68 replies to this topic

[snicklin]

Thanks to Kaz / AtariOnline for the video.

Edited by snicklin, Sun Nov 20, 2011 7:57 AM.

[tinctu]

Wow!

[Stephen]

In before the comments about how it could be done better, with more colours, Gr.7 + digi-sounds, more sprites, etc.

BTW - looks awesome.

[emkay]

Stephen, on Sun Nov 20, 2011 8:38 AM, said:

In before the comments about how it could be done better, with more colours, Gr.7 + digi-sounds, more sprites, etc.

BTW - looks awesome.

No comment here, because it should work. Only the tune should be changed

....

[Bryan]

Stephen, on Sun Nov 20, 2011 8:38 AM, said:

In before the comments about how it could be done better, with more colours, Gr.7 + digi-sounds, more sprites, etc.

BTW - looks awesome.

And before videos of every other version in existence.

[emkay]

I wonder how XLent managed the tune. Particular the percussion is great.
But the tune has some real flaws.
1:37 to 2:07 is fully off.
The endpart should be redone with modualtions, for some reverb effect. And the basses get off.
The reast is really great for a SID to POKEY conversion.

[pseudografx]

emkay, on Sun Nov 20, 2011 9:17 AM, said:

I wonder how XLent managed the tune. Particular the percussion is great.

I guess this is simple a double-speed tune, calling the player routine twice a frame. That allows for some nicer sounds, especially percussions. However, not very useful for games as it takes about twice as much CPU and requires good timing (you can't just call the routine twice in a row, but do the calls in regular half-a-frame intervals).

[R4ngerM4n]

emkay, on Sun Nov 20, 2011 9:17 AM, said:

But the tune has some real flaws.
1:37 to 2:07 is fully off.

What do you mean?

[sack-c0s]

There's 1, maybe 2, notes missing but everything else is there. Not sure if that would be an uncomfortably high note for the pokey though. Doesn't quite sound right with that note held though, so maybe it'd be better to start transposing to get that one in?

The bit at 3:11 tends to sound a bit dull and lifeless* in a lot of version, but that sounds pretty damn good in this one.



*sorry - I just realised that was starting to sound like a shampoo advert there...

Edited by sack-c0s, Mon Nov 21, 2011 7:48 AM.

[José Pereira]

I've talked to someone on the past about Cybernoid and also PMed Eagle some time ago about my idea...
My idea it's in the same basic as his idea but I prefer to get more 'original like colours' and that would prevent it to get those clashes:


It's all game moving soft sprites only with just one soft sprite+1Player overlay
All the other colours are just PMs underlays on static/gfxs. and some DLIs.

From the Map it can be almost 100%copied...


Will never get those explosions of C64 with other colours but I think that simply moving soft sprites with this nice coloured gfxs. would look good...

Edited by José Pereira, Mon Nov 21, 2011 9:08 AM.

[Heaven/TQA]

that looks good, Jose.

[José Pereira]

Heaven/TQA, on Mon Nov 21, 2011 10:43 AM, said:

that looks good, Jose.

I've get something like a year ago, a complete Map, done by hand of Stormlord and start thinking in the ways to get it into A8...
Dan Dare III, Stormlord, Cybernoid,... gfxs. came from the Gfxs.'s Man Hugh Binns: http://ready64.it/gi...8&ruolo=grafica
And the coder Nick Jones (this ones but also Exolon,...)

These two guys get some of the best looking C64 games just because they used C64 Bitmap Multicolour Mode.
This Mode was also used, for example, in the Last Ninja series.
In C64 Bitmap Mode they can have each char with 3 different colours than the others and only the same Backgr.(A8 talking)/Paper (ZX talking ) colour Register shared in all.

Having tried this Mode to get LN gfxs. into A8 I thought that Stormlord as a 2D static screens with some defined Tiles (not much...) it would be even easier to port the gfxs.
First I had to get the complete C64 version Map of the game but I couldn't get anywhere, just the ZX Spectrum but this was squeeze into 32bytes wide each screen.
Several YouTube Longplay video watch and lots of papers I got it and also compared it to the Zx one.

And what could I get?
-> First is that we cannot get the C64 12bytes sprites. But we can.
Why? Exactly like here you get all moving stuff as soft sprites only.
More simple, less CPU because the PMs are all for the static underlays with PRIOR0...
-> The PMs underlays must be the same for all screen, like for example:
P2 For Plant A, P3 for Vase, P0 for the Key,... Then I need to find the right PFs colours that will Ored the correspondant gfxs with the right colours
-> Also the way gfxs of Stormlord were designed there's always the same DLIs. needed to change some colours, like:
Playing Area only changes in some places PF2
but
Ground Floor can have the 3or4 DLIs. colours changed.
-> Charsets would need to be Bitmap 3Lines=3Charsets like 0,1,2Charlines nº: 0,1,2Charsets nº and so on...
The gfxs. Tiles would be then dropped of an empty screen.


5colours ANTIC4 with PRIOR0 you get Stormlord or Cybernoid with some little gfxs. changes.
Then it's just a simple and, for example, Stormlord doesn't have as much sprites as Cybernoid 'flying around'.

Edited by José Pereira, Mon Nov 21, 2011 12:04 PM.

[José Pereira]

In case of anyone is interesting in just using, by now, his soft sprite Routine (soft sprite only) to test the ships moving on the static screens I am going in a good way...
Starting in Level 1 and by now here's the Map W.I.P.:


It's possible and almost 100%!...

Edited by José Pereira, Mon Nov 21, 2011 6:26 PM.

[JAC!]

Quote

that looks good, Jose.

Indeed, best conversion I've seen for CYB (and I tried many times myself :-). This PRIO 0 thing seems to have amazing potential for underlays.

[José Pereira]

JAC!, on Thu Nov 24, 2011 12:17 PM, said:

Quote

that looks good, Jose.

Indeed, best conversion I've seen for CYB (and I tried many times myself :-). This PRIO 0 thing seems to have amazing potential for underlays.

Thanks.
Indeed, some small update (colouring, mostly on the Status Area) and I put some Enemys on screen for you to see how it could look:

[Heaven/TQA]

can not believe that this is A8 screen...

[Heaven/TQA]

need to check Prior 0 stuff... possible to post the G2F file?

[andym00]

José Pereira, on Thu Nov 24, 2011 11:40 PM, said:

Indeed, some small update (colouring, mostly on the Status Area) and I put some Enemys on screen for you to see how it could look:
cybernoid2_A8.png

Looks really really nice actually, and amazed that someone didn't clock earlier that Cybernoid was just ripe for this approach..
Must admit, I'm not mad about the game itself

[Mclaneinc]

José Pereira, on Thu Nov 24, 2011 11:40 PM, said:

JAC!, on Thu Nov 24, 2011 12:17 PM, said:

Quote

that looks good, Jose.

Indeed, best conversion I've seen for CYB (and I tried many times myself :-). This PRIO 0 thing seems to have amazing potential for underlays.

Thanks.
Indeed, some small update (colouring, mostly on the Status Area) and I put some Enemys on screen for you to see how it could look:

That looks lovely jose but how will it move, are we going to get Crownland sprite multiplexing type errors because of this special routine for the lovely colour?

Either way, lovely mock up..Looks ace

Anyway for it to be seen on an emulator (I presume that pic is from the PC graphics program?)


Note I said type errors, I have no real idea as to why the sprites flicker in crownland full.

Edited by Mclaneinc, Fri Nov 25, 2011 4:57 AM.

[Jacques]

Mclaneinc, on Fri Nov 25, 2011 4:56 AM, said:

Either way, lovely mock up..Looks ace

However I'm yet to decide whether those never-to-be-played mock-ups are encouraging or frustrating

[Mclaneinc]

Jacques, on Fri Nov 25, 2011 6:07 AM, said:

Mclaneinc, on Fri Nov 25, 2011 4:56 AM, said:

Either way, lovely mock up..Looks ace

However I'm yet to decide whether those never-to-be-played mock-ups are encouraging or frustrating

I know, I've said the same thing to Jose many times over but you have to love his enthusiasm, I'd love to see on of these actually taken full course and finished.

If nothing else it stands a chance of lighting the fires in a programmer who will take Jose's lovely graphics and detail and make a game with them.

[Philsan]

José,
you should make a web page or a thread (ask Albert the permission to always edit it) with all your mock-ups.
Maybe in the future a programmer will like one of them and will make a game.

[snicklin]

Mclaneinc, on Fri Nov 25, 2011 4:56 AM, said:

Note I said type errors, I have no real idea as to why the sprites flicker in crownland full.

The reason that it flickers is built-in by design.

Lets say for example that you have 1 sprite left for using but you want to show 2 sprites in different positions...

You can display the first character, then switch it off, then display the 2nd character using the 1 left over sprite.... flickering between the two really quickly. You then see two characters on the screen when only using 1 sprite. The problem is, it's never quick enough at flickering to make you not notice the flickering.

[José Pereira]

Heaven/TQA, on Fri Nov 25, 2011 2:36 AM, said:

need to check Prior 0 stuff... possible to post the G2F file?

Don't you believe in me?
Doing that in a P.C. gfxs. program would waste more time than using G2F.
Take a '.xex' and you can see:  cybernoid2_Master screen centered.xex   13.4K   48 downloads
(It seems that you are like in the bible where St. Thomas had to see to believe )

[Mclaneinc]

snicklin, on Fri Nov 25, 2011 7:18 AM, said:

Mclaneinc, on Fri Nov 25, 2011 4:56 AM, said:

Note I said type errors, I have no real idea as to why the sprites flicker in crownland full.

The reason that it flickers is built-in by design.

Lets say for example that you have 1 sprite left for using but you want to show 2 sprites in different positions...

You can display the first character, then switch it off, then display the 2nd character using the 1 left over sprite.... flickering between the two really quickly. You then see two characters on the screen when only using 1 sprite. The problem is, it's never quick enough at flickering to make you not notice the flickering.

So a form of multi plexing them?

Shame, its just so big and obvious in the full crownland..Does not stop it being a fun game tho..

Cheers..