[atari7800] Re: Sound? Collision detection?

One thing is strange, however. Are you trying to tell me, that a system
which could possibly display 100 objects on the screen, has the same sound
capabilities as 2600? 2 channels? With that lousy limited pitch? Can
something be done with this? I'm a bit surprised (and it isn't nice
surprise).


There is an audio recording of a panel discussion of the GCC
designers at the 20th anniversary party for the 7800. In it
on of the hardware designers mentiones that that had ideas
for a better sound chip, but didn't implement it, because
they had so little time to finish the design of the MARIA
graphics chip. So they were planning of creating a cheap
sound chip later that could be put on all game cartridges
or possibly on one sound passthrough cartridge. But since
there were problems with the Tramiels when they took over
Atari, GCC never finished the sound chip, and the audio
connection on the cartridge port was only used by Ballblazer
and Commando, which both had an addition POKEY chip in the
cart.

So unless you design yourself a cartridge with an addition
sound chip in it, then all you'll get for your game will be
TIA sound.

I have one more question, if I can: how does MARIA handle collision
detection? Do I have to do this in software way?


Since there are no real freely moving objects, there is
no hardware collision detection in the 7800. You have to
keep track of the positions of your objects yourself and
see if any of them collide.


Ciao, Eckhard Stolberg


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