FPGA Based Videogame System

[Atariboy]

We're in no position to know one way or another what fpga is inside.

 

And even if it is updated, they're evidently not going to push it and add significant new features anyways since it's clear they're looking for basic parity with the original run where the feature set is concerned. 

 

So I imagine they went with whatever was the cheapest route to get this out. 

[SegaSnatcher]

9 minutes ago, Atariboy said:

We're in no position to know one way or another what fpga is inside.

 

And even if it is updated, they're evidently not going to push it and add significant new features anyways since it's clear they're looking for basic parity with the original run where the feature set is concerned. 

 

So I imagine they went with whatever was the cheapest route to get this out. 

Which is unfortunate considering the price.  Remember they are calling this the V2 and announced some physical improvements like the better NES cart slot.  It would have been a great opportunity to update the FPGA so Kevtris can bring over his improved scaler to his NES core.

[Drunk_Caterpillar]

All we have so far is speculation, which is deeply compromised by wishful thinking right now. It's fun to speculate but I can see why people would discourage it for now; when people start making buying decisions based on what they hope to be true, there's a good chance it'll lead to frustration. Here's my advice: if the Nt Mini V2 is literally the same as the V1 with the few listed tweaks and nothing else, and that's something you're in to, then you should buy it. Otherwise, there are several solid options right now that would probably be cheaper and better for most folk. Full stop.

Edited March 1, 2020 by Drunk_Caterpillar

[Andromeda Stardust]

On 2/27/2020 at 1:54 PM, Drunk_Caterpillar said:

Is there any way to even attach a Paddle controller to the Nt Mini? I feel like it’d be a pretty sad Atari 2600 experience if I couldn’t play Breakout the way it was intended. 

Arkanoid? ?

[Newsdee]

13 hours ago, seastalker said:

Is the Intellivision still source code or is there a binary .rbf to download?

You can get the .rbf from here: http://temlib.org/pub/mister/Intv.rbf

(sorry, I didn't realize the github link did not include the compiled binary)

 

[Newsdee]

11 hours ago, SegaSnatcher said:

It would have been a great opportunity to update the FPGA so Kevtris can bring over his improved scaler to his NES core.

This seems like a interim "sure sell" product release to me, which is a good way to buy some time before their next product (Pocket).
Perhaps Kevtris is not even involved... replacing one connector is easy, but rewiring a new FPGA or revamping the cores is much more complicated.

 

It's a shame they didn't update the hardware to a cheaper version. As tempting as it is, I already have an original aluminium Analogue NT (not mini), and AVS, and several other FPGA cores on other boards, so the only thing that could be interesting to me are the "Kevtris cores". That's not really worth $500 (plus international shipping) to me, as it's not even an official feature. That means that any tiny issue may not ever be addressed since there are other priorities for the engineering team (which is likely one person, as far as we know). For the same price, I can buy another AVS (for carts) and another full MiSTer (for cores).

 

It still looks really good on the shelf, and I understand why many would want one. Just reflect if the price is worth it to you or not.

Also don't buy into the hype - I would just assume this is exactly like the v1 Mini and nothing else. Then if there's any improvements, that's just a bonus.

 

Edited March 2, 2020 by Newsdee

[seastalker]

1 hour ago, Newsdee said:

You can get the .rbf from here: http://temlib.org/pub/mister/Intv.rbf

 

 

Thank you!!

 

On a different note, be it by Analogue, Terraonion or 3rd party, has there been any news on an adapter to load the MegaSD from the side expansion port so we can play the 6 games for Sega CD 32X?

Edited March 2, 2020 by seastalker

[Steven Pendleton]

4 hours ago, seastalker said:

 

Thank you!!

 

On a different note, be it by Analogue, Terraonion or 3rd party, has there been any news on an adapter to load the MegaSD from the side expansion port so we can play the 6 games for Sega CD 32X?

https://forums.terraonion.com/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=1061

[Mattelot]

I can't find an answer but was the NT Mini jailbreak firmware ever updated past 2017, version 2.0?

[atmn]

15 minutes ago, Mattelot said:

I can't find an answer but was the NT Mini jailbreak firmware ever updated past 2017, version 2.0?

No, latest jailbroken fw are 2.0 from 2017.

That have powered my Nt Mini since then.

[Mattelot]

1 hour ago, atmn said:

No, latest jailbroken fw are 2.0 from 2017.

That have powered my Nt Mini since then.

Doh!  Thank you.  It has powered mine since too.

 

To those out there debating on getting a NT Mini, I can't recommend it enough.  I love love LOVE mine.  I would honestly give up my Super NT or Mega SG over my NT Mini in a heartbeat.

[seastalker]

9 hours ago, Steven Pendleton said:

https://forums.terraonion.com/viewtopic.php?f=26&t=1061

Thank you again!

[seastalker]

Has the pre-order sold out yet? I have my order in, but am wondering how limited or not this V2 will be.

[F34R]

2 hours ago, seastalker said:

Has the pre-order sold out yet? I have my order in, but am wondering how limited or not this V2 will be.

Still able to pre-order it as of this post.

[spoonman]

I think those who are buying the Nt Mini ver.2.0 for all of the 8-bit jailbroken cores are taking a bit of a chance by buying it. I haven't seen any guarantee of them working, or a planned jailbroken firmware w/ all 20ish cores included. Taber said it's the same Nt you know and love, or something to that effect, but he never comments on the jailbreaks. As far as he's (legally) concerned they don't exist. It may have them, but who knows for sure? (Besides Kevin and Chris of course). Perhaps they will hold those 8-bit cores to their Analogue 8 system. Why give them away when they can be sold? 

 

23 hours ago, Andromeda Stardust said:

Arkanoid? ?

I love Arkanoid and Arkanoid II on the NES/FC! I bought 2 VAUS spinner controllers once I made sure they both worked on the AVS, to 2 player simultaneous Arkanoid play. There are also some great Arkanoid hacks, as well as a few other games that work with the VAUS spinners. Chase H.Q. for one. 

 

Someone has dumped the AtGames Atari Flashback roms. As we know, the first version of the flashback, and many other "Plug & Play TV Games" were run on a FOAC (Famicom-on-a-chip) to save money. I wonder how hard it would be to get some of the VCS paddle games working with the NES VAUS spinner. Playing Warlords, Super BreakOut!, Kaboom!, etc might be fun.

 

And speaking of controllers, those 8Bitdo 2.4g controllers are available for pre-order (out in June). $24.99 w/dongle receiver included, same as the M30's. They are available for both NES (N30) & SNES (SN30) legacy hardware. I really hope that 8Bitdo fixed the dpads, especially on the N30's. 

Looking at the photos of it, it appears the dpads are extremely glossy.. I hope they make them a little grippy like their M30 pads.

[Intense.Mark]

Spoonman, Analogue or Chris Taber has never provided any jailbroken firmware

[Steven Pendleton]

5 minutes ago, spoonman said:

I think those who are buying the Nt Mini ver.2.0 for all of the 8-bit jailbroken cores are taking a bit of a chance by buying it. I haven't seen any guarantee of them working, or a planned jailbroken firmware w/ all 20ish cores included. Taber said it's the same Nt you know and love, or something to that effect, but he never comments on the jailbreaks. As far as he's (legally) concerned they don't exist. It may have them, but who knows for sure? (Besides Kevin and Chris of course). Perhaps they will hold those 8-bit cores to their Analogue 8 system. Why give them away when they can be sold? 

 

I love Arkanoid and Arkanoid II on the NES/FC! I bought 2 VAUS spinner controllers once I made sure they both worked on the AVS, to 2 player simultaneous Arkanoid play. There are also some great Arkanoid hacks, as well as a few other games that work with the VAUS spinners. Chase H.Q. for one. 

 

Someone has dumped the AtGames Atari Flashback roms. As we know, the first version of the flashback, and many other "Plug & Play TV Games" were run on a FOAC (Famicom-on-a-chip) to save money. I wonder how hard it would be to get some of the VCS paddle games working with the NES VAUS spinner. Playing Warlords, Super BreakOut!, Kaboom!, etc might be fun.

 

And speaking of controllers, those 8Bitdo 2.4g controllers are available for pre-order (out in June). $24.99 w/dongle receiver included, same as the M30's. They are available for both NES (N30) & SNES (SN30) legacy hardware. I really hope that 8Bitdo fixed the dpads, especially on the N30's. 

Looking at the photos of it, it appears the dpads are extremely glossy.. I hope they make them a little grippy like their M30 pads.

I would be very surprised if it doesn't have it. I wonder if Taber himself actually uses it or the official firmware. If it doesn't, no big deal for me, really, since I can just go buy some Famicom carts, and I have been looking for a reason to go pick up Akumajou Densetsu and a bunch of other awesome Famicom games for some time!

 

The M30 2.4g is the only one of my 5 8BitDo controllers that isn't pure crap. Not only is is not pure crap, it's actually very good! Too bad it isn't actually shaped like the controller that it's supposed to replace, but I think I can overlook that since it's the official controller for the Mega Sg, it works very well, and has the menu button. My first 8BitDo controller was the SF30 Pro and it rarely connects to the Switch and has the single worst d-pad I have ever used. It's basically trash and I'd rather use the Intellivision controller if I could. My SN30 and SF30 have slightly better d-pads, but unless I turn on the controllers before the Super Nt, they absolutely do not connect to the receivers at all and I have to pair them again or turn off both the system and the controllers. Maybe I should try my real SFC to see what happens. I also have the N30 Pro 2. It's okay, but the analog sticks are constantly registering directions, usually right or up. Works well when it doesn't happen, but it shouldn't happen at all. Also has connection issues sometimes, but is generally better. D-pad is still not great, but better than the rest, save the M30 2.4g. Not buying any more 8BitDo controllers.

 

I really hope the new N30 2.4g isn't trash like almost everything else that 8BitDo makes, but I guess I'll see when I get the Nt mini.

[spoonman]

1 hour ago, Intense.Mark said:

Spoonman, Analogue or Chris Taber has never provided any jailbroken firmware

Yes I know. Where did I say otherwise?

 

 

1 hour ago, Steven Pendleton said:

The M30 2.4g is the only one of my 5 8BitDo controllers that isn't pure crap. Not only is is not pure crap, it's actually very good! Too bad it isn't actually shaped like the controller that it's supposed to replace, but I think I can overlook that since it's the official controller for the Mega Sg, it works very well, and has the menu button. My first 8BitDo controller was the SF30 Pro and it rarely connects to the Switch and has the single worst d-pad I have ever used. It's basically trash and I'd rather use the Intellivision controller if I could. My SN30 and SF30 have slightly better d-pads, but unless I turn on the controllers before the Super Nt, they absolutely do not connect to the receivers at all and I have to pair them again or turn off both the system and the controllers. Maybe I should try my real SFC to see what happens. I also have the N30 Pro 2. It's okay, but the analog sticks are constantly registering directions, usually right or up. Works well when it doesn't happen, but it shouldn't happen at all. Also has connection issues sometimes, but is generally better. D-pad is still not great, but better than the rest, save the M30 2.4g. Not buying any more 8BitDo controllers.

 

I really hope the new N30 2.4g isn't trash like almost everything else that 8BitDo makes, but I guess I'll see when I get the Nt mini.

I like the shape of the M30 2.4g. It's very ergonomic and comfortable for long play sessions.

 

I wish they could have used the original N30 design, but I guess Nintendo wasn't happy about that.

 

Also, if you replace the dpad with that of an original NES dpad it will fix the issues with the touchy diagonals.

I do like how they went to the new button layout with the turbo buttons above the B A buttons. The diamond button pattern is great for SNES games, but I've only ever used them with the SNES (using the SNES Retro Receivers), but the L/R buttons weren't ideal.

[Intense.Mark]

Spoonman, I'm backing up your claim that there is no guarantee of a jailbreak on the new batches. I myself preordered one for the NES and Famicom cart slots and functionality. I wouldn't order one if the Super NT had cartridge adapters for NES and Famicom like the one they did with the Mega SG.

[Steven Pendleton]

1 hour ago, spoonman said:

I like the shape of the M30 2.4g. It's very ergonomic and comfortable for long play sessions.

 

I wish they could have used the original N30 design, but I guess Nintendo wasn't happy about that.

M30 2.4g is good, but I recently got the 2.4GHz Retro-Bit Genesis and Saturn controllers, so I've been enjoying using the Saturn controller on my Mega Drive and Mega Sg. No home button for Mega Sg, but I will survive with the button combination, and it works relatively well on the MiSTer as well (although I don't actually play Sega games on it). Now I need to get an actual Saturn! I still use the M30 2.4g sometimes, like if I need to charge the Saturn controller, and it works perfectly with Xeno Crisis because the shoulder buttons are mapped to C and Z, unlike the Retro-Bit controllers. I consider this kind of cheating since you'd only have 1 shoulder button (mode) on a real controller, though I also don't really care enough to not use it!

 

I have not seen any lag tests for the Retro-Bit 2.4GHz controllers yet and I don't have the equipment to do a proper test, but I did some testing with my CRT and they used to have noticeably more lag than the M30 2.4g. Now they are much closer after the firmware update in January. Some really weird stuff happens if you open the MegaSD's in-game menu in Castlevania Bloodlines/Vampire Killer on real hardware with the Retro-Bit controllers, though.

 

I'm glad they didn't use the N30 design, as this new design is way more accurate to the original in terms of button layout (horizontal, not diagonal). Unless you meant visually, in which case it is disappointing, but understandable. Too bad they probably won't make a Famicom set, as Nintendo would definitely go after them if they tried to and they have already had problems with Nintendo in the past.

 

1 hour ago, Intense.Mark said:

Spoonman, I'm backing up your claim that there is no guarantee of a jailbreak on the new batches. I myself preordered one for the NES and Famicom cart slots and functionality. I wouldn't order one if the Super NT had cartridge adapters for NES and Famicom like the one they did with the Mega SG.

Adaptors or not, the Super Nt doesn't have the NES/FC core. I don't know if there is room on the FPGA for it, but it should hypothetically be possible. Maybe.

Edited March 3, 2020 by Steven Pendleton

[Enragedwhale]

I know it’s not certain but can you imagine the white hot rage if the jailbreak firmware isn’t compatible with the new mini run? I know Analogue are pretty bad at customer relations at times but they can’t be that stupid. 
 

I fully expect it’s the exact same hardware with a different connector, note I haven’t ordered one as I’m not into ROMs.

[Steven Pendleton]

58 minutes ago, Enragedwhale said:

I know it’s not certain but can you imagine the white hot rage if the jailbreak firmware isn’t compatible with the new mini run? I know Analogue are pretty bad at customer relations at times but they can’t be that stupid. 
 

I fully expect it’s the exact same hardware with a different connector, note I haven’t ordered one as I’m not into ROMs.

I don't like ROMs at all either. Then I discovered Japanese Mega Drive prices after I got my Mega Sg. I do still prefer real carts, though, which is why I insisted on buying a real copy of Gleylancer in order to play it for the first time and I'm very glad I did, because that game is awesome! And in case you don't know about Gleylancer, it can be more expensive than the Nt Mini (depending on condition) because it's very good and apparently rare. It's not nearly as bad as Eliminate Down, though. Not buying that one any time soon...

 

Famicom carts are mostly super cheap (there are exceptions, and FDS is generally considerably more expensive in comparison. The irony of this is great, isn't it?), and since I don't have a Famicom but do have a Trinitron and a modern PC monitor, Nt Mini is the best option.

Edited March 3, 2020 by Steven Pendleton

[CZroe]

I think those who are buying the Nt Mini ver.2.0 for all of the 8-bit jailbroken cores are taking a bit of a chance by buying it. I haven't seen any guarantee of them working, or a planned jailbroken firmware w/ all 20ish cores included. Taber said it's the same Nt you know and love, or something to that effect, but he never comments on the jailbreaks. As far as he's (legally) concerned they don't exist. It may have them, but who knows for sure? (Besides Kevin and Chris of course). Perhaps they will hold those 8-bit cores to their Analogue 8 system. Why give them away when they can be sold? 

Well, they gave it away before and Drunk_Caterpillar here already confirmed that Kevtris promised a Mini V2 jailbreak on Discord:

Confirmed on Discord. Took a look for myself. [emoji4]

[Andromeda Stardust]

On 2/29/2020 at 12:34 PM, Fafner said:

The L/R buttons!

That was the missing piece of the puzzle for me!

I wasn’t a big fan of that particular 8BitDo controller so I rarely use it and forgot it had them. 
I hope the 2.4 GHz ones have a better Dpad...

Thanks a bunch!

NES and SNES use the same communication protocol, except SNES controllers send 16 bits instead of 8. Try using SNES controllers with a handmade splice cable.

[spoonman]

41 minutes ago, CZroe said:

 

Well, they gave it away before and Drunk_Caterpillar here already confirmed that Kevtris promised a Mini V2 jailbreak on Discord:

 

Interesting. I thought Kevtris had to ignore all involvement with jailbreaking FW.

They gave it away (I assume) to get an edge over the AVS. It gave many people the extra value to justify the steep price. They haven't released any of the 8-bit cores for the Super Nt despite a lot of begging for them on here, Facebook, and Twitter, especially the NES core.

The 8-bit Sega cores, and ColecoVision were released for the Mega Sg of course, but still none of the others. Only those which made sense (and ColecoVision.. I'm not complaining of course.. It's what I play the most of!), but again none of the other 8-bit cores were ever made available. I think they're going to do the same with the new Nt Mini Ver. 2. It would make more business sense to withhold all of the 8-bit cores for the "Analogue 8", which I still think will be many of those cores + cart adapters.