Space Invaders Collection Pack for ColecoVision (review)

[digitalpress]

A fabulous conversion of the coin-op classic to the ColecoVision. Read our review here:

http://www.digitpress.com/reviews/spaceinvaderscoleco.htm

Nice work, Eduardo ("opcode")!

http://www.digitpress.com/dpsightz/colecovision/sicp_title.png http://www.digitpress.com/dpsightz/colecovision/spaceinvaders.png

[digitalpress]

http://www.digitpress.com/janice/janice_tv_invaders.jpg

[kainemaxwell]

Excellent reiew! I love the screeenshot work and I'm inpressed by the commitment of it all!

[omnedon]

Oooooo.
OOOooooooooooo.


OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


:o


Gorgeous!!

[opcode]

So you guys have almost made me cry... :Fade-color
Thanks a lot for all the compliments! :D
The only thing is keeping this game from being released is I am still searching for a plastic case supplier. But I have already contacted some good sources and hope it will be solved soon.
About the game, it still has around 1.5KB of free space, and I want to use it till the last byte. Several people has send me suggestions, and I am thinking about including some of them, like a fourth hidden game mode and some interface improvements... Probably I am going to change the graphics for the "Collection Pack" word too, since I have never been very happy with it, but wasn't sure if an improved design would end fitting in the cartridge, due to space constrains.
After SI is released, I want to take a little vacation, get married, and shortly after, start programming again. To be honest, I am already working on a new game, not really new but another port, of a very famous game, which I hope will lead to another Collection Pack.
I think some ColecoVision fans were already waiting for it... ;)
Those Packs take a lot of time to program, since I am very fond of details (SI took around a full year), so maybe after the next one I get tired of it and start to program a idea of myself, a game I have planned for so long but which will require some extra hardware and lots of memory (for the ColecoVision standards, at least). But I love arcade games and want to keeping doing some more ports...
Any case, after all the SI setup issues are solved, I hope the next ones will come out quicker, on a yearly base. Also, I hope all setup stuff I am creating now (like cases, PCBs, etc) is going to help others ColecoVision programmers in releasing their games and keeping the ColecoVision alive.

[opcode]

I almost forgot to say: Jess Ragan (ManekiNeko) has posted a small review of SI at his ColEx List.

http://grblitz.overclocked.org/colex1.htm

[Aswald]

Most excellent! A splendid job; and it's great to see another ColecoVision game programmer capable of such a game!

[zektor]

A fine piece of work. I still cannot believe the attention to detail that has gone into this piece of art. Comparing the arcade version (emulated in Mame) to the pack, well...the best port I have ever seen on any system really. I know most may think "Well, it's Space Invaders...how much better can it get?". Well, it really is a matter of being "accurate" when it comes to the classics. This is so unbelievably accurate it's scary! Down to the last pixel, this collection shines. When it is released, you better buy one for your one sake!

[michael]

Is the SNES Space Invaders any good?

[NE146]

Is the SNES Space Invaders any good?

Yeah it's pretty much spot on... But it's only SI part 1 in there. Not SI Deluxe nor SI Part II

[newcoleco]

Congratulation!

It's the first time I see a review here in digital press web site before the release of the game. The Coleco fans will love this game for sure.

I suppose you use my wav2cv tool for the sounds... if it's true, I think you must re-try converting the sounds. it's the only bad point mentionned in the review. I released wav2cv source code (in VB 5) so you can adapt my tool for your own projects.

I hope coleco fans will be able to purchase Coleco Space Invaders next year.

And I really hope you will release more new Coleco project in a near future.

Best Regards,

Daniel B.

[opcode]

Hi Daniel,

I started using your wav2cv but changed my mind shortly after, as I noticed the sound quality wasn't quite right. No problem with the tool for sure; it has even helped me to plan a way to emulate the sound. The final sound was hand crafted using a graphical spectrum analyzer. Modestly I don't believe it can be done this much better than it already is, not without using a lot more of processing, which the game wouldn't even afford. It’s a little bit ironic; the sound is the component I was more proud of as I created all sound routines from scratch. Maybe next time…
The problem is the Space Invaders arcade has no digital sound. It's almost completely discrete analog, with several analogs circuits generating very complex waveforms. And the ColecoVision just can output square waveforms, a very basic waveform. I would combine several channels, but polyphony would end suffering. Also, the original game has several sounds using frequencies bellow the ColecoVision capacities (the invaders march, for example). The only way to accurately reproduce the sound for this game would be using PCM sound, which the ColecoVision isn't able to produce... right now... ;)

[newcoleco]

About the sound converter, I'm sorry to hear about your problems with the sounds. But i'm sure someone could done a better version. The converter is not based on the music routine from the Coleco bios. It's based on the Marcel de Kogel's coleco library. The result is : the sound format is not compatible. A friend of mine will send me a little doccumentation file to be compatible with the Coleco bios sound format.

About digitalized sound, I think you forgot something.
There is some digitalized sounds in Sewer Sam and Squish'em Sam. In these games, the action freeze to let the sound be correctly played. I'm sure you don't want to stop the game during the gameplay.

[opcode]

I think I have made a mistake. I used an older version of wav2cv, do you remember? I think we talked about it several months ago. But back then I had already started sampling the sound by hand, so...

That's truth, the ColecoVision is able to operate as a 4bit PCMer, but, as you said, the computing power needed would end being too much for practical use. SI uses a modest sample rate, 60Hz. This frequency is interruption dependant and very usual for most programmable sound generators (like the TI 76489) based games...

By the way, are you currently working on any new project? Is there anyone else beside us working on new ColecoVision games? I am so sorry SI wasn't ready in time for the ColecoVision 20th anniversary... :(

[Aswald]

Yes and No. I was working on a text game called "Island of Foxes" for the Commodore 64. Once completed, I was hoping to figure out some way of programming it for the ColecoVision, as it's actually not that complicated a programming job- but I now do not have a working Commodore 64 (last week the power blew out- maybe the computer, too). Until I've re-learned how to program for a Commodore 64, there isn't any realistic chance of it ever appearing on the ColecoVision.
By the way, newcoleco- last night at 2:00 A.M, another piece of equipment here blew. So, on top of losing the ability to program the game, in the past week I'm also out nearly $440.00
Happy Holidays indeed.

[ManekiNeko]

It's true, the game kicks much butt. You couldn't ask for better Space Invaders translations. It's hard to imagine how Eduardo could improve them with just 1.5K to spare, though.

JR

[newcoleco]

Dear Aswald,

I don't know what to say... The only thing I can say it's :
"I wish you no more badlucks".

Best Regards,

Daniel B.

[newcoleco]

I think I will finally release Jeepers Creepers for the PhillyClassic.. but i'm not 100% sure, i don't know if the game is ready or not to be in cartridge format.

My brand new Coleco game named Gamepack was release just before my computer crash in october. The limited edition I have done will not be exactly the same as the new release next year : I need to add the game title on the side of the box and a precious name in the instruction manual.

[opcode]

I think I will finally release Jeepers Creepers for the PhillyClassic.. but i'm not 100% sure, i don't know if the game is ready or not to be in cartridge format.

I wasn't aware of this. Good news! What is the game about?
By the way, when will this year's PhillyClassic happen?

[Aswald]

If you ever wish to add Tunelayer to a pack, by all means do so. I'm still amazed you were able to translate it onto a ColecoVision!

[newcoleco]

Aswald : Tunelayer for Coleco is just a first try... but you can continue (or re-do) the project if you want.

Jeepers Creepers : it's a shooting game. you have to kill ghosts, skeletons and monsters. this game project started in 2001. i released a demo named "happy halloween".

[Aswald]

I was hoping to have "Island of Foxes" (Commodore 64 version) ready by Christmas, but, unless I can get a working Commodore 64 set-up within the week, that isn't going to happen.
Maybe by the CGE 2003...
If I ever do get it done, I'll send you a copy- on cassette tape, of course.
(Deafening sounds of laughter from everybody here upon hearing "cassette tape.")

[Zaxxon]

If you ever wish to add Tunelayer to a pack, by all means do so. I'm still amazed you were able to translate it onto a ColecoVision!


What is Tunelayer?