Defender: ROM sets on different speed?

MOS

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In the original operators manual for Defender, it says:
#18 - Starting Difficulty: 0=Liberal; 1=Moderate; 2=Conservative
#19 - Progressive Wave Difficulty Limit, 4-25: e.g. 5=Liberal; 10=Moderate; 15=Conservative
(The default settings are 0 and 10, for functions #18 and #19, respectively)

In the revised manual (July '81) it says:
#18 - Starting Difficulty: 05=Liberal; 10=Moderate; 15=Conservative
#19 - Progressive Wave Difficulty Limit, 5-30: e.g. 05=Liberal; 15=Moderate; 25=Conservative
(The default settings are 5 and 15, for functions #18 and #19, respectively)


Does this revision of the difficulty settings reflect a real, technical, ROM change, and/or is it merely a recommendation from the William's people, reflecting an awereness that the kids were beginning to master the game, and play too long?

I've recently heard that the different ROM sets (i.e. Red, Green and Blue) for Defender are considered - by advanced players - not being equally difficult to play. I.e.: that a game played on a "Red ROM-Defender", set to 5-15 (which is the TG settings for functions #18 and #19, above), is not working on the same speed and progression of difficulty as a "Green ROM-Defender", or a "Blue ROM-Defender", also set to 5-15. (I'm not counting the White ROM:s/"protos" I read about here, since they seem to be a curiosity, and having more of a historical value).

What I'm getting at here, of course, is the possible implications for the validity of Defender records, since TG is not not specifying what ROM set(s) should be used.

I sure HOPE there is no difference in difficulty between the ROM sets (at least not between the Green and Red, by far the most often seen) since that would turn the Defender competition into a mess.
 
I don't believe there was any difference in the game play between the ROMs. I think it is just differences in the starting parameters.

ken
 
There is likely several differences between the rom sets
(...although I can't really say what they are... )

For one thing, the earlier blue set only has 10 eproms,
and to play in cocktail mode you can only use the red set.

As for actual "game play" I don't know if anything was changed or not,
but you'd have to think so given that each rom set is quite different from the next...


Steph
 
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