matthughson

I'm starting to put feelers out for publishing of my next NES game, Witch n' Wiz, and one such publisher is LRG.

They've done a few retro releases at this point, but I haven't had much interaction with them. Anyone have strong opinions about them, good or bad, buyer or developer? Feel free to DM me if it's not something you want to share publicly.

Topics I'm curious about:

• Shipping costs
• World-wide shipping
• Quality of components
• Quality of box/manual/etc
• Marketing reach
• Business dealings

If you are a collector, what are your feelings when you see a NES game show up on LRG?

1 hour ago, a3quit4s said:

I can't remember do you have a mailing list?

For now, I would just sign  up for my other games mailing list.

http://frombelowgame.com/

I'll ping that group once the game is nearing completion.

On 7/27/2021 at 4:17 PM, a3quit4s said:

Ayo when I can I buy a physical cart!

I'm aiming for end of summer 2021. September 2021 time-frame.

I just hit a big milestone in development of Witch n' Wiz... all of the core puzzles are now designed and playable in game!

There is still lots left to do, but I think designing the puzzles themselves was the most time consuming part for me, and something I don't really enjoy. So with that out of the way, it will hopefully be smooth sailing for the rest of the project and a planned release of end of summer!

Here's short clip of the last puzzle I made!

3 hours ago, a3quit4s said:

Whoa battery save, I don't think I have seen that on a homebrew yet. Doner carts or factory produced that way?

Oh really? I haven't actually looked into it much yet. Just assumed it was possible haha. Won't be donor carts for sure.

Soko Banana $60 CIB Link

Link is dead.

Work has been slow the last month or so. I've been feeling super lethargic after the NESDev compo ended. It's a weird feeling to basically final a game, go through the rush and excitement of releasing it, and then jump back into the day-to-day grind of building the remaining 80% of the game. It feels really anti-climatic and it's been a tough hump to get over.

Regardless though, work has continued, and the last week or so I'm getting back into my "put the kids to bed and work till 10pm, no matter what" mentality, and it's helped a bunch.

Tilesets in Game

All the cool new tilesets I showed in the previous updates are no longer just mockups, and are now in-game, with their associated gameplay.

In addition to these new tilesets, the original Castle tileset from the NESDev Compo build has also gotten a facelift as well!

New Character Sprites

You may have noticed another big change in the gameplay above... brand new character sprites!

The original sprites were more or less a paint over of the Pico-8 sprites from the original version of the game, and didn't really pop in the way I wanted them to on the NES. So now we have these new, multi-colored Witch Sprites, as well as new sprites for the Wizard!

Prologue

I've been plugging away at the opening of the game; a prologue to the main gameplay which tells a little back story. It explains why the boy, Wiz, is being held captive in the Castle, and why the girl, Witch, is trying to rescue him. It takes place 5 years before the main game, and is linear with no real puzzle elements. Here's a quick abridged look at it in it's current state.

Some of the art is placeholder at this point!

New Music

Tui has been working on new songs to go with the new level tilesets. Here's a little sample from the hidden, in-game sound test menu.

Magazine Coverage

Cool Sh#t Magazine was kind enough to do a nice big preview of the game. It's a fun magazine, and something I look forward to reading every month.

Now that the 2020/21 nesdev compo is done, I figured it is time to start an official thread for my current project: Witch n' Wiz.

I'll try to post here when I make major progress, but generally I do much more frequent updates on Twitter and Discord (links in Top Post).

Witch n' Wiz is out now!

A new puzzle-platformer for the NES & PC!

3 WAYS TO PLAY

Free in Browser on PiePacker: 
https://beta.piepacker.com/game/witchnwiz

Download the ROM via itch.io: 
https://mhughson.itch.io/witch-n-wiz

Buy a Limited Edition NES Cart from Limited Run Games: 
https://limitedrungames.com/collections/witch-n-wiiz

Genre:

Turn-Based Puzzle Platformer (e.g. Fire n' Ice, Catrap, etc)

Technical Details:

• Targets Mapper 1 (MMC1).
• 128KB PRG-ROM (16KB Bank Swapping) + 128KB CHR-ROM (4KB CHR Window).
• Written in C (CC65) using NESLib and NESDoug/cppchris' MMC1 Helper libraries.
• Famitone5 sound engine (also by nesdoug).

Status:

COMPLETE!

Features:

• 100+ Levels
• New puzzle mechanics every 5-10 levels
• Battery Save
• Interactive story telling
• Rewind ability, to undo previous moves without restarting the entire puzzle
• Art by Kenneth Fejer, Daniel Turner (Alp317) and Haller Zoltan (Zolionline)
• Music by Tui

Physical Cart:

Available RIGHT NOW on Limited Run games. This is an open preorder until mid December, when it will go out of print! This is the only chance to buy a physical copy for at least a year!

https://limitedrungames.com/search?type=product,page&q=Witch n' Wiz*

Screenshots:

Compo Version:

Witch n' Wiz was submitted as part of the 2020/21 NESDev Competition, and came in 2nd place. That build of the game can still be downloaded and played on itch:

https://mhughson.itch.io/witch-n-wiz

You can read all about the development of that version in the compo thread here:

https://www.videogamesage.com/forums/topic/6938-witch-n-wiz-nesdev-compo-edtion-out-now/

Social Media:

Twitter: https://twitter.com/matthughson
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2788404591447894
Discord: https://discord.gg/DenmA4ssPY

26 minutes ago, Raftronaut said:

Thanks again for this. I finally got around to implementing it on my powerpak and the rom works now.

Glad to hear it worked!

I always find it hard to find the actual episodes when you post here @Scrobins. Might be nice to include a link?

1 hour ago, dvertov said:

If you took that one off the list I suspect #5 might be Trophy, which raised $40,096. 

You are correct!

I just did this search by the way. Nothing complex

https://www.kickstarter.com/discover/advanced?term=nes&category_id=35&sort=most_funded&seed=2695265&page=1

Updated May 2023:

Here's the top 10, most funded homebrew game projects. This only includes funds from Kickstarter (some games had massive indiegogo or post launch sales as well).

NOTES:

• Some Kickstarters include multiple platformers (eg. NES + SNES etc) so it's not entirely apples to apples comparisons.
• I am only including new releases, not re-issues of old games, however I am including original ports of games that previously appears on other platforms.

#12 Trophy ($40,096)

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/solegoose/trophy

#11 Anguna: Scourge of the Goblin King ($40,435)

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/solegoose/anguna-scourge-of-the-goblin-king

#10 Project Blue ($42,592)

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/nesgame/project-blue

#9 Montezuma's Revenge ($45,060)

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/348297293/nes-montezumas-revenge

#8 Roniu's Tale ($49,243)

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/megacatstudios/ronius-tale-for-the-nes

#7: Dungeons & Doomknights ($54,715)

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/artix/dungeons-and-doomknights-an-8-bit-adventurequest-f

* Includes multiple platforms in final sales numbers.

Sounds interesting! I'm worried I'll just end up wishing I was reading the book rather than scrolling through text on a GB screen though... Looks like it's well over the goal already though!

I recorded a playthrough here if anyone gets stuck (or wants to challenge my speed run):

Here is a fan made mapper 28 support:

https://forums.nesdev.com/viewtopic.php?p=102718#p102718

28 minutes ago, Raftronaut said:

Hmmm, I thought I had that one working... 

I'll have to do some more research. I still haven't figured out all my power mapper situation fully.

thanks for the letting me know,   helps put me on the right path  

I just took a quick look, and it does not look like PowerPak supports mapper 28 (https://www.retrousb.com/product_info.php?products_id=34).

That's kind of surprising to me, but I'm not sure how active PowerPak development is. You could trying reaching out to @bunnyboy on the VGS Discord.

4 minutes ago, Raftronaut said:

I haven't been able to get this boot on my powerpak yet. 

Which mapper does this use? 

I might have to update my powerpak mapper support. or just settle for an emulator 

Mapper 28 (Action 53).

Mapper 28 (Action 53). 

DOWNLOAD HERE!

Update: Now that the competition is over, you can follow the rest of the development on the official thread here:

https://www.videogamesage.com/forums/topic/7795-witch-n-wiz/

I am working on a new game for the NES: Witch n' Wiz!

For the 2020/21 NESDev competition, I have put together a sort of "demo" of game. You can download it for free using the link above. It is just a small sampling of what I hope to deliver in the final game, in fall of 2021.

Genre:

Turn-Based Puzzle Platformer (e.g. Fire n Ice, Catrap, etc)

How to Play:

Objective:

Vanquish all the monsters in room by slamming into them from the side. Push blocks around in a similar way to create bridges over gaps.

You cannot jump! The only way to move up is the climb a ladder.

If you make a mistake, press B to undo your last move, or SELECT to restart the room.

Controls:

D-PAD:    Move the character.
SELECT:   Restart current room.
START:    Pause game (view password, change floors, quit game).
B BUTTON: Undo last move.
A BUTTON: Switch characters (later levels only).

Features:

• 30+ Levels
• New puzzle mechanics every 5-10 levels
• Password Save
• Art by Kenneth Fejer and Zolionline.
• Music by Tui

Social Media:

• Twitter: https://twitter.com/matthughson
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2788404591447894
• Discord: https://discord.gg/DenmA4ssPY

The FINAL BETA version of Vs. From Below is OUT NOW!

Download the FREE emulator-friendly ROM or Vs. Arcade-Ready EPROMS!

Read whats new, and about how the best players in the world competed to have their scores etched into the silicon of this game FOREVER!

https://mhughson.itch.io/from-below/devlog/212679/vs-system-beta-0100

3 hours ago, Famicuber said:

From the Itch page:

CONTROLS

Left and Right - Moves the Red Juggler left and right.
A and B Buttons - Moves the Blue Juggler left and right.
Start Button - Pauses the game.

No said anything about this game involving reading! What a bait and switch! 

Sweet. Thanks for all the info.

I saw this game mentioned in another thread with a "word of warning" about pre-ordering. Game looks really amazing though, and I am completely in the dark on what happened... in the past.

Without being too harsh, can someone explain in an objective way what happened (I can assess the risk of ordering for myself). 

http://paprium.com/

On 12/9/2020 at 5:23 PM, Dr. Morbis said:

If his intent was to not include home-made (so to speak) ports of games already extant on other consoles, your game would be far from the only game that would have to be removed from the list...

On 12/9/2020 at 6:25 PM, Scrobins said:

Yep I consider it a homebrew as it applies to that console, much like KHAN’s Scramble and Sneak ‘n Peek ports.

Interesting. I don't mind my stuff being on here or anything (happy to have the promotion), but just to be clear...

You consider Pico-8 games to be homebrew? And further-more you consider engines written for PC based on Pico-8 to be homebrew? I've just never been super clear with what Mono8 is, so I wanted to make sure there isn't confusion.

Pico-8: A fantasy console for making, sharing and playing tiny games and other computer programs. It feels like a regular console, but runs on Windows / Mac / Linux.

Mono8: A modern C#/MonoGame game engine written to mimic the functionality of Pico-8 (color palette, code API, etc), but not actually an emulator or anything like that. Basically an engine to create retro-looking games for modern PCs which will feel familiar to Pico-8 developers. It is not a game.

I don't know if my other project Witch n' Wiz is causing confusion, as that is an NES homebrew game which is a port of my Pico-8 game of the same name.

Anyway, I hope I don't come across as second guessing your process (I really appreciate this work you do), I just want help clarify what my project is/isn't.