Road Avenger CD32

earok · 12 January 2016, 06:48

Also known as "Road Blaster" and "Vehicular Homicide Hero"

Yet another project I'll probably never finish! I only really got to the investigation stage before moving on to other projects, no code for it has been written at all.

As you can see it'd look nicer than the Sega CD version in HAM video (converted from a LaserDisc rip) since IIRC the Sega CD can only play back video in 16 colours.

My general plan was to use the CDGSXL player (written in C) as a base, but have it parse a basic text file script for the game. Eg in pseudocode the script might look vaguely like

Code:

AT FRAME 1000 PRESS RED ELSE DIE

Which of course would mean it could be recycled for other FMV conversions too, like Space Ace or Dragon's Lair.

Note that I did the conversions as HAM6, I could do them with HAM8 for near perfect image quality but it'd result in either a screen size or frame rate reduction.

Amigajay · 12 January 2016, 08:17

Tbh was never a big fan of these types of games but am willing to try esp as its still a new game! Id let you decide which is best, if it plays better at 12fps go for that or 8fps is still fine then go for it :-)

earok · 12 January 2016, 08:28

Quote:

Originally Posted by Amigajay

Tbh was never a big fan of these types of games

Me neither really but Road Avenger is a favorite of mine, from the awesome into song (exclusive to Sega CD), the absurd anime physics, and well I don't know, it just feels more playable to me than most other laserdisc games.

Belgarath · 12 January 2016, 09:29

Road Avenger is a guilty pleasure of mine as well, it's great to pick up now and again for a quick game or 2.

earok · 12 January 2016, 09:34

Quote:

Originally Posted by Belgarath

Road Avenger is a guilty pleasure of mine as well, it's great to pick up now and again for a quick game or 2.

try the SNES port if you haven't already. It doesn't work on all emulators or real hardware without some kind of add-on but it's superb.

ReadOnlyCat · 03 February 2016, 06:08

What a great idea!
Moreover the HAM mode is ideally suited to fast image filling for animated cartoons like this.

Note that the license was still exploited actively in 2009 by the rights-holder (cf link below) and they made an iOS version of it not too far ago. Maybe they would be willing to license it cheaply for the Amiga? Definitely worth asking in my opinion.

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUS1...009+MW20090113

earok · 03 February 2016, 09:19

Quote:

Originally Posted by ReadOnlyCat

What a great idea!
Moreover the HAM mode is ideally suited to fast image filling for animated cartoons like this.

Note that the license was still exploited actively in 2009 by the rights-holder (cf link below) and they made an iOS version of it not too far ago. Maybe they would be willing to license it cheaply for the Amiga? Definitely worth asking in my opinion.

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUS1...009+MW20090113

I'll keep it in mind, cheers

Amigajay · 03 February 2016, 11:16

Well the SNES version got released with no news of lawsuits, i don't imagine a lower key CD32 release would have any problems.

ReadOnlyCat · 04 February 2016, 05:25

Quote:

Originally Posted by Amigajay

Well the SNES version got released with no news of lawsuits, i don't imagine a lower key CD32 release would have any problems.

I also think the odds of a lawsuit are inexistent.
But I was actually more focused on the possibility of an official CD32 release which would be newsworthy. Moreover, the support lends itself nicely to an inexpensive physical distribution.

Road Avenger is on my todo-list as well, so when its turn comes, if Earok hasn't asked, I will.

(Note: it is very very far down the list, won't touch it for several years at least unless my productivity mysteriously jumps up.)

s2325 · 14 February 2016, 15:46

Useless trivia: Car in Road Avenger and in Double Dragon is the same.

jayminer · 14 February 2016, 16:52

Quote:

Originally Posted by s2325

Useless trivia: Car in Road Avenger and in Double Dragon is the same.

Did you also watch Gamesack today?

s2325 · 14 February 2016, 16:54

yes

Retro1234 · 14 February 2016, 19:23

Is it possible to have the the video with the Arrows on screen - Do these ever change position

Can you go strate in another clip say you wanted to do something like Mad Dog?

earok · 15 February 2016, 03:40

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boo Boo

Is it possible to have the the video with the Arrows on screen - Do these ever change position

Can you go strate in another clip say you wanted to do something like Mad Dog?

The arrows etc are generated at run time. Longplays of the game will have the arrows on screen, but the LaserDisc rip I found did not.

Not sure what you mean by the second question?

Retro1234 · 15 February 2016, 12:10

Cut from one video scene to another without the screen going blank while loading next scene

earok · 15 February 2016, 12:14

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boo Boo

Cut from one video scene to another without the screen going blank while loading next scene

Oh right, I follow now.

I think it's hard to avoid skips between clips. In Road Avenger a single perfect play is all in one clip so there's no lag if you're playing perfectly, but I think there is a short delay if you get killed as it jumps to the death scene.

Retro1234 · 15 February 2016, 12:18

Maybe something like Mad Dog McCree could maybe work?
it would only need a simple script in the background - but cutting to death scene could be a problem

earok · 15 February 2016, 12:30

Quote:

Originally Posted by Boo Boo

Maybe something like Mad Dog McCree could maybe work?
it would only need a simple script in the background - but cutting to death scene could be a problem

Mad dog mcree is already an Amiga game (core of the arcade cabinet was an Amiga). Maybe someone can hack it to run without the laserdisc hardware

SkulleateR · 15 February 2016, 14:44

Quote:

Originally Posted by earok

Mad dog mcree is already an Amiga game (core of the arcade cabinet was an Amiga). Maybe someone can hack it to run without the laserdisc hardware

Now THAT would be awesome

Retro1234 · 30 December 2016, 11:34

Did you have any luck with this? Do you think Mad Dog is possible? can you jump to the correct position in a cdxl file with the standard cdxl viewer without problems?

Can you play CD audio while a CDXL is playing?

12 January 2016, 06:48	#1
earok Registered User Join Date: Dec 2013 Location: Auckland Posts: 3,539	Road Avenger CD32 Also known as "Road Blaster" and "Vehicular Homicide Hero" Yet another project I'll probably never finish! I only really got to the investigation stage before moving on to other projects, no code for it has been written at all. As you can see it'd look nicer than the Sega CD version in HAM video (converted from a LaserDisc rip) since IIRC the Sega CD can only play back video in 16 colours. My general plan was to use the CDGSXL player (written in C) as a base, but have it parse a basic text file script for the game. Eg in pseudocode the script might look vaguely like Code: AT FRAME 1000 PRESS RED ELSE DIE Which of course would mean it could be recycled for other FMV conversions too, like Space Ace or Dragon's Lair. Note that I did the conversions as HAM6, I could do them with HAM8 for near perfect image quality but it'd result in either a screen size or frame rate reduction.

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12 January 2016, 08:17	#2
Amigajay Registered User Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: > Posts: 2,881	Tbh was never a big fan of these types of games but am willing to try esp as its still a new game! Id let you decide which is best, if it plays better at 12fps go for that or 8fps is still fine then go for it :-)

12 January 2016, 09:29	#4
Belgarath HOL Team Member Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Manchester Posts: 2,513	Road Avenger is a guilty pleasure of mine as well, it's great to pick up now and again for a quick game or 2.

03 February 2016, 06:08	#6
ReadOnlyCat Code Kitten Join Date: Aug 2015 Location: Montreal/Canadia Age: 52 Posts: 1,178	What a great idea! Moreover the HAM mode is ideally suited to fast image filling for animated cartoons like this. Note that the license was still exploited actively in 2009 by the rights-holder (cf link below) and they made an iOS version of it not too far ago. Maybe they would be willing to license it cheaply for the Amiga? Definitely worth asking in my opinion. http://www.reuters.com/article/idUS1...009+MW20090113

03 February 2016, 11:16	#8
Amigajay Registered User Join Date: Jan 2010 Location: > Posts: 2,881	Well the SNES version got released with no news of lawsuits, i don't imagine a lower key CD32 release would have any problems.

14 February 2016, 15:46	#10
s2325 Zone Friend Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Gargore Age: 43 Posts: 17,789	Useless trivia: Car in Road Avenger and in Double Dragon is the same.

14 February 2016, 16:54	#12
s2325 Zone Friend Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: Gargore Age: 43 Posts: 17,789	yes

14 February 2016, 19:23	#13
Retro1234 Phone Homer Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: 5150 Posts: 5,773	Is it possible to have the the video with the Arrows on screen - Do these ever change position Can you go strate in another clip say you wanted to do something like Mad Dog?

15 February 2016, 12:10	#15
Retro1234 Phone Homer Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: 5150 Posts: 5,773	Cut from one video scene to another without the screen going blank while loading next scene

15 February 2016, 12:18	#17
Retro1234 Phone Homer Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: 5150 Posts: 5,773	Maybe something like Mad Dog McCree could maybe work? it would only need a simple script in the background - but cutting to death scene could be a problem

30 December 2016, 11:34	#20
Retro1234 Phone Homer Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: 5150 Posts: 5,773	Did you have any luck with this? Do you think Mad Dog is possible? can you jump to the correct position in a cdxl file with the standard cdxl viewer without problems? Can you play CD audio while a CDXL is playing?

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