A hint! When you bring Tempest downstairs and turn it on and nothing happens.... shut the back board on it. That collapses a switch that needs to be collapsed before the game will work.
Don't sit there like an idiot thinking you broke it.
Tempest
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Ice Cream Jonsey
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Tempest
the dark and gritty...Ice Cream Jonsey!
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Ice Cream Jonsey
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Before I tell you that, I need to tell you a different story.bruce wrote:Shit....what did you have to pay for a working Tempest?
I have been playing fantasy sports, in some form, since 1992. Hockey mostly, then a rudimentary football system run by the guy who later played Yehoweh Porn. Two weeks my brother, playing high school football, outscored my entire fantasy football team. That's this whole other thing.
I have never won money at it. Ever. I won a football league made up of Saints fans but there was no money in it. I placed second the first year of my own fantasy football league, but that was the first season and the only time we did it for free.
Anyway, I won some money playing fantasy baseball and used that to get that game. I shall now provide pics! Also, check your PMs for further details on the Tempest cost.
the dark and gritty...Ice Cream Jonsey!
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Ice Cream Jonsey
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Oh! I forgot to mention! There is a FRIGGING ARCADE a few towns over. A real one, too. They had the following games:
Q*bert: I hesitate to use the word "cherry" because the cab was obviously old, but goddamn everything else was tight on it. The sound was great: loudest thing in the room. The knocker worked! For being a game that Pinner is 10x better than me at, I really had fun.
Gorf: The Gorf cabaret is the most adorable thing in the world. I can't say this is a great game, but it's historically important and the cab was cute.
Tempest: Perfect Tempest. I was actually hoping to see if Vx liked the game and she said she did. That went a long way towards getting one.
Paperboy: Still a fucking awesome game and the only way to play it is with that bike handle.
Elevator Action: You know what, this is a meticulous game that you can get too good at. I would have been on that machine for an hour and I don't think it saves high scores. So there's your motivation.
Frogger: Not my thing, didn't play it.
Centipede cabaret: Actually had monitor trouble. Hope they fixed it. Tried to turn it off but couldn't find the off switch.
Donkey Kong Jr.: Turned off, I presume it wasn't working.
Tron: Gorgeous. That's a gorgeous machine they had there.
Galaga: I did not play it, but Dayna did. Looked nice and cool and clean.
Ms. Pac-Man: Sort of beat up, but hey. I did notice that the graphics looked a little different than on mine: I am guessing that the 96-in-1 kit enhances the graphics, maybe?
Super Mario Bros.: Didn't play it.
Asteroids: I actually didn't play it, but it was the cabaret version. Dayna played it, when I was on Q*bert again, I think. I think it was Asteroids Deluxe?
Gyruss: Probably the best looking cab they had there. Not a great game or anything, but the unique controls are fun the first time.
The Williams Multi-game: I'll say it... it SUCKS. Don't get me wrong, the games it includes are great, but there is no way the Robotron joysticks had as little wiggle room as that thing. That was the only game I tried. True to form, I have never actually paid money to play one of those things because the previous player always puts too many credits in.
Battlezone: Did not try it.
Dig Dug: I didn't try it, as evidenced by the fact that I am not still playing it three days later.
Missile Command: Didn't try it.
South Park: "That's not retro," said Dayna. We both played it. Bugs, it is JUST as good as you remember. I can't encourage you getting it enough. The thing is hilarious, even when the cursing switch it turned off.
I think the other pinball game was Flinstones or something.
(I used to marvel that my brother remembered every single at-bat for every player for every softball game he was in. Like, not forever, but for the next few days he recalled every plate appearance. Well, I feel like the limp-wristed, thick-rimmed version of him.)
Oh, and there was a Baby Pac-Man pin/arcade game and an Environmental Discs of Tron game next door. I did not think to go "next door." I was told that pinball games were the only things over there. But EDOT could not fit in the arcade, so there ya go.
There is also a bar attached to this place. And a restaurant. And live music. And billiards. Basically, it's the greatest goddamn place on the face of the planet and I can't wait to go back there. I really want to get a pitcher, listen to some blues and get my picture taken inside the EDOT. And how!
Q*bert: I hesitate to use the word "cherry" because the cab was obviously old, but goddamn everything else was tight on it. The sound was great: loudest thing in the room. The knocker worked! For being a game that Pinner is 10x better than me at, I really had fun.
Gorf: The Gorf cabaret is the most adorable thing in the world. I can't say this is a great game, but it's historically important and the cab was cute.
Tempest: Perfect Tempest. I was actually hoping to see if Vx liked the game and she said she did. That went a long way towards getting one.
Paperboy: Still a fucking awesome game and the only way to play it is with that bike handle.
Elevator Action: You know what, this is a meticulous game that you can get too good at. I would have been on that machine for an hour and I don't think it saves high scores. So there's your motivation.
Frogger: Not my thing, didn't play it.
Centipede cabaret: Actually had monitor trouble. Hope they fixed it. Tried to turn it off but couldn't find the off switch.
Donkey Kong Jr.: Turned off, I presume it wasn't working.
Tron: Gorgeous. That's a gorgeous machine they had there.
Galaga: I did not play it, but Dayna did. Looked nice and cool and clean.
Ms. Pac-Man: Sort of beat up, but hey. I did notice that the graphics looked a little different than on mine: I am guessing that the 96-in-1 kit enhances the graphics, maybe?
Super Mario Bros.: Didn't play it.
Asteroids: I actually didn't play it, but it was the cabaret version. Dayna played it, when I was on Q*bert again, I think. I think it was Asteroids Deluxe?
Gyruss: Probably the best looking cab they had there. Not a great game or anything, but the unique controls are fun the first time.
The Williams Multi-game: I'll say it... it SUCKS. Don't get me wrong, the games it includes are great, but there is no way the Robotron joysticks had as little wiggle room as that thing. That was the only game I tried. True to form, I have never actually paid money to play one of those things because the previous player always puts too many credits in.
Battlezone: Did not try it.
Dig Dug: I didn't try it, as evidenced by the fact that I am not still playing it three days later.
Missile Command: Didn't try it.
South Park: "That's not retro," said Dayna. We both played it. Bugs, it is JUST as good as you remember. I can't encourage you getting it enough. The thing is hilarious, even when the cursing switch it turned off.
I think the other pinball game was Flinstones or something.
(I used to marvel that my brother remembered every single at-bat for every player for every softball game he was in. Like, not forever, but for the next few days he recalled every plate appearance. Well, I feel like the limp-wristed, thick-rimmed version of him.)
Oh, and there was a Baby Pac-Man pin/arcade game and an Environmental Discs of Tron game next door. I did not think to go "next door." I was told that pinball games were the only things over there. But EDOT could not fit in the arcade, so there ya go.
There is also a bar attached to this place. And a restaurant. And live music. And billiards. Basically, it's the greatest goddamn place on the face of the planet and I can't wait to go back there. I really want to get a pitcher, listen to some blues and get my picture taken inside the EDOT. And how!
the dark and gritty...Ice Cream Jonsey!
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Ice Cream Jonsey
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Ice Cream Jonsey
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bruce
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Truly, this is the Happiest Place On Earth.Ice Cream Jonsey wrote:Oh! I forgot to mention! There is a FRIGGING ARCADE a few towns over....There is also a bar attached to this place. And a restaurant. And live music. And billiards. Basically, it's the greatest goddamn place on the face of the planet
Bruce
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Ice Cream Jonsey
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I just verified that it's the 12 ROM version which means I can get the Tempest Tubes kit from eBay and install it by only removing one chip. Awesome. A whole nother arcade game awaits! I'm a big fan of the multi-gaming kit thing. The Ms. Pac cab has a Space Invaders clone and I've been writing my father weekly about how he needs to visit for Christmas so I can get his name in the high score bank. (He used to play the 2600 version of Space Invaders constantly with Knuckles and I when we were kids.)
the dark and gritty...Ice Cream Jonsey!
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Ice Cream Jonsey
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Ice Cream Jonsey
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Yeah, I can't get past level 13 (the "star" level). I read an interview with the guy who designed it and he tuckered out around level 80.pinback wrote:I thought we weren't going to say things like "nailed it" around Bruce anymore.Ice Cream Jonsey wrote:Yeah, Bruce pretty much nailed it.
What gets me is that he would write his code and then give it to someone to type into the computer. That is pretty much the antithesis of how I make computer programs, which is more about trying something that I think will work, booting up hewin.exe, seeing the linefeeds be all wrong and trying again.
The maddening thing is that it lets you pick the level you want to start on. Wait, that's the good part. The part that maddens is that you have to "earn" your way towards starting on a level past level 9. Level 9 it lets any asshole start with. If you want to look like a real prick, play a two player game and after player 1 picks the first board, you go pick level 9. You'd be a dick to do this.
But to go beyond that? And start at a higher level? You have to prove to the game that you can do it and you do it... by doing it.
For instance: let's say you make it to level 13 and die. It doesn't let you start on even levels, only odd ones. So you have "unlocked" the ability to start at level 11. Cool! But if you die before completing level 11 then you will lose your unlock and be right back into Losertown. Do you know who the Mayor of Losertown is? It's Level 9 in Tempest.
I wish there were some sort of credential system in the game. I played it for an hour tonight and got past level 11 for most of that time. I fuck up once and it's right back down to level 9. I wish it did voice recognition. "I am Benjamin 'Pinback' Parrish and I verify that ICJ can start at level 13. Or 15. Just trust me." That would be fine.
the dark and gritty...Ice Cream Jonsey!
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Ice Cream Jonsey
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Ice Cream Jonsey
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A few days after I posted the above message I hit 155,400.
Yesterday I was determined to play the game until I broke my high score.
It took me an hour to get to the second "wave." After you go through 16 screens the game turns from blue to red and a new enemy comes out called the pulsars. They are evil. They electrify the field. It should not take me an hour to get to the 17th board (the first on wave two).
The correct word is probably not wave, but what the hell.
Anyway, I ended up playing it for about 80 minutes straight and had to stop because my right arm, which controls shooting, was locked up in claw-like form just like the claw you play in Tempest itself. Has any game ever transmogrified its player into a cruel likeness of the game's avatar like Tempest does? This is like repeated exposure to Nethack making your forefinger curl grotesquely around itself. I guess it's called "repetitive stress syndrome" or something. Not 100% sure, but I could not lift my right arm when I went to bed last night. (It was fine when I woke up.)
Additionally, while playing the game I noticed that on three occasions it let loose with a medium-pitched tone. I thought it was because I got into the top-three scores (which it saves to RAM). Found out today I activated something called the "slam switch." They were installed on games to combat customer abuse: if the arcade operator heard this go on he could go investigate because it meant that a player was being too rough with the machine. I wasn't being too rough, I was just playing the thing.
Anyway, I had never heard of either of those two events happening, so there you go. I did break my previous high by a measly 400 points. I tried to play tonight but did not even get to the second wave. I'm terrible at this game.
Yesterday I was determined to play the game until I broke my high score.
It took me an hour to get to the second "wave." After you go through 16 screens the game turns from blue to red and a new enemy comes out called the pulsars. They are evil. They electrify the field. It should not take me an hour to get to the 17th board (the first on wave two).
The correct word is probably not wave, but what the hell.
Anyway, I ended up playing it for about 80 minutes straight and had to stop because my right arm, which controls shooting, was locked up in claw-like form just like the claw you play in Tempest itself. Has any game ever transmogrified its player into a cruel likeness of the game's avatar like Tempest does? This is like repeated exposure to Nethack making your forefinger curl grotesquely around itself. I guess it's called "repetitive stress syndrome" or something. Not 100% sure, but I could not lift my right arm when I went to bed last night. (It was fine when I woke up.)
Additionally, while playing the game I noticed that on three occasions it let loose with a medium-pitched tone. I thought it was because I got into the top-three scores (which it saves to RAM). Found out today I activated something called the "slam switch." They were installed on games to combat customer abuse: if the arcade operator heard this go on he could go investigate because it meant that a player was being too rough with the machine. I wasn't being too rough, I was just playing the thing.
Anyway, I had never heard of either of those two events happening, so there you go. I did break my previous high by a measly 400 points. I tried to play tonight but did not even get to the second wave. I'm terrible at this game.
the dark and gritty...Ice Cream Jonsey!
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Ice Cream Jonsey
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Also, everyone can enjoy this:
http://www.atariprotos.com/2600/softwar ... empest.htm
It talks about the aborted attempts to bring Tempest to the 2600. It's amazing that the programmer got even that far.
http://www.atariprotos.com/2600/softwar ... empest.htm
It talks about the aborted attempts to bring Tempest to the 2600. It's amazing that the programmer got even that far.
the dark and gritty...Ice Cream Jonsey!
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Ice Cream Jonsey
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The last time there were some people over, I was hearing reports of the superzapper button not being very responsive. I finally had a chance to play some Tempest tonight and sure enough, you had to hit it perfectly in the center for the superzapper to register. That won't do.
I needed to find the manual to Tempest. The guy I bought it from gave me a Xeroxed copy, but I was really hoping to find the PDF so I could throw that out. Luckily, the PDF is located on the KLOV.com site, on Tempest's specific page.
I then saw how they want you to open the control panel: they want you to reach your hand through the coin box and open up the "luggage latches." What the fuck is a luggage latch?
Well, this.
I own one piece of purple luggage. It does not have any latches on it. But knowledge is power.
I felt around the inside of the cab and undid the latches. It was very sexy. I opened the control panel and had a look at the superzapper. I didn't have any leaf switches around to replace the one in there, but it really didn't need to be replaced. It was a little loose and a little bent out of shape. I tightened things down and gave it a slight, but firm push. I want the superzapper to be on a hair trigger. I want, when the Tempest claw is finally brought before a court of law for its numerous crimes against meanies, for the trial to not even bother registering the amount of pressure it takes to set off the superzapper, because everyone just knows it's as slight as all hell. I want a box of feathers and angel farts to at least be able to "superzap" anything either of those two entities face in the game.
I can assure you all that the superzapper will go off if someone just walks by the machine now. Perfect. It's perfect.
I hugged my Tempest and came in here to write this shit up, in case anyone Googling for "Tempest control panel open" wonders how the hell you get to that thing like I did. I should also upload the manual to pdf.textfiles.com.
I needed to find the manual to Tempest. The guy I bought it from gave me a Xeroxed copy, but I was really hoping to find the PDF so I could throw that out. Luckily, the PDF is located on the KLOV.com site, on Tempest's specific page.
I then saw how they want you to open the control panel: they want you to reach your hand through the coin box and open up the "luggage latches." What the fuck is a luggage latch?
Well, this.
I own one piece of purple luggage. It does not have any latches on it. But knowledge is power.
I felt around the inside of the cab and undid the latches. It was very sexy. I opened the control panel and had a look at the superzapper. I didn't have any leaf switches around to replace the one in there, but it really didn't need to be replaced. It was a little loose and a little bent out of shape. I tightened things down and gave it a slight, but firm push. I want the superzapper to be on a hair trigger. I want, when the Tempest claw is finally brought before a court of law for its numerous crimes against meanies, for the trial to not even bother registering the amount of pressure it takes to set off the superzapper, because everyone just knows it's as slight as all hell. I want a box of feathers and angel farts to at least be able to "superzap" anything either of those two entities face in the game.
I can assure you all that the superzapper will go off if someone just walks by the machine now. Perfect. It's perfect.
I hugged my Tempest and came in here to write this shit up, in case anyone Googling for "Tempest control panel open" wonders how the hell you get to that thing like I did. I should also upload the manual to pdf.textfiles.com.
the dark and gritty...Ice Cream Jonsey!