Space Assault on emulators

[JOD-I]

When using an emulator to emulate a COCO2 or COCO3 for this particular game SPACE ASSAULT,  I can get my ship to fire but I cannot get the ship to move.  I have tried it on VCC, MAME, and XROAR all with the same result.  I can get all the other games to control well just not this one.  Is there anyone that has gotten this game to work correctly on any of the above emulators?

[Gamemoose]

I just tried the cartridge dump (.ROM) file on VCC using my X-Box 360 controller. Other than the ship moving back to the center of the screen when the stick is centered (that normal?), the control worked fine. I haven't tried other emulators.

 

What control are you using? Also are you using the ROM or running the game off tape or disk?

 

[Michael Kline]

I just tried the disk image version on my my copy VCC 2.1 with my game pad, and then with a real CoCo 3. With the CoCo 3, I loaded it under SDC-DOS and RSDOS. I can't move from side-to-side either. So, I don't know what the issue is. Perhaps someone can try it on a Coco 2.

 

Edited January 3, 2021 by Michael Kline

[Gamemoose]

Or in the emulator, try it as a ROM pak.

 

I'm wondering if running it from disk is creating a compatibility issue between the disk controller and the software. I want to say I ran into a similar situation years back, where I got a ROM game on disk and it wouldn't run properly. Though I could be wrong.

[Michael Kline]

It looks like it's a disk issue with the CoCo 3. It works in VCC, loaded as a ROM Pack. If anyone has their CoCo 2 out, it would be worth noting if it runs loaded as a disk image via the SDC or loaded from a floppy.

[JOD-I]

just tried it as rom pack instead of a disk image on both mame and vcc and now I can play the game.  Thank you all for helping me.

[Green3]

On 1/3/2021 at 11:01 AM, Gamemoose said:

Other than the ship moving back to the center of the screen when the stick is centered (that normal?), the control worked fine.

Space Assault was one of the first games released for the CoCo, back before Radio Shack introduced the Deluxe Joystick (which had spring-loaded re-centering as a feature the user can activate or de-activate).  Thus, Space Assault assumed the player would be using the original CoCo joystick (see pictures).  These original joysticks did not re-center once the player let go - instead remaining at the exact same angle and position until the player moved the stick again.  But your original stick being "off center" didn't mean your spaceship kept moving forever in that direction.  Instead, your ship held steady because the stick itself wasn't moving either.

 

What most people are used to is a joystick that tells your character what DIRECTION to move in.  The original Radio Shack joystick, especially in games like Space Assault, told your character what LOCATION TO BE at that exact instant.  Instead of moving TOWARD a spot on the screen, your character would BE at that spot immediately.  Your character would move as fast as you moved the stick and would stop if you kept the stick still.

 

This joystick was more like a paddle or mouse than a joystick people are used to.  In fact, Space Assault is better suited for a paddle controller than for a joystick, since Space Assault's movement is one-dimensional: only right and left across the bottom of the screen with no up or down.  The same holds true for similar games such as Super Bustout, Popcorn, Clowns & Balloons.  But Radio Shack never offered a paddle for the CoCo.  Only one third-party provider (Spectrum Projects) did but it is very rare.

 

In any case, this means that yes, it is "normal" for Space Assault (whether played in an emulator or in real hardware) to send your ship back to the center of the screen when you let go of a spring-loaded, self-re-centering joystick, because that's not the type of joystick the game was designed for.

[Gamemoose]

Well I'll be.  That never crossed my mind regarding the analog-style sticks and a game being designed to work with it like that.  I didn't play many retail games growing up so I cursed those controllers playing "Downland".  I think I had a deluxe stick when I got my own CoCo 3 but I was more a console gamer by then.