Activision Anthology for GBA (My first impressions)

[Thomas Jentzsch]

I’m sure that there’s a good and easy answer for this question but why couldn’t the old-school emulator trick of using a frame skip have been used to boost the speed of the games that were running slow?

One problem with frame skip is hardware collision detection. Unless you emulate the hardware (= do the frame) you will miss some collisions (e.g. fast shots vs. players) . And this is even worse for games that flicker already, where some objects might temporary disappear completely.

[Albert]

While I'm sure that frame skipping would help, I tend to not like it personally.  But, having said that, I think that some frame skipping might have been done (though, I'm certainly not the final authority on this ) -- in Pitfall II, I could swear that when you die on the original, that the score updated quicker than it does on the GBA version.

 

I believe that many games were individually optimized, especially some of the more complex games like Pitfall II. One of the optimizations was to not update the score every single frame, which is what you're seeing in Pitfall II when you die.

 

..Al

[Thomas Jentzsch]

I believe that many games were individually optimized, especially some of the more complex games like Pitfall II.  One of the optimizations was to not update the score every single frame, which is what you're seeing in Pitfall II when you die.

So they really changed the binaries and optimized the code? Maybe they could use some of my disassemblies for that.

 

That reduces the chances of easily adding more (complex) games.

[Albert]

I believe that many games were individually optimized, especially some of the more complex games like Pitfall II.  One of the optimizations was to not update the score every single frame, which is what you're seeing in Pitfall II when you die.

So they really changed the binaries and optimized the code? Maybe they could use some of my disassemblies for that.

 

That reduces the chances of easily adding more (complex) games.

 

I don't know how the method that was used to optimize the individual games, but I don't think the binaries were actually modified. Could just be that the emulator has special hooks for the various games. Regardless, I doubt it would be very easy to replace or augment the binaries in this collection with new games.

 

..Al

[gavv]

ALL: Hi I really want this compilation for 3 main games (and getting the others is just bonus stuff - I already have a bunch of 2600 carts    

 

Anyway the 3 games are: H.E.R.O., Keystone Kapers and Kaboom

 

SO could people please comment on those 3 games in this GBA compilation and how well the graphics, sound, gameplay, FUN, etc is done compared to the Orginal 2600 carts? :-)

and any othe differences between this version  and the original 2600 carts?

 

PLease go into as much detail as possible Thanks  

 

H.E.R.O. is probably the biggest disappointment that i've played on the package unfortunately. The slowdown causes it to play differently and a lot easier, one of the things about the original that i love is that it's very precise in how you need to control and time things and it's very quick. It seems the tech challenge in handing HERO was higher than just about any of the other games. haven't played it enough yet to see if even though it plays different because of the speed it still retains its fun-level over the long run.

 

(haven't tried KK yet)

 

Kaboom is better than any other emulated version of the game (sans a pc emu with a constructed spinner control maybe ^_^, but the controls though better than the PS2 are still iffy.

 

One definite good thing about the package is that the sounds on pretty much all the games is very spot on.

 

gavv

 

 

Of course perhaps for Xmas 2004 could say Aspyr start making the PSP version of AA? i could only imagine that could be the ultimate emulation platform ^^

[gavv]

I believe that many games were individually optimized, especially some of the more complex games like Pitfall II.  One of the optimizations was to not update the score every single frame, which is what you're seeing in Pitfall II when you die.

So they really changed the binaries and optimized the code? Maybe they could use some of my disassemblies for that.

 

That reduces the chances of easily adding more (complex) games.

 

I don't know how the method that was used to optimize the individual games, but I don't think the binaries were actually modified. Could just be that the emulator has special hooks for the various games. Regardless, I doubt it would be very easy to replace or augment the binaries in this collection with new games.

 

..Al

 

similiar things appear done in other 'score/fuel/energy updating after death' scenarios in games like Megamania, HERO, and others.

 

gavv

[SmileyDude]

Anyway the 3 games are: H.E.R.O., Keystone Kapers and Kaboom

 

SO could people please comment on those 3 games in this GBA compilation and how well the graphics, sound, gameplay, FUN, etc is done compared to the Orginal 2600 carts? :-)

and any othe differences between this version  and the original 2600 carts?

 

I've only played Keystone Kapers on a real 2600 -- and to me, it looks absolutely perfect. In fact, at one point, I was thinking of writing an updated version of Keystone Kapers on the GBA, but this version has completely removed that need.

 

I had never played H.E.R.O. at all until I played it here. I think that it's a great game, but others have said that it is slower. (Anyone want to send me a H.E.R.O. cart so that I can try it out on the real thing? )

 

Kaboom is just too damn frustrating in my opinion -- the game was designed for paddles, and it is tough without them. Or, it could be that I'm just a sucky Kaboom player...

[joeybastard]

My goodness, what do you think Al did to this guy to make him recant?    

 

 

Hmmm ... the guy's from NYC. Maybe Al hired a couple of Rat Bastards to make the guy an offer he couldn't refuse.

 

Ssshhhhh.... We don't talk about such things in public. Myself and the other Bastards are all humble small businessmen.

 

 

(Does anybody know how to get blood out of a white Ramones shirt?)

 

[bwmott]

I’m sure that there’s a good and easy answer for this question but why couldn’t the old-school emulator trick of using a frame skip have been used to boost the speed of the games that were running slow?

One problem with frame skip is hardware collision detection. Unless you emulate the hardware (= do the frame) you will miss some collisions (e.g. fast shots vs. players) . And this is even worse for games that flicker already, where some objects might temporary disappear completely.

 

As Thomas has mentioned full frame skipping with 2600 emulation can't alway be used because of hardware collision detection. For example in the PS1 Activision Classics I'm pretty sure they skip ever other frame in River Raid which allows your shots to pass through the tail of the helicopters because it misses the collision. It depends on how the programmer wrote the 2600 game as to whether you can use frame skipping or not. In HERO if you enable frame skipping your player will fall through the ground and be able to walk through walls

[tillenterprises]

I got my copy a couple of days ago- it is awesome! However, I did also notice the slowdown on some games, and was disappointed that the Imagic games weren't included- I was really looking forward to playing Demon Attack and Dragonfire on the GBA.

[Tempest]

As Thomas has mentioned full frame skipping with 2600 emulation can't alway be used because of hardware collision detection. For example in the PS1 Activision Classics I'm pretty sure they skip ever other frame in River Raid which allows your shots to pass through the tail of the helicopters because it misses the collision. It depends on how the programmer wrote the 2600 game as to whether you can use frame skipping or not. In HERO if you enable frame skipping your player will fall through the ground and be able to walk through walls

 

Interesting... I never thought of that. I guess emulating these games is harder than I first thought.

 

Were any code changes made to Thwocker? I know the original prototype is incomplete and cannot be "won".

 

Tempest

[Thomas Jentzsch]

Were any code changes made to Thwocker?  I know the original prototype is incomplete and cannot be "won".

I assume they are still using the same binary I slightly fixed for Activision. So the game can not be won (yet! ).

[Tempest]

I assume they are still using the same binary I slightly fixed for Activision.

 

Slightly fixed? What was wrong with it (other than not being able to win)?

 

Tempest

[Thomas Jentzsch]

Slightly fixed?  What was wrong with it (other than not being able to win)?

IIRC the number of scanlines was not always constant and I also made a PAL conversion.

[+Random Terrain]

So, from what people have said so far, there are enough games that play as close to the originals as possible, so even with the unplayable ones, it's still worth it.

 

I'll see if I can afford to buy it next month then. It seems the only games I can stand (so far) on my GBA SP are classic games. They're nice and simple and easy to play on a small screen.

 

For anyone asking, the Game Boy Advance SP is better than the original GBA. It's not too small for my giant hands, the light is great (I use it all of the time), I like how it closes up to protect the screen, the rechargeable battery lasts from 10 to 18 hours, the battery can be recharged up to 500 times before you need to buy a new one, and a new battery costs less than $20. That's hundreds of dollars in savings when compared to regular batteries that only last a couple of hours. The GBA SP is the only choice to make when you think about it.

[oesii]

So, from what people have said so far, there are enough games that play as close to the originals as possible, so even with the unplayable ones, it's still worth it.

 

 

Very good summary, out of 55+ games there's only about 5 or 6 that don't play that well because of slowdown or lack of paddles (Kaboom!). The rest of them are very enjoyable. Just today I had out my Namco, Konami and Activision GBA compilations and I think the Activision games were the most entertaining of the retro bunch

[cryptik76]

Anyway the 3 games are: H.E.R.O., Keystone Kapers and Kaboom

 

Keystone Kapers is a little slow when compared to the original, but I play the original A LOT. It's one of the 2600 games I bring out the most. That being said, even though I wish it were a little faster, it's still fun.

 

I'm not too familiar with H.E.R.O., but I can actually do better in the GBA version than my emulator version because of the slowdown. So while slowdown isn't a good thing, it's good if you suck at the game and want an upper hand.

 

I can't tell with Kaboom. I suck at the game on the 2600, and I suck at this just as well. It's nice how the controls kind of duplicate the squirrelly nature of paddles.

[tweder]

Hey Guys! I just found this site after playing Activision Anthology for a while. Let me tell you, I love it. I didn't realize that there was still such a thriving old school Atari community. I am amazed.

 

Anyway, I just got done reviewing this game for my site, and I wanted to know what you thought about it.

 

http://www.gbazone.com/reviews/actanth/

[dhowerter]

Me again

 

I just had 2 things I wanted to ask about Kaboom! and HERO:

 

1. Even if HERO has slowdown or whatever differences compared to the original cart, and may be somewhat easier than the 2600 cart, is it still FUN to play? In other words is there anything about this version that makes it unplayable/extremely NOT fun to play? :-)

 

2. With Kaboom!, if you use the D-pad OR the L and R buttons OR the D-pad AND the L and R buttons TOGETHER (as someone mentioned) , OR you use the analog stick on a Gamecube controller (which you should be able ot do through while playing this on a Game Boy Player), does the game control at least FAIRLY well? :-)

[SS]

1. Even if HERO has slowdown or whatever differences  compared to the original cart, and may be somewhat easier than the 2600 cart, is it still FUN to play? In other words is there anything about this version that makes it unplayable/extremely NOT fun to play?

 

 

As much as I really enjoy this compilation as a whole, I would have to say that HERO really isn't that much fun to play on the GBA. Too bad really, HERO is one of my favorite 2600 games. Ah well, one miss out of 55+ games ain't so bad.

[+Nathan Strum]

1. Even if HERO has slowdown or whatever differences  compared to the original cart, and may be somewhat easier than the 2600 cart, is it still FUN to play? In other words is there anything about this version that makes it unplayable/extremely NOT fun to play?

 

H.E.R.O. is far too slow to be enjoyable, in my opinion. Perhaps for someone not used to playing the real thing, there's still some challenge and fun to be had. But it's not one I'll be playing on the GBA.

 

As for Kaboom, if I wasn't so bad at the real thing, I'd be able to make a better judgement. I suppose since I'm so bad at both versions, that it may mean they got the controls right.

[israelg]

can we overclock the gameboy and make it run faster, so games like

H.E.R.O. will run in full speed ?

 

I think that nobody wll risk his gameboy... , but can it be done ?

 

Israel Geron T.

[tweder]

http://www.ronin64.com/gba/gbaoverclock.html - this is a page that shows how to overclock a GBA as well as the SP. I don't see a huge purpose unless you are a developer trying to create a really insanely demanding 3D engine.

[Agent X]

I got my Activision Anthology for GBA yesterday. I don't have a lot to say right now that hasn't already been said. It's very well done, and it is worth getting even if you've already got a version of Activision Anthology on another platform.

 

My hat's off to Aspyr and the people involved with this project for a job well done!

[DavidD]

I just got my copy last night... and I am generally impressed by it. I haven't been keeping up with the news on the game, so I was surprised to find Climber 5 as one of the homebrews. I noticed that its info file mentions that it was based on a game published in Compute -- silly question, but did anyone have to get that title cleared? I would have assumed that whoever currently owns the rights to Compute! magazine (defunct as it is) owns the rights to software submitted to them...

 

Another question -- are there "hidden" games? I keep hearing numbers like 55+ and 60+... and the game select menu clearly shows 55 unique titles and five "empty slots". Are there only these 55, or do high scores unlock more?

 

It's a neat package. I still need to grab the Midway's Aracade Treasures for my Cube, and all will be well.