Sisyphus on Mushrooms - Let's Play 30 Years of Mario

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Video Games > Let's Play! > Sisyphus on Mushrooms - Let's Play 30 Years of Mario

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funky not a junkie: Aug 5, 2011

wow i love hash

# ? Aug 16, 2014 16:50

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# ? Jun 8, 2024 19:10

fixelbrumpf: May 26, 2001

K&K, I'm fairly sure Yoshi's Island also uses the Super FX 2 chip to do the various sprite scaling/rotation effects. The SNES didn't have any hardware assistance for scaling sprites, Mode 7 was only designed to mess with a single tile background even though some games manage to make it not look like it, and had some serious limitations. For instance, a vanilla SNES couldn't have pulled off that bouncing boss at like 32:00 with the foreground and background graphics layers still going on.

Also, glad I'm not the only one who likes Genesis-style parallax with tons of layers, it may be a bit crude-looking at times but you can't deny the awesome 3D effect it creates when used right.

As for Yoshi's Island -- to be quite honest, it's too slow and plodding for my tastes. I've always loved how you can just breeze through levels in the earlier Mario games if you're good enough at them, and you just can't do that here. If you ask me, the best thing about it is the "big boss" theme, which is like the best "oh poo poo" music ever.

Finally, I thought Donkey Kong Country looked like garbage even when it came out. :cool:

fixelbrumpf fucked around with this message at 18:03 on Aug 16, 2014

# ? Aug 16, 2014 17:53

MR. J: Nov 22, 2011; Chuck and Fuck

I thought the trick to using mode 7 to mess with "sprites" was to treat the sprite as a background, but give it a scaling hitbox. Like that golem boss in Castlevania 4, the background just goes black during that fight so I figured that was because they were using mode7 to mess with the boss' "sprite."

# ? Aug 16, 2014 18:00

fixelbrumpf: May 26, 2001

Yep, that's pretty much how Mode 7 was used for bosses in games.

Here's some technical mumbo jumbo about SNES graphics modes:

code:

MODE   # of BGs  Max Colors/Tile   Palettes       Colors Total
0      4         4                 32 (8 per BG)  128 (32 per BG*4 BGs)
1      3         BG1/BG2:16 BG3:4  8              BG1/BG2:128 BG3:32
2      2         16                8              128
3      2         BG1:256 BG2:16    BG1:1 BG2:8    BG1:256 BG2:128
4      2         BG1:256 BG2:4     BG1:1 BG2:8    BG1:256 BG2:32
5      2         BG1:16 BG2:4      8              BG1:128 BG2:32 (Interlaced mode)
6      1         16                8              128 (Interlaced mode)
7      1         256               1              256

As you can see in the table, whenever Mode 7 was used, only one background was available, while most games on SNES usually used three during normal gameplay: One for the foreground, one for the parallax background, and one for the HUD. Layer three usually doubled for doing those super SNES-ish looking transparency effects.

fixelbrumpf fucked around with this message at 18:22 on Aug 16, 2014

# ? Aug 16, 2014 18:11

Zeikier: Jan 26, 2010; "This woman...she's killed before, and not just once..."

fixelbrumpf posted:

Also, glad I'm not the only one who likes Genesis-style parallax with tons of layers, it may be a bit crude-looking at times but you can't deny the awesome 3D effect it creates when used right.

This boss fight in Dynamite Headdy was really cool in how it used pseudo-3D in the fight even though parallax isn't what makes it interesting. You're on a rotating platform, and at the end of each phase you'd be swung around into the background. It was a neat how they used the Mini power-up sprite for other things and I love when a game reuses assets in creative ways like that.

Zeikier fucked around with this message at 03:54 on Aug 17, 2014

# ? Aug 17, 2014 03:46

Glazius: Jul 22, 2007; Hail all those who are able,
any mouse can,
any mouse will,
but the Guard prevail.; Clapping Larry

It's going to be interesting to see you guys making it through this game. It's got a lot of neat moments.

# ? Aug 18, 2014 04:01

19LettersLong: May 8, 2011; ...let's just put this away.

Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 (1995)
Part 1/2 (LP pt.69) [Youtube]

# ? Aug 26, 2014 04:27

Regy Rusty: Apr 26, 2010

Keith Fucks With the Color Pallet was amazing. The totally black screen and Virtual Boy style had me cracking up.

# ? Aug 26, 2014 05:14

you were warned: Jul 12, 2006; (the S is for skeleton)

Agreed, this was fantastic. The Super Gameboy and a second player mouse were a match made in heaven. He hit upon some pretty amazing palettes.

Also, I agree with Keith completely: gently caress all coupes. :colbert:

# ? Aug 26, 2014 05:22

XavierStudios: Feb 26, 2011; I am physics and so can you!

Damnit, Keith, you almost figured out how to draw over the game this episode.

# ? Aug 26, 2014 05:38

SlothfulCobra: Mar 27, 2011

Hey Keith, you know how with old analog ball mouses, you occasionally had to scrape some gunk off of the wheels that detect the ball's movement?

I think you should try doing that.

# ? Aug 26, 2014 05:41

ChairMaster: Aug 22, 2009; by R. Guyovich

SlothfulCobra posted:

Hey Keith, you know how with old analog ball mouses, you occasionally had to scrape some gunk off of the wheels that detect the ball's movement?

I think you should try doing that.

Are you saying that out of experience with the SNES mouse specifically? Because that thing just kinda sucks right out of the box.

# ? Aug 26, 2014 05:56

Nighthand: Nov 4, 2009; what horror the gas

XavierStudios posted:

Damnit, Keith, you almost figured out how to draw over the game this episode.

So close and yet so faaaar

# ? Aug 26, 2014 05:58

Somethingdumb: Nov 19, 2011; Wicked grosso, dude

ChairMaster posted:

Are you saying that out of experience with the SNES mouse specifically? Because that thing just kinda sucks right out of the box.

Yeah there's no gunk on it at all because it's so barely used. It's just a piece of poo poo.

# ? Aug 26, 2014 06:56

Gyre: Feb 25, 2007

XavierStudios posted:

Damnit, Keith, you almost figured out how to draw over the game this episode.

I just stared at the one line he had slightly going over the game and prayed that he might notice it, but he crushed all my hopes and dreams.

# ? Aug 26, 2014 07:16

Somethingdumb: Nov 19, 2011; Wicked grosso, dude

There will be more super gameboy in our future.

# ? Aug 26, 2014 10:08

Monkey Fracas: Sep 11, 2010; ...but then you get to the end and a gorilla starts throwing barrels at you!; Grimey Drawer

Not sure the farty soundtrack sounds right if it's not coming out of a tinny GameBoy speaker. But drat this game is pretty good for an early mobile game; sunk a lot of time into this one as a kid.

# ? Aug 26, 2014 15:32

SorataYuy: Jul 17, 2014; That... didn't even make sense.

Monkey Fracas posted:

Not sure the farty soundtrack sounds right if it's not coming out of a tinny GameBoy speaker. But drat this game is pretty good for an early mobile game; sunk a lot of time into this one as a kid.

*blink blink* Early? 5 years ('94 release) into the system's life span counts as "early"?

# ? Aug 26, 2014 17:47

Carbon dioxide: Oct 9, 2012

Some people count everything from before Google Play Store 'early'.

Anyway, Small Wario was in other games, at the very least Wario Land 2, but there he didn't become Small Wario by getting hit, but as a sort of temporary power-up. Like Mini Mario in more recent Mario games.

...Does this mean Mini Mario isn't original either? Nintendo really likes to reuse concepts, don't they?

# ? Aug 26, 2014 19:02

Monkey Fracas: Sep 11, 2010; ...but then you get to the end and a gorilla starts throwing barrels at you!; Grimey Drawer

I mean to be fair (to me; I'm biased :v:

) 1994 was two decades ago.

# ? Aug 26, 2014 21:35

Reveilled: Apr 19, 2007; Take up your rifles

I'm impressed by how long Keith left "Kyle <3 hard candy" up there without comment. Since Kyle did not deny it I'm assuming it's true!

# ? Aug 26, 2014 23:59

General Ironicus: Aug 21, 2008; Something about this feels kinda hinky

Reveilled posted:

I'm impressed by how long Keith left "Kyle <3 hard candy" up there without comment. Since Kyle did not deny it I'm assuming it's true!

He's a big Ellen Page fan.

# ? Aug 27, 2014 00:06

Arsonist Daria: Feb 27, 2011; ^{Requiescat in pace.}

I never knew the Super GameBoy was this awesome.

# ? Aug 27, 2014 00:14

SorataYuy: Jul 17, 2014; That... didn't even make sense.

Monkey Fracas posted:

I mean to be fair (to me; I'm biased ) 1994 was two decades ago.

True, it's just that by '94 we already had both the Gear and the Boy available, and LCD handhelds had been a thing for a long time before then. And then there were the ones that existed from the Atari era (they weren't quite "handhelds" but were definitely "mobile".) That was what threw me for a mental loop there, that mobile gaming had been done for well over a decade by that point.

# ? Aug 27, 2014 01:11

MassRafTer: May 26, 2001; BAEST MODE!!!

Some of the recent episodes was dragged but this was pretty great the entire time. Leave it to Keith.

# ? Aug 27, 2014 01:18

Grapplejack: Nov 27, 2007

General Ironicus posted:

He's a big Ellen Page fan.

Who isn't?

# ? Aug 27, 2014 03:18

Scaly Haylie: Dec 25, 2004

Actually, you totally can harm the boss even as small Wario by jumping into its underbelly as it flies around. It's kind of obtuse, but he's at least beatable.

# ? Aug 28, 2014 16:27

Libluini: May 18, 2012; I gravitated towards the Greens, eventually even joining the party itself.

The Linke is a party I grudgingly accept exists, but I've learned enough about DDR-history I can't bring myself to trust a party that was once the SED, a party leading the corrupt state apparatus ...; Grimey Drawer

Lizard Wizard posted:

Actually, you totally can harm the boss even as small Wario by jumping into its underbelly as it flies around. It's kind of obtuse, but he's at least beatable.

Yeah, that video confused me since I easily found all secrets and beat the boss even as a twelve-year old. I don't know if it was the design or just pure luck, but ramming Wario's head into the soft underbelly just seemed right.

On the other hand, watching a grown man walk by past every secret in the levels and getting into (slight) trouble with the first boss turned out to be more amusing as I thought it would be. :v:

# ? Aug 28, 2014 16:38

Scaly Haylie: Dec 25, 2004

Libluini posted:

I don't know if it was the design or just pure luck, but ramming Wario's head into the soft underbelly just seemed right.

Eh, I don't think it's defensible in terms of design. The game in no way hints that jumping up into an enemy was a thing you should do prior to that boss fight, and considering that it's technically a Mario Land game it's completely the OPPOSITE of what anyone would ever do.

# ? Aug 28, 2014 16:51

Libluini: May 18, 2012; I gravitated towards the Greens, eventually even joining the party itself.

The Linke is a party I grudgingly accept exists, but I've learned enough about DDR-history I can't bring myself to trust a party that was once the SED, a party leading the corrupt state apparatus ...; Grimey Drawer

Lizard Wizard posted:

Eh, I don't think it's defensible in terms of design. The game in no way hints that jumping up into an enemy was a thing you should do prior to that boss fight, and considering that it's technically a Mario Land game it's completely the OPPOSITE of what anyone would ever do.

Oh please, that underbelly was literally the only thing not covered in spikes. It's literally a giant "please touch me"-sign.

# ? Aug 28, 2014 16:59