely available game. It has the numbers in terms of cabinets sold, it has the contemporary magazine coverage, it was clearly a staple at most arcades, it had home port attempts and/or a plethora of clones, and it did in fact eventually have home-based direct sequels in addition to being included on practically every Atari arcade game compilation.

 

I will also state the obvious, that being color vector-based both gave the original game longevity and also pretty much sealed its fate for a "quick" sequel. Because of the technology it really never looked all that dated as time wore on so it could keep bringing in revenue, and, by the time a sequel might be warranted, vector technology was no longer viable and certainly the arcade market was itself greatly weakened and had different gameplay demands. Regardless, again, it says a lot about Tempest's actual popularity that time and again it has reappeared despite not having any official home ports until 1993 with Microsoft Arcade (and that on that compilation it was included among four other all-time Atari arcade greats).

 

Finally, I think it says a great deal that so little has had to have been changed gameplay-wise and even looks-wise from the original to its many sequels. That's kind of crazy when you think about it. I can't really think of very many other games with so many sequels with so little relative deviation from what was arguably perfected first-time out. You take away the psychedelics and it really is pretty much the same darn game.

 

the point i'm trying to make is that as is normal practice in the arcade industry, when you have a hit title, the proper way to monetize it is to release another sequel in the arcades,

which was standard practice in the 80's.

 

when the vast majority of games of that list that i mentioned had sequels, i'm not sure why you don't think there were 'very few' back then.

 

home ports came much later, and while indicative, any game could have a port to console, whether it was a hit or not, so that really doesn't mean much.

 

looking at the list of top games, shows that the real hits -

============================================

pac man - ms pac man

asteroids - asteroids deluxe

donkey kong - donkey kong junior

space invaders - space invaders deluxe

 

etc, etc

 

being a vector game, or color vector didn't really matter. look at asteroids, it had 2 sequels.... and atari had more quirky titles like quantum (another underrated game)..

 

they also could have made a raster based sequel, much like blasteroids (which is great). too. so format is not an excuse for not making another title.

 

jeff minter has been the sole champion of the game, i have seen no effort from atari, or anyone else to resurrect the game or keep it in the publics eye since the time it came out.

 

later

-1

[Flojomojo]

-1, a game (or movie, or book, or song, etc) doesn't need a sequel show that it's a success or well-loved. You've dismissed or misunderstood everyone's statements that don't back up your "I do not personally like Tempest" thesis. When Inky told you Tempest outgrossed Star Wars (obviously the game, not the movie), you said "movies have nothing to do with videogames, so that doesn't make any sense."

 

Atari recently sent its lawyers after Jeff Minter for XvT, which was an unlicensed homage to Tempest. Now they are hiring him to remake it with their blessing. They've also licensed it for remakes on Xbox 360 and other platforms, which you yourself have played. It's not like they haven't monetized it.

 

If you don't like the game, stop posting about it in a thread full of people who do. If you think it's obscure, that's great, there are those of us who think it's part of the canon like Pac-Man and Asteroids.

 

Can we get back to Tempest 4000?

[tradyblix]

I just wanted to drop in to say some of the comments on this thread are atrocious.

I am glad I don't know some of you in real life !

[Bill Loguidice]

I just wanted to drop in to say some of the comments on this thread are atrocious.

I am glad I don't know some of you in real life !

 

 

This is real life.

[RARusk]

 

This is real life.

Is this just fantasy?

Caught in a landslide,

No escape from reality.

[Flojomojo]

Open your eyes,

Look up to the skies and see,

I'm just a poor boy, I need no sympathy,

Because I'm easy come, easy go

Little high, little low

Any way the wind blows doesn't really matter to me, to me

[Tanooki]

Mama, just killed a man,
Put a gun against his head,
Pulled my trigger, now he's dead.
Mama, life had just begun,
But now I've gone and thrown it all away.

[negative1]

Here is a good review, and preview of the game:

https://www.trueachievements.com/n30208/play-expo-manchester-2017-a-classic-returns-with-tempest-4000

 

later

-1

[Karyyk]

Wait...they're not calling it the Superzapper?

[Agent X]

Wait...they're not calling it the Superzapper?

 

It was referred to as a "Superzapper" in the video shown in this Twitter post, as well as the following YouTube video mentioned earlier in this thread.

 

Searched Youtube and found this:

 

 

I'm looking forward to the finished product!

[Beer Monkey]

The game is out on Wednesday for PS4. Steam soon, maybe the same day?

 

Xbox One is not in sight nor in the latest trailer credits.

 

VR support is out; maybe to be patched in later but not necessarily.

[Atari_Warlord]

Will this have a disk release? A search on Amazon only turned up some mp3 file.

[Beer Monkey]

Will this have a disk release? A search on Amazon only turned up some mp3 file.

 

It's digital only on PS4 and Steam. Llamasoft is basically a digital marketplace developer in the modern era.

 

I suppose there's a chance of Limited Run Games doing a PS4 disc version down the road if Atari were willing to work with them.

 

EDIT: Well I missed it but supposedly on one of the Llamasoft morning sheep time videos on Twitter there was talk that a disc is coming. So I guess don't buy digital if you want to be sure you don't have to double dip to get a disc.

Edited March 27, 2018 by Beer Monkey

[SoundGammon]

My Steam doesn't work, so I guess I'll have to save up for a PS4.

[Gamemoose]

 

Yep, i tried the PC version of Space Giraffe a few weeks ago and it's utter shite. So i'm not excited about a new game from Jeff Minter.

That's too bad because i love Tempest 2000 on the Sega Saturn and most of his old games on the C64.

Wait...Space Giraffe is on PC? Where do you get it?

[Major Havoc 2049]

Steam still says Spring 2018. The Tempest 4000 web page is useless and has zero info. I wanted to get the XB1 version, but the PC will be fine.

 

Space Giraffe is on Steam.

[negative1]

thanks for the update. will check it on the pc first.

 

but waiting for the xbox one version.

 

later

-1

[Beer Monkey]

Steam still says Spring 2018. The Tempest 4000 web page is useless and has zero info. I wanted to get the XB1 version, but the PC will be fine.

 

Space Giraffe is on Steam.

 

The Steam page went up like last week and YaK immediately tweeted it out. Giles has confirmed that the Steam version is complete, while he's still dealing with integrating the X1 version with social and other ecosystem features.

 

 

(Gameplay trailer from last week, note PS4 and Steam as the launch platforms listed.)

 

Atari is not promoting this *at all* this month outside of releasing that trailer. There are tiny indie titles coming out that have publicists out there making sure they get broad coverage, but Atari? Pssshhh.

Edited March 27, 2018 by Beer Monkey

[Impaler_26]

Wait...Space Giraffe is on PC? Where do you get it?

 

You can get it on Steam:

 

http://store.steampowered.com/app/27800/Space_Giraffe/

[Gamemoose]

 

You can get it on Steam:

 

http://store.steampowered.com/app/27800/Space_Giraffe/

Thanks! I think I looked before but didn't see it.

[dj_convoy]

I wonder how many more times I can be suckered into buying this game (or a variant thereof)? Not that it's bad (it's not; it's Tempest 2000 looking nice on your HDTV), but it's pretty much just Tempest 2000 or TvK, y'know? For thirty bucks.

[Bill Loguidice]

I wonder how many more times I can be suckered into buying this game (or a variant thereof)? Not that it's bad (it's not; it's Tempest 2000 looking nice on your HDTV), but it's pretty much just Tempest 2000 or TvK, y'know? For thirty bucks.

 

I had a chance to play an early version on PC. At that stage, it really was exactly as you state. The latest videos seem to indicate some visual enhancements since then, but it's still probably just a visual update of Tempest 2k/3k/TxK when all is said and done. That's not a bad thing necessarily because the gameplay is certainly timeless.

[Lost Dragon]

There was a time i would of been all over this, but now i am content to either wait for a physical release or for it to pop up as a game given away with PS+.

 

It's just after Tempest 2000 on Jaguar, Tempest X3 on PS1 and Typhoon on PC...

 

I just don't feel the desire for yet another take on Tempest that i once did.