https://github.com/lostjared/AcidDrop
Remake of classic Atari 2600 game "Acid Drop"
https://github.com/lostjared/AcidDrop
atari classic cplusplus puzzle-game remake sdl2 vulkan
Last synced: about 1 month ago
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Remake of classic Atari 2600 game "Acid Drop"
- Host: GitHub
- URL: https://github.com/lostjared/AcidDrop
- Owner: lostjared
- License: gpl-3.0
- Created: 2026-02-06T11:28:52.000Z (4 months ago)
- Default Branch: main
- Last Pushed: 2026-04-05T05:25:35.000Z (about 2 months ago)
- Last Synced: 2026-04-05T07:41:56.990Z (about 2 months ago)
- Topics: atari, classic, cplusplus, puzzle-game, remake, sdl2, vulkan
- Language: C++
- Homepage: https://lostsidedead.biz/drop/
- Size: 9.31 MB
- Stars: 1
- Watchers: 0
- Forks: 0
- Open Issues: 0
-
Metadata Files:
- Readme: README.md
- License: LICENSE
Awesome Lists containing this project
- awesome-game-remakes - AcidDrop - Remake of classic Atari 2600 game "Acid Drop". (Arcade)
README
# Liquid Acid Drop
**A Vulkan-powered puzzle game inspired by the Atari 2600 classic *Acid Drop*, built with the MX2 Engine.**
## Overview
To compile this you will need to compile in Vulkan support to libmx2
```bash
git clone https://github.com/lostjared/libmx2.git
cd libmx2/libmx
mkdir buildvk
cd buildvk
cmake .. -DEXAMPLES=OFF -DVULKAN=ON -DOPENGL=OFF -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=/usr/local/mxvk
cd buildvk
make -j$(nproc)
sudo make install
```
Then compile AcidDrop
```bash
git clone https://github.com/lostjared/AcidDrop.git
cd AcidDrop
mkdir ac
cd ac
cmake .. -DCMAKE_PREFIX_PATH=/usr/local/mxvk -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=/usr/local/mxvk
make -j$(nproc)
./AcidDrop -p ..
```
Liquid Acid Drop is a color-matching puzzle game where players guide falling tri-colored blocks into an 818 grid. Match **3 or more** blocks of the same color horizontally, vertically, or diagonally to clear them and score points. The game features GPU-accelerated fragment shader visual effects, persistent high scores, and progressively increasing difficulty.
Built entirely with **Vulkan** for rendering and **SDL2** for windowing/input, this game serves as both a playable title and a showcase for the [libmx2](https://github.com/lostjared/libmx2) engine's 2D sprite and text rendering capabilities.
## Features
- **Vulkan Rendering Pipeline** All graphics are rendered via Vulkan, including sprite batching, text rendering with SDL_ttf, and custom SPIR-V fragment shaders
- **Shader-Driven Visual Effects** Backgrounds use kaleidoscope, bubble, and time-warp fragment shaders for psychedelic animated visuals
- **Color-Match Puzzle Mechanics** Match 3+ blocks horizontally, vertically, or diagonally to clear; cascading gravity triggers chain reactions for bonus points
- **Block Rotation & Color Shifting** Rotate blocks between vertical and horizontal orientation, and cycle the color order within a piece
- **Animated Match Flashing** Matched blocks flash before clearing, providing clear visual feedback
- **Progressive Difficulty** Game speed increases every 10 line clears, with three starting difficulty levels (Easy, Normal, Hard)
- **Persistent High Scores** Top 10 scores are saved to disk and restored between sessions
- **Resizable Window** Dynamic font scaling and layout adapts to any window size
- **Fullscreen Support** Launch in fullscreen mode via command-line flag
- **Cross-Platform** Builds on Linux, macOS (via MoltenVK), and Windows
## How to Play
### Controls
| Key | Action |
|---|---|
| ** ** | Move block left/right |
| **** | Soft drop (move block down faster) |
| **** | Shift colors within the block (forward) |
| **Z** | Shift colors within the block (reverse) |
| **Space** | Rotate block (vertical horizontal) |
| **P** | Pause / Resume |
| **Escape** | Return to main menu / Quit |
| **Enter** | Confirm menu selection |
### Gameplay
1. **Falling Blocks** A piece made of 3 colored segments falls from the top of the grid
2. **Position & Rotate** Move the piece left/right, rotate it between vertical and horizontal, and shift the color order to set up matches
3. **Match to Clear** When 3 or more same-colored blocks align horizontally, vertically, or diagonally, they flash and are cleared from the grid
4. **Gravity & Chains** After blocks are cleared, remaining blocks fall due to gravity, potentially triggering chain reactions for bonus points
5. **Score Bonuses** Matching 4 blocks awards +25 bonus points; matching 5+ awards +50 (diagonal matches give +35/+75)
6. **Speed Up** Every 10 line clears, the drop speed increases
7. **Game Over** The game ends when blocks stack up to the top of the grid
### Scoring
| Event | Points |
|---|---|
| Each block cleared | +6 |
| 4-block horizontal/vertical match | +25 bonus |
| 5+ block horizontal/vertical match | +50 bonus |
| 4-block diagonal match | +35 bonus |
| 5+ block diagonal match | +75 bonus |
## Building
### Prerequisites
- **C++20** compatible compiler (GCC 10+, Clang 10+, MSVC 2019+)
- **Vulkan SDK** (or MoltenVK on macOS)
- **SDL2**, **SDL2_ttf**
- **GLM** (OpenGL Mathematics)
- **libpng**, **zlib**
- **CMake** 3.10+
- The **libmx2** library (parent project)
The game binary `AcidDrop` will be produced in the build directory.
### Running
```bash
# Run with default settings (1280x720 windowed)
./AcidDrop -p ..
# Custom resolution
./AcidDrop -p .. -r 1280x720
# Fullscreen
./AcidDrop -p .. -f
```
The `-p` flag specifies the path to the game's resource directory (where the `data/` folder and `font.ttf` reside).
## Project Structure
```
AcidDrop/
skeleton.cpp # Game logic, screens, input handling, and main()
vk.hpp # Vulkan engine header (VKWindow, VKSprite, VKText)
vk.cpp # Vulkan engine implementation
CMakeLists.txt # Build configuration
font.ttf # Default game font
data/
*.png # Sprite assets (blocks, backgrounds, UI screens)
*_vertex.vert # GLSL vertex shaders
*_fragment.frag # GLSL fragment shaders (kaleidoscope, bubble, warp, etc.)
*.spv # Pre-compiled SPIR-V shader binaries
scores.dat # Persistent high score data (generated at runtime)
```
## Technical Details
### Architecture
The game is built on the **MX2 Vulkan framework** (`mx::VKWindow`), which provides:
- **Swap chain management** with automatic recreation on window resize
- **2D Sprite system** (`mx::VKSprite`) texture loading, batched draw calls, per-sprite custom fragment shaders with uniform parameters
- **Text rendering** (`mx::VKText`) SDL_ttf font rasterization uploaded as Vulkan textures with dedicated descriptor sets
- **Depth buffering** and proper Vulkan synchronization primitives
### Game Screens
| Screen | Description |
|---|---|
| **Intro** | Splash screen with animated bubble shader; auto-advances after 3 seconds |
| **Start Menu** | Main menu with New Game, High Scores, Options, Credits, and Quit |
| **Game** | Active gameplay with the puzzle grid, score display, and next-piece preview |
| **Game Over** | Displays final score and line count |
| **High Scores** | Top 10 leaderboard with name entry for qualifying scores |
| **Options** | Difficulty selection (Easy / Normal / Hard) |
| **Credits** | Attribution screen |
### Block Colors
The game features **9 distinct block colors**: Yellow, Orange, Light Blue, Dark Blue, Purple, Pink, Gray, Red, and Green each with its own sprite texture.
## Credits
- **Engine & Game** [Jared Bruni](https://github.com/lostjared)
- **Framework** [libmx2 / MX2 Engine](https://github.com/lostjared/libmx2)
- **Inspired by** *Acid Drop* (Atari 2600, 1992) and *Columns* (Sega, 1990)
## License
This project is part of [libmx2](https://github.com/lostjared/libmx2). See the [LICENSE](../../LICENSE) file for details.