mices - Gun.Smoke tribute, Broken Pearl, Twin Tiger Shark

[mice]

############# Gun.Smoke Tribute #######################

This will be a tribute to the arcade original, released in November 1985, so the deadline of this project is November 2015.

Some POCs:



Temporary content list:

• * 2 Players!
  * Barrels with power ups
  * Vertical auto scroll
  * Main character should be on foot
  * Western setting
  * Gun.Smoke 3 way fire scheme
  * Wanted posters for the bosses
  * The bosses should be all about the person behind the evil. So maybe facing the bosses on foot
  * Boss "explosion" like in Gun Frontier and Metal Black...
  * Collecting gold
  * Destructible environments

############### BROKEN PEARL ########################

PC version download: http://mix256.itch.io/broken-pearl

Trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UVN1dGv0Er8



############### TWIN TIGER SHARK ########################

PC version:
http://mix256.itch.io/twin-tiger-shark

Hiscore list:
http://www.widepixelgames.com/hiscores/?g=tts



Movie (2013 January 23)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOova_va9Dg


####################
ORIGINAL POST:

Yay, how's that for a name!?

Got a sudden urge to do a tribute, so I threw this together. This is fun and shouldn't take very long to finish.
Tried it verizontal at first, but maaan is that hard to do ant fun. This widescreen tate mode isn't really nice either, but it sure is a lot better.

No one acutally tates their widescreen tvs, do they? So maybe I should go with a more square screen config?





Too close or can it be seen as a proper tribute?

[n0rtygames]

Trap15 now loves dev forum.

[Rozyrg]

yes plz

No one acutally tates their widescreen tvs, do they? So maybe I should go with a more square screen config?

You could do like the old Genesis/MD Toaplan ports: tweak the ratio just a bit and then have just enough extra stuff on the side to even it out.

I don't think it's necessary to go 100% purist with screen ratio; but I also don't think full widescreen vertizontal isn't ever really an option unless you bend a lot of genre conventions to make it work. I'm still scarred from that 1942 "remake" on XBLA...urrghh.

[tiaoferreira]

You can use a simple scheme like Rozyrg said, similar to mega drive ports.

I've tried this on my PIXEL FIGHTERS:

www.spacecatstudio.com/pixelfighters/pixel.htm

[mice]

You can use a simple scheme like Rozyrg said, similar to mega drive ports.

I've tried this on my PIXEL FIGHTERS:

http://www.spacecatstudio.com/pixelfighters/pixel.htm

But I want the scores in-screen so to speak. Half of the feeling comes from this...ok, maybe not half.
Frak, all tvs should come with a tate stand.

So, tanks don't fire and they can be hit when under trees and buildings...
And he thought and he thought and voila, he found a solution - it's all in the tiles. Quite obvious, actually. Must have a bad day...

[Ed Oscuro]

How about two kinds of tank hidden tiles - one for tanks that are vulnerable (under trees) and another for when they are invulnerable (i.e. a tank that is driving under a stone arch, as seen in the desert stage of Flying Shark when the tanks come out of their hidden bunker)?

[mice]

But are they really vulnerable under the trees? If so, consider it done.

[trap15]

Yeah, they're vulnerable under trees. They even shoot you from under them! It's very deceptive

[mice]

Darn, that's sneaky of them. I was so sure that they were untouchable and didn't fire...
Good though, one thing that could go into the difficulty setting, I guess.

[mice]

Things kind of work this far. \o/

Movie of what's been done:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12T85pu96AM

Just love the music that Cyber Rainforce is doing. This tune kind of fits the mood.

Now back to the zombies for a while...

[railslave]

Thats realy special, one of the best things ive seen here
Its faithfulness to fireshark doesnt hurt it at all.

either that or the music just brainwashed me .

[mice]

either that or the music just brainwashed me .

It is the music, it's frakken awesome! I've got it looping on my compo now for like...really long.

[railslave]

Maybe you can take some of the originals concepts a bit futher, all that sci fi weaponry. Fill in the time between fireshark and batsugun.

[gamingjustin]

Woah, this looks spot-on, and you got this up and running pretty fast. Very Toaplan-esque, even in the small details like the cool explosions. If you're taking criticisms, I say have it so when a tank goes under the trees you can't fire at it and it can't fire at you; so you'll have to try to kill it before it finds cover, or else you'll forget about it and maybe it'll snipe you later. Also, are you going to have the horizontal playfield bigger than the width of the screen? I like STGs that do that, as it adds a bit of strategy regarding when its best to scroll the screen horizontally. Looks cool, and I hope you continue with it.

[Dave_K.]

Looking great!

With "Twin" in the tile, does this mean you will support two player simultaneous play?

[mice]

I say have it so when a tank goes under the trees you can't fire at it and it can't fire at you; so you'll have to try to kill it before it finds cover, or else you'll forget about it and maybe it'll snipe you later.

For bunkers and the like it will be like that.
It is like that for trees now as well, but maybe for "hardest" setting and above...they can fire but not being shot, or something.

Also, are you going to have the horizontal playfield bigger than the width of the screen? I like STGs that do that, as it adds a bit of strategy regarding when its best to scroll the screen horizontally.

For a tated widescreen this might actually be the way to go. And for non tate on widescreen and tate on 4:3, no scroll.
And in flying shark the planes moves with the screen, and that just feels so wrong.

With "Twin" in the tile, does this mean you will support two player simultaneous play?

Didn't plan on it...just picked a random taito word. Which tiger was as well, so I will need to rename the game to Flying Fire Tiger Shark to even it out between taito and toaplan.

[mice]

First it's kind of depressing wasting that kind of space, but then some arcade machines liven it up.
That plane in bkg is stolen from the internets, will be changed to a pic of my own.



With a press of the back button an voila, you've tated 90. Another press and it's at 270.
Depression gone...

[Rozyrg]

Oh man, that's freaking great.

[mice]

Tate available on the ouya version now as well. \o/
Didn't think I'd manage that...

Smart bomb time. In flying shark this is used more as a strategic weapon than a panic-bomb, right?
Do I do a delay (with bomb flying away and everything) before the explosion goes off or do I do it immediately?

[BPzeBanshee]

Couldn't you just do something similar to Raiden Fighters' bomb behaviour? Then again, might not be appropriate for vintage-styled gameplay. If I had to pick one I'd lean towards a delay, and/or having a second bomb type for a weak screen-clearer.

[mice]

Couldn't you just do something similar to Raiden Fighters' bomb behaviour?

How's that? No delay?
Been looking through a few RF vids now (again) and that is sooo depressing. They look sooo good.

As you say, I think I'll go with a delay. With visible bomb-drop.
And a weak screen clearer could be a POW pickup along the way. I just love those!

[nZero]

Couldn't you just do something similar to Raiden Fighters' bomb behaviour?

How's that? No delay?
Been looking through a few RF vids now (again) and that is sooo depressing. They look sooo good.

RF works something like: tap the bomb button to drop it immediately under you as a panic bomb, hold the bomb button and release to toss it up the screen instead for more offensive/preemptive use (distance based on time held)

[mice]

(distance based on time held)

Brilliant. This I have now done.
Needs tweaking to the speed of the bomb and so, but it's done for now.

As a side effect of the ouya tate, I now have a tate-able PC version as well. I'm rotating that dell monitor as there is no tomorrow!

Ghost Pilots...wtf, that's a verizontal with sideways scrolling...how super odd is that!?
And those stars looks just like mine...darn...

[trap15]

Ghost Pilots is terrible. If you take anything away from it, it should be things you are avoiding. Just throwing that out.

Neat idea, hope you go somewhere with this Just remember that clever stage design that often requires memorization of enemy placement and behavior is the single most essential aspect of old Toaplan style.

Also checkpoints are awesome, you should add them if you haven't already

[emphatic]

The bomb mechanic you're thinking of sounds very un-Toaplan to me. Better to have a Twin Cobra type bomb, or a helper plane formation/double tap for smart bomb, like in Twin Hawk IMHO.

[mice]

Neat idea, hope you go somewhere with this Just remember that clever stage design that often requires memorization of enemy placement and behavior is the single most essential aspect of old Toaplan style.

I'll post a PC/MAC version when I feel I've made the first stage kind of ok. Then you can tell me where I went wrong...

Also checkpoints are awesome, you should add them if you haven't already

I was thinking restart whole stage...and short levels...maybe.

The bomb mechanic you're thinking of sounds very un-Toaplan to me.

Agree. But if toaplan would have thought about this idea, they would have made it. Yep, that's probably how it is because it's brilliant.

[trap15]

Also checkpoints are awesome, you should add them if you haven't already

I was thinking restart whole stage...and short levels...maybe.

That's too far on the other end of the spectrum

Well-designed stages and well-placed, always recoverable checkpoints, in a game with 5-8 stages... the stuff of dreams, my friend

[emphatic]

Short stages are also very un-Toaplan. Trap15 is right on the money.

[mice]

The first stage is about 3m + boss-time now, seems about right when it comes to flying shark, at least.
Checkpoints in there now as well, but what does

always recoverable checkpoints

mean?

Aaah, motion sickness...had to implement the horizontal movement since the playfield is so narrow.
Do the enemies fire when off screen (but within the horizintal map size, so to speak)?
Been looking at a few vids it and doesn't look like it and I've made so they don't as well.

[trap15]

As in, you can always recover from any checkpoint (though it may require bombing or being really clever). There should not be any checkpoint that you literally cannot recover from.

Do the enemies fire when off screen (but within the horizintal map size, so to speak)?
Been looking at a few vids it and doesn't look like it and I've made so they don't as well.

They do not. I believe there is also a deadzone on the horizontal edges of the screen as well to prevent them from being like 1 pixel in and getting you