Doing the Impossible...
3 months ago, I started a thread asking people how they would best like to see Hoppin' Mad released. Seeing as it was an unfinished games, some wanted cart only, some mentioned CIB, and some were not interested at all. Shortly after, our friend Qixmaster shot me a PM asking if he could help get HM to the masses, offering up his time and advice. Not long after that Zzap! offered to perform the near impossible and complete HM. Teaming up with my partner in crime (and twin brother) Matt, the 4 of us started a group to bring you games that might have been lost forever; From Nowhere Productions
This thread is an update of sorts to let you know what we've done and how soon you can see it. James was able to not only finish the game, but added many other neat little features that the original designers had left out:
- Enemies are added to level 3 and the game is now fully playable and complete. The game loops much like Donkey Kong for 99 levels.
- A third cut scene between acts was added
- Player 2 is now blue, rather than the same color as player 1
- Some changes to the high score list that include the members of From Nowhere Productions, and the big cheese, Dain!
James is nothing short of a wizard when it comes to programming the NES and I for one was shocked to see his amazing results. He is a great programmer and friend and my hat is truly off to him.
Josh has been hard at work with some really cool label designs and has taken on the task of tackling the manual for HM. Josh's design skills and ideas for this release have been amazing and I truly could not have done this without him.
Collectively, we decided that we wanted to do something a little different with this release than the most recent CIB releases. This game will be limited to just 100 copies (including the Collector's Edition carts), and they will be available in the same tins that Al Bailey's Sudoku were released in. Each game will come with a manual and styro, as well as a small rubber ball in honor of the game.
Some neat things to note: One of the rubber balls found in the regular edition run will indicate itself as a "winner", and whoever purchased that cart will also receive a Collector's Edition cart shipped to them free of charge.
We have some neat things planned for the CE release, including special red tins! More info on the CE games will be released when we get closer to our ship date.
Seeing as we opted out of many things that have become common with CIB releases (using Bunny's cases and boards, printing manuals and boxes, etc.), Matt and I have worked tirelessly to get the games produced. We have removed labels, desoldered, programmed, and resoldered for weeks now, and at the time of this post we have completed 82 of the 100 carts to be released. That being said, you can look for a pre-order with pictures of the final product very shortly, so stay tuned!
I can't tell you how excited I am to have worked on this game with three of the best people around. This was truly a team effort and our group mentality is definitely reflected in our final product. This project has gone so smoothly that you can rest assured that we will have several other releases in the future, so stick around!
This thread is an update of sorts to let you know what we've done and how soon you can see it. James was able to not only finish the game, but added many other neat little features that the original designers had left out:
- Enemies are added to level 3 and the game is now fully playable and complete. The game loops much like Donkey Kong for 99 levels.
- A third cut scene between acts was added
- Player 2 is now blue, rather than the same color as player 1
- Some changes to the high score list that include the members of From Nowhere Productions, and the big cheese, Dain!
James is nothing short of a wizard when it comes to programming the NES and I for one was shocked to see his amazing results. He is a great programmer and friend and my hat is truly off to him.
Josh has been hard at work with some really cool label designs and has taken on the task of tackling the manual for HM. Josh's design skills and ideas for this release have been amazing and I truly could not have done this without him.
Collectively, we decided that we wanted to do something a little different with this release than the most recent CIB releases. This game will be limited to just 100 copies (including the Collector's Edition carts), and they will be available in the same tins that Al Bailey's Sudoku were released in. Each game will come with a manual and styro, as well as a small rubber ball in honor of the game.
Some neat things to note: One of the rubber balls found in the regular edition run will indicate itself as a "winner", and whoever purchased that cart will also receive a Collector's Edition cart shipped to them free of charge.
We have some neat things planned for the CE release, including special red tins! More info on the CE games will be released when we get closer to our ship date.
Seeing as we opted out of many things that have become common with CIB releases (using Bunny's cases and boards, printing manuals and boxes, etc.), Matt and I have worked tirelessly to get the games produced. We have removed labels, desoldered, programmed, and resoldered for weeks now, and at the time of this post we have completed 82 of the 100 carts to be released. That being said, you can look for a pre-order with pictures of the final product very shortly, so stay tuned!
I can't tell you how excited I am to have worked on this game with three of the best people around. This was truly a team effort and our group mentality is definitely reflected in our final product. This project has gone so smoothly that you can rest assured that we will have several other releases in the future, so stick around!
Comments
Good work Mark and team!
This is totally something I would like to do down the line. Time is a bitch.
cant wait to see what these look like!
are they all going to be numbered in the same way al's were? 1-5 & 96-100 = gold and 6-95 gray?
Seth: First, where the hell have you been? We have some catching up to do, I haven't talked to you in way too long. We're not doing gold for the CE carts, and I was thinking of doing 1-10 the CE and then 11-100 the regular run. Labels should be coming this week so I guess I could figure it out then. The CE carts are only going to people who were on the team and then the rest will be given away/auctioned/etc. to anyone else in the community so that people who want one can get one. As of right now I'm still polishing up the final touches on what to do as far as the CE is concerned, but it looks like it will have different art and a different tin at the very least.
Forgot to mention a big thank you to my mentor on this whole project, the one and only Al Bailey. Al has been an unbelievable resource for about any issue or question we encountered on this project. Although it obviously goes without say, you're the man Al and thanks again!
This is crazy. I honestly doubted a project to complete the game would get very far, but it sounds like you guys have gone above and beyond anything I could have imagined.
If you think this is impressive, you should see what we have planned next! A old-school proto collector like yourself may very well shit their pants. . .
This was a huge undertaking, but I expect/hope it to be the first of many. Our condo took on the appearance of a sweatshop these past few months, and our wallets have taken a beating. And when it's all said and done, I couldn't be any happier! The guys have a great work ethic, and it could not have been more of a team effort. I'm proud of the work we've done, and I hope the community enjoys the fial product as much as we do.
Can't wait to see the finished product!
Ball out.
I'm there....so when can we expect orders to be taken?
I've talked to K-Han an awful lot about when we should do our orders as to not hurt the other's sales or the community's collective wallet
Thanks for being patient. I really look forward to playing this game!!
No math was used to come up with that figure.
~~NGD
It's been great working on this project, Mark's really gone all out to make this a great collectible release like the Sudoku's.
Woah nice work guys.
Hopefully not, we're both thinking of keeping the cost in the typical $55-$65 homebrew/CIB repro range, and spacing them out should help people to afford both. I'm guessing Kev will have 250 copies of UFC available (if that is still the minimum run for boxes/manuals), but Hoppin' Mad will only have 90 standard edition games avilable.
Thanks for all the support and the kind words guys, I can't wait to present you with the final product!