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i still don't plan to post much here (join the discord if you want to track my progress), but this is pretty sweet, so i'll throw it up here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9gHpAidP18c

I decided to try an lure some of those interested in contributing/modding Jackal by creating a discord specific to the cause.

feel free to join for any reason: give jackal some love, contribute ideas, see what's going on, contribute some graphics/level mods, or even some new source code.
Come join the development: https://discord.gg/7EAJJBEbTZ

[January 02, 2022, 11:35:29 AM - (Auto Merged - Double Posts are not allowed before 7 days.)]

updated explosion animations.  the original were very clunky and had too many frames.  pretty non-fluid.  I added 2 additional animations.  I kept the overall explosion timing about the same, which reduced the timing for each animation, which also helped the animations seem more fluid

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sOAw4joMWQ4
January 02, 2022, 11:35:29 AM - (Auto Merged - Double Posts are not allowed before 7 days.)
made some nice progress on this new sniper/shooter from a window for Level 7.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HqxZVE2EbLI

a bit of inspiration and suggestion led to this repurposing of the Level 4 train.  the object is both a normal enemy and part of the new miniboss here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LDQ30IEv7F4

[October 18, 2021, 10:36:33 AM - (Auto Merged - Double Posts are not allowed before 7 days.)]

progression is quite slow at times...but I have implemented a simple HUD disable feature.  Pausing and pressing select will hide the HUD now.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EcPTy4QXnX4
October 18, 2021, 10:36:33 AM - (Auto Merged - Double Posts are not allowed before 7 days.)
A new mini boss.  S-Mines!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EoaCKwdSTA4

there was a separate hack posted that provides any direction bullet firing.  i added this feature in my last release of the other hack before though.  if you hold down the bullet fire button it maintains the direction

and yes its gotten me killed many times thinking my bullets would go up .

the more the merrier!  I am the only one thats gone so far as to recreate the source code (that i know of), and I was the first to post a hack of jackal to RHDN, but there are a few others dabbling.  Bogaa has contributed some custom code and a western themed level.  others have contributed ideas/graphics.  China has a decent Jackal scene, and, though I've reached out to some on bilibili, Their community is separate still.

There's a small discord where a few of us discuss things if you'd like to join:
https://discord.gg/9FMHwdtGXD
(It's a Castelvania-named server, but there's a lot of different game channels)

@trax, do you mean the original hack i made?  I haven't released this hack - won't be for quite a while i'd imagine, but you're more than welcome to test it out.  DM/email me or something.

ALSO - my first large boss edit is happening.  a sample:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cb27E85LLN0

Level 1 is complete .  Sure, there may be some tweaks to enemy AI, and some replay value changes for when the game is beaten the first time, but it's nice to have a level pretty much done.

I'm still searching for level ideas, and especially new enemy ideas (graphics, and more importantly, function/mechanics).

[August 31, 2021, 10:02:22 AM - (Auto Merged - Double Posts are not allowed before 7 days.)]

oh, i turned that feature off for level 7 (completely configurable for each level now ).  i went to make a video of the level and noticed the flash was making the stage darker - so i just turned it off.  I had envisioned the urban stage in daylight too.  i also don't want the flash on every level to take away from the awe of the effect.
August 31, 2021, 10:02:22 AM - (Auto Merged - Double Posts are not allowed before 7 days.)
i was actually thinking of making a REALLY dark level, reminiscent of Jungle Strike Level 4, that's super hard to see unless you're firing.  Of course, you have unlimited ammo in jackal, but it can still make the level hard not seeing much all the time.

The NES palette may make that difficult though, with only having a medium gray and black.  perhaps making use of the dark blues..
September 05, 2021, 12:45:45 PM - (Auto Merged - Double Posts are not allowed before 7 days.)
if anyone wants to contribute, just let me know .  level design and modification is pretty time-consuming.  There's 5 untouched levels that need ideas/editing.

[August 29, 2021, 10:45:53 AM - (Auto Merged - Double Posts are not allowed before 7 days.)]

bogaa was already created a wild west theme stage.  level 7 is all urban.  level 1 is now more of a beach and river level.  and yes, all the other levels will likely get at least a retouch on the graphics.  the brand new levels will likely have brand new graphics.  new sprites are a little trickier be ause the sprite render table is already about full.  it shouldnt be too hard to expand it though
August 29, 2021, 10:45:53 AM - (Auto Merged - Double Posts are not allowed before 7 days.)
i have now incorporated a patching function directly into the editor - if the original Jackal USA.nes ROM is loaded (various bytes are checked), then an internal IPS file is applied.  The IPS format is extremely simple and I implemented the algorithm in the editor code
August 29, 2021, 02:17:50 PM - (Auto Merged - Double Posts are not allowed before 7 days.)
Level 7 sample:
https://youtu.be/Y7FebwXR0gs

the compression is konami RLE  this was removed from the majority of graphics and they are now uncompressed so they are all viewable in tools like yychr

yes, my level editor includes most BG and sprite graphics for editing, including the jeep.  the jeep is generated from mirrored tiles though so things like an isometric view arent possible.  at least not without sacrificing precious pattern table space and modding the sprite rendering routines

no worries, RPGs are notoriously difficult to hack into and get a lot changed.  And its just you hacking it right?  FF6 RotDS and others had an entire team hacking away.

[August 27, 2021, 04:13:00 PM - (Auto Merged - Double Posts are not allowed before 7 days.)]

Code Select Expand

Label1096: LDX #$00
LDA JeepHorizPosition,X
TAY
SEC
SBC #JeepMinimumHorizontalPositionForScrolling
BCC +
SBC #(JeepMaximumHorizontalPositionForScrolling - JeepMinimumHorizontalPositionForScrolling + 1)
BCS ++
-: LDA JeepVertPosition,X
SEC
SBC #$60
BCC Label1134
SBC #$60
BCS Label1135
--: RTS
+: LDA $40
BNE Label1136
CPY #JeepMinimumHorizontalPosition
BCS -
LDA #JeepMinimumHorizontalPosition
STA JeepHorizPosition,X
BNE -
Label1136: DEC $40
LDA #JeepMinimumHorizontalPositionForScrolling
BNE +
++: LDA $40
CMP #$FF
BNE ++
CPY #(JeepMaximumHorizontalPosition + 1)
BCC -
LDA #JeepMaximumHorizontalPosition
+:
---: STA JeepHorizPosition,X
BNE -
++: INC $40
LDA #JeepMaximumHorizontalPositionForScrolling

Same location i sent you before, i just only edited one value before.  There's a check and then a set.  originally i just changed the check, but then the set made everything act weird (forced the jeep to jump around when the screen scrolled).  I replaced the values with global variables for ease of editing
August 27, 2021, 04:13:00 PM - (Auto Merged - Double Posts are not allowed before 7 days.)
video is short - 3-4 seconds.  be ready to click replay.  the static image of the jeep is approximately where it would scroll previously to give you an idea of the change.  The scroll point was moved 16 pixels.

https://youtu.be/Z2-5IaRvjBU

holy crap i didn't know you started on this in 2011!  and i can also state i'm very much looking forward to this release .

[August 27, 2021, 07:49:45 AM - (Auto Merged - Double Posts are not allowed before 7 days.)]

I found some code that changed how the side scrolled responded, so i was close to the solution.  i'll spend some time today on it

TRAX: Yes, i received quite a lot of negative feedback regarding the difficulty.  But, honestly, it's no different than SMW masters making Kaizo hacks.  I've played jackal most of my life and wanting something challenging.  Even with the insane difficulty, the fact that i made the levels makes it even a little less challenging to me personally.  However, i did re-release Jackal 2 with 3 separate difficulty patches on RHDN.  i do believe i including a doc detailing the differences in each difficulty level too.
August 27, 2021, 07:49:45 AM - (Auto Merged - Double Posts are not allowed before 7 days.)
the horizontal scrolling now begins 2 tiles earlier .  The vertical scrolling already seems good to me?  thoughts?

thanks for the links bogaa!

yes, Mesen crashes because of the mapper.  FCUEX handles it differently.  There is a mapper for Mesen that works, but that breaks FCUEX, but i don't recall the mapper number.  i only really use FCEUX.

thanks for the replies!  i didn't expect as much interest in this older game .
The newest level editor requires a patch  that i haven't really released yet.  If you're interested, DM me, or visit this discord: https://discord.gg/tzMr63ZA.  or just DM me on discord.


here's the latest sample i uploaded to youtube.  doesn't include the XP menu though, but the menu works fine.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m-I7tafFiQQ

TRAX:
I feel like we talked before?  years ago?  i'm not sure.  The project already has a fully completed 1st hack.  here is my playthrough of it
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MnU5LlA1t-A
It was extremely difficult for most, so i added patches for varying difficulties.
The latest hacking endeavor has seen me create the entire source code, and expand the levels, new enemeies etc, which is still fairly far from released.
Bogaabogaa has created a western themed level, and I have created an urban themed level with large city buildings, roads, etc.  And i'm working on level 1, but there's still 7 other levels to work on, new graphics and enemies.  It'll likely be a while before it's fully complete and ready to release.
I must admit, i'm not sure how to upload images or videos into this forum...this is my first time here.

POLISHEDTURD:
A randomizer has certainly crossed my mind.  I think it's very doable - i already created an enemy horizontal position 'randomization' as part of my original hack.  It would certainly take some logic, but very doable.  i'm not if or when i'd get around to this, especially with the expanded hack taking so much time and effort.
I've already investigated changing the jeep speed.  it works form moving around on the screen, but when you scroll, it still scrolls one pixel at time due to how the game handle enemy spawning.  i haven't looked deep into what it would take to get that to work fully.  You'd have to make sure no enemy spawns or new level tile loads where missed..

FLAVIOGAMES:
I've thought about editing the title screen many times, and my original hack released (mentioned above) was called Jackal 2.  I think this new one needs a subtitle, like jackal, war march, or something. 

NESROCKS:
haha, the camera is certainly fixable.  i don't recall exactly what you were trying to fix though?  was it that the camera scrolled late when you were too close to the side of the screen?

hello, I have been on this journey since early 2019 and still going strong.  full level editor with BG and sprite graphics editing capability has been created, the ROM has been expanded - doubled in size, I have reverse engineered the entire source code, decompressed the majority of the graphics, expanded the levels from 12 screens in length to 45, and increased the game from 6 to 10 levels.  I have changed the points system to an XP system where players can purchase upgrades at the end of each level.

you may need to put the control in the SYSWOW64 folder instead of SYSTEM32