NEOGEO + AES Multigame cartridge - NEW POLL INCLUDED. PLEASE VOTE!

[Darksoft]

No If that implies modifying the roms. Probably menu would be called using a button.

 

[Derick2k]

Here is my feature request list for my choice,

Option 1 - FPGA Version

1. Works like a single game cart, if you only load 1 game, it only takes 10 secs on the next power up of the cart to load game again (this should satisfy the people that want it to work as a single game cart)
2. (Optional) Have it work as a virtual 4 slot through the use of a switch/jumper on the cart (so you can choose have it work as single game cart or a virtual 4 slots, where you can load 1,2,3 or 4 games)
3. Cart remembers last game(s) loaded and loads them up again on power up. If no game loaded last, then it goes straight to game select menu.
4. External button or jumper to connect your own button to bring up game select menu, use of control panel joystick to scroll through games and any button to select game to play/load.

For those that want to be able to remove the SD card once a game is loaded, is that really necessary? Being that micro sd cards are so cheap these days , I bought 5x 16gb micro sd cards the other day for $17 shipped and they came with cases, SD adapters, and a usb dongle.

 

[Darksoft]

that's exactly the idea i have in mind for fpga version. I know many chose flash cart but whatever option i choose there will be about 50% unhappy people so.... and if time and price allows cartridge may even be with 8 games..... we shall see.

 

[Malenko]

I have about 20 MVS carts and about 15 AES carts (only dupe is Baseball Stars Professional) Be happy to beta but would still pay the retail for the cart.
I also have one of those 161 in 1s to compare and contrast with.

Im my defense Ive only owned this neogeo cab for 2 months and the first month was the restoration:

http://forum.arcadecontrols.com/index.php/topic,148826.0.html

 

[Jae]

I changed my vote from option 2 (flash) to option 1 (fpga) because from what I understand the FPGA version will work pretty much the same as the flash version if you choose to only load one game but still have the added ability to work as a virtual 4 slot if preferred. If the FPGA will boot to a certain game on an MVS cabinet without having to navigate menus or press anything then what is really the point of the flash version other than cost?

The 3 things I hate with the 161-1 cart is that you always have to select a game from the menu or it'll just sit at the menu forever and never go into attract mode. Second is that it causes problems on some multi-slot boards. And third is the game settings, difficulty, high scores, etc. are never saved. If the FPGA version can solve these problems then I'm sold! Also, will be nice to have a multi cart without 30 bootlegs.

 

[kuze]

I'm still a fan of the flash version (instant load of last game) because I like to pick a title and stick with it for a week or more.

That said, if the FPGA route is taken, it would be nice if the multi could be placed in slot 4 on a 4-slot (for example, or slot 6 on a 6-slot) and not interfere with the instant loading of slots 1-3 (or 1-5) on power up. Even if you were almost immediately going to cycle through games, that would still give the multi plenty of time to load up the game and be ready to play once you switch to that slot.

 

[Darksoft]

I'm still a fan of the flash version (instant load of last game) because I like to pick a title and stick with it for a week or more.

That said, if the FPGA route is taken, it would be nice if the multi could be placed in slot 4 on a 4-slot (for example, or slot 6 on a 6-slot) and not interfere with the instant loading of slots 1-3 (or 1-5) on power up. Even if you were almost immediately going to cycle through games, that would still give the multi plenty of time to load up the game and be ready to play once you switch to that slot.

very true....

I guess that most people want to convert their 1 Slot MVS into a multi. For everyone is a differenet thing, but we'll try to make ya all happy

 

[qwertylesh]

I just want to be able to play blazing star on my aes without having to take out a mortgage to afford it

 

[poponon]

My vote is for the cheapest option. I'm willing to wait a sec to load a game. The main attraction of the cart for myself and most other people (i imagine) will be the greatly lowered financial barrier to enjoy the neogeo library on real hardware. This aspect should come first. maybe release a more expensive 'pro' version later for people with more expendable funds for their hobby.

 

[Derick2k]

In the end, whatever version/price Darksoft decides to release will be worth it since there really isnt anything that can compete with his multi kits. He is listening to everyone's suggestions and I am sure he will try to please most, but not all. I will buy whichever iteration of this multi that he produces.

 

[Nekoma]

I voted, but i don't really care how it's done, because i know that if Darksoft selected those methodes, this mean any of those is good. Really wish i will be able to buy (and affort) one of those! IMHO, best compromise betwen playing on real system and enjoying as much games as possible with little budget.

 

[aarkay14]

I could not go through the entire thread, I am sorry for that, but I desperately neeeeed a AES multicart with the following menu.
I hope Darksoft can take this into consideration..
I was working on assembly to program this menu when I came across this thread on the net so I decided to post a mock up here.
Please let me know in case of any questions.

 

[funkycochise]

I could not go through the entire thread, I am sorry for that, but I desperately neeeeed a AES multicart with the following menu.
I hope Darksoft can take this into consideration..
I was working on assembly to program this menu when I came across this thread on the net so I decided to post a mock up here.
Please let me know in case of any questions.

don't know if anybody here want to go through an on screen menu selection.
regardless the skill needed that you claim to have.

I personaly prefer the separate LCD, allowing a much more accurate & genuine behavior.
I like the "switch on" with direct boot on the game previously loaded.

 

[Mattroid]

There are plenty here who would prefer an on screen menu. It has been one of the most requested features from what I've seen. The LCD is nice for an MVS setup and if you only want your favorite games on the card. The whole Neo library would be a bit much for a little screen like the CPS2 multi, not to mention a pain for an AES setup like aarkay14 mentioned.

I don't think any of this has been ruled out at the moment - it could still go any direction.

 

[waiwainl]

There are plenty here who would prefer an on screen menu. It has been one of the most requested features from what I've seen. The LCD is nice for an MVS setup and if you only want your favorite games on the card. The whole Neo library would be a bit much for a little screen like the CPS2 multi, not to mention a pain for an AES setup like aarkay14 mentioned.

Though I like the CPS2 LCD a lot (and don't use it much, as I don't swap games that often).

An onscreen menu would be better, as it is faster to make your choice.
Even from UX perspective it is better to have it onscreen as you can see the next items while scrolling and anticipate. With the LCD I tab the buttons like a mad man and usually end up at the game after the one I actually wanted.

And as long as the onscreen menu is optional (i.e. it is possible to force last loaded game at bootup) - I would be happy already.

Plus, AES users and a LCD screen? Not a good combination

 

[aarkay14]

There are plenty here who would prefer an on screen menu. It has been one of the most requested features from what I've seen. The LCD is nice for an MVS setup and if you only want your favorite games on the card. The whole Neo library would be a bit much for a little screen like the CPS2 multi, not to mention a pain for an AES setup like aarkay14 mentioned.

Though I like the CPS2 LCD a lot (and don't use it much, as I don't swap games that often).
An onscreen menu would be better, as it is faster to make your choice.
Even from UX perspective it is better to have it onscreen as you can see the next items while scrolling and anticipate. With the LCD I tab the buttons like a mad man and usually end up at the game after the one I actually wanted.

And as long as the onscreen menu is optional (i.e. it is possible to force last loaded game at bootup) - I would be happy already.

Plus, AES users and a LCD screen? Not a good combination

Guys!, Maybe we can just program the START button to launch the last played game! We can save this info onto a battery back RAM or something simpler on the cart. The AES multi cart should have a menu as it would make everything much simpler. So as soon as you turn on the NG AES just hit start and boom you are there in the game

 

[Malenko]

I gotta say, I do love the idea of using this in both my MVS machine and the AES console in my living room, Id pay extra for a janky adapter to allow use on both

 

[Greedostick]

I gotta say, I do love the idea of using this in both my MVS machine and the AES console in my living room, Id pay extra for a janky adapter to allow use on both

I'm not sure how this would work. There's already a Daedalus converter for using MVS on a console, but nothing made that allows play of AES on a MVS console. I have heard before that it can't be done, or it could, but would be really hard to do. I think a lot of peoples dreams in the neo scene, is an adapter to play AES on a Cabinet. I would like clarification if this is possible, but I think this would be a whole other project in its own right, and the focus here is just getting a fully functional flash cart.

 

[l_oliveira]

MVS C-ROM bus (Character data) is not multiplexed. The multiplexer chip is put on the MVS board (the GPU requires that the graphical data is multiplexed).

To make sure AES cartridges were unusable on MVS units SNK put the multiplexer chip inside the cartridge on AES units, allowing them making the slot smaller, too. Again to prevent MVS and AES interchangeability.

That is all too ironic, because originally AES cartridges were cheaper than their MVS counterparts (MVS cartridges had extra fee in them due to them being licensed for being coin operated).

But turns out that due to this design, put a AES cart on a MVS system is hella harder than putting a MVS cart on a AES as on a to AES adapter, you just need to add the multiplexer chip, NEO-CTO or NEO-ZMC2. For the inverse you would need to de-multiplex the C data (which adds latency) or figure out a method to bypass the onboard multiplexer on the MVS (which involves modding and is undesirable).

 

[kruuth]

First time poster but long time follower here...I'd think the cheaper, easier to make option would be the best choice. In either case I'd be buying it. What I'd prefer would be something that does not require any mods to an existing cabinet. Would it be possible to do something like getting a menu by holding down buttons for a specific duration like 5 seconds or something?

Also, I'd love it if we could tweak the game select menu a bit, IE select a background graphic or menu colors or something along those lines.