Thanks for the vote. Every vote makes a difference on how I feel about this. There are days when I wake up with an urge to work on this or my 2600 game... but I've learned to moderate myself and obey the todo list (mostly), else I tend to finish nothing. With Atari's own renewed interest in their old systems, this is probably a bit higher on the todo list than it was.
I'll weigh and consider votes for any platform, Atari and otherwise. The 5200/800/400 appear to have the hardware needed for this. If I port back to assembler, it is not out of the question... but, yeah, fairly unlikely at this point. It will partly depend on how motivated I feel to port back to assembler instead of taking the lazier route of porting to Batari Basic for the 7800. I already have the hardest stuff in assembler from the original game, and Batari Basic may not work well enough for this (no idea yet), so we'll see.
So many things ahead of this on the todo list right now. A bunch of board game mods at the moment. And, as always, GRITS Racing and the much-more-popular-but-lesser-developed Sendit Soccer.
Ok, well that sounds great! I'll sit tight and watch this space! Since I'm new here, may I just ask what's the best way to keep track of all your work, including the projects you just mentioned as I'm really interested in your work on those other games too 馃槉. Thanks again even just for the windows port of squadron river raid, can't wait to play it with my nephews at the weekend!
Ask away. The more chatter here, the better. I use itch.io as the home base for most of my projects. Thus, if you follow me here, itch will notify you of all my devlog posts and new titles. And I usually write a post for most updates.
It's been pretty quiet here lately because much of my spare time last year was spent running a small slot-car/board-game/food club. I'm still running that club but I hope to work much more game dev back in as well. I'm currently trying to wrap up some expansions/mods to the board games Formula De (1997) and Speed Circuit (1971) (among others). Then, hopefully, back to GRITS Racing and get it to a dialed-back version 1. Then make some good progress on Sendit Soccer. Then who knows what. Considering using the GRITS engine to do a reboot of Atari's old Fire Truck (Smokey Joe) 2-player arcade game.
I hope to get to some sort of new type of story-driven games eventually--not unlike RPGs or action RPGs but more story and less rote leveling up. While my primary interest is generally multiplayer gaming, I also long to write more dialog (so, yeah, multiplayer RPGs, if I can). I also have a 4-player 2600 game in my head, not unlike River Raid but targeted at a younger audience, waiting to escape someday. In fact, it is that game that got me first looking at the River Raid code.
So, yeah, a lot on the todo list. Maybe I'll get to half of it eventually.
Source code is rarely released for commercial games (but sometimes leaked). River Raid included. The source we have for 2600 River Raid was decompiled (reverse engineered) by Thomas Jentzsch, and later I added to his work on it. Someone could do the same with any game, including the 800 version, but no one has as far as I know. What Jentzsch did was rare.
Yes, the 800 version was different enough to be at least a version 2 if not a sequel edition. The 7800 could likely run a version that looks a lot like it. I just didn't go there because my purpose was entirely personal to relive the 2600 original version, just in 2-player (and with prettier sprites just because). I've never played the 800 version or any version but the 2600 one. The 800 version looks like it uses the same exact level generator, just with jagged borders and new enemies replacing old ones. Thus, it probably would not be hard to match up the same level code in the binaries and then decompile the changes surrounding it. But, that's not on my todo list since this was just a personal side project.
Nope but thanks. I'm really a pretty average guy with my own set of talents. If I were amazing I would have had the 7800 port out by now instead of goofing off with near-meaningless side projects too much. But, I'll take the compliment anyhow and thank you for it. We all like to think our unique talents make us special and amazing... and they do to a degree. We all have our own set to develop... or to not develop.
I'm happy to hear you like the co-op adaption of River Raid, and why. This is precisely why I like co-op games so much... and, indeed, there are not enough of them out there. Although, not all my multiplayer games are co-op... so, apparently, I like competition as well (and why River Raid Squadron has two 2P modes, I suppose: one full co-op; the other less so).
Large/lucrative properties like the ones owned by Activision are rarely abandoned... even when a business goes bust. In that case they are typically sold off or given to various stakeholders. So, yeah, Activision owns the old River Raid source code and the game design itself (which is why I did not include the original gameplay here). Occasionally, companies do release the code and other rights to their old titles--I've seen a few of those--but don't recall who off the top of my head. These are usually the smaller companies trying to generate some buzz... and/or as a favor to the world just before they close their doors. Carol Shaw has mentioned she has a printout of the source code at her house, but it would not be up to her to release it as, technically, she does not own it. Think of games as just like any other widget. The people who paid her to engineer and build it, own it. As to why not release it, you never know when an old property and/or trademark is going to become popular again with some remake or who-knows-what.
Thanks very much indeed for offering such thorough insight. I guess that all makes sense. I'd love to have an online co-op game with you one day, should that ever be possible 馃憤
In the mean time I look forward to the Atari port of the great work you've already done whenever you get round to it and thanks again!
If you mean online River Raid Squadron... yeah, that's not outside the realm of possibility after I solidify the tech first with Sendit Soccer. I've always expected to do more with Sendit's online tech--much much more--including likely pulling RRS into it. I mean, I already have the source code, so it shouldn't be that much work, right? A networked web version could also be the best place to test 8 players before trying it on an old console.
I don't have great gaming skills, btw. Stuttering tends to affect your motor skills as well as your speech. Yes, you can learn to control it and improve it and appear normal, but there's always a ceiling of rhythm capability at perhaps 80% of norm. I don't game online much. In fact, I've only gone there during the pandemic with friends and the local game-dev guild members. It doesn't mean I would say no to an invite, I just don't place a high priority on it (even though I build for it).
I somehow missed this last reply of yours. Thank you for pointing me to this. I find it interesting that someone is trying to market a retro stick like the UNITHOR. Good to see they are using microswitches as well. After us breaking several controllers when we were young, my older brother built his own with microswitches from Radio Shack. Then I saw the Epyx 500XJ come out and I've been playing with a couple of those ever since. Personally, I don't see the UNITHOR beating the 500XJ... but that's me. I never understood the flight-stick style -- too hard to hold, too much throw, too much assigned to one hand.
Okay, after fiddling with a 500XJ just now, I can say the switch on the fire button is too heavy by today's standards. It could be dropped to 1/2 or 1/4 the current force, and then it would be truly awesome. I'll add that mod (or 3D-print project [even though I don't yet have a 3D printer]) to somewhere near the bottom on my todo list.
I also have some fuzzy memory of players holding the 500XJ wrong and trying to press the button too high, and/or using their finger tip to press it when they could use their middle segment instead.
The Mindscape Powerplayer/Powerplayers is another favorite with microswitches. I should get one someday to give it a try... done.
That's awesome, great idea 馃憤
Unfortunately I don't have the skills to do anything like this myself, but after doing some reading online, I thought of a project that I'm getting some help with. It involves creating a Bluetooth version of my favourite joystick that was actually originally for the SNES, by putting in the board from a wireless 8 bit do mini Bluetooth joypad instead. Still work in progress, please see photos 馃榾
As a side note, just because you got me thinking about this, if this game were more popular, what I would likely do after publishing the 7800 version, is then start work on the next version for, perhaps, the Lynx (or a better 7800 version [assuming it can be better... I have my doubts]). That version would likely take some inspiration from the 800 version (plus other versions https://www.oldgames.sk/en/game/river-raid/pictures/). I would also add as many players as the systems can handle (8 players on the Lynx or Jaguar would be utter chaos--and need much much more creative game balance work). Then, if the audience demanded an 800 version, that is the version I would backport to the 800 (limited to what the 800 can handle, of course). But that's just a guess. If the audience would still rather have a 2P port of the original 800 version versus an improved 800 version... I tend to work on what the most people are telling me they want me to work on.
Of course. The more feedback, the better -- good and bad -- as long as it is constructive criticism, I can take it. I can't make what the public wants if I don't know what the public wants. Of course, I don't always care what the public wants (this game a prime example of me building for an audience of one: me)... but I often do care what others want in spite of myself.
