+-^CrossBow^- Posted June 13, 2020 Share Posted June 13, 2020 1 hour ago, DrVenkman said: Not sure this qualifies as a bug report as such, but whatever display list you're using throws my RetroTink 2X-Pro into a tizzy and then my TV (2013 Samsung 1080p LED) gets grumpy and tells me "Unsupported Resolution." I get a very brief flash of the text title screen and then nada. Works fine on an analog CRT of course. This particular LED TV does have a legacy composite input so I could try my 5200 straight into it bypassing the RetroTink, but I've not run into the same problem with other 5200, 7800 or 2600 games, or my A8 computers, through the same setup. EDIT: More info. This is directly into the LED TV’s composite input. Looks like too many vertical scan lines but interestingly, it’s only the text mode title screen. If I start a game, the character selection screen and game screens are fine. So I tried the RetroTink again and same thing: if I press “1” or “2” in the blind, the screen display settles down once it goes to the character selection screen. I will have to give this a try. I know that the WIP version that was being used at PRGE last year did NOT do this on my 5200. But then my 5200 doesn't have a UAV in it and has one of the older Electronic Sentimentatlies AV boards in it. Will report in a bit... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Ryan Witmer Posted June 13, 2020 Author Share Posted June 13, 2020 1 hour ago, DrVenkman said: Not sure this qualifies as a bug report as such, but whatever display list you're using throws my RetroTink 2X-Pro into a tizzy and then my TV (2013 Samsung 1080p LED) gets grumpy and tells me "Unsupported Resolution." I get a very brief flash of the text title screen and then nada. Works fine on an analog CRT of course. This particular LED TV does have a legacy composite input so I could try my 5200 straight into it bypassing the RetroTink, but I've not run into the same problem with other 5200, 7800 or 2600 games, or my A8 computers, through the same setup. EDIT: More info. This is directly into the LED TV’s composite input. Looks like too many vertical scan lines but interestingly, it’s only the text mode title screen. If I start a game, the character selection screen and game screens are fine. So I tried the RetroTink again and same thing: if I press “1” or “2” in the blind, the screen display settles down once it goes to the character selection screen. I think you might be right. My text display list was too long. I only test on a CRT so I never would have seen this come up. Give this build a try. fairy_force.bin Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+DrVenkman Posted June 13, 2020 Share Posted June 13, 2020 15 minutes ago, AverageSoftware said: I think you might be right. My text display list was too long. I only test on a CRT so I never would have seen this come up. Give this build a try. fairy_force.bin 32 kB · 2 downloads Works like a charm now, thanks! I usually prefer my CRTs for all my retro-stuff but they're not going to last forever. And from what I see from other people on AtariAge and the various retro-gaming groups all around the internet, lots of people have already transitioned to flatscreens full-time. Sadly, this 2013 Samsung of mine is the newest flatscreen in the house that even has any analog inputs at all. My 2018 4K in the living room is all HDMI, period. Anyway, this build works great. Now ... is there a set of instructions anywhere ... ? ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+-^CrossBow^- Posted June 13, 2020 Share Posted June 13, 2020 On my 5200 both roms work just fine through my setup. But then again, I have all of my analog signals go through my Extron 7SC and it is very tolerant of odd signals from most consoles. I did not connection my 5200 through the composite on my flat planel directly as it isn't honestly that easy for me to get back there and do. So will have to leave it to @DrVenkman to answer this one. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Ryan Witmer Posted June 13, 2020 Author Share Posted June 13, 2020 4 minutes ago, DrVenkman said: Works like a charm now, thanks! I usually prefer my CRTs for all my retro-stuff but they're not going to last forever. And from what I see from other people on AtariAge and the various retro-gaming groups all around the internet, lots of people have already transitioned to flatscreens full-time. Yeah, I need to get some fancy upscalers and what not at some point. I have too many light gun games to totally give up the old CRT though. NOTES ON RELEASE 1.01: The identification string is now "Release 1.01, 6/13/2020" Fixed length of text mode display list, because modern TVs can't handle the awesome vertical resolution that my creative vision demands. This is basically the same as the test build I just posted, but this attachment has source code. fairy_force.zip 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Ryan Witmer Posted June 13, 2020 Author Share Posted June 13, 2020 15 minutes ago, DrVenkman said: Now ... is there a set of instructions anywhere ... ? ? Here's the text that will eventually become the instruction manual. manual.txt 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+-^CrossBow^- Posted June 14, 2020 Share Posted June 14, 2020 I was playing this last night quite a bit, but just cannot get past more than 2 opponents. The default controller seems a bit too twitchy for this game due to the non-centering nature. I might have to plug my redemption in later and see if I can do better with a digital controller. But it is a very fun twitch game and there isn't anything else quite like it on the 5200! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Ryan Witmer Posted June 14, 2020 Author Share Posted June 14, 2020 1 hour ago, -^CrossBow^- said: The default controller seems a bit too twitchy for this game due to the non-centering nature. I think you're right about this and I spent the morning reevaluating my approach to the joystick control. The result is this build: NOTES ON RELEASE 1.02: The identification string is now "Release 1.02, 6/14/2020" I realized last night that the display list used on the character select screen was also not terminated properly. I think I got away with this one because it's nothing but single-scanline mode lines, unlike the broken one which had a modeline cross the 192 scanline boundary. Still, I decided to do it right and properly terminated this display list. I completely reworked the joystick control with a new philosophy. Originally, I wanted the joystick to have the same range of motion as the trak-ball. I realize now that this was a mistake. The joystick control is much tighter now and should work a lot better. As with all things related to the 5200 joysticks, results may vary based on your particular joystick, but it feels pretty good on my controllers. The flipside of this is that trak-ball players have a motion advantage over joystick players. They can reach speeds that the joystick can't, but with a trak-ball these speeds are easily managed. Is it fair? No, but to use one of my favorite sayings, the alternative is worse. fairy_force.zip 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+-^CrossBow^- Posted June 14, 2020 Share Posted June 14, 2020 Just now, AverageSoftware said: I think you're right about this and I spent the morning reevaluating my approach to the joystick control. The result is this build: NOTES ON RELEASE 1.02: The identification string is now "Release 1.02, 6/14/2020" I realized last night that the display list used on the character select screen was also not terminated properly. I think I got away with this one because it's nothing but single-scanline mode lines, unlike the broken one which had a modeline cross the 192 scanline boundary. Still, I decided to do it right and properly terminated this display list. I completely reworked the joystick control with a new philosophy. Originally, I wanted the joystick to have the same range of motion as the trak-ball. I realize now that this was a mistake. The joystick control is much tighter now and should work a lot better. As with all things related to the 5200 joysticks, results may vary based on your particular joystick, but it feels pretty good on my controllers. The flipside of this is that trak-ball players have a motion advantage over joystick players. They can reach speeds that the joystick can't, but with a trak-ball these speeds are easily managed. Is it fair? No, but to use one of my favorite sayings, the alternative is worse. fairy_force.zip 129.59 kB · 0 downloads I will give this a shot right now and see how it fairs on my setup! Awesome that you looked into this so quickly because as you stated, it seems each controller and each 5200 has variances in the way the controllers are read. A controller that works great on my 5200 and set to factory specs on my 5200, may not work as well on another etc... Amazing to me that any of the sold controllers new back in the day all worked pretty much the same between systems as they seemed to do. Only through age has the issue become more of a more of a problem. Also, the TB was always more of an advantage for games that were coded for it. Centipede and Missile Command are infinitely better with TB controller use vs joystick. I do have several working TBs but don't break them out that much as I tend to play games on my 5200 that either the stock controller or my AA redemption and Genesis 3-button controller are plenty useful for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Ryan Witmer Posted June 14, 2020 Author Share Posted June 14, 2020 5 minutes ago, -^CrossBow^- said: Also, the TB was always more of an advantage for games that were coded for it. Centipede and Missile Command are infinitely better with TB controller use vs joystick. True, but these also weren't direct head-to-head games. I think only Xari Arena and some of the sports titles support the trak-ball for head-to-head play (can you imagine Ballblazer with a trak-ball? That would be great!). I did spend many hours testing with the original joystick routine, and I might have just gotten a little too used to it. I was using the joystick control in Centipede as my model, and after going back a playing that game with fresh eyes, I realized some of my mistakes. Thanks for bringing it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+DrVenkman Posted June 14, 2020 Share Posted June 14, 2020 I look forward to giving this new build a try! I use my self-built analog Scott Baker-designed thumbstick controllers for most games that don't demand a Trak-Ball. The prior build was playable but very difficult/twitchy to aim. I meant to give it a go with one of working vintage sticks, but didn't get around to it yesterday. I'll try to give both controllers a go later today. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+DrVenkman Posted June 14, 2020 Share Posted June 14, 2020 I played the 1.02 build this afternoon with my thumbstick controller and it's MUCH more playable and enjoyable now! I have yet to try my Trak-Ball but I gotta say, I quite like the change to the joystick control code. I was actually able to beat an opponent and ALMOST beat a second one. ? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+sramirez2008 Posted June 14, 2020 Share Posted June 14, 2020 5 hours ago, AverageSoftware said: (can you imagine Ballblazer with a trak-ball? That would be great!). This would be awesome! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Ryan Witmer Posted June 14, 2020 Author Share Posted June 14, 2020 1 hour ago, sramirez2008 said: This would be awesome! No, I'm not doing it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+sramirez2008 Posted June 14, 2020 Share Posted June 14, 2020 1 minute ago, AverageSoftware said: No, I'm not doing it. Well, I tried. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+-^CrossBow^- Posted June 16, 2020 Share Posted June 16, 2020 Yeap..the new control changes are awesome!!! I was playing as 7 just a bit ago and was able to get through 3 computer players before the Queen took me out causing my first continue. But I wasn't able to get past Pinky. Those fists are deadly!! This is a really fun game. I am having a difficult time trying to lock down the computer AI scheme though. Seems I will play against a computer opponent and they are only interested in maxing out their power bar to through their supers at me and defeat me. I press Start to continue and then the same computer enemy will just throw lots of lightning bolts at me instead and never seem to save up their power for their super attacks. As a result, I'm cleaning their clock pretty quickly because the bolts getting shot down help build up my power that much faster. But it really seems to be hit and miss on what they computer opponents want to do and how to play. Also they move MUCH faster than you do with the new control scheme but perhaps that is needed to keep the balance of difficulty in order. When is this getting a CIB release again? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Ryan Witmer Posted June 16, 2020 Author Share Posted June 16, 2020 42 minutes ago, -^CrossBow^- said: Seems I will play against a computer opponent and they are only interested in maxing out their power bar to through their supers at me and defeat me. I press Start to continue and then the same computer enemy will just throw lots of lightning bolts at me instead and never seem to save up their power for their super attacks. It's actually kind of funny how that worked out. The game that inspired this, Twinkle Star Sprites, has as CPU player that ends up doing pretty much the same thing. Sometimes you'll get stuck over and over again and the computer is just relentless. Other times you plow right through. I didn't really intend for this game to end up that way, but it's so close to the "source material" that I decided I liked it. The physical release should be with the next batch of games, which I think comes out next month. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
miker Posted June 16, 2020 Share Posted June 16, 2020 Any chances for Atari 8-bit version of it? (before someone made this in undercover) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Ryan Witmer Posted June 16, 2020 Author Share Posted June 16, 2020 5 hours ago, miker said: Any chances for Atari 8-bit version of it? Not from me personally, but the source code is available for anyone who'd like to do the work. My last two games were converted in this fashion, so I expect someone will do it eventually. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+ZeroPage Homebrew Posted June 16, 2020 Share Posted June 16, 2020 We'll be checking out Magical Fairy Force on tomorrow's (Wed Jun 17) ZeroPage Homebrew stream LIVE on Twitch at 6PM PT | 9PM ET | 1AM GMT! Hope everyone can watch! Twitch Stream: https://www.twitch.tv/zeropagehomebrew/ Games: Hero's Journey (2020 Exclusive WIP Premiere) by Mike Indovina (@satyrsfaction) Solar Plexus (2005) by Jess Ragan (@Jess Ragan) Passthrough (2010) by Cliff Friedel (@Cliff Friedel) Magical Fairy Force (2020 WIP | 5200) by Ryan Witmer (@AverageSoftware) 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Ryan Witmer Posted June 16, 2020 Author Share Posted June 16, 2020 Cute label. Fair warning. If you're planning to play this in an emulator, but aware that the game uses analog control. It may be difficult to play with a keyboard or digital controller setup. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas Jentzsch Posted June 18, 2020 Share Posted June 18, 2020 Just watched the game in the ZPH stream. Very nice and playable. One idea that occurred to me: Maybe the players could select their super powers (each is available only once). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Ryan Witmer Posted June 18, 2020 Author Share Posted June 18, 2020 4 hours ago, Thomas Jentzsch said: Just watched the game in the ZPH stream. Very nice and playable. One idea that occurred to me: Maybe the players could select their super powers (each is available only once). An idea similar to that is planned for the PC version that I'm working on. Unfortunately, the Atari version is just out of space. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Climber Posted June 18, 2020 Share Posted June 18, 2020 On 6/13/2020 at 2:13 PM, DrVenkman said: I usually prefer my CRTs for all my retro-stuff but they're not going to last forever. ? They might outlive us though honestly...I have some from the 70's that still work like new BTW - Might even buy a 5200 for this game, looks sweet Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+sramirez2008 Posted June 18, 2020 Share Posted June 18, 2020 I need a backup 1702 monitor. @Crazy Climber Your older (VHF/UHF knobs, wood grain) CRTs are sweet. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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