The Classic Level 256 Killscreen

[NintendoLegend]

For certain arcade units, the developers assumed the player would lose their lives before reaching the numerical limit of code the machine could handle. In cases like Pac-Man and Dig Dug, this happens after level 255, the final in the counter that can be properly handled before everything goes crazy.

I am more ignorant than I would like to be, as concerns the NES hardware. But I do know that the 255 number comes from an 8-bit counter -- and we all know that the Nintendo Entertainment System is an 8-bit console. Does it have the same level counter limitation? Are there NES games with killscreens that have not been discovered yet? Does anybody have more insightful knowledge about the gameplay limits of the cartridges?

[masterLEON]

This may be a parallel issue, but I found it pretty weird that the Legend of Zelda doesn't let you keep more than 255 rupees at at time. I mean, the NES can count more than 255 in terms of score. Maybe it's more of a limitation of specific variable memory registers that represent the number of items, or quantity of a particular item. The only thing I can think of that Nintendo would do that to the player intentionally is to limit their progression in the game somewhat so the player can't get too powerful, too early. And that's not that good of a reason either because the dungeons already do a good part of restricting the player (well played, Nintendo, in that respect). The only other explanation I can think of was that the NES hardware was still too new to support higher memory addressing. It was 1986 after all, all they had were gold colored 1 megabit cartridges and MMC1's (I guess for all the maps and to facilitate the battery save).

[NintendoLegend]

Aug 17, 2011 1:22:33 GMT -6 masterLEON said:

This may be a parallel issue, but I found it pretty weird that the Legend of Zelda doesn't let you keep more than 255 rupees at at time. I mean, the NES can count more than 255 in terms of score.

Ooooh, good examples.

Maybe it's more of a limitation of specific variable memory registers that represent the number of items, or quantity of a particular item. The only thing I can think of that Nintendo would do that to the player intentionally is to limit their progression in the game somewhat so the player can't get too powerful, too early.

Even if this was a good reason and I wouldn't put it past Nintendo in that era, it just seems like such an arbitrary amount. It would almost have to just be a hat-tip to a prior console.

And that's not that good of a reason either because the dungeons already do a good part of restricting the player (well played, Nintendo, in that respect). The only other explanation I can think of was that the NES hardware was still too new to support higher memory addressing. It was 1986 after all, all they had were gold colored 1 megabit cartridges and MMC1's (I guess for all the maps and to facilitate the battery save).

*shrug* Mysteries abound; I would find it humorous, though, if (I know this isn't the case) later developers were putting big expensive chips into the carts to enable >255 counting in certain registers.

[gunsage]

Well, 256 in binary is the first 9 bit number just after 255, which would utilize all 8 bits for the data field, meaning it only goes to 11111111. I'm not sure if that's the reason or not, but perhaps they were worried, what with the battery pak and all, that they wouldn't have enough room. It's hard to say as other games, as you mentioned, had larger values...but that's the only thing I can think.