Commander X16

Munch Mania -- inspired by Munch Man on the TI-99.
1. This is not a direct port of Munch Man. While it shares a lot of similarities with that game, this is not a one-to-one reproduction of that game. So, certain mechanics and (most definitely) sound effects will deviate from the original.

2. There are 20 unique levels, 11 based on variants from the original Munch Man and 9 based on variants from the 1982 Winter CES demo.

3. There are 40 levels total. Can you make it all the way to the end?

4. Bonus lives are awarded every 20,000 points -- to a max of 10.

5. Use arrow keys/d-pad to move, and enter (start on controller) to pause/unpause the game. If Joystick1 is present, it will be used. Otherwise, the keyboard is used. Depending on your controller, you may find that the keyboard is much easier to control/use -- as was the case with the original TI-99 version.

6. To run, extract into a directory in which x16emu can run, then launch with:
x16emu -prg MUNCH.PRG -run -joy1

Or, launch the emulator then enter:
LOAD"MUNCH.PRG" RUN

7. Huge, huge shout-out to Matt Heffernan -- without his exceptional tutorials and code samples, none of this could have been possible.

Download: Version Notes:

V1.5

• Updated to be compatible with 65c816 instruction set -- no change in functionality.

• Only MUNCH.PRG changed; you can simply copy that into your game directory (to avoid overwriting your HISCORE.BIN).

V1.4

• Updated high-score saving to work with the latest kernel. Since this game was originally released, the kernel has been changed to not save over existing files. So, the first high-score would be saved, but subsequent ones would not overwrite the file, and the first high-score stayed forever. V1.4 works with the latest kernel to ensure new high-scores are saved.

• Only MUNCH.PRG changed; you can simply copy that into your game directory (to avoid overwriting your HISCORE.BIN).

V1.3

• Fixed joystick routines. If Joystick1 is present, it is used. Otherwise, the keyboard is used.

• Only MUNCH.PRG changed; you can simply copy that into your game directory (to avoid overwriting your HISCORE.BIN).

V1.2

• Enemies now react to the player. They will pursue the player when they're nearby and hostile. They will flee the player when nearby and a power-up is active (i.e., when the enemies are vulnerable).

• Power-up collision detection has been improved. Previously, the player had to be completely over the power-up to eat it. This meant the power-ups weren't always consumed when it seemed like they should be. This was particularly frustrating when racing enemies to the power-up, or when it was the last thing in the level to eat.

• Power-ups stay active for a bit longer now (due to the enemies being more dangerous).

• Randomization routines have been changed to better prevent enemies from falling into lock-step with one another for extended periods of time (i.e., occupying the same location on screen while moving along the same path). Lock-step can still occur, but the duration should be much shorter.

• Only MUNCH.PRG changed; you can simply copy that into your game directory (to avoid overwriting your HISCORE.BIN).

V1.1

• Fixed an order of operations issue where if you happened to finish a level just as an enemy killed you, you'd die, but the moment you moved after respawning, the level would be over. Now, level completion is checked before enemy collision.

• Added version number on load screen

• Modified load screen text to mention both enter and start

• Only MUNCH.PRG changed; you can simply copy that into your game directory (to avoid overwriting your HISCORE.BIN).

Potential Future Work:

• None planned

Just uploaded V1.1 (replacing the download in the top comment above):

• Fixed an order of operations issue where on the rare occasion that you happened to finish a level just as an enemy touched you, you'd die, and the moment you moved after respawning, the level would be over. Now, level completion is checked before enemy collision.

• Added version number on load screen

• Modified load screen text to mention both enter and start

• Only MUNCH.PRG changed; you can simply copy that into your game directory (to avoid overwriting your HISCORE.BIN).

Just uploaded V1.2 (replacing the download in the top comment above):

• Enemies now react to the player. They will pursue the player when they're nearby and hostile. They will flee the player when nearby and a power-up is active (i.e., when the enemies are vulnerable).

• Power-up collision detection has been improved. Previously, the player had to be completely over the power-up to eat it. This meant the power-ups weren't always consumed when it seemed like they should be. This was particularly frustrating when racing enemies to the power-up, or when it was the last thing in the level to eat.

• Power-ups stay active for a bit longer now (due to the enemies being more dangerous).

• Randomization routines have been changed to better prevent enemies from falling into lock-step with one another for extended periods of time (i.e., occupying the same location on screen while moving along the same path). Lock-step can still occur, but the duration should be much shorter.

• Only MUNCH.PRG changed; you can simply copy that into your game directory (to avoid overwriting your HISCORE.BIN).

Worked on H/W, except didn't respond for me with gamepad 1 or 2. Any new build possible?

Thanks for the heads up! I'll see what I can figure out.

voidstar wrote: ↑Sun Oct 15, 2023 4:44 am Worked on H/W, except didn't respond for me with gamepad 1 or 2. Any new build possible?

On R45? Seems there is a bug in the rom joystick routines. Both my games also don't work with joysticks on R45, but run fine on R44. Both emulator or HW.

AndyMt:

The code I based my routines on wasn't working in R44. I fixed that. Haven't tried on R45. Thanks for the heads up, though!

V1.3 has been uploaded

• It fixes the joystick issue that voidstar posted. If Joystick1 is present, it should be used. Otherwise, the keyboard will be used. (At least in R44; haven't test R45 (See AndyMt's note).)

• Only MUNCH.PRG changed; you can simply copy that into your game directory (to avoid overwriting your HISCORE.BIN).

Working well for me on R45 w/ gmaepad! TY

Thanks for checking and posting, voidstar!

AndyMt, in case it helps, my routines are heavily based on Matt's: https://github.com/SlithyMatt/x16-chase ... ystick.asm