Pixelboy Posted August 13, 2015 Share Posted August 13, 2015 This is not exactly ColecoVision-related, but it's Coleco-related, so... close enough. My question is: Is is possible to dump the contents of the chip(s) from Coleco arcade tabletops which contain the game logic? I currently have no idea what the hardware is like inside those electronic games, but they're complex enough (with all those available games modes) that I figure the game logic must reside in a "main" chip of sorts... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+FujiSkunk Posted August 13, 2015 Share Posted August 13, 2015 I believe the short answer is, "yes." Pinball machines from the same era, which have been dumped and can be played with programs like PinMAME, are similar in that they are electronic games that require computer logic to operate the way they do. I imagine it would take some time to hack the chips to a point where they could be dumped, and I fear it might require a sacrificed tabletop or two, but otherwise I don't see why it couldn't happen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
youki Posted August 14, 2015 Share Posted August 14, 2015 I don't think it is possible. I don't think there is rom or cpu in that devices. It is only a set of logic component. and timer. There is no code. (like in the game & watch). You can not "emulate" that kind of game, you can only "simulate". I have "Emulator" for these table top. But it is in fact "Simulator". 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted August 14, 2015 Author Share Posted August 14, 2015 I don't think it is possible. I don't think there is rom or cpu in that devices. It is only a set of logic component. and timer. There is no code. (like in the game & watch). You can not "emulate" that kind of game, you can only "simulate". I have "Emulator" for these table top. But it is in fact "Simulator". I just found a web site with some pics that say otherwise: http://www.handheldmuseum.com/Coleco/ColecoRepair/index2.html Everything apparently runs from a single CPU. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
youki Posted August 14, 2015 Share Posted August 14, 2015 (edited) I just found a web site with some pics that say otherwise: http://www.handheldmuseum.com/Coleco/ColecoRepair/index2.html Everything apparently runs from a single CPU. I would be very suprised it is a real CPU.. for me it would be more a custom ship... but anyway apparently there is code (or something...) to dump from here. I found the dump of the Pacman handheld here : http://www.planetemu.net/rom/mame-roms/cpacmanr1-1 I guess you could find the others one too. What kind of project you are in mind? ... a compilation for the Colecovision? #Edit: in fact, it is a MCU , a Microcontroller from Histashi. Interresting. So real emulation is possible. Mame or MEss does it. Edited August 14, 2015 by youki Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted August 14, 2015 Author Share Posted August 14, 2015 Wow! Not only can the Coleco tabletops be dumped, they've already been dumped! http://www.handheldmuseum.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2146&start=0&sid=f3d907941e9ed8a40a95a4fca3122607 Also, if you look at the following video, you will see (starting at 4:28) that most of the tabletops are already very well emulated: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KiqWL7u8EH0 This means that it should be quite possible to create ColecoVision versions of the Coleco tabletops, with all the game logic and behavior reproduced faithfully. All it really takes is someone to decode the dumps and figure out how they work (which has already been done, as demonstrated in the above video). Pretty cool stuff! I'm so glad I created the graphics for all the tabletops (well, except for Ms Pac-Man, but I could do those pretty quickly, I think). See below. 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atari-dna Posted August 14, 2015 Share Posted August 14, 2015 Pretty neat on the tabletop front, I never really thought about these in terms of emulate-able. Dude's got some serious feature creep in that mini Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+save2600 Posted August 14, 2015 Share Posted August 14, 2015 ^^ That's friggin' amazing. What a kick ass piece of work that is! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pixelboy Posted August 14, 2015 Author Share Posted August 14, 2015 ^^ That's friggin' amazing. What a kick ass piece of work that is! If you want to see the full history of that project with tons of WIP pictures, go there: http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=145663.0 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Tarzilla Posted August 14, 2015 Share Posted August 14, 2015 If you want to see the full history of that project with tons of WIP pictures, go there:http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php?topic=145663.0 Wow! I'm a casual reader of both those forums, I can't believe I never stumbled on either of those posts! Thanks for posting them here! Coleco's current IP holder has mentioned re releasing the tabletops in some form, at the worst providing a new source of cases for mods so originals don't need to be sacrificed. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
atari-dna Posted August 14, 2015 Share Posted August 14, 2015 Wow! I'm a casual reader of both those forums, I can't believe I never stumbled on either of those posts! Thanks for posting them here! Coleco's current IP holder has mentioned re releasing the tabletops in some form, at the worst providing a new source of cases for mods so originals don't need to be sacrificed. I've heard there are plans to resurrect the previously undeveloped / unreleased Berzerk tabletop mini, as well Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+pboland Posted August 15, 2015 Share Posted August 15, 2015 I've heard there are plans to resurrect the previously undeveloped / unreleased Berzerk tabletop mini, as well Any plans for Omega Race? That one was announced as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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