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Calculator Community => Other Calc-Related Projects and Ideas => TI Z80 => Topic started by: simplethinker on July 19, 2009, 09:19:29 pm

Title: Chip's Challenge- Asm (!)
Post by: simplethinker on July 19, 2009, 09:19:29 pm
I believe my asm knowledge is decent enough to write a game with it.  Thus, as you can guess from the title, I'm going to try and make an assembly version of Chip's Challenge!

Due to the fact it will be written in assembly, this will enable me to add in a few features beyond what the Basic version is/will be capable of (there are more but I forgot everything I was going to say):
- A timer for all calc models
- Enemies
- Better speed
- (possibly/probably) grayscale

So far, over the last couple days I've written a tilemapper, converted a few levels to an asm format (no more damn matrices or strings!), and implemented a basic movement engine (including some tile effects).  I'm really motivated to work on this now, so I should progress fairly quickly (at least initially).

And before anyone asks, I'm not sure if this will be an app or a program.  In the plans I have for the movement engine, I've already put in some SMC, but I'm not sure if that will stay there.
Title: Re: Chip's Challenge- Asm (!)
Post by: noahbaby94 on July 19, 2009, 09:34:48 pm
Cool I was wondering about this and it's progress sometimes basic just can't do everything.
Title: Re: Chip's Challenge- Asm (!)
Post by: simplethinker on July 19, 2009, 10:14:53 pm
Cool I was wondering about this and it's progress sometimes basic just can't do everything.
The Basic version isn't dead, just on hold.  I've been in a rut lately, and haven't made many changes besides finishing up the tile actions and redoing the HUD, so I decided to see what I could come up with in assembly.

I'll definitely finish up the Basic version since I've already put so much work into it, so don't worry ;)
Title: Re: Chip's Challenge- Asm (!)
Post by: Geekboy1011 on July 20, 2009, 11:46:29 am
awsome cant wait till it comes out and i wish you luck :)
Title: Re: Chip's Challenge- Asm (!)
Post by: calc84maniac on July 20, 2009, 04:44:05 pm
Aw, did you have to go and accidentally steal my idea like that? :P
Title: Re: Chip's Challenge- Asm (!)
Post by: Eeems on July 20, 2009, 06:32:51 pm
wow can't wait to see some more progress!
good job Simplethinker
Title: Re: Chip's Challenge- Asm (!)
Post by: simplethinker on July 20, 2009, 06:39:46 pm
Aw, did you have to go and accidentally steal my idea like that? :P
What idea?
Title: Re: Chip's Challenge- Asm (!)
Post by: Iambian on July 20, 2009, 08:26:18 pm
I guess there's no better time than to break it now.

calc84maniac is starting work on an 8 level grayscale version of Chip's Challenge.

Personally, I can't understand how he's doing it, but oh, well. He's doing it.
Title: Re: Chip's Challenge- Asm (!)
Post by: calc84maniac on July 20, 2009, 09:39:27 pm
Yeah, though it seems you're a bit farther than me in terms of gameplay. I currently only have a tilemap displayer (and due to my vacation, I can't resume work until August). Not to hijack the thread or anything, but this is the screenshot: http://otbp.tifreakware.net/images/chip.gif (http://otbp.tifreakware.net/images/chip.gif)

Just to clarify, I first got this idea last year for the Cemetech Puzzle Contest, but I was too lazy to do anything other than a grayscale image viewer.
Title: Re: Chip's Challenge- Asm (!)
Post by: Eeems on July 20, 2009, 09:43:20 pm
maybe you guys could coordinate efforts?
looks good btw calc84maniac
Title: Re: Chip's Challenge- Asm (!)
Post by: calc84maniac on July 21, 2009, 07:57:21 am
Well, props to you if you can make one that works in 6MHz. Mine certainly won't. The screen updates will probably take about 60% of the CPU time, if my mental calculations are correct. Heck, maybe you could even smooth-scroll like on the original Atari Lynx version. :)
Title: Re: Chip's Challenge- Asm (!)
Post by: simplethinker on July 22, 2009, 11:22:47 am
maybe you guys could coordinate efforts?
I'm using this as an opportunity to use and improve my Asm knowledge, so working with someone else would mean less for me to do.

Well, props to you if you can make one that works in 6MHz.
I don't have enough asm experience to write any features that would require a 15MHz processor :P

Quote
Heck, maybe you could even smooth-scroll like on the original Atari Lynx version. :)
I'm going off of the PC version, so the tilemap and the sprites are aligned (which is one of the reasons I decided that Chip's Asm is within my abilities).
Title: Re: Chip's Challenge- Asm (!)
Post by: DJ Omnimaga on July 22, 2009, 07:45:47 pm
Nice, I do hope this gets finished. I assume this one will have more levels?
Title: Re: Chip's Challenge- Asm (!)
Post by: simplethinker on July 22, 2009, 08:53:34 pm
Updates (already!)
- I've got most of the kinks worked out in the tilemapper, so that won't need to be changed until I get to the grayscale.
- All sprites/tiles are done.
- All items and doors are programmed in.
- I'm almost done with the basic movable block stuff (everything short of what happens when the blocks go on ice)
- Levels 1 and 2 are done and playable :)

The only problem so far is that I need to insert 250,000 clock-cycles worth of nop's to slow it down enough to be playable :D

Nice, I do hope this gets finished. I assume this one will have more levels?
Definitely.  Many of the levels that will be left out in the Basic version (mostly due to enemies) are possible in assembly.  Plus, the memory taken by storing the maps in the asm version will be less than half that of the Basic version.