Touchdown Challenge (Revisited)

[+Atarius Maximus]

34 minutes ago, eebuckeye said:

Could you make it so if you hold a direction the pass is aimed when you throw?

I could probably add a slightly angled pass direction to one side or the other.  It's not a trivial thing to add to the game, but I can play around with that idea.  Just thinking out loud here... I have a feeling you'd end up throwing an angled pass when you intended to throw it straight quite a bit, since you're pretty much constantly moving.  Some kind of left/center/right pass indicator when you hold the button down would probably take too long as the game moves pretty fast, but it could be an option.

 

There are a whole lot of things that could be added (like blocking, choosing plays, penalties, kicking field goals, etc), however I was trying to keep this game in the "simple but fun" arcade game category and not add too much complexity to it.  A proper football game would probably end up being one of those projects that would take a year or more to create.

 

Regardless, thank you for the suggestion.  I'll see what I can do!

 

Steve

[+Atarius Maximus]

@eebuckeye

 

Here's my initial attempt at adding an angled pass option. It was a bit easier than I thought to add it and seems to work pretty well.  Angled passes will only travel at a 45 degree angle - anything else would definitely require more code and more effort and this type of pass option seems to fit pretty well with the style of the game anyway.  I was able to land some angled passes, it does add an additional strategic element to the game and is pretty fun.  I only tested it for a few minutes in practice mode.

• If you're not moving or moving straight up the field, the pass will always be straight. 
• If you're moving left (or left+up) when you press and release the right fire button, you pass at a 45 degree angle to the left.
• If you're moving right (or right+up) when you press and release the right fire button, you pass at a 45 degree angle to the right.
• If you throw the ball out of bounds to the left or right, it will be flagged as an incomplete pass.

 

Touchdown_Challenge_v2.19.a78 Touchdown_Challenge_v2.19.bin

[Trebor]

Keep this up, we'll be in 10-Yard Fight territory.   

[mdoerty]

14 hours ago, Atarius Maximus said:

Mike,

 

I just checked as I wanted to share the link for requesting custom 7800 cartridges...  https://atariage.com/store/index.php?l=product_detail&p=950

 

I was, however, unaware of this:

Thanks. Not a problem. I am sure it will open up again. I probably should hook up an emulator and get in line for the next SD-card cart release as well. 

[+Atarius Maximus]

3 hours ago, Trebor said:

Keep this up, we'll be in 10-Yard Fight territory.   

Haha.  I'm trying hard to avoid, well, this....

 

 

 

[Ecernosoft]

On 8/17/2022 at 4:21 PM, Atarius Maximus said:

I wrote my very first simple game called "Touchdown Challenge" back in 2014 when I was just starting to get my feet wet with 7800basic.  I thought I'd revisit that game and try and make it better.  I have learned a few things here and there in the 8 years since I posted it.

 

 

This version was written completely from scratch, I did not re-use anything from the original game.  It's all new, and I'd like to think much better and more fun to play.  The game seems to work just fine and I haven't come across any major bugs.  The only thing I've noticed is a screen glitch if the action pauses with 8 sprites in the same zone, which has a possibility of happening - especially if the football is intercepted and all 7 defenders are still pretty much lined up horizontally.  I'm not sure yet how I'd get around that, but it's a very minor occurrence and doesn't affect gameplay.

 

Here's how you play:

 

• The game has four difficulty levels:
  • Practice:  The game runs at the default speed, and tackling and running out of bounds are disabled.  You can simply practice running plays and the defense will behave the same way as if you chose the standard difficulty.
  • Standard:  The slowest (and default) setting. 
  • Advanced:  A slightly faster defense.
  • Expert: The defense is really fast.  It's a bit unfair.

• From the titlescreen, press left and right on the joystick to select your difficulty.  Push down on the joystick to select "Start Game", and press the left fire button to begin.

• Once you enter the game, Press right fire to start your first play.  The action will start immediately.  You can try and run the ball in, or you can press the right fire button to pass to your receiver.  

• When passing, there are certain defenders that can intercept the ball.  One defensive play has three defenders that can intercept.  With a little practice you'll figure out which to avoid.

• Downs:  The referee will come out and blow the whistle if you run out of bounds, are tackled by a defender, or throw an incomplete pass. 

• In some defensive plays it's easier to run the football.  The players line up the same, so you'll have to recognize quickly which play it is once they start running toward you.  The defense will always cycle through the same set of Defensive plays regardless of the difficulty you choose, however their speed is different.

• Defenders will run to the bottom of the screen, then turn around.  They will always move toward the football.  Once you've passed the ball, you cannot be tackled for a down.

• You get four downs to score a touchdown either by running it in with your quarterback or passing to your lone receiver.  After 4 downs the game will reset with the same difficulty you originally chose.  Hit the reset button to go back to the title screen and select a different difficulty if you'd like to change it.

• In between downs, a message will display on the screen as to why the referee blew the whistle.  Press the left fire button to continue on to the next play.  There will be no pause in between plays, when you press the button the action re-starts immediately.

• Your high score will save for the current play session and display on screen if you fail to score on 4th down.  It is not configured for Atarivox or Savekey saving at this point, so if you reset the game your high score will be lost.

 

I think that's it.  I will probably add or change a few more things before I call this game finished (colors, graphics, sound effects/music), but the basics are done.

 

Enjoy!

 

Steve

 

Latest Version:

 

Touchdown_Challenge_v2.19.a78Touchdown_Challenge_v2.19.bin(Adds Angled Passing to the left or right, see this post for detail)

 

Old Versions:

 

Touchdown_Challenge_v2.18.a78Touchdown_Challenge_v2.18.bin (Adds new referee whistle sound, that's it)

Touchdown_Challenge_v2.17.a78Touchdown_Challenge_v2.17.bin (Lots of changes, see this post for detail)

Touchdown_Challenge_2.10.a78Touchdown_Challenge_2.10.bin    (See this post for detail)

Touchdown_Challenge_v2.0.a78 Touchdown_Challenge_v2.0.bin   (Initial Release)

 

   

 

 

 

 

 

I love how in the old version you used the link sprite for the character. 😅

[+Atarius Maximus]

3 hours ago, Ecernosoft said:

I love how in the old version you used the link sprite for the character. 😅

Haha.  Yep, Elf Football.   The sprite was from one of the sample games included with 7800basic. I was still trying to figure out how to use GIMP at the time - now I find it essential.

[Ecernosoft]

1 hour ago, Atarius Maximus said:

Haha.  Yep, Elf Football.   The sprite was from one of the sample games included with 7800basic. I was still trying to figure out how to use GIMP at the time - now I find it essential.

Wait a minute- is there a tool that lets you edit 7800 sprites and then download them to use with your game?

Or is it just a pixelart tool and you need to convert it to 7800 compatible yourself?

[+wongojack]

Replying to follow the thread (and test the game later)

[+Karl G]

1 hour ago, Ecernosoft said:

Wait a minute- is there a tool that lets you edit 7800 sprites and then download them to use with your game?

Or is it just a pixelart tool and you need to convert it to 7800 compatible yourself?

7800basic makes use of indexed PNG files for graphics, converting them to the correct internal format upon compilation. GIMP is one program that can produce indexed PNG graphics. The 7800 sprite editor included in Atari Dev Studio is another. 

[+Atarius Maximus]

1 hour ago, Ecernosoft said:

Wait a minute- is there a tool that lets you edit 7800 sprites and then download them to use with your game?

Or is it just a pixelart tool and you need to convert it to 7800 compatible yourself?

I'll echo what Karl G just said.  Yes, you can create and edit sprites with any imaging tool that allows for saving them in an indexed format (which is what 7800basic uses).

 

You can reference the tutorial I made back in 2017 for more information on using GIMP for that purpose here.

[+Muddyfunster]

If you are an ASM Jedi, you can just will graphics into existence using midichlorians or the force. (/joke)

[Eagle]

I'm using @JAC! WUDSN IDE for MAD Assembler and has build in graphics converters.

http://www.wudsn.com/

Edited August 29, 2022 by Eagle

[+Karl G]

3 hours ago, Muddyfunster said:

If you are an ASM Jedi, you can just will graphics into existence using midichlorians or the force. (/joke)

That has always been my working theory. Good to see it confirmed. 

[Ecernosoft]

Hey @Atarius Maximus, I was wondering...

I was thinking maybe you could use 320A and have a green/white background.

I know it would look more simple that way but then you have 320C for the players, plus 2 palletes for the 2 teams.

Would probably be a good trade-off.

If you still need more color, you could use Direct mode which if you want to know more, I can explain it.
What it allows is color cells in any mode, preferably 320A or 160A.

[+Karl G]

5 minutes ago, Ecernosoft said:

Hey @Atarius Maximus, I was wondering...

I was thinking maybe you could use 320A and have a green/white background.

I know it would look more simple that way but then you have 320C for the players, plus 2 palletes for the 2 teams.

Would probably be a good trade-off.

If you still need more color, you could use Direct mode which if you want to know more, I can explain it.
What it allows is color cells in any mode, preferably 320A or 160A.

I for one think the game looks great as-is. 🙂

 

Also, I don't get what you mean by using direct mode. I guarantee the player sprites are all direct mode (i.e. sprites instead of tiles in 7800basic). Finally I'm pretty sure the color restrictions are the same regardless of whether your graphics are in direct or indirect mode.

[+Muddyfunster]

32 minutes ago, Karl G said:

I for one think the game looks great as-is. 🙂

Agreed, I think it looks great too.

 

41 minutes ago, Ecernosoft said:

Hey @Atarius Maximus, I was wondering...

I was thinking maybe you could use 320A and have a green/white background.

I know it would look more simple that way but then you have 320C for the players, plus 2 palletes for the 2 teams.

Would probably be a good trade-off.

If you still need more color, you could use Direct mode which if you want to know more, I can explain it.
What it allows is color cells in any mode, preferably 320A or 160A.

Every post you make is pimping 320 this or 320 that. Maybe you should contain your many posts about 320 modes to just one of your eight or so threads on the subject  

 

 

 

 

[Ecernosoft]

Ok. I get it, 320 mode is limited. I’m only making suggestions!

edif: yes by the way.

 

Edited September 3, 2022 by Ecernosoft

[+Atarius Maximus]

On 9/3/2022 at 1:17 PM, Ecernosoft said:

Hey @Atarius Maximus, I was wondering...

I was thinking maybe you could use 320A and have a green/white background.

I know it would look more simple that way but then you have 320C for the players, plus 2 palletes for the 2 teams.

Would probably be a good trade-off.

If you still need more color, you could use Direct mode which if you want to know more, I can explain it.
What it allows is color cells in any mode, preferably 320A or 160A.

Your feedback is much appreciated, however I think for this game I'm going to leave it as is.  My recent projects were all 320A and I wanted to work on a 160A title.  It fit the bill pretty well for this one and I'm happy with the result.

[Ecernosoft]

2 minutes ago, Atarius Maximus said:

Your feedback is much appreciated, however I think for this game I'm going to leave it as is.  My recent projects were all 320A and I wanted to work on a 160A title.  It fit the bill pretty well for this one and I'm happy with the result.

Ok!

Fine by me.

Also, I wanted to tell you about 160D if you need more color.

By making a crap load of sprites (And yeah. My example for a full screen needs 121 sprites alone. 110 for static image, 121 for 2 way scroll, 133 sprites for 4 way scroll!)

you can get Color cells.

 

I made an example over on my experiments post.

Edited September 4, 2022 by Ecernosoft

[Ecernosoft]

On 8/29/2022 at 4:32 PM, Karl G said:

7800basic makes use of indexed PNG files for graphics, converting them to the correct internal format upon compilation. GIMP is one program that can produce indexed PNG graphics. The 7800 sprite editor included in Atari Dev Studio is another. 

Yeah it's great! Still sucks for people like me using ASM and need to convert to 7800 format by hand, err, keyboard.

[Traxx]

1 hour ago, Ecernosoft said:

Yeah it's great! Still sucks for people like me using ASM and need to convert to 7800 format by hand, err, keyboard.

 

[Ecernosoft]

God damn every time I don’t know something exists someone must remind me I’m wrong!!! 😂

[+GoldenWheels]

*Checks Maximus' location*.....I KNEW that was a Battlehawks logo at the 50! Though I am in CT my buddy and I adopted them for the XFL comeback year. Liked the unis, and once I heard the Qbs nickname was "the Throwin' Samoan", I was in. Best fans in the XFL, that place was always packed.

 

Glad you came back to this Atarius, loved the older rushing only version and still play it to this day.

[+Atarius Maximus]

On 9/7/2022 at 11:39 AM, GoldenWheels said:

*Checks Maximus' location*.....I KNEW that was a Battlehawks logo at the 50! Though I am in CT my buddy and I adopted them for the XFL comeback year. Liked the unis, and once I heard the Qbs nickname was "the Throwin' Samoan", I was in. Best fans in the XFL, that place was always packed.

 

Glad you came back to this Atarius, loved the older rushing only version and still play it to this day.

Thanks! Yeah, the QB Ta'amu was fun to watch, and the team was pretty good before the XFL folded because of the pandemic.  They're back next year and I'll be there!  I follow KC for my NFL fix, it's still a Missouri team and I could reasonably go see them play in person as it's only about a four hour drive to the other side of the state.  Chicago's only 5 hours away from me, but the Bears.... yech.

 

Glad you're enjoying the old version of the game too.  It was just meant to be a simple game to learn the basics of 7800basic and as it turned out some people like to play it.  That was pretty cool.

 

Steve