So what's wrong with Donkey Kong?

[+Allan]

I havn't played the 7800 DK yet..But from the screens of the 5200 version the 7800 looks better

 

You'll change your mind when you play it.

 

Allan

[Atarifever]

I havn't played the 7800 DK yet..But from the screens of the 5200 version the 7800 looks better

 

You'll change your mind when you play it.

 

Allan

Yeah, you'll agree it looks a lot better.

[jetset]

I havn't played the 7800 DK yet..But from the screens of the 5200 version the 7800 looks better

 

You'll change your mind when you play it.

 

Allan

Yeah, you'll agree it looks a lot better.

 

 

But sounds like shit.

[Shawn]

I think the only version that has all four arcade screens is for the Atari 800 computer.

 

 

The Coleco ADAM has all 4 screens, and apparently there's a prototype floating around that has an ADAM-only fifth screen.

 

 

I'd love to see a DK with 5 screens.

[Paranoid]

icon_rolling.gif

 

But sounds like shit.

 

 

I think the opinion on which one looks "better" is subjective, too.

 

7800 is more *faithful* to the look of the arcade. But what looks good on the arcade console looks *wrong* on the home television set. Mario has a fat ass, everything is scrunched and stretched and looks distorted. The 5200 looks a little more primitive, but it works VERY well. There is no doubt you're playing Donkey Kong, it is just a different interpretation of the arcade version presentation. It is still very graphically attractive.

 

In the end, the graphic advantage of the 7800 is more than offset by the lackluster gameplay and ear-drum bursting horrible sound.

[NinjaWarrior]

I just played it & it's ok, but what's up with the music..I have to play the 5200 version to Judge it

 

and what a pokey chip..is it like to make the games sound better like the VRC6 Chip in Akumajo Densetsu on the Famicom

[Atarifever]

 

 

But sounds like shit.

Now we'll all agree on that. I've heard the same thing said about DK Jr. though, and I don't agree there (perhaps because the squeaky shoe music doesn't happen much in DK Jr.

[jetset]

 

 

But sounds like shit.

Now we'll all agree on that. I've heard the same thing said about DK Jr. though, and I don't agree there (perhaps because the squeaky shoe music doesn't happen much in DK Jr.

It's more the music that bugs me than the sound effects. When the main menu comes up when you first boot the game, even at low volumes it just pierces your brain. Ugh! I can even hear it in my mind as I reply.

[Rik]

After playing 7800 DONKEY KONG for a while longer,i cannot play it for more than 3 screens,the sound is so bad it actually gives me a headache,especially the walking and ladder climbing sound,the game sounds like an out of tune orchestra,or a beginner guitar player playing out of tune,that for ME,ruined an otherwise great game,its too damn irritating to listen to,and turning off the sound is no option to me,it would be like watching a silent movie, which i am NOT a fan of,so i went back to my CV version,and the ACTUAL MAME VERSION,i figure why listen to crappy music when there's better versions for me,and that play even BETTER.Other 7800 games have pretty good sound,but no DK for me,too bad ,the game actually plays damn good,cant handle the sound in that game period.Others may tolerate the sound,or music ,I CANT.Otherwise i love the system and its other GREAT games.But ported games that have several versions,I'll pick the best one for ME,and 7800 DK is not it.But in actuality,i think TRAMIEL lengthened ATARI'S existence,so im thankful for that,the TRAMIEL era did pump out some kick-ass games though,and i mean "ATARI JACK TRAMIEL"era,not "FROGGO SAM TRAMIEL"era.

Edited February 22, 2007 by Rik

[Paranoid]

You know... the thing about 7800 DK is that it is really NES DK, only with worse sound.

 

I'd personally rather play the NES version with a NES advantage than the 7800 version, in that case. But as you point out, with MAME, why even bother...

 

The thing is... with access to ALL of these versions, my FAVORITE version, that I come back to time and time again, isn't even the MAME version, but the 8 bit version. And I know I'm not alone here. A lot of other people here have voiced the same opinion. If you expect an arcade perfect version, the 8 bit version will disappoint you. If you try to play it like it is the arcade version, it will disappoint you. My first few times I completely thought the 8 bit version sucked.

 

Then I started looking at it a different way, as a different game, realizing I couldn't play it like it was the arcade version. The arcade version is all about timing... run, climb a ladder, hurry beyond a latter, wait right there for a barrel to pass, then scurry up the ladder - work your way up to the top.

 

The 8 bit version, you want to get up to the top as fast as possible, you don't wait, you're always moving, always trying to gain ground. Sometimes, you'll scurry to the top and never jump a single barrel. It is far more frentic. Personally, I think it is a better game.

Edited February 21, 2007 by Paranoid

[Rik]

Yes i have DK,jr for the atari 400/800, its awesome,really good,still havent tried the NES version of DK though.

[Atarifever]

You know... the thing about 7800 DK is that it is really NES DK, only with worse sound.

 

 

And more difficulty options.

[mimo]

Played it for the first time today, boy the sound hurts

Edited February 21, 2007 by mimo

[Paranoid]

And more difficulty options.

 

 

Really? I never got that far. Every time I turn it on, my ears start bleeding and I have to turn it off before I get past the second platform on the first screen.

 

But honestly... how many more difficulty options can there be than selecting your starting level or number of players, on Donkey Kong?

 

Every version I'm familiar with you can select "barrells, pegs, elevators, or pie factory (if available)" and number of players, at the *most*.

[Rik]

Another thing i noticed about the 7800 DK is that,i cant seem to make MARIO go faster up the ladders by moving stick up twice while climbing,like you can with the 2600 or the arcade versions,and others.

[Paranoid]

Another thing i noticed about the 7800 DK is that,i cant seem to make MARIO go faster up the ladders by moving stick up twice while climbing,like you can with the 2600 or the arcade versions,and others.

 

That is just because his ass is so fat in the 7800 version.

[Danno]

icon_rolling.gif

 

But sounds like shit.

 

 

I think the opinion on which one looks "better" is subjective, too.

 

7800 is more *faithful* to the look of the arcade. But what looks good on the arcade console looks *wrong* on the home television set. Mario has a fat ass, everything is scrunched and stretched and looks distorted. The 5200 looks a little more primitive, but it works VERY well. There is no doubt you're playing Donkey Kong, it is just a different interpretation of the arcade version presentation. It is still very graphically attractive.

 

In the end, the graphic advantage of the 7800 is more than offset by the lackluster gameplay and ear-drum bursting horrible sound.

play it in an emulator on your pc, like MESS, with the Monitor rotated 90 degrees. It looks EXACTLY like the arcade. Actually - lots of 7800 titles benefit visually from being play rotated 90 degrees on PC emulators.

[Paranoid]

play it in an emulator on your pc, like MESS, with the Monitor rotated 90 degrees. It looks EXACTLY like the arcade. Actually - lots of 7800 titles benefit visually from being play rotated 90 degrees on PC emulators.

 

Well... that is kind of interesting. So they just ported the graphics of the original, and stretched it to the aspect ratio of a TV?

 

Seems they would have been better off to leave it compressed in the original ratio with black bands on the left and right.

 

But in any case, seems sort of silly to go to all that trouble, when you can just play it on MAME if you're going to go that far.

 

I mean, basically, what you're saying boils down to...

 

"The 7800 version, if played via emulation, on a PC, with the screen rotated 90 degrees, *looks* like the actual arcade game, only with HORRIBLE sound and (subjectively speaking) less exciting actual gameplay".

 

Whereas MAME feels, looks and sounds almost like the real thing on the same PC.

 

Oddly enough, the only 7800 emulator I run is the Xport version. Otherwise, I mean, the only reason I'm interested in the REAL hardware is generally to run 2600 titles via the CC2. So I've just never felt compelled to put a 7800 emulator on the PC.

 

I've got lots of other emulators... Coleco, Amiga, C-64, INTV... just no 7800.

Edited February 23, 2007 by Paranoid

[Atarifever]

 

 

Otherwise, I mean, the only reason I'm interested in the REAL hardware is generally to run 2600 titles via the CC2.

You must be allergic to fun. My sympathies.

Edited February 23, 2007 by Atarifever

[Shawn]

Listen there is nothing wrong with 7800 DK if you don't mind bleeding ear drums. Oh..wait..if you've played 78DK enough I supose you couldn't listen cause your ear drums would have fell out by now, nevermind.

[Shawn]

Also if someone fixed DK a la POKEY it would be much better. You wouldn't have to mute the TV and play a music CD anymore or anything

[Danno]

play it in an emulator on your pc, like MESS, with the Monitor rotated 90 degrees. It looks EXACTLY like the arcade. Actually - lots of 7800 titles benefit visually from being play rotated 90 degrees on PC emulators.

 

Well... that is kind of interesting. So they just ported the graphics of the original, and stretched it to the aspect ratio of a TV?

 

Seems they would have been better off to leave it compressed in the original ratio with black bands on the left and right.

 

But in any case, seems sort of silly to go to all that trouble, when you can just play it on MAME if you're going to go that far.

 

I mean, basically, what you're saying boils down to...

 

"The 7800 version, if played via emulation, on a PC, with the screen rotated 90 degrees, *looks* like the actual arcade game, only with HORRIBLE sound and (subjectively speaking) less exciting actual gameplay".

 

Whereas MAME feels, looks and sounds almost like the real thing on the same PC.

 

Oddly enough, the only 7800 emulator I run is the Xport version. Otherwise, I mean, the only reason I'm interested in the REAL hardware is generally to run 2600 titles via the CC2. So I've just never felt compelled to put a 7800 emulator on the PC.

 

I've got lots of other emulators... Coleco, Amiga, C-64, INTV... just no 7800.

 

So if you hate it so much, why post in the 7800 forum? by all means, move on with your misery....

[8th lutz]

Someone needs to make a new version of Donkey Kong for the 7800 that has the pie level and has a pokey sound chip, so no more posters will complain about Donkey Kong for the 7800.

 

The way the game is right now, it is not a bad game for the 7800. Donkey Kong for the 7800 isn't the best title for the system, but it is not the worst. I've play some real stinkers and people should complaining about true stinkers like Karateka, Tomcat F-14 Fighter Simulator and Touchdown football to name a few crappy games I've played for the system.

 

This complaining about Donkey Kong actually makes Donkey Kong underrated.

Edited February 23, 2007 by 8th lutz

[Paranoid]

So if you hate it so much, why post in the 7800 forum? by all means, move on with your misery....

 

Ok... first off the idea that you have to be a mindless fanboy in order to post in a particular forum is lost on me. A forum should be willing to rationally discuss and debate the good and the bad of a system, including divergent opinons. I'm not very fond of the people who come into the 5200 forum and bash it as big, ugly, with crappy joysticks. But it happens, and clearly, this IS a fairly common opinion on the 5200. I *am* willing to debate this opinion endlessly, as I think it is incorrect. That seems like what a forum should exist for. I think you've mistaken a forum for a temple.

 

Second off, I didn't start the thread, and the thread asks a question. I've been giving my answer to that question.

 

If you ask the question, "What is wrong with..." don't be surpised when you get *answers* to that question.

 

You must be allergic to fun. My sympathies.

 

The excitement level of the average 7800 title is suitable for the cardiac ward in a retirement home.

 

Personally, I think even if you added a pokey and a pie level, and corrected the stretched aspect ratio, the pace of the game is just dull, and that this is common, for whatever reason, in a lot of 7800 titles. The deal really is, that there are just a lot of WAY better conversions of the title out there. The 7800 has very little from it's original library to differentiate it from other systems, and the only thing that makes it a gem is that it works with the CC2 and has access to the entire 2600 library. I personally think anyone who wants to get into retro gaming on the 2600 is *best* served by getting a 7800, and tracking down a CC2. I think that homebrew titles may breath new life, badly needed new life, into the 7800 catalog. But I think the original library by itself is more of a curiosity than anything else. There are very few titles that can't be enjoyed *anywhere* else, or in better versions. I think this is why 7800 emulation lags in interest, development and refinement of features, as well. The same things that made it not a success THEN make it difficult to justify spending a lot of time coding an emulator for NOW. I don't hate it, I don't even dislike it. I just don't think it is necessarily a standout console or library.

 

Listen... if I were going to sit down to play a game of Donkey Kong, I can't imagine *ever* going for the 7800 version over the 8 bit/5200, or over MAME. Almost all of the 7800 titles I can say this about. Tower Toppler is one that is really good on the 7800. Xevious is one where if I wasn't going to power up MAME, I'd play it there. Galaga, I enjoy the 7800 version. Ms. Pac Man is good, probably better than the 5200 version. They exist. They're just really *rare*.

 

It probably doesn't help that most of the original library were quick dirty ports/conversions rushed to market, and that it has a small original native library anyhow. Look at what guys are doing with the 2600 today... given the same time to learn to exploit the 7800 architecture, I'm sure it is capable of equal feats. But it never HAPPENED.

 

So... sorry if you're not a fan of honesty in the forums... but, that is what you're getting here, my honest opinion.

Edited February 24, 2007 by Paranoid

[Atarifever]

 

Listen... if I were going to sit down to play a game of Donkey Kong, I can't imagine *ever* going for the 7800 version over the 8 bit/5200, or over MAME.

 

Really, you hadn't made that clear yet. Thanks for the much needed reiteration.

 

I suppose if you were limited for space you might choose the 7800 version, as not only does the system double for a 2600, saving you much needed storage room, but you don't need to add garage doors to whatever bedroom you would need to move the 5200 into. I suppose also a lot of people wouldn't prefer a game that doesn't match the gameplay of the original, but I guess that's up to you. Funny how you knock 7800 DK for having sound that's off, but then praise the 5200 version because the gameplay is off. But I guess it makes sense to prefer butchered gameplay to butchered sound. I mean, sound is much more important to gameplay than, I don't know, something like gameplay is to gameplay. Also, you make fun of graphical glitches in the 7800 version, like Mario being fat, but then excuse HUGE graphical differences in the 5200 version as a "different interpretation". Right, that makes sense.

Edited February 24, 2007 by Atarifever