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Post by garryg on Jun 17, 2014 7:11:31 GMT -5
Do you think it's possible to write a horror based game for the Vectrex?
Black & white can be eary by its very nature, and there are minimalist horror games working on other platforms.
I suppose a redefined character set could be used for 'flat' images.
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Post by gliptitude on Jun 17, 2014 9:05:35 GMT -5
I think it would be difficult and you would have to be very clever and creative to pull it off. .. A text game could be done in horror style, but that would seem a waste of a Vectrex. .. Maybe a text game that also had some (non interactive) graphics? There is a dungeon crawler type game (demo) for Vectrex called Labyrinth, by Chris Salomon I think. It is very erie and potentially horror like. But i think even without any enemies or objectives, these graphics are maxing out the hardware. I think the music and sound (including silence) would be very important for a horror game on Vectrex. .. Maybe I,Cyborg actually bares some resemblence to a horror game? I suppose a redefined character set could be used for 'flat' images. What does this mean? |
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Post by Mayhem on Jun 17, 2014 11:23:43 GMT -5
A version of 3D Monster Maze (from the ZX81) would probably work well on the Vectrex, with some enhancements.
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Post by TrekMD on Jun 17, 2014 12:00:37 GMT -5
I think that idea is cool. A 3D maze game like Skeleton+ for the 2600 or a Doom-like game may be a cool project for the Vectrex. Maybe you are trapped in Dracula's castle and have to crawl around fighting skeletons, zombies, and other monsters.  BTW, this is post #2000 for me! |
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Post by VectorX on Jun 17, 2014 12:19:08 GMT -5
A 3D maze game like Skeleton+ for the 2600 or a Doom-like game may be a cool project for the Vectrex. With the Vectrex's decent soundchip, stuff that you don't even *see* can be creepy, such as traps being opened up on Doom and releasing one or more creatures that you didn't even know were right behind you can still give you a scare, even if vector monsters, by default, probably wouldn't be real scary-looking (although with Cyborg being mentioned earlier, perhaps those spider things in the second level could be creepy if put in the right context). BTW, this is post #2000 for me! Congrats on being the first of the Vectrexer rank on here  |
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Post by 50tbrd on Jun 17, 2014 13:33:29 GMT -5
The music is THE most important component. I was listening to this song the other day, which is very ominous and wonder how close the Vectrex could come to duplicating it. www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDe0gc4ETTkBTW, congratulations, TrekMD I noticed you were at 1999 yesterday. |
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Post by TrekMD on Jun 17, 2014 15:05:31 GMT -5
That music sounds good for a scary game! Thanks for the congrats, guys!
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Post by VectorX on Jun 17, 2014 15:20:27 GMT -5
The first few minutes of that are very creepy indeed! Great too, I actually sat through the whole thing (I usually stay away from videos that long and listen to them later), even though I had no idea what was going on with the game! |
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Post by hcmffm on Jun 18, 2014 4:18:43 GMT -5
In my opinion, a horror game should be possible on the Vectrex: My wife is even a bit afraid of the black, square Vectrex console. ;-) Many years ago I've played Lords of Doom on the C64 ported by a friend of mine. I played it on a small b/w TV. The things that made the game horrifying: - In the game there were signs of decay and loneliness (e.g. a paper flying around in the wind, ravens). - No other humans around in the game - Shocking visual and sound effects like quickly approaching foes (Zombies, Vampires, and others) - Player's life is in danger - Music that indicates danger but that doesn't tell you when exactly the danger appears - Dark themed graphics Once I had played Lords of Doom in the middle of the night. Then, all of a sudden a Zombie appeared on the screen and in this instant something grabbed me from behind which made me jump off the chair. I turned and saw my grinning younger brother. Grrr! ;-) Some additional 'scare factors': - Daytime: Night / Cloudy / Foggy - The nature elements or some mystic force are present (wind, flash, fire, water, forest, ...). - Setup / Story: In more modern games (e.g. SystemShock, BioShock, ...) often the player starts in a suspect scenario that cannot be understood and does not make sense at first. Bit-by-bit and step-by-step you learn and understand. - Player's and/or other character's psychology: Partly insane and/or untrustable That's just some ideas/thoughts - I really think that a horror game on the Vectrex is feasible. But it depends on how much you are used to horror stuff. ;-) TrekMD: Congrats to your 2000th post and thank you for your nice and wise answers, tipps, suggestions, and comments! |
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Post by VectorX on Jun 18, 2014 8:27:53 GMT -5
^Wow, that sounds like quite the game! Once I had played Lords of Doom in the middle of the night. Then, all of a sudden a Zombie appeared on the screen and in this instant something grabbed me from behind which made me jump off the chair. I turned and saw my grinning younger brother. Grrr! ;-) Heh! I did a similar thing during a showing of some Friday the 13th movie or something when I worked at a dollar theatre in high school and some friends were in the audience. At one point a killer (or Jason if it was indeed one of the hundred Fri. the 13th movies  ) had a knife and I think slit someone's throat. Right then and there I yanked out my comb and ran it across one of my friend's throats. I'm surprised we were still friends for a while after that  TrekMD: Congrats to your 2000th post and thank you for your nice and wise answers, tipps, suggestions, and comments! He is quite the valued member on here, among many others |
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Post by TrekMD on Jun 18, 2014 8:41:34 GMT -5
TrekMD: Congrats to your 2000th post and thank you for your nice and wise answers, tipps, suggestions, and comments! He is quite the valued member on here, among many others Thanks. Now I'm blushing. |
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Post by centaura on Jun 18, 2014 8:54:54 GMT -5
A zombies game could be great! Of course the sound effects are very important, maybe sound of far footsteps, creaking of doors... the vectrex soundchip can do it. I played a PC game named "Alone in the dark", at early 90. Aside the astounding 3D polygonal render (for its age) I can remember the very surrounding and mysterious atmosphere, caused by the strange camera angles and the disturbing background sounds |
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Post by VectorX on Jun 18, 2014 9:27:00 GMT -5
He is quite the valued member on here, among many others Thanks. Now I'm blushing. That's 'cuz your fly is open |
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Post by vectrexroli on Jun 18, 2014 11:29:13 GMT -5
Do you think it's possible to write a horror based game for the Vectrex? Black & white can be eary by its very nature, and there are minimalist horror games working on other platforms. I suppose a redefined character set could be used for 'flat' images. A horror game like that for example? I would like to see that getting released, as I played the demo: |
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Post by TrekMD on Jun 18, 2014 12:31:34 GMT -5
That looks promising! What happened with it?
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BTW, this is post #2000 for me! 
) had a knife and I think slit someone's throat. Right then and there I yanked out my comb and ran it across one of my friend's throats. I'm surprised we were still friends for a while after that 
