Voltmace/Videomaster Database Leap Frog dump?

[CatPix]

Interton wrote more game for the system. Many of them were written in Hong Kong, with the programmer leaving his name in the game codes.

In one game you can find the mention "CHOI ANDREW, HONG KONG, MARCH 31 1981"

[Derek Andrews]

Were any of the compatible systems made for the US market? I'm curious as to how well some of the code worked on the faster TV screen refresh rate of NTSC. I think Leapfrog may have been tricky as there was a lot of code that ran during each frame and I recall having some problems getting everything done in time.

[StarshipUK]

As far as I am aware the systems were in released in Europe and the United Kingdom - see what I did there? :-)

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1292_Advanced_Programmable_Video_Systemhas some info as to the systems released and their cartridge port family.

[vectrexroli]

Roli, interesting video, thanks for sharing. I like that someone is still writing for this system, and I will have to have a look in more detail at his source code for flappy bird.

 

What was the name of some of those games on your video after Leapfrog? There were several that I hadn't seen. Maybe they never made it to the UK? Do you know who and where they were written? One looked like Defender. I was actually working on a version of that before I left Voltmace. There was another space invader type game that had diagonally firing lasers. I would be interested to learn how they achieved that.

That game is called Super Space, but don´t know any details:

http://www.vc4000.de/html/body_40a.html

Leapfrog is definitely one of the better games as it feels "more modern" than most other titles.

Edited March 29, 2017 by vectrexroli

[Derek Andrews]

 

A quick question for Derek (although I think I know what the answer might be):

Do you have any plans to write any new games for the system?

 

My interest has been piqued. I have ideas for three new games and one is progressing reasonably well. I'm using WinArcadia for test and debug. When I am a little further on I will post a binary of progress to date and maybe someone with a rom emulator could try it out for me?

[CatPix]

I would love to see new games for the system. I wonder that the system is really able to do. I mean when you copare commercial release for the Channel F, and homebrews like PacMan, it's almost like a new system.

 

If I remember well, some carts had additionnal RAM. Do you plan to use that extra RAM or will you stick to the core system? Or maybe both since you are working on 3 games?

[Derek Andrews]

I don't know much about the Fairchild machine or recent releases for it. Are there any videos or screen shots of old and new games I could have a look at?

The one I am working on I think will just use 4k ROM. One other game idea I have may need RAM, but as I'm working on an emulator anything goes,and I had figured that most will be running it on either console emulators or rom emulators so it wouldn't be a problem.

 

I hadn't given much thought as to what to do with new games. Would people be interested in cartidges do you think? I'm not keen on investing in making cartridges as they are so easy to rip off these days.

[carlsson]

Perhaps you can sell ROMs to be put on a multicart, unless you want to give them away for free. A bit of illegal distribution may occur anyway.

 

Frankly I don't know how much ripping is going on with cart-only releases for the 2600, Intellivision etc. Some of them though have taken to certain measures such as encrypted ROMs and custom hardware that will scramble data so it isn't as easy to rip. However for 1292 or even Arcadia releases, I think that is overdoing it as the market is much smaller.

 

By the way, Pac-Man for the Channel F turned out this way:

[Derek Andrews]

thanks. The Fairchild looks to have more direct access to video ram rather than relying on the capabilities and limitations of the Signetics PVI. Programming games for that machine would be a quite different proposition.

[carlsson]

By the way, there was a version of Flappy Bird for the 1292 APVS last year. I haven't quite figured out who programmed it, but it might be the first homebrew in many years.

 

 

More info here (scroll down): http://tempect.de/senil/games.html

Edited April 25, 2017 by carlsson

[vectrexroli]

By the way, there was a version of Flappy Bird for the 1292 APVS last year. I haven't quite figured out who programmed it, but it might be the first homebrew in many years.

 

 

More info here (scroll down): http://tempect.de/senil/games.html

Yes that´s the same Interton version I showed on my video and that gentleman from Germany commented on my video on Youtube saying that there is even a new updated version available now.

[StarshipUK]

I think its great news some new games are being made for the system.

 

To be honest I would not worry about people ripping off the cartridges. The 1292 systems are only really sought by die hard retro collectors and have little commercial value. Any carts made would have to be on a hobby basis and I doubt many people would pay premium prices for new games for the system.

 

The only multicart made for the system is by Rolo for the VC4000 German system, and only works with games without extra RAM. You may want to contact him if you want to test a game on a real system, so he can burn to a ROM and test.

http://atariage.com/forums/topic/242786-multi-cartridge-for-dragoncoco-2-available/?p=3635662

 

While I now have the multicart, I do not own the system. I own a modded VC-6000 which has the more common 1292 port. Voltmace did also make a Database Cart to 1292 cartridge convertor, and while I own one they are hard to come by and I have only ever seen two for sale.

 

With all the different console families having different sized cartridge ports and no one willing to make convertors, the market will be limited at this time, most likely to people in Germany, unless on a hobby basis someone decides to make a small batch of dedicated carts.

[CatPix]

I though Rolo's cart worked with games with RAM. I'll contact him to make that point clear, I was about to order a cart from him.

Tho yeah so far, Rolo's cart is the only easy solution to test games on real hardware, if you have a ROM flasher.

[carlsson]

I've seen Interton VC-4000 systems for sale from France, the UK, here within Sweden, I believe Italy and other markets so while it originated from Germany, it doesn't seem to have been mostly exclusive to Germany and Austria. The same could probably be said about many of the other 1292 family consoles, which I think to a larger part were relabeled on every market instead of different designs.

 

Making adapters between formats is a matter of time spent and market potential. Hopefully someone with the skills will see that there is a market for a VC-4000 to other 1292 system.

[CatPix]

the 1292 family seems to have been very successful in the UK, it's usually where you'll find the most systems and carts of this type.

[Derek Andrews]

Yes that´s the same Interton version I showed on my video and that gentleman from Germany commented on my video on Youtube saying that there is even a new updated version available now.

Roli, if you do know who wrote that version of Flappy, please complement him/her on such honest documentation and pass this on to them. I hope it helps:

 

" ;LODA,r1 YCOORDS,r3 ;DOESN'T F***ING WORK! WHY? Wenn du weißt, was ich hier falsch mache, sags mir!

;Dieser Frickelfix mit der Lookupkludge ist so ziemlich das hässlichste an Code, was ich je geschrieben habe

;(gut das stimmt nicht, aber ich habe meine Gründe für hässlichen Code)

;das Ergebnis ist jedenfalls als würde die Instruktion nicht existieren (bzw. ausgeNOPt)"

 

OK, I only understand the bits in ALL CAPS. The problem there is that when you use indexed addressing on the 2650 the argument register defaults to, and can only be, r0. If they are using the same assembler as myself, it codes it up as if it were LODA,r0 YCOORDS,r3 or LODA YCOORDS,r3 and issues no warning. I learnt this the hard way too and took a long time to find the problem.

 

So, in this bit of code where they are loading a sprite, they might think they are using r1 to transfer the data, but they aren't. It will assemble, it will work fine, but it will in fact be using r0 to transfer the data, and they probably wouldn't notice unless they had something important stored in r0 outside the loop;-)

 

LODI,r3 $ff

LOGOLOOP:

LODA,r1 GFX_LOGO1,r3+

STRA,r1 SPRITE1,r3

LODA,r1 GFX_LOGO2,r3

STRA,r1 SPRITE2,r3

LODA,r1 GFX_LOGO3,r3

STRA,r1 SPRITE3,r3

COMI,r3 $09

BCTR,lt LOGOLOOP

 

Just one more thing. Unless you need to load the sprite top-bottom in a hurry before the top bytes get displayed, it is slightly more efficient to do it bottom-up. The BRNR does away with the need for a COM instruction.

 

lodi,r3 $0E

loopIS: ;load sprite shapes and coords

loda,r0 select1,r3-

stra,r0 sprite1,r3

loda,r0 select2,r3

stra,r0 sprite2,r3

loda,r0 select3,r3

stra,r0 sprite3,r3

loda,r0 select4,r3

stra,r0 sprite4,r3

brnr,r3 loopIS

[GroovyBee]

OK, I only understand the bits in ALL CAPS. The problem there is that when you use indexed addressing on the 2650 the argument register defaults to, and can only be, r0. If they are using the same assembler as myself, it codes it up as if it were LODA,r0 YCOORDS,r3 or LODA YCOORDS,r3 and issues no warning. I learnt this the hard way too and took a long time to find the problem.

This behaviour is detailed in the 2650 user manual :-

 

"This three byte instruction transfers a byte of data from memory into the specified register, r. The data byte is found at the effective address. If indexing is specified, bits 1 and 0, byte 0, indicate the index register and the destination of the operation implicitly becomes register zero. The previous contents of register r are lost."

[boulinha]

Hello friends

 

Normally Interton cards are based on ROM chips.

The system I had (and actually I have) when I was a child was the T.R.Q. H-21 clone from Spain. Cartridges are 100% compatible with Interton VC4000 console.

(in fact you can use TRQ cards on Interton console but you can't use Interton cards on TRQ console because of physical "fitting" into the card slot)

 

The fact is that most of the T.R.Q. cartridges I have opened are based in EPROM chips not ROM (adding a 74LS04 inverter chip to allow correct addressing).

 

Using a TRQ cart and a EPROM programmer could be useful to test new releases on one Interton console. Or use the fantastic Rolo Dragon multicart with the Interton adapter, I tested it and it's fantastic. But you will also need an EPROM eraser and an EPROM programmer for debugging.

 

In addition, if you use a T.R.Q. RAM-based game like "Come-Frutas" you will have RAM chips available and you only have to replace EPROM chip with your new release for testing.

 

I will be happy to help you if needed.

[Derek Andrews]

They would have had to be shipping a lot of cartridges to cover the cost of mask programmed ROM's. We used EPROMs at Voltmace.

[boulinha]

They would have had to be shipping a lot of cartridges to cover the cost of mask programmed ROM's. We used EPROMs at Voltmace.

Correct.

 

One additional info. Voltmace cartridges can also be used on Interton consoles if

1) remove PCB board from the cartridge,

2) "cut" the pin 1 (first one on the left) because it's not used.

Now the PCB fits into Interton cartridge slot.

 

So if you remove PCB board from an Interton cartridge and insert it into Voltmace console fitting it all the way to the right into the cartridge slot, it works.

 

I tested both on real consoles and works.

 

See the pictures (sorry I'm not good with DIY hardware tools)

[Kurt_Woloch]

I just stumbled upon this interesting thread, and here's a translation of the German part after the bit in all caps...

 

" ;LODA,r1 YCOORDS,r3 ;DOESN'T F***ING WORK! WHY? Wenn du weißt, was ich hier falsch mache, sags mir!
;Dieser Frickelfix mit der Lookupkludge ist so ziemlich das hässlichste an Code, was ich je geschrieben habe
;(gut das stimmt nicht, aber ich habe meine Gründe für hässlichen Code)
;das Ergebnis ist jedenfalls als würde die Instruktion nicht existieren (bzw. ausgeNOPt)"

 

This means:

";LODA,r1 YCCORDS,r3 ;DOESN'T F***ING WORK! WHY? If you know what I'm doing wrong here, please tell me!

;This frickle fix with the lookup kludge is about the ugliest of code I've ever written

;(OK that's not true, but I've got my reasons for ugly code)

;anyway, the result is as if the instruction wouldn't exist (or be NOP'd out)"

[Weeze]

I know I'm super late to this discussion but I have recently started dumping my collection. SNES, Gameboy, N64 are all easy because I bought a Retrode.
I am wondering if anyone here can tell me how dumping Interton (or other oldschool systems that don't have a fancy device such as the retrode) would work.
I've already read that some people send out their games to experienced dumpers, is it really such a hassle to do yourself? I'd be very interested in learning what makes it so tricky.