Nibbler plays WAY too fast! Any ideas?

[javeryh]

I can't seem to get Nibbler to run properly... or maybe it is and I just stink.  Anyway it goes WAY too fast - like I can only get to the third board before it becomes impossible.  Is this normal?  The default high score is 50,000 and I'm lucky to get 5,000.

[FrizzleFried]

I love Nibbler... at least on .133 it works as normal.  My high score is around 70,000...

[isucamper]

nibbler does get pretty fast pretty quick.  you're running in mame?  unless you have throttle turned off, it's probably ok.  what kind of joystick are you using?  that could be a more limiting factor.  the original cab used a leaf switch joystick and it can be hard to control with anything else (though it plays pretty well with my U360).  you aren't trying to play it with an 8-way stick are you?

i did have a question about nibbler in MAME though.  I recently watched Tim McVey's world record attempt, and I asked him why there wasn't any music, since on my MAME cab, there's some simple music in the levels.  He said that there is no music in the game, only in the MAME version.  This didn't make any sense to me.  The MAME programmers wouldn't put music in where it doesn't belong.  However, if there is anyone that would know about how Nibbler is supposed to play, it would be Tim.

[severdhed]

i just played it in mame, never heard of it before.  it moved kinda quickly, but not to the point where i though it would be outrageous.  i only got to wave 4, playing on my laptop keyboard..im sure i'd do a little better with a joystick.

i looked through the dip switches, but i didnt see any speed options or anything like that.  weird

[javeryh]

I'm playing with a 4-way.  It just seems fast but I have nothing to compare it to - when the rom loads and it goes through the checks (saying OK after each) that whole process lasts about a second - extremely fast.  I need to find some videos to see what it is supposed to look like.  There is a good chance I'm just horrible at it.

Frizzle - what is your score like after the first 3 boards?  Do you just get through 20 levels when you play?

[javeryh]

OK, I probably just suck.  Mine looks similar to this: 

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l6STWdXY5w8[/youtube]

Doesn't it look fast or is it just me???

[Ginsu Victim]

It gets fast after only a few levels. I can't play very far at all.

[bodydump]

i did have a question about nibbler in MAME though.  I recently watched Tim McVey's world record attempt, and I asked him why there wasn't any music, since on my MAME cab, there's some simple music in the levels.  He said that there is no music in the game, only in the MAME version.  This didn't make any sense to me.  The MAME programmers wouldn't put music in where it doesn't belong.  However, if there is anyone that would know about how Nibbler is supposed to play, it would be Tim.

There was a Nibbler machine downstairs in my dorm in college and it definitely had music.  Played it a bunch but not as much as the Rastan next to it.

[severdhed]

that video looks to be the same speed as mine...just a hard game.  i'll have to add this to my DK cabinet.

[Ginsu Victim]

i did have a question about nibbler in MAME though.  I recently watched Tim McVey's world record attempt, and I asked him why there wasn't any music, since on my MAME cab, there's some simple music in the levels.  He said that there is no music in the game, only in the MAME version.  This didn't make any sense to me.  The MAME programmers wouldn't put music in where it doesn't belong.  However, if there is anyone that would know about how Nibbler is supposed to play, it would be Tim.

There was a Nibbler machine downstairs in my dorm in college and it definitely had music.  Played it a bunch but not as much as the Rastan next to it.

There are different ROM versions and I know some have music and some don't.

And HELL YEAH....RASTAN! That was my favorite game to go down to the local convenience store and play. My brother and I played the ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- out of it!

[RayB]

I need to find the one without music, cuz that music is the WORST. Nasty.

That speed is normal. You're meant to play with a 4-way and really think ahead on your moves.

[Ummon]

Tips?  It's called gamefaqs.  But, yeah, tight maneuvering can be tricky, I bet even with a good 4-way stick.  Nibbler's one of those interesting games where there are no baddies.  Anteater is kinda like this, but there are baddies.

[Haze]

nibbler does get pretty fast pretty quick.  you're running in mame?  unless you have throttle turned off, it's probably ok.  what kind of joystick are you using?  that could be a more limiting factor.  the original cab used a leaf switch joystick and it can be hard to control with anything else (though it plays pretty well with my U360).  you aren't trying to play it with an 8-way stick are you?

i did have a question about nibbler in MAME though.  I recently watched Tim McVey's world record attempt, and I asked him why there wasn't any music, since on my MAME cab, there's some simple music in the levels.  He said that there is no music in the game, only in the MAME version.  This didn't make any sense to me.  The MAME programmers wouldn't put music in where it doesn't belong.  However, if there is anyone that would know about how Nibbler is supposed to play, it would be Tim.

Some versions of the PCB shipped with one of the rom sockets empty, when that socket is empty no music plays (the game still attempts to play the music, but reads 00 data for the music and thus doesn't make any sound)

why?  I don't know.  Cost cutting maybe?  There doesn't seem to be any logic behind it, but enough have been seen with that rom missing to know that it sometimes must have shipped without it.

[FrizzleFried]

Frizzle - what is your score like after the first 3 boards?  Do you just get through 20 levels when you play?

I want to say round 1 I can get 920... round two 3000 (i have these patterns down)... round 3 is about 5,900=6,000 or so.... I think I 've made it to round 10 or so.  Eventually the music changes and it gets FAST... REAL FAST... I've gotten through 2 mazes of that stage and on to the 3rd where I died.  I checked last night and I am at 74K high score...it took me forever to even get 50,000 and make it to the top of the "stock" hs board.

[Grasshopper]

And HELL YEAH....RASTAN! That was my favorite game to go down to the local convenience store and play. My brother and I played the ---steaming pile of meadow muffin--- out of it!

One of my favourites too. I particularly loved the background music.

I remember playing a version of Rastan that had a non-standard palette. The colours were generally darker and cooler looking than the standard game. Unfortunately, AFAIK it's not emulated in MAME.

[FrizzleFried]

Of course RASTAN is emulated in MAME... unless you mean the  boot with the darker colors?

[Ginsu Victim]

Yes, he meant the darker colors.

[Grasshopper]

Yes, I meant the version with darker colours. Rastan has been emulated in MAME for as long as I can remember.

[Ginsu Victim]

I remember the day it finally was emulated in the early days of MAME (v .029) and I damn near cried I was so happy. (There's a sentimental attachment to that game)

[FrizzleFried]

Well,  it's level 10 that gets real hard in Nibbler.  I've made it to level 13.

[Derrick Renaud]

I'm assuming that video is from an old version of MAME, pre 81u4.  There is no explosion sound when you die.  Or the sound is broken.

0.81u4: Curt Coder hooked up SN76477 sound for BOMB effect in Fantasy, Nibbler
0.126u4: Derrick Renaud added discrete sound to Fantasy, Nibbler (added filter to explosion)

[CrazyKongFan]

I don't remember ever playing a Nibbler with music either, but it's been so many years since I've seen one (other than Tim McVey's...visited him Labor Day weekend and saw some of his marathon attempt in person ) I was surprised hearing it with music in MAME, but I guess that missing ROM makes sense. Too bad MAME would complain and probably not run if you removed that ROM from the directory. I also don't know how he plays it so well, I can get to where the music changes and it gets really fast and maybe clear a couple boards if I'm lucky. I think my high is about 80K on my MAME cab with a 4-way stick. (the one from the Turbo Ms Pac competition )
Another game that has music but I've never seen it on a real machine is Kangaroo. Although in MAME, there's a dipswitch setting to enable/disable the music. I've never played around with the dips on a real one, so I don't know if it has one for music or not.

[Ginsu Victim]

We used to have a Kangaroo at a church I went to and it definitely played music.

[isucamper]

Too bad MAME would complain and probably not run if you removed that ROM from the directory.

What would MAME do if you replaced the ROM with a 0k file?  Now I want to get Nibbler playing on my cab the way Tim would play it. 

CKong.  Are you from Iowa?  I watched quite a bit of his run.  I wonder when he's going to try again. 

[Ginsu Victim]

I think my high is about 80K on my MAME cab with a 4-way stick. (the one from the Turbo Ms Pac competition )

Oh yeah, I forgot you were the one that won it. How do like that stick?

[(+_+)]

It gets very fast, but beyond a certain level it remains at the same speed.

Here's a few suggestions from someone who used to get almost 100,000,000 points. I got tired and stopped playing. What a choker. 

- Come up with a usable pattern for each level and master it. There are many ways to skin a cat. There is no specific pattern.
- Always use flat sections of the maze as a pause point.
- When you go into a corner that could possibly cause your snake to wrap around , make sure you hold the joystick in the direction of exit as soon as this roundabout is entered.

I knew a guy who tried to go for the record once when it was at I believe 800,000,000 and passed out due to fatigue before he could reach it. I think he got around 700,000,000.

I just checked and the record stands at 1,000,042,270 points. Had to have taken over 2 days to do this. Crazy.

[Ginsu Victim]

Yeah, many of us watched Tim McVey's attempt at that record. It was somewhere around, what, 42 hours before his leaf switches messed up on him and his stick went dead. He was not happy, to say the least.

[CrazyKongFan]

CKong.  Are you from Iowa?  I watched quite a bit of his run.  I wonder when he's going to try again. 

No, actually, I drove from Michigan I wanted to go to the opening ceremony at the video game hall of fame in Ottumwa a few weeks prior, but ended up having to work that weekend. So I drove down there Labor Day weekend, visited him, and another friend who lives about an hour away that has a nice basement arcade. Only got to see a couple hours of Tim's play though, before I had to leave. (sometimes that pesky work gets in the way of your fun )

Oh yeah, I forgot you were the one that won it. How do like that stick?

Pretty good, although it has a little more throw than I like, which makes some games a little tougher (I don't like it for Frogger). I don't think that's adjustable though, so I just have to live with it. It works good for the Pac games though.

[javeryh]

It gets very fast, but beyond a certain level it remains at the same speed.

Here's a few suggestions from someone who used to get almost 100,000,000 points. I got tired and stopped playing. What a choker. 

- Come up with a usable pattern for each level and master it. There are many ways to skin a cat. There is no specific pattern.
- Always use flat sections of the maze as a pause point.
- When you go into a corner that could possibly cause your snake to wrap around , make sure you hold the joystick in the direction of exit as soon as this roundabout is entered.

I knew a guy who tried to go for the record once when it was at I believe 800,000,000 and passed out due to fatigue before he could reach it. I think he got around 700,000,000.

I just checked and the record stands at 1,000,042,270 points. Had to have taken over 2 days to do this. Crazy.

Wow.  Talk about perspective... I suck!!   

[Ginsu Victim]

Pretty good, although it has a little more throw than I like

Ah, so I'm not alone in this thinking. The throw bugs me too.

[Ummon]

I remember the day it finally was emulated in the early days of MAME (v .029) and I damn near cried I was so happy. (There's a sentimental attachment to that game)

Versus maybe a physical one?.......


Yeah, I saw Kangaroo when it came out or soon after and when I found it in MAME it sounded just as I remembered - all tinkly.

[CrazyKongFan]

Pretty good, although it has a little more throw than I like

Ah, so I'm not alone in this thinking. The throw bugs me too.

Yeah, games where you have to make quick moves and let it return to center, it's not good for (like Frogger that I mentioned). You don't really do that on Pac games for the most part. It probably wouldn't be too bad for DK either, although I haven't tried that on my MAME cab (I have a DK, so there's no need to ) It's nice having the 4-way restriction, although I only have 2 sticks on my MAME cab, so if I play Robotron, it's a bit tricky. I don't think I have room for a 3rd stick without it being too cluttered.

[Ginsu Victim]

Thanks for the feedback.

[(+_+)]

I think a dedicated 4 way with a shorter throw like mentioned earlier would make a huge difference in game play. I was able to get to about 450,000 but my U360 with a long throw can't react quick enough to my movements. I'm wondering if there is any joystick latency involved because the nibbler does get pretty fast and I'm missing turns when I believe I shouldn't be. I even experimented a bit with it and it does appear to miss turns every now and then. Could be me. I'm getting older and the reflexes could be going but I refuse to swallow that pill. 

[Ginsu Victim]

Even with the circular restrictor on my U360, I still have some crazy things happen in Nibbler.

[(+_+)]

I have the circular restrictor as well. The U360 works amazingly well for almost every game I've played except for nibbler.

[zaphod77]

MAME IS slightly too fast.  Not by much, but it's off.

On real hardware, the three sounds sweeps are totally synched with the warp in animation.  On mame the animation completes too fast.

The behavior of Nibbler when you move diagonally is entirely predictable. nibbler will change direction at every opportunity to change to one of the two you are holding, in a stairstep fashion.

[Drnick]

You waited 4Yrs and 5 months since you made your last post and you necrobump this   

[yotsuya]

You waited 4Yrs and 5 months since you made your last post and you necrobump this 

He's still on dialup. The post just finally went through.