Quick Poll: For my Flash Cartridge

[Cupcakus]

I am faced with a serious dilemma. As it turns out there are at least 6 other people making a similar cartridge to my own. Of course if I had known this at the time, I would have never started this project. :-) But now I'm in too deep.

 

The design is almost complete for the most part.... However any cartridges that require RAM are not working yet, and it will most likely take me weeks to get RAM working.

 

So here is my question. Would it be worth it to you, the people I am making this for, to recieve the product probably a month earlier, and about $8 cheaper if it couldn't support the following games:

 

Cakewalk

Cosmic Swarm

Magicard

Mines of Minos

Room of Doom

Stronghold

Video Life

Dig Dug

Crystal Castles

Millipede

Stargate

Defender 2

Choplifter

Desert Falcon

Dark Chambers

Super Football

Sprintmaster

Fatal Run

Off the wall

Shooting Arcade

Secret Quest

Radar Lock

Save Mary!

Klax

Burgertime

Pitfall 2

 

Out of the entire 2600 collection of games, including homebrews... that is IT! It will still have all of it's great features it had before...

 

If the consensus is that you would rather wait longer and pay a bit more to play the above games on the cartridge, (Except Pitfall 2 and Burgertime) then I will spend the time to make it work with those games.

 

Thanks!

[sku_u]

For a difference of $8, and a month, for me at least it would be worth waiting to have everything less two games available.

[DEBRO]

I guess that might depend on why people would purchase such a product. Even though I have a Cuttle Cart, I would be interested in something like this since I wouldn't have to have my VCS close to my PC (or waste a CD-R by burning a test ROM at a time).

 

I would like to see the RAM implemented. I would be interested in the product as a development platform more so than a way to play ROM images.

[CPUWIZ]

You can cross these of the list because there is nothing special about them:

 

Cosmic Swarm - normal 2K game

Mines of Minos - normal 4K game

Room of Doom - "

Cakewalk - "

Stronghold - "

[+Nathan Strum]

I wouldn't mind a delay or the extra cost.

 

If it can support the rest of those games, I think that would be a strong selling point for people wanting to use it for playing games.

 

But if developers bought it, and developed games using the RAM, is there any way they could manufacture carts for sale? Or would their titles need to be played through your cart? I would think it could open up a lot of possibilites for homebrew authors, either way.

[Cupcakus]

You can cross these of the list because there is nothing special about them:

 

Cosmic Swarm - normal 2K game

Mines of Minos - normal 4K game

Room of Doom - "  

Cakewalk - "

Stronghold - "

 

Yes thanks... I just grabbed all of the CommaVid games, because I can't support their RAM requirement.

[CPUWIZ]

The only 2 carts from CommaVid that use RAM are Magicard and Video Life, that's what I was trying to say.

[Cupcakus]

And you are absolutely correct... It was my mistake thanks for pointing it out....

 

As it turns out however :-) It seems at least at this point, I will need to get those games to work anyway.

[Paul Slocum]

I would be dissapointed and less likely to buy one if it didn't have RAM. My next homebrew project might be a superchip game, and I would mainly be interested in the flashcart for development. Even if my next project doesn't use RAM, you know that superchip boards will be made at some point and a homebrewer will want to create a game for it.

 

-Paul

[Cupcakus]

I would be dissapointed and less likely to buy one if it didn't have RAM.  My next homebrew project might be a superchip game, and I would mainly be interested in the flashcart for development.  Even if my next project doesn't use RAM, you know that superchip boards will be made at some point and a homebrewer will want to create a game for it.

 

-Paul

 

Oh well :-) it was a shot in the dark. OK I'll develop the RAM functions...

[MaxSpeed]

The delay and extra cost would be worth it. Simply having better compatability is a huge feature.

 

My dream flash cart would have a SD or PCMCIA slot so you could add a lot of flash (enough to hold every cart rom!) and a nice navigator - just a dream.

 

[+Nathan Strum]

My dream flash cart would have a SD or PCMCIA slot so you could add a lot of flash (enough to hold every cart rom!) and a nice navigator - just a dream.

 

Something along those lines would be sweet, indeed. For example - Smart Media cards are 64 MB for only $24.99. (All of my Stella ROMs combined are only around 4.5 MB.) The best part, is that as long as you had a Smart Media reader (or similar), you could load in games from any computer, then just pop the card into the flash cart, and off you go. (Even if it only supported one game at a time, that would still be a great dev tool, since you could use it from, say... a Mac.)

 

(On a related note... the link AtariAge has for the MacTari site is incorrect. They're now over here.)

[MegaManFan]

So here is my question.  Would it be worth it to you, the people I am making this for, to recieve the product probably a month earlier, and about $8 cheaper if it couldn't support the following games:

 

Dig Dug

Crystal Castles

Millipede

Stargate

Choplifter

Desert Falcon

Dark Chambers

Super Football

Sprintmaster

Fatal Run

Off the wall

Shooting Arcade

Secret Quest

Radar Lock

Save Mary!

Klax

Burgertime

Pitfall 2

 

I don't think any of these games are worth giving up. Keep 'em all!

[SS]

It would be worth both the wait and the extra bucks to me.

 

A few of those games are exactly what I am hoping to play on the thing! (Klax, etc.)

[Smada Bez]

I'll have to agree with everyone else. Add the RAM!!!

[Big Player]

Since you are working on it already and I am late to this thread, I'll just offer encouragement.

 

More RAM!

 

I can wait and I will pay more. I want to be able to put any ROM on my Atari.

 

Keep it up!

[smf_4ever]

Well dude... which ever you are more comfortable with is your call.. I would dig either one (well.. I could wait if adding the RAM could be done without too much headache...)

 

But this project is you baby.. you call.. we are just the black market thieves waiting to buy these babies... lol

[+bfstats]

This device is a great idea (as was the CuttleCart) and, as a collector, it would fulfill my ideal if it were able to load and run EVERY ROM IMAGE. I know that's a lot to ask, but I would be willing to wait as long as necessary, and pay significantly more for it if it could run EVERY GAME. Feasible?

[sdstuff64]

I'll have to agree with everyone else.  Add the RAM!!!

 

I also agree.But you must make your better!How?I do not know,but you must make your product better.

[Cupcakus]

I will be adding the RAM, don't worry.

 

Thanks for the feedback!!

[sdstuff64]

I will be adding the RAM, don't worry.

 

Thanks for the feedback!!

 

Yea!When do you think it will come out?

[Cupcakus]

I destroyed another PCB, so it's DOA again... so as soon as I get another PCB I'll be back on it, probably late this week...

 

The final date is yet to be determined :-( Not for a while though.