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FPGA Based Videogame System

kevtris

By kevtris
in Classic Console Discussion

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Interest in an FPGA Videogame System  

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  3. 3. Games Should Run From...

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Andromeda Stardust Quadrunner

Andromeda Stardust

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For reference I'm on Jailbreak 2.0 and am using HDMI. My unit also exhibits the Serial No. 0000001 issue, which I'm sure is unrelated to this.

To press A+X, you'll need to use an SNES controller connected via patch cable. You can craft one easily out of Retrobit NES and SNES extension cables by splicing the SNES socket end to the NES plug end. You will need a multimeter to determine the cable pinout; do not trust the wire colors which tend to change from one batch to the next...

 

Soldering iron and heatshrink tubing recommended but twisted wires and electrical tape will work in a pinch.

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Sneakyturtleegg Moonsweeper

Sneakyturtleegg

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Has anybody been able to get Communist Mutants from Space on Atari 2600 to work? I just get a "Rewind Tape" screen. I'm using the ROM from the smokemonster pack which i checked and it identical to the available No-Intro ROM. The ROM is 8448 bytes, suggesting that it is a Supercharger game. The 2600 core release notes says this should automatically detect the correct mapper based on this filesize.

 

Edit:

I actually can't seem to get any Supercharger games to load, just the same screen that says "Rewind Tape Press Play". I see in the release notes that for Supercharger games you load them by pressing A+X, which I couldn't do because I was using an OEM NES controller. I've had very bad luck pairing the 8bitdo controller to the retro receiver, so I paired a DualShock 3 to it without any problems. I tried pressing all combinations of the PS3 face buttons to replicate "A+X", still no luck.

 

The 8bitdo controller is required for Supercharger games because you will need the "X" button. Assuming you have the correct bios, you need to press "A" and "X" at the same time to load a Supercharger game. Have a read through the release notes in the A2600 folder. Kevtris put a lot of good info in it.

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cfillak Chopper Commander

cfillak

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The 8bitdo controller is required for Supercharger games because you will need the "X" button. Assuming you have the correct bios, you need to press "A" and "X" at the same time to load a Supercharger game. Have a read through the release notes in the A2600 folder. Kevtris put a lot of good info in it.

So no wireless controller will work other than the 8bitdo? Even ones with enough buttons like the DualShock 3? I've only been able to pair the 8bitdo once, and it had horrible input lag. The DS3 paired via the Mac app and much better on the lag front. The Retro Receiver seems to work fine, but the 8bitdo controller itself is a real piece of junk. Also, do you press A+X to load the ROM or A+X after you get to the "Rewind Tape" screen?

 

To press A+X, you'll need to use an SNES controller connected via patch cable. You can craft one easily out of Retrobit NES and SNES extension cables by splicing the SNES socket end to the NES plug end. You will need a multimeter to determine the cable pinout; do not trust the wire colors which tend to change from one batch to the next...

 

Soldering iron and heatshrink tubing recommended but twisted wires and electrical tape will work in a pinch.

As someone with a CS degree, I am ashamed to admit I've never touched a soldering iron. I've been meaning to get into more hands on electronics stuff, but I don't want to start with this. I'll probably just order some Raphnet adapters.

Edited by cfillak
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Sneakyturtleegg Moonsweeper

Sneakyturtleegg

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So no wireless controller will work other than the 8bitdo? Even ones with enough buttons like the DualShock 3? I've only been able to pair the 8bitdo once, and it had horrible input lag. The DS3 paired via the Mac app and much better on the lag front. The Retro Receiver seems to work fine, but the 8bitdo controller itself is a real piece of junk. Also, do you press A+X to load the ROM or A+X after you get to the "Rewind Tape" screen?

 

As someone with a CS degree, I am ashamed to admit I've never touched a soldering iron. I've been meaning to get into more hands on electronics stuff, but I don't want to start with this. I'll probably just order some Raphnet adapters.

 

I'm not sure about other 3rd party controllers pairing with the retro receiver and if they will function correctly on the Anaglogue NT Mini. Try a few 3rd party controllers out and report back to the community. It would be interesting to know what other controllers might work. Keep in mind, the retro receiver that came with the Mini has custom firmware, so be sure that you are using that. You can get the custom firmware for the retro receiver on Analogue's website under the support page. It may have been updated, but I'm not sure. My point is you need the extra buttons to play A2600 Supercharger games, and also some Colecovision games. The release notes for each core contain relevant details. I have never had any lag issues with the included 8bitdo controller/retro receiver and don't mind using it. The answer to you last question: Load the Supercharger ROM you want to play. "Rewind Tape" and "Press Play" will be displayed on the screen. Press "X" and "A" at the same time and the game will load. This is assuming you have the proper bios files and good ROM dumps.

Edited by Sneakyturtleegg
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RevQuixo Space Invader

RevQuixo

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Has anyone experienced any issues with Startropics off the SD card with the analogue nt mini? I dont have any audio and the game crashes not long into it. If I use the cart it plays just fine.

As per the read-me the submapper has to be set to a specific number. Either grab smokemonster’s latest update or edit it in the emulator mentioned in the read-me

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Andromeda Stardust Quadrunner

Andromeda Stardust

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The 8bitdo controller is required for Supercharger games because you will need the "X" button. Assuming you have the correct bios, you need to press "A" and "X" at the same time to load a Supercharger game. Have a read through the release notes in the A2600 folder. Kevtris put a lot of good info in it.

You do not need a custom firmware Retro Receiver and 8bitdo controller. A stock wired SNES controller will work provided you have a proper adapter cable.
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Sneakyturtleegg Moonsweeper

Sneakyturtleegg

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You do not need a custom firmware Retro Receiver and 8bitdo controller. A stock wired SNES controller will work provided you have a proper adapter cable.

 

I'm just curious if you have tried an adapted SNES controller with A2600 Supercharger or Colecovision games? If it works I will consider picking up a few adapters.

Edited by Sneakyturtleegg
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Great Hierophant Stargunner

Great Hierophant

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A standard Famicom or NES Controller outputs an 8 bit serial stream to give the state of the buttons.

 

A Famicom Network Controller must output at least a 24 bit serial stream to give the state of the buttons.

 

A standard Super Famicom/Super NES controller outputs a 16 bit serial stream to give the state of the buttons.

 

A Super Famicom NTT Data Controller outputs a 32 bit serial stream to give the state of the buttons.

Edited by Great Hierophant
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cfillak Chopper Commander

cfillak

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Has anyone experienced any issues with Startropics off the SD card with the analogue nt mini? I dont have any audio and the game crashes not long into it. If I use the cart it plays just fine.

Yes, the Startopics ROM in the current No-Intro set as well as the Smokemonster pack does not work on the NT Mini because the header is not specific enough. I successfully changed the header in a hex editor and got it to work. PM me if you don't want to go through the trouble yourself.

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Radfoo Chopper Commander

Radfoo

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Had this article/link been posted before? Bit different to the others, shows a couple of real pictures, the Super NT is tiny!

http://www.scmp.com/culture/arts-entertainment/article/2118165/retro-gaming-gets-21st-century-boost-analogue-consoles

 

Article talks about Sega Genesis/Mega Drive (and other consoles) being made in the future which is not surprising. Mentioned before but it really does make me think the jailbreak will be more restrictive this time, of course Kevtris could make a Mega Drive or NES core for the Super NT but this could hit sales, it certainly will be interesting to see if we get other cores and if we do, which ones? Maybe it will just be limited to the less comercial systems and for loading SNES roms?

Edited by Radfoo
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Sneakyturtleegg Moonsweeper

Sneakyturtleegg

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Had this article/link been posted before? Bit different to the others, shows a couple of real pictures, the Super NT is tiny!

http://www.scmp.com/culture/arts-entertainment/article/2118165/retro-gaming-gets-21st-century-boost-analogue-consoles

 

Article talks about Sega Genesis/Mega Drive (and other consoles) being made in the future which is not surprising. Mentioned before but it really does make me think the jailbreak will be more restrictive this time, of course Kevtris could make a Mega Drive or NES core for the Super NT but this could hit sales, it certainly will be interesting to see if we get other cores and if we do, which ones? Maybe it will just be limited to the less comercial systems and for loading SNES roms?

 

I've been of the opinion that we will not see cores for other 16-bit and later systems for the Super NT. Analogue is in business to make money. You can't make money by giving away your future business plans for free. The 2nd to last paragraph from that article reaffirms my belief. I will be happy if the Super NT is just the Ferrari of SNES/SFC systems. If it is jailbroken to any degree, that will be gravy. What cores the Super NT may get is speculation. My guess is the Super NT gets jailbroken with the ability to play most SNES/SFC roms off of the SD card. If Kevtris is nice, and Analogue doesn't have a problem with it, the Super NT will get the older cores that are on the NT Mini JB firmware, the ones which aren't part of Analogue's future business plans. Meaning, we may not get a NES core until the NT Mini is out of production.

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Wolf_ Moonsweeper

Wolf_

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I've been of the opinion that we will not see cores for other 16-bit and later systems for the Super NT. Analogue is in business to make money. You can't make money by giving away your future business plans for free. The 2nd to last paragraph from that article reaffirms my belief. I will be happy if the Super NT is just the Ferrari of SNES/SFC systems. If it is jailbroken to any degree, that will be gravy. What cores the Super NT may get is speculation. My guess is the Super NT gets jailbroken with the ability to play most SNES/SFC roms off of the SD card. If Kevtris is nice, and Analogue doesn't have a problem with it, the Super NT will get the older cores that are on the NT Mini JB firmware, the ones which aren't part of Analogue's future business plans. Meaning, we may not get a NES core until the NT Mini is out of production.

Doubt it. They said they wouldn't be making a cheaper version of the nt mini so I can't imagine they intend to keep trying to market it at $500 when they are selling a twice as powerful model for $180. Not to mention when asked about if the console will get a jailbreak they said they want users to be able to do whatever they want with it.

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Sneakyturtleegg Moonsweeper

Sneakyturtleegg

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Doubt it. They said they wouldn't be making a cheaper version of the nt mini so I can't imagine they intend to keep trying to market it at $500 when they are selling a twice as powerful model for $180. Not to mention when asked about if the console will get a jailbreak they said they want users to be able to do whatever they want with it.

 

You are making my point. Analogue will want to keep selling the NT Mini for however long they intend. And Analogue won't allow Kevtris to JB the Super NT and release a NES core until the NT Mini is done. Keep in mind, Kevtris is an employee of Analogue. They paid him for the work and own certain rights to it, NES and SNES that we know of. Working for a business usually means signing a contract, non-disclosure agreements, and non-compete clauses. So you better believe Analogue has a say as to what cores Kevtris can release for free and when. And he is likely the only one with the ability to program cores for the NT Mini and Super NT. I'd like to see others try. Analogue is going to protect its own interests first. According to the article, Analogue has plans for a Genesis console. Why would they allow an employee (Kevtris) to release a free Genesis core for the Super NT? It doesn't make logical or business sense.

Edited by Sneakyturtleegg
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Wolf_ Moonsweeper

Wolf_

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You are making my point. Analogue will want to keep selling the NT Mini for however long they intend. And Analogue won't allow Kevtris to JB the Super NT and release a NES core until the NT Mini is done. Keep in mind, Kevtris is an employee of Analogue. They paid him for the work and own certain rights to it, NES and SNES that we know of. Working for a business usually means signing a contract, non-disclosure agreements, and non-compete clauses. So you better believe Analogue has a say as to what cores Kevtris can release for free and when. And he is likely the only one with the ability to program cores for the NT Mini and Super NT. I'd like to see others try. Analogue is going to protect its own interests first. According to the article, Analogue has plans for a Genesis console. Why would they allow an employee (Kevtris) to release a free Genesis core for the Super NT? It doesn't make logical or business sense.

No, your point isn't a point, it's broken. If Analogue planned to keep marketing the nt mini they would make a version with a cost effective case because the super nt is literally the exact same hardware without a dac and a better fpga chip in it for literally $320 less.

 

At the pricepoint the Super Nt is at they will sell a hundred or more per nt mini they sell. So why in the name of god would they try to hold on to a share of the market for the nt mini when they could instead contribute to super nt sales?

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Kismet Moonsweeper

Kismet

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I've been of the opinion that we will not see cores for other 16-bit and later systems for the Super NT. Analogue is in business to make money. You can't make money by giving away your future business plans for free. The 2nd to last paragraph from that article reaffirms my belief. I will be happy if the Super NT is just the Ferrari of SNES/SFC systems. If it is jailbroken to any degree, that will be gravy. What cores the Super NT may get is speculation. My guess is the Super NT gets jailbroken with the ability to play most SNES/SFC roms off of the SD card. If Kevtris is nice, and Analogue doesn't have a problem with it, the Super NT will get the older cores that are on the NT Mini JB firmware, the ones which aren't part of Analogue's future business plans. Meaning, we may not get a NES core until the NT Mini is out of production.

 

Keep in mind that goal posts are always moving with FPGA's. We're currently on Cyclone 10 in 2017 (Previous was Cyclone V from 2011, which is in the NT and Super NT) , most other hobby FPGA's are using Cyclone V.

 

The IV's are 40nm tech, the V's are 28nm tech, and the 10's are 14nm tech. So as an analogy, that is like going from a 40nm CPU's in the Xbox 360 S, PS3 Slim and Wii U, or a Core 2 Duo, all from 2007, to i7-3770 in 2011 in one step, and then to the Xbox One S, or Intel i7-7770.

 

So you can fit more in each generation of FPGA just like in the CPU's and GPU's. Some chips don't really benefit as much as others. As you'll notice the i7-3000 and i7-7000 CPU's are basically the same performance, but the change in GPU performance is roughly 8x.

 

However, take that with a grain of salt. The clock speeds don't really change with die shrinks. For the foreseeable future it's unlikely that any CPU over 100Mhz can be replicated in a single FPGA like the Cyclone parts.

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