Enhanced 2600 games?

[SoundGammon]

I always wondered if there was a way for the built in 2600 system in the 7800 could be modified to have FULL use of the 6502C and the 16K of ram and use the extra lines in the cartridge slot to do bigger 2600 games? Of course they would only work on a 7800, but a game could have more levels and such.

[Video]

I think the 7800 knows the differrence between 2600 and 7800 games by the extra lines in the cart slot, but I'm pretty sure a 7800 style cart won't fit into a 2600 deck.

 

Maybe with an adapter, or maybe a flip style cart (kind of like XONOX carts) but then, you might as well do two different versions.

[AlecRob]

If it can only work on the 7800, then why not just make a 7800 game straight up? Wouldn't that be easier?

[rockman_x_2002]

If it can only work on the 7800, then why not just make a 7800 game straight up? Wouldn't that be easier?

 

Kinda have to agree. I mean I get where you're going with it, and the whole technical part of, "Lookie what I can do!" But still, the only way this would be to advantage would be if you could design a game that works fine on a 2600, but perhaps has advanced features on the 7800, it's a bit of a moot point.

 

Something like how Nintendo did with the black cartridge Game Boy Color games. Played on a GBC, you got a full color game that took advantage of the faster CPU and GBC hardware. But the game would technically work just fine on a regular old Game Boy, albeit in black and white, and sometimes screen transitions would have loading times.

[RevEng]

Here's more or less the same discussion, with some more hardware pitfalls spelled out.

[Video]

one advantage I could see (if you could make a game work on both systems) would be eliminating flicker.

 

Thake Pac-man. Yeah, I know, it sux, but if it could havve been 7800 enhanced, plug it into the 7800 and have it not flicker?

 

Maybe that's a bad example cause people are such haters on that game, but hopefully people could get what I'm saying.

 

That, or maybe different sprite palates, so you could have the flat mono sprites for 2600, but multi colored sprites in the 7800.

 

but still, what the above poster said, if the games enhancements only work on 7800, might as well make it for the 7800 only. Other than a tech demo, this day in age it would make no sense to do so, back in the mid 80's, hell yeah, it would have been an awesome idea.