Score Kernel Revisited!
It seems that nobody was impressed with my 16 character kernel last time - the main problem being the introduction of unnecessary flicker! I wasn't entirely happy with it myself, but I couldn't think of a better solution at the time. However, based on batari and Manuel's comments I decided to have another look at the no-flicker 13 char text demos. The 13+2 char demo uses a neat trick of rewriting NUSIZ during a scanline to squeeze in an extra two characters (in addition to using the ball and missile sprites to draw the 13th character). This trick provides exactly what I need for my high score table:
The first part of the kernel arranges the sprites like this (P0 is set to 3 copies medium and P1 is set to 3 copies close):
0--101-10
Using the NUSIZ trick it is possible to display another copy of P1 (by setting it to 3 copies medium after the third sprite is drawn). This gives the following sprite layout:
0--101-10--1
This layout provides the necessary four-part display (Position, Score, Initials, Wave) that I was after! The spacing between the columns isn't perfect, but I think it looks good enough in the screenshot.
The attached code demonstrates this technique. I haven't actually tested this on real hardware, so I hope the NUSIZ trick works in practise (it works fine in Stella and Z26)? Hopefully everyone will agree that this kernel looks much better than my previous attempt!
Chris
- 1
9 Comments
Recommended Comments