Potential Zapper Game? (help needed)

[+fdr4prez]

Hello all:

 

In the Can the Intellivision use a light gun thread, there was some expressed interest in light gun games for the Intellivision.

 

I have made a prototype adapter for NES controllers to be used on an Intellivision and it works well, and I have just acquired a Zapper.

 

I need to assume it is working, because I don't have an NES to test it 

 

I have added some code into my NES adapter for using the Zapper, but I can't test it.

 

Right now I can detect the trigger easily enough, but I am not sure how best to test my adapter for the target detection without a test game, or something to mimic what the Zapper can detect.

 

The Zapper uses two outputs:

#1 is when the trigger is pulled, so I can map that to the Lower Left Side Action button NOW MAPPED TO THE UPPER SIDE BUTTONS!

#2 is when the photosensor (target) is detected, so I can map that to the Upper Side Action buttons  NOW MAPPED TO THE DISC NORTH (D1)!

 

It appears that it is possible to partially pull and hold the trigger, and then the trigger output will remain on until it is fully pulled or released, so i presume that the game will need to monitor the status of the trigger and the game doesn't do the detection process until the trigger turns off again.

Is it possible for one the great Inty Programmers here to write a small simple test program/game for me to test the Zapper-INTV concept with my adapter?

 

for testing I wouldn't need anything fancy.  Just a static screen with one stationary target and then when the trigger is pulled and released, then do the black screen, then the white box for the target, and then go back and indicate if the target was "hit" because my adapter will activate the Upper Side on a detection/hit.

 

This is all conceptual and my adapter is just a proof of concept right now.

 

Hopefully it will prove to be successful.

 

 

EDIT - With experimental testing, I've decided to change the output from the adapter to the Intellivision so that the trigger=Upper and the detection=NORTH

 

[+cmadruga]

See if this helps.

 

lightgun_test.rom

[+fdr4prez]

1 hour ago, cmadruga said:

See if this helps.

thanks.

 

I'll work on my detection code for my adapter and let you know the results.

[+fdr4prez]

Sorry for the delay in my testing, but I've been traveling quite a bit lately and the time i am home has been busy, too.

 

I think I have my Zapper code working as far as properly detecting the trigger and detecting "something" in the detector.  I blinked an LED at a rate of 50-60Hz and the Zapper detects it.

 

Now I just need to add in the lines of code to activate the pins needed for the Intellivision controller, add the DB9 cable to connect to the Inty2 console, and get my console connected to my CRT.

 

When I pull the trigger, i need to activate the needed pins for the Inty controller (Lower Left, as discussed above), so is there a minimum/optimal amount of time that I need to have the button activated for the console/game to detect it?

 

When the Zapper detects the target, I need to activate the needed pins for the Inty Controller (Upper, as discussed above), so is there a minimum/optimal amount of time that i need to have the button activated for the console/game to detect it?

[+fdr4prez]

13 minutes ago, fdr4prez said:

Now I just need to add in the lines of code to activate the pins needed for the Intellivision controller, add the DB9 cable to connect to the Inty2 console, and get my console connected to my CRT.

oh, and now i need to re-learn for how to add ROMs to my LTO Flash!, so add that into the list.

[+fdr4prez]

Each trigger pull is registered:

 

 

 

The LED is continuously blinking somewhere in the 50k-60k Hz range, and that's about the rate for a CRT.

 

You can see that the detection works, and if i move the Zapper away from the LED then the detection stops and when I move it back to the LED, then more detection events occur:

 

 

 

  

 

 

[+fdr4prez]

After many weeks of travel and home-things to complete, I have finally added the test rom into my LTO Flash! 

 

My test adapter of the Zapper is working!

 

The test rom that @cmadruga has provided is working.

 

I can register hits and misses.

 

I can see that I still need to do some tweaks to the adapter code, but this is a positive step in the right detection.

 

 

[+cmadruga]

Yay! Well done!

How about a demo video? :-)

 

[+fdr4prez]

I'll see what i can do.

 

I am leaving again in the morning.  Not sure if I'll be back this weekend or not.

 

and I am traveling again next week.

[+fdr4prez]

Here is my first prototype Zapper Adapter:

 

 

It is working pretty well, but it is rather messy, and it is hard to move all pieces around.

 

So I have tidied it up into a single piece:

 

 

It is still very much in a prototype condition, but it is now in a very Portable condition.

 

[+evg2000]

looking good!

[+fdr4prez]

Does anyone have a Sega Light Phaser and an Atari XG-1 light gun that I can borrow for potential developmental purposes?

 

I'd rather not purchase these for myself as I don't see a need for me to own so many light guns (I am not a completist )

 

If you are in NorCal, then we can meet up, otherwise I'd reimburse the shipping.

 

Or if you are going to PRGE in a few weeks, then I can get them from you there.

 

Please send me a PM.

[carlsson]

I've got a broken Atari light gun you could have for free but alas worldwide shipping makes it unreasonable.

[+fdr4prez]

In the first post here, I randomly selected to use the Lower Left Side and the Upper Side for the trigger and the detection from the Zapper; and I made my prototype adapter accordingly.

 

But with experimentation and having trouble with this choice, I've changed the Trigger=Upper Side and the Detection=Disc North.

 

Now it works well.

 

Also, I will be working on a SEGA adapter, and this means that I can reuse the same basic code from the Zapper adapter that I am working on, so the Light Phaser will also output Upper Side and North.

 

So this means that both Light Guns will (or should) work on the same Intellivision game - again, in theory.

 

I will be receiving a Sega Light Phaser soon for this testing.

 

 

[+fdr4prez]

On 7/19/2024 at 11:47 PM, cmadruga said:

See if this helps.

 

lightgun_test.rom 4.07 kB · 14 downloads

Since I've needed to change the output of the Zapper to trigger=Upper and detection=North then this means that this little test rom no longer works with the Zapper Adapter.

 

Right now, if I use the "hand controller" test rom, then I can see the trigger is working as North on the disc, and when I point the Zapper to a bright portion of the screen, then the Upper Sides are activated nicely.

 

But if you'd be willing to make another small/simple test rom, then I can give that a test for you and post a little video.

 

But if you don't have time, then no worries, as I have been working behind the scenes here on a real demo test game that I plan to show at PRGE in a few weeks.

 

I am sure that there will be videos posted on the demonstration that will be shown at PRGE.

[+fdr4prez]

On 9/9/2024 at 9:29 PM, fdr4prez said:

It is still very much in a prototype condition, but it is now in a very Portable condition.

 

3 minutes ago, fdr4prez said:

real demo test game that I plan to show at PRGE in a few weeks.

oh, i see what you did there => Portable implies Portland - very tricky wordplay you are doing here.

 

Too bad you are the only one that got it