Atari 7800

I've started looking at the 7800 again for coding purposes. I've hacked together the start of a shell program as well, although it's not done enough to test. To test it I'll have to add a couple actual graphics and then hack in a single display list..list. Essentially it would be a static picture or tiled background. the 7800 is looking like it might be easier to code than the 2600, but given how mindnumbingly hard the 2600 can be, that's not saying much. ^^;

If I do seriously attempt a game on the 7800, it'll likely be a tiled platformer type game. Mostly because that's one of the harder things to do on the 7800 since it's not built for those types of games the same way the NES is specially rigged for it. The advantage of the 7800 is that while it can't do certain types of games easily, it's far more generic and geared to be molded into anything you want it to be. Need a tile engine? You just have to write it. It might not do the job as well as something geared specifically for it, but if the game is designed properly, it can still make one hell of a game.

I have several ideas for games in mind, and I might even attempt making Action RPG on the 7800 instead of the 2600. (Although I'll up the graphics standards to be more in line with the 7800 of course! ;)

Ah well, time will tell. I'll attempt to compile the static-screen rom on the weekend.