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Posted: 10/9/2006 12:47 AM
Post subject: I know a trick...
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Bootman
Joined: 7/19/2006
Posts: 21
Location: San Francisco
The first boss (Golem?) can be killed the moment it opens its eye. Just nudge the eye with the force shield. You lose the shield. Perhaps this could be used on other bosses as well. There are two levels of force, I forget what level it takes to kill the 1st boss. Are the large yellow claws in the middle of the first level killable? There is a hard mode after clearing the game, can the hard mode be accessed early with a code or something and then used for the run?
Posted: 10/9/2006 3:43 AM
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Boco
Former player
Joined: 3/30/2004
Posts: 1354
Location: Heather's imagination
Salamander absolutely isn't Gradius II. The latter is my favorite in the series.
someone is out there who will like you. take off your mask so they can find you faster. I support the new Nekketsu Kouha Kunio-kun.
Posted: 10/9/2006 4:28 AM
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The_Brookman
Player (185)
Joined: 10/8/2006
Posts: 145
yea...that's been established >_> I'm too drained to play through again, I'll try that force business though. on the other bosses I mean, if I do try again that is
Posted: 2/1/2007 5:32 PM
Post subject: Maybe you know about this game
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ZeXr0
Joined: 8/27/2006
Posts: 883
I was playing it when I was young. It's a Nes or SNES game. It was a puzzle game and if I remember correctly, you had to push a "puck" into a hole. Also I remember that when you finished a level, there was a "loading screen" which had heart, inverted heart, and some other image which cover the entire screen. Do you know what game it is ? It would be nice if someone know that game :P Thanks !
Posted: 2/7/2007 4:37 AM
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ZeXr0
Joined: 8/27/2006
Posts: 883
:( No one knows ?
Posted: 2/7/2007 9:02 AM
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Dromiceius
Joined: 10/3/2005
Posts: 1332
I certainly don't. Do you remember if it was one of those obscure Japanese titles, or was it something that was released in the US/Europe?
Posted: 2/7/2007 5:01 PM
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Zurreco
Former player
Joined: 8/1/2004
Posts: 2687
Location: Seattle, WA
Kickle Cubicle? Something like that?
hi nitrodon streamline: cyn-chine
Posted: 2/7/2007 5:05 PM
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SXL
Joined: 2/7/2005
Posts: 571
a good place to do researches would be http://www.vgmuseum.com/ where screenshots of lots of games are available.
I never sleep, 'cause sleep is the cousin of death - NAS
Posted: 2/7/2007 7:40 PM
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jaysmad
Other
Experienced player (933)
Joined: 12/1/2006
Posts: 629
Location: Mom's
I dont know about this game. :( Sorry ZeXro! I am also looking for a game that i forgot the name. I think it was on NES. There was a dragon head on the cover and it was kind of like gradius..... Maybe it was gradius. Does anyone know?
Posted: 2/7/2007 7:45 PM
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Zurreco
Former player
Joined: 8/1/2004
Posts: 2687
Location: Seattle, WA
jaysmad wrote:
I think it was on NES. There was a dragon head on the cover and it was kind of like gradius..... Maybe it was gradius. Does anyone know?
Either it's Super R Type or Gradius 3.
hi nitrodon streamline: cyn-chine
Posted: 2/7/2007 7:49 PM
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jaysmad
Other
Experienced player (933)
Joined: 12/1/2006
Posts: 629
Location: Mom's
So close! It was only the dragons head i think is eyes were glowing and it was on NES. Anyway thx Zurreco, your fast! :)
Posted: 2/16/2008 5:45 AM
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Zeitgeist
Joined: 10/13/2007
Posts: 1
jaysmad wrote:
So close! It was only the dragons head i think is eyes were glowing and it was on NES. Anyway thx Zurreco, your fast! :)
One-Year-Necrobump to say that the game is almost definitely Life Force/Salamander. I tried to register quite some time ago to answer this question, but the registration never went through, so I sort of forgot about it, but it seems that it ended up working after all, just very, very delayed.
Posted: 9/27/2008 5:04 AM
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FatRatKnight
Editor, Skilled player (1203)
Joined: 9/27/2008
Posts: 1085
Reviving an old thread with my interest in this game. I had a choice between three topics, but this one is my choice, due to the title... http://tasvideos.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=929 http://tasvideos.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4513 I'm thinking about running a two-player TAS of this game. I have roughly put in the first 10 seconds of gameplay in both Life Force (U) and Salamander (J), and I can already note some minute differences. It's definitely taking some effort just to get a few seconds of gameplay in. Since I've already long since lurked around here, I know about Microstorage. I assume it's alright to go ahead and use it in this case. If I assume wrong, let me know. Life Force (U) Salamander (J) They should be a little over 10 seconds each. My own start, but I need some thoughts. One difference I noted while TASing two-players between Life Force and Salamander is the hit detection. Life Force alternates between players on hit detection each frame, while Salamander checks both players simultaneously (Though P2 isn't checked if P1 crashes into something on the same frame). This is part of the reason why I can charge right through enemies without slowing down much in Life Force, while I must move more slowly in Salamander. It's also generally why I can wait as long as I do on the upper wave of enemies in Life Force, but must get in front of them first in Salamander. Of course, due to the similarities between games, I doubt they'd be published side by side. I'm trying to decide between Life Force's odd hit detection and merely 2 Options or Salamander's flashier intro/ending and those lovely 3 Options. Again, any thoughts? I don't like being new... Always a shaky start, or at least feels like it, no matter how careful you are... But it's unavoidable. I hope to contribute something after a long time reading through the forums here.
Posted: 9/27/2008 9:54 AM
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Highness
Player (71)
Joined: 8/24/2004
Posts: 2562
Location: Sweden
Nice to see the revival of this. Personally I think that Life force looks a bit cleaner around the score board and weapon table, but as you state, the Salamander version has a really interesting title screen. I suppose you will have to surprise me in the outcome of this run. Hope you make it quick. I'd love to see the final submission.
Posted: 9/27/2008 4:34 PM
Post subject: There is LifeForce info in another thread.
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Bootman
Joined: 7/19/2006
Posts: 21
Location: San Francisco
Should these threads be merged? http://tasvideos.org/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4513&highlight=
Posted: 9/27/2008 7:43 PM
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FatRatKnight
Editor, Skilled player (1203)
Joined: 9/27/2008
Posts: 1085
Well, seeing as I'm still largely new at TASing, going quick won't happen. I've already poured hundreds of rerecords in those 10 seconds. Know of any good methods for running 2 players? Possibly a way to record one player, then go back and record the other player without destroying the first player's input? I've been using the hold button feature most of the time, but I generally need to memorize the sequence of input for both players for at least a few frames at times. I'm inclined to go with Salamander. I believe (U) ROMs are generally suggested, but if there are significant differences or the (U) ROM just isn't available, then you may use another region. The (U) ROM is available, but I think there are significant enough differences to justify picking (J), such as three Options instead of two. Alright, I should try a bit of planning... I've looked through the first level. There appears to be a total of 28 power-ups in there, as far as I know. 6 of them is needed for Force to insta-kill the boss, leaving 22 power-ups for other things. With two players sharing the power-ups, and my goal of maximizing speed first, with 10 power-ups each to do so, that leaves only 2 power-ups for... Not much else. No, I'm not picking up Missiles for this level. I've played around with the second boss on both versions, on a mostly normal run-through with save states. Apparently, I spotted another difference in versions: Salamander is just fine in the hit detection, but Life Force seems to completely ignore the main body of the second boss, letting a player fly right through it as though it weren't even there! At least, it is that way in a 1-player game. Again, Salamander detects this just fine.
Posted: 9/28/2008 5:41 AM
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Derakon
Joined: 7/2/2007
Posts: 3960
The U vs J thing is mostly (entirely) for purposes of language - English is much more widely-spoken than Japanese, and games are generally better when you can understand what's being said. Since there's no significant dialogue in either game, I wouldn't worry about being censured for your choice. I'd be leery of getting missiles at all - they don't contribute significantly to your offense, and they add a lot of extra sprites to the screen, which creates lag. Have you watched the Gradius TAS? The same logic applies here. This is especially true when you're playing with two players -- which isn't to say that you should only play with one; I think the extra entertainment from having two players available more than outweighs the increased lag. However, you definitely won't be faster in the long run with two players, so you should try to take advantage of having two controllable sprites around for being entertaining. Again, watch the other Gradius TASes for ideas.
Pyrel - an open-source rewrite of the Angband roguelike game in Python.
Posted: 9/28/2008 8:28 PM
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FatRatKnight
Editor, Skilled player (1203)
Joined: 9/27/2008
Posts: 1085
Salamander (J), over 30 seconds so far! Going slower than I hoped, but rushing things would only reduce the quality. I think I did well, but there's the WIP so everyone here can tell me all the points I messed up in, or just enjoy what I did. True, I have 3 "missed shots" in there, but given the context that those shots were made (I hope some player rivalry is shown...), leaving them in should be more entertaining than removing them. I will continue on with Salamander (J). After reading the above post, I don't believe there's any further reasons why I should pick the (U) version, so (J) it shall be. All further TASing from me will be done in (J). The lack of any significant dialogue is a help, so thanks for helping me decide. I agree on the Missiles. Poor offense, can't avoid firing them if I need to shoot, and so forth. We could have 22 player-related sprites (2 ships, 10 bullets, 10 missiles) capable of colliding with numerous enemy sprites on any particular frame. If that doesn't cause lag, then what does? The earliest I'll get them will be the last level, if at all. I'll go watch the Gradius TASes soon. As auto-scrolling shooters, I shouldn't have too much trouble working out the ideas for use in this run. Besides, I've been meaning to do so for a while, and I haven't gotten around to it, so far.
Posted: 10/2/2008 8:45 PM
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FatRatKnight
Editor, Skilled player (1203)
Joined: 9/27/2008
Posts: 1085
I'm hoping for feedback. Even negative feedback is more welcome than no feedback. I've been moving slowly, mostly because I got busier, but I think a small part has been that I got no one saying anything about my 30 second run. Then again, it's hard to say whether the lack of these posts did contribute... I now realize that when I said I was going slower than I hoped, the pace I was going actually would count as pretty fast. I've got another five seconds now, but I don't think it's enough to actually upload those five seconds. About those 30 seconds, I see a few things I could have done differently. While 1P is spinning around that power-up, I probably should have lowered 2P's first shot by a few pixels. Another thing is possibly add in a little action at the times the players are holding still and not doing anything interesting. Any advice on hex-editing? Since the .fm2 files are in ASCII, I've been using Notepad on a run of another game (Dungeon Magic, the first game I TASed. This is my first mention of my TAS on it). I'll try to hex in lowering the shot for a start, and see if the rest of the run survives the hex-edit. I saw the Gradius TAS. Fwee! That ship is fast! Okay, circles ARE interesting! That, and the general craziness of insane speeds made for a great watch. If I can't think of anything better, I might steal a few of those designs, with adjustments to them as needed... Now, as for the speed, I can't even go at half the insane speed. My speed limit is at 3.75 pixels per frame, after 10 speed-ups on each ship. However, with two ships and as many as three Options, I might come up with more complex designs that work with 5 controllable sprites that can go on two separate paths. I don't think the entertainment I may produce will be on par with adelikat's Gradius TAS, given how new I am at this, but I can try. Somehow, making this post made me feel a bit better about things. I will see if I can continue on this TAS.
Posted: 10/4/2008 5:53 PM
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Highness
Player (71)
Joined: 8/24/2004
Posts: 2562
Location: Sweden
Looking good so far. Was there a real reason for those missed shots, or were you just playing around? Hope to see you complete this.
Posted: 10/5/2008 6:50 AM
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FatRatKnight
Editor, Skilled player (1203)
Joined: 9/27/2008
Posts: 1085
I try to make it look like Red is shooting at Blue. I mean, come on! If one player takes some power-ups while the other clearly didn't get as much, wouldn't you complain a bit? Heh. Note that the only "missed shots" so far are aimed towards Blue... I did over a minute so far! Though I got a bit more lazy towards the end... At least I'm making some progress. I may want to hold on to the next WIP until I beat the first boss. ... Actually, I probably would rather dump these WIPs in regular intervals, unless the end of the next interval is really close to something important, like a boss battle. If I mess up royally somewhere, I might want it to be pointed out. In any case, I get the impression I'm uploading these files correctly. Otherwise, I'd be seeing messages which say that link doesn't work. At least that much is good. As it stands in my latest WIP, I should have gotten a total of 18 power-ups, 9 to each player. Watching it myself, some of the action I wanted to show goes a bit too quickly...
Posted: 10/5/2008 9:34 AM
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Highness
Player (71)
Joined: 8/24/2004
Posts: 2562
Location: Sweden
Just watched, and I actually do feel really entertained about this WIP so far. :) I also noticed that after the movie stops, the red plane will finally die for it's last time against one of the big claws coming down from the roof. Right before the death is dealt, a sound is played. What is that sound?
Posted: 10/6/2008 2:04 AM
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FatRatKnight
Editor, Skilled player (1203)
Joined: 9/27/2008
Posts: 1085
The fact you're entertained tells me I'm doing pretty darn good so far. If you're actually not waiting for it to end when watching it, then I had more success than I expected. As long as I'm patient, then it seems that being relatively inexperienced should not be too much of a problem. As for that sound... I had to check it out myself. Flying at that spot by the giant claw gave me a score bonus, and I saw my score change. Imagine it like that score bonus in Gradius for flying in that "tunnel" in the first level, but without the 5000 showing up. While letting it run to hear that sound, I watched the lag counter go up. So now I have lag to deal with... Usually solved/reduced by destroying some enemies in the area. Less things to detect hits with makes it easier for the game to run smoothly, by my understanding.
Posted: 10/6/2008 3:04 PM
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4matsy
Joined: 4/25/2004
Posts: 498
List of 5000/1up locations. :) There's also one around at least the top hand (dunno if there's one near the bottom hand too) just before entering the blue section of level 1.
Posted: 10/6/2008 6:35 PM
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Highness
Player (71)
Joined: 8/24/2004
Posts: 2562
Location: Sweden
Ok. So... Will there be a target for all the 1-ups and 5k bonuses? The 1-ups could be fun if it adds a challange to grab them. Otherwise it sucks. Highest score could also be one of the main targets?
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