GTA

[vdub_bobby]

I thought that the purpose of homebrews was to re-imagine what might have been at the time, not what we can do today by attaching an iPod to an Odyssey2.

No offense, but that is complete crap. There is no "purpose" of "homebrews." The homebrew scene is made up of a bunch of individual people, each with their own purposes and goals, all varying wildly. Some folks like(d) to tinker with creating the perfect port of a poorly ported original (see: multiple Pac-Man, Space Invaders re-port attempts). Others do it for the technical challenge or just to say they did it; some folks like to see just how far they can push the hardware. The only real common denominator is that probably 100% of the homebrewers want to make fun games that are interesting to write.

 

The thing to remember is that homebrewing, first and foremost, is a *hobby* and, therefore, the homebrewers will always be motivated primarily by what holds their interest. That *might* be reimagining what was possible "way back when" but, mostly, the scene has moved beyond that.

[NovaXpress]

We all find our own meaning in things such as homebrews, don't we? I'm not offended by people who Frankenstein the hardware, just saying that it doesn't thrill me.

 

I get off on projects like Nukey's Pac-Hacks or the 2600 LadyBug project. I'm impressed by the guys who restrict themselves to what they could do with the machine, not with the machine plus 21st century tech. That's just me.

[Goochman]

I think youd be better off porting Getwaway if possible vs NYC. We're playing Getaway in the 8bit HSC if you want to catch some pics of it. Overhead driving, grab the loot, fill up with gas and avoid the cops. No wrecks or walking though but alot more fun to play than NYC IMHO.

[walter_J64bit]

The question becomes, would it be worth it?

That question needs to be asked far more often around here. I see these concepts like "let's make a 512K booster for the 2600 that costs a hundred bucks and that way we can port a shitty version of Super Mario Bros to it" and just shake my head.

 

My thoughts exactly..to an extent.

 

While Grand Theftendo is indeed a noble effort, I doubt it would mean anything on the 5200. Also, Rockstar would probably file an injuction to stop carts from being sold.

 

The game could called something other than GTA you know somthing like Auto Theft.

[+FujiSkunk]

The question becomes, would it be worth it?

That question needs to be asked far more often around here. I see these concepts like "let's make a 512K booster for the 2600 that costs a hundred bucks and that way we can port a shitty version of Super Mario Bros to it" and just shake my head.

 

My thoughts exactly..to an extent.

 

While Grand Theftendo is indeed a noble effort, I doubt it would mean anything on the 5200. Also, Rockstar would probably file an injuction to stop carts from being sold.

 

The game could called something other than GTA you know somthing like Auto Theft.

 

Petty Theft Auto?

 

Then you could put a sticker on it: Endorsed by the PTA!

[Brad2600]

We all find our own meaning in things such as homebrews, don't we? I'm not offended by people who Frankenstein the hardware, just saying that it doesn't thrill me.

 

I get off on projects like Nukey's Pac-Hacks or the 2600 LadyBug project. I'm impressed by the guys who restrict themselves to what they could do with the machine, not with the machine plus 21st century tech. That's just me.

 

I admire Nukey's Pac hacks as well, having played several in emulation.

 

Honestly, there's nothing wrong with attempting to adapt modern concepts to an older machine as long as you accept that there will be limitations.

[yuppicide]

Did you go inside those buildings and each one had a different sort of minigame to do inside?! If so, I used to love that game. My friend had it for his Atari computer, so I barely ever got to play it.

 

Back in 1984 Synapse released a 400/800 game called New York City: The Big Apple. The focus was completely different from GTA, but a big part of it was driving around a huge overhead map of NYC, complete with traffic. You could get in wrecks, other cars would get in multi-car pileups, tow trucks would show up and tow wrecked cars away, you could get out of your car and run around on foot (and get hit by traffic)... it was pretty elaborate for the time.

 

 

Graphics weren't so good though.

[ZylonBane]

Yep, that's it.

 

And top-posting makes baby Jebus cry. This is a message board, not Outlook.

[vdub_bobby]

And top-posting makes baby Jebus cry. This is a message board, not Outlook.

Oh, don't be such a pissant.

[Godzilla]

IIRC APX (the Atari Program Exchange,) had a overhead map city driving game that looked pretty spiffy... I think it was called Get Away...

 

check that out...

 

 

http://www.atariarchives.org/APX/showinfo.php?cat=20195

 

http://www.qlam.com/atari/s_getaway.html

[vdub_bobby]

IIRC APX (the Atari Program Exchange,) had a overhead map city driving game that looked pretty spiffy... I think it was called Get Away...

 

check that out...

 

 

http://www.atariarchives.org/APX/showinfo.php?cat=20195

 

http://www.qlam.com/atari/s_getaway.html

It was played in the 8bit HSC about a month ago.

[Cybergoth]

No offense, but that is complete crap. There is no "purpose" of "homebrews." The homebrew scene is made up of a bunch of individual people, each with their own purposes and goals, all varying wildly.

 

Yup, everyone picks their poison

 

My personal "thing" is researching and porting old arcade games but everyone else may have widely differing ideas of doing homebrews. Thank heavens, so we get a large variety of styles, and everyone still wanting to play "new" 2600 games can pick their own favourites then

[Paranoid]

As far as the convergence of new technology to older systems, The Cuttle Cart 2 and all of the programmable Multi-carts represent a convergence of newer technologies to add value and convienience to classic systems, pushing them beyond limits that were originally seen as insurmountable with these platforms.

 

With a CC2, your MMC card becomes your cartridge, and instead of a single game per cart, you can have every game every made on a single "cart". But, a clever homebrew designer could certainly figure out how to make complex, multi-load games that eclipse anything previously seen on a 2600 or 7800.

 

I don't see why we should set an arbitrary limit on what a classic machine can or can't do. I do agree with your basic thesis of, "Why port a good modern game into a crappy classic game". There is already enough garbage out there. But, if porting a modern hit to a classic adds a new dimension or pays a unique and well executed homage to the modern title, why not? The thing that makes GTA one of the more enjoyable of modern games is not the graphics. They're fairly average. The emersive worlds and unique characters, along with engaging game-play, are the reason that the GTA franchise is such a blockbuster in an oversaturated market. All of these elements could be ported to the 7800, 5200, or even 2600, to one degree or another. I can imagine a Supercharger type multi-load game that includes a pedestrian load, a driving load, and an in-building load, rendered in 2600 graphics. It certainly wouldn't be GTA as we know it, but you could incorporate all of the basic elements of the game into such a title, and probably do it pretty well, if you were so inclined.

[Paranoid]

Also, I think to a certain extent, this becomes a practice in illustrating that these classic consoles are still viable. Some of us prefer the classic consoles and their games to such a degree that, if decent versions of popular modern titles were available on these platforms, we might have less or no interest at all in modern platforms. I have two Xbox units, but it has gotten to the point where the only thing I'm really interested in buying for them is GTA titles. It would nice to be able to get a GTA fix on a classic system. It wouldn't be anything NEAR the graphics and complex gameplay of a modern machine... but my very interest in classic gaming illustrates that isn't necessarily the most compelling features for me.