Video: Games That Push The Limits of the Atari 7800

[+x=usr(1536)]

Just noticed this lurking in my YouTube subscriptions:

 

 

It's a light piece, and does go into the usual comparisons with the NES.  However, the importance of the homebrew scene to the 7800 is covered, and the overall opinion is that it's a quirky machine with hidden charms that have really been brought out by the current crop of 7800 programmers.

 

Bentley Bear's Crystal Quest (@PacManPlus), Rikki & Vikki (@TailChao), and 1942 (@playsoft / @TIX) are the homebrews shown.

[Cebus Capucinis]

I need to pick up those homebrews!

[+DrVenkman]

8 hours ago, Cebus Capucinis said:

I need to pick up those homebrews!

Bob D. (aka PacManPlus) usually releases final or near-final/WIP versions of all of his games for people to enjoy regardless of whether they buy a cart release, though BBCQ is available from the AA Store (and it’s well worth buying!). 

 

The binary for 1942 was released for free and there will be no physical cart release, at least as of now. Capcom still holds the license to the 1942 series fo games and releases them on retro game compilations, so Playsoft / Tix decided to release this one for free. It’s amazing.

Rikki & Vikki uses a custom PCB with an on-board sound tracker/player solution for its amazing music. Unfortunately, as the TailChao the developer has made clear about 1,000 times, physical cart sales were too slow to recoup the time and effort spent on the project and there will not be any additional cartridge releases. However, the game IS available on Steam and at least one or two other online distributors. It is actually the same binary and runs a custom version of the 7800 emulator written to develop the game. It normally sells for $9.99 but periodically goes on deep sale - I think I bought it for $2.99 or so several months ago, even though I own this one on cart. 

[+Biff Burgertime]

is ICT mentioned??

[Ecernosoft]

11 hours ago, x=usr(1536) said:

Just noticed this lurking in my YouTube subscriptions:

 

 

It's a light piece, and it does go into the usual comparisons with the NES.  However, the importance of the homebrew scene to the 7800 is covered, and the overall opinion is that it's a quirky machine with hidden charms that have really been brought out by the current crop of 7800 programmers.

 

Bentley Bear's Crystal Quest (@PacManPlus), Rikki & Vikki (@TailChao), and 1942 (@playsoft / @TIX) are the homebrews shown.

I watched that too.

And I agree. I think that many people (not us of course) don’t take time to appreciate the 7800 because of the NES. And also, I developed for the NES at one point. I think that many choose it over alternatives since it’s very easy to program. 7800 isn’t. On the other hand the 7800 can do much more.

 

I also want to say a correction:

He says that in 320 mode you can only get 6 colors. That’s wrong- it’s 7 or 9 without tricks.

[Cebus Capucinis]

10 hours ago, Buffalo Biff Burgertime said:

is ICT mentioned??

It probably is now.

[theoakwoody]

I’d say Robotron is very impressive with the number of sprites it was pushing but unfortunately didn’t make it into his video.

[Trebor]

E.X.O. and Attack of the Petscii Robots, two excellent and massive games that push limits as well, will hopefully be mentioned in a Part Deux video.

 

If not, we send in this guy...

[PacManPlus]

20 hours ago, Ecernosoft said:

He says that in 320 mode you can only get 6 colors. That’s wrong- it’s 7 or 9 without tricks.

If we're talking "without tricks", it's only 4, 5, or 6 colors, depending on the placement of colors within the sprite or if Kangaroo mode (transparency) is used.

Edited December 1, 2022 by PacManPlus

[+Defender_2600]

21 minutes ago, PacManPlus said:

If we're talking "without tricks", it's only 4, 5, or 6 colors, depending on the placement of colors within the sprite or if Kangaroo mode (transparency) is used.

 

I think he's referring to the total number of colors on screen, including background color, so 6+1 for 320B and 8+1 for 320A and 320C.

 

[PacManPlus]

16 minutes ago, Defender_2600 said:

 

I think he's referring to the total number of colors on screen, including background color, so 6+1 for 320B and 8+1 for 320A and 320C.

 

Ah - thank you...  I've got 320B mode stuck in my head 😕

Edited December 1, 2022 by PacManPlus

[+Defender_2600]

24 minutes ago, PacManPlus said:

Ah - thank you...  I've got 320B mode stuck in my head 😕

 

This is normal, since for almost all 7800 games in 320B we have to thank you and that list of yours is very long...

 

[Ecernosoft]

3 hours ago, PacManPlus said:

Edit: this is a bug. People already talked it out, this is written by Ecernosoft.

Edited December 1, 2022 by Ecernosoft

[Ecernosoft]

2 hours ago, Defender_2600 said:

 

This is normal, since for almost all 7800 games in 320B we have to thank you and that list of yours is very long...

 

Sorry for dual posting (can’t copy a quoted post on mobile =/) but yes. Does that help? Also, I’m glad we have you to show examples for 320 mode usage besides rikki/vikki and the Beach runner demo, as well as the zombie game. 

[+Defender_2600]

1 hour ago, Ecernosoft said:

Also, I’m glad we have you to show examples for 320 mode usage

 

Asteroids Deluxe

AstroBlaster

Baby Pac-Man (maze)

CrazyBrix

Death Merchant

Dungeon Stalker

Frenzy/Berzerk

Froggie

Galaxian

Graze Suit Alpha

Jacks or Better

Kiloparsec

Moon Cresta

Ms. Pac-Man 320

One on One Basketball

Pac-Man 320

Pac-Man Collection - 40th Anniversary Edition

Pac-Man Plus 320

Plink

Plumb Luck DX

Rikki & Vikki

Rip-Off

Scramble

Space Invaders

Tower Toppler

UniWarS

 

these 7800 games are all made in 320 mode. 

 

Edited December 1, 2022 by Defender_2600

[Ecernosoft]

10 hours ago, Defender_2600 said:

 

Asteroids Deluxe

AstroBlaster

Baby Pac-Man (maze)

CrazyBrix

Death Merchant

Dungeon Stalker

Frenzy/Berzerk

Froggie

Galaxian

Graze Suit Alpha

Jacks or Better

Kiloparsec

Moon Cresta

Ms. Pac-Man 320

One on One Basketball

Pac-Man 320

Pac-Man Collection - 40th Anniversary Edition

Pac-Man Plus 320

Plink

Plumb Luck DX

Rikki & Vikki

Rip-Off

Scramble

Space Invaders

Tower Toppler

UniWarS

 

these 7800 games are all made in 320 mode. 

 

And of those games, at least 10 are from @PacManPlus if I'm not wrong.

[+Defender_2600]

43 minutes ago, Ecernosoft said:

And of those games, at least 10 are from @PacManPlus if I'm not wrong.

 

I forgot Astro Fighter and Defender (that will come at some point).

 

So at the moment his games in 320 mode are 18. Then there are all his other games in 160 mode.... incredible!!

 

[+Defender_2600]

50 minutes ago, Ecernosoft said:

And of those games, at least 10 are from @PacManPlus if I'm not wrong.

 

PacManPlus

Adventure III: The Race For The Chalice | Aug 29, 2016 | Dormant
Armor Attack II* | Apr 16, 2013 | Done
Asteroids/Asteroids Deluxe* | Oct 14, 2007 | Done
Asteroids (Vector Edition Hack)* | Jul 24, 2005 | Done
Astro Blaster* | Feb 01, 2014 | Done
Astro Fighter* | Jul 26, 2015 | Done
Battlezone | Feb 08, 2016 | Dormant
Bentley Bear's Crystal Quest¹ | Dec 20, 2015 | Done
BMP7800 (Utility) | May 23, 2016 | Dormant
Clean Sweep | Feb 08, 2016 | Dormant
Crazy Brix* | Apr 27, 2016 | Done
Crazy Otto (Hack)* | Jan 12, 2010 | Done
Dark Tower (Demo) | May 06, 2013 | Dormant
Defender | Jan 28, 2022 | Development
DLLTemplate (DL & DLL Template) | Jul 23, 2008 | Done
Dual Pac-Man (Hack)* | Sep 02, 2005 | Done
FailSafe* | Feb 27, 2010 | Done
Frenzy (w/Berzerk)* | Oct 25, 2021 | Done

Galaxian* | Nov 18, 2021 | Done
Hangly-Man (Hack)* | May, 31, 2005 | Done
Jr. Pac-Man* | Sep 24, 2012 | Done
KC Munchkin | Apr 08, 2014 | KC Munchkin (Alt Movement) Apr 09, 2017 | Done
Meteor Shower* | Feb 18, 2012 | Done
Moon Cresta* | Nov 13, 2011 | Done
Ms. Pac-Attack (Hack)* | May 31, 2005 | Done
Ms. Pac-Man (Fast Hack)* | Mar 04, 2006 | Done
Ms. Pac-Man (Hack)* | May 01, 2009 | Done
Ms. Pac-Man 320*¹ | Aug 08, 2011 | Done
Ms. Pac-Man Twin* | Feb 08, 2016 | Dormant
Pac Pollux (Hack)* | Mar 05, 2006 | Done
Pac-Man (Hack)* | May 30, 2005 | Done
Pac-Man 320*¹ | Aug 10, 2011 | Done
Pac-Man Collection*¹ | Updated Monsters | May 31, 2015 | Done

Pac-Man Collection - 40th Anniversary Edition*³ | Oct 26, 2022 | Short Mazes | Oct 26, 2022 | Done

Pac-Man Plus 320¹ | Jun 25, 2019 | Done
Pac-Man Plus (Hack)* | Jun 02, 2005 | Done
PinOut | Jan 29, 2011 | Dormant

Plutos (XM Required Version) | Jun 27, 2020 | Done
ReZolve | Feb 08, 2016 | Dormant
Rip-Off* | May 02, 2012 | Done
Scramble* | Dec 02, 2016 | Done

Sirius (XM Required Version) | Jun 27, 2020 | Done
Source Code List | Sep 30, 2012 | Done
Space Duel* | Oct 14, 2007 | Done
Space Invaders 7800* | Aug 01, 2008 | Done
Super Circus AtariAge*¹ (POKEY 0450) / (POKEY 4000) | Jun 11, 2017 | Done
Super Pac-Man* | Oct 10, 2008 | Done
Ultra Pac-Man (Hack)* | Jun 19, 2005 | Done

UniWarS* | Jan 14, 2021 | Done

PacManPlus / Kurt_Woloch
Baby Pac-Man | Feb 08, 2019 | Done

 

PacManPlus / RevEng

KiloParsec | Jun 21, 2021 | Done

 

[john_q_atari]

Is that all? What a slacker! 😋

[Ecernosoft]

13 hours ago, Defender_2600 said:

 

PacManPlus

Adventure III: The Race For The Chalice | Aug 29, 2016 | Dormant
Armor Attack II* | Apr 16, 2013 | Done
Asteroids/Asteroids Deluxe* | Oct 14, 2007 | Done
Asteroids (Vector Edition Hack)* | Jul 24, 2005 | Done
Astro Blaster* | Feb 01, 2014 | Done
Astro Fighter* | Jul 26, 2015 | Done
Battlezone | Feb 08, 2016 | Dormant
Bentley Bear's Crystal Quest¹ | Dec 20, 2015 | Done
BMP7800 (Utility) | May 23, 2016 | Dormant
Clean Sweep | Feb 08, 2016 | Dormant
Crazy Brix* | Apr 27, 2016 | Done
Crazy Otto (Hack)* | Jan 12, 2010 | Done
Dark Tower (Demo) | May 06, 2013 | Dormant
Defender | Jan 28, 2022 | Development
DLLTemplate (DL & DLL Template) | Jul 23, 2008 | Done
Dual Pac-Man (Hack)* | Sep 02, 2005 | Done
FailSafe* | Feb 27, 2010 | Done
Frenzy (w/Berzerk)* | Oct 25, 2021 | Done

Galaxian* | Nov 18, 2021 | Done
Hangly-Man (Hack)* | May, 31, 2005 | Done
Jr. Pac-Man* | Sep 24, 2012 | Done
KC Munchkin | Apr 08, 2014 | KC Munchkin (Alt Movement) Apr 09, 2017 | Done
Meteor Shower* | Feb 18, 2012 | Done
Moon Cresta* | Nov 13, 2011 | Done
Ms. Pac-Attack (Hack)* | May 31, 2005 | Done
Ms. Pac-Man (Fast Hack)* | Mar 04, 2006 | Done
Ms. Pac-Man (Hack)* | May 01, 2009 | Done
Ms. Pac-Man 320*¹ | Aug 08, 2011 | Done
Ms. Pac-Man Twin* | Feb 08, 2016 | Dormant
Pac Pollux (Hack)* | Mar 05, 2006 | Done
Pac-Man (Hack)* | May 30, 2005 | Done
Pac-Man 320*¹ | Aug 10, 2011 | Done
Pac-Man Collection*¹ | Updated Monsters | May 31, 2015 | Done

Pac-Man Collection - 40th Anniversary Edition*³ | Oct 26, 2022 | Short Mazes | Oct 26, 2022 | Done

Pac-Man Plus 320¹ | Jun 25, 2019 | Done
Pac-Man Plus (Hack)* | Jun 02, 2005 | Done
PinOut | Jan 29, 2011 | Dormant

Plutos (XM Required Version) | Jun 27, 2020 | Done
ReZolve | Feb 08, 2016 | Dormant
Rip-Off* | May 02, 2012 | Done
Scramble* | Dec 02, 2016 | Done

Sirius (XM Required Version) | Jun 27, 2020 | Done
Source Code List | Sep 30, 2012 | Done
Space Duel* | Oct 14, 2007 | Done
Space Invaders 7800* | Aug 01, 2008 | Done
Super Circus AtariAge*¹ (POKEY 0450) / (POKEY 4000) | Jun 11, 2017 | Done
Super Pac-Man* | Oct 10, 2008 | Done
Ultra Pac-Man (Hack)* | Jun 19, 2005 | Done

UniWarS* | Jan 14, 2021 | Done

PacManPlus / Kurt_Woloch
Baby Pac-Man | Feb 08, 2019 | Done

 

PacManPlus / RevEng

KiloParsec | Jun 21, 2021 | Done

 

O_O 

I do own frenzy/beserk. Me and my friend Anthony had a ton of fun with it when I went to his house!

Nice job @PacManPlus!! 

Edited December 2, 2022 by Ecernosoft

[zzip]

On 11/30/2022 at 9:14 PM, theoakwoody said:

I’d say Robotron is very impressive with the number of sprites it was pushing but unfortunately didn’t make it into his video.

7800 was designed to push large numbers of sprites, and Robotron was meant to be one of the 1984 launch titles to show off this effect,  so I don't think it's really a limit-pushing game,  more a demonstration of the 7800's unique tech.

[+Defender_2600]

On 12/1/2022 at 1:33 PM, Defender_2600 said:

 

I think he's referring to the total number of colors on screen, including background color, so 6+1 for 320B and 8+1 for 320A and 320C.

 

 

Here I have to make a significant correction, the maximum number of colors per zone / scan line (7 or 9 colors) it does not necessarily have to be associated with the maximum number of colors on screen. Atari 7800 Froggie, in 320 mode ( 320×240 ), has over 20 colors on screen + transparent.

 

 

 

[Shaggy the Atarian]

On 12/1/2022 at 10:01 AM, Defender_2600 said:

 

Asteroids Deluxe

AstroBlaster

Baby Pac-Man (maze)

CrazyBrix

Death Merchant

Dungeon Stalker

Frenzy/Berzerk

Froggie

Galaxian

Graze Suit Alpha

Jacks or Better

Kiloparsec

Moon Cresta

Ms. Pac-Man 320

One on One Basketball

Pac-Man 320

Pac-Man Collection - 40th Anniversary Edition

Pac-Man Plus 320

Plink

Plumb Luck DX

Rikki & Vikki

Rip-Off

Scramble

Space Invaders

Tower Toppler

UniWarS

 

these 7800 games are all made in 320 mode. 

 

 

Thanks for that list, don't recall seeing one that detailed before.

 

I thought that Desert Falcon was also in 320? It certainly doesn't have the wide pixels but maybe I'm crazy or misremembering. I could swear it has a sharper look though

[+Defender_2600]

56 minutes ago, Shaggy the Atarian said:

I thought that Desert Falcon was also in 320?

Desert Falcon is made in 160A.

[Shaggy the Atarian]

Ah my bad, thanks. I don't think DF is a terrible looking game but it seems to get overlooked (personal preference I suppose)