Re: [stella] POLL

Subject: Re: [stella] POLL
From: crackers@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Date: Tue, 4 Mar 1997 19:22:59 -0500 (EST)
In article <3.0.32.19970303120008.006b4248@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, you wrote:

>Perhaps, but it's not a good example of a great game.  It doesn't even have
>a 1-player mode.  I'd hate to see prospective programmers churning out a
>lot of games that look and feel like Combat.  Adventure, maybe, if it has
>to be a primitive game in the gfx dept., or even Space Invaders, but not
>Combat.
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I think Combat is a GREAT game and have had many a happy hour playing it
against an opponent. The only thing bad about it is there is no one-player
mode. But even a straight, unenhanced mod of the game that adds a one-player
option would be appreciated by me.

Graphics flash comes second to playability to me.

~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~^~
>I am merely trying to raise the bar and be idealistic right now.  I don't
>think I'm being unfair by saying that the 2600 can't survive if the only
>new programs written for it are on the level of Breakout.
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The 2600 can't survive!? It's not going to stop being a collectable just
because new games arn't being made for it. Anything new is mearly icing
on the 2600 cake reguardless of what the graphics are like.

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>There are ways to overcome both, most certainly the former.  Sitting back
>and letting things run their natural course is not the answer.  While I
>admit that it will take a long time for programmers to mature, they most
>likely WON'T mature beyond Combat unless we provide the necessary resources
>and encouragement.
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I think they will. Every programmer worth his code is motivated by being
better than the last programme they wrote. Programmers who cut their teeth
on the simpler tasks will want to move on to something more complicated as
soon as they learn. Not only that but programmers tend to be highly 
competative and I think that the kind of competition we'll be seeing on
the 2600 will be of the most friendly type. This is strictly hobby programming.
There's no big bucks involved and nobody is going to lose their job if they
don't come out with a good game. So unlike the hay-days of the 2600, now
adays there will be a great amount of sharing between programmers.
We'll provide encouragement for each other. So while we all understand
that once we al get up to speed we'll all be, to a certain extent, trying
to outdo each other's programmes, we'll also be freely sharing our
techniques with each other and, infact, encouraging each other to outdo us.

I think it's important to realize that this is going to take time. It's
a hobby, so it's secondary to "real life". And we're reviving a dead language
so there's a steep learning curve here. Don't expect anything absolutely
dazzeling within the next year. But that doesn't mean that what we make
won't be fun.

Okie Dokie may be a graphically simple 2K game... but it's fun as all get out.
And that's more important than anything else.


                                    CRACKERS
                             (Keep it fun from hell!!!)



-- 

Accordionist - Wethifl Musician - Atari 2600 Collector | /\/\
http://www.freenet.hamilton.on.ca/~ad329/Profile.html  | \^^/
Bira Bira Devotee - FES Member - Samurai Pizza Cats Fan| =\/=


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