Shaggy the Atarian Posted August 17, 2005 Share Posted August 17, 2005 Wow, this is a very awesome find. Personally I'd rather see it ported over to the 7800 Yeah, I'll hop in my TIME MACHINE and relay that request to the programmers back in 1984. 913341[/snapback] You do just that! I was talking about now of course, instead of seeing a port over to the 5200. I forgot that I have to be completely descriptive of what I mean when you're around otherwise it goes over your head Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-913370 Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZylonBane Posted August 17, 2005 Share Posted August 17, 2005 Obviously there are some things you need explained to you... The 8-bit Atari computers and the Atari 5200 have precisely the same graphics and sound hardware. Moving games from one to the other is a relatively simple matter (memory usage allowing). The 7800, on the other hand, uses COMPLETELY DIFFERENT graphics and sound hardware. It would take as much effort to port a 5200 game to the 7800 as it would to port it to a C64 or an Apple II. In other words, an almost complete rewrite. So the discovery of this prototype is of absolutely no relevance to the 7800. Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-913397 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dutchman2000 Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 You're all very welcome. It took me 3 years of hard work to find this game. I think it was worth the effort. Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-913477 Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Allan Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 You're all very welcome. It took me 3 years of hard work to find this game. I think it was worth the effort. 913477[/snapback] Can we hear more details on how you found it? Allan Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-913480 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dutchman2000 Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 I will tell all when the time comes. For now the parties involved would like to keep quiet for now. Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-913485 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inky Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 Will permission be granted to burn it to a cart? Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-913508 Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdie3 Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 I will tell all when the time comes. For now the parties involved would like to keep quiet for now. 913485[/snapback] Have you managed to finish Tempest yet? Weren't you the one with the piles and piles of Atari hard disks possibly with many long lost games on them? Maybe he has more.. Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-913512 Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Cafeman Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 Wow! I am stunned. I never knew there was a work-in-progress of this game. Had it come out on 8bit or 5200 back in the day, how many of us would have flipped out?! I also look forward to hearing more about this... and playing it! Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-913539 Share on other sites More sharing options...
www.atarimania.com Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 Actually, Sinistar is mentioned in several Atari catalogs, including German and French editions. Also, if you check the Atari Release Schedule Curt posted in March, the game is listed as "99% complete". On the same document (dated August 1984), Elevator Action is said to be 85% finished, Tempest 80% and... Agent X 50%. BTW, Datasoft later bought the rights to Elevator Action and you can bet they would have used that code... -- Atari Frog http://www.atarimania.com Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-913702 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dutchman2000 Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 According to my sources, Sinistar was NOT planned for the 5200. The game was being programmed only for the computers. The production file does not mention a port to the 5200. Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-913705 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 Actually, Sinistar is mentioned in several Atari catalogs, including German and French editions. Also, if you check the Atari Release Schedule Curt posted in March, the game is listed as "99% complete". On the same document (dated August 1984), Elevator Action is said to be 85% finished, Tempest 80% and... Agent X 50%. BTW, Datasoft later bought the rights to Elevator Action and you can bet they would have used that code... -- Atari Frog http://www.atarimania.com 913702[/snapback] Well I wouldn't trust status memos to be 100% accurate. I've seen many errors in the ones I've read. Tempest for instance never got to 80%... Did Datasoft ever release their version of EA? Tempest Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-913707 Share on other sites More sharing options...
www.atarimania.com Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 Well I wouldn't trust status memos to be 100% accurate. I've seen many errors in the ones I've read. Sure but it can give you leads Tempest for instance never got to 80%... I suppose it's the same as the 5200 version anyway? Isn't it possible both versions were programmed at the same time? Did Datasoft ever release their version of EA? Nope... -- Atari Frog http://www.atarimania.com Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-913712 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 It's possible, but I doubt it. Most 8-bit games were either started on the 8-bit and ported to the 5200 or vice versa. This way Atari didn't have to develop the exact same game twice. Of course there are some exceptions like Dig Dug, Qix, Centipede, etc. Tempest Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-913717 Share on other sites More sharing options...
keilbaca Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 Holy crap! Sinistar is one of my all time favorites... too bad I can't get to the Dallas xpo... Fantastic work, and I do hope a port is able to be made for the 5200... I love that game... Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-913739 Share on other sites More sharing options...
jnice Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 (edited) Amazing find! I, too, hope the game could be ported over to the 5200, although I worry about the controllers being a bit of a problem (like Asteroids). Does 8-bit Sinistar have ALL of the phrases used in the arcade game, or only a couple? As far as the "Would this have been released on the 5200 as well" debate, the 5200 FAQ does list a catalog number for the game as "CX 5249", so I'm guessing it was planned. Edited August 18, 2005 by jnice Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-913740 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tempest Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 Does 8-bit Sinistar have ALL of the phrases used in the arcade game, or only a couple? Just "Beware I Live". They most likely did this because the whole screen freezes when it speaks and they didn't want that happening while you're trying to kill him. Tempest Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-913743 Share on other sites More sharing options...
DracIsBack Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 Damn -- that looks awesome. I hope it gets released. Also, Tempest, I think your site is one of the top three Atari sites on the web ... keep up the great work. Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-913786 Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZylonBane Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 (edited) If/when the ROM for this is released, it might make for an interesting project to paste the original arcade "Beware, I Live!" back in. I'd imagine the current MAME sample is a lot higher-quality than whatever Atari was given back in '84. Sinistar_BewareI.wav Edited August 18, 2005 by ZylonBane Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-913941 Share on other sites More sharing options...
sku_u Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 and... Agent X 50%. Finding that one would be akin to finding Airworld in Holy Graildom. I hope someone did start this one and got it to where it was somewhat playable, but until then, Agent X, like Black Widow are just vapors in the rumor bin. In the interim, between Sinistar and Blaster, it's been a great year+ in the 8bit world. Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-913961 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Curt Vendel Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 (edited) and... Agent X 50%. Finding that one would be akin to finding Airworld in Holy Graildom. I hope someone did start this one and got it to where it was somewhat playable, but until then, Agent X, like Black Widow are just vapors in the rumor bin. In the interim, between Sinistar and Blaster, it's been a great year+ in the 8bit world. 913961[/snapback] Well... On November 11, 2003 a rumor became a reality as an 8bit holy grail was in fact found... Before going all ape-sh*t on this, let's just get a few things mentioned: The disk was horribly bent (literally like a right angle) took quite a few days under a heavy stack of books to flatten it back to a point where the disk was readable. The game code is in tact and working on an Atari 800 The game is in fact about 50-60% complete. The game code will NOT be released at this time (this will be described in great detail soon on a new website devoted to this game) as myself, Matt Reichert and Ken Van Mersbergen have been working for the last year and a half very closely with its author and he wishes to complete the game and only when the completed game is ready will it and this original WIP be released, so we've all be patient for 20+ years, your all going to have to be patient for a while longer. Edited August 18, 2005 by Curt Vendel Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-914010 Share on other sites More sharing options...
deathtrappomegranate Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 Wow. Again! Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-914017 Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Allan Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 Wow!! Allan Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-914092 Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Allan Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 Me wants! Allan Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-914107 Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Allan Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 (edited) Just curious and I know these things are hard to say but do you have an ETA on when he might finish it? Allan PS. It's amazing how many games are still being found. I half expect to hear the announcement of a long lost Atari prototype found called 'When Pigs Fly'. Edited August 18, 2005 by Allan Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-914113 Share on other sites More sharing options...
sku_u Posted August 18, 2005 Share Posted August 18, 2005 Open up the Holy Grail gates. Damn! Does that mean Elevator Action's also floating around out there? Quote Link to comment https://forums.atariage.com/topic/74736-atari-8-bit-sinistar-prototype-discovered/page/2/#findComment-914118 Share on other sites More sharing options...
Like us on Facebook
Follow us on Twitter
AtariAge on Instagram
Watch us on YouTube
Chat on Discord
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.