Super Burnout

[Super Burnout]

Yes SuperBurnout is a very good Jaguar game, it's not perfect though, I personally do not like the way curves come at you and in general the physics of "curve steering", at the same time it does throw me back at Hang-On/Super Hang-On and aside those small remarks above it does an absolutely fantastic job.

 

"Best game on the system"? I am not sure, but it is a very good game indeed.

 

The be fair that kind of style (a la super-scaler) has been one of my favorites for ever, unfortunately at that time in history, it was just a little too late as the 3DO (for example) had already NFS in 1994, and the Jag with Super Burnout in 1995 kind of missed the train, note Ridge Racer on PS1 is a 1994 title and in the Arcades Dayton USA was a thing so yeah ... pity really.

 

Today though it's really good, and really showcase something the Jag could have had more of ... aka superscaler style games, cars, bikes, jets, people-on-jetpacks ... I'd dig it! 

 

Note: I still play OutRun on MegaDrive when I can (just because it is more accessible to me now than the Arcade bonus version in OG XBOX Outrun 2 or the Saturn version which is gorgeous btw).

[Playing JP games on my US PS2- best options?]

That's a bad thing about PS2s, it's easier to have them play backups than imports ... it is totally demented, one would think that all else being equal defeating the cross-region check should be easier than the original check but in the end, here we are, softmod and all and we can't play import originals .... go figure.

 

I have laying around an US PS2 with DMS3 (very old modchip) that works as it should, but also a JP 18000 with external PCMCIA HDD (of all things) and FreeMC/FreeHD installed and yet I can't play non-JP games on it unless I "install" them ... dafuq is that?

I do have a clone mars-II 303 modchip that should work on it (very few modchips work on earlier JP 10000/15000/18000), but in the last 5 years I had no time to solder it on ... and to be fair PS2 starts to get fine-pitch enough and wire-count high enough that it is indeed quite a chore.

 

Edit: long, long long ago I used to have an US PS4 with EZI DMS4 on it, I installed it myself and it was an all clip-on solution, no soldering (as far as I can remember) .... I believe it may be quite hard to find these days. I use to run ToxicBIOS on it (didn't buy the extended mem version EZI DMS4 "Pro" so couldn't run ToxicOS ... that was long long long time ago) ... for a trip down memory lane you can read about it here https://www.cdrinfo.com/forum/tm.asp?m=123882, at any rate if you feel adventurous https://playstationdev.wiki/ps2devwiki/index.php?title=Modchips

[KFC CONSOLE]

I'm eagerly awaiting to know the final price of said console.

I am afraid the F in KFC could take on a new meaning.

 

 

Note: I can totally see myself playing on it, grab a piece of smoking hot grease laden chicken, eat it, and then leave oil marks pretty much everywhere on the joypad, base, etc.... what's not to like?

I am bummed that the chicken will not stay hot unless some heavy hitter game is being played but ... hey ... when all else fail and if I get mad at said heavy hitter games I can see sliding a wiener in that grilling oven ... mission accomplished ... gene pool terminated.

[Upcoming Jaguar Game Drive Cartridge]

 

Albert confirmed I am #300 .... I feel like Leonidas .... at the bus station ... with a freakishly long queue in front of him.

 

Irony aside, I'm good, I'll get one when I'll get one, no sooner

[FPGA Based Videogame System]

@CZroe @blzmarcel @Kaide

https://github.com/SmokeMonsterPacks/Nt-Mini-Noir-Jailbreak#intv2-rom-format

 

please remember the Inty is 16bit https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/General_Instrument_CP1600 and the code words are actually only 10bits long with 6bits "reserved" so it's an oddity already (it appears cartridges are 10bits ROM, 10bits words are called decles).

 

But in specific as the JB states:
"The existing Intellivision ROM conventions were deemed unsuitable to the Intellivision Core."

 

 

[FPGA Based Videogame System]

Only thing that rubbed me wrong is the Nt Noir pretty much subsumes the MegaSg as it runs Genesis, SMS, SG1000 and CV roms.
Only "advantage" of MegaSg is that it can use proper wired controllers and can connect MegaCD (if you really have to) and of course proper cart adapters.

 

I really wish that for Xmas as a gift to customers Analogue would allow Kevtris (or the firmware fairy) to release some of "teh cores" on the MegaSg and SuperNt:

for both I would say it is fitting to get A2600 and A7800, for the SuperNt Intellivision fits (NTT controller) [and CV as well to be fair]

 

The MegaSg with Genesis + SMS + SG1000 + GG [+ CV in JB] is arguably a better package than the SuperNt .... the SuperNt should get GB/GBC cores just for parity (with cart adapters to stay legit, Super Game Boy per se does not really support GBC).

 

I believe the various units now to be pretty much the same under the hood one way or another and some of the 8bit cores should be easy to port around with proper cart adapters for official consumption and let the Nt Mini Noir be the king of the hill for NES and all other 8 bits.

 

So my Xmas wish list is:

 

MegaSg enhanced JB:

A2600 and A7800

Intellivision

 

SuperNt enhanced JB:

A2600 and A7800

Intellivision (NTT controller)

ColecoVision (NTT controller)

GB/GBC cores + cart adapters

 

 

Anyway one can always dream.

 

I know some people swear by the Channel F or the Arcadia 2001 .... eventually we will get the Analogue Super8 (or whatever that would be) but until then some small concession to MegaSg and Supernt customer is welcome.

[Full Set Collecting : Is it an unhealthy obsession to be a completionist? Merely the attainment of a childhood dream to "Have them all"?]

On 12/11/2020 at 9:22 PM, Keatah said:

I wanted them all, but not necessarily to play to completion. Naturally there wouldn't have been time. I wanted them all because cartridges looked nice in those 70's style cassette holders. A wall of them was a childhood want till it wasn't.

....

So as a kid you actually wanted them all just to put them into cassette holders? ..... you did not have genres you couldn't care less for? or maybe you did and yet thought it was a good and sane endeavor to possess them just so you could put them in cassette holders?

Maybe I was .... weird then.

I never once thought "gotta have all the golf games" ... "please yes one more shougi game" etc.... I know I liked most arcades and those I wanted for home when/if possible but even there until Arkanoid (1986) came out for example I can tell you I couldn't care less for owning any Break-out game, and aside Arkanoid (and to a lesser extent Arkanoid 2) I have not really sough after them since.
I am a sucker for Street Fighter 2[+] (and yes I do suck at playing it) and I have all incarnations I can think of for Saturn and Dreamcast for reasons I can't quite explain ... go figure, I rarely ever play it (so yes that is totally irrational and unhealthy on my part, thankfully I did not look for them for earlier or later consoles much [I think I have copy of SFII Hyper for XB360] again for reasons I can't quite explain).

 

I am not saying you should like what I like in the least, just it is a little unsettling to me that one "gotta have them all".
For years and years I couldn't even try text only adventures (I did try a type in one once and I wasn't impressed) and to this day ... I don't care for them, you might like them I understand that, but that there's no one genre that you'd rather keep the space empty instead to me is a very very alien concept.

[What computer would you recommend for people who are just getting into the hobby of retro computing?]

Wrt BASIC and some old computers:

 

 

Give it time, let it play, he tests a very small BASIC program (nested sums) on CPC, TI99/4A, Vic20, C64, QL ... and the results are ... interesting (that segment starts at 5:25mins or just about).
He also explains the TI99/4A internal architecture etc... it's an enjoyable video and very informative imho.
 

Spoiler

CPC is the fastest of the bunch, the Vic20 beats the C64, the ZX Spectrum is dog slow etc....

I agree the benchmark is very specific etc... still never had such a startling view of them 8 bitters.
And wrt TI99/4A ... look mom, no poke(s) ....  say what? 

[Full Set Collecting : Is it an unhealthy obsession to be a completionist? Merely the attainment of a childhood dream to "Have them all"?]

The topic was:
Full Set Collecting : Is it an unhealthy obsession to be a completionist? Merely the attainment of a childhood dream to "Have them all"?

Is it an unhealthy obsession to be a completionist? YES like every obsession it is not healthy.

 

Merely the attainment of a childhood dream to "Have them all"?   mmmmmmhhhh the more I think about it the more I can't remember a single moment of way back when that I thought "Geez, I want them all" ... literally I remember getting rid of games I didn't like, avoid like the pest genres I didn't care for (mostly sports game in my case, but not all of them) ... I think the first time I thought about "Have them all" is when I got Snes9x up and running (I've never had an SNES before) towards the end of the '90s.

Wrt to carts I grew up with a 2600, and I remember labels like these:

and 

 

no wonder I kind of didn't care.

Never really cared for the outer boxes either, I didn't throw them away but I never really spent much time perusing them 'cause they were just the boxes of mass produced goods.

As a kid did you really think I want to "have them all"?

My console years were somewhat short mostly around VCS2600/Coleco then time for a C64 (nothing really in between), then onto Amiga, PC and during the mid 90, PSX, Saturn and N64 ..... aside the early consoles I had access to backups all along etc ... and yet ... even then .... can't remember the feeling of wanting to "have them all" but for sure had more games around than for the earlier systems ... my distaste for sports based videogames was the same all along (with rare exceptions, like Daley's Thomson Decathlon on C64, Hyper Olympics on MSX, F1 on PS1 [cause I liked the local language commentator], Winning Eleven PS1 [cause my friends loved it and I wanted to multiplay with them]) and still is.


Was I so weird as a kid for not wanting to "have them all"? I actually don't remember any of my friends with consoles or computers other than one guy with the bug to want to "have them all", but in his case he was mostly wanting to have a "backup" of each, and then literally thrash it 2 days later and only keep around a "crate" worth of stuff vs a whole basement (he was basically mostly "trying" them if that makes any sense to you).

 

And I remember some wretched games I played because I had nothing else .... and no I would not do that again given the choice.

 

 

In my more recent years (started collecting around 2010, and it about coincides with me joining AA) I did feel that way though, especially wrt to physical consoles ("fullset" ROM were already easy enough to find) ... I thank @Bill Loguidice here on the forums for sharing a few years back a spreadsheet with his then humongous collection, he made me realize I didn't need to be preserving anything (fake reason I gave myself to rationalize the behavior) AND 8 bit fatigue (I started collecting from Saturn etc.. going backward in time, once reached the 8bit I got a few and got bored, literally), my wife states that I used to get those clunkers to repair-them/recap-them/mod-them/somewhat-mend-them and then just move on.
 

 

 

[Full Set Collecting : Is it an unhealthy obsession to be a completionist? Merely the attainment of a childhood dream to "Have them all"?]

3 hours ago, thegoldenband said:

....

Of course the counterargument is that you can have the same experience with a ROM set, and in many ways you can. But we all know the pseudo-ADHD condition many of us get from ROM sets, in which we can't settle on any one game to play -- and it's not just a question of numbers, but also of the way that ROMs can start to feel meaningless, divorced from the context offered by the game's packaging, manual, etc.

 

I recently got a Jaguar Game Drive cart and found myself having that experience: on a console where I could only play the 7 games I actually owned, and had been able to focus enough to beat the majority of them, now I could play anything...and didn't really want to stick with anything. Having the real thing helps me focus, at least.

....

Nitpick but having "teh full romz" == "complete collection" so if quantity is what causes the "I can't settle" it doesn't really matter the media behind it.

 

3 hours ago, thegoldenband said:

...

Among other things it's a way to experience the entire library for a console, ideally with an open mind and with each game on its own terms, rather than via someone else's idea of what we "should" play.

 

That's what I love about people who try to beat a system's whole library, like TheMexicanRunner, Goati, and others like them. They understand the big picture in a way that few do -- in the same way that you can understand a director by watching all their movies, or a composer or band by listening to all of their works -- and they seem to develop a deeper appreciation for everything they play, rather than leaping to typical, off-the-cuff YouTube hot takes.

....

What big picture? You do not have to "play it all" 'cause there really is a lot of garbage out there.

You don't try to walk every mile of every road to get "the big picture" do you? 
You don't count every grain of sand in that beach you like to get "the big picture" do you?

I don't want to come in as too hard but the idea that to understand it (aka the big picture) you HAVE to HAVE experienced it all is simply preposterous. 

I don't judge where one choses to pour his/her resources at the same time refusing to acknowledge it is an aberration, however safe it may be, is also illusory.

Note, over the years I grabbed and updated as fast as I could the various "rom packs" I was able to find, so I am guilty as charged even if as it relates to digital-only support, I don't need them all, I will not play them all, heck I don't even know their names for the vast majority. I wouldn't be surprised most "full set" collectors wouldn't be able to name the full-set of any system they own with more than say 50 games in it

 

[Balancing the Bus and Mastering Jaguar Performance - Tips, Tricks, Questions and Beyond - Open Discussion]

I can appreciate the pictorial explanation but I don't think the Jaguar bus can be used concurrently the way you explain, I may be wrong but all the buses that I know of only allow one bus master at a time, and yes you can saturate the bus if "too much stuff goes into it" and slow-ram/slow-chips hold it while doing their accesses and stalling other chips while doing so. Usually buses cannot be partially used the way your pictures imply (16bits go here while 32bits go there etc...) and I didn't have that impression while reading the Jag HW docs.

 

[General upscaler thread]

@jgkspsx

 

Managed to test Jaguar + Scart on 2X-M + RGB2COMP and no dice in that TV, tried Jaguar + SVideo direct 2X-M and again no dice (I could get sound though).

Then I tried MD2 + Scart and no go, MD2 + SVideo and no go (Invalid Signal in both cases).

 

I took the MD2 onto the other TV and  MD2 + Scart on 2X-M + RGB2COMP works with all the jailbar glory I can remember, the audio sounds off though but it may be something else entirely.

 

So yeah it really depends on the TV tolerance ... and while doing all this testing I got to remember of the pain to set this all up .... to power the 2X-M + RGB2COMP combo I use one of those double-USB chargers or I'll need no less than 3 power bricks, if we add 32X and MegaCD that'll get me to 5 bricks (I have a 3-in-1 power for the tower-of-power but it's still clunky).

 

At least I managed to see the RGB2COMP working, that counts for something.

[General upscaler thread]

On 12/2/2020 at 11:02 AM, jgkspsx said:

My plan is 2X-Pro + RGB2COMP, when finances allow

Just remember, this (2X-Pro but the whole line) is a line doubler as such the HDMI out it produces is non-std and so the TV you end up using decides if it likes it or not. Even when in pass-thru mode (for Component sources aka no line doubling) the TV gets a non exactly std HDMI signal (if it even can handle 240p or 480i on HDMI).

Example: finally my CD32 Scart cable arrived, and that "worked" via RGB2COMP + 2X-M on my TV unfortunately the cable/source-board is bad so it looks ugly with tons of noise, same CD32 via SVideo direct to 2X-M (no RGB2COMP) looks very good, so told I only tested with an interlaced screen at the Workbench, no games and that may not work.
I managed to recover my GX-4000 [PAL unit] and I have full Scart cable to test it via RGB2COMP + 2X-M, no dice, even with Composite direct to 2X-M still no dice, my TV simply states invalid signal (it could be the mode the C4CPC puts out the menu but that's beside the point).

 

The same exact setups above (minus CD32 Scart that I didn't have until two days ago) works perfectly on that same TV via XRGB-Mini (which is a proper upscaler with conformant HDMI out), I mean GX-4000 Scart and Composite + CD32 SVideo and Composite work fine via the Framemeister (obviously there is some stutter here and there due to difference in frequencies).

 

I don't have access to my MegaED to test my MD2 + Scart (it's also modded SVideo AND 50/60 switch so I can try a few combo) ... just to see if the TV likes that at all .... as I said this is a line doubler and not an upscaler so the out signal is bound to be non exactly 60Hz, how close it needs to be for your TV to latch on it depends on the TV.

Only thing I want to really test is make sure the RGB2COMP work as expected, we'll see when I have time to fish out some other console with Scart (I have a NeoGeoCD and a Jaguar that are "easier" to reach for which I have Scart cables) .... I'll also have to test another TV to see how the 2X-M fares there.

[Upcoming Jaguar Game Drive Cartridge]

On 12/1/2020 at 4:00 AM, Zerosquare said:

Which firmware version did you install? Any new features or bug fixes?

I took me almost 2 days to get it .... I'm getting too old ... fuxx me!

 

Edit: maybe Al is now HAL ... who knows.

[General upscaler thread]

1 hour ago, jgkspsx said:

 Interesting. It will be interesting to see how SCART to Retrotink fares.

Which one?

1) 2X-Pro + RGB2COMP

2) 2X-M + RGB2COMP

3) 2X-Scart

[Is post-Covid 19 isoproplyhol safe for cartridges?]

I don't know man:

https://www.amazon.com/MG-Chemicals-Isopropyl-Electronics-8241-475ML/dp/B085VHNTDK

 

70% isopropyl and 30% water ... so yeah you can find simply water-diluted but if you really need the good stuff:

https://www.amazon.com/Alliance-Chemical-Isopropyl-Alcohol-Bottles/dp/B00CXWANX2/

(a gallon of 99% isopropyl, you should be good no?)

 

[Upcoming Jaguar Game Drive Cartridge]

Haven't asked in quite some time, @Albert any chance any of the AA units would make it by Xmas?

Not that I think I'm that high up in the list, just asking ..... and obviously so happy Saint made it through, it's been 4.5Y another few months won't really make it or break it so to speak

 

I like the optimism of the first post:

"it could well take another 6-12 months depending on ..."  .... we can add life, health, shit and covid in no particular order.

 

 

[General upscaler thread]

@jgkspsx

Wrt RetroTink 2X-Pro vs 2X-Multi note that some Genesis revisions (and even PSone) composite output have been called out:

 

https://www.retrotink.com/post/introducing-the-retrotink-2x-pro-multi-format

 

"One use case where the 2X-M shines over the current 2X-Pro for 240p sources is the handling of composite video.

In the Super Mario NES title card, the 2X-M's output is noticeably cleaner with less dot artifacts and no ghosting around sharp vertical lines. If your setup exclusively focuses on composite video, the 2X-M will generally produce better results. Due to composite artifacts, the difference between nearest neighbor and bilinear filtering is much less visible.

Our testing has also shown that the 2X-M's composite decoder is more robust and and may handle poorly behaved sources such as the Sega Genesis and earlier PSOne models, where the 2X-Pro fails to produce a correct image."

 

For composite-only the 2X-Mini seems a much better value (https://www.retrotink.com/product-page/2x-mini ) but same caveat wrt Genesis/PSOne:

 

"CAUTION: Sega Genesis and some models of PSOnes do not produce off-spec signals and may not display correctly. For Sega Genesis, we recommend using a RGB/Component cable with the RT2X-Pro or SCART. For PSOne, we recommend using a PS2 as there are no known issues."

[General upscaler thread]

On 11/18/2020 at 6:55 PM, Silverfleet said:

I haven't posted in here for a while, but I am having an annoying issue with my RetroTink 2X Pro. For some reason, my Sega Genesises (Genesii?) are not outputting sound through the 2X Pro via composite A/V cables. I have tried my Model 1, Model 2 by itself, and my Model 2 with the Sega CD attached. I have tried different cables as well, but to no avail. Other consoles, like my NES via component, work fine. I also updated the firmware, but that didn't help. Not sure what else to do here. 

Have you tried on the Genesis 2 swapping Red and White audio cables? In many cheap cables they were inverted.

[Help! What's the most affordable middle-of-the-road way to get a MiniDIN 9 RGB out (Sega Genesis 2/32X/Super SD System 3) into a modern TV?]

The RetroTink Pro 2X is NOT RGB, it's YPbPr (as well as Composite, SVideo, you can check their manuals online btw), if you already have Scart cables then https://www.retrotink.com/product-page/retrotink-2x-scart should work, alternatively you can buy both a https://www.retrotink.com/product-page/rgb2comp (Scart input) and either https://www.retrotink.com/product-page/retrotink-2x-pro or https://www.retrotink.com/product-page/2x-multiformat .... I have the rgb2comp + 2x-pro-Multi but I have not had a chance to test it as I am awaiting Scart cables.
You'll also need 5 RCA M-M adapters to connect the 2: https://www.amazon.com/VCE-5-Pack-Coupler-Connector-Adapter/dp/B06W9JBQSW

 

 

It gets expensive at that point as you are looking at 200US$+ with both, I chose the dual setup as I do have a few consoles that output YPbPr and the 2x-pro-Multi supports it unofficially to 720p and a non-std1080i (check fw 1.4Beta https://www.retrotink.com/post/retrotink-2x-pro-multiformat-firmware-page I presume that has been maintained all the way to the current one).

So the 2x-pro-Multi looks like it can support me all the way to Xbox OG and PS2 even with their 720p games (there's just too few 1080i [only 1 on PS2 afaik] and it may just not work at all for those, but XBox OG has quite some 720p).

You can see my setup here:

 

[[Brainstorming] How would you name the next Xbox after Series S/X?]

There was once an australian rock band called INXS (aka "in excess" for the hard of hearing) ... in my younger years I swore my "would be" rock band would be called SXINXS (aka "sex in excess" just so we're clear ... yeah I was very lonely ... and I never got a rock band ... couldn't play an instrument to save my life and singing was even worse).

 

So why not?

Xbox SX

Xbox XS

Xbox SX4XS
Xbox XS4SX

SXbox

XSbox
SXboxXS

XSboxSX

 

they really really really suck at naming.

 

The original Xbox was called as such because of "DirectX Box" ... really ... which made sense back then if you knew what that meant in the PC space although I am afraid the audience for consoles couldn't give a crap about DirectX!

[Which 8bit micro you wish you tried bitd?]

Until w95 (like it or not) the PC was a mess of Gfx and Sfx support, then w95 and standardized/unified gfx/sfx drivers were required and finally it got much much better imho, AC95/AC97 were a thing for the audio side. Granted it would be a few more years before DirectX and in general Windows would be a gaming platform.

 

Before that you had to have an SB16 (sometimes AdLib was enough), or bask in the light of your Gravis UltraSound which needed a separate driver though and wasn't as widely supported, VESA helped high-res support for sure (1024x768 was a sight back then) but boy was it slow .... can't blame the std for sure .... yeah ... it was what it was bitd .... using a joystick/joypad ... oh man, that was a giant pain and many games did not work well on a keyboard (Mortal Kombat anyone?).

[Which 8bit micro you wish you tried bitd?]

4 hours ago, carlsson said:

Yes, there are a bunch of decent PET oriented groups on Facebook. There also are some users on the VC Forum as well as mailing lists for technical matters.

 

I don't know much about the Camputers Lynx except that its BASIC supports line numbers with decimals, which is a very unusual feature.

 

10 PRINT"HELLO WORLD"

10.1 GOTO 10

 

Well, with decimal line numbers I think they solved the issue of there being only 9 other lines between 10 and 20 to fix your mess (ahem implement what should have been there but you forgot/didn't know).... no more needing to renumber or crazy GOTO back and forth ... just tack in another digit 10<->10.1 can become 10<->10.05<->10.1 et voila' easy peasy, tucked in there!

[Which 8bit micro you wish you tried bitd?]

13 minutes ago, carlsson said:

... used to own a CoCo 2 for a short while, horrible system...

never seen one in person just heard of the OS-9 wonders (as if!!!) ... judging by YT I think I was fine with what I had!

[Which 8bit micro you wish you tried bitd?]

How about these things:

Micronique Hector HRX (Forth machine)

https://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?c=142&st=1

or even:
Micronique Hector MX (Basic + Forth + Logo + Machine Monitor)

https://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?st=1&c=169

 

never knew they existed until literally 10 minutes ago ... man the 80s were batshit crazy for the amount of oddballs they produced (those French were crazy, who knew!!).

 

I mean this one too:
EACA Colour Genie

https://www.old-computers.com/museum/computer.asp?st=1&c=128