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Microvaders for Atari Lynx


Songbird

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Announcing Microvaders Preview Edition, available October 25, 2022!

 

This exciting limited release gives you the chance to own a Microvaders cartridge 6+ months before the full release. It includes a molded curved lip cartridge, full-color label, and Microvaders PE game.

 

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Features of Microvaders Preview Edition:
⦁    Fully playable game including 8+ waves, two enemy types, and increasingly difficult enemy behavior
⦁    In-game music & sound f/x
⦁    Multiple powerups
⦁    Multiple intro screens and background screens
⦁    Unique title screen denoting this as the Preview Edition
⦁    Unique victory screen
⦁    Your name or userid listed in the eventual Microvaders product page and/or manual (TBD) as a PE supporter
⦁    Limited to 50 units

 

Features in the upcoming full release of Microvaders:
⦁    More waves, new enemies, and of course BOSS FIGHTS
⦁    More story & background screens
⦁    More music
⦁    Anything else we can squeeze in to make this the ultimate Lynx arcade shooter!

 

What if you don't want to buy Microvaders Preview Edition, or missed out on the limited release? Not to worry! In November, Songbird will release a beta ROM for Microvaders for everyone to play. It will contain fewer features compared to Microvaders Preview Edition, but will still give players a chance to try this game out for themselves ahead of the full release in 2023.
 

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Oooh...i want one! Unfortunately Portland is on the other side of the planet, but i do have a couple of questions!

 

Will the Preview edition be individually numbered? What about the final release?

 

Will you be saving some of the preview editions for customers overseas? (Hint, hint Australia, hint!)

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Good questions!

 

Yes, I will have 25 carts with me at the Portland show next month. I will offer the remaining 25 or more carts online for Lynx fans after the show.

 

Cart label says "50 units" on it but the carts are not individually numbered.

 

I could consider some kind of numbering for the final release but not planning to do that currently.

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It's kind of fun to have a tight deadline (carts ready for PRGE). It's forcing me to fix some annoying UI issues and game balance issues that I have largely ignored the past few months. Since I want a nice product, even if it is the Preview Edition, I'm taking the time to clean these up. Thus the game is now looking better than ever! Sounds better, too, as I have added f/x for several items which were silent before.

 

Also, I found time to squeeze in a couple of new features beyond the original plan. I don't want to spoil them, but I think Lynx fans will appreciate the extra touches. ;)

 

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Well, the first part is super-gluing blank (unprogrammed) circuit boards to the Lynx shells. This is probably the most tedious part, as it's lots of clamping carts together and ensuring you don't get a weird angle where the circuit board sticks up too high and thus won't fit into the Lynx slot. Here's a few carts I built recently. I usually build in batches of 25 or 50.

 

qHeUHCohLrKTuOwiisyZCQhhob8DUSQlbq1UX1OkGE8FGk7odqoDAZf_A0wU45mELYf05iMG8YAm1TXFfxOv1yqF6sgJ6FKSlvwdJn9N-0mwsbXC9evoSRTtVQMUZUoNhbqPKjFOOsPZpYQIec2p74BjHqZy5QLz4umDvWhoIiuRRaH2g8W8fRi5PeFIeLgTSscNHVvn17P0tc_EE2NwE9rDR1n_cRNZLN6e3p_MKh1vDoNpYqKdr4nMGemma2IQM_RUqCuD_vIk19u4RF8c2h0TutRwatgVIDNPmgOBk4JLcHMLYLrO4xhPSqvteoZNjRbm9sRhx5uSRSiZFaIETbZN_2h38dCZS29GhcNaFOGwNXZHisyXtdqbFnbKMh805nzN4LxvUBgo9cDGG0hNfIXJAUqAHaYTrRg967etM2Bl7y2OpmLiPnpmd0TqKvVZcxMFhS4DX3upqwN9HUBgq_Dgx1tkUojflDTMrl4rPPq_NJ-b8QncbGvYgyFjqCKCfbszaOAco4sRq6W2-kGFvFVxn0jAJb-Pt50SNFB7lO6tHXQN7m3PCRv8coKjPwdB-nLW1ZuPLJkUeiPUjZ14JykpwWeNVkxi6MFJ91z1C0FFXRch7GIKexSXneMvNh-C8qZaAzw-OyioqM_S2gQxTiN-sgHYTnBUJzgl81rEorjzhYAHAcG2dKkl9kAwBw2B-_2q9B6y_SlTrSA4YHVEpGG4dWvHGU_9-F3YrlA17vHX8LRZ7eImM7dRh5t-7CYUKuZ86tbM8aNyXNIwJ7gJnKqzlHdIcPe-_M_i4rSW0dUgLEsEaPUc5eBA8WzDC22n_yXZ4g2bzqqeAxrk6bqJYmNPzlhjy5mXNPzVu5TQqi8vMrcQi4aFx9RCzH38N15wtWCpL4rVr_AcWH0uc1wQ3jG92w0RIL1QgPwuJiJqrNIFh3YweZF7SaHcPcfEKuanMNx7qMDTekV11A4C4PR0W0DoI2gOeAIY6VC8cUj9ZGGdYPxyiG_p_uYgJ7PfeDiCmrXbklJjMYqLRfk9QBh2IQc=w871-h653-no?authuser=1

 

 

Next comes the 4-way programming station powered by Raspberry Pi units. This is a huge time-saver; I can't imagine doing carts one at a time any more. In fact, sometimes I wish I had an 8-way station...

image.thumb.png.5747f6243d5b786112937b7d32441c26.png

 

Before I program all x50 carts, I have to test the game. So I program one cart and try it on two Lynxes: one unmodded Lynx and one with with a BennVenn screen. Can you tell which is which? :D

image.thumb.png.10bc28211501d07d7dff1f59e082ceed.png

 

Once I'm satisfied with the game testing, I'll program all x50 carts, test them on real Lynx units, and apply stickers to them. Coming soon! ;)

 

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Will Micro Invaders Preview edition be available on the website the same day as Portland Expo?

 

Wait.....Portland is 14th, 15th and 16th? So i assume a separate website release on the 25th of October?

 

Any ideas on pricing? Not sure how i feel about paying for an unfinished product!

 

Maybe have different cover art to differentiate the Preview Version and Final Release? 

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The remaining copies of Microvaders PE will be made available online on Oct 25, probably around 8am Chicago Time. The price is $50. This product is being offered to fans who want to help support the development of the game and get their name in the eventual product web page and/or manual. It also includes a $10 discount on the eventual full release of Microvaders in 2023.

 

Microvaders PE is a fully playable (and tough!) game with a unique title screen, victory screen, and cartridge sticker. I find myself playing the game frequently when I don't have to, because it's just that much fun. :)

 

I realize this early release won't be for everybody. That's why I am limiting the run and offering a couple of perks to fans who purchase it. And if you don't want to buy Microvaders PE, that's OK and you'll still get a chance to play the free beta next month. So everybody wins! :D

 

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