Pixelboy Posted October 3, 2006 Share Posted October 3, 2006 Following my comment in the Kangaroo thread, I suddently felt the urge to finish my ColecoVision mockups of Crystal Castles. I added the corresponding arcade screens for comparison. This is not a plea for any homebrew programmer to port the arcade game, I just wanted to show my work to you guys. Those screens are perfectly doable on a real ColecoVision, given the use of a special rendering function that draws each level (in bitmap mode) just like the arcade version does. This means that the layout of each level could be stored in ROM as a simple table of elevations. Oh, and in case you're wondering why the playfield is so elevated in the CV mockups, it's because I had to take into account the graphic limitations of the machine (namely only two colors per scanline, per tile). If I were to make the graphics closer to the arcade version, I could find myself with three colours within a tile on the same scanline, something that must be avoided to prevent graphic glitches. Looking at those mockups, there are probably things I would adjust in terms of colors and layouts, if I were to actually code it. But they're just mockups, they convey the concepts I wanted to demonstrate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bakasama Posted October 3, 2006 Share Posted October 3, 2006 Ah this was my favorite game back in the day. Even now I still want a 7800 version of Crystal Castle. Nice mockups by the way. I think with the current rendings, you would have problems making the last level of this game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted October 3, 2006 Author Share Posted October 3, 2006 I think with the current rendings, you would have problems making the last level of this game. Can you please direct me to a screenshot of this final level? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
newcoleco Posted October 3, 2006 Share Posted October 3, 2006 (edited) fullscreen level, no background, the isometric orientation, it remembers me the Commodore 64 version... URL : http://www.mobygames.com/game/crystal-castles/screenshots Edited October 3, 2006 by newcoleco Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bakasama Posted October 3, 2006 Share Posted October 3, 2006 This is what the last level of the game looks like Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted October 4, 2006 Author Share Posted October 4, 2006 This is what the last level of the game looks like Oh my! I think I could come up with something similar on the CV, but not quite as inclinated. If I find some time later, I'll take a crack at it, just to see if it can be done. Thanks for the screenshot! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gregory DG Posted October 4, 2006 Share Posted October 4, 2006 Wow. Never seen the last level before. What happens at the end? Does it just start over? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inky Posted October 4, 2006 Share Posted October 4, 2006 Wow. Never seen the last level before. What happens at the end? Does it just start over? Nope. You get a congratulatory mesge, and the game ends. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianC Posted October 4, 2006 Share Posted October 4, 2006 (edited) Ah this was my favorite game back in the day. Even now I still want a 7800 version of Crystal Castle. Nice mockups by the way. I think with the current rendings, you would have problems making the last level of this game. I wonder how the home ports handle that level. I know the 2600 one loops after a certain point and doesn't end. Edited October 4, 2006 by BrianC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King_Salamon Posted October 5, 2006 Share Posted October 5, 2006 This would be so much fun with the Roller Controller on the ColecoVision... oh to dream. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vic George 2K3 Posted October 5, 2006 Share Posted October 5, 2006 I'm not a big fan of Crystal Castles, but a ColecoVision version of the game sounds like a good idea. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Inky Posted October 5, 2006 Share Posted October 5, 2006 I'd like to set up my ADAM, load power paint, and try a mock up, but I don't feel like dragging the whole thing up from the basement. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cybergoth Posted October 6, 2006 Share Posted October 6, 2006 I'd like to set up my ADAM, load power paint, and try a mock up, but I don't feel like dragging the whole thing up from the basement. Just use CVPaint then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted October 8, 2006 Author Share Posted October 8, 2006 (edited) Alright, here is revised set of mockups. I like those a lot better than the first ones I made. I had to make the southern part of the final level less elevated because doing it like the arcade version just didn't work (I had no choice but to make most of the jewels black, and it looked like crap). I think what I did is a good compromise, IMHO. EDIT: Forgot to set the floors to white in the final level. Edited October 8, 2006 by Pixelboy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
opcode Posted October 10, 2006 Share Posted October 10, 2006 Hey Luc, Wow, most impressive. Bitmapped games aren't that easy to port to the CV, but I think you managed to reach a good compromise. As a suggestion, I think you could improve sprites a bit. I suspect all characters in this game are taller than 16 pixels, so you can use two sprites for the "head" and two sprites for the body, with each pair using different colors. Keep the mockups coming! Eduardo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bakasama Posted October 12, 2006 Share Posted October 12, 2006 (edited) Nice mockups, I figured that you would design the last level like that. I though just making it "just like the arcade" wasn't practical. Okay, here's a another problem level you have to deal with: Edited October 12, 2006 by Bakasama Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrianC Posted October 12, 2006 Share Posted October 12, 2006 (edited) Nice mockups, I figured that you would design the last level like that. I though just making it "just like the arcade" wasn't practical. Okay, here's a another problem level you have to deal with: Again, how do the home ports (C64 Atarisoft, C64 Thundersoft, 800 near complete proto, XL/XE) handle those levels? Edited October 12, 2006 by BrianC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted October 12, 2006 Author Share Posted October 12, 2006 Nice mockups, I figured that you would design the last level like that. I though just making it "just like the arcade" wasn't practical. Okay, here's a another problem level you have to deal with: I don't see anything that's graphically impossible to do on the CV, although to reproduce the upgoing-to-infinity staircase accurately, I would probably need to patch the graphics after the level has been rendered. I think I've done enough mockups for this game, so sorry if you were expecting me to rise to the challenge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Tomlin Posted October 13, 2006 Share Posted October 13, 2006 Hey Luc, Wow, most impressive. Bitmapped games aren't that easy to port to the CV, but I think you managed to reach a good compromise. As a suggestion, I think you could improve sprites a bit. I suspect all characters in this game are taller than 16 pixels, so you can use two sprites for the "head" and two sprites for the body, with each pair using different colors. Keep the mockups coming! Eduardo I wouldn't want to handle the coding necessary to hide parts of the sprites when they go behind stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted October 14, 2006 Author Share Posted October 14, 2006 I wouldn't want to handle the coding necessary to hide parts of the sprites when they go behind stuff. The arcade version had a very basic solution for that (just show Bentley Bear's red belt when he walks behind scenery, for example), and it would be equally simplistic in the CV version. As for detecting when a character goes behind a visual obstacle, that could prove to be a bit of a challenge, but nothing impossible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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