Comments on: Atari Retro 2.0 Emulator Released

Atari Retro 2.0 is now available for download. The Emulator runs a collection of officially licensed Atari 2600 games for your handheld just as they would on an original atari 2600 system.
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15 seconds?!

budrowilson @ 7/20/2004 4:47:20 PM #
Oh yeah, 15 seconds of gametime is enough time for me to really evaluate the value I get out of this program. Is three days per game too much to ask!?

RE: 15 seconds?!
ackmondual @ 7/20/2004 5:09:35 PM #
nothing really new here. It's just the ALL software version of getting the Atari Retro gaming card

[signature0]the secret to enjoying your job is to have a hobby that's even worse[/signature0]
[signature1]My PDAs: Visor --> Visor Neo (blue) --> Zire 71.... so ends the "marathon", for now[/signature1]
RE: 15 seconds?!
dangerpalm @ 7/20/2004 5:19:58 PM #
The fullscreen alone makes it better. What about us suckers who bought the card before the software version was released. Aaron should have an upgrade policy...I feel ripped off...

RE: 15 seconds?!
aatwizzle48@yahoo.com @ 7/20/2004 5:55:19 PM #
Hmmm! In fifteen seconds I can almost make up my mind! Is this a misprint or has anyone downloaded and looked at it yet? Real thought went into that one.

Terri Jo
RE: 15 seconds?!
hkklife @ 7/20/2004 6:29:45 PM #
Yup, I bought the Atari card from Buy.com before it hit retail. To date, that original Atari retro card is probably the single worst piece of Palm software I've ever paid good $ for---the lack of full-screen support alone makes it worth no more than $5 to me.

I'd actually rather see full-screen version of the arcade originals instead of lame 2600 ports but at leat 2.0 is a step in the right direction. Now, how about MDM offering SOME kind of upgrade/trade-in for owners of the lame existing card? In this age of 64 & 128mb Palms, I think we could all spare a few hundred kb of main memory for the newer executables.

(I'll save the rant about the non-upgradability of most MMC/SD retail titles at a later time) Suffice to say, mostly from getting burned by the PopCap & Atari cards (no upgrade path to newer versions w/ bug fixes & new features) has pretty much guaranteed that I'll stick to purchasing new games via downloading over retail packaging in the future. Are you listening, Tapwave?

RE: 15 seconds?!
tooele @ 7/20/2004 9:04:58 PM #
Yea I'm going to pay $30 for a game I've tried out for 15 seconds. They can't seriously expect someone to pay for something they barely have had time to try.

RE: 15 seconds?!
Fammy @ 7/20/2004 9:40:33 PM #
Most people are buying this for the "childhood" memories. 15 seconds should be long enough to say, yup, that's the game I remember.

That or Atari said 15 seconds top on the demo.

-- Fammy

RE: 15 seconds?!
Altema @ 7/21/2004 12:02:22 AM #
I'm not even going to bother with the download.

RE: 15 seconds?!
ardiri @ 7/25/2004 5:57:33 AM #
ok guys, sorry for not responding earlier - i've been am are still on vacation in bulgaria :) (very limited internet connection).

The fullscreen alone makes it better. What about us suckers who bought the card before the software version was released. Aaron should have an upgrade policy...I feel ripped off...

MDM (www.gomdm.com) is the distributor for the MMC and ESD product. i am not sure what their policy is with providing updates for the MMC card (version 1.0). i will discuss the issue with them; however - i have noticed a few people have emailed me privately with questions - which i will answer when i return to sweden (tonight).

RE: 15 seconds?!
15 seconds was the time limit agreed on between the distributors and the owners. we, as the developers just had to implement it that way. not much we can do there unfortunately.

Now, how about MDM offering SOME kind of upgrade/trade-in for owners of the lame existing card? In this age of 64 & 128mb Palms, I think we could all spare a few hundred kb of main memory for the newer executables.

contact me offline (support@mobilewizardry.com) - and, i'll provide information to MDM direct for the issue at hand. we of course, support our users 100%. the ESD version is platform dependent, where the MMC card is platform independent. there may be a number of options available:

a) send-in exchange for MMC (to MDM direct)
b) exchange MMC for the ESD version
c) provide an MMC image for rewriting to your MMC

while, we are not the ones making the final decision - if i was to meet you on the street i would put your MMC card in my laptop and get it updated :) thats how we operate at mobilewizardry - the main issue is that we are not the distributor of the product; all support will be directed to MDM.

all the three options above *can* be done; but, its not my decision to say whether we can. contact me offline, and i will see what i can do - Atari make a lot of money on this software; we actually dont make a single cent from the MMC version - our interest (and, support) is with the ESD version which we do actively provide support for.

some users have even asked me for custom changes; which, i have done :) (if its easy). :P you never know unless you ask! :P

Suffice to say, mostly from getting burned by the PopCap & Atari cards (no upgrade path to newer versions w/ bug fixes & new features) has pretty much guaranteed that I'll stick to purchasing new games via downloading over retail packaging in the future.

this is a great choice - however, most people dont trust buying stuff online; hence, where the issue comes in. retail markets actually give the developer less money (yet, provide much more volumes).


---
Aaron Ardiri
PalmOS Certified Developer
aaron_ardiri@mobilewizardry.com
http://www.mobilewizardry.com/members/aaron_ardiri.php

Like a Buying a Rotary Phone in 2004

Gekko @ 7/20/2004 10:37:58 PM #
Dumb

RE: Like a Buying a Rotary Phone in 2004
statik @ 7/21/2004 12:28:25 AM #
Dumb? Not really. A lot of people are into retro gaming nowdays.

Personally, I love to veg out with a game of Yar's revenge every once in a blue moon.

RE: Like a Buying a Rotary Phone in 2004
Gekko @ 7/21/2004 2:16:36 PM #
I bet you use a manual typewriter too.

RE: Like a Buying a Rotary Phone in 2004
Strider_mt2k @ 7/24/2004 7:34:28 AM #
Um, if he did it for pleasure and is getting retro appeal from it, maybe he does.

Because that's the point here. Not running the latest greatest anything, but re-experiencing an old and favored game.

Some people drive really old cars or airplanes for pleasure occaisionally too.

How lame is the Gaming scene on Palm?

pkuhns @ 7/21/2004 9:15:36 AM #
Is it just me or does the hubbub around an "Atari 2600 emulator" speak volumes about how lame the gaming scene is on Palm? I mean come on, an emulator for a 4-bit machine from 1979 that we're supposed to pay $30 for?

PalmOne SERIOUSLY needs to get a gaming partnership program in-house to assist game developers with creating quality 3D-type and strategy games for the Palm. They are and have been missing out on a huge market for years.

So why am I still with Palm? That's a great question...


Nokia 3650 bluetooth magnate

RE: How lame is the Gaming scene on Palm?
hkklife @ 7/21/2004 9:57:13 AM #
Well, I've been preaching and thinking this for years but it seems Palm is reluctant to do anything in that direction lest people think they are not a "serious" business product company. Of course, the Zire line is supposed to be the antithesis of that, so go figure...

But I can tell you with loads of personal experience that the first thing most of the mobile sales/tech force that I know do when issued a new laptop is right-click and go to display properties to see what kind of video card is in their new laptop and see if it'll run whatever shooter or 3d title is the current flavor of the month. Of all of the titles I own or have paid to register in the past four to five years, 3/4 of them are games. I use my apps the most frequently but it's nice to have 30 different games on my SD card for whenever the mood strikes me. Rayman and, especially, Warfare Inc. are the closest you can get to "real" gaming on a Palm. Warfare Inc. support the latest hardware, multiplayer, and downloadable fan-created content. I've been playing the game basically non-stop since I registered it last year.

Palm could have carved out a nice niche years ago with a D-pad navigator thingie on OS4 machines. Remember, there wasn't a backlit Gameboy until the SP was released last year. I know that I personally gave up on GameBoy after the first Advane had that big but dim screen, preferring even a dim m505 to use when on an airplane etc.

It's basically the chicken or the egg situation here, with Palm refusing to do too much for developers that aren't selling a load of games®istrations...but the developers will claim that no one wants to game on a Palm b/c of the lackluster hardware. I recently read an interview that one developer said there would be Palm version of his PPC title because until the T2/T3/T|C/Z72, there were no Palms that could really handle the hardware demands of that particular game. Since the majority of the existing Palm user base had slow CPUs, too few buttons or too little memory (Zires, m1xxs etc), they were taking a wait and see approach. So it continues ad infinitum...

This same lack of developer support is going to be the absolute nail in the Zodiac coffin, despite a nice feature set and better-than-I-expected hardware. Really, you cannot even get a good web browser for the Zodiac! So it has a glaring lack of quality games and now we're seeing some of the top Palm non-game apps (WebPro etc) refusing to run on the Zod. A very bad omen indeed.

RE: How lame is the Gaming scene on Palm?
ackmondual @ 7/21/2004 11:28:22 AM #
^^ that seems to be one of their reasons. They don't want to get the stigma of looking like a gaming system (not that i'd be THAT MUCH MORE even if they did have better developer support). From my observations, another reason would be is there's just simply not enough interesest or market for POS gaming. I looked around college campuses, airports, and the mall, and lots of gamers will be on their GBA/SP. Many of them younger adolescents. I'll then see a fraction of ppl with (actual) PDAs, and maybe one of them will be playing blackjack of Bejeweled at the airport or airplane.

I initially thought that PPC was behind in POS gaming, but in the past few months, i gotta say that PPC is about right up here with POS. POS will still have a TON of freeware games, and have alot of support for shareware versions of various popular games, but many games are now being ported PPC (or were ported FROM them to begin with), and their [PPC]hardware has better emu support, which is where quite a few handheld gaming fans want to be at.


[signature0]the secret to enjoying your job is to have a hobby that's even worse[/signature0]
[signature1]My PDAs: Visor --> Visor Neo (blue) --> Zire 71.... so ends the "marathon", for now[/signature1]

RE: How lame is the Gaming scene on Palm?
Altema @ 7/21/2004 2:54:58 PM #
You'd think that the Tapwave would have had more mainline games waiting than the handfull they have. You can get Tony Hawks Undeground for cell phones now... There are a lot of games out there, but few that take advantage of the Zod's hardware. Going OT just for fun, here's the games I have currently on my device:

Abysma- Interesting for the first few weeks, but I'm not real fond of games that just get harder until you fail, unless they are very interesting. If you play for hours or quit immediately, you get the same results.

AcidSolitare- Plenty of hidden features that make this one never get old.

Agent Z2- LoRes but fun. Being nteresting, but not mentally taxing, make it a keeper.

Ball2- You will either have fun or get pissed.

Bejeweled- A standard, but it's been a while since I played.

Breakout- Flawless graphics and sound, only wish the paddle would self-center with the stylus like AtomSmash.

Cubis- Great graphics, cool music, little too intense for casual use.

Defender2- Good replica of original, but almost impossible to play unless you have a Dpad. Begs for a Zod or external controller.

Dreamway- Great graphics, odd but pleasing sound effects, wish you could slow it down though.

Interstellar Flames- Pumped music, easy gameplay... too easy in some cases. Also will not remember your exact gamepoint; exiting the game forces a level restart.

Insaniquarium- Blast to play, and you can set the pace to be relaxing or frantic.

IR-Pong2- LoRes and simple, but allwos two player between a Zod and a even a Palm IIIe.

Jack- This will consume all your free time for weeks, though you may want to select your own music background. Yes, you will groan when you finish the game and get the punchline to the odd "Barbeque" referrence.

Joust- Well done blast from the past. LoRes but still enjoyable.

MicroQuad- Currently one of my time suckers, has me looking for other BT devices for network play.

Monopoly- Yeah, the classic. Moves faster than the real version because the banker is instant. Multiplayer mode is clunky though (Move, beam game, move, beam game back).

Monsta- I'll probably keep this one forever, entertaining but not mindless. Still waiting for hiRes though.

Othello- one of several different versions, looking for one with good graphics and sound, but not looking too hard ;)

Pacman- The game that will not die. My version by Horace Ho is a good re-creation of the original. It's loRes and does not recognize the Dpad for left and right, but you can modify the buttons so the Dpad does up and down, and the other buttons go left or right in a logical fashion.

Planet Lander- The graphics do not go beyond the nostalgic green line art of the original Lunar Lander, but it does add velocity guide indicators which I wish I had in the original. I had to get this one because my brother modified the code of the Apple /// version to get horizontal screen wrap, making it easy to make a new contest out of building speed and making the biggest crater.

PocketChess- For those moments when I'm feeling intelectual (pun intended).

Police- Not a lot of fun after the first two days, but has not been deleted yet.

Rayman- Fun and brightly colored, but slow. Slow on everything. I used to be able to speed it up on my M515 by overclocking to 50Mhz (scarrrry), but the game does not change speed at all on OS5 devices, even at 532Mhz. It must do auto detect now.

RifleSlugs W- Nice graphics despite some 320x480 screen corruptions when the game ends. The WWW network feature would be nice... if there was someone there to play with. Been about 3 months since I've seen anyone online.

Sonic- OK, this is just the demo version, but my LauncherX games folder has Sonic as the icon, so... I'd buy this game if the price came down, OR if they had something better than 160x160 res. On the good side, it moves a thousand times better than Rayman.

Spy Hunter- Yeah, old loRes version, but still amusing once in a while.

Super Duck 3D- wild adventures with a duck that can't fly or swim, but at least he can teleport! Don't play this one much due to the embarassment factor. "Hey Dude, what'cha playin' there?" "Nevermind"

Tetris- Everyone is bored with this, except those without handhelds. I keep it around just in case.

Vexed- mind bending puzzle, and freeware I believe.

Warfare- This is my other time waster. Even the demo will keep you busy for hours at a time. Even if it did not have over a dozen story missions, downloadable mission packs, and a desktop mission editor, you could play a thousand different variations of one level. Network support is excellent for up to four players, and you can stay online as an observer after getting wiped out. No difference between PPC or Palm versions other than screen res. Warning: a heated multiplayer game can go for well over an hour, and the graphics are so detailed you will end up with your face in your PDA and hurt your eyes.

Zap!2016- Still got this one. It was my first game, and is still fun on ocassion. The latest version brought enhanced sound, but I did not like them any better than the prior version. Still no new levels, but you can continue the theme in their new game...

RE: How lame is the Gaming scene on Palm?
JonathanChoo @ 7/22/2004 6:12:20 AM #
As much as we love independant developers, we need a major publisher like Eidos or EA to bring some flagship titles to the PalmOS platform. N-Gage has a nice Fifa game in 3D (works really well) which I would gladly pay to be able to play on my PDA (POS or PPC).

--
Psion 5> Vx > m505 > N770C > T625C > NR70V > e310 > T/T > HP h2210 > T/T3 & h4150
StarTac 75 > T28m > T39m > T68m > T610 > T630
RE: How lame is the Gaming scene on Palm?
Nusm @ 7/23/2004 9:23:57 AM #
You know, I too was lamenting the state of gaming on the Palm, especially sports games. But I found a little program called NesEm, which is a Nintendo emulator. I remember fondly my hours spent when I was younger playing Techmo Super Bowl on my old Nintendo game system, and I still have my console along with a sack full of cartridges in the attic. I found various sites around the internet where I could download ROMs for Nintendo emulators, so to be legal I only downloaded the ROMs for the games I still have. But the games I have are my favorites! Now I can play Techmo Super Bowl on my Tungsten T! It will even let you save the state of your game for when you come back later, so I can still play a season. Is it Madden 2004? Nope, but I tell you what, Techmo Super Bowl still holds up after all of these years. So does the baseball game I have. I got the ROMs for the games that I have that were my favorites (yes, including Super Mario Brothers!), and I have a GameBoy that will keep my appointments and contacts!

If you really want some great games for the PDA, get NesEm and purchase some ROMs. There are plenty of sites on the internet where you can legally purchase ROMs of the old games. Not only are some of the games still pretty good, it brings back great memories of the Nintendo!

RE: How lame is the Gaming scene on Palm?
JonathanChoo @ 7/23/2004 11:18:31 AM #
Firestorm GbZ!!! if they ever release the Gameboy Advance emulation...But I am glad I have MorphGear for PPC.

--
Psion 5> Vx > m505 > N770C > T625C > NR70V > e310 > T/T > HP h2210 > T/T3 & h4150
StarTac 75 > T28m > T39m > T68m > T610 > T630
RE: How lame is the Gaming scene on Palm?
ChipKerchner @ 7/23/2004 11:38:00 AM #
> You know, I too was lamenting the state of gaming on the Palm, especially sports games.

Pocket Mini Golf and Pocket Mini Golf eXtra were recently released for the Zodiac. These are both ports of the award winning sports game from Momentumgames.

http://www.tapwave.com/titles_pmgolf.html
http://www.tapwave.com/titles_pmgolfx.html

Personally I think it more a problem of companies not wanting the popular games converted to the Palm and/or Zodiac. They view it as too much of a risk for the money. Or they want the developer to put money up for the right to develop it instead of paying a developer and publishing it themselves. Developing a new title is risky at best. Game companies are losing out on a lot of missed revenue from gaming on the Palm.

Chip

This Shows How Many Losers Are Here ...

RhinoSteve @ 7/21/2004 1:22:57 PM #
While I'm sure there are some decent professionals here with careers and lives, lets look at some facts:

"Rumor: Garmin iQue 3200 Coming?", four posts in a day
"PalmSource Posts 20 New Expert Guides", four posts in a day
"New Wireless Network Backup Solution", two comments in four days

and oddly,

"Atari Retro 2.0 Emulator Released", fourteen comments in less than two hours!!!!

This pattern totally nulls out most validity to majority view of this camp. Please guys, get away from your computers and PDAs for a while. Get to a bar, club, volunteer group, church social ... and a makeover may be in order too.

I'll be taking my coat as I leave the door now.

RE: This Shows How Many Losers Are Here ...
skeezix @ 7/21/2004 4:05:55 PM #
You do realize that gaming is very mainstream -- the video game industry makes *more* than the movie industry.

A lot of peopel ar einto retro, because old games tended to have 5 minute play value, as opposed to 100 hour logn epics like they have nowadays.

This post of yours is either a troll, or your'e really ignorant of what a lot of people do for entertainment ;) Or maybe you never realiZed how many Playstations got sold the last 10 years?

(Certainly, people should get outside, but by suggesting 16 posts on a thread on the web means people have no lives really shows naivette on your part! Its not D&D playing nerds in their closets playing games like it was 20 years ago :)

jeff

The Shadow knows!

RE: This Shows How Many Losers Are Here ...
skeezix @ 7/21/2004 4:08:45 PM #
Good lord, pardon my hurried typing as I picked up my coat and ran out the door ;)

jeff

The Shadow knows!

RE: This Shows How Many Losers Are Here ...
hkklife @ 7/21/2004 4:55:07 PM #
Look like we have a new resident pest/brat on our hands to replace Ska/Facey.

There really is nothing to be gained by slinging mud in such an immature fashion like that. I suppose that by your reckoning we should just sit around and let PIC dwindle here in the summer doldrums instead of trying to get a lively debate going about a topic that is near and dear to the hearts of MANY individuals?

Palm gaming (not PDA gaming but PALM OS gaming) is a very niche market and not adequately covered by any of the mainstream websites IMHO. PDArcade does a decent job but is far too PPC-centric.

You might be interested to know that Ryan is planning on adding a weekly gaming review/spotlight column to PIC. I intend to be a regular, enthusiastic contributor and encourage other PIC readers to join in with any applicable content--don't pay attention to these wannabe hip naysayers!

Since when was it "cool" to carry a PDA but "uncool" to play a game on one? Is someone going to now post that cheesy little cell phone games are "permitted" by the digerati hipsters with "lives" but Palm games aren't?

Sheesh!

RE: This Shows How Many Losers Are Here ...
Winter_ @ 7/22/2004 5:19:43 AM #
Huh, this IS surprising. I had RhinoSteve tagged as a potentially heavy troll. After all, he's the one that compared Jobs to Hitler and Mussolini...

http://www.palminfocenter.com/view_story.asp?ID=6886#95156

...and implied he is an Apple employee...

(pity, looks like his post bragging about a 3-number Apple employee badge was deleted in one of Facey's debacles...)

...and jokes about TSR being still alive on the PocketPC (while defending Palm OS!, demostrating that he has no idea about what he's talking about - still somehow he says he "reviews PDAs for enterprise projects")...

http://www.palminfocenter.com/comment_view.asp?ID=6937#95659

...and compares Palm critics to "evil anti-war protestors"...

http://www.palminfocentre.com/view_story.asp?ID=6927#95482

...but man, I could not expect a post like his last one. "3 posts here but 12 posts there, ergo here there are lots of losers". So lovely.
(Will he come back to say that he expected his post to stir something up - like he did after his "evil anti-war protestors" post? I'd say that that IS the definition of a troll...)


RE: This Shows How Many Losers Are Here ...
mikecane @ 7/22/2004 8:44:28 AM #
Oh my god, Rhino! Is THAT was that wooden thing in the wall is -- a DOOR?! And we can actually LEAVE our homes?! But wait... did the Great God Rhino with the Sharp Pointed Nose who actually has the time to COUNT POST actually give us his Most Sacred and Holy PERMISSION to leave our homes?

We better not risk it!

Hey, Rhino, you twit: Keep counting posts. Maybe that'll keep you from actually POSTING.

RE: This Shows How Many Losers Are Here ...
Strider_mt2k @ 7/24/2004 7:56:40 AM #
I kept wondering what all those noises were outside that glass thing in my wall!

WOW! There is a whole world out there!

...and all it took was some shmuck on an internet website to point it out!

RE: This Shows How Many Losers Are Here ...
Strider_mt2k @ 7/24/2004 8:00:12 AM #
BTW, I'm rep for the largest Law Enforcement supplier on the planet.

Game on, MF!

RE: This Shows How Many Losers Are Here ...
Winter_ @ 7/24/2004 8:53:57 AM #
I kept wondering what all those noises were outside that glass thing in my wall!

Haha! Outside the glass! How funny, we all know there is no such thing as "outside the glass"!

C'mon, you're scaring me - you were joking, huh? There's *nothing* outside that glass!

(curls in horror)

RE: This Shows How Many Losers Are Here ...
RhinoSteve @ 7/26/2004 4:57:31 AM #
quod erat demonstrandum

I hope Gambit Studios are releasing Freedom next !

killah fury @ 7/22/2004 3:43:37 AM #
I really hope that now this project is finished it means that the talented duo at Gambit Studios are going to get round to finally releasing Freedom (Liberty, the game boy emulator) for Palm 0S 5.

I've been eagerly waiting for this for a long time...

RE: I hope Gambit Studios are releasing Freedom next !
maven @ 7/22/2004 11:40:26 AM #
We've been anxious to release it too, I assure you!

A certain (unnamed) 800-pound gorilla (dum-de-dum-dum) is currently holding Polly Freedom hostage, and it's up to the "plumber" to figure out a way to save her. Unfortunately, this gorilla seems to have an endless supply of lawyers and money to throw at the plumber.

Now I am beginning to understand the deep analogy of an 80's video game :D

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