Space Invaders Collection on the Atarimax Coleco Flash Cart

[Spector]

Now this is an odd one. I tried loading up the ROM file for Space Invaders Collection onto my Atarimax USB Flash Cart for the Colecovision, and it doesn't work properly. What happens is that when you begin a game, you fire bullets and the screen starts to fill with rogue pixels in between your ship and the aliens. Bullets end up being blocked by them when they get in the way. After a minute or two, the bottom part has so many pixels that your craft explodes without being hit by a bullet, and the game becomes unplayable.

 

No other game on my flash cart behaves in this way, and I have no graphical glitches in any other Coleco game (my machine was recently modded to avoid this). The strangest thing is this - I've also tried the demo preview version of Space Invaders Collection on the flash cart, and it works perfectly!

 

Does anyone have any idea as to why the full version won't work on this flash cart? It's such a shame it can't be played on a real coleco, since the game is sold out and will never be made again.

[doubledown]

I wasn't aware that the CV Space Invaders Collection final .rom was ever released publicly

[newcoleco]

Fact : Space Invaders Collection didn't work on my modded ColecoVision that uses RCA cables. (tester : Pixelboy)

[Spector]

Well, my CV is modded too as I mentioned earlier, so what you say is interesting. I would be even more interested if the demo version didn't work on your CV either. It's the demo that makes this a tough question to answer, because it works fine with me. Darn it!

[doubledown]

I've played SIC on several modded ColecoVisions and I've never had a problem. I also just tried it on my XGA modded console in my kiosk at it plays just fine.

 

@Spector - Are you sure you have a final .rom of SIC and not a dump of a demo version?

Edited August 1, 2009 by doubledown

[Spector]

I've played SIC on several modded ColecoVisions and I've never had a problem. I also just tried it on my XGA modded console in my kiosk at it plays just fine.

 

@Spector - Are you sure you have a final .rom of SIC and not a dump of a demo version?

 

My ROM is 32K, and starts with the Colecovision logo with the spaceship flying past, and has all the options for the Jap and US versions. The demo version is 16K and only has one screen you can play and no sound, so it can't be the same.

[doubledown]

It could be a bad dump, if in fact it was dumped from an actual cartridge. Did you dump it, or find the file on the internet somewhere? Have you tried in on the multi-cart on a different console? The video output of the console, whatever it has been modded to do, should in no way, shape ,or form affet the game working properly.

[Spector]

It's downloaded from the internet, in fact it's from here somewhere. Wasn't it on a thread on this site? A link to the page that has it? I'll find it once I get my brain working. But anyhow, it's a download, not a dump by myself. Maybe the download is pants after all.

[Spector]

Yeah here's a link to the ROM file here, taken from this site...

 

http://www.atariage.com/forums/index.php?s...ders+collection

[+opcode]

Hehehe....

The image wasn't supposed to be used with real CVs... But it works ok on emulators.

Edited August 1, 2009 by opcode

[Spector]

Haw haw! Is that right? You deliberately sabotaged it?

Seriously - why don't you release a dump of the actual ROM file so it will work on a flash cart? Since the ROM for emulators is available and the game isn't being made any more, there would surely be no harm in it. Believe me, if I had had a working NTSC Colecovision two years ago, I would have bought it then for sure.

[doubledown]

Hehehe....

The image wasn't supposed to be used with real CVs... But it works ok on emulators.

 

 

That's good stuff!

[Spector]

It's fair enough, not wanting the game to be played on a real system when it's being sold. It's just that with it now forever out of print and especially since the emulator ROM is freely available, what difference would it make if the far smaller amount of people out there with a flash cart got a version that worked for them?

[Spector]

Okay, I was hoping for a response to that last post, so let me develop my question to Eduardo a bit more...

 

Mr Opcode, if the ROM for SIC wasn’t freely available, then I would understand why you would be holding back, but anyone can download the ROM to use on an emulator, which is the way most people play retro games nowadays anyway. Also, the cartridge itself is permanently out of print, so there will be no more sales. With all that in mind, it seems to me there is no disadvantage legally or financially in releasing a version of an already available ROM that would be compatible with the Atarimax flash cart. It would be a gesture very much appreciated by those in possession of one.

 

So Eduardo, would you be prepared to do this, and if not, what would be your objections? Ta for reading… and hopefully responding

[doubledown]

One disadvantage of releasing the Cartridge .rom, would be devaluing all of the actual cartridges that were sold.

[+opcode]

Okay, I was hoping for a response to that last post, so let me develop my question to Eduardo a bit more...

 

Mr Opcode, if the ROM for SIC wasn’t freely available, then I would understand why you would be holding back, but anyone can download the ROM to use on an emulator, which is the way most people play retro games nowadays anyway. Also, the cartridge itself is permanently out of print, so there will be no more sales. With all that in mind, it seems to me there is no disadvantage legally or financially in releasing a version of an already available ROM that would be compatible with the Atarimax flash cart. It would be a gesture very much appreciated by those in possession of one.

 

So Eduardo, would you be prepared to do this, and if not, what would be your objections? Ta for reading… and hopefully responding

 

If I release the ROM I stop being bad and start being nice, and I hate being nice...

No, seriously, the reason is that SIC will become available again in a couple of months, at a lower price. Stay tuned..

[Atariboy]

I'm pretty sure that wouldn't factor into his decision, I can't speak for him, but I suspect like most homebrew authors that he's doing this for the love of it and because he wants people to be able to do things with their Colecovisions that were only dreams when they were kids in the early 80s.

 

I doubt he's worried about protecting their value since I imagine he hopes they were sold to homes where they were bought to be played rather than be a collectable.

 

Edit - That's good news.

Edited August 2, 2009 by Atariboy

[S1500]

One disadvantage of releasing the Cartridge .rom, would be devaluing all of the actual cartridges that were sold.

 

Maybe we all need to stop thinking in such captalistic terms when it comes to neat homebrew projects like this. Do people make homebrew games in limited supply just to rank in "collector" value to maximize prices/profits? I would like to think people buy these homewbrew games to play them, not invest in them like collector coins.

[Spector]

If I release the ROM I stop being bad and start being nice, and I hate being nice...

No, seriously, the reason is that SIC will become available again in a couple of months, at a lower price. Stay tuned..

 

As mentioned by Atariboy, that's excellent news, and I better start saving

[darthkur]

No, seriously, the reason is that SIC will become available again in a couple of months, at a lower price. Stay tuned..

 

 

 

That's certainly good to hear. I'm looking forward to finally getting one of those.

[+opcode]

You can now download the ROM file from here:

 

http://www.atariage.com/forums/topic/152121-the-official-space-invaders-collection-thread/page__fromsearch__1