phoboz

Have been working on enemy AI and depth for collision detection: PS. 2 player mode hopefully the be shown next.

Yes, so this will be just like the existing solutions. Not 6MB yet... Then a voltage level shifter is needed after all.

The lz77 packer is actually a quite good, lossless packer. I use it for all graphics and the size become 20-60% of the original size. I have been fighting with the 4 MB limit for the last 2 games (even if I compress all graphics). Having these 2 extra megabytes will help a lot for future projects, as it gives 50% space. Much more size than 6MB is probably not needed for games that don't have movie sequences etc. (Like CD games) 6MB is usable on the Jaguar without the need for extra programming tricks, like bank switching. So the ultimate Jaguar cartridge is 6MB in my opinion.

The one I checked (A29160B) appears to be usable either as two 8-bit, or one 16-bit memory.

I found a few 5V Flash memory chips, but most of them have low memory capacity. The largest one I found was 16Mbit, so several chips would be needed for a 6MB cartridge.

Yes, a 6MB Jagtopus would be nice. Perhaps also with a larger EEPROM for save data. 6MB would still be a considerable improvement over 4 MB, without any additional programming effort (such as bank switching) Sounds like a good improvement for the original Jagtopus, to avoid the need for a BJL modded Jaguar, an old PC with parallel port, and a PC to Jaguar joystick-port cable (unless you have the dedicated programmer) Yes, that's why it is still an interesting option to use good old EPROMs. Because these chips (sold from China) are not really affected by the semiconductor shortage. On the other hand, you may end up getting used chips (with a fresh print on), marketed as NOS. I used this method in the past, and 1 in 10 chips had to be thrown in the waste bin. It's also a time consuming and tedious process to program them, solder them, test the game etc.

A step down level shifter can apparently be done using only 2 resistors. A design using surface monted resistors will keep the size down, even if the Flash ROM is a DIP IC. Resistors are not that hard to solder compared to surface mount ICs. So I may start trying to only do level shifting on the write signals (to avoid chip damage), and see if a logic high signal at 2.7-3.6 V will be interpreted as a logic high on the Jaguar. A couple of 74HCT244 (octal buffer) may also work as level shifter. PS. Anyone in Europe who are also in need of a 6MB cartridge PCB? Then we may make a combined PCB order after the design has been validated.

Yes, you probably need a 5 Volt tolerant chip then (e.g. 74HC vs. 74HCT), or making a separate voltage translation circuit as you mention.

6MB is possible without bank switching. Larger sizes seem to be possible (I take the Jaguar GD as proof of that), but then you probably need some microcontroller in the cartridge? E.g. I don't know if you can program the Jaguar's cartridges lines to do whatever you like.

I did some research (as I am not so familiar with Flash). Is there something that can connect directly to the Jaguar's interface? For example I am guessing on Parallell NOR, 64MBit? How many address lines are needed, I guess it has to be 32 data lines? The operating voltage seem to be 2.7 - 3.6 Volts on modern chips. Is that directly compatible with the Jaguar, or does it need to be able to handle 5 Volts? PS. Excuse me for asking such basic questions when it comes to hardware...

It turns out I cannot PM him. @Clint Thompson, you may contact me if you are interested?

Yes there was a thread on that before, I replied to that I needed a larger quantity. I haven't heard anything more on that (got the impression that he intended to sell smaller quantities) Also I would like to avoid dual import charges, as it will affect the budget. I guess the PCBs come from China anyway? Nevertheless I will double check with him again in a PM.

I guess a jumper pulling the WE low is a good option (if a custom design is to be made) Some kind of adapter between the programmer and the cartridge would be nice. (If it is possible to source a cartridge connector similar to the Jaguar's)

What are the options to make a 6MB cartridge at an affordable price? Are there any PCB layouts available (to share) which uses 2x 16-bit EPROM? Is someone making these PCB and selling in larger quantities (e.g. a couple of hundred units)?

Yes I was a little bit lazy and re-used the sword slash for now, it should be replaced with a more aooropriate sound.

The box art is of course a very high resolution image (thousands times thousands of pixels) in true color, while the Jaguar has a progressive scan resolution of 320x240 pixels. We experimented with a lot of different renderers, and none of them initially performed well on low resolutions. Because either significant parts of the models disappeared, or the image looked very pixelated due to the high level of detail in a small area. Eventually Krauser found the renderer we are using now, which made the characters look a little bit cartoonish, but at the same time a little bit more realistic than pure hand drawn cartoon characters. So we both felt thrilled that we had fond the look we wanted for our game. Of course it's a matter of taste, but I think more people have praised the look compared to the people that thought it could improve.

As I am not an artist myself I cannot tell. You are probably definately right that it is not an easy task to draw a lot of high quality pixel art by hand. It probably takes a long time too. I am aware of later installments of Capcom games like the ... vs. Capcom series and the later Street Fighter games on the Dreamcast. At the same time, this art direction is not as iconic to me as it was in the original Street Fighter II, Final Fight, Magic Sword etc. It's not easy to have a clear definition of post 16-bit style graphics, but a lot of it was indeed pre-rendered in the 90's. That is not to say that it was the only direction, and later we saw a lot more cartoonish art when higher resolutions became available on the game consoles (e.g. from Dreamcast on onwards) Some may also consider digitized graphics, like in Mortal Kombat etc. to be post 16-bit, at least we have seen some of it in the Jaguar spin-offs of Mortal Kombat. I guess Hammer of the Gods is a mix of pre-rendered characters, and digitized graphics for the backgrounds. If you forgive me for making up my own definition of the term "post 16-bit graphics"

Interesting points. We chose a specific art direction for this game, as we wanted to have a post 16-bit look. It's a little bit hard to define what that is, but if we would have gone for the classical Capcom look it would have become very synonymous to the 16-bit era. That's not to say that we are ignoring specific opinions on the animations. @Eternal-Krauser also had similar impressions on some animations when he saw them in action (even if I didn't notice) In some cases it was I that didn't implement his timing and framing fully according to his specification, in other cases he thinks that a re-work is needed on the actual animation images.

Probably not line scrolling, as we use larger images as layers on the levels. Some layers are parallax behind the player, but some levels also have a faster moving layer in front of the player's layer. It was done differently for the various stages based on what would look best for the specific environment.

Yes Sword of Sodan looked very nice, but I don't remeber much about the gameplay.

Januari 2023 update. Very basic AI.

This I like better. - Focus on the games, not on the politics 😉 Keep it up guys...

To much politics, to much anger. Relax and have fun for God's sake. It's supposed to be fun, isn't it. I stepped in because I saw a tendancy that some people get bullied here, and I don't like that. So it was really hard for me to sit idle, sorry if someone got offended by this...

No. In what way haven't I diarespected anyone here? I am quite sure of that. I think anyone who reads this discussion can see that. On the other hand, I am quite sure that someone from the outside can see that some other people pour a lot of distespect around here.

I respect you for your work, but you shouldn't heckle people for trying to making their own engines.