opcode Posted August 8, 2006 Share Posted August 8, 2006 (edited) Hi guys, I have ported two more games. Both were MSX games, now playable on our beloved ColecoVision. I don't know if these games really require any further introduction. Yie Ar Kung-Fu II - The Emperor Yie-Gah is the official sequel for Yie Ar Kung-Fu. This new installment has more enemies, better graphics and sound. Not shown is the last fighter, the Emperor... (I didn't want to ruin the surprise) Zanac is the very popular shooter from Compile. This is the first version of the game, released before the Famicom/NES version, so graphics are simpler, though this is one of the longest shooter I have ever played. Screenshots are from Round 1, and there are many of them, including some hidden areas. I think that reaching the last round and the last boss is still one of the most memorable moments in my gaming life... Enjoy! Eduardo Edited August 9, 2006 by opcode Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted August 9, 2006 Share Posted August 9, 2006 Those two games look mighty fine, opcode! So are they both actually finished and ready for the masses? Looking at Zanac, it makes me wonder if Xevious could be done properly on the CV. Note that I don't know how many levels the game has... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
opcode Posted August 9, 2006 Author Share Posted August 9, 2006 Those two games look mighty fine, opcode! So are they both actually finished and ready for the masses? Looking at Zanac, it makes me wonder if Xevious could be done properly on the CV. Note that I don't know how many levels the game has... They are still waiting for package and Megacart PCBs. About Xevious, it could look quite good, maybe even better than the 7800 version, just don't expect it to scroll smoothly... Zanac has 8 rounds, with many, many areas each, plus a few hidden areas... Eduardo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianC Posted August 9, 2006 Share Posted August 9, 2006 Coolness. I have Yie Ar Kung Fu 2 in the Saturn MSX collection and it's quite nifty. I played Zanac MSX via emu and it's quite nice too, though I prefer the MSX2 EX version and the NES version. It's understandable why the MSX 1 Zanac was chosen for the Colecovision, though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nabuko78 Posted August 9, 2006 Share Posted August 9, 2006 So MSX1 = CV? If its that way: 1. Why not to port those Activision MSX1 games (Released by Pony Canyon, I'm not sure) that aren't in the Activision CV list? 2. Port Vampire Killer A.K.A. Akumajou Drakula or.. Castlevania (But I think it's MSX2). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted August 9, 2006 Share Posted August 9, 2006 They are still waiting for package and Megacart PCBs. Cool! So we'll have more than just Pac-Man Collection to look forward to next year. Perhaps we'll be able to add Arkanoid to the list. I need to get off my butt and do the rest of those graphics for you... About Xevious, it could look quite good, maybe even better than the 7800 version, just don't expect it to scroll smoothly... Looking at Sky Jaguar, it seems like vertical scrolling by steps of 8 pixels is not so bad. Zanac has 8 rounds, with many, many areas each, plus a few hidden areas... Okay, but I was talking about Xevious. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
opcode Posted August 9, 2006 Author Share Posted August 9, 2006 (edited) Zanac has 8 rounds, with many, many areas each, plus a few hidden areas... Okay, but I was talking about Xevious. Ooops, sorry! I think Xevious has 16 areas. Eduardo Edited August 9, 2006 by opcode Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
opcode Posted August 9, 2006 Author Share Posted August 9, 2006 Coolness. I have Yie Ar Kung Fu 2 in the Saturn MSX collection and it's quite nifty. I played Zanac MSX via emu and it's quite nice too, though I prefer the MSX2 EX version and the NES version. It's understandable why the MSX 1 Zanac was chosen for the Colecovision, though. That's something I was thinking about. I believe that it's perfectly possible to change the game and add all Zanac EX areas. Of course graphics would suffer a bit, but considering that Zanac EX is a 1st generation MSX2 game, maybe the result wouldn't be so bad... Akumajou Dracula is another one in my list. I started to recreate the game for the CV Super Expansion Module last year, so a conversion for the plain vanilla CV is very possible, including the many improvements I added, which weren't in the original game... And since we are talking about MSX2 games, another one I would love to port is Metal Gear. That game is great, but if you're playing the official English version on the MSX2, then you're losing half of the dialogs. Yep, the translation is that bad. But there is another source.... Eduardo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted August 9, 2006 Share Posted August 9, 2006 Akumajou Dracula is another one in my list. I started to recreate the game for the CV Super Expansion Module last year, so a conversion for the plain vanilla CV is very possible, including the many improvements I added, which weren't in the original game... Castlevania sounds like a big project for a single guy to do all by himself. Although if you're just lifting large chunks of code from the MSX version (especially for the player control logic and the enemy behaviors) then I guess it's definately doable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
opcode Posted August 9, 2006 Author Share Posted August 9, 2006 Akumajou Dracula is another one in my list. I started to recreate the game for the CV Super Expansion Module last year, so a conversion for the plain vanilla CV is very possible, including the many improvements I added, which weren't in the original game... Castlevania sounds like a big project for a single guy to do all by himself. Although if you're just lifting large chunks of code from the MSX version (especially for the player control logic and the enemy behaviors) then I guess it's definately doable. In fact I rewrote most of the player control and weapon system, among other things. The main challenge would be to downgrade the graphics for the TMS9928, but I think I know the perfect guy for the job... Sound and music would be easy too.... In fact... do you want to hear something cool? Please wait a moment.... Eduardo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianC Posted August 9, 2006 Share Posted August 9, 2006 (edited) And since we are talking about MSX2 games, another one I would love to port is Metal Gear. That game is great, but if you're playing the official English version on the MSX2, then you're losing half of the dialogs. Yep, the translation is that bad. But there is another source.... Eduardo Yeah, that version is much better than the NES version. I played the version with MGS3 Substiance for PS2. It's not exact to the MSX2 version, but it's very close. Is that the other source you are referring to? The translation in the MGS3 Substiance version of MG1 is much better than the European MSX2 version's translation (despite the changed names, which were actually changed for the Japanese version too) and has no missing dialogs. Edited August 9, 2006 by BrianC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted August 9, 2006 Share Posted August 9, 2006 Castlevania sounds like a big project for a single guy to do all by himself. Although if you're just lifting large chunks of code from the MSX version (especially for the player control logic and the enemy behaviors) then I guess it's definately doable. In fact I rewrote most of the player control and weapon system, among other things. The main challenge would be to downgrade the graphics for the TMS9928, but I think I know the perfect guy for the job... Would that guy happen to be a CV pixel artist who lives near Montreal, Canada? I would be quite honored to help you with that particular task (although I'd need some pointers for how you'd want me to do the sprite graphics; background graphics I can handle myself). I assume you'll want to start this CV Castlevania project sometime next year. Let me know when you're ready. (*cracks fingers in anticipation*) Sound and music would be easy too.... In fact... do you want to hear something cool? Please wait a moment.... Are you saying the MSX uses the same hardware for sound as the CV, or something close to it? That would indeed make things a lot easier. For Arkanoid, could we lift the sounds from the MSX version? That might speed up development, unless you have a better idea (like converting the sound data from the arcade ROM, if that's possible at all). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nabuko78 Posted August 9, 2006 Share Posted August 9, 2006 LOL CV = ColecoVision = CastleVania Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 Sound and music would be easy too.... In fact... do you want to hear something cool? Please wait a moment.... Did you really want to show us something, Eduardo? It's turning out to be a pretty long "moment"... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
opcode Posted August 10, 2006 Author Share Posted August 10, 2006 (edited) Sound and music would be easy too.... In fact... do you want to hear something cool? Please wait a moment.... Did you really want to show us something, Eduardo? It's turning out to be a pretty long "moment"... Oh, sorry.... I got busy here... Maybe later today. Eduardo Edited August 10, 2006 by opcode Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted August 10, 2006 Share Posted August 10, 2006 Well, anyhow, back on this thread's original subject, I'm a little curious, Eduardo: Since we've known each other (December 2005), I don't remember you mentionning that you were actively working on either YAKF2 or Zanac, which leads me to believe that you were able to port the MSX code to the CV rather easely. Is this the case? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
opcode Posted August 10, 2006 Author Share Posted August 10, 2006 Well, anyhow, back on this thread's original subject, I'm a little curious, Eduardo: Since we've known each other (December 2005), I don't remember you mentionning that you were actively working on either YAKF2 or Zanac, which leads me to believe that you were able to port the MSX code to the CV rather easely. Is this the case? I usually spend like 40~60 hours of work porting each MSX game. It's indeed easy now, probably I could port them faster, but I like to go through the whole code, you know, fixing bugs, improving things... BTW, YAKF2 was ported long ago. I think I even posted a note about the game at the Digital Press forums... Zanac was started last year, as part of my planned SEM. I was going to rewrite most of the code since the hardware was quite different, but since the SEM is now on hold, I decided to finish the game for the plain-vanilla CV. There are still a few issues with sound, but the game is perfectly playable... Eduardo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted August 11, 2006 Share Posted August 11, 2006 I usually spend like 40~60 hours of work porting each MSX game. It's indeed easy now, probably I could port them faster, but I like to go through the whole code, you know, fixing bugs, improving things... So let me get this straight... I look at a game like Bubble Bobble or Pooyan on the MSX1, for example, and it could be ported relatively easely to the CV, given that the graphics get downgraded? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
opcode Posted August 11, 2006 Author Share Posted August 11, 2006 I usually spend like 40~60 hours of work porting each MSX game. It's indeed easy now, probably I could port them faster, but I like to go through the whole code, you know, fixing bugs, improving things... So let me get this straight... I look at a game like Bubble Bobble or Pooyan on the MSX1, for example, and it could be ported relatively easely to the CV, given that the graphics get downgraded? No, you don't need to downgrade the graphics, as the MSX1 video IC is the same as the CV. But RAM usage is still a problem.... The MSX2, in other hand, has a more powerful video IC though, so in this case you would need to downgrade graphics, as we're going to do with Akumajou Dracula... BTW, Bubble Bobble is a MSX2 game... Eduardo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted August 11, 2006 Share Posted August 11, 2006 No, you don't need to downgrade the graphics, as the MSX1 video IC is the same as the CV. But RAM usage is still a problem.... Well, I look at certain MSX games like Legacy of the Wizard and Thexder, which look like they don't need any graphic modification at all, and you're telling me it all comes down to whether they can be altered to work with 1K of RAM? Wow... I never imagined the CV could go so far (with a MegaCart, of course)! The MSX2, in other hand, has a more powerful video IC though, so in this case you would need to downgrade graphics, as we're going to do with Akumajou Dracula... Yep. Metal Gear looks doable too, although the graphics seem tougher to downgrade gracefully than Vampire Killer... BTW, Bubble Bobble is a MSX2 game.. Yeah, I could tell from the graphics, but they're easely downgradable. It's the number of on-screen critters that would really push the CV to the limit. That and the final boss battle... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NightSprinter Posted August 11, 2006 Share Posted August 11, 2006 Pixelboy, I think Dragon Slayer IV: The Dralse Family (the original name for LotW in Japan) would kick ass. It's still one of my favorites, despite how difficult it is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted August 11, 2006 Share Posted August 11, 2006 Pixelboy, I think Dragon Slayer IV: The Dralse Family (the original name for LotW in Japan) would kick ass. It's still one of my favorites, despite how difficult it is. Yeah, it's the closest thing you could get to a Metroid game on the CV (in terms of free exploration, I mean) without having to code it from scratch. I really enjoyed the NES version, even though I never finished it. Now that I think about it, however, it would probably be a challenge to make it work within 1K of RAM, because there's a lot to keep track of: On-screen enemies, position of mobile blocks in each screen, items collected/not collected across the entire game map, items currently in inventory, etc.. Every bit of RAM would count! Does the MSX version have a password-save feature? I'd need to check, just for fun... The sound output might also need some work... Gosh, it's time like these I wish I'd knew Z80 assembly programming... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
opcode Posted August 11, 2006 Author Share Posted August 11, 2006 Forget about the 1KB RAM limit. It's easy to expand the CV main RAM to 17KB. The CV already has all the necessary deconding logic, and you just need to place two SRAM ICs on a PCB, two capacitors next them, an edge connector and plug the board to the expansion port. That's the MemoryPack. Albert has one. I sent him last year, so he could run and play Knightmare and Goonies... Add that to Bryan's MegaCart and the sky is the limit. About the number of on-screen critters in Bubble Bobble, don't let a screenshot deceive you. The MSX2 can display the exact same number of sprites on screen as the MSX1, though sprites are now a bit more powerful. So feel free to pick any MSX game you want... Eduardo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Tomlin Posted August 11, 2006 Share Posted August 11, 2006 Forget about the 1KB RAM limit. It's easy to expand the CV main RAM to 17KB. The CV already has all the necessary deconding logic, and you just need to place two SRAM ICs on a PCB, two capacitors next them, an edge connector and plug the board to the expansion port. That's the MemoryPack. Albert has one. I sent him last year, so he could run and play Knightmare and Goonies... Add that to Bryan's MegaCart and the sky is the limit.About the number of on-screen critters in Bubble Bobble, don't let a screenshot deceive you. The MSX2 can display the exact same number of sprites on screen as the MSX1, though sprites are now a bit more powerful. So feel free to pick any MSX game you want... Eduardo ...or since the Z-80 already has 16K DRAM refresh support, you could put a pair of 4416 chips on there. Or even a single 32K chip and just use half of it. Make the edge connector a right-angle mount so that the board turns upward, and it can even look nice too. Sure, someone still has to have the memory expansion to play the game, but it's a much simpler and more obvious expansion than trying to replace the video chip. And my "dev unit" even has that RAM already as part of the switchable overlay memory in the ICE. It can replace any and every 4K block with overlay memory, including the BIOS ROM. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted August 11, 2006 Share Posted August 11, 2006 (edited) Forget about the 1KB RAM limit. It's easy to expand the CV main RAM to 17KB. The CV already has all the necessary decoding logic, and you just need to place two SRAM ICs on a PCB, two capacitors next them, an edge connector and plug the board to the expansion port. That's the MemoryPack. Albert has one. I sent him last year, so he could run and play Knightmare and Goonies... Add that to Bryan's MegaCart and the sky is the limit. It's an interesting proposition... In fact, people would probably gladly pay extra for a CV version of Legacy of the Wizard with the MemoryPack included in the box. After that, the sky would REALLY be the limit. But then again, I'm guessing the better strategy would be to sell the MemoryPack separately, so that people can buy the "MemoryPack-required" CV games they really want. Legacy of the Wizard is a great game, but it's not for everyone... About the number of on-screen critters in Bubble Bobble, don't let a screenshot deceive you. The MSX2 can display the exact same number of sprites on screen as the MSX1, though sprites are now a bit more powerful. Yeah, but it's the on-screen flicker that worries me. So feel free to pick any MSX game you want... Are you telling me the CV could do Elite ? I seriously doubt it could pull off the wireframe rendering at any decent speed... EDIT: By the way, I didn't know there was an MSX version of Space Shuttle - A Journey Into Space ! I always thought it was an Atari 2600 exclusive, but it turns out it was ported to a series of different platforms! Edited August 11, 2006 by Pixelboy Quote Link to comment 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.