Coverfire - Classic Arcade Action

[thewiirocks]

C O V E R F I R E
http://img31.imageshack.us/img31/6430/coverfiretitlelandscape.png
Coming Soon!
Classic arcade action -- exclusively for the iPad!

Coverfire is an exciting classic shooter with mutli-directional controls and intense gameplay! This is not a retread or upscaling of an iPhone game. This is a title designed with the iPad in mind. Only the iPad's large touchscreen can provide a smooth and comfortable arcade experience.

http://img18.imageshack.us/img18/9010/holdingcoverfire2.png

Weave in and out. Dodge bullets. Grab the bonuses. Look danger in the eye.

Not comfortable? Turn the iPad to your desired orientation and the game will automatically rotate to match. Decide between two uniquely different modes in landscape or portrait.

Coming soon from Infinite Sands

Liq8KmcrQJM

[thewiirocks]

Got another screenshot for y'all. I'll be working on a video sometime in the not-too distant future.

Testing is continuing on the actual hardware. I didn't want to release the game until it was fully tested. Especially given how hardcore the gameplay is. So far it's actually quite good! However, I'm still going to tweak the controls slightly to ensure that players don't have trouble with being slightly off.

If you have any questions, feel free to post them here and I will attempt to answer them. I'll also attempt to keep a running blog here as development continues.

(Click on the image below to view it at full resolution.)

[JCat]

This looks like a classic title from the Apple II, C64 & Atari days called "Crossfire"? If so, bring it on! :)

[cranker]

It looks at little like an 80's game called "Targ" but I am sure the gameplay is much different.

[thewiirocks]

This looks like a classic title from the Apple II, C64 & Atari days called "Crossfire"? If so, bring it on! :)

We have a winner! Would you believe it was my first computer game? No wonder I like hardcore shmups! :p

It looks at little like an 80's game called "Targ" but I am sure the gameplay is much different.

Actually, Crossfire (the basis for Coverfire) was itself based on Targ. However, it enhanced and expanded on Targ in several notable ways. e.g. The enemies shoot back in Crossfire and the fire direction is decoupled from the movement direction.

[JCat]

This was one of my first as well - was it Broderbund or Sierra that did Crossfire? In any case, looking forward to this (I miss those days - except there was no iPad back then) lol

[thewiirocks]

This was one of my first as well - was it Broderbund or Sierra that did Crossfire? In any case, looking forward to this (I miss those days - except there was no iPad back then) lol

Sierra. The box art had me convinced that it had something to do with Ultraman. (Which was on during morning cartoons at the time.) I vividly recall telling the UPS delivery guy about this cool computer game we got that was just like that TV show where the guy stuck his arm up in the air to become a giant robot. I'm sure he couldn't wait for my mother to finish signing the slip so he could leave. :p

I swiped a few screenshots from Mobygames so you can see Crossfire as I remember it. It came in a few different versions across the various platforms, so I'm sure everyone has slightly different memories. :)

[Fujibayashi]

Holy crap I cannot WAIT to play Crossfire (essentially) on my iPad / iPhone! Booted up the old C64 to play it just on principle this morning. What a classic game!

[thewiirocks]

I have to say, this is really humbling. Never in a million years would I have expected to find even *one* person on TA that was familiar with Crossfire. Much less the wonderful response I'm receiving!

Thanks guys, this is really encouraging! I'm going to make sure I do right by you. This will be the best Crossfire clone made since the 80's! On that, you have my promise! :)

Here's a quick update on the game's progress:

Today I managed to get OpenFeint for the iPad up and running. It turns out that OF doesn't like it if you manage device rotation by asking the device what its current orientation is. OF has a nasty habit of crashing in that situation. So I ended up devoting most of the day to tearing down the program and rebuilding it around rotation events.

On the bright side, you can now see the screen spin as you turn the device. In addition, the game isn't as sensitive to orientation changes as it used to be. Under the previous method, I had to lock the screen to prevent it from occasionally jumping between portrait, landscape, and back again. So it looks like the changes were well worth the work.

Another area of great improvement is the controls. They were already "good enough", but "good enough" doesn't cut it for me. I don't care how long it takes me to get this right. I don't want even a single complaint about the controls when I release. So I'm continuing to refine my approach.

The original approach I took was rather naive. I checked inside the squares of individual buttons to see if the user pressed inside. While it worked, it was rather easy to unintentionally miss the buttons. I ended up extending the boundaries of the buttons a bit, but that was only a partial solution.

The solution I ended up settling on was to compute circles around each button. The circle is much larger than the button, but its center is moved away from the button itself. The button ends up in one corner of this large circle, while the actual touch area extends out into empty space. This scheme appears to eliminate near-misses on the controls while simultaneously keeping the controls tight and responsive.

Next on my list is to get high score submissions working with OF. Believe it or not, I have a victory screen to show if you beat your high score. I've gone through some musical accompaniments and settled on a rather classy victory piece.

Looking at other games for a moment, Chain Link HD does a really good job with their high scores. Not only do you get to submit your scores when you're done, but the game is constantly tracking your progress and letting you know what scores you're near. That's a level of leaderboard interaction I'd like to replicate.

[GordonFreeman]

I hope this one comes pretty soon!! Can't wait to play it on the ipad!
One suggestion: Keep it retro. I can't say much from the pics but It seems to be like the original. :)

[JCat]

I remember the original being a pretty quiet game. No music, and only one sound effect which was the shot's impact on the enemy or yourself.

[thewiirocks]

I hope this one comes pretty soon!! Can't wait to play it on the ipad!
One suggestion: Keep it retro. I can't say much from the pics but It seems to be like the original. :)

I'm super-excited that you're excited! Always great to meet other Crossfire fans! :)

I'm definitely working to maintain the flavor of the original game. A previous iteration of the game in Javascript got extremely high marks from other Crossfire fans. So if you like Crossfire, I think you'll love this game. ;)

I remember the original being a pretty quiet game. No music, and only one sound effect which was the shot's impact on the enemy or yourself.

You're partly correct. All versions of the game were light on sound effects. However, some versions (notably the C64 version) did have music. As one would expect, the official remake by Sierra also had music to go with the high color graphics.

[JCat]

You're partly correct. All versions of the game were light on sound effects. However, some versions (notably the C64 version) did have music. As one would expect, the official remake by Sierra also had music to go with the high color graphics.

Oh ok yeah, I played the Atari 800 and Apple II versions -- was not a big C-64 fan until they took over the world back then.. that's when I finally joined the masses. lol (and still liked my Atari 800 better).

[thewiirocks]

Update 5/5: Development work continues. OpenFeint integration is mostly complete with just a few items left for tracking some of the achievements and background pausing. The gameplay has been further tweaked to ramp up the difficulty more evenly.

The credits screen and final score screens are complete. The help screen is still underway. I'm also attempting to settle on a frontpage icon for the game.

My first attempts at recording a video didn't go so well. It's a bit harder to record the bulky iPad than it is the small and easily mountable iPhone. I'm going to try a different setup and camera to see if I can create something that works.

Working hard toward a release Real Soon Now(TM)... :)

[cranker]

Awesome !!

maybe a preview video ? :)

[DaviddesJ]

Come on, everyone remembers Crossfire. It was one of the first two games I bought for my original Apple ][. (The other was Wizardry.)

[thewiirocks]

First, I'd like to apologize to everyone for the long delay. I had intended to release the game several months ago, but various interference prevented its release.

The upshot is that the game is currently in review, awaiting Apple's approval! Plus, the delay has allowed for Game Center integration and multitasking support! Due to Apple's review process, it's difficult to say precisely when it will be available. However, you should expect to see it within the next few days.

A website with promotional information has been setup at http://www.infinitesands.com/. Feel free to drop by and take a gander at the promotional materials.

I'm also getting a video pulled together right now. Getting a clean video of the iPad has been one of the most challenging aspects of this project. But I think I finally have it licked. Expect to see a video as early as tomorrow.

Thanks again to the fans for your patience! I know you've all been itching for this game. The wait is almost over!

[FPE]

Can t wait to play it! Brings old memories.
I also hope you keep it very close to the original and retro.

[thewiirocks]

Think you can resist the classic gaming goodness of Coverfire HD?

Liq8KmcrQJM

Think again.

[thewiirocks]

I also hope you keep it very close to the original and retro.
Not to worry! I spent a significant amount of time playing the original Crossfire in preparation for development. In fact, the amount of research that went into the game easily eclipsed the time writing the software.

One of the inspirations for writing Coverfire is that the modern clones (the few that there are) failed to capture the feel of the original. Gridfire got the closest, but all the elements on the screen simply failed to gel into a good game. I wanted to create a game that inspired players to remember the original, yet feel like they're playing it on a modern platform with colorful graphics.

The result is (I believe) the best take on Crossfire to ever be produced. Coverfire will blow your socks off, drop your jaw, and kick your butt. You'll pick yourself up, remark "what just happened?", and give it another go. Each time you'll do better. Each game will be more adrenaline-fueled than the last. Every game you'll think to yourself, "just one more time".

See, I'm not just the game's author. I'm its biggest fan. And I think you'll agree that it's brilliant fun! :cool:

[KoolKing]

Looking very good. Can't wait to try this out. I've never played Crossfire (which shocks me considering how much of a Sierra geek I was growing up) but I am really liking all the arcade touches you've put into the game (ie; the font, enemy sprites looking appropriately retro). From the screenshots, I do think the cityscape image beneath the menu doesn't really mesh with the rest of the game though.

[FPE]

Then .... Just hurry! Give t to us!! And happy new year!

[thewiirocks]

From the screenshots, I do think the cityscape image beneath the menu doesn't really mesh with the rest of the game though.

It's an homage to the original boxart. The idea of the original game is that the "grid" was a city which you were defending against invaders. The idea was inherited from Targ (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Targ_(video_game)) (also known as "The Crystal City") where you zipped around the grid (i.e. "city) in a little car.

Here's the boxart from Crossfire for comparison:

http://forums.toucharcade.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=16887&d=1270947395

One of the reasons I chose the Dubai cityscape was for its futuristic-looking properties. I briefly considered reinforcing the connection between the grid and the city by creating some city-themed background graphics that moved with the player. However, I decided that the player had enough to keep track of without some whiz-bang imagery adding confusion. I'm hoping that most players will make the connection themselves. :)

@FPE - We're just waiting on Apple. I'd get out and push, but there's probably an appstore regulation against that. :p

[KoolKing]

I can see the reasoning behind using the picture, especially with the original boxart right next to it. However I think it's the fact that it's an actual image that makes it seem off. I think perhaps it would fit a little better if you used one of those filters that takes an image and shades it into a pseudo-drawing (if the results were decent of course). That may strengthen the connection to the original a bit more, in my opinion.

[Planetshooter]

Add me to the list of excited people. It's great that this is in for review at last! Good luck with it, it's nice to have a retro/remake like this coming to the iPad!

[thewiirocks]

FYI, Apple has approved the title! Keep your eyes peeled for it to show up in the sidebar. (And/or search the AppStore. ;))

@KoolKing, you'll have to tell me I'd the title image seems as misplaced or not when in action.

[Planetshooter]

It's available in UK app store. I can't see a thread in iPad games here yet, I think IMNsomeone must be asleep ;)

I'll buy and do the toftt thing, won't be able to report back until later due to work... yawn.

[FPE]

Nice. I just took a new iTunes card .... In a few days my gaming blog is up, review coming then!

[thewiirocks]

It's available in UK app store. I can't see a thread in iPad games here yet, I think IMNsomeone must be asleep ;)

Oh noes! Someone slipped him a kryptonite! :p

I've gone ahead and created a thread. Thanks for your support everyone!

http://forums.toucharcade.com/showthread.php?threadid=79910

@FPE - I look forward to your review! The more feedback I get, the better the next update will be. :)

[FPE]

Oh noes! Someone slipped him a kryptonite! :p

I've gone ahead and created a thread. Thanks for your support everyone!

http://forums.toucharcade.com/showthread.php?threadid=79910

@FPE - I look forward to your review! The more feedback I get, the better the next update will be. :)

Will be somewhere in the week-end I think. Once I get rid of wife and son for a few hours to play it :D