I think the graphics for this have the potential to be really stunning,
especially if you put a gradient on the sky and sea. A large symmetrical
object with slices of colors like this is something that is well-suited to
the 2600's playfield. I don't know many examples of the playfield being
used to paint a large multicolored MOVING object like this.
It's been mentioned that Titanic sank at night-time and we know that would
make for a fairly monochromatic scene, but it might be more dramatic to
have a sunset ala Enduro and shift those color registers around so that by
the time the ship finally sinks, the moon is out, maybe start with an
iceberg hitting the side with a sound effect before the music starts.
There is plenty of room for sprites to be used as clouds or seagulls or
sun or moon up at the top, which would help enhance the aesthetics.
There is a problem with the music, however. I know the chart was used,
but the chart was meant as a guideline so that when you compose music for
the 2600, you make sure you chose an octave and a key that presents notes
that are all in tune with eachother. If one value is A4+12 and another is
A3-4 then you shouldn't use these notes just because they are both As.
They will be out of tune, regardless. It would be wiser to pick something
like G4+0 and G3+0 or an entire key that ranges from +5 to +10 out of tune
(since it will be in tune relative to itself to within 5 cents accuracy).
This doesn't seem to have been done in this case. In several instances,
the notes are a full half-tone off, and sometimes the bass note is at
least a quarter-tune off in relation to the higher octave melody note.
If you listen to decent music like in Smurf's Rescue or Journey Escape or
the Raiders theme you'll hear a hint of out-of-tuneness, but it's just a
hint. That is what you need to strive for. The 7800 music like Tower
Toppler or Mario Brothers are what you want to avoid ;)
I'm not sure it's possible to translate all the notes of the Titanic theme
over intact. You may have to fudge it, which is okay because that way you
aren't voilating copyright ;) The 2600 scale is almost like a dulcimer.
It has lots of gaps in it, and the Titanic theme, though sweeping, hits
most of the notes of its scale, which is a toughie for the 2600.
Translating the notes so that you stick mostly to octaves, fifths, and
fourths would be easier, as the 2600 is full of these. Plus, the missing
notes in the 2600 scale, I believe, tend to be the midrange ones, right?
You may want to pick your octave for the melody in an area rich with
closely-spaced notes. Also don't be afraid to jump from distortion to
distortion with each note. You may wind up with a patchwork quilt of
textures in the melody, but you may be able to plug the melody gap better
that way, as the missing notes and +/- cent values vary from distortion to
distortion.
It's highly unusual for a game this preliminary to have had so much
attention lavished on the music, however. Usually this is the last thing
a programmer thinks about. Jim Nitchals did program mostly sound-related
stuff, so I hope you go back and make the music the best it can be if this
is a tribute.
Overall, I think it's a great, contemporary idea to present on the 2600...
==========================================================================
== Glenn Saunders --3D Graphics / Videography / Web development-- ==
== krishna@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/1698 ==
== Stella@20 video page http://www.primenet.com/~krishna ==
==========================================================================
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