Atari 5200 conversion of Chess features

[Rick Reynolds]

I was playing the 5200 Chess cart some this past weekend.

 

My understanding is that this is a conversion from the 8-bit program, which expects a keyboard in order to enter data for certain features.  Does anyone know if the programmer who did the conversion enabled all the features to be accessed via the controller?  And if so, are there any notes regarding how to do that?  The only documentation I've been able to find is the manuals that came with the Atari 8-bit version, which don't actually address my questions.

 

I DID find out how to set the skill level, and I assume also how to set it so the player can play black instead of white.  But I don't know if the 5200 version will allow for under-promoting to a knight for instance when a pawn reaches the end of the board.  The manual for the 8-bit version says that relies on a "setup pieces" feature that seems to need a keyboard.

 

I know chess on the 5200 isn't a big concern for most.  But I'm curious...

 

Rick

 

[phuzaxeman]

On 11/13/2023 at 11:19 AM, Rick Reynolds said:

I was playing the 5200 Chess cart some this past weekend.

 

My understanding is that this is a conversion from the 8-bit program, which expects a keyboard in order to enter data for certain features.  Does anyone know if the programmer who did the conversion enabled all the features to be accessed via the controller?  And if so, are there any notes regarding how to do that?  The only documentation I've been able to find is the manuals that came with the Atari 8-bit version, which don't actually address my questions.

 

I DID find out how to set the skill level, and I assume also how to set it so the player can play black instead of white.  But I don't know if the 5200 version will allow for under-promoting to a knight for instance when a pawn reaches the end of the board.  The manual for the 8-bit version says that relies on a "setup pieces" feature that seems to need a keyboard.

 

I know chess on the 5200 isn't a big concern for most.  But I'm curious...

 

Rick

 

The 5200 version does not allow for under-promoting a knight, for instance, when a pawn reaches the end of the board.  It automatically promotes the pawn to a queen. The game itself still plays well like the 8bit.  

[Rick Reynolds]

Thanks for that confirmation!  This is what I was suspecting.

[SoundGammon]

How about putting in a controller in the 2nd, player 2 jack, and see if any keys on it do anything?

[Rick Reynolds]

13 hours ago, SoundGammon said:

How about putting in a controller in the 2nd, player 2 jack, and see if any keys on it do anything?

Yeah, I thought about doing a more complete investigative search after I had already put the console away - I was in the middle of my Extra Life Day gaming marathon and didn't want to spend more time getting it back out again.  I'll definitely get it out and do a little more with it at some point.