Hacks & Homebrews, new games for the GBZ

[Billy Blaze]

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HACKS & HOMEBREWS
new games for good old consoles

hey there modding fans,

as you guys are all interested in hacking the Gameboy case, I thought I start a topic on game hacks as well.

While building my GBZ I was reminiscing about my early days. Back then I was so flashed by the console games I was playing at my friends house. For days I imagined how the story might continue, upcoming enemies could look like, and the level designs might unfold. Several years later I came across my imaginative drawings and immediately started my first game modding attempts.

Ever since then I'm pretty much interested in fan-made creations. On my research for the GBZ I came across a bunch of superb and unique ROM Hacks, Mods and Homebrewed games which really impressed me.

I especially adore modifications which alter the content in order to make it operate in a manner different from its original version. for homebrews I'm after fresh and unique gameplay ideas. So the following (incomplete) list shows titles which fall into one of these categories.

• DISCLAIMER:
  Neither the author of this thread nor any other community member do condone illegal activity including copyright ROMs.
  No support will be provided and all questions will be ignored and deleted on that subject.

Jump to (quick links):

• SNES
• NES
• Megadrive / Genesis
• MS-DOS
• Atari
• Ports

[Billy Blaze]

• 100 Rooms of Enemies (SMW hack)
  Puzzle by Daizo Dee Von
  "Do you like the "Pit of 100 Trials" side-challenges from the Paper Mario games? If you did, then you'll sure like this concept. 100 Rooms of Enemies is a enemy rush platformer that consists of 100 setups for the player to go through. Think of this as if you're in an arcade game; you essentially try to improve your record as you die many times..."
  
  Link: https://www.smwcentral.net/?p=section&a ... s&id=11519
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• Call of Cthulhu (SMW hack)
  Platformer by Yashum
  "A hard SMW game based around one incredibly long level that is loosely based on a role playing game/ story book called "Called of Cthulhu" tale by H.P. Lovecraft. Mario must gather all the cat tokens in this world before Cthulhu wakes up or else Mario is doom..!"
  
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• Super Mario Logic (SMW hack)
  Puzzle by Final Logic aka. Final Theory
  "Solve one room mini puzzles to proceed. Join Mario on a brand new adventure as he conquers each task an order to break the spell and return the land back to normal."
  
  Link: http://www.romhacking.net/hacks/3041
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• Wario's Adventure (SMW hack)
  Platfromer by RetroDeath
  "Wario is again searching for a treasure to increase his wealth, so he travels unknown areas, fights with strange bosses and has a big adventure… The Hack isn’t too hard, especially in the first areas, but later you can get in serious trouble."
  
  Link: http://www.romhacking.net/hacks/2421
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• Super Boss Gaiden (SNES-CD Homebrew)
  Beat 'em up by Dieter Laser & ChronoMoogle
  "The plot behind Super Boss Gaiden focuses on the (unnamed) Sony CEO’s horror after discovering that the SNES-CD prototype has fallen into the hands of public, along with the BIOS too. Knowing this the CEO goes into overdrive with his heart pounding and only one thing on his mind - to destroy everything in sight."
  
  Link: https://superbossgaiden.superfamicom.org/
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• Yoshi's Strange Quest (SMW hack)
  Platformer by yoshifanatic
  "Picking up where Mario's Strange Quest left off, it turns out that the part where Yoshi's eggs hatched at the end of MSQ didn't actually happen. What really happened after Mario beat Bowser, rescued Yoshi's eggs, and saved the princess was that Yoshi and his sleepy friend decided to move to a new land so that he can protect his eggs from Bowser before they really hatched..."
  
  Link: https://www.smwcentral.net/?p=section&a ... s&id=10302
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[ICMF]

Suggestion for anyone who may be even remotely interested in any of these games: grab them now before they get hit with cease and desist notices. Homebrews have a habit of disappearing suddenly.

[Billy Blaze]

• Inversion (NES Homebrew)
  Puzzle by Red Moon Games
  "Here is a puzzle game in which you use the power of inverting black and white to activate and deactivate objects based upon their color."
  
  Link: http://www.romhacking.net/homebrew/44
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• Super Mario 3Mix (Super Mario Bros. 3 hack)
  Platfromer by Southbird
  "Super Mario Bros. 3Mix is a large-scale hack that changes and adds lots of features to Super Mario Bros. 3, and pays homage to many past and (relative) FUTURE Mario titles, while attempting to remain faithful in spirit to the look and feel of Super Mario Bros. 3."
  
  Link: http://www.romhacking.net/hacks/2068/
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• Alter Ego (NES Homebrew)
  Puzzle by Shiru
  "A port of the original (by Denis Grachev for the ZX Spectrum), Alter Ego is a puzzle game for NES. Swap positions with your “alter ego” to move about the level and obtain all the bouncing “pixels”."
  
  Link: https://www.romhacking.net/homebrew/1/
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• Matrixz (NES Homebrew)
  Action game by RetroDeath
  "Here is a homebrew release which follows the gameplay of the classic Snake game."
  
  Link: https://www.romhacking.net/homebrew/30/
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• Super Painter (NES Homebrew)
  Puzzle by Retrosouls
  "Run and paint the environment green but be sure to avoid hazards and enemies."
  
  Link: http://www.nesworld.com/article.php?sys ... rew_bestof
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• The Wit.nes (Demake)
  Puzzle by Dustmop
  "A demake of Thekla Inc's 2016 game "The Witness" has you exploring a mysterious island* and solving puzzles. This Nes ROM stands as a reinterpretation and tribute to the original work. Aimed at both players unfamiliar with the full game who want to learn what it's like, as well as veterans that need a fix of new puzzle panels to solve."
  
  Link: https://dustmop.itch.io/the-witnes
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• Zombie Calavera Prologue (NES Homebrew)
  Platfromer by Mojon Twins
  "The graveyard is infested of monsters. Santos, carrying a powerful shotgun, should be able to eliminate them without much of a hassle, although this won’t be always a good idea, because dead monsters will come back in the shape of winged spirits which will pursue you relentlessly and which are much more difficult to dodge. Luckily, they are almost blind so if you hide in the background and don’t move they will stop seeing you and they’ll go away."
  
  Link: http://www.nesworld.com/article.php?sys ... rew_bestof
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[Billy Blaze]

[ ports - Placeholder ]

[Billy Blaze]

• Mega Flappy Sis (Genesis Homebrew)
  Puzzle by Lennart Brink-Abeler
  "Of course there is a Flappy Bird port for the Sega Genesis. Do I need to say more?"
  
  Link: https://harlequin.itch.io/mega-flappy-sys
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• Miniplanets (Genesis Homebrew)
  Platfromer by sikthehedghog
  "you have to travel travel planet by planet solving puzzles on them. You control Qisha, who have to free 5 planet systems, guarded by her children, who had been cursed by an unknown force. Colorful, funny and additive game. "
  
  Link: https://playonretro.itch.io/miniplanets ... is-por-001
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• Tanglewood (Genesis Homebrew)
  Puzzle, Platformer by Big Evil Corporation
  "Set in the realm of Tanglewood, the game follows a young creature, Nymn, separated from the pack after the sun sets. Unable to get back to the safety of the family's underground home, Nymn must find a way to survive the night terrors and get to morning. Tanglewood’s world is a dangerous one after dark; guiding Nymn you must use your skills of evasion, traps and trickery to defeat predators."
  
  Link: http://tanglewoodgame.com
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• Yoshi in Sonic the Hedgehog 2 (Sonic the Hedgehog 2 Hack)
  Action, Platfromer by Xenowhirl
  "Sonic 2 Hedgehog 2 mod incorporates the gameplay from Yoshi's Island allowing you to play as Yoshi and baby Sonic! and going to confront the evil Dr. Robotnik."
  
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[Billy Blaze]

[ MS-DOS - Placeholder ]

[Billy Blaze]

[ Atari - Placeholder ]

[YaYa]

This is a really interesting topic. As a purist, i have always ran from clones, hacks, homebrews but i have always felt a lot of respect for people’s work. I can imagine how hard it can be to reverse engineering a software (the code) contained in a hardware (the rom) and make changes to it !

Tha ks for sharing your passion !

[Billy Blaze]

• Brik (Atari 2600 Homebrew)
  Arcade by Repixel8
  "Brik is a version of the classic brick breaking genre of games for your Atari console, featuring multiple unique levels, bonuses and enemies."
  
  Link: http://repixel8.com/brik/
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• Fall Down (Atari 2600 Homebrew)
  Jump&Run by Aaron Curtis
  "Fall Down pits the ever-opposed forces of red and blue against each other in an ultimate battle to capture scrolling platforms! The first player to fall past a platform captures it and scores a point. Taking time to collect power-ups can give some advantage, but taking too long only results in death at the top of the screen. Watch out, because as you progress, the platforms slowly accelerate!"
  
  Link: https://www.atariage.com/store/index.ph ... tail&p=308
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• Flappy (Atari 2600 Port)
  Arcade by Michael Haas
  "Yes, Flappy again. If you thought flying to nowhere was hard...now they've placed perilous pipes in your path! In Flappy, your challenge is to attend to your avian ally at an altitude avoiding alloy aerial aqueducts. How far will you fare?"
  
  Link: https://www.atariage.com/store/index.ph ... ail&p=1038
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• Jump VCS (Atari 2600 Homebrew)
  Jump&Run by Repixel8
  "Jump VCS is an endless runner style game for your Atari 2600 console, featuring multiple stages of increasing difficulty and collectible bonuses. Guide your player across the rooftops and ledges of the city whilst jumping over the gaps between buildings and avoiding obstacles. Timing, skill and a steady nerve are what’s required to succeed at Jump VCS."
  
  Link: http://repixel8.com/jump-vcs/
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• Star Castle Arcade (Atari 2600 Port)
  Arcade by Chris Walton & Thomas Jentzsch
  "The object of Star Castle is to destroy an enemy cannon which sits in the center of three concentric, rotating energy shield rings while avoiding or destroying 'mines' – enemies that spawn from the core, pass through the energy rings, and then home in on the player's ship. They can stick back to the shield if the player maneuvers in such a way that a ring is between the ship and the mines. The player-controlled spaceship can rotate, thrust forward, and fire small projectiles. The cannon's shields are composed of twelve sections each, and each section takes two hits to destroy. Once a section is breached, rings beneath it are exposed to fire."
  
  Link: https://atariage.com/store/index.php?l= ... ail&p=1046
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• Super 3D Portals 6 (Atari 2600 Demake)
  Puzzle by Hinchy
  "A 2D demake of Portal. Super 3D Portals 6 consists primarily of a series of puzzles that must be solved by teleporting the player's arrow using a portal device that can create inter-spatial portals between two planes.
  
  Link: https://forums.tigsource.com/index.php?topic=2391.0
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