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Reverse engineering 161 in 1 cartridge to change Rom games

Hi guys,

Vortex thanks for the rom compilation, now these games working with the vtxcart.exe:
2020bb
3countb
alpham2
androdun
aodk
aof
aof2
aof3
b2b
bakatono
bangbead
bjourney
blazstar
breakers
breakrev
bstars
bstars2
burningf
crswd2bl
crsword
ctomaday
cyberlip
doubledr
eightman
fatfursp
fatfury1
fatfury2
fatfury3
fbfrenzy
fightfev
flipshot
froman2b
galaxyfg
ganryu
garoub
ghostlop
goalx3
gowcaizr
gpilots
gururin
ironclad
irrmaze
janshin
joyjoy
kabukikl
karnovr
kizuna
kof94
kof95
kof96
kof97
kof98
kof99b
kof2000b
kof2001
kof2002
kof2003b
kotm
kotm2
lastblad
lastbld2
lbowling
legendos
lresort
magdrop2
magdrop3
maglord
mahretsu
marukodq
matrimb
miexchng
minasan
moshougi
mslug
mslug2
mslug2t
mslug3b
mslug4b
mslug5b
mslugx
mutnat
nam1975
ncombat
ncommand
neobombe
neocup98
neodrift
neomrdo
ninjamas
nitd
overtop
panicbom
pbobbl2n
pbobblen
pgoal
pnyaa
popbounc
preisle2
pspikes2
pulstar
puzzldpr
puzzledp
quizdai2
quizdais
quizkof
ragnagrd
rbff1
rbff2
rbffspec
ridhero
roboarmy
rotd
s1945p
samsho
samsho2
samsho3
samsho4
samsho5
samsh5sp
savagere
sdodgeb
sengoku
sengoku2
sengoku3
shocktr2
shocktro
socbrawl
sonicwi2
sonicwi3
spinmast
ssideki
ssideki2
ssideki3
ssideki4
stakwin
stakwin2
strhoop
superspy
svcb
teot
tophuntr
tpgolf
trally
tstsuite
turfmast
twinspri
tws96
viewpoin
wakuwak7
wh1
wh2
wh2j
whp
wjammers
xenocrisis
xevious
zedblade
zintrckb
zupapa

The games that not support vtxcart.exe:
Error: bankswitching mode 4 in garou is not supported!
Error: graphics mode 6 in matrim is not supported!
bankswitching mode 2 in svc is not supported!
Error: bankswitching mode 3 in kof99 is not supported!
Error: bankswitching mode 7 in kof2000 is not supported!
Error: bankswitching mode 2 in kof2003 is not supported!
Error: bankswitching mode 6 in mslug3 is not supported
Error: graphics mode 5 in mslug4 is not supported!
Error: bankswitching mode 2 in mslug5 is not supported!
 
Hi, i desing a design for jtag pinout for the altera max 3256:

altera max jtag pinout.jpg
 
XtraSmiley said:
Holy shit, this thread got complicated fast!

So, who's going to start doing this for $$$?
Click to expand...

I think the best hope for that is for the Ali sellers to offer it. They can do it while manufacturing the carts

These games are still being actively sold in compilations and on modern platforms too so there are the legal implications

Not to mention hours of work desoldering/flashing/resoldering to do for each cart and if the cart dies on the table, the cost of replacing it on top of that
 
XtraSmiley said:
Holy shit, this thread got complicated fast!

So, who's going to start doing this for $$$?
Click to expand...
If I had the soldering skills I'd be happy to do it.

That's really the only thing stopping me. I have tremors and can't solder for shit. I borked up an MVS board I bought cheap to try and repair it, that pretty much cemented my inability to solder finer components.

Bet someone like Voultar could do this and offer the service. No real way of telling tho.
 
HornheaDD said:
If I had the soldering skills I'd be happy to do it.

That's really the only thing stopping me. I have tremors and can't solder for shit. I borked up an MVS board I bought cheap to try and repair it, that pretty much cemented my inability to solder finer components.

Bet someone like Voultar could do this and offer the service. No real way of telling tho.
Click to expand...
I think you underestimate how much work/cost would be involved. People charge $100+ for installation service for installing an hdmi mod in a console. Those usually consist of soldering a flex cable and maybe making a hole in the case for the hdmi port. Modifying the 161in1 consists of desoldering 8 flash chips, soldering them to the dumper boards, flashing them, desoldering them from the dumper boards, then soldering them all back to the cart. How much you think someone is going to charge for all that work?
 
ack said:
I think you underestimate how much work/cost would be involved. People charge $100+ for installation service for installing an hdmi mod in a console. Those usually consist of soldering a flex cable and maybe making a hole in the case for the hdmi port. Modifying the 161in1 consists of desoldering 8 flash chips, soldering them to the dumper boards, flashing them, desoldering them from the dumper boards, then soldering them all back to the cart. How much you think someone is going to charge for all that work?
Click to expand...
I guess we won't know until someone actually offers it.
 
ack said:
I think you underestimate how much work/cost would be involved. People charge $100+ for installation service for installing an hdmi mod in a console. Those usually consist of soldering a flex cable and maybe making a hole in the case for the hdmi port. Modifying the 161in1 consists of desoldering 8 flash chips, soldering them to the dumper boards, flashing them, desoldering them from the dumper boards, then soldering them all back to the cart. How much you think someone is going to charge for all that work?
Click to expand...
My friend, I'm feeling like $3.50 and I'll be happy to PP you F&F right now....

:)

OK, so how do we let the Chinese know about this?
 
Vortex said:
I see you are having difficulty finding suitable versions of games.
So I released all the game assets on the archive.org.
If the compiler gives an error when compiling, use the 'b' version. for example mslug5b instead of mslug5.

Enjoy.
Click to expand...
I would remove XenoCrisis from that rom pack, it's an indie game still being sold by BitmapBureau ...
 
It would be great if this project somehow merged with Razoola's proof-of-concept from several years ago:

 
XtraSmiley said:
OK, so how do we let the Chinese know about this?
Click to expand...

I have one of the Aliexpress sellers in my Whatsapp contact list. They at least claim that everyone else copied "their motherboard" ;)

If @Vortex, @rockbottom and anyone else involved is OK with this being exposed to them, I'll try chatting with them.
 

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    aliexpress_161-in-1_seller.jpg
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ack said:
I think you underestimate how much work/cost would be involved. People charge $100+ for installation service for installing an hdmi mod in a console. Those usually consist of soldering a flex cable and maybe making a hole in the case for the hdmi port. Modifying the 161in1 consists of desoldering 8 flash chips, soldering them to the dumper boards, flashing them, desoldering them from the dumper boards, then soldering them all back to the cart. How much you think someone is going to charge for all that work?
Click to expand...

Is there a reason why everything has to be desoldered and resoldered? Modern devices (like the HDMI kits you mentioned) are programmed in place via the JTAG interface. Can't all the flash chips be done this way as well? I'd be surprised if the flash chips are preprogrammed prior to assembly in the China factory. Or worst case, write a small routine that runs on the CPLD that programs the flash chips, given it has R/W access to all of them.
 
nem said:
I have one of the Aliexpress sellers in my Whatsapp contact list. They at least claim that everyone else copied "their motherboard" ;)

If @Vortex, @rockbottom and anyone else involved is OK with this being exposed to them, I'll try chatting with them.
Click to expand...

Considering they made the information public, I dont imagine they'd mind ;)
 
GeorgeSpinner said:
It will be the price of a Darksoft mult or close to it. It's just too much work.
Click to expand...
So this tells me that this whole project kinda results in nothing, then. Pointless. The whole "because it's there" reason that Vortex did this is rad as hell, no doubt about it, and I salute his ingenuity, but if a NeoSD cart price is the assumed amount someone would charge, what makes anyone think the Chinese wouldn't increase the price of these carts exponentially?

I sincerely doubt they will make custom made-to-order carts. So this just makes the currently easily attainable 161 carts on Ali jump in price if they even want to do this. And since no one here wants to do it for "legal issues" or because they are unable, I guess I'm glad I got mine for $60 even though a chunk of games are garbage.
 
leonk said:
Is there a reason why everything has to be desoldered and resoldered? Modern devices (like the HDMI kits you mentioned) are programmed in place via the JTAG interface. Can't all the flash chips be done this way as well? I'd be surprised if the flash chips are preprogrammed prior to assembly in the China factory. Or worst case, write a small routine that runs on the CPLD that programs the flash chips, given it has R/W access to all of them.
Click to expand...
Well it would take that all NOR flash lines to be routed through the CPLD in order to use boundary scan. And even so, reprogram a NOR flash that big through boundary scan it would take up to 90 hours.
 
HornheaDD said:
So this tells me that this whole project kinda results in nothing, then. Pointless. The whole "because it's there" reason that Vortex did this is rad as hell, no doubt about it, and I salute his ingenuity, but if a NeoSD cart price is the assumed amount someone would charge, what makes anyone think the Chinese wouldn't increase the price of these carts exponentially?

I sincerely doubt they will make custom made-to-order carts. So this just makes the currently easily attainable 161 carts on Ali jump in price if they even want to do this. And since no one here wants to do it for "legal issues" or because they are unable, I guess I'm glad I got mine for $60 even though a chunk of games are garbage.
Click to expand...
Well, the theory is the Chinese won't have to re-work these old boards, they'll just steal borrow the info and make fresh carts that do all of this. And yes, they will raise the prices initially, just like the 161/1 was $300 10 years ago, now it's sub $60, so to shall this.

Give it time!
 
XtraSmiley said:
Well, the theory is the Chinese won't have to re-work these old boards, they'll just steal borrow the info and make fresh carts that do all of this. And yes, they will raise the prices initially, just like the 161/1 was $300 10 years ago, now it's sub $60, so to shall this.

Give it time!
Click to expand...
BAH to your reasonable and logical explanation, good sir! BAH!
 
HornheaDD said:
So this tells me that this whole project kinda results in nothing, then. Pointless. The whole "because it's there" reason that Vortex did this is rad as hell, no doubt about it, and I salute his ingenuity, but if a NeoSD cart price is the assumed amount someone would charge, what makes anyone think the Chinese wouldn't increase the price of these carts exponentially?

I sincerely doubt they will make custom made-to-order carts. So this just makes the currently easily attainable 161 carts on Ali jump in price if they even want to do this. And since no one here wants to do it for "legal issues" or because they are unable, I guess I'm glad I got mine for $60 even though a chunk of games are garbage.
Click to expand...

Not pointless. Those who have the equipment and knowledge can make their own and the information is public so the Ali sellers can pick it up also

You can make your own OSSC which takes a significant time/equipment/parts investment or you can buy one from VGP, Ali or other sellers

The hard work has been done by Vortex and I am glad he has chosen to make the information public
 
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