Programming guide

The programming guide is the complement to the nes reference guide. You will find more in dept documentation about specific topics, tutorials to the most common problem encountered, a list of existing tools that will assist you during you development phase and more. If you're new to nes development, you should give a look to the getting started section first.

General reference

• Getting started (not done yet)
• Waiting for the PPU to power on
• CHR-ROM vs CHR-RAM and how to switch an NROM project from the former to the latter
• Emulation Libraries
• Catch-up technique used by emulators
• Buggy PowerPak mappers
• Music: Audio expansion, tools
• Tools
• Graphic tools
• Battery holder (note: must find proper section for this)

Tutorials (stub)

• APU basics
• Compression
  • Fixed Bit Length Encoding
• Programming Mappers
  • UNROM and UOROM
  • MMC1
• Programming Techniques
  • RTS Trick
  • Jump Table
  • Scanning Tables
  • Scanning Large Tables
  • Synthetic Instructions
  • Programming with unofficial opcodes
• Limitations
• Emulation Tutorials
• How to organize data (interleaved, column based, screen based compressed etc)
• Sample RAM map
• PPU scrolling
  • How to scroll an infinite map
  • How to scroll with less artifact
  • How to split the screen for a status bar
  • How to do parallax scrolling with the scroll register
• How to make raster effects by Bregalad (external link)
• How to keep state
• Frame based algorithm
• The frame and NMIs by Disch
  • NMI thread: Make your status bar rock-solid
• Trick of the trade from well known commercial games
• Music, how to make, to play, sound fx
  • Nerdy Nights sound
• Do and don't

Libraries and samples

• Programming Libraries
• Placeholder graphics
• Nerdtracker player in NESASM

Links

• The infamous 6502.txt: allegedly complete info on the 6502 instructions
• Machine Language for Beginners: a 1983 introduction to 6502 assembly language