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PAL/NTSC Question Regarding Custom 2600 Cartridges


cessnaace

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Last night I ordered an Atari 2600 Custom Cartridge from Atari Age. This was after reading the description for it, because It appears that you can order a reproduction of a rare game with the original artwork, with added text saying "Reproduction Cartridge." This is fine for me because I only want to be able to play games on actual Atari hardware that I would never be able to afford otherwise. And I don't much like Everdrives.

Before getting to the PAL question, the rare game that I wish to have a reproduction of is Demolition Herby. It's like Amidar and Spiderdroid, except it's faster, adds a touch of vehicular combat, and is loads of fun to play. So far I've only been able to play it thru emulation, but I want to be able to play it on actual Atari hardware. After I ordered and paid for an Atari 2600 Custom Cartridge, I added the following note to the order: I need a reproduction of "Demolition Herbie" for my own use. https://atariage.com/software_page.php?SoftwareLabelID=132 (I meant Herby)

 

Now on to the PAL question. Can PAL games be placed onto an NTSC cartridge? There are PAL exclusives that I want to be able to play on my Atari hardware, which use the NTSC standard. Those games include Acid Drop and Meteor Defense for example.

 

Can anyone answer the PAL question for me? Both of the mentioned PAL exclusives run on my emulator, EMU7800, but Acid Drop cuts of the bottom 30% or so off the screen, and Meteor Defense runs, but in black and white only. Most PAL games run fine though.

 

Thanks in advance.

 

-Mark

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The PAL/NTSC compatibility of a cartridge is a property of the software game program, not the cartridge hardware.

If you have an NTSC console, you'd need an NTSC flavored ROM to be installed on that custom cartridge.

 

Some PAL only titles have been converted to NTSC versions so you might be lucky there. I'd recommend contacting Al via e-mail if you have concerns about what you've already ordered.

Edited by BigO
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Yep, the software in the cartridge controls the scanline count and refresh rate, which is different for NTSC(262 at 60Hz) and PAL(312 @ 50Hz). Its possible your display can handle it, my C=1084S does just fine, though it seems that most TVs in the US end up rolling the picture. You won't know without trying (something a Harmony Cart would be useful for).

 

The colors, on the other hand, will not be correct as they depend upon the hardware in the console and the colors they generate are different. My Atari NTSC vs PAL vs SECAM page covers this.

 

AtariAge does have a number of PAL -> NTSC and NTSC -> PAL conversions, I see Acid Drop but not Meteor Defense.

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Yep, the software in the cartridge controls the scanline count and refresh rate, which is different for NTSC(262 at 60Hz) and PAL(312 @ 50Hz). Its possible your display can handle it, my C=1084S does just fine, though it seems that most TVs in the US end up rolling the picture. You won't know without trying (something a Harmony Cart would be useful for).

 

The colors, on the other hand, will not be correct as they depend upon the hardware in the console and the colors they generate are different. My Atari NTSC vs PAL vs SECAM page covers this.

 

AtariAge does have a number of PAL -> NTSC and NTSC -> PAL conversions, I see Acid Drop but not Meteor Defense.

 

I'll take a look at your link after I go into some details about Meteor Defense. It is a Horizontal Scrolling shooter. It was released in various PAL territories under various titles by various publishers. Besides Meteor Defense it was released as Missile War, War 2000, Astrowar, etc. I've built up 20 extra lives on several occasions, but it's easy to loose them in batches. A fellow member at http://highscore.com submitted a play video, which is in color, played on actual hardware. And he's in California! Anywho, here's his play video:

 

http://highscore.com/scores/Atari2600/AstrowarMeteorDefenseKampfimAsteroidenGrtel/67392

 

-Mark

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