Yuski is a solo fangame developer, currently making a decent ROM Hack of Sonic 1, starring Mighty. It should be out soon, and because of this we spoke to him at SAGE 2002 about it.
TSS: Yuski, thanks for being here today.
Yuski: It is alright, I am glad to be here.
TSS: What is your Fan Game all about?
Yuski: Er… Well… I didn’t create a story for the game yet…
TSS: When did you first get the idea for Mighty the Armadillo: the Game?
Yuski: I got the idea in the middle of 2000 (about June or July). In the beginning, I wanted to make a hack with Vector the Crocodile (my favourite character), but due to his size, I canned it. Then I decided to put Mighty as the main character.
TSS: MtA:tG is a ROM hack of Sonic 1, and what you have achieved by hacking the ROM is extraordinary. Since ROM hacking is different to actually using a dedicated games creation program like The Games Factory, is the amount of things you can edit limited compared to what you can do in something like TGF?
Yuski: Yes, because in the ROM you need to find the hex address, edit and make a lot of tests. This takes much time, not like in TGF, C&C or MF.
TSS: What exactly can someone manage to edit from a ROM? Is it more than just different coloured textures and character sprites?
Yuski: It’s the engine of the game. I always want to make a perfect Sonic game, but I don’t know how to (figure out the) programming and in the C&C, you can’t make a perfect game, like the original. This is the (my) reason.
TSS: What kind of feel are you trying to create with MtA:tG?
Yuski: A game for Mighty fans that don’t have the patience to play Knuckles’ Chaotix on an Emulator.
TSS: Are there any special features that make your game stand out from the rest of the entries at SAGE?
Yuski: The difference, is that MtA:tG is a hack with many sprite changes and it uses some of the original Mighty sprites (from Knuckles’ Chaotix) in the game.
TSS: How long has development taken on this ROM hack?
Yuski: I started it in June 2000 and released the first beta in July 2000. It is about 1 year and 9 months (in development).
TSS: The game looks nearly complete. Can you reveal exclusively to The Sonic Stadium an idea on roughly when you expect MtA:tG to be ready?
Yuski: I don’t know when the Final Version will be released, because the game has different sprite formats (that I can’t edit yet) and I need to remake new levels. The only level that is the most complete is Blue Grass Act 1 (GHZ1) and recently I started BGZ2.
TSS: Any major hitches you have encountered while hacking the ROM? Spill the beans on your biggest development problem to date.
Yuski: I had found lots of glitches, but level glitches that can be easily fixed. The major problem I had is when making IPS, after inserting extra data in the ROM – that was exactly when Esrael inserted the “Gaslight font” from Sonic 2 in the ROM for me. I wasn’t to know how to use the StealthPatch.
TSS: How well do you think Mighty is progressing?
Yuski: It is going very well, but slow sometimes. Due to school, I can’t make too many updates. But I do what I can.
TSS: How do you see your chances winning the booth polling, against other games you’ve seen at SAGE so far?
Yuski: I don’t have chances to win something and I didn’t enter SAGE to win something, I only entered SAGE to show off the game.
TSS: Finally, what the most promising game to you at this year’s SAGE?
Yuski: There are two: Retro-Sonic by Taxman. He has done an excellent job; and Sonic Robo-Blast 2 by Sonic Team Junior, that has great animations and is lots of fun.
TSS: Yuski, developer of Mighty the Armadillo: the Game, thanks a ton for your time.