TheRealAnubis Posted June 14, 2014 Share Posted June 14, 2014 Hi, I've seen a similar post elsewhere, but I'm not likely to get a hold of a floppy drive and box, so I'm looking for everyone's favorite cartridge games on the TI-99! Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Ksarul Posted June 14, 2014 Share Posted June 14, 2014 Just get 32K (there are modifications to install it in the console) added to the machine and get a few of the 512K cartridge boards programmed with a slew of games. Three 512K game images are available now, as well as a nice 512K utility image. No disk required at that point. . .I'm the source for the cart boards, but others have done the images for them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed in SoDak Posted June 14, 2014 Share Posted June 14, 2014 I still enjoy TI Invaders, play it in emulation as well as on the real thing. Poker/Blackjack is ok as well. Used to enjoy cheating in Chess. Seldom won a chess match otherwise! I actually bought the Star Trek module when it was released. "Welcome aboard, Captain!" in Spock's actual voice, too cool. Parsec is another favorite that uses speech. Alpiner, Attack, Pole Position are others I worked the joysticks to death playing. Pinball or Mancala work great on the keyboard alone as does TI Invaders. Even Tennis was ok for a go every once in awhile. Even though I know zip about tennis and never watch it on tv. A PE box and drives plus XB adds a whole 'nother layer to it. When I got mine, the TI became to me a "real computer" I could actually do stuff with. Why aren't you considering that option? Lack of funds, the space to set it up, no desire to go that route? On disk, I liked Spad XIII flight sim, and I spent countless hours playing Legends and trying to hack the program. I did create a cheater Super Team that was invincible if you just wanted to explore and not be bothered by any passing hoardes of pesky monsters. One hit from just one of my team would kill multiple monsters, heheh! Take That! Chainlink Solitare and other Solitare programs, other Poker programs as well. Have you tried any of the several excellent TI emulators? All of this and lots more is available to see what you like enough to get the real versions. What brought you to the TI? You seem to know your way around inside of one. -Ed 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRealAnubis Posted June 14, 2014 Author Share Posted June 14, 2014 (edited) Great suggestions! I may even have a couple of those games! A PE box and drives plus XB adds a whole 'nother layer to it. When I got mine, the TI became to me a "real computer" I could actually do stuff with. Why aren't you considering that option? Lack of funds, the space to set it up, no desire to go that route? I guess a little of each. I've not laid eyes on an entire system, or even the PEB for that matter. There are a few drives available on ebay, and they look HUGE to me, like the old MFM drive that was in my 286. I've been kicking around the HXC floppy emulator, but I've not seen how they hook that up to a TI... I just haven't had time to research it far enough, and it's a little pricey for me at this point. It's the same situation with the Atari 800XL - I'll likely just play cartridge games on it because the drives are selling for $40+ including shipping, and they are listed as 'untested, no cables, power supply, etc.' For me 'untested' means broken. Even most of the 'working' stuff ends up broken somehow! Have you tried any of the several excellent TI emulators? All of this and lots more is available to see what you like enough to get the real versions. That's a good idea! I never seem to remember the emulators, and I've used quite a few of them.. I'll see what I can get going in that department! Thanks! What brought you to the TI? You seem to know your way around inside of one. Long ago I had a friend that had one. Well, his parents had one. His mom used it for her accounting business, but when they weren't home we would play games on it. He also had an Intellivision that we played almost to death (AD&D Cloudy Mountain - best game going IMO). Recently out of the blue a friend brought one to me. It was his late brother's, and no one knew anything about it or really wanted it. He knew I was into vintage stuff, so he wanted to know if I wanted it. I (of course) said I did! Out of the box, it was not working, so I pulled it apart to see what was going on. From there I was compiling a list of problem chips and trying to locate them online. Unlike the Commodore, I didn't see a ready supply of used or NOS IC's. That could mean that it is rare for these to burn out, OR, they are just hard to find. I tend to tear things apart and see what makes them tick - old hardware is very interesting to me. Repairing and tinkering with old systems is a fun hobby for me, and it keeps me learning all the time! Edited June 14, 2014 by TheRealAnubis Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRealAnubis Posted June 14, 2014 Author Share Posted June 14, 2014 Just get 32K (there are modifications to install it in the console) added to the machine and get a few of the 512K cartridge boards programmed with a slew of games. Three 512K game images are available now, as well as a nice 512K utility image. No disk required at that point. . .I'm the source for the cart boards, but others have done the images for them. Nice option as well! Where can I find more information on the 32K mod and the cart boards? I may not have time to complete it all soon, but I do like to check out the modern options as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Ksarul Posted June 14, 2014 Share Posted June 14, 2014 (edited) Here's a link to a 32K mod to the console that is somewhat complicated but works very well: http://www.mainbyte.com/ti99/16bit32k/32kconsole.html On the cartridge boards, here are the threads on AtariAge relating to them: http://atariage.com/forums/topic/223979-setting-up-a-632k-cart/ http://atariage.com/forums/topic/224528-setting-up-a-512k-cart/ http://atariage.com/forums/topic/193163-512k-cartridge-status/ There are some additional references in other threads, but these three are the main knowledge repositories. The ÜberGROM variants cost $24 assembled, with a pair of blank 512K PLCC Flash ROMS but not with an ATMEL ATMega 1284 installed. The 512K EPROM boards are $16 assembled, and are complete with the exception of an EPROM--they will work with anything from 8K to 512K, jumper selectable. I have about a dozen of each board type in stock at the moment. Edited June 14, 2014 by Ksarul 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RickR Posted June 14, 2014 Share Posted June 14, 2014 Super Demon Attack Anything Atarisoft Alpiner and Parsec (only if you have a speech module) TI Invaders Munchman 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+save2600 Posted June 14, 2014 Share Posted June 14, 2014 Anything Atari-soft Even Picnic Paranoia? 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UKRetrogamer Posted June 14, 2014 Share Posted June 14, 2014 http://atariage.com/forums/topic/223979-setting-up-a-632k-cart/ http://atariage.com/forums/topic/224528-setting-up-a-512k-cart/ http://atariage.com/forums/topic/193163-512k-cartridge-status/ There are some additional references in other threads, but these three are the main knowledge repositories. The ÜberGROM variants cost $24 assembled, with a pair of blank 512K PLCC Flash ROMS but not with an ATMEL ATMega 1284 installed. The 512K EPROM boards are $16 assembled, and are complete with the exception of an EPROM--they will work with anything from 8K to 512K, jumper selectable. I have about a dozen of each board type in stock at the moment. What's the difference between these boards? Is one type more suited to game-ROMS and the other to Utility ROMS? I'd like to get a multi-cart with Extended BASIC, Disk Manager, the nanoPEB tools, Assembler/Editor, etc. and another with as many game ROMS as I can fit on a single cart. (The Atarisoft games, Mr Chin, Ti Scramble, etc.) unless it's possible to combine the two? Would this require two different modules? Being [comparatively] unfamiliar with the Ti-99/4a, I still get confused over which modules require GROMs and which don't. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Ksarul Posted June 14, 2014 Share Posted June 14, 2014 There is a lot of information in the threads I listed that answers parts of your questions, UKRetrogamer. The 512K ROM cartridge can be used to put a lot of 8K ROM image games onto a single master menu and launch any one of them at startup. There is a game/utility cartridge image set up to work this way done by Acadiel. This mode requires nothing other than the console to work. Note that things like the Disk Manager, Extended BASIC, or the Editor Assembler don't fit here, as they include GROM (as do most cartridges released under the TI label--and a very small number of third party label issues). It can also be programmed with a menu that launches programs in E/A 5 format--this mode allows "conversion" of quite a number of GROM games to a mode that works without GROM. There are now three 512K images done in this format, along with one utility image. These images require that you have 32K connected to your machine, but generally don't require anything beyond that (unless you're using a utility that requires disk access or you want to print from something). The ÜberGROM in its simplest form works exactly the same way--any 512K image set up for the 512K cart will work with it. Where it adds value is the use of an ATMEL ATMega 1284 as a GROM simulator (and a lot more, if you read the provisional manual for it). Now you can load the huge GROM cartridges like Extended BASIC, RXB, Winkler's XB3, Triton SEB, GRAM Kracker XB, TI Calc, or Tony Knerr's XB2.7 (and any other GROM cartridge for that matter). Depending on your module chice, you may be able to get quite a few GROM applications in there, as it has 120K of available GROM space. The GROM emulation code is fully functional, but the developer is still working on a loader that lets you put your module(s) of choice into the GROM space. At this time, the only thing available for the GROM space is our test code. Once the final loader is available, it will be an easy matter to pop a programmed 1284 into the socket and go from there. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Omega-TI Posted June 15, 2014 Share Posted June 15, 2014 Here are my two favorite game cartridges (other than Parsec). #1 Moon Patrol #2 Pole Position 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRealAnubis Posted June 15, 2014 Author Share Posted June 15, 2014 Here are my two favorite game cartridges (other than Parsec). Great! I played Moon Patrol on the C64! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRealAnubis Posted June 16, 2014 Author Share Posted June 16, 2014 Ksarul - I'd be interested in getting one of those carts just packed with games (especially the GOOD ones!). I've no need for utilities unless one of them is a RAM checker / system tester, etc. Also, are you all implying that one of the few game cartridges that I have is a less-than-stellar play?!?!? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RickR Posted June 16, 2014 Share Posted June 16, 2014 Ksarul - I'd be interested in getting one of those carts just packed with games (especially the GOOD ones!). I've no need for utilities unless one of them is a RAM checker / system tester, etc. I think I read earlier in this thread that you need to get the 32K ram upgrade to use the multi-carts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheRealAnubis Posted June 16, 2014 Author Share Posted June 16, 2014 I think I read earlier in this thread that you need to get the 32K ram upgrade to use the multi-carts. Right - I looked that over - it's not too difficult a job, but it is wire soup! I'd be motivated to do the upgrade if I could get a cart with a bunch of games on it, though... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RickR Posted June 16, 2014 Share Posted June 16, 2014 Right - I looked that over - it's not too difficult a job, but it is wire soup! I'd be motivated to do the upgrade if I could get a cart with a bunch of games on it, though... You've got more guts than I do! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zylon Posted June 16, 2014 Share Posted June 16, 2014 I'm partial to Defender. Best port out there IMO. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassGuitari Posted June 17, 2014 Share Posted June 17, 2014 TI InvadersSuper Demon AttackDefenderCentipedeDonkey KongMunch ManBurgertimeStar TrekMoon MineMicrosurgeonI find Alpiner and Parsec to be a bit overrated, but that's me. Even with the Speech Synthesizer. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Ksarul Posted June 17, 2014 Share Posted June 17, 2014 I definitely like me some Centipede. . .and TI Invaders. @RealAnubis: PM me on the cart board. You can get programmed EPROMs fpr the 512K cart (one of the three that Gazoo has developed with games on them) from Atrax for a reasonable fee. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yell0w_lantern Posted June 17, 2014 Share Posted June 17, 2014 Can I use the 32k in my PEB or is the internal mod the only way to use the 512k carts? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
+Ksarul Posted June 20, 2014 Share Posted June 20, 2014 Any 32K device for the /4A will work for this purpose, internal, sidecar, or PEB, yell0w_lantern. There is also an image out there from Acadiel that puts a whole lot of 8K cartridges into the 512K space--and that one will work even without access to a 32K device. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charlie_ Posted June 20, 2014 Share Posted June 20, 2014 My favorites are Munch-Man, TI-Invaders, Frogger, and Hunt the Wumpus. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Uzumaki Posted June 20, 2014 Share Posted June 20, 2014 Ditto Hunt the Wumpus. Not the same as original computer version but the only commercial Hunt the Wumpus. Not limited to 20 rooms means more challenge, especially on harder mode with almost nothing but twisted maze. Trying to figure the clues to avoid slime pit and finding wumpus to shoot is hard. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobertLM78 Posted June 20, 2014 Share Posted June 20, 2014 I've become more a fan of the homebrew games for the TI, but Computer War was always pretty impressive - it had speech too, IIRC. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
am1933 Posted June 20, 2014 Share Posted June 20, 2014 I will throw in my bit-From TI, Parsec, Alpiner, Wumpus, TI Invaders & Tunnels of Doom. From Atari- Moon Patrol, Defender, Donkey Kong, Pacman, Ms Pacman, Centipede & Dig Dug. From Parker Bros- Popeye, Q*Bert & Frogger A few others of note-Super Demon Attack, Miner 2049er, Computer War, Micro Surgeon, Burger Time & Jawbreaker II. I still think Parker Bros got the best out of the machine compared to the other developers, both Q*Bert and Popeye are excellent conversions, the Atarisoft conversions were let down by some terrible sound effects and single channel music. A lot of people also give Super Demon Attack a hard time because of some suspect collision detection but I think Moon Patrol is just as bad for the same reason(still good games though). 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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