Hey Arcaders!
Raygunn here with a new series I know your gonna get a kick out of- HOMEBREW SPOTLIGHT!
I know what most of you are asking- Raygunn- whats a homebrew? That’s easy to explain. Homebrew is a term frequently applied to video games or other software produced by consumers to target proprietary hardware platforms (usually with hardware restrictions) that are not typically user-programmable or that use proprietary storage methods –Wikipedia. Homebrewing has been popular for almost two decades now due to the resurgence in the classic game consoles of the first through third generations especially.
So, now that we got that out of the way, why don’t we take a look at our first home brew to spotlight- Dragon’s Lair for the TI-99/4A! First- let’s go over the machine specs!
 |
|
| Type | Home computer |
|---|---|
| Release date | June 1981 |
| Introductory price | US$525 (equivalent to $1,447 in 2018) |
| Discontinued | March 1984 |
| Media |
|
| Operating system | TI BASIC |
| CPU | TMS9900 @ 3 MHz |
| Memory | 16 KB RAM 256 bytes scratchpad RAM |
| Graphics | TMS9918A |
| Predecessor | TI-99/4 |
-Wikipedia.
Now- to create a home port (that’s the term used to describe a game created for the console during its original life cycle) of Dragon’s Lair back in 1983 would have been impossible. The were no means to create the video files in a way that would have worked without a laserdisc player.
Even the amazing Coleco Adam port had to be altered because of the hardware limitations.
But… Fast forward about 35 YEARS- and behold- this little jem appears on the YouTubes and I have to share- thus the nexus of a new article series!
Now- THIS GAME truly defines a homebrew! An actual, playable version of an arcade classic on a system that it wasn’t truly meant to be played on! But, given the time we live in- with advancements in software and hardware technology, and the talented people who want to bring their favorite (and ours!) childhood arcade games home- or even… IMPROVE THEM! Yes, we will even see that in this series!
So- keep an eye out for more Homebrew Spotlight articles- where I’ll even try these amazing games- and give em’ a review- to see if they are worth a purchase for your classic console!
Hang on- this is going to be a fun ride! And if you know of any homebrew games you would like to review- leave me a comment below!
Thanks gang!
and-
Keep Playin’ Like It’s 1981!
Raygunn
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