We are Hejickle

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link_7777
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Re: We are Hejickle

Post by link_7777 »

Were the balance changes mentioned there to make the game significantly harder? I see a comment from nocash saying it was too easy, but I found it to be very difficult. Admittedly the rouge-like isn't really my forte, but i was only able to finish the game with save states. It is definitely possible that I'm missing something and accidentally making it more difficult for myself. Really cool game though, a lot of neat features, the in game inspect and help screens with the funny quotes are great. I didn't find ways to take advantage of it really, but the sound mechanic is kind of cool, even stuff like turning out of view tiles black just make the game seem natural. I did see at least one occurrence where the shop menu tiles shifted too far left, but it didn't look like it messed with the functionality
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slembcke
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Re: We are Hejickle

Post by slembcke »

I've had a weird issue with this game where it regularly acts like I'm pressing right or start when I'm not. It happens more on Nestopia (almost to the point of unplayability), but it's happened a few times on my actual NES/Everdrive too (enough to be odd, but not really affect the game). I remember reading this is a hardware bug or something you have to work around?
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FrankenGraphics
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Re: We are Hejickle

Post by FrankenGraphics »

I've only tried it once after the tuning, but yeah, my impression is that it is overall more challenging now. The increase in difficulty is a little nebulous to me, but for one thing, mana potions are harder to come by so you can't do as many mistakes with your spells.


re slembckes' comment, does the game use DPCM sample playback anywhere?
link_7777
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Re: We are Hejickle

Post by link_7777 »

slembcke wrote:I've had a weird issue with this game where it regularly acts like I'm pressing right or start when I'm not. It happens more on Nestopia (almost to the point of unplayability), but it's happened a few times on my actual NES/Everdrive too (enough to be odd, but not really affect the game). I remember reading this is a hardware bug or something you have to work around?
I'm guessing by "hardware bug" you're referring to the DPCM glitch, but even if the game used DPCM and didn't handle the glitch it would result in a dropped input not the phantom inputs you describe. I didn't see that issue, but i'm also running on powerpak, so it may not be the same.
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FrankenGraphics
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Re: We are Hejickle

Post by FrankenGraphics »

I think HP regeneration was set lower too.
lidnariq
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Re: We are Hejickle

Post by lidnariq »

link_7777 wrote:even if the game used DPCM and didn't handle the glitch it would result in a dropped input not the phantom inputs you describe.
Unfortunately, if a bit deletion happens, it will cause Right to be pressed.

Also unfortunately, Nestopia's emulation of DPCM DMA cycle stealing is off, and will emulate it at the wrong times, which matters because ...
this game specifically uses the trick of using OAM DMA to synchronize the CPU to the APU clock, which means that DPCM DMA ought to never collide.
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pubby
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Re: We are Hejickle

Post by pubby »

Yeah, the game works around the DPCM glitch by aligning controller reads with OAMDMA and doing multiple reads when reading from PPUDATA.

If these techniques are breaking on actual NESes, that'd be good to know. For testing the controller reads, you can just sit in the middle of a room doing nothing. If the glitch occurs the character will move right on their own.

For testing the PPUDATA reads, the easiest way is to go to the shop menu and hold down for a good minute. The menu graphics will glitch if the PPUDATA read fails.

(and yeah, Nestopia is buggy regarding the DPCM glitch so the game doesn't work with Nestopia)
I think HP regeneration was set lower too.
I forget the specifics, but the biggest change was increasing the cost of health potions from 3 to 4. That was done to make purchasing other items appealing.

The other change was a nerf to certain weapons. The starting club was one such nerf.
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FrankenGraphics
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Re: We are Hejickle

Post by FrankenGraphics »

I see! i think the HP potion cost increase is a pretty good move. I was pretty keen on trying out spells either way, but i think the hp potions were a bit too good a deal to begin with.
link_7777
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Re: We are Hejickle

Post by link_7777 »

Some of you were able to beat the game then? Even when I felt like I was doing well I was only able to get through 3 or 4 dungeons
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FrankenGraphics
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Re: We are Hejickle

Post by FrankenGraphics »

Haven't beat the game. That's ok as far as i'm concerned, i'm saving it for a rainy day. :)
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slembcke
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Re: We are Hejickle

Post by slembcke »

pubby wrote:If these techniques are breaking on actual NESes, that'd be good to know.
Hmm. I'll have to try again on my NES. I _thought_ there were a couple times where it happened, but on Nestopia it's relentless and makes the game unplayable. The Linux and particularly the Mac version of Nestopia are pretty nice, so that's been my emulator of choice. Oh well.
zzo38
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Re: We are Hejickle

Post by zzo38 »

It is good, but there seems a few bugs.

The bugs I found are:
  • The help for Armory and Log are switched around, and the help for Library and Stages are switched around.
  • If you switch around weapons in the Armory menu and then push the SELECT button to view the descriptions, it will forget that they have been switched around and will switch them back; you have to exit the menu first if you want it to stay.
  • The stage menu will not remember which option is highlighted.
Also some ideas of feature enhancements:
  • Once the game ends, display the score, whether you win or lose.
  • Include a text file with documentation (including what some things mean, which are not quite already clear; also stuff about game rules about figuring damage and so on).
  • Allow reviewing spells, items, weapons, and your own status, on the stage selection menu (perhaps by pushing START).
Last edited by zzo38 on Sun Mar 03, 2019 9:12 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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zzo38
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Re: We are Hejickle

Post by zzo38 »

I managed to reach the final level of Hell, but then I lost.
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M_Tee
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Re: We are Hejickle

Post by M_Tee »

I've been loving this game so much. I especially like how not all areas come up in every run. I haven't been this engrossed in a game for a long time.
zzo38
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Re: We are Hejickle

Post by zzo38 »

I noticed some ASCII strings in the file which seem to be not used. Would a advanced version be made later which can be larger than 64K (with more areas, character selection, and whatever else it might be)? This file is 64K but I think the mapper it uses supports more than 64K.
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