sh3-rg

Here's some info on Raptor and RaptorBASIC+ but, I feel more importantly personally, some info from myself and what I've done with rB+ as a beginner programmer. CJ's Raptor is a high performance RISC-based API designed to leverage the performance of the Jaguar's custom RISC chips and Object Processor, in an easy and flexible manner, allowing the software developer to spend more time following their vision instead of wrestling with the hardware. It combines with Matmook's RMotion, LinkoVitch's U235 Sound Engine, Zerosquare's Sound Engine as well as other goodies to allow people a quick and easy way in the door to Jaguar assembly programming (an example here would be Der Luchs - who is on about his 4th or 5th Jaguar game at this point having only ever programmed in BASIC prior to tackling Raptor). RaptorBASIC is a (now obsoleted) interpreted BASIC that was the first attempt to offer Raptor functionality to anyone and everyone. From absolute noobies, to people who dabbled a little in their youth up to anyone who fancied putting their usual programming language and skills to one side if just to allow them to easily dip a toe into the world of Jaguar programming. RaptorBASIC+ is GGN's next level of BASIC programming on Jaguar. It's actually a little bit more than that in a few regards, but that's not something he shouts about too loudly. It's essentially a C-ified Raptor, but with a BASIC-to-C preprocess via a variant of Kevin Diggins' BCX BASIC-to-C Translator. The user sets up Raptor lists by inputting a few values (these closely mirror Jaguar Object Processor lists), then it's just a matter of typing in a few lines of humanly-readable code and you make things happen on screen or in Virtual Jaguar at the hit of a single key. As it's C-based, it's also fairly trivial for the Jaguar C-programmer to gain access to Raptor functionality, but as I mentioned, it's not something GGN talks too loudly about as his intentions were to allow as wide an audience as possible to become creative with their Jaguars (and there had been a number of failed attempts to produce a workable Jaguar BASIC environment), not simply to give C coders a Raptor wrapper. If someone really wishes to program polygonal game software in C and also take advantage of the benefits and features of Raptor, the rB+ package allows them to do exactly that - the "BASIC" part of rB+ is nothing more than a hand-hold for those who don't like the idea of C or find comfort in something they consider similar to what they're used to... you can even create your program in BASIC, convert it to C and then work on the C code directly from that point if that takes your fancy. But really, that's all missing the point... Raptor/rB+ are all about Object Processor porn. GPU running in local scratch memory, handling the Jaguar's kick-arse sprite power from the perspective of keeping it slightly more general purpose, reusable and therefore quicker to create. Who got time for this stuff anyway? :0) Almost a year on and there have been constant updates for fixes, added functionality and streamlining of the whole process of creation. Keep an eye on the official rB+ forums at AtariAge for something around the 1 year anniversary if you wish to get up to speed on the story so far. Over the year I've dabbled myself on and off (mostly off, grafting hard at work and sitting doing thinky things are not really all that compatible for me :/ ). I've never considered myself a programmer, I've always been more interested and suited to the art and design side of things. But even I can give it a go and make stuff happen, that proves anyone else can do the same if they only take that first difficult step and force themselves out of their safe end-user bubble :0) At first I shied away from the Object List stuff and attempted to go about things in a really standard old and familiar way of using BASIC - by PRINTing and PLOTing and other trivial and unexciting things I used to do in my youth sat at my Spectrum keyboard. It was only when I moved on to play around with what is effectively a super-powered sprite engine in Raptor's object manipulation functionality, that it really became fun. So far I've created a simple Frogger game called Doger. It's 98% complete and was only made to be a tutorial project for other beginners such as myself. But since showing it to people and having a little positive feedback, I've decided I should polish it a little and put it out as a more complete release. There's my microFLY game which is a kind of endless runner (flier) sitting somewhere between SuperFly and FlappyBird by most accounts - this too is all but complete. It's got a kind of minimal pseudo 3D effect on the blocking objects and the usual and IIRC over a dozen layers of parallax scrolling. I worked a couple of days on a checkerboard floor/ceiling routine that used RMW shading to some effect for a cheap and easy first-person tank kind of game effect, but haven't gone back to that. Another game engine I worked on for a few days was based on tower climbing and giving a 3D perspective via the magic of the Jaguar's Object Processor scaling and a little Raptor trickery. This is a bit more involved but is still in search of a suitable game concept to take it forward: The most recent game I worked on is a variant of Super/Hexagon by Terry Cavanagh that I decided to make after seeing a fun Game&Watch demake version of the game. GGN is thankfully doing the tricky geometry generation stuff that is out of my depth :0) I tweeted a video of a very early version to Mr. Cavanagh just because I thought he might like to see it. I was surprised when he then retweeted it and hope that hints that he wouldn't be too upset if I released something along those lines for the Jaguar :0) I spent a few more days taking the concept further since that video and feel really quite positive about the possibilities of it, it's a game I will return to with 100% effort once the time is right. TBH I haven't really announced it yet as it's too early, but here's the original few days old version with some random scaling and stuff "just because" (the one I tweeted) and a slightly later WIP version where we were checking out GGN's star level, more detailed facet shading, scaling and overlaying the game objects and some random scaled RMW logo flying just for extra load (both captured at 60fps from Jaguar hardware): I've not only done a little work on games (games that, to some people's strict internal taxonomic disposition, might very well appear to be sub-8-bit junk, yet to me they are everything I enjoy and value when it comes to a box with an Atari badge on the front - just plain old fun & fuji. C'est la vie), I've made a little particle playaround thing, a menu for a Jeff Minter CD (yet to be released), and I've also dabbled in creating a few demo-style effects, purely because I find it fun (it's practically all I did for the short time I played around with blitzmax on the PC). I released a few of these together as a demo called "Cloudy With A Chance Of Metaballs" that in some ways is very rough, in others isn't so bad (thinking maybe the fx/audio syncing), in others is a bit of a laugh (doge!) and also manages to demonstrate that rB+ and the Jaguar have a lot yet to be discovered in terms of what might be possible (here I'm thinking the RMW/colour mode abuse lolvalamp screen). Right now I'm back to rB+ing as of 2 days ago and working on a small invitro for a 2016 party that I hope to release before xmas. Here's some screenies of some of the above: Probably a good point to make - everything above is 100% 60fps locked on Jaguar hardware. That's Atari stuff as it should be for me - as it always was back in our younger days with those little Ataris. rB+ makes it easy! So as for rB+ going forward, it seems there's no stopping this train... there are plans for additions to rB+ that will put more of the Jaguar's best and most game-centric possibilities in the hands of beginner programmers (some of the stuff I've seen recently from other rB+ programmers is going to open a few eyes, that's for sure). So, all that is left to say is... why did you read all this and, more importantly, since you have - why are you still sat there? PUSH THE BUTTON and go make a game! It's way more fun than playing them (especially given the Jaguar's library ;0) Apologies if this was all just tl;dr, it's just that what CJ did when he created Raptor and even more so, what GGN then did with rB+, actually reignited a fastly-fading flame I had for the Jaguar - BASICally (sorry!), if it wasn't for rB+ I'd be long gone and the Jaguar a distant memory for me... but now I have the chance to be productive with one of my Ataris, make every single 0 and 1 of a project of my own creation if I so wish, and that's pretty powerful stuff for someone like me... so I like to give those guys props and give their efforts a fair chance... when I see the kinds of stuff written in previous posts, it does everyone involved a massive disservice.... and more importantly, mirrors the kind of nonsense that has likely put people off becoming involved with Jaguar programming before they even got to give it a second thought. Be positive and positive things will happen. Attempt to make them happen yourself and... well you might just find out how easy it can be! At the very worst, at least those you won't just be one of those guys who says THIS IS HOW IT SHOULD BE without knowing the first thing about what that might actually involve, when you have a little better context within which to base future comments regarding games creation :0) An interesting position to be sure. But unfortunately, few of us ever manage to run before we can crawl... there's an A and a B before we get to C (unless you're a jagpad, in which case there's a C and a B before you get to A...). What I'm saying is such things are easy to type and promises easy to make, but actions a little trickier to implement and therefore promises more difficult to keep. Luckily, rB+ is very easy for beginners. It takes very little time at all. Anyone with a natural talent or gift would no doubt be able to move on up within short order, bypass the whole BASIC facade and jump into C/assembler to make those kinds of claims a reality. Nothing stopping you but yourself. Do it! If you wish to take an existing project of yours and work through it as a porting project from which to learn the ropes of rB+, the offer is always there. The more the merrier!