[Squad Challenge - Pac-Man 8K Homebrew (Atari 2600)]

14 hours ago, atarilbc said:

This is a fantastic port of the game and, by far, the best version on the 2600.  FYI - Dintar816 is actually on version 8 of the build.  The link to the most recent build is here:

http://atariage.com/forums/topic/229152-new-pacman-for-atari-2600/?p=4131166

It improves corning and plays even more closely to the arcade. 

Thanks @atarilbc! I updated the Squad Challenge listing with the v8 ROM 👌

14 hours ago, atarilbc said:

Also, note:  If you're playing on a console, the right difficulty switch controls normal and fast modes.   Assuming we're playing in the "normal" mode that starts slow?  

Correct, playing in "normal" mode that starts slow.

14 hours ago, atarilbc said:

The interview with Tod Frye clearly shows why he was the wrong person to handle an arcade conversion.  The deadlines he was dealing with notwithstanding, if you don't get why exits at the top, maze layouts and color schemes are a big deal, you shouldn't be handling an arcade game.  I say this as someone who grew up with 2600 Pac-Man and really enjoys that game.  

I loved reading your insights on this. It's amazing how nearly 40 years after the fact, this is all right there to see.

[How Atari almost had the Sega Genesis]

17 hours ago, TrekMD said:

Seems the video is gone...

The video's creator re-uploaded the video as he felt the prior video had audio issues. Thanks!

[Squad Challenge - Pac-Man 8K Homebrew (Atari 2600)]

29 minutes ago, Marco1019 said:

FYI: @Justin This link is the one takes me to the page which states "The page you requested does not exist". It's the link posted at the top of the thread https://forums.atari.io/index.php/topic/1219-high-score-squad-how-to-play/

That's strange, thanks for the heads up @Marco1019. Maybe this is a result of our recent forums software upgrade that we completed a few months ago. The "How To Play" rules have always been pinned to the top of the High Score Squad forum. I've updated the Squad Challenge listing with the correct link. Here it is for you:

 

[Squad Challenge - Pac-Man 8K Homebrew (Atari 2600)]

 

Tod Frye discusses Pac-Man 8K Homebrew

[Squad Challenge - Pac-Man 8K Homebrew (Atari 2600)]

 

 

Pac-Man 8K by DINTAR816
Atari 2600
Controller: JOYSTICK / KEYBOARD / PLAYER'S CHOICE
Difficulty Level: Default
Achieve high score to win challenge
Play on: Real Hardware / Dedicated Console / MAME / Emulation OK! ✔
Squad Challenge ends 11:59 pm PST April 14th, 2019

 

 

Objective: Play for the highest possible score using the difficulty settings defined in the challenge. Post a photo or video of your score in this thread. Scores must be achieved between April 1st through April 14th, 2019. Screen captures are not allowed as they are easily manipulated for falsified scores. Multiple submissions are permitted. The player with the highest score at the end of the competition is the victor!

 

Eligibility: Anyone can join in. All players are welcome!

 

Play Rules: Games may be played on real hardware, Flashback or emulation, using any controller or keyboard, following rules and game settings as delineated in the Squad Challenge. You may chose your preference of DINTAR816's Pac-Man 8K ROM. Enhancements, rewinds and hacked versions of this game are not allowed.

 

Difficulty Level: Default. Press FIRE to start.

 

Fair Play: Players should play fairly, be honest, and have fun! Falsified scores will result in your immediate removal from the site. It goes without saying that no use of cheats, hacks, cartridge frying, enhancements, rewinds, Photoshop, subterfuge, or any other unfair advantage is allowed. Everybody hates a cheater.

 

More: To review detailed rules on how to play, please visit the High Score Squad page here: https://forums.atari.io/topic/1219-high-score-squad-how-to-play/

 

Message: Welcome to our 55th Squad Challenge! This time we're celebrating National Pac-Man Day on April 3rd by playing our first Atari Homebrew game in a regular Squad Challenge, Pac-Man 8K by DINTAR816! Pac-Man 8K shines in many ways that the original Atari 2600 Pac-Man release was lacking. DINTAR816 includes an arcade-like blue maze and black background, multi-colored ghosts and cutscenes just like the arcade version. Many consider DINTAR816's 8K version of Pac-Man to be one of the best for the platform. While still not arcade perfect, the 8K edition is closer than Atari's official version. Pac-Man 8K can also be commonly found on Atari Flashback consoles and handhelds released over the past few years, so this homebrew can be found at Walmart, Target, Sam's Club, etc. We're venturing into Homebrew territory as a fun way to celebration National Pac-Man Day 2019! We're also celebrating AtariAge user DINTAR816's contribution to the Pac-Man legacy on Atari with this masterpiece. We owe DINTAR816 a debt of gratitude for  the time, effort and passion involved in creating Pac-Man 8K. THANK YOU! Remember to celebrate National Pac-Man Day 2019 on Wednesday, April 3rd and good luck to everyone playing!

 

NOTE: Our next High Score Squad Challenge will be for the TurboGrafx-16! We also have a special one-day event challenge coming up as well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

pacman2600_8k_v8test_corn.bin

[The Bell Telephone Laboratories Voder: 1939, the worlds first electronic voice synthesizer]

 

The Bell Telephone Laboratories Voder was the worlds first voice electronic synthesizer. In 1939 Homer Dudley working at Bell Telephone Laboratories in Murray Hill, New Jersey began to publicly demonstrate the Voder, the first electronic device that could generate continuous human speech electronically. The Voder was designed for the 1939 Worlds Fair in New York as a showcase of the advanced work being done at Bell Laboratories. It was a manually operated system requiring training, ten finger, two foot paddles, a knee leaver and arm switch to generate sounds. The sounds quality actually was better than most voice synthesizers all the way up to the late 1990s.

 

 

 

[Squad Challenge - Buggy Boy (Atari ST)]

 Congratulations spkr!

 

Congratulations @spkr on an excellent score! Buggy Boy was our first Atari ST Squad Challenge, and I was even less certain about having a good turnout for this first ST game as I was for our first Game Boy game. It was great to have all of you jump in this challenge, and to welcome new member spkr to the forums! spkr won the High Score Squad Challenge on his very first post to the forums with a high score of 94,240. @RadioPoultry brought his A-Game with 88,680 points, and @kamakazi20012 was right on his tail with 84,740. @Kid A checked in with 80,540 and @RickR rounds things out with a score of 66,800 points on his gorgeous customized Atari 520 STFM setup. Great showing guys! Congrats to everyone who played! I'd like to welcome spkr to the Atari I/O Forums and encourage spkr to post his new high score on the Scoreboard, and maybe this Challenge can continue on! 

Our next Squad Challenge will be taking us back to the Atari 2600. We're going to be celebrating a new take on an old classic. See you there!

 

 

BUGGY BOY FINAL STANDINGS

 

1   SPKR                                 94,240

2   RADIO POULTRY             88,680

3   KAMAKAZI20012           84,740

4   KID A                                 80,540

5   RICKR                                66,800

 

 

[How Atari almost had the Sega Genesis]

Historicnerd dives into the story of how Atari almost had the Sega Genesis with a deal that could have pushed Atari back into the forefront of the console wars. Atari under Jack Tramiel was in negotiations with Sega for the worldwide manufacturing and distribution rights (sans Japan) to the Sega Tomahawk, and was effectively responsible for renaming the console "Genesis". A fascinating footnote in classic gaming history. Absolutely worth a watch!

[The Atari Creep]

That definitely looks a step closer to the original Atari 2600 VCS. I like that they raised it up slightly. Removing the SD slot is hugely disappointing. I still don't understand what this is supposed to be though.

[What Are Your Retro Gaming Goals For 2019?]

11 hours ago, atarilbc said:

I'll take some photos when I bring them over here and get them sorted.  There are a few four switch Woody consoles, a Vader or two, a Jr. and maybe a light sixer. Probably eight in total. I would happily send one for the site. 

Thank you @atarilbc! Maybe I'll buy a few of those from you if things work out that way. 

[Squad Challenge - Buggy Boy (Atari ST)]

Welcome to the forums @spkr! Great to have you here participating!

[IDW SELLOFF? Comics Publisher IDW At Financial Breaking Point, Will Close Or Be Sold]

1 hour ago, nosweargamer said:

FYI - I don't think Asteroids ever got released. It also looks like they had a Joust planned.

I was thinking the same thing. Looks like it was supposed to come out a year ago but I can't find any new or used.

1 hour ago, nosweargamer said:

I wonder if IDW spent too much on all the licenses they acquired 

Basically. I hear their model just wasn't profitable and they relied too heavily on licensing other brands. That's like paying rent on everything you create.

[The Atari Creep]

Excited to be entering The New E R Λ of C R Ξ Ξ P with you! Welcome To The Next Level 🔥 Are you able to stream your Sunday Night Live stream on YouTube AND Instagram simultaneously? Maybe go live on YouTube with the Creep It Real Laptop, and then start streaming on Instagram with your phone? That would be so cool.

[Squad Challenge - Buggy Boy (Atari ST)]

52 minutes ago, kamakazi20012 said:

I'd recommend an STFM because 1):  floppy drive and power supply are built in, no bricks, 2): They offer RF TV out, standard STs don't.

Absolutely! It will be a 520 STFM refurbished through Lance at @Video 61. It's only been on my Atari shopping list for 17 years. I'll need to get some good games.

[IDW SELLOFF? Comics Publisher IDW At Financial Breaking Point, Will Close Or Be Sold]

11 hours ago, kamakazi20012 said:

 I didn't know of the board games.  I'd have grabbed those.

@kamakazi20012 I've got good news! The Centipede and Missile Command board games are still available on Amazon, and at very reasonable prices. You can grab them here:

Centipede: https://www.amazon.com/IDW-Games-Ataris-Centipede-Board/dp/B07573VNQJ

Centipede "2600 Edition": https://www.thinkgeek.com/product/kisn/?mrkgcl=507&mrkgadid=3189408283&itm=178188462050

Missile Command: https://www.amazon.com/IDW-Games-Missile-Command-Strategy/dp/B077BTGRKZ/

[Squad Challenge - Buggy Boy (Atari ST)]

23 minutes ago, RickR said:

Special thanks to RadioPoultry for posting the emulation guide.  That was super helpful. 

Absolutely! Thank you @RadioPoultry!

[What Are Your Retro Gaming Goals For 2019?]

10 hours ago, atarilbc said:

My main goal for 2019 is to repair and sell/gift several 2600s in the garage. I'm moving them from my house - which is being sold as part of my divorce - to my apartment and I just don't have the room.  

Other than that, I want to try and play through a game a month after everything settles. 

@atarilbc Do you happen to have a minty-looking VCS? Say, one that might be close to picture-perfect for posing in photography for a nice Atari website? Asking for a friend 😉

[Squad Challenge - Buggy Boy (Atari ST)]

3 minutes ago, RickR said:

I've tried to get new people involved via the Atari ST Facebook group with a couple of posts.

THANK YOU @RickR! Our community has seen an uptick in growth ever since our recent site upgrade. Going into the outside world and inviting people to join us is super helpful.

 

4 minutes ago, RickR said:

But I probably should have tried earlier.

Me too. There will be more opportunities for this. 👍

[Squad Challenge - Buggy Boy (Atari ST)]

I want to point out how thrilled I am to see that we have FOUR active members submitting scores in this Squad Challenge! I thought participation might be half that, without bringing in new members from the outside world. I wasn't so sure how our first Atari ST Squad Challenge would go but participation has been strong enough to warrant more Atari ST challenges in the future. I'll join in too once I get a decent ST set up!

[Squad Challenge - Buggy Boy (Atari ST)]

1 minute ago, RickR said:

Thank you!  I love the Gotek drive.  I have one in my Amiga too.  Let me know if you need help upgrading at some point. 

I definitely will! I may add that to Atari 520 STFM and Amiga 500 

[Squad Challenge - Buggy Boy (Atari ST)]

2 hours ago, RickR said:

48550 and a few pictures of my setup. 

I'm loving that setup @RickR! That's my ST dream setup!

[Atari Star Wars Speeder Bike Arcade cabinet concepts]

4 minutes ago, kamakazi20012 said:

Maybe S.T.U.N. was made from leftover ROTJ prototype parts?

Well S.T.U.N. Runner and RoadBlasters both have the Star Wars yoke designed for and used on the 1983 Star Wars Atari arcade game

[IDW SELLOFF? Comics Publisher IDW At Financial Breaking Point, Will Close Or Be Sold]

It looks like Comics and Board Games Publisher IDW is facing major financial trouble and is being put up for sale. IDW is known for licensing existing well-known brands and developing comic books around those brands and franchises. However that model has not proven to be entirely sustainable.

When I first saw this my heart skipped a beat.. I immediately thought of the new line of Atari comic books and thought "Isn't IDW the comics publisher that has an agreement with Atari?" Well, yes and no. It's actually Dynamite who published the Atari comic books, along with Tim Lapetino's "The Art Of Atari". However IDW has put out a wonderful line of Atari board games based on loved Atari franchises like Centipede, Missile Command, and Asteroids. The comic book industry is facing some hard financial realities which will become more and more evident over the next 2-5 years. Here's more:

 

 

From Chris Arrant, Editor Newsarama

IDW For Sale? J.P. MORGAN Hired To Review Company & 'Maximize Stockholder Value'

IDW owns or co-owns over 200 franchises

https://www.newsarama.com/44484-idw-for-sale-j-p-morgan-hired-to-review-company-maximize-stockholder-value.html

[Atari Star Wars Speeder Bike Arcade cabinet concepts]

Man! Those look so cool! I would've loved to see that. There are so many "what ifs" that come out of Atari. I love the mid-80s Atari Games "sit down" racer arcade cabinets like RoadBlasters and S.T.U.N. Runner. A Star Wars speeder bike game from a POV perspective would've been super cool.

[Hot Wheels]

How to copper plate a Hot Wheels die cast car at home: