vkorbes/GFX6502

GFX6502

The point of this pet project is to:

1. Learn 6502 assembly
2. Learn 3D graphics programming
3. Implement a 3D engine in 6502 assembly

Below are a sea of notes and ideas to do so.

If you're looking for order, come back in a few months (:

6502 Basics

• Best tutorial ever, learn 6502 assembly in one sitting: Assembly In One Step.
  • Link: https://dwheeler.com/6502/oneelkruns/asm1step.html
• Easy6502. Good explanations!
  • Link: http://skilldrick.github.io/easy6502/
• Extensively commented opcode list.
  • Link: https://www.atariarchives.org/alp/appendix_1.php

Exercises

Start with the Easy6502 emulator. Then move on to 8bitworkshop. Lastly, build a local dev environment.

• See the Snake game from Easy6502 above. Re-implement it from memory, fixing the bugs discussed in this gist: https://gist.github.com/wkjagt/9043907
  • Run it locally: https://github.com/skilldrick/6502js
  • Fun fact: I helped! 🎉 skilldrick/6502js#9
• Learn Bresenham's line drawing algorithm.
  • Implement it from memory in Go.
  • Implement it for 6502, either NES or 6502js.
  • Implement it from memory on the NES.
• Implement Snake on the NES.
• Implement 3D tutorial from Coding Train in Go.
• Implement 3D tutorial from Coding Train on the NES.
• Implement 3D engine from javidx9 in Go.
• Implement 3D engine from javidx9 on the NES.
• Look into ray casting.

Extras:

• Solve Project Euler puzzles in 6502
• Re-implement all of these: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLB_ibvUSN7mzUffhiay5g5GUHyJRO4DYr

Assembly Practice

Ordered by complexity. Go through them all.

• Implementing Factorial in 6502
  • Link: http://c64os.com/post/factorialin6502
• Coding Algorithms
  • Link: http://www.obelisk.me.uk/6502/algorithms.html
• 6502 Coding Algorithms Macro Library
  • Link: https://atariwiki.org/wiki/Wiki.jsp?page=6502%20Coding%20Algorithms%20Macro%20Library
• Macros.
  • Article: http://wilsonminesco.com/StructureMacros/
  • CA65: https://www.cc65.org/doc/ca65-11.html
  • CA65: https://www.cc65.org/doc/ca65-12.html
• Project Euler.
  • Link: https://projecteuler.net/
• Learn Multiplatform 6502 Assembly (ChibiAkumas)
  • Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsvSZamCCBM&list=PLp_QNRIYljFofA93OyUFnxDamjemzidFv

NES Practice

Go through them all.

Tutorials:

• NES Development Day 1
  • Link: https://www.moria.us/blog/2018/03/nes-development
• Nerdy Nights.
  • Link: https://nerdy-nights.nes.science/
• CA65 port for Nerdy Nights. (Broken?)
  • Link: https://bitbucket.org/ddribin/nerdy-nights/src/default/
• GBA Guy.
  • Link: https://patater.com/gbaguy/nesasm.htm
• Famicon Party.
  • Link: https://book.famicom.party/

Watch and learn:

• ChibiAkumas channel.
  • Link: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLp_QNRIYljFoSkq8absJGxocIvofS06RN
• Tyler Barnes channel.
  • Link: https://www.youtube.com/user/TylerBarnesMusic/videos

Sample projects:

• A minimal NES example using ca65
  • Link: https://github.com/bbbradsmith/NES-ca65-example
• Nova The Squirrel: an open source NES platformer game
  • Link: https://github.com/NovaSquirrel/NovaTheSquirrel
  • Interesting: https://github.com/NovaSquirrel/PrincessEngine
• NESASM Hello World.
  • Link: https://gist.github.com/camsaul/0bd13b94574d936ce9a7
• Reference.
  • Link: https://www.chibiakumas.com/6502/nesfamicom.php
• Raycaster demo.
  • Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=po69zgqyFWM

NES Emulators

• Mesen.
  • Link: https://www.mesen.ca/
• Fceux. It has no debugger on Linux! Emulate with Wine.
  • Link: http://www.fceux.com/web/home.html
• JSNES.
  • Link: https://github.com/bfirsh/jsnes-web
• Nesicide.
  • Link: https://knob.phreneticappsllc.com/nesicide/

NES Game References

• The Games That Pushed The Limits Of The NES
  • Link: https://www.racketboy.com/retro/best-nes-graphics-sound
• The 10 Best NES Games
  • Link: https://uk.pcmag.com/gallery/124205/the-10-best-nes-games
• Double Dragon
• Elite
  • Source: https://github.com/kieranhj/elite-beebasm
• Solstice
• Metal Gear
• Rad Racer
• Cosmic Epsilon
• WorldRunner
• Marble Madness
• Snake Rattle 'n' Roll
• Super Glove Ball
• Faceball (GB)
• Zen - Intergalactic Ninja
• Destination Earthstar

Graphics

I'm Too Young to Die:

• Bresenham line drawing:
  • Go: https://raw.githubusercontent.com/StephaneBunel/bresenham/master/drawline.go
  • Go: https://rosettacode.org/wiki/Bitmap/Bresenham%27s_line_algorithm#Go
  • 6502: https://gist.github.com/petrihakkinen/cc07aa5d15baf157c668f3dcc582ecc2
• 2D Graphics Algorithms:
  • Part 1: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bfvmPa9eWew
  • Part 2: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDFB5CDpLDE

Hurt Me Plenty:

• Matrix Multiplication for 3D Rendering (The Coding Train)
  • Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tzsgS19RRc8
• 3D Rendering with Rotation and Projection (The Coding Train)
  • Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4Iz0XJY-Qk

Ultra-Violence:

• Code-It-Yourself! 3D Graphics Engine Series (javidx9)
  • Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ih20l3pJoeU

Books:

• Fundamentals of Computer Graphics (Marschner & Shirley)

Graphics on 6502

• Line drawing routines programming: a different approach. 6502/6510 assembly implementation on the Commodore 64
  • Link: http://retro64.altervista.org/blog/line-drawing-routines-programming-different-approach-6502-assembly-implementation/?doing_wp_cron=1588435063.2778320312500000000000
• Developing a 3D-Demo for the Apple ][
  • Link: https://www.golombeck.eu/index.php?id=34&L=1

Debuggers

All of them suck.

Interesting:

• BBC Micro emulator.
  • Link: https://github.com/mattgodbolt/jsbeeb/wiki/Debugger
• 8bitworkshop.
  • Link: https://8bitworkshop.com/v3.5.1/?repo=sehugg%2FNES-ca65-example&platform=nes&file=example.s
• Ghidra loader for NES.
  • Link: https://smb3.bf0.org/ghidra-loader/ghidra-plugin/2019-08-20-ghidra-loader/
• Article: "Debugging 6502 Assembly Doesn't Have to be Awful"
  • Link: https://vintageisthenewold.com/debugging-6502-assembly-doesnt-have-to-be-awful-retrochallenge-2018-04-update-9/
• clever-disasm
  • Link: https://github.com/bisqwit/nescom

To take matters in your own hands:

• Something that looks good.
  • Link: https://github.com/cyrus-and/gdb-dashboard
• Writing a debugger.
  • Link: https://blog.tartanllama.xyz/writing-a-linux-debugger-setup/

Tools

• Tiled map editor.
  • Link: https://www.mapeditor.org/
• PrincessEdit.
  • Link: https://github.com/NovaSquirrel/PrincessEdit

Random Fun

• InfoSec NES.
  • Link: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=12951503

History:

• Fabien Sanglard's books about the Doom and Wolfenstein 3D engines.
  • Doom: http://fabiensanglard.net/gebbdoom/
  • Wolfenstein: http://fabiensanglard.net/gebbwolf3d/
• The Making of Prince of Persia

6502 trickery:

• Dirty tricks 6502 programmers use
  • Link: https://nurpax.github.io/posts/2019-08-18-dirty-tricks-6502-programmers-use.html
• List of 6502 bugs. Are they present in emulators??
  • Link: http://www.textfiles.com/apple/6502.bugs.txt
• Dirty Assembly Tricks in NES Assembly
  • Link: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=8405214
• 6502 assembly optimisations
  • Link: https://wiki.nesdev.com/w/index.php/6502_assembly_optimisations
• 6502 arithmetic and why it is terrible
  • Link: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=17275797

Next steps:

• SNES
  • A Comprehensive Super Mario Bros. Disassembly
    • Link: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=15484907
    • Link: https://gist.github.com/1wErt3r/4048722
• x86
  • x86 assembly book:
    • Link: http://download-mirror.savannah.gnu.org/releases/pgubook/ProgrammingGroundUp-1-0-booksize.pdf
  • x86 assembly programs:
    • Link: https://softwareengineering.stackexchange.com/a/155740