Stevedore

By The Apeman

Expert (110)

20-10-2020, 07:43

Looks very nice.

By Bengalack

Champion (295)

20-10-2020, 08:14

Love the gfx! Sweet! Would be cool if we could see some youtube-gameplay too :-)

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

20-10-2020, 08:16

I have never recorded a video and my first tests have been a complete disaster :_D But I'll try again later this week!

By ren

Paragon (1657)

20-10-2020, 09:08

Looks great indeed

@theNestruo, tip: Olive (and OBS for screen/window capture)

By jltursan

Prophet (2421)

20-10-2020, 09:12

Brilliant!, I also love the aesthetics!

The video can be directly generated by the emulator, you only need to upload it to Youtube and voilà

By valkyre

Champion (488)

20-10-2020, 09:30

Ordered mine!

By ren

Paragon (1657)

20-10-2020, 10:51

Quote:

The video can be directly generated by the emulator

(Do note that openMSX, at least last time I looked into it, records w/o effect / monitor simulation settings applied.)

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

20-10-2020, 14:13

jltursan wrote:

The video can be directly generated by the emulator

I did, but I was unable to play the video or use it within the video editor (just audio).
A codec-related issue, I guess; but couldn't find proper decoder (Windows 10).

By ray2day

Hero (617)

20-10-2020, 14:54

Quote:

Love the gfx! Sweet! Would be cool if we could see some youtube-gameplay too

I agree.

Quote:

I have never recorded a video and my first tests have been a complete disaster :_D But I'll try again later this week!

Quote:

I did, but I was unable to play the video or use it within the video editor (just audio).
A codec-related issue, I guess; but couldn't find proper decoder (Windows 10).

Hope you will be able to do so. I really, really would like to see a video of it.

By Chadwick

Resident (33)

20-10-2020, 21:23

Bengalack wrote:

Love the gfx! Sweet! Would be cool if we could see some youtube-gameplay too :-)

Hey i used to make all my decisions based on magazines and the back of the box!...lol .

j/k i would like to see it too

By jltursan

Prophet (2421)

21-10-2020, 09:23

theNestruo wrote:

jltursan wrote:

The video can be directly generated by the emulator

I did, but I was unable to play the video or use it within the video editor (just audio).
A codec-related issue, I guess; but couldn't find proper decoder (Windows 10).

Xvid4 works for me. Note that usually I create videos with BlueMSX...

By Bengalack

Champion (295)

21-10-2020, 20:28

theNestruo wrote:

A codec-related issue, I guess; but couldn't find proper decoder (Windows 10).

Given what the docs says (32-bit codec), it sounds like you need to find a program that can use the 32-bit codec, take the lossless file, and convert it into a format that your video editor accepts.

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

23-10-2020, 20:43

Aargh! I lost the battle against the video editors...

...so instead of a promotional video, here they are! Two gameplay videos!!!

The intro and tutorial, running in a MSX2 (optimized palette) at 50Hz
The first stages, running in a Japanese MSX at 60Hz

By Sebbeug

Champion (302)

24-10-2020, 11:06

I like it very much. Gfx way and musics are very charming !
Ordered, waiting now for testing.

By Briqunullus

Champion (293)

24-10-2020, 13:26

Nice one! Will you sell a digital edition as well?

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

24-10-2020, 14:13

Sebbeug wrote:

I like it very much. Gfx way and musics are very charming !
Ordered, waiting now for testing.

Thank you very much!

Briqunullus wrote:

Nice one! Will you sell a digital edition as well?

I had no plans for digital edition (at least for the moment), sorry...

Chadwick wrote:

Hey i used to make all my decisions based on magazines and the back of the box!...lol .

I did it too! All those ZX Spectrum ports with Amiga screenshots in the box... lol

But not this time! Stevedore's box features true screenshots!!

By mzoran

Expert (103)

27-10-2020, 14:34

Already out of stock !

By Sebbeug

Champion (302)

27-10-2020, 15:28

Reception today : Very good game ! Really.
Congratulations.

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

27-10-2020, 18:16

Sebbeug wrote:

Reception today : Very good game ! Really.
Congratulations.

Thank you very much! ^_^

mzoran wrote:

Already out of stock !

Wow, that was faster than expected!
A new batch is underway, but it will take some time... (sorry).

By Randam

Paragon (1155)

27-10-2020, 18:17

Already out??? Then I hope I can get one from batch 2.

By valkyre

Champion (488)

27-10-2020, 18:35

Mine has arrived!

By hashem

Resident (60)

05-11-2020, 14:55

im stuck in the stage21 any1 can help me?

By hashem

Resident (60)

05-11-2020, 14:56

you cannot solve it i think only if you jump perfectly

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

05-11-2020, 15:43

hashem wrote:

im stuck in the stage21 any1 can help me?

Hi, hashem!
Congratulations on reaching so far already! You are halfway there!!!

hashem wrote:

you cannot solve it i think only if you jump perfectly

All the stages can be solved without "pixel perfect" jumps (mainly because I hate them, haha). Of course, some stages allow more than one way to solve them, and some solutions may require perfect jumps... but there is always at least one solution without them.
The pixel perfect jump is 4 chars wide. In that stage, the hardest jump is a 3 chars wide + 1 char up, that shouldn't be really hard (the margin is about 6 or 7 pixels, and previous stage features several of that).

If you are still stuck, maybe we can open a new forum thread with a big "spoilers inside" warning, haha!

By hashem

Resident (60)

05-11-2020, 16:04

i bet no solution for this stage just only jump perfectly

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

05-11-2020, 16:38

hashem wrote:

i bet no solution for this stage just only jump perfectly

I guarantee you it has a solution without perfect jump.
I don't know how are you trying to solve STAGE 21... so, if you want, send me a mail with a picture of the situation before that jump, and I'll send you back the solution.

By hashem

Resident (60)

05-11-2020, 17:31

whats yr email

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

05-11-2020, 18:00

hashem wrote:

whats yr email

The one in my profile (my username here + at gmail.com)

By M-A-D-M-A-X

Resident (56)

05-11-2020, 20:01

theNestruo wrote:

If you are still stuck, maybe we can open a new forum thread with a big "spoilers inside" warning, haha!

Good idea !
I’m just at the beginning for the moment, but I love it

By hashem

Resident (60)

06-11-2020, 12:47

there is trick or something u have to do it fast i solved stage 21

By hashem

Resident (60)

08-11-2020, 06:53

i finished the game (36 stages) excellent game 10/10

stage 30 hard

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

08-11-2020, 11:52

hashem wrote:

i finished the game (36 stages) excellent game 10/10

stage 30 hard

Congratulations, hashem! And thank you!!!

By dan

Master (165)

09-11-2020, 14:47

those pantojos hide their gold very well. very nice game. it deserves a second batch. congrats

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

09-11-2020, 18:43

dan wrote:

those pantojos hide their gold very well. very nice game. it deserves a second batch. congrats

Haha! Thanks!!

Can't give you exact dates, but a second batch is coming!

By journey

Champion (478)

18-11-2020, 20:10

How the hell can i pass stage 11?? Damn sea urchin...

By M-A-D-M-A-X

Resident (56)

18-11-2020, 22:06

Me too

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

19-11-2020, 11:16

journey wrote:

How the hell can i pass stage 11?? Damn sea urchin...

M-A-D-M-A-X wrote:

Me too

I guess you have already killed the sea urchin once with the box on your way to the left of the screen...

SPOILERS AHEAD

The respawning spot of the sea urchin is higher than the ground. If you kill it again with the other box, it will respawn OVER that box...

By journey

Champion (478)

20-11-2020, 13:59

theNestruo wrote:

The respawning spot of the sea urchin is higher than the ground. If you kill it again with the other box, it will respawn OVER that box...

Thanx!!

SPOILERS AHEAD
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.
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.
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But sometimes the sea urchin reappears just above the box, and when I move the box, the sea urchin falls on my head.
Now i'm in the Jungle

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

20-11-2020, 14:08

SPOILERS AHEAD
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.
.

journey wrote:

But sometimes the sea urchin reappears just above the box, and when I move the box, the sea urchin falls on my head.

You can make it jump (once) when it's over the box, and then you can safely move the box.

journey wrote:

Now i'm in the Jungle

Enjoy the new... "friends"... that dwell there

By Sebbeug

Champion (302)

21-11-2020, 13:35

lvl 18 for me just now : excellent game !

By mcolom

Master (181)

22-11-2020, 12:03

I'm enyoing this game a lot, it's quite addictive!
Why not having a password per level? Like in King's Valley, for example. So far I haven't seen any after more than 10 screens... unless I'm missing something or perhaps there's some trick I haven't found yet.
In any case, congrats for the game Nestruo and wonder, it's great
(I'm one of those who looked inside, by the way!)

By mcolom

Master (181)

22-11-2020, 12:26

Just read theNestruo commenting in a different thread that the passwords are related to the fruits! I'm happy now haha

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

22-11-2020, 13:57

mcolom wrote:

Just read theNestruo commenting in a different thread that the passwords are related to the fruits! I'm happy now haha

Yup, as the manual clearly says: "Grandma says the fruits are good for the memory (and delicious too!)"
Well... maybe not so clearly! Hahaha!!

By Sebbeug

Champion (302)

23-11-2020, 12:32

Spoiler (here is a first password found) :
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7AF380

By Sebbeug

Champion (302)

23-11-2020, 19:35

a second one :
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.
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35A05C

By sd_snatcher

Prophet (3423)

25-11-2020, 03:19

Already out of stock?! Any plans for a new batch?

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

25-11-2020, 08:35

sd_snatcher wrote:

Already out of stock?! Any plans for a new batch?

Yes, a new batch is coming...

It's a shame real life does not have CTRL+C CTRL+V... hehe

By journey

Champion (478)

25-11-2020, 10:05

Now i'm stuck at stage 18...
I'm one step away from the new password...but i don't understand how to complete the level...
damn skeletons!!

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

25-11-2020, 10:38

journey wrote:

Now i'm stuck at stage 18...
I'm one step away from the new password...but i don't understand how to complete the level...
damn skeletons!!

That's the jungle screen featured in the back of the box, right? Need a hint?

By journey

Champion (478)

25-11-2020, 10:54

theNestruo wrote:

journey wrote:

Now i'm stuck at stage 18...
I'm one step away from the new password...but i don't understand how to complete the level...
damn skeletons!!

That's the jungle screen featured in the back of the box, right? Need a hint?

For now no, thanx..I feel that I am close to the solution.
I still try a little by myself
I have to solve it!

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

25-11-2020, 11:00

journey wrote:

I still try a little by myself
I have to solve it!

Yeah, that's the spirit!!!

By Bodhi1969

Expert (88)

25-11-2020, 11:36

As mentioned before it would be interesting to know if you plan a digital edition?

By Shrapnel

Resident (38)

25-11-2020, 14:02

Yep, I'd like a digital ROM as well.
I bought the cart, but have no access to my MSX machines right now and so I'd love to be able to play it on an emulator. =)

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

25-11-2020, 14:28

Bodhi1969 wrote:

As mentioned before it would be interesting to know if you plan a digital edition?

Shrapnel wrote:

Yep, I'd like a digital ROM as well.

I'm aware that many of you would like a digital edition. But after thoughtfully considering it (it is not an easy decision), I'm afraid that a digital edition will not be available for the moment.

By mcolom

Master (181)

26-11-2020, 19:42

Oh Nestruo, we love you so much for the game. And we hate you so much for the game...

By Sebbeug

Champion (302)

26-11-2020, 22:11

héhé... You're right ! What a crazy brain to build these levels !!!

By mcolom

Master (181)

26-11-2020, 22:27

A sadist.

By Sebbeug

Champion (302)

27-11-2020, 20:50

I finished the game ! (after 30 stages)

Really really fun experience !!!

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

27-11-2020, 21:10

Sebbeug wrote:

I finished the game ! (after 30 stages)

Really really fun experience !!!

Congratulations!!!

...but that's the bad ending ^_^ There is a better ending (after six more stages)

By Sebbeug

Champion (302)

27-11-2020, 21:41

Argh

By hashem

Resident (60)

28-11-2020, 02:07

Sebbeug wrote:

I finished the game ! (after 30 stages)

Really really fun experience !!!

how i finished the game its 36 stages or maybe you must take all items

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

28-11-2020, 09:52

hashem wrote:

Sebbeug wrote:

I finished the game ! (after 30 stages)

Really really fun experience !!!

how i finished the game its 36 stages or maybe you must take all items

There are two endings: one after stage 30, and the good one after stage 36

By M-A-D-M-A-X

Resident (56)

28-11-2020, 10:21

If I followed, the fruits are used to get the password and the stars the good ending

By mcolom

Master (181)

29-11-2020, 09:14

I'm totally stuck at level 14. Any good spoilers?

By mcolom

Master (181)

29-11-2020, 15:51

mcolom wrote:

I'm totally stuck at level 14. Any good spoilers?

Nevermind, now I know!

By Sebbeug

Champion (302)

30-11-2020, 00:46

Level 14 =

By mcolom

Master (181)

30-11-2020, 08:02

Thanks Sebbeug!
Finally I found it. I guess sometimes I get obfuscated looking for complicated solutions and don't see the obvious

By pike

Supporter (2)

03-12-2020, 03:27

This game looks awesome. Looking forward to the next batch so I can get my copy.

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

15-12-2020, 15:20

Randam wrote:

Already out??? Then I hope I can get one from batch 2.

dan wrote:

those pantojos hide their gold very well. very nice game. it deserves a second batch. congrats

sd_snatcher wrote:

Already out of stock?! Any plans for a new batch?

pike wrote:

This game looks awesome. Looking forward to the next batch so I can get my copy.

A new batch is available now at MSX Cartridge Shop!!!
https://msxcartridgeshop.com

Just in time for X-mas!!!

By M-A-D-M-A-X

Resident (56)

15-12-2020, 18:59

This second edition is very good news
it is a sign that the game is good and that it has worked well.

By mcolom

Master (181)

15-12-2020, 19:45

The game it's really worth it. I'm a great fan of it!
Difficult, but highly recommendable.

By hashem

Resident (60)

02-01-2021, 16:06

FIRST....how can i get the batch(its file or new cartridge) SECOND what the batch do excatly?

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

02-01-2021, 18:17

Hi, Hashem!
By "second batch" I only mean the originally manufactured cartridges ("the first batch") sold out, and a new batch of cartridges were ordered to be available again.
The game is exactly the same.

By Briqunullus

Champion (293)

02-01-2021, 18:18

The game is available on cartridge. These cartridges are produced in batches (groups). In a batch (group) a certain number of cartridges will be produced. The first batch sold out pretty quickly. So they made a new batch and you can order the cartridge again. The game is the same for the first batch and the second. I received my copy today, I'm looking forward to playing it!

By mzoran

Expert (103)

09-01-2021, 09:56

got mine finally, very nice game. Congrats !

By Briqunullus

Champion (293)

09-01-2021, 22:06

I have completed the game and I have enjoyed every single bit of it. Admittedly, I have dumped the cartridge and played on emulator. This gave me endless rewinds and savestates, and still the game was very challenging.

The physics engine is superb. It allows for smooth gameplay and yet very forgiving controls. There's a great variety of enemies, and they get upgraded in higher levels. The levels are crafted carefully, they come in a great variety of themes and they become hard very quickly. All in all, the game is a contender for the title "best puzzle platformer since KV2".

(@Hamlet, we need a level of this for the Christmas Quiz 2021!)

By hamlet

Scribe (3442)

09-01-2021, 22:50

Yes!

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

09-01-2021, 22:55

Briqunullus wrote:

I have completed the game and I have enjoyed every single bit of it. (...)
The physics engine is superb. It allows for smooth gameplay and yet very forgiving controls. There's a great variety of enemies, and they get upgraded in higher levels. The levels are crafted carefully, they come in a great variety of themes and they become hard very quickly. All in all, the game is a contender for the title "best puzzle platformer since KV2".(...)

Thank you very much for your kind words! It makes me really happy to read your impressions about the game ^_^
Did you reached the good ending (stage 36) or the bad one (stage 30)?
About the physics engine, it is based on MSXlib with a few minor modifications. Documentation is lousy or non-existent at the moment... but if someone wants to use it, please give me a call and I will try to explain the obscure parts.

Briqunullus wrote:

Admittedly, I have dumped the cartridge and played on emulator. This gave me endless rewinds and savestates, and still the game was very challenging.

Haha! I must admit I had problems to finish it in real hardware when testing it (mainly because I knew the solution and tried to reach it fast... and in this game "going fast" is not always a good idea, haha!)

Briqunullus wrote:

(@Hamlet, we need a level of this for the Christmas Quiz 2021!)

There is no in-game level editor, but I used Tiled to edit the levels. So when the Xmas Quiz 2021 starts, feel free to contact me to make a custom build ^_^

By Briqunullus

Champion (293)

10-01-2021, 13:06

Yes, I have reached both endings. I had seen the messages here and I knew what I had to do. Nearly missed the star in level 18 though. I had played that a few times already, until I suddenly saw it and realized I had to adjust my route. After completing the game, I used an older savestate, missed a star on purpose and got to see the bad ending as well.

Awesome if you could make a custom build for the Xmas Quiz. I've had lots of fun with Dan's KV2 level last december. Took me two days to solve that one. I bet you have some rejected levels laying around. Just pick the hardest of them all and make us sweat.

By mcolom

Master (181)

10-01-2021, 13:17

Briqunullus wrote:

I have completed the game and I have enjoyed every single bit of it. Admittedly, I have dumped the cartridge and played on emulator. This gave me endless rewinds and savestates

Haha, I'm tempted to do the same, but I'm still resisting
In the uncanny cave, so far.

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

11-01-2021, 10:40

mcolom wrote:

Haha, I'm tempted to do the same, but I'm still resisting

There is an intermediate option: train in the emulator, then finish the game in hardware ^_^

By mcolom

Master (181)

11-01-2021, 17:42

Uhm, better not. The emulator is a no-return way!

By Briqunullus

Champion (293)

16-01-2021, 14:56

Every great game deserves a dedicated password generator. I had the idea to make one for Stevedore from the moment I first saw it. But it takes time to work out the password scheme of course. Luckily theNestruo has published his library including the password source code. That made life a lot easier. Enjoy!

10 CLS
20 PRINT "Stevedore Password Generator"
30 PRINT
40 PRINT "Stage Select"
50 FOR I=1 TO 6
60 READ LV(I), NM$(I)
70 PRINT HEX$(I+9);
80 PRINT USING ". ## ";LV(I);
90 PRINT NM$(I)
100 NEXT I
110 PRINT
120 PRINT "Enter (A-F) ";
130 A$=INPUT$(1)
140 W=ASC(A$) AND 223 - 64
150 IF W<1 OR W>6 THEN GOTO 130
160 PRINT CHR$(W + 64)
170 PRINT
180 IF W=6 THEN W=5: G=1: S(1)=1: S(2)=1: S(3)=1: S(4)=1: S(5)=1
190 IF W=1 OR G=1 THEN GOTO 300
200 PRINT "Select collected stars"
210 PRINT
220 FOR I=1 TO W - 1
230 PRINT NM$(I);" (y/n) ";
240 A$=INPUT$(1)
250 IF INSTR("YyNn", A$) = 0 THEN GOTO 240
260 IF INSTR("Yy", A$) > 0 THEN S(I)=1
270 PRINT CHR$(ASC(A$) AND 223)
280 NEXT I
290 PRINT
300 PRINT "Your passwords are"
310 FOR I=0 TO 15
320 P(1)=I
330 P(2)=(W XOR P(1)) + 5
340 P(3)=(G XOR P(2)) + 5
350 P(4)=((S(1) + S(2)*2 + S(3)*4 + S(4)*8) XOR P(3)) + 5
360 P(5)=(S(5) XOR P(4)) + 5
370 P(6)=0
380 FOR J=1 TO 5
390 P(6)=P(6)+P(J)
400 PRINT HEX$(P(J) AND 15);
410 NEXT J
420 PRINT HEX$((P(6) + 5) AND 15)
430 NEXT I
440 DATA 1, "Lighthouse"
450 DATA 7, "Abandoned Ship"
460 DATA 13, "Shipwreck Island"
470 DATA 19, "Uncanny Cave"
480 DATA 25, "Ancient Temple Ruins"
490 DATA 31, "Good Ending"

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

16-01-2021, 17:08

Briqunullus wrote:

Every great game deserves a dedicated password generator. I had the idea to make one for Stevedore from the moment I first saw it. But it takes time to work out the password scheme of course. Luckily theNestruo has published his library including the password source code. That made life a lot easier. Enjoy!

Hahaha! I should have changed the salt for the actual game :)
Your password generator is correct! Extra kudos for coding it in MSX-BASIC!!
Just out of curiosity: Did you guessed the two byte addresses by peeking with and emulator and then compared with the MSXlib code? Or did you reverse engineered / disassembled the entire game?

P.S.: Here's my password generator (HTML/JS)... https://gist.github.com/theNestruo/041e97024f3e2ef558f71e0ee...

P.P.S.: There is still one more secret to be discovered in Stevedore! (at least, I don't recall reading about it here nor in Twitter) :D

By Briqunullus

Champion (293)

16-01-2021, 19:07

I only read your code, worked out what it did and decoded the few passwords I had. That revealed enough information to understand the password payload and build the password generator.

One more secret...? Nice! I hope it'll be found one day.

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

17-01-2021, 12:34

Briqunullus wrote:

I only read your code, worked out what it did and decoded the few passwords I had. That revealed enough information to understand the password payload and build the password generator.

Hahaha! That's great! I hope you had fun decoding the passwords ^_^ (but less fun than actually playing the game, of course)

Briqunullus wrote:

One more secret...? Nice! I hope it'll be found one day.

Yup. People that have take a look inside the ROM image may have found a few strings that are not used during the game (besides the "hidden" grettings) and may have guessed what they are for... ^_^

By tfh

Prophet (2687)

17-01-2021, 16:59

You can now also play a Demo version of Stevedore online HERE.

By Briqunullus

Champion (293)

17-01-2021, 19:49

Hidden greetings? Other than the end demo? I have peeked using a hex editor and have seen that other secret too. It's a good one. Only I have no clue how to get to it. We'll see.

By Briqunullus

Champion (293)

23-01-2021, 11:39

I had to take a look into the code to uncover the secret. But I have found it. There's a hidden sound test on the title screen. To activate it, press SPACE + W. I guess W means Wonder? And is there a way to get out of it?

By theNestruo

Champion (268)

24-01-2021, 08:45

Briqunullus wrote:

I had to take a look into the code to uncover the secret. But I have found it. There's a hidden sound test on the title screen. To activate it, press SPACE + W. I guess W means Wonder? And is there a way to get out of it?

Yes! That's it! And yes, "W" is for Wonder!
Now everyone can enjoy Wonder's music in a relaxed manner, without spiders and skeletons accidentally killing you ^_^
There is no way out but resetting the computer...

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