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diff --git a/NOTES.txt b/NOTES.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6d8d37f --- /dev/null +++ b/NOTES.txt @@ -0,0 +1,174 @@ +Notes for Atari 8-bit Taipan +---------------------------- + +The Atari executable file format allows for concatenating executables. +The result is still a valid executable. I use this to load the splash +screen and custom font directly into memory before the main program loads. +The Makefile documents how all this works, but it might seem pretty +hairy if you're new to the Atari, Makefiles, and/or Perl. + +The Apple version of the game was expected to be run on a monochrome +monitor. Like many other ports from the Apple to the Atari, there will +be color artifacts when using a composite monitor. For best results, +use a monochrome monitor. If you can't, at least try using a color +monitor with S-Video (separate chroma/luma) inputs. If all else fails, +try turning the color knob all the way down (and the contrast as high +as you can stand it). In emulators, you can just disable artifacting. + +On PAL systems, the ship explosions and sinking animations will be 20% +slower, and the prompt timeouts will be 20% longer (1 sec => 1.2 sec). I +don't think this is a real issue (it's not like Taipan is a fast-paced +arcade game). + + +Deliberate differences between the Apple II and Atari ports: + +1. "Press ESC for help" rather than ESC to start. Starting the game is + done with the space bar or return key. + +2. I made it possible to disable the sound, since it's kinda repetitive + and annoying, plus the game "freezes" while sounds are playing (no + threading on Atari!) which slows down gameplay. + +3. Added a way to change the background color and text brightness. Only + 4 brightness levels, but all 16 Atari hues are available. + +4. Prompts that only accept one character no longer require pressing Enter. + Gameplay is more streamlined this way. Apple and Linux are inconsistent: + some prompts need Enter, some don't. In the Atari port, the only prompts + that require Enter are: + - naming your firm + - entering an amount of cash or items (but not if you hit A for "all") + +5. "We have 5 guns" is in an inverse video box. I think it looks nicer, and + it matches the "You can afford 5" inverse video box on the trading + screen. + +6. The + that indicates more ships offscreen is inverse video. I find + that I don't notice it's there, if it's normal video. + +7. "You're ship is overloaded" => "Your ship is overloaded". Sorry, + grammar nazi. + +8. Updating the port status screen, and text printing in general, happens + faster and cleaner-looking, due to using C and asm rather than BASIC, + and also because the static parts of the screen aren't redrawn unless + they need to be. (Grammar nazi? That's a run-on sentence...) + +10. Apple uses floating point, no practical limit on cash/bank/debt. + Atari currently uses 32-bit unsigned longs for cash and debt, + though the bank is now floating point. This leads to these gameplay + changes: + + - If you try to make a sale, take out a loan, or withdraw from the bank + an amount that would put you over 4.3 billion cash, you get a + message "you cannot carry so much cash", and the transaction is + aborted. + + - If your debt goes above 2 billion, you die and the game is over. + + Making cash a floating point value is possible, but not worth the + effort as it's a *terrible* idea to carry billions (or even millions) + of cash around, due to the possibility of getting robbed. By the time + someone plays the game long enough to earn billions in cash, he'll know + to leave most of it in the bank, not carry it around. + +11. On Apple, price of General Cargo isn't always an integer (e.g. 6.5). + +12. On Apple, dead enemy ships sink one scanline at a time, and there are + at least 2 sinking speeds. On Atari, it's one character (8 scanlines) + at a time, and the speed is always the same. + +13. When entering numeric amounts, the Atari Shift-Delete key works as + expected. + +14. When entering numeric amounts, pressing K or M inserts 3 or 6 zeroes. + This means you can type e.g. 100,000 as 100K, and 10,000,000 as 10M. + +15. When playing on an 800, the standard Atari keyclicks will be heard. + Disabling these on an 800 is non-trivial. On XL/XE machines, they are + disabled to mimic the Apple version. + + +Differences between the Apple II original and Linux port: + +1. Linux has an 80-column screen layout, Apple is 40. +2. Apple version uses a custom font (actually, two, but I'm ignoring that). +3. Apple has sound, Linux does not. +4. Apple has graphical title screen, Linux has ASCII art. +5. Apple has graphical ships during battles, Linux has ASCII art. +6. On Apple, price of General Cargo isn't always an integer (e.g. 6.5). + As a consequence, the cash and bank amounts aren't always ints either. +7. On Apple, some Y/N prompts (like 'Do you have business with Elder Brother + Wu') you can press Enter for No. Linux port waits until you hit Y or N. +8. On Apple, ships show damage (get holes in them) as they get shot up. +9. On Linux, you can overpay McHenry (though you get no benefit from it). + On Apple, payment amount gets clamped to the repair price, so you can + e.g. be asked to pay 50,000 when you have 70,000 and safely enter A + (you'll end up 100% repaired and still have 20,000 cash). +10. On Apple, dead enemy ships sink one scanline at a time, and there are + at least 2 sinking speeds. On Linux, it's one character at a time. + +The plan for the Atari port is to mimic the Apple version as closely as +possible... except #6 above. It doesn't really add anything to the game, +and it complicates the code more than I want to deal with. Also #10 +will probably not happen (to me, the slow ship-sinking of the Apple +version is annoying anyway). + +Right now, items 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, and 9 are implemented Apple-style; +and 6, 10 are Linux-style. + +Future Ideas: + +- A 5200 version. Most of the existing code will work there, but there's + no keyboard, have to use the keypad on the joystick. Y/N prompts could + use 1/0 and/or the side buttons, naming the firm would go away (just + hardcode "Atari, Inc" or somesuch as the firm name), entering amounts + would use the keypad (# and * for A and Enter, maybe the side buttons + for K and M). Cargo types might be 1 for General Cargo, 2 for Arms, + etc (have to display that on screen), and have "1-Fight, 2-Run, 3-Throw + Cargo" in combat. + +- Seen on a web version of Taipan played on a phone: A Turbo option for + combat. Basically you press T to skip all the delays. It's still + possible to change your orders in mid-fight, but you have to be + quick. My implementation of this will make Turbo a toggle, not sure + if the web version does that. There will be some kind of indicator + "Press T for Turbo", which changes to "Turbo mode: Press T for normal", + something like that. + +I may do a "Taipan Plus" at some point. The regular Taipan game will be +faithful to the original, and the Plus version could have some or all of: + +- More ports to dock at, some of which might have their own warehouses, + repair yards, etc. + +- More trade goods, not all of which are available at all ports. + +- Actual market trends, rather than a base price + random number. There + might be news events that cause prices to go up/down (e.g. Arms are + up at Saigon because there's a gang war in progress, Opium is up at + some port but the chances of getting busted are higher). This feature + actually exists in Art Canfil's TRS-80 Taipan "version 10". + +- Ability to control a fleet of ships. Each one will either be a cargo + ship or a warship. + +- A "Turbo Combat" feature like one of the phone versions I've seen. You + set your orders and hit Turbo, and it finishes the fight instantly, + but you can't change your mind about your orders (fight until you win + or die, or run until you escape or die). + +- Special missions. Someone at some port needs you to transport documents + or whatever, to some other port... you will almost certainly be attacked + by whoever's trying to get the documents though. + +- Rival trading companies. Their activities can influence prices, and + you can fight them and possibly salvage actual cargo. + +- Variable passage of time. Distant ports take longer to get to. Also, + winds or ship damage can slow you down. + +I dunno how many of the above will fit in the Atari's RAM. Probably have +to rewrite the whole game from scratch in assembly before adding features. + |