MiSTer FPGA - Rikki & Vikki [PB: 100,610] / Atari 7800
17**NOTE: No music in this game because the cart uses a special audio processing chip.**
Rikki & Vikki is a homebrew game for the Atari 7800 that released in 2018. This is not only the best game I've played on the system, but one of the best games I've played this year. Besides the PC version, MiSTer is currently the only way to play this game unless you own an Atari 7800 console. No other emulators/clone consoles currently support it.
Easy to pick up but difficult to master, this game shares some similarities with one of my favorite arcade games of all-time: Bubble Bobble. It's not an obvious connection to make at first, but there are a few unmistakable similarities. First, the structure of the stages allow for travel through the top and bottom of the screen to wrap around to the other side. Another thing that really drove this home, is when I "beat" the game in single player the first time, and found out that co-op play is necessary to get the true ending. The single-screen hybrid of puzzle and action genres is done just as well, if not better than Bubble Bobble. It's really that good. Just addictive fun from beginning to end, and I look forward to tackling the true ending with a friend in the future.
Control is excellent overall, but one thing to take note of: character movement becomes slippery when holding boxes. Keep this in mind when playing- it can catch you off guard in tricky situations.
Stuck? Hold select to run down the timer.
Fans of 1cc and speedrun challenges will be in heaven here. It seems made for such a challenge. If that isn't quite your thing, the game includes an interesting way of having a variable difficulty as you play along. Not only can you purchase additional lives in exchange for score between worlds, but if you continue twice you will be presented with an option to remove lives alltogether and be able to retry stages as much as you want. This is *much* less frustrating your first time around and I highly recommend taking this offer, and you *WILL* die a lot! Normally losing all lives takes you back to the start of the world, so it can be quite frustrating, especially at bosses, who will take multiple tries your first time encountering them to learn the patterns. By default this game is Atari-level difficult. Making progress is quite addictive though. I re-recorded this many times trying to get as far as I could with 1 credit. Each time I could feel a rush as I made it further and further, with the tension growing as lives diminished.
Playing on MiSTer:
1) Purchase from Steam or Humble Bundle:
http://www.penguinet.net/Games/Rikki_Vikki/Purchase/index.php
2) Rename Foxbox.bin to Rikki and Vikki.a78
3) Use this patch by Kitrinx on the ROM to update the header: https://bit.ly/3kIVyq6
Our new Atari 7800 core came out of the gate with extreme accuracy thanks to Kitrinx. She is a dedicated MiSTer dev who has been a constant advocate for proper preservation. I've never met a person so excited about making old hardware obsolete, and we are lucky to have someone with this talent and drive working with the project so closely.
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Atari 7800 core 04-17-2021 build - Rikki & Vikki
High Score: 100,610 (1cr to 4-B)
Filter: Scanlines(Bright)\110_85_soft // Gamma: 2.3 // Color Temp: Warm
Played using an OEM NES controller with USB adapter & 1000hz polling.
Settings: 5x Integer Scaled (+2 offset) to 1080p // HDMI to Datapath e1s capture card
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|:=-Timestamps-=:|
00:00 - Boot / Settings
00:33 - Title / Intro
02:47 - Area 1
08:44 - Area 2
15:52 - Area 3
23:54 - Area 4
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Twitch: https://www.twitch.tv/WalrusFPGA
Twitter: https://twitter.com/WalrusFPGA
=---------------CONTRIBUTE---------------=
None of this would be possible without the constant hard work of Sorgelig. It cannot be overstated how much he has done and continues to do for this project, since its beginning. You can support him either at his Patreon in the link below, or on Paypal, depending on your preference. MiSTer is a paradigm shift in how we can experience these classic games. This is a long-term preservation project that will continue to grow so that gamers today and in the future can experience these excellent systems as accurately and lag-free as possible. Donating what you can will help keep the updates coming. Thank you.
Patreon: https://patreon.com/FPGAMiSTer
PayPal: https://paypal.me/FPGAMiSTer
=-----------------INFORM-----------------=
Github link for this core: https://github.com/MiSTer-devel/Atari7800_MiSTer
MiSTer Forum/Wiki/Github (source, guides and info): http://MiSTerFPGA.org
Official MiSTer Discord for live chat/help: https://discord.gg/4xKVg4XVYn
=------------------BUILD------------------=
Sellers of MiSTer expansion boards: https://misterfpga.org/viewforum.php?f=34&sid=74e1c5e7dae1b99284789d93194cfa0b
I have personally ordered all my parts from https://www.MiSTerAddons.com and have been 100% satisfied with the quality and service there.