Sheep It Up! - A new game cartridge released for Gameboy (+ free ROM available)

[drludos]

Hi everyone!

Earlier this month, I’ve released a new Gameboy game on cartridge: "Sheep It Up!" (https://catskullgames.com/sheep-it-up)


http://www.ludoscience.com/files/static/Image/sheepitup_cartridge.jpg (https://catskullgames.com/sheep-it-up)

It's an arcade game where a sheep has to climb up by hanging himself to flying velcro straps. The concept is simple, but the game rapidly gets quite challenging: how high can you climb without falling down?


http://www.ludoscience.com/files/static/Image/sheepitup.gif (https://catskullgames.com/sheep-it-up)

As a game collector myself, I wanted this game to be produced without sacrificing any vintage Gameboy titles. So everything is manufactured specifically for this game: the pcb, the rom, the shell, the protective case and even the sticker! We also tried to keep the price reasonable, so everyone can enjoy the game ($15 + shipping):

- $20 U.S Shipped
- $23 International Shipped

It will run on any Gameboy model: the original GB, the Pocket, the Color, the Gameboy Advance and SP, and the Super Game Boy.

If you still own a Gameboy, you can buy a cartridge from the publisher website:
https://catskullgames.com/sheep-it-up

I hope you’ll enjoy the game!

Update: you can now play the game online or download the ROM for free here:
https://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/708650

[YoshiM]

Looks like a lot of fun and the concept is cute as heck! I'll look into ordering this soon!

[jb143]

That's cool. Good luck with the game. I was making a Gameboy game once but was a bit too ambitious with it and never finished it. I should have kept things simple and made a fun little arcade game instead.

Also, just as an FYI, I have heard that the owners of Velcro brand have contacted people who use it in their crafts they sell(such as Etsy and the like) to make sure they are actually using the real brand. That doesn't directly apply here since you're not using physical "hook and loop fasteners" but it is something you should be aware of since Velcro is a registered trademark.

[CRTGAMER]

Very Honest Seller
I had placed an order on this game, commited Pay Pal and changed mind. Contacted seller who immediatly refunded the Pay Pal transaction!


Earlier this month, I’ve released a new Gameboy game on cartridge: "Sheep It Up!" (https://catskullgames.com/sheep-it-up) It's an arcade game where a sheep has to climb up by hanging himself to flying velcro straps. The concept is simple, but the game rapidly gets quite challenging: how high can you climb without falling down?

As a game collector myself, I wanted this game to be produced without sacrificing any vintage Gameboy titles. So everything is manufactured specifically for this game: the pcb, the rom, the shell, the protective case and even the sticker! We also tried to keep the price reasonable, so everyone can enjoy the game: $15 (+shipping). It will run on any Gameboy model: the original GB, the Pocket, the Color, the Gameboy Advance and SP, and the Super Game Boy.

That's cool. Good luck with the game. I have heard that the owners of Velcro brand have contacted people who use it in their crafts they sell(such as Etsy and the like) to make sure they are actually using the real brand. That doesn't directly apply here since you're not using physical "hook and loop fasteners" but it is something you should be aware of since Velcro is a registered trademark.
$20 U.S Shipped - $23 International Shipped

Nice! Suggest large font of the price in the OP, I missed it buried in your text. Hope the Velcro in the title screen does not get the game shut down.

[drludos]

Thanks for your interest in my game and your tips!

I've modified the OP to include the price with shipping costs included in a large font as suggested, thanks a lot for the heads-up!

If any of you order the game, please feel free to share your highscore here - mine is 147 :)!

[jb143]

Just out of curiosity, where/how did you have the carts made?





Hope the Velcro in the title screen does not get the game shut down.
At least they seem to be having fun with it...
A message from the Lawyers at Velcro Company:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRi8LptvFZY

I hope they don't try to shut it down too, I only mention Etsy because they do "go after" little guys making crafts with their products. Having to call it it a hook and loop fastener just sounds dumb though and no one will know what you're talking about when we all know it as Velcro.

[CRTGAMER]

At least they seem to be having fun with it...
A message from the Lawyers at Velcro Company:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRi8LptvFZY

I hope they don't try to shut it down too, I only mention Etsy because they do "go after" little guys making crafts with their products. Having to call it it a hook and loop fastener just sounds dumb though and no one will know what you're talking about when we all know it as Velcro.
Thanks for the quick refund. Okay changed my mind again now really want the game. Apologies, I promise I will not ask for a refund again. I edited my previous post higher up this thread mentioning your honesty.

Curious on the game, I understand the B button is jump. Does the DPad work for direction or is the leap a random sideways movement?

Thanks, looking forward to the game! Have a great Thanksgiving!

EDIT
Oh and to help your sales, suggest placing the Animated GIF back in your official site. The gameboy keyboard adapter there looks interesting. Imagine if a PS/2 Mouse can be made to work for some of the GB, GBC and GBA games!

[drludos]

Thanks for the quick refund. Okay changed my mind again now really want the game. Apologies, I promise I will not ask for a refund again. I edited my previous post higher up this thread mentioning your honesty.

Curious on the game, I understand the B button is jump. Does the DPad work for direction or is the leap a random sideways movement?

Thanks, looking forward to the game! Have a great Thanksgiving!

EDIT
Oh and to help your sales, suggest placing the Animated GIF back in your official site. The gameboy keyboard adapter there looks interesting. Imagine if a PS/2 Mouse can be made to work for some of the GB, GBC and GBA games!

Hi, the sales part is handled directly by Catskull Games (a one man operation too), who manfactures, sells and ship the cartridge directly. I only created the game, all the hardware part is made by Catskull, so he's the one who refunded you - I'll let him know that you appreciate his professionalism :).

Thanks for the suggestion about the GIF, I'll tell Catskull to see if he can include it into the website.

Regarding the game B (or A) is jump, and while in air, you can move left / right using the D-pad. There is no randomness in the way you control the sheep: it's up to you to time your jumps right to avoid fallling! ;)

And I hope you enjoy the game when you receive your cart!

[drludos]

Hi again,

Although I guess most you know the inner workings of the GB better than me, I've wrote up a post-mortem about the game, with a lot of information about how strange the way a Game Boy actually works can feel for someone who have been trained on "modern gamedev engines":

You can read it here:
https://www.gamasutra.com/blogs/DoctorLudos/20171207/311143/

Any feedback is welcome!

[CRTGAMER]

The game cart came in and tried out on a GBA. A bit snug in the GBA, the PCB cart connector appears the same thickness as on official cart. Perhaps the Gameboy cart shell though not a big deal. Neat basic jumping game teasing to beat your own score. The cart could pass for an official cart, nice job in the manufacture.


I've wrote up a post-mortem about the game, with a lot of information about how strange the way a Game Boy actually works can feel for someone who have been trained on "modern gamedev engines":

https://www.gamasutra.com/blogs/DoctorLudos/20171207/311143/
Good read on your link, saved the page to my hard drive. Looking forward to part 2.

[jb143]

Thanks for the write up. That brought back a lot of memories. You used a lot of the same tools I was using. I look forward to part 2 on making the actual carts because I never got that far.

[drludos]

Thanks for your feedback, I'm glad you enjoyed the game and the article.
@CRTgamer, feel free to share your highscore here, mine is 147 points :)

For the carts, I actually partenered with an electronic wizard, Catskull (https://catskullgames.com/), as I'm only a software guy. Catskull detailed me the process of building the game with some cool picture for the next part of the article :).

I'll share the next part here too (but first, I have to finish writing it!)

[drludos]

Hi everyone!

It took me longer that expected, but here is the second (and final) part of the postmortem / making of article about Sheep It Up!. I talk about audio, making cartridges, and a more personal feedback about the whole project:
https://www.gamasutra.com/blogs/DoctorLudos/20180213/314554/

I hope you'll enjoy it, and your feedback or questions are welcome!

[jb143]

Cool read. Especially on making the boards. When I was looking for ways to get MBC5 bank switching chips, I looked briefly into using a micro-controller such as one of the ATtiny chips. Should be possible and relatively cheap too. Especially when making the boards like they are since they can be custom designed. I just never got far enough along.

[drludos]

I'm glad you enjoyed part 2 too!

Did you had a proof of concept of your MBC5 replacement?

Because, although the GBdev scene is small, I know that many homebrewers would be very happy to have an "official" way to have a MBC cart produced. For example, all the GB games that use the wonderful ZGB engine are automatically at least 64KB (the engine itself fills in about 1 bank of 16kb alone), meaning they can't be released in 32KB cartridges.

[jb143]

No, I never got farther along than just thinking about it. You would essentially be recreating the functionality of the chip in software running on a separate processor. Would it work? Theoretically, but there could be timing issues and whatnot.

You could also design a VHDL/Verilog/etc... chip. That would definitely work but I think it was going to be too cost prohibitive. With a microprocessor you can buy low quantities and program them individually Again, It's been years since I've looking into any of this stuff...though your posts have started to pique my interest again a bit...If only I had the time.

Ultimately, my plan was going to be buying a lot of N-Sync games off ebay and swapping out the roms. That way even those who would normally cringe at destroying an old game would thank me for it.LOL

[drludos]

Yes, recreating the MBC chip seems quite a task actually. I guess only the chinese clone manufacturer managed to do it - that's way many large homebrews choose to "reflash" chinese copies of Pokemon games (it's cheaper and easier than buying N'Sync games! ;))

[drludos]

An important update today:

I've just released the final (cartridge) version of my Game Boy game Sheep It Up! online for free.

The game can be played online (with a link to download the ROM) from here:

https://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/708650

Enjoy!

[megasdkirby]

Are you still selling the physical cart?