Things to come...
In addition to some of the video game ideas that are under works, there are additional projects that are in the works. Many of these projects get relegated to the back burner but in most instances the work conducted can translate into future things. In addition to programming, there are other areas of interest that may relate to the Atari, such as music or electronics... or in the case of Drum Beat - all three!
If there is a project being worked on that is not a game, most likely it will be featured here. In the event that a project is completed then maybe a new page will be made on this site to feature it!
Drum Trigger
While learning to program for the Atari 2600 using Batari Basic has taken a little bit of time, one area of programming that has proven most difficult for me was the audio. While it may not be every body's cup of tea, I personally love the classic sounds of the Atari. It had a punchy, buzzy, raw sound and beautiful square waves that were perfect for arcade audio sound effects. While over the years people have unlocked the versatility of this device, one thing that the Atari lacks that many other later systems had was some kind of musical interface.
Sure there are things like the Synthcart by Paul Slocum that utilize the keyboard controllers to make sounds and rhythms but as a musician I had wanted a way to seamlessly integrate the Atari into my setup. In addition, I had also wanted to try and make a simple program to play around with sounds. What spurred the idea of the Drum Trigger was a recent acquisition of two drum pads with a 1/4" output. Coincidentally, I had looked into the schematics of the Atari and the joystick DB9 ports and noticed the voltage. This had got me thinking about how exactly my drum pads worked and looked into the voltage of them as well, which turned out to be the same and had got me thinking - would it be possible to make a drum trigger for the Atari 2600 and use the system as a kind of "brain."
I looked through my collection of old or broken joysticks to see if I had a perfect candidate for this and came up with a concept as to how this trigger would work. I had decided on eliminating the stick of the joystick and will instead utilize the space for a potentiometer that will control sensitivity for the trigger while each direction of the joystick would be attached to its own 1/4" audio jack so that the drum controller can potentially hook up to four separate drum triggers.
I had debated on what to use the fire button for. Should it be a foot pedal? Modifier? Sound select?
Eventually I had decided to leave that up to the program. It would be possible to have separate cartridges each programmed with different sounds or use the controller in a different way, like pressing the fire button and simultaneously hitting a trigger to set a particular sound for that trigger or maybe using the button to swap out kits. This would increase the versatility of the controller.
And while I had disassembled a classic third-party controller for this proto-type, should it prove successful I wanted a design that could be replicated without cannibalizing old hardware or that can be made in different forms with new electronics. I had even considered making my own pads using piezoelectric transducers but that was far down the road.
For now I only have a somewhat completed controller. While the potentiometer is not attached, I am currently working on getting the inputs to work with the console first.
VINYL GAMES
Getting involved in the homebrew scene, I had thought it interesting to see how the various controllers have been utilized by developers, as well as some new peripherals that programmers have taken advantage of, like the new SD cartridges, like the Harmony or Unocarts, or the Atari Vox. This also made me think of the peripherals from decades ago like the Spectravideo Compumate or Starpath Supercharger, the latter being the focus of this project.
Reading about the amount of data that can be stored on a vinyl record, I had the thought of recording a game on a vinyl record and playing it through a Supercharger.
When initially playing around with this idea, I had thought of making an Asteroids vinyl before learning of some of the limitations of the Supercharger so eventually I would like to make some vinyl-specific games.
While this is not a project I am actively working on, as I would first have to develop a program using the proper amount of space, getting a record manufactured, and finalizing any artwork, I did make this nifty little phonograph logo, playing around with the Atari "Fuji" design. I will probably remove the Atari name from the image and maybe using this under my audio project umbrella - Audio Trough.
I would also like to make a music album, with a cassette or record release being really cool!
If this all works out, I will also move to make an 8-track release for kicks!
