Hardcore

[haynor666]

It's probably not worth. Amiga market is much smaller than retro consoles.

[nujack]

Yes, but an Amiga-port was already started and game was already previewed in some magazines. Would be cool if they release it for our machine too or explain why it never happens. A collectors edition for higher price would be awesome!!!

[haynor666]

I'm not a fan of ultra expensive collector's edition. Simple/standard Megadrive or Amiga release would be great

[skan]

Originally Posted by ScHlAuChi

MegaDrive cart release is also planned

Where did you get that info? Cannot find anything about that...but maybe it's just me!

[ScHlAuChi]

Im involved with the project

None of the Amiga files seem to exist / have survived.
So the only possibility of an Amiga version is when someone converts the MegaDrive game.

[Reynolds]

Originally Posted by ScHlAuChi

Im involved with the project

None of the Amiga files seem to exist / have survived.
So the only possibility of an Amiga version is when someone converts the MegaDrive game.

What if there is someone who could participate to make the Amiga port?

[quantum8]

This would be awesome if it ever sees the light of day on the miggy

[Gzegzolka]

I have no hope for Amiga version, we should be happy with what we have got. If You ask me - I think it is miracle that at least MegaDrive version were finished and released. I would love to play GoG version or buy rom for emulation. Hardcore/Ultracore need some positive comments and people who actually buy it so maybe we will see more unreleased games finished one day (I hope for Kage's SuperHero).

[ScHlAuChi]

Originally Posted by Reynolds

What if there is someone who could participate to make the Amiga port?

Who would that be?
This would be quite a large undertaking I think....

[ScHlAuChi]

Ultracore for your Sega Mega Drive/Sega Genesis will be available for pre-order in two rounds THIS weekend:

Round 1: Sunday, 23. June 2019 at 12 AM (midnight) CEST.
Round 2: Sunday, 23. June 2019 at 6 PM CEST.

[hexaae]

Is it available the digital rom for emulators?

[Reynolds]

Originally Posted by ScHlAuChi

Ultracore for your Sega Mega Drive/Sega Genesis will be available for pre-order in two rounds THIS weekend:

Round 1: Sunday, 23. June 2019 at 12 AM (midnight) CEST.
Round 2: Sunday, 23. June 2019 at 6 PM CEST.

There is a guy here in Hungary who can be interested...

[Retro-Nerd]

I've played the Mega Drive version. It seems a nice game on the surface. Good graphics, controls and great music. But it suffers from awful flaws in the level design. Some jump passages are incredibly difficult/annoying. I could complete the game only with save states and cheats. A shame. With a better balance it could have been great.

[ScHlAuChi]

Originally Posted by Retro-Nerd

I've played the Mega Drive version. It seems a nice game on the surface. Good graphics, controls and great music. But it suffers from awful flaws in the level design. Some jump passages are incredibly difficult/annoying. I could complete the game only with save states and cheats. A shame. With a better balance it could have been great.

Yeah the game isnt easy, but the original unmodified version was even harder!
Currently when you stand on a corner the character wobbles endlessly. But in the original ROM the character would fall off after 2 seconds!
If you didnt jump exactly and landed on a corner you would often fall off right after, unless you instantly moved away from the corner.
This was incredibly annoying and luckily got fixed!

Regarding the Mega Drive version you played, it is most likely the ripped MegaSG version that is floating around the net. This however is not the final version, as it has non ideal controls (Contra Hardcorps style as thats what megasg wanted) and its 60Hz and therefore running too fast. This makes the platforming even harder than necessary! The game was always meant to be played in PAL 50fps, and only the PAL MegaDrive cart / Switch / PS4 / PSV version is the final version with the best controls and correct game speed!

[Retro-Nerd]

Regarding the Mega Drive version you played, it is most likely the ripped MegaSG version that is floating around the net.

Nope, that's what Kevin assumed. The rom was ripped from the retail cartridge (which has both control styles) sold via Columbus Circle. I wanted to purchase the Strictly Limited Games cartridge, but due to the artificial limitation it wasn't possible.

Yes, it is the Japanese version which unfortunately runs in 60Hz. But even a proper 50Hz PAL version wouldn't fix most of the gameplay balance issues you are facing after Level 2. Ultracore would need a complete overhaul, the technics and game mechanics are good as i said.

[hexaae]

In some official YouTube videos (in the comments) devs leave a chance it could be published on PC Steam too...

[ScHlAuChi]

Originally Posted by Retro-Nerd

Yes, it is the Japanese version which unfortunately runs in 60Hz. But even a proper 50Hz PAL version wouldn't fix most of the gameplay balance issues you are facing after Level 2. Ultracore would need a complete overhaul, the technics and game mechanics are good as i said.

Yeah its always difficult to decide how much you change to not alter the original game too much. Do you keep it historically accurate or do you change it more drastically to fix the flaws? Change it too much and you end up with something that doesnt resemble the original game you wanted to preserve anymore at all! So, some aspects like the controls which were Turrican style (hold fire button to freeze in place, then D-pad left/right for changing the firing direction) had to be changed to make the game playable for a "modern" audience. Same with the already mentioned character wobbling and falling off when standing at a corner - that would be unacceptable nowadays! Holding down the fire button to auto-shoot is also standard in Ulracore, no one wants to button mash like a madman anymore as was the case in Hardcore!

Another smaller thing that was changed was the weapon system. In the original the player could only hold one extra weapon and you could only switch at the weaponboxes to the one pre-defined weapon that was stored in the box. In Ultracore you can switch between all the weapons you collected from weapon boxes at all times! The yellow triangles that you can find in the game that upgrade your weapon power are permanent in Ultracore - in Hardcore whenever you died your weapons would be downgraded by 1 level! Picking up a triangle with an already fully upgraded weapon doesnt waste it anymore either and instead upgrades the next weapon.

What wasnt changed was the level design/enemy spawns etc (aside bug fixes and additional secrets) and the balance, as due to the changed controls and added features the game was already quite abit easier compared to the original. Now of course, a 25 year old game might not live up to modern leveldesign or balance standards that people are used to nowadays, but at the end of the day, it is what it is, and it could have been quite abit worse! And for the ppl who still find the game too hard, we added cheats

[Gzegzolka]

I find those fixes very good, they improve game very nice.
I believe that without them I would not enjoy that game that much.
I only wonder what was the fate of those shmup sections that were shown in Hardcore, but are absent in Ultracore.

[ScHlAuChi]

Originally Posted by Gzegzolka

I find those fixes very good, they improve game very nice.
I believe that without them I would not enjoy that game that much.
I only wonder what was the fate of those shmup sections that were shown in Hardcore, but are absent in Ultracore.

Those werent actually part of the Hardcore ROM - as far as I know they were planned for the Amiga version and were supposed to be between Level 2/3 and 4/5. But the only trace of their existance are the Amiga magazine screenshots and a crude MegaCD prototype of one half of such a level (footage of it can be seen in the first Project Hardcore trailer). There was a plan to finish the level and "downconvert" it, so it could be added to Ultracore, but unfortunately that didnt work out due to time constraints!

[Gzegzolka]

Were those shmup sections more like Blastar/Thunder Force where You can fly anywhere or where more like Sviw/Raiden where You fly in one direction?