Armed For Battle is now available in either a Loose Cartridge or Cartridge In Box!
Details and purchase information is at infiniteneslives.com (http://www.infiniteneslives.com/aux18.php)
The Demo is available at my Development Blog - http://1010howe.blogspot.com/ (http://1010howe.blogspot.com/)
Tutorials on How To Play (these videos show the new look of the game):
Castle/Kingdom View (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UiedM5uhWTE)
Upgrade Screen (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aS54Nn491Gk)
World View (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpVNQYMmZFA)
Battle View (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdhQSAPhnsc)
I am pleased to finally announce my homebrew in development, called Armed For Battle.
Somewhere in the unmapped land surrounding your kingdom, evil rulers corrupted by greed seek to enslave your people. Scout the territory, then send your forces to battle any threats you encounter. With enough gold, you might win them over while avoiding massive bloodshed. Use caution when venturing into the unknown. It is rumored that Dragons and Giants may live somwhere outside the safety of the kingdom.
These older trailers can also be viewed:
Castle View (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7V_CSzbwaI)
World View (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oilPleLInr4)
Battle View (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEzaI2w_xC0)
Wow, personally I don't like strategies, but seeing that genre on a NES is totally awesome!
"Gathering resources" just killed me! Good luck! You are doing wonderfull job for tne NES/FC comunity!
Quote from: jpx72 on March 02, 2012, 05:09:25 am
Wow, personally I don't like strategies, but seeing that genre on a NES is totally awesome!
"Gathering resources" just killed me! Good luck! You are doing wonderfull job for tne NES/FC comunity!
Really? You havn't tried famicom wars?
Wow, its like a NES version of "Age of Empires."
Quote from: The Uninvited Gremlin on March 02, 2012, 06:30:21 pm
Wow, its like a NES version of "Age of Empires."
Yes...that would be a strategy game as well.
How about a nes version of dune 2......but....without all the sand!
Wait, do you actually fight in this, or are you just preparing to fight? ???
Either way, awesome job. It's great to see another homebrew.
Quote from: Jedi QuestMaster on March 03, 2012, 02:00:47 pm
Wait, do you actually fight in this, or are you just preparing to fight? ???
Either way, awesome job. It's great to see another homebrew.
You prepare to fight until the actual fighting gets programmed in :-[
Thanks for all the kind words everyone.
It is very true that the battling has yet to be determined and programmed. There have been different ideas in my head ever since the beginning of this project, and soon I'll be at the point where I can move ahead on deciding.
Not sure if any of you will be at the Midwest Gaming Classic (late March), but please stop by to say hi and try it out.
Quote from: rizz1010 on March 05, 2012, 08:28:27 am
Thanks for all the kind words everyone.
It is very true that the battling has yet to be determined and programmed. There have been different ideas in my head ever since the beginning of this project, and soon I'll be at the point where I can move ahead on deciding.
Not sure if any of you will be at the Midwest Gaming Classic (late March), but please stop by to say hi and try it out.
I'm in toronto....I don't think it's near the widwest....You could always visit me and my modded stuff if you like.
So far I really like the looks of this. How long have you been working on this title?
Quote from: cobracon on March 06, 2012, 03:22:17 pm
So far I really like the looks of this. How long have you been working on this title?
I started this project around early September.
Is this going to be on Nes cart or are we going to get a Famicom cart too?
Quote from: cobracon on March 06, 2012, 05:11:31 pm
Is this going to be on Nes cart or are we going to get a Famicom cart too?
It's looking like NES only.
Quote from: rizz1010 on March 08, 2012, 01:48:40 pm
Quote from: cobracon on March 06, 2012, 05:11:31 pm
Is this going to be on Nes cart or are we going to get a Famicom cart too?
It's looking like NES only.
buy a nes to famicom adapter?
Quote from: 80sFREAK on April 28, 2012, 06:03:03 pm
Any progress??? And 2 questions
1)What is the mapper?
2)How big CHR and PRG?
there will only be progress when you pay him 4000$.
speaking of which some dude from germany paypalled me 5$ for making my street fighter 2 arcade hack and giving him updated copies.
Quote from: 80sFREAK on April 28, 2012, 06:03:03 pm
Any progress??? And 2 questions
1)What is the mapper?
2)How big CHR and PRG?
Hi there.
I was originally using no mapper. Now, I have transitioned to UNROM. I am working on restructuring some of my code at the moment. I am using 64kb of PRG, 8kb of CHR currently.
I'm sorry that I can't release anything (screenshots or video) quite yet with more progress, but the good news is that forward progress has been happening.
No rush. :)
Great news. I have now uploaded Trailer #2.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oilPleLInr4 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oilPleLInr4)
The first video featured the Home Castle, where a player gathers resources, builds various structures, trades for gold, and amasses an army. While doing all this, the player must uncover the overworld and seek out any threats to the kingdom. The new video features the Overworld view and how it works.
Quote from: 80sFREAK on September 08, 2012, 02:05:03 am
If i understood correct, map is scalable and you operate with coordinates of objects to squeeze everything into 2kB system RAM.
Still no ideas about AI engine?
I think you are asking if the overworld view can vary in size. It will be a 16 x 12 coordinate area every time, but the locations for enemies or anything found in the overworld are randomly generated, which is kind of nice because I want to play it too. ;D
I do have a plan for the AI engine, but until I code it, I can't say what the final product will be. I hope you are liking everything so far.
I wasn't so interested at first but now I sure am - looks like it's making great progress and I can't wait to get my hands on a cart if / when they are ready.
Battle has begun. I am happy to show a few teaser screen shots, and for those that are coming to Midwest Gaming Classic this weekend, you'll be able to see Battle Mode in action.
(http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k57/rizz1010/ArmedForBattle1_zps05ed99b1.png)
(http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k57/rizz1010/ArmedForBattle2_zpsdc59a827.png)
(http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k57/rizz1010/ArmedForBattle3_zpsa77b18a8.png)
Trailer #3 is up on youtube.
Now is your chance to see a battle in action.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEzaI2w_xC0 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zEzaI2w_xC0)
Feedback is greatly appreciated (hopefully it's positive), whether you comment here, or give a quick thumbs up on youtube. As the video mentions, please subscribe so you'll catch more uploads in the future - I plan on updating more frequently as the game gets closer to completion.
(http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k57/rizz1010/ArmedForBattleTitle_zps7d9ad4fd.png) (http://s85.photobucket.com/user/rizz1010/media/ArmedForBattleTitle_zps7d9ad4fd.png.html)
I dig what I´ve seen so far! Both the graphics and music has charm and there aren´t a lot of strategy type games for the nes. Seems like youré making a lot of progress, great to see the battle sequence! Do you have any direct control over the battle, or is it played out automatically?
You'll be able to target an enemy with the cursor. The wall will also be able to be targeted, so that your archers & catapults will be able to destroy the wall archers.
I like it too. :)
The instruction manual is in progress, and I wanted to share a sample. I have been hesitant to give out any official release date, but I can tell you that the end is in sight. At the very least, there will be a demo by the end of the year - maybe sooner. If you PM me with your email, I will add you to a list that gets contacted at the time of demo release, cartridge release, etc.
(http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k57/rizz1010/AfBManual23_zpsdf1363ee.png) (http://s85.photobucket.com/user/rizz1010/media/AfBManual23_zpsdf1363ee.png.html)
It's always good to see new games made for the NES/Famicom :). Good job!
Thank you! It won't be released until I am satisfied with it's fun factor.
Bomber King :help:
Why release this on NES only? If you made a Famicom version, I would buy it and play it. But if you only make a NES version, I will not play it, as I never use emulation, and don't play/collect NES games.
Quote from: fcgamer on November 11, 2013, 11:47:08 am
Why release this on NES only? If you made a Famicom version, I would buy it and play it. But if you only make a NES version, I will not play it, as I never use emulation, and don't play/collect NES games.
I have not looked into what it would take to port this to a famicom format, sorry. Right now, I'm concentrating on the NES release.
Quote from: rizz1010 on November 12, 2013, 11:55:07 am
Quote from: fcgamer on November 11, 2013, 11:47:08 am
Why release this on NES only? If you made a Famicom version, I would buy it and play it. But if you only make a NES version, I will not play it, as I never use emulation, and don't play/collect NES games.
I have not looked into what it would take to port this to a famicom format, sorry. Right now, I'm concentrating on the NES release.
I am not overly technical with this stuff, but if the game is in NTSC format, why would it be overly difficult to release it on both Famicom and NES format? There are dozens upon dozens of people who "reproduce" Japanese-only games, putting them on NES carts, and while less people take NES carts and slap them onto Famicom boards, it has been done before. I don't think that it really would be a huge deal to do.
Of course it is your game, your decision, but if it were me, I would be trying to offer it up to the biggest audience possible, especially if the work to do so were minimal.
Quote from: fcgamer on November 12, 2013, 09:14:58 pm
Quote from: rizz1010 on November 12, 2013, 11:55:07 am
Quote from: fcgamer on November 11, 2013, 11:47:08 am
Why release this on NES only? If you made a Famicom version, I would buy it and play it. But if you only make a NES version, I will not play it, as I never use emulation, and don't play/collect NES games.
I have not looked into what it would take to port this to a famicom format, sorry. Right now, I'm concentrating on the NES release.
I am not overly technical with this stuff, but if the game is in NTSC format, why would it be overly difficult to release it on both Famicom and NES format? There are dozens upon dozens of people who "reproduce" Japanese-only games, putting them on NES carts, and while less people take NES carts and slap them onto Famicom boards, it has been done before. I don't think that it really would be a huge deal to do.
Of course it is your game, your decision, but if it were me, I would be trying to offer it up to the biggest audience possible, especially if the work to do so were minimal.
I will discuss this with the hardware people, and find out if it's as simple as that. Hopefully so!
Quote from: rizz1010 on November 13, 2013, 08:26:36 am
Quote from: fcgamer on November 12, 2013, 09:14:58 pm
Quote from: rizz1010 on November 12, 2013, 11:55:07 am
Quote from: fcgamer on November 11, 2013, 11:47:08 am
Why release this on NES only? If you made a Famicom version, I would buy it and play it. But if you only make a NES version, I will not play it, as I never use emulation, and don't play/collect NES games.
I have not looked into what it would take to port this to a famicom format, sorry. Right now, I'm concentrating on the NES release.
I am not overly technical with this stuff, but if the game is in NTSC format, why would it be overly difficult to release it on both Famicom and NES format? There are dozens upon dozens of people who "reproduce" Japanese-only games, putting them on NES carts, and while less people take NES carts and slap them onto Famicom boards, it has been done before. I don't think that it really would be a huge deal to do.
Of course it is your game, your decision, but if it were me, I would be trying to offer it up to the biggest audience possible, especially if the work to do so were minimal.
I will discuss this with the hardware people, and find out if it's as simple as that. Hopefully so!
Great, thanks mate! The game looks really intriguing so far, so I want to give this one a shot when it comes out :) Keep up the good work.
Quote from: 80sFREAK on November 12, 2013, 09:41:48 pm
How do you calculate distance between units? No need code, just algorithm.
I use a simple approach, in order to avoid square root calculations:
Y2-Y1 = Ydistance
X2-X1 = Xdistance
Ydistance and Xdistance get converted to absolute value.
Ydistance + Xdistance = total_distance
If Ydistance = Xdistance, then something is diagonal.
Example - when a knight is looking for a target, it can hit something with total_distance = 1 OR it can hit a target that has total_distance = 2 if the target is diagonal.
Quote from: 80sFREAK on November 13, 2013, 04:11:17 pm
Ah, ok, so if target "in diagonal", unit can detect/hit with longer distance.
Is it still UNROM, or you switched to MMC1?
Yes - the diagonal can be targeted with a longer distance (maybe a square root in assembly is easier than what I think, but I didn't want to take a chance, hehe)
It's UNROM.
I now have a development blog (http://1010howe.blogspot.com/). I'm hoping to add some sort of content weekly - if I have nothing new to talk about, I will add old stuff, which might be scans from when I was designing parts of the game on paper. I used to go nuts over the Nintendo Power articles that had to do with game development, so maybe you'll find this to be cool.
The latest entries in the blog feature a preliminary sketch for the box artwork, and an interview from pixlbit.com.
Armed For Battle now has a demo you can download!
The demo is at my blog (the blog is very new too, so please check it out):
http://1010howe.blogspot.com/ (http://1010howe.blogspot.com/)
My youtube channel has 4 tutorial videos that will show you how various parts of the game are played. You will also see the newer look of the game in the videos:
Castle/Kingdom View (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UiedM5uhWTE)
Upgrade Screen (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aS54Nn491Gk)
World View (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpVNQYMmZFA)
Battle View (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PdhQSAPhnsc)
If you have any additional questions about how gameplay works, please contact me, or you can add the question to the comments section of the video.
Hope you like it!
Cool, I´ll try it in the weekend!
square root is very interesting!
could you tell us how bigger the integers?
what accuracy you need?
and what time could you spend on computing the square root?
what do you think about trading some ROM space for the faster computation time?
Post Merge: January 10, 2014, 07:01:23 am
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alpha_max_plus_beta_min_algorithm :crazy:
Quote from: famifan on January 10, 2014, 06:30:14 am
square root is very interesting!
could you tell us how bigger the integers?
what accuracy you need?
and what time could you spend on computing the square root?
what do you think about trading some ROM space for the faster computation time?
Post Merge: January 10, 2014, 07:01:23 am
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alpha_max_plus_beta_min_algorithm :crazy:
Hello - I hope I can answer your questions.
The integers that I use are 1 byte. Please remember that I am not using a square root formula. All I need to do for my code is subtraction, so everything is whole numbers.
I do like to use ROM space if it's available. I think you are talking about using a look up table. I do like using look up tables when I can. It comes down to how many bytes the lookup table will need.
Did I answer everything ok?
absolutely!
there is no need to compute squares and square root of their sums.
you can use approximation with the help of alpha max plus beta min algorithm:
V = a*max(x,y) + b*min(x,y)
if you can live with Largest error 11.80% and Mean error 8.68%
you can just use a=1, b=1/2
so, V = max(x,y) + min(x,y)/2
(dividing by 2 is just bit shifting)
It's a well made game! I tried the demo for a bit and it's easy to get into. I didn't get how you are supposed to fight though. I had much more troops than my enemy but still they moped the floor with my troops. I think it hanged in the battle though. Also in the upgrade menu and in battle the green background sometimes disappear until you leave that menu. Tested with Nestopia.
Quote from: P on January 11, 2014, 10:17:34 am
It's a well made game! I tried the demo for a bit and it's easy to get into. I didn't get how you are supposed to fight though. I had much more troops than my enemy but still they moped the floor with my troops. I think it hanged in the battle though. Also in the upgrade menu and in battle the green background sometimes disappear until you leave that menu. Tested with Nestopia.
I'm guessing you pushed the start button to initialize an enemy attack? If you had around 20 or more troops (troops are Archers, Swordsmen, Knights, Wizards, Catapults), then it would have probably been enough to defeat the enemy (they attack with 10 troops). Thanks for letting me know it was Nestopia - it's possible that something might have been different with that emulator that I'm unaware of. I have used fceuxdsp for testing over the course of the game's creation, in case you want to try that one.
I don't remember but I think I had closer to 30 troops. I attacked an enemy fort and deployed as many troops as I could. Then when the battle started I kept sending the rest of my troops randomly (I didn't know what troops to use against what lol) and they just died one by one while the enemy troops didn't even seem to decrease at all. I had all the 5 kinds of troops.
When I was out of troops to deploy and only a few left out on the field they suddenly stopped moving. The enemy didn't stop moving but they couldn't kill me. I assumed that it hanged so I shut it off after I had waited for quite a while.
I guess I should check out the how-to before I give it another try.
Quote from: P on January 14, 2014, 12:18:30 pm
I don't remember but I think I had closer to 30 troops. I attacked an enemy fort and deployed as many troops as I could. Then when the battle started I kept sending the rest of my troops randomly (I didn't know what troops to use against what lol) and they just died one by one while the enemy troops didn't even seem to decrease at all. I had all the 5 kinds of troops.
When I was out of troops to deploy and only a few left out on the field they suddenly stopped moving. The enemy didn't stop moving but they couldn't kill me. I assumed that it hanged so I shut it off after I had waited for quite a while.
I guess I should check out the how-to before I give it another try.
It sounds like you chose a commander, and then chose your 30 troops, and then sent them off to battle the enemy. I would expect the enemy had around 60 or so troops at the time of your attack. Keep in mind that you don't see the enemy's total numbers on the battle screen. The enemies troops will pour into the battle field (the battle field is the middle area) from the right side (the enemy queue). A maximum of 8 enemy troops are allowed in the battle field. Once an enemy troop dies, another one will move from the enemy queue into the battle field, and then the empty space in the enemy queue will repopulate with another enemy troop (if they have more). The queue repopulating happens pretty quick, but as long as you see a quick explosion type graphic, then the enemy troops are indeed dying. I'll have to check into the last part, where you mentioned your troops stopping while the enemy kept moving - thanks for the info!
I see, that explains a lot. The battle had been going on for a good while before it froze, but the grass background dissapeared early on leaving a black background (also often happened on the upgrade screen). I can now confirm that I was using Nestopia v1.37.
My blog (http://1010howe.blogspot.com) has been getting updated about every week or two. Please check it out.
I will have the game with me again at this year's Midwest Gaming Classic (http://www.midwestgamingclassic.com/) (April 12 near Milwaukee).
If you don't want to miss the release of this game, or other significant updates,
please PM me with your email address.
(http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k57/rizz1010/1010%20Howe%20Blog/AFBfrontsidebackbox_zps7b574507.png)
Please check out my blog (http://1010howe.blogspot.com) for the latest updates!
(http://i85.photobucket.com/albums/k57/rizz1010/1010%20Howe%20Blog/IMG_8866_zpscd71fa64.jpg)
As always, please PM me if you'd like to be on my contact list for important announcements.
Wow! It's looking pretty good! I can almost imagine your feelings opening that sample box and manual!
Mine would be like this: :'(
Are you planning to sell more units after the Nintendo Age auctions?
Quote from: Profeta Yoshitake on March 25, 2014, 05:47:35 pm
Wow! It's looking pretty good! I can almost imagine your feelings opening that sample box and manual!
Mine would be like this: :'(
Are you planning to sell more units after the Nintendo Age auctions?
While opening the package, the 2 big emotions were excitement and fear (that it wouldn't look quite right). Soon after I took it out, is was all elation, and I couldn't stop looking at the thing. ;D
I do intend to have a general release at some point after the auctions.
It's almost like watching a son being born!
Fantastic!
And very good news! I'm already waiting for the general release!
If possible, I'd purchase the first copy of the final release.
Seriously, that box looks awesome! It perfectly captures the spitit of 80´s gaming! :)
Thanks for the great feedback!
I have a new demo now available on my blog (http://1010howe.blogspot.com). In this demo, you'll get a look at the new resource collection, new battle casualty scene, new music on transition screens that didn't have music before, and the new building found in the game. My blog has been getting updated about every week or so. As always, please send me your email if you'd like notification when the cartridge is released. Thanks!
Limited Edition will be released in May! Check out my blog (http://1010howe.blogspot.com) for details. Contact me (easiest way is to use my blog's contact form) if you want notification when the release is here!
I have some exciting things to share.
The Official Trailer (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=glFVBmsM9K8)
(featuring a few parts of the gameplay you likely have not yet seen)
The auction for 29 Limited Edition copies. (http://nintendoage.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=34&threadid=128092)
Pictures of the Limited Edition items (http://1010howe.blogspot.com/p/limited-edition.html)
The auction will end on June 5th (less than a week), so check out the info above soon!
Armed For Battle is now available in either a Loose Cartridge or Cartridge In Box!
Details and purchase information is at infiniteneslives.com (http://www.infiniteneslives.com/aux18.php)
Thanks for looking!
Yup, my boxed game is on it´s way! :)
Quote from: That Guy from Faxanadu on July 07, 2014, 01:16:29 pm
Yup, my boxed game is on it´s way! :)
Very cool! I will look forward to seeing what you think!
Armed For Battle (http://www.infiniteneslives.com/aux18.php) will be at the Portland Retro Gaming Expo (http://retrogamingexpo.com/) happening next weekend!
At the Infinite NES Lives booth, you can come see and demo the game. You'll also be able to save on shipping AND get an additional $5 off with the coupon at my blog (http://1010howe.blogspot.com/).
I'm very excited to be in attendance this year at the show!
Sale coming up!
Armed For Battle (http://www.infiniteneslives.com/aux18.php) will be $5 off from Black Friday through Cyber Monday (11/28 - 12/1).
If you haven't been to InfiniteNESLives lately, 2 other homebrews have been added to the products page. (http://infiniteneslives.com/products.php)
I hope you've been enjoying the game if you already picked up a copy. It would be awesome to hear your thoughts.