#Sega Mega Drive/CD/32X

1 messages · Page 9 of 1

amber gulch
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Hope 4 will be worth all the ps knowledge I've gathered so far!

fading hare
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4 is definitely worth it. Just within the first few minutes, you'll already notice how massively improved it is just as a game.

floral ingot
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The mode button on the original controllers is not made to be a fire or action button.
It has a very finite limit of clicks before breaking down.

thorny pivot
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I just want the option

cloud otter
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I hacked 3 to do 4x XP and 10x money because it was so plodding. I'm adding a menu item for each of them and adding code to handle overflow for large XP/MES bosses and I'm considering making a 'run' button that quadruples movement speed and also disables random encounters while being pressed. But I have had so much work around the house I haven't gotten back to it.

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Higher XP/money make it much more fun.

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Just because I have stuff to do and don't have 5 hours an afternoon to play anymore. 😦 I wish I did.

amber gulch
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I played the general improvement hack but afaik that didn't change exp. PS3 was pretty easy tbh, only grinded a bit in the first hour or so, but then only the last 2 bosses were a bit hard.

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How about you make a hack where you redesign the dungeons from phantasy star 2 instead? 😅

light mist
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you have only cheated yourself off 10 more hours of fun!

night cape
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Why is there no way to have 2 team play adapters on both controller ports? The Factor 5 Bomberman proto uses it.

Also the Mister main needs to supoort at least 8 controllers, some PS1 and Saturn games needs it. Sorgelig probably is against raising the controller limit still. 😦

cloud otter
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I don't know anybody with 4 Team Plays to test.

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I also don't know anyone with 7 friends, so...

narrow panther
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🤯

rotund bluff
drowsy hemlock
surreal nebula
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Guys, does anyone know if it works well with 32x core?

Screenshot_2024-12-08-05-42-39-242_com.twitter.android-edit.jpg
plain quiver
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Works perfectly.
I've done a full rundown on it this week.

amber gulch
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Which is the best mortal kombat game on mister?

surreal nebula
plain quiver
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It needs a specific ROM.

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I tried like 4 times before finding the perfect one (and see the correct checksums after that...).

fallow dome
fading hare
plain quiver
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Newer version.

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You need an older dump from another set.
With Jan 1995 as th dat in the name of the file.

fading hare
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Weird, I tried multiple versions. I'll have to check again and see what I have.

cloud otter
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There's a combined zip on AdotO that includes this specific one, just FYI. User carolineroberge43 might know something about it...

fading hare
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Noice. Got it working. 🍻

cloud otter
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It sucks just as much as the real arcade!

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(suuuuper not an MK fan...but glad it's out there for people who are!)

fading hare
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It's a fun time in vs mode with a friend. But classic MK has always been dumpster fire bad against the CPU. Just insane levels of input reading BS.

cloud otter
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Oh, versus I do enjoy. But that's not a common thing for me. So, good point.

fading hare
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I was trying to land Scorpion's spear against the CPU, and it is quite literally not possible. It immediately triggers an input read. Further away? Duck. Too close to duck? Block. Even against the first opponent. Actually not possible.

cloud otter
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Yeah, I don't know that the Nerf AI toggle works. It didn't seem different to me. Same thing. Full input reads.

drowsy hemlock
plain quiver
warm carbon
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finally, mega cd is playable again

fading hare
drowsy hemlock
vital idol
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No, the other consoles definitely cheat like the arcade on higher difficulty.

fading hare
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All of the classic MK trilogy games input read like you 'em money. Arcade, home ports, they all do it. Not uncommon in most old school fighting games honestly, but MK was in a class all its own in that regard.

pale plover
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It's either that or the SNK approach of "The final boss is a cheating asshole."

polar cargo
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A quarter munching cheating asshole by design 😎

manic ridge
manic ridge
cloud otter
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Toasty!

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Yeah, it's a pretty huge leap over the original release.

tired vessel
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Is there a general ETA on when JP regioned Mega CD support will be implemented?

fallow dome
tired vessel
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Yes, specifically for Mega CD. I know that the existing Mega Drive core supports all regions, but the Mega CD core says US/EU only.

fallow dome
pale plover
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The Mega CD core works with Japanese games.

tired vessel
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Let me re-check, but the last few times I tried it with the Japanese Sonic CD the disc refused to boot.

fallow dome
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Also I guess we should update the readme. @tired vessel is right, says “US/EU regions only”

pale plover
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It's just kind of weird with regional games. You need to divide the games and the respective BIOS files into separate folders, and it should work without issue.

tired vessel
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Aaaah, that must be it. So if I have under the /games/MegaCD directory one for Japan and one for US (ie /games/MegaCD/Japan/soniccd and /games/MegaCD/NorthAmerica/soniccd) and I put the bioses in /games/MegaCD/Japan and /games/MegaCD/NorthAmerica they should be auto-detected?

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Or do I need separate /games/MegaCD folders?

pale plover
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You can do it in the MegaCD folder. All it cares about is that the games and BIOS files are properly organized in their respective folders.

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Also make sure the games are in unzipped folders too. The BIOS doesn't need a folder.

tired vessel
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I don't think I'm following. I can put both the US and JP bioses in /games/MegaCD or do they need to go into separate folders under /games/MegaCD ?

pale plover
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You can create folders inside the Mega CD folder and it should work.

tired vessel
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(with the region games in those same folders, so /games/MegaCD/Japan has the bios not in a folder but has folders for the bin/cues for each Japan game)

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Trying that now

fallow dome
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/MegaCD/Europe/
|----cd_bios.rom

/MegaCD/USA/
|----cd_bios.rom

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and so on

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folder names don't matter, but you do need "cd_bios.rom" there

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/MegaCD/YorkshirePudding/ or /MegaCD/BurgersNtaters

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you could do that if that's how you roll

tired vessel
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it's not my jam but thank you for the example

fallow dome
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sorry we're a bit silly here lol

tired vessel
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perish the thought 🤪

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Got it working, thank you both for your help. Now I can enjoy Sonic CD with its proper soundtrack! (and every other sega cd game that we never got)

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next task: speedrunning Make My Video Kriss Kross

warm carbon
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I grew up with the US soundtrack, so while appreciate the JPN one, it never felt right :/

tired vessel
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Yeah, the first one I heard was the US version (on the PC port) but I'm a huge weeb so I like the JP version a bit better

warm carbon
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Oh, it's a better soundtrack for sure

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But I watched that intro over and over as a kid, and I need that nostalgia hit

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I have been meaning to go back and do an all good future + chaos emerald run. I never did that as a kid

drowsy hemlock
fallow dome
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I can't help it, I'm a Britishboo

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I like British micro computers, game developers, raspberry pi, and fish 'n chips.

warm carbon
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How do you feel about imperialism?

fading hare
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This help session was mega cool. chefkiss

fringe zodiac
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The same author made a Genesis hack which probably turns the Genesis one into the best MK 1 version (taking the crown from Sega CD). I guess this 2.1 version should be the latest one.

warm carbon
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Do I remember reading that it doesn't work on mister? Maybe I'm conflating it with the recent doom release that uses everything

compact garden
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A very specific one, as I patched my dump and it didn't work. But I recall some people discussing it here and said they used a specific ROM.

warm carbon
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thats what it was

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it was finicky

pine crystal
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The 32X version was already the best console version without the patch. 😏

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The patch just makes it even better.

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`Mortal Kombat II 32X Arcade Edition v1.5c Changes:

-Improved Living Forest Color Palette.

-Disabled the Shadow Mode on Deadpool Arena, now it will look brighter.

You will need to apply this .IPS patch with an IPS patcher like LunarIPS over the SEGA 32X Mortal Kombat II ROM with these informations:

Mortal Kombat 2 (Jan 1995) (JUE) [!]

ROM MD5: 9D258D11FE1E4CAC2C1AAB370C35E57A
ROM SHA-1: F75698DE887D0EF980F73E35FC4615887A9AD58F
ROM CRC32: 211085CE`

chrome moss
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There is a version I believe that uses the SCD for music as well but that only works on something like a mega everdrive pro. I have my setup put away but this makes me want to pull it all out and hook it up.

pine crystal
warm carbon
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if you got your 32x set from the usual place, the correct rom is in the europe folder

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Mortal Kombat II (Europe).32x

warm carbon
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There doesn't seem to be a way to set 6 button mode (you can set in in the OSD, but mortal kombat had a separate setting as well)

chrome moss
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Can't go into the controller settings and set it to 6-button? MK1 defaulted to 3 but you could go set it to 6 button in the control settings

warm carbon
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yeah, that menu is gone in this romhack

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that's the problem :/

chrome moss
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Oof, is it automatic based on what you have plugged in? Maybe the mod just auto-selects based on what you're using

warm carbon
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I swapped to 6 button in the OSD and reset the core, but it was still A=Block B=punch C= Kick. I'm sure I'm missing something

half cargo
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In the option menu in the game you need to change Activator to 6 button

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it's under Extra Controlls

manic ridge
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I assume it's just enabled by default in this version

thorny pivot
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^ I remember reading that. Should be 6 button by default.

warm carbon
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I wonder if setting the core to 6 button fucked it up?

warm carbon
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figured it out. I am just a dumb dumb

fringe zodiac
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The "Arcade Edition" hacks work on Mister for both games.

fringe zodiac
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It is "on" by default as is the 6 button auto-recognition. The full changelog is in my link above.

fringe zodiac
# pine crystal

Yes, the first entry on the download table will work with the January 1995 ROM.

pine crystal
whole stream
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Hi, for some reason the Genesis core (not the MegaDrive one) has stopped showing any video through the VGA connector, it only works via HDMI. The rest of the cores i've tested work properly (neo geo, arcades, saturn, psx, snes...). It's a new clean installation so i might missed something, but it was usually a pretty straightforward thing to set up. Any ideas?

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Oh, perhaps it's because of the new I/O board?

glass shale
fallow dome
whole stream
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Cool, was still using this 'cause the MegaDrive one still had many issues the first time i tested it, but i'll move, thnx!

fallow dome
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Thank you very much!

glass shale
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MD core is pretty much perfect from what I experience here

whole stream
whole stream
graceful edge
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i still use the old genesis core for the extra sprites and cpu turbo options. i know its depreciated but it would be nice to see it get one last update to work on the new analog boards

pine crystal
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The MegaDrive core has been pretty much perfect from the moment it was first added.

thorny pivot
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I like having the creature comforts like extra sprites, overclock and composite blending. Nice to have a hardware accurate core, but also nice to have extra candy. 🙂

pine crystal
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Someone could try pushing a framework update, but I doubt it would do any good.
Nothing preventing someone from doing that on their own and compiling it themselves though.

graceful edge
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it would be nice if the new analog board had a compatibility mode to force 18-bit color or something. there’s a lot of older arcade cores that don’t work on it either

fading hare
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I will always keep the old Genesis core around just for that sweet sweet 30fps Road Rash action using the rom hacks and the core's turbo option. Otherwise, I use the Mega Drive core any other time I play Genesis stuff.

graceful edge
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there are some games where turbo helps tremendously. there's practically zero slowdown in mega man wily wars with it set to high

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curse is a neat example of a game whose speed seems to be completely dependent on the cpu timing. setting it to medium or high makes the entire game run faster

pine crystal
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You shouldn't need that though.
It has Blast Processing™️! 😏

dreamy dune
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has paulb expressed any interest in adding savestates to the old Genesis core, actually?

manic ridge
torn dome
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something to fire up on the core

manic ridge
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What's Sonic Robo Blast?

noble thunder
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sonic robo blast 2 is a PC sonic fangame from a group of people coined as sonic team jr., it's built on a heavily modified doom engine

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it's also a game i can just never run away from rofl

fallow dome
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Oh shit, that game rocks

manic ridge
fallow dome
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It’s legitimately great

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Been around for like 15 years now or something crazy like that

noble thunder
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yeah it's been in development for a while

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when I was younger I hung out in a chat with people working on it, I used to be in that scene

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just a reminder that I could use my time off to work on my own game engine rofl

pale plover
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There's also the mod Sonic Robo Blast Kart 2 that converts the game into a kart racing game.

That mod also got a successor more recently called Dr. Robotnik's Ring Racers, which introduces a bunch of new mechanics to flesh out the racing.

fallow dome
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One day I’ll have the attention span and patience to get through it’s tutorial lol

manic ridge
pine crystal
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Burn!

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Wait...

fallow dome
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It runs great on MiSTer! Wow this is so damn cool.

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Well I mean, it’s low fps because it’s not a complete or optimized port.

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But the music/audio sound fine and the game plays well.

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Oh nevermind it just crashed for me lol.

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I beat Act 1, ship it!

manic ridge
fading hare
solar hemlock
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Can MD+ games be converted to MSU-MD ?

fallow dome
narrow panther
fading hare
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So just how much of the game is included in the demo?

faint onyx
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One level only. Just a tech demo.

narrow panther
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I played it right through with the Mega Drive core. It's very good!

faint onyx
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There won't be a full game later. A bit disappointing and missleading after the teaser trailer.

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"Here are a few words from the conception of this game:

We made this tech demo to test out various concepts and fulfill a dream I had as a teenager: to receive a port of Batman Returns for my favorite console. We don't intend to finish the game, but the good results we got here will be used in future projects."

fallow dome
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Not misleading at all, dude seems pretty clear on what he wanted to do. Let’s just be happy we have what’s there and appreciate the hard work it took to get there.

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Plus, it’s a lot of work to port a game that’s already available on the SNES. Glad he’s not doing the full game and realized his talents are better spent elsewhere.

faint onyx
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Not in the teaser trailer though. Looked like a promise of a full port. Haven't followed forums around the topic though.

fallow dome
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Yeah neither have I and honestly appreciate you posting it because I wasn’t aware it was out. I was just going by the “demo” in the title.

faint onyx
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And the newer Sunset Riders MD remaster announcement was also 3 years ago...

fallow dome
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Didn’t even know that was a thing haha

faint onyx
fallow dome
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I love that the Sega Genesis is the gift that keeps on giving lol

faint onyx
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Blast Processing 3.0. We need that! NOW!

drowsy hemlock
chrome moss
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Sega does what nintendont

manic ridge
warm carbon
shut aspen
fallow dome
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They left because they won, there was nowhere else to go.

shut aspen
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that's true, the Dreamcast was peak

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no console came close to being half as cool

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maybe the OG Xbox but eh

warm carbon
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Some say, if it gets real quiet, and if you listen real closely, you can hear the dreamcast boot song, carried by the wind

old river
fallow dome
old river
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I'm old friends with SSNTails, really proud of what that group has accomplished.

pine crystal
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Only because the original Xbox was essentially a Dreamcast 2. 😏

drowsy hemlock
pine crystal
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That's true.
It was not as good as.
It was as better as!

warm carbon
fallow dome
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Damn, I never knew the MegaDrive went this hard

image0.jpg
tulip surge
fading hare
pine crystal
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Must be those wacky Brazilians.

old sierra
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In a different timeline all those unused Atari Jaguar cases were sent to Brazil to be repurposed into bootleg Master Systems instead of winding up housing dental equipment.

void eagle
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Funny you mention that since it reminded me of that Coleco Chameleon fiasco, where the system shown at a trade show turned out to be a SNES in a Jaguar shell.

manic ridge
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actually I believe it was a capture card lol

fringe zodiac
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I would love if a future Mister 2 shipped in a 1:1 Jaguar case. Everything Jaguar should be free to use if I understand correctly? It's all about replication of retro stuff. Reusing an original design would accomplish that.

fallow dome
warm carbon
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JAG-GOO-ARE

manic ridge
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You could maybe convince me if the core ever reached maturity. I don't know how far the current core is going to be taken lol

warm carbon
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I don’t either. But I keep sacrificing these virgins in the hopes that Grey and Kit continue to work on it

fallow dome
worldly dust
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ah, damn, I was gonna ask but it seems there's no way to run Doom CD32X Fusion on MiSTer

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booting it like Pier Solar doesn't work

tulip surge
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yeah, megacd+32x games are not currently supported

warm carbon
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Not enough room in the FPGA, yeah? They are two large bois

tulip surge
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due to the cores being separate

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i believe so yeah (just based on what I read here)

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mostly just slightly less bad FMV in a few official games, but now modders have gone and made cool things that use it

thorny pivot
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Tower of Power is a mess. Five processors duct taped together: two SH-2s, two 68000s and a Z80 a couple sound chips, a couple VDPs. She’s such a trashy babe. I love her. 😍

carmine night
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i think it possible if saturn is

fringe zodiac
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But Saturn itself is filling 97% of the LEs. You need space for the additional Genesis

carmine night
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Yeah dunno what is mega cd + 32x minus a mega drive currently

carmine night
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Not that it matters id much rather have a mega cd based on decaps than what exists now

graceful edge
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the sega CD32X games aren't even worth playing beyond the novelty. the only one that's actually good is that doom CD32X fusion hack that came out a few months ago

warm carbon
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But my brain worms

graceful edge
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the main benefit to having a combined genesis/CD/32X core would just be convenience imo

fickle hemlock
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even a 3DO core would be more useful and thats saying something

graceful edge
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pc-fx core first 😈

warm carbon
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I dunno. I think I’ve been sold on some sort of Marty system

graceful edge
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the towns is a pretty cool system, though it falls more under category of japanese computers like the pc-98 and x68k

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a lot of the towns' best games are just arcade ports of games that are already available on mister though tbh

fading hare
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I call it the McFly machine.

worldly dust
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I call it the "Wing Commander with japanese voice acting"-machine

stoic flame
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@worldly dust For what it's worth, the basic protection scheme for Rockman X3 is already in the MegaDrive core, just not the specific game, so it's an easy change. I'd post a .rbf, but when I build it I get no video out of the core.

worldly dust
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neat, thanks for trying

plain quiver
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32x core with all the SH7604 changes integrated (from Nov. 21 until today).

fallow dome
fallow dome
livid spire
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Curious question on how he analog video output works for the Megadrive core.
Capturing composite output from VCR both are plugged into, using a GV-USB2, I noticed differences in the overscan region.
It looks like the whole image on MiSTer is shifted about 1 pixel left. Some small amount left at least.
The vertical looks more in line, a black line on top of both, though the core has one less partial line at the bottom (both were paused so might change over time?)

Was this all tested/verified by others in the past? Wondering if I am missing some error in my test.....
It does look that slight left shift off on the CRT quickly changing channel and viewing by eye, but wanted to sanity check!

gvusb2_PAL_megadrive2_sonic2.png gvusb2_PAL_MiSTerMegadriveCore_sonic2.png
fickle hemlock
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is that mister vs a real megadrive ?

drowsy hemlock
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Woah, I absolutely adore that video output. VHS ftw!

livid spire
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I wasn't testing around the time the new core was going in, now over the Genesis core. Figured maybe analog was tested then...?
Or if not, perhaps this is a very minor issue? Not sure how that would come about when the core is based on the chips. Analog timing seems an interesting minefield though!

cold token
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It might even be that different MD models have slightly different overscans

pale plover
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Dissecting the nuisances with each Mega Drive model is a rabbit hole.

There are a lot of small variables ranging from picture quality to sound that it makes it difficult to have a definitive answer.

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There is also compatibility to factor in, as there are some games that just don't work on certain models.

fallow dome
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Why do you think there’s so much variation? Just the nature of the manufacturing process during the 90s?

pale plover
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Some it was deliberate, like installing the TMSS chip in later revisions to prevent piracy and the change from the Yamaha YM2612 to the Yamaha YM3438 starting with the model 2.

Other cases are more like a byproduct of different manufacturers like Majesco and JVC.

livid spire
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Understandable differences for sure. That was why I asked, only that perhaps someone could confirm if it was tested to match say the model 1 the chips may have been based at on.

Or indeed is it possible the output was not checked against original hardware with overscan before?

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Figured others would either know, or could verify against other original hardware for others with the means to check (short of people knowing of this already being done in the past already?)

drowsy hemlock
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Isn’t the current core kind of a mismatch of different components rather than based on a specific model?

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“Nuked MD currently targets NMOS 68k, NMOS Z80 and FC1004. No real mega drive used such combination, but Model 1 VA7 would be closest (CMOS 68k, NMOS Z80 and FC1004)”

livid spire
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Ah ha. I guess, my question remains, was the overscanned region checked?
I guess if nobody here does know, I can raise a github issue for it, at which point someone that may have tested with say an NTSC model 1 could perhaps correct me.
Or... maybe lightguns will get 1 pixel more accurate for my contributions 😄

livid spire
# livid spire Curious question on how he analog video output works for the Megadrive core. Cap...

For future reference; Realising the analog capture can differ from the appearance on a CRT (analog signal everyone!) I found the visible image on CRT is correct on MiSTer Megadrive core (matching my model 2 Megadrive at least).

Trying to better understand analog terminology, but if someone can help, I think that means the hblank right/left is correct, but that the hsync differs from my original hardware..... I think?

hushed vine
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I can't help you but you are doing good work raising these questions @livid spire

livid spire
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Further advice from CRT channel is perhaps differences from CRT screen to capture card could be capture card related. Still odd though.....

At any rate, centering is correct viewed on the CRT (unlike the old Genesis core incidentally, just off by like 1 in horizontal)

stiff grove
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Have you tried the unstable build which slightly changed the sync timings? #unstable-nightlies message might be good to compare, since this did fix some skew issues I saw on a few monitors

livid spire
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Thanks, I'd not spotted that one. Will try later, be curious to see what it does

stone plinth
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Just out of interest, has there been any progress made regarding the high pitched squeal in After Burner II? I have a legit Mega Drive Model 2 with a Triple Bypass but sometimes I like to pretend I have a Model 1 😄

glass shale
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AFAIK, nobody had the motivation to work on the filter for that yet

stone plinth
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From what I've read, it sounds like it's the only game that has been found to have the issue so far

glass shale
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Issue is in the filter, external to the core itself

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Remove analog filters from your genesis and you’ll have the same issue 🤣

stone plinth
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I'd use the old Genesis core for that game (if I really wanted to) but the RetroTINK 4K doesn't seem to do any cropping with it

glass shale
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Eventually someone will tackle this issue 🙏

stone plinth
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Hope so! I couldn't hear it through my speakers but I can with the headphones. Checked with SPAN and I can see it

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worldly dust
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I wonder if I am misremembering something or whatever

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was there a Gargoyles game that's impossible to beat on emulators because developers exploited MD hardware in funny ways?

light mist
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there was a disney gargoyles game, yes

worldly dust
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or am I thinking of something else?

stoic flame
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Yes; IIRC there's a quirk of the bus timing on the TAS instruction that the write cycle doesn't actually modify RAM on original Genesis/MD hardware. I think even some versions of the "Genesis 3" have that problem.

worldly dust
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oh nice, I don't have dementia yet, thanks!

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I'll play that

stoic flame
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I'm not sure what they were actually using the TAS instruction for. As far as I know, it's not really useful without a second processor that speaks the 68K bus protocol. My best guess is that they had that during development, in the form of some hardware debug interface that always took priority over the console's CPU and restored the RAM location to its previous value.

manic ridge
plain quiver
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EDIT : I removed the core as kuba found a regression on the Saturn, that could be also affect the 32x core.

plain quiver
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SH7604 changes from Saturn backported to the 32x core.

pine crystal
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Thank you very much for always doing this.

fallow dome
worldly dust
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I am gonna binge Sonic games soon

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I was practicing Sonic 2 and trying my best to get all the emeralds and had funny corruptions on the special stage score screen

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Maybe it was the Mega Collection ROM doing it, will recheck with original

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Oh yeah also foreground vines in Aquatic Ruin kept freaking out when I was going backwards but maybe that's just Sonic 2

night cape
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I recommend playing the standalone game instead. You can get all emeralds on Emerald Hill, and you have an extra attempt, there are 8 checkpoints there. (You must know already, but I like to say it.)

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Back then I felt very genius when I found out it was possible to grab 50 rings between the checkpoints to grab the emeralds early in the game. lol

worldly dust
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oh yeah, oh yeah, I have all the decomps with mods on Steam Deck

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I just want to re-appreciate some nuances of the originals

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like this wonderful composite blend

image.png image.png
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they keep it as these grids in those remakes and I don't get why

image.png image.png
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-# millenial emulation culture, IS IT

night cape
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Even on CRT over RGB that composite blend is awesome!

olive trench
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Has anyone tried the latest Mega Castlevania 4 OST from on the latest mega drive core?
https://youtu.be/IGvrVXxvyC0?si=uUmNbUvRnoEl2IMc

YouTube
Vector Orbitex
DEMO: Mega Castlevania IV Soundtrack for Sega Genesis [FREE ROM DOW...

A little bit later :/ ok, too much later! but... Happy New Year 2025!

Download it here: https://www.mediafire.com/file/5yae8vfjum755th/Mega_Castlevania_IV_OST_by_Vector_Orbitex_%2528Jan._13-2025_Proto%2529.bin/file

Lots of text alert xD

VTR chipmusic brings you a preview of the soundtrack adaptation of the upcoming Mega Castlevania IV. Th...

▶ Play video
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Yikes!

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It sounds absolutely ATROCIOUS on the MiSTer!

plucky flare
#

did they develop this on real hardware or only emulators?

olive trench
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Im trying to establish some communication with the developer. This project sounds phenomenal, otherwise. It breaks my heart to see that

  1. The MiSTer core may be flawed

2)This could sound anything but great.

olive trench
plucky flare
#

because I think it also sounds bad on the old "genesis" core

olive trench
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Havent tried it on any other emulators, or real hardawre, just yet

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It does sound bad on both cores

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Can I really ask if it was meant to be run on real hardware, if the question is derived from my experience on the MiSTer core?

plucky flare
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Ideally you'd just try it on real hardware

olive trench
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MiSTer ~= real hardware in my opinion.

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relatively speaking, of course. its damn close

plucky flare
#

it makes me suspicious because I don't think the old genesis core and the new MD one share sound hardware implementations

olive trench
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Have you already heard it @plucky flare?

plucky flare
#

on a mister, yes

olive trench
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Im sorry...

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At any rate, ive commented on the video. Hopefully they see it. I look forward to their reply

carmine pine
#

So it's not a PSG TDM resampling problem then I guess. Megadrive core fixed the bus arbiter timing problems associated with some homebrew SDK edge cases, so if it's happening in both cores it's not related to that either.

manic ridge
olive trench
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Yep

manic ridge
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Wtf

olive trench
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There is a download link for the fan rom in that youtube video

manic ridge
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I have a Mega Everdrive Pro I can try it on later

olive trench
manic ridge
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Is it bad on original hardware too?

olive trench
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Okay, its not THAT bad, but ijust has wrong notes, and some wierd glitching.

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I dont know about original hardware, as I dont have an everdrive, unfortunately

manic ridge
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Ah okay

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It'd be this evening

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It's morning here

olive trench
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Thanks for looking into it. It was just so absurd that I had to report on it.

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though, ill admit my research is grossly incomplete

manic ridge
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Hopefully I remember lol

olive trench
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want a reminder?

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Hey, youre the author of the newer Megadrive core?

manic ridge
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Yes lol

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I hope you're not talking to me cause I definitely am not

olive trench
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Youre reaction made me think you were the developer...

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"WTF!?"

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I felt that.

night cape
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Is changing the sound chip from ym2612 to ym3438 made any difference? Can you try? I wish I could try it now.

olive trench
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No combo of options make a difference

harsh iron
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it sounds bad on mister

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yes

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bad instruments

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i have a mega evd pro, I'll try to test in few moments

night cape
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It sounds great on BlastEm

worldly dust
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-# millennial emulation culture god damn it

harsh iron
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soudns bad in my megadrive

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i will take out the other megadrive i have

pale plover
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Maybe it depends on the Mega Drive revision?

worldly dust
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I feel like that was tuned just for specific software emulators

pale plover
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I know with homebrew and bootlegs, there is different behavior depending on the Mega Drive model.

harsh iron
night cape
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It sounds ok even on old gens 2.10.

pale plover
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So this isn't a core issue, it's the homebrew not being optimized for original hardware.

harsh iron
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Good news for us

night cape
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When I change the emulated system to Gen/MD2 VA1 this screen appears when loading the demo. It doesn't when set to the default Gen/MD1 VA3, funny. Edit, this is only how the emulator handles TMSS without a proper Bios, I thought it was something the demo was doing, my bad.

image.png
harsh iron
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Yes yes!!!

worldly dust
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What hardware?

night cape
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And using what solution to load it? We know so far that Mister and Mega Everdrive Pro on MD1 (what VA? VA2 and VA4 Japanese) is not running properly.

harsh iron
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My consoles are japanese Model 1 VA2 and VA4

worldly dust
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Inb4 it works SPECIFICALLY on "Genesises"

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And that the FPGA core is primarily based on those japanese models

pale plover
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Yeah that sounds like typical homebrew jank.

manic ridge
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I mean the everdrive just passes the cart onto the console right? So the Genesis hardware is playing the music 🤷🏻‍♂️

It's not like Sega CD which is run from the fpga

harsh iron
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yes, it's the megadrive hardware who plays the music

livid spire
#

Model 2 difference?

stone plinth
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Testing on my Model 2 now

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lmao

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I must note mine is a PAL model 2 with an NTSC crystal installed but I've never heard any audio glitches or ANYTHING like this.

worldly dust
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This sour orchestra reminds me of getting E ranks in Sonic Unleashed

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It's Castlevania but you are using save states every five seconds

worldly dust
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Wonderful, isn't it

manic ridge
stone plinth
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I commented on the video, hopefully that gets passed on. It was made with Deflemask, it could even be an issue there?

manic ridge
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Yeah maybe

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It's one thing if it's just MiSTer but it seems to be a deeper issue

stone plinth
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Yeah it's definitely gooched on original hardware. I know my Megadrive isn't stock but it's not like any of the modifications would make this kind of difference. It's essentially an NTSC console.

manic ridge
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Well if nothing else we've verified two Genesis models and the MiSTer as having audio glitches

pine crystal
#

Thinking maybe the ROM from that link is corrupted somehow... or at the very least is not the same one used for the music in the video itself, because it is clearly different from that.

manic ridge
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Yeah good point it could be corrupt

chrome moss
#

Maybe the dev can provide a md5 of the correct file so we can compare and verify. Hopefully it gets all sorted.

narrow panther
#

On the video the author has asked for help with testing on hardware:

It is very disappointing for me to find out about this 😞. But don't worry guys, I'll try to fix the bugs that prevent this from being reproduced correctly on real hardware. But I will need someone's help to do some testing, since I have no way to test the ROMs I make on real consoles. Could someone help me with this?

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In the comments

manic ridge
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well that's good

Maybe someone can send that guy a genesis

narrow panther
#

Or a MiSTer

narrow panther
#

Latest comment on the video suggests its fixed:

Hey guys! I fixed it! I made a new ROM which works on any emulator, FPGA or console. Try it, and tell me what do you think.

olive trench
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Ahhh. THERE we go!

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I think it goes without saying that this is no GEMS garbage...

harsh iron
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it works

manic ridge
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Does anybody else hate the extra stage in Earthworm Jim CD?

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I can't play that version because of it

pine crystal
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I know a lot of people like to use certain sections of Sonic the Hedgehog as an example, but if there was ever a case in favor of Composite Blend: On, it's Earthworm Jim. Those checkerboard patterns are all over the place.

drowsy hemlock
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I have composite blend on for everything except Snatcher

pine crystal
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It's a drastic difference for the better in the Andy Asteroids and Down the Tubes levels transparency effects... and much better color blending for everything else, like the backgrounds.

manic ridge
void eagle
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Twinkle Tale is another one that needs it. Lots of dithering effects.

stone plinth
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I think I'm in the minority of people who just take the dithering for what it is

fallow dome
#

I mean yeah were in the minority though lol

stone plinth
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I come from a land of RGB SCART, my eyes were opened from a young age

sour yarrow
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Just happy MiSTer can output composite to a CRT. Blending is nice, but getting the real deal hard to get elsewhere.

stone plinth
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I always find it odd that people freak out over Silent Hill's dithering but that's how I remember it. Yeah the CRT blurred it slightly but you could still clearly make out the dithering.

fallow dome
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I honestly think most of those people didn’t play it when it came out

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Which is fine, but it would explain the strong averse reaction to the dithering

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Because yeah, you could really make it out on that game

stone plinth
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I can see how composite can blend it even further but I wanted the best cable I could get for all my systems. Plus my pal PS1 was modded so I needed RGB SCART if I wanted to play imports in colour

worldly dust
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I grew up hating seeing thicc dithering in games, and I still do

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24 bit color is a godsend for me in Silent Hill

olive trench
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@harsh iron The author replied on the YouTube video, asking to verify it works. I told him it worked on MiSTer. When you said "It works" were you referring to MiSTer or a real Genny?

harsh iron
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MiSTer

drowsy hemlock
plain quiver
pine crystal
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What am I supposed to do with my library of Compact Disks now? 😏

warm carbon
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I like full sized disks myself

thorny pivot
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8 inch floppy

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Gif removed. Hurting my eyes 👀 (and probably yours too)

hard silo
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I like when it is called Disk

plain quiver
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So, don't change anything. 😉

old sierra
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Does Knuckles Chaotix play without issues now? I haven't kept up on 32x for a good while

sour yarrow
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It crashes if I let the demo run, but it has always done that so unsure if it's normal

old sierra
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Hmm, also issues in game?

worldly dust
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I'll let you know, eventually

fading hare
hard silo
worldly dust
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It's just long and boring

night cape
#

Chaotix is less boring when you get to learn how to deal with the rubber band physics.

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Grab the partner with B, jump using C while holding B, then hold up+right, release B abd hold it again, then release the dpad. The launched partner should pull you. When you are catapulted ahead, release the B and hold a Dpad direction, this is to make you pull the partner. Rinse and repeat.

stone plinth
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My issue with Chaotix is just that it feels kind of empty. The levels don't really have many landmarks.

fallow dome
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One is powered by the THIRTY TWO BIT POWER of the 32X, and the other one is pinballs.

plain quiver
sour yarrow
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still locked up during the demo with the Jan 13th build
let me try a different rom

plain quiver
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Maybe try only the last official build from srg320.
A possible regression could happen with the last SH7604 changes and I've overviewed it.

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OKay, I've seen the freeze after some minutes.

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I will try with an older build.

plain quiver
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Chaotix regressed.

sour yarrow
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trying with the 11/21/2024 build and it seems good (same rom too)

plain quiver
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It works correctly with the 2024-11-21 build.

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Same conclusion, the game works fine since 15 minutes on my end (and that's how I've seen also the Saturn build from today on Github).

sour yarrow
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at least we can just let the game chill in the background to test 😆

sour yarrow
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minor 32x one on the 2024-11-21 build, letting NBA Jam run in demo mode and when it vertical scrolls the teams and players it starts to chug. Changing CPU Turbo speed doesn't do anything.

plain quiver
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And on the Jan. 13 build, could you test it ?

sour yarrow
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on the Jan 13th build after letting it run a couple times, there are some stutters in the graphics during the scroll, but the music does not start to slow - so definitely better (and guessing accurate) 👍

plain quiver
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So, I will need to see with srg320 one time with that.

normal rivet
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So the Nov 21 2024 is currently the best build?

plain quiver
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For Chaotix, yes (and just to be sure for final users).

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I'm keeping the Jan. 13 build as it seems NBA Jam is working a little bit better and I don't plan to watch 3-4 times Chaotix's intro. 😏

thorny pivot
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NBA JAM TE is on 32X is the best version next to Arcade, so I approve that decision. 👍

fringe zodiac
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Better than Saturn?

sour yarrow
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Japanese PSX version of Jam is supposed to be good too since they made the AI less aggressive

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32x version very good though

ripe knot
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Has anyone been able to get the 32X version of Night Trap working on the MiSTer?

split moth
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@ripe knot that’s the Sega CD 32X version right? The MiSTer doesn’t have a core that combines CD/32X (and probably won’t get one I think because Genesis/CD/32X combined can’t fit in the FPGA)

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I didn’t think there was a strictly 32X version of Night Trap

fallow dome
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Not happening on de10 but who knows what the future might hold?

drowsy hemlock
compact plover
fallow dome
pine crystal
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...and in another year, MVG will be making a video about the new 'impossible' Sega Genesis/CD/32X core. 😉

floral ingot
fallow dome
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I had no idea damn

pine crystal
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Do the Math™️

opaque kiln
fading hare
# pine crystal Do the Math™️

32X stands for 32 times the bits of the Genesis/Mega Drive! So that means it's more than 64! 32X is a beast! Math has been solved! elmorise

thorny pivot
modern remnant
#

Hi, I was investigating the issue from video when connecting my Mister via DirectVideo with the Retrotink 4k.
After manually decimating by 2 the horizontal resolution in the RT4K, the issue is gone.
Other cores are fine, but others like TG16CD or CPS2 have also the same issue.

I'm wondering if is this a core issue or a design decision in order to the core to work in DirectVideo mode (which mainly targets CRTs). Because the issue happens only when the core output a much higher horizontal resolution (6000+). I see also that the Pixel Clock is 107.386350 MHz. By coincidence (or not) is exactly the double of Console NTSC frequency (53.693175 MHz).

Digging into the Github, I found the same value:
https://github.com/MiSTer-devel/MegaDrive_MiSTer/blob/ac052cd6d842d2ccf7ced1960126bb33e364fdb8/rtl/pll/pll_0002.v#L36

image.png
GitHub
MegaDrive_MiSTer/rtl/pll/pll_0002.v at ac052cd6d842d2ccf7ced1960126...

Sega Megadrive for MiSTer. Contribute to MiSTer-devel/MegaDrive_MiSTer development by creating an account on GitHub.

marsh pantherBOT
# 
.output_clock_frequency1("107.386350 MHz"),
warm carbon
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I too am invested in the answer to this

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this stems from an issue where some RT4K CRT profiles get double decimated when auto-decimation is turned on on the tink. with it off, cores like megadrive and TG16 do weird things like the video Leo posted

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(that is an overly simplified summary of a complex issue that I am barely orbiting the understanding on - but the brain worms have caught wind and now I’m invested in it)

left willow
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been having a look at composite output on the megadrive core, I dont have original hardware to compare but I noticed that composite out on NTSC tends to look like it has some sort of chroma misalignment? is this due to the horizontal frequency output being out of spec or something on NTSC and the TV not really displaying it properly and its normal NTSC genesis behaviour? When switching the rom to PAL this issue doesnt occur. I've attached an example, you can see basically red bleed vertically on all the hills in Sonic on NTSC and all the edges of trees basically have this like extra vertical lines. NTSC is the first image

ntsc.jpg pal.jpg
sour yarrow
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Yeah NTSC Genesis composite can lead to uneven columns and jagged vertical lines, even on real hardware. S-Video and up resolves the issue. I think it's due to a higher resolution.

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This is a picture I took from a real Genesis over composite on a 13 inch Sony trinitron

left willow
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looks like my PAL pic, but seems more or less "close enough"
thought pal/ntsc had the same width though

left willow
ripe knot
long cairn
#

Hey friends. Curious if there's been any chatter about the potential of replacing the Sega CD core on the MiSTer with the type of cycle accurate impleentation the Genesis saw with the Nuked-MD version?

drowsy hemlock
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My understanding was that the new MD core took up quite a bit more space on the FPGA. I wonder if that may limit the ability to add in the SEGA CD aspects

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Also I know the new MD core is “better”, but does anyone know of any examples where the old core doesn’t work like original hardware and the new one does? I always thought the old core seemed pretty accurate 😅

fickle hemlock
#

the music in micro-machines

long cairn
normal rivet
long cairn
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I don't notice the blur you're talking about in the core at all

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but i'm connected to an lcd so

pine crystal
#

I don't miss that at all. Adaptive doesn't work properly in most cases. I prefer On in most cases, as that looks more 'authentic'.
As an example, just let the Sega CD boot to its BIOS screen without a game loaded, and see how Adaptive looks compared to On. Adaptive screws with things it absolutely shouldn't (including the large text), and in many cases, it doesn't apply the effect where it should in games.
...and back in the CRT days, it wasn't selective like that. It was an all or nothing ordeal with composite.

rotund bluff
pine crystal
#

The Adaptive effect is applied inconsistently in most cases... such as only parts of the shadows on the ground, and nothing on the top of the temple.

image.png
#

Plus, On gives you the perception of an increased color palette from the way it blends colors of neighboring pixels across the whole screen.

#

Yes, it's a blurry mess... but so was actual composite. 😉

drowsy hemlock
#

Agreed with the above. I use composite on for 99% of games

#

But I also like the “blurry mess” look on all of my retro consoles 😅

night cape
#

Indeed adaptive only worked in a few scenarios, always turned on is better overall. I actually miss it in other cores, Like Saturn and Snes.

warm carbon
#

oh I didn’t realize that the megacd core was built on top of the old genesis core

drowsy hemlock
#

I suspect it’s also used as the basis for the 32x core as well, although I don’t know that for certain

pine crystal
#

Yep

drowsy hemlock
#

So we know why some people think the old core is better than the new one, but does anyone want to argue the reverse? 😆

stone plinth
#

The new one is newer and therefore more fresh and full of flavour

warm carbon
#

the old core is named properly

stone plinth
pine crystal
#

Got'm!

fallow dome
# drowsy hemlock So we know why some people think the old core is better than the new one, but do...

I think the allure and objectivism of accuracy can often have people conflate it with the subjective opinion of superiority.

From a binary and emotionally detached perspective, accuracy is of course better but that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s better for the individual. Accuracy is just one aspect to help an individual come to that conclusion. Accuracy is also in a measure of degrees and replication can never be truly accurate anyways.

So the perspective should be, “is it accurate enough” and in many cases the old core was. Additionally the old core featured a Turbo functionality that became quite helpful for some games that pushed the hardware too far.

So to those people, the old core was better and from their perspective there really isn’t much of an argument. It provided an accurate enough reproduction of the games they enjoyed playing and had more features.

#

There, did I do it?

pine crystal
#

Hmm. That's a lot to take in...

#

I wasn't prepared for this level of introspection so early in the morning. I must reflect on these developments.

fallow dome
#

To win an argument you must appeal to the opposition, warp their perspective to yours, and have them question their core values in the argument.

pine crystal
#

Sun Tzubby

fallow dome
#

It’s not just about proving them wrong or being right, there is no such thing as right anyways. It’s all about convincing them that they’re wrong.

warm carbon
#

correct

#

and #1096614378968727652 message

drowsy hemlock
#

I just trust that it is.. cos sorg. 😄

#

It seems more like it’s hypothesised to be more accurate due to how it was constructed, than people saying “sonic is broken on the old core”

fallow dome
#

Yeah same, and someone posted a nice photo where all the technical mumbo jumbo had a green box next to it instead of a red box. Green means go while red means stop, and I want to keep driving soooo….

#

But Sonic still plays the same

#

So those green boxes can’t be bad, right?

drowsy hemlock
#

But fwiw I play on the new core because it’s supposed to be more accurate, and because I don’t use turbo etc. I like my original slowdown 😎

#

Sonic Spinball is x10 better on the new core

#

Because you get much more time to admire each frame

fallow dome
#

Exactly! Now stop questioning this and write down “it’s not emulation it’s replication” 100 times in Sega's Wacky Worlds Creativity Studio on the MegaDrive (🟩) core and not the Genesis (🟥) core.

drowsy hemlock
#

Genesis core was always the mega drive core in my heart

#

But I prefer “Sega CD” over “Mega CD”, probably because I didn’t know anything about the SCD as a kid

night cape
#

The 32x is called "Mega 32X" in my region.

fallow dome
#

I mean I’ll cut out the bullshit. I like the newer core because people I trust and have faith in say it’s better and fundamentally I just want one core.

#

Whichever one it is, don’t care. Just have one and focus on improving the one.

long cairn
pine crystal
#

To be fair, I will make a case for Adaptive Composite Blend for Crusader of Centy though. In that game it appears to work completely as advertised... from what I've been able to see.

fallow dome
#

There’s also this Japanese top down shooter game where it works extremely well

#

Uhhh, had some witch lady I think

warm carbon
#

you’re going to need to be more specific

pine crystal
#

Riding a broom?

fallow dome
#

Nah

#

Maybe

#

Ok I’ll get up and turn on my mister

#

TWNKLE TALE

pine crystal
#

That doesn't sound witchy...

fallow dome
#

There’s dithering all over the place. They also use black vertical lines to simulate shadows.

drowsy hemlock
#

Why adaptive when you can just blur everything indiscriminately?

#

Why Robby, why?! NotLikeThis

drowsy hemlock
warm carbon
#

yeah, I’m in the same boat with the new core. People smarter than me say it’s more accurate. The brain worms love accuracy. 🤷

compact plover
#

Can anyone get Vs. Puyo Puyo Sun working? There's no sound and it goes to a black screen after the intro

plain quiver
#

We had some troubles for extracting the game back then.
I tried to take a look on my side when the extractions was done, but failed to help.

pale plover
#

iirc there is anti-piracy measures in those Mega Drive Mini 2 exclusive games.

No idea if they have been cracked or not.

compact plover
#

Yeah it's interesting since all the other Mega Drive Mini 2 games work. Thanks for the info!

pale plover
#

Also I don't think the Space Harrier ROMs would work on stock hardware anyway. The developers at M2 deliberately "cheated" in order to make the complex scaling possible.

thorny pivot
#

The only thing stopping the old Genesis core from being a new Genesis core again is a framework update and I know some of you whipper snappers know how to do those. 😉

pine crystal
#

I won't lie. It would be nice if someone did that and just posted a build in the test builds channel. 😉

fickle hemlock
#

there's a build around somewhere of the old genesis core with the framework updated for dv1

warm carbon
thorny pivot
#

I want the “inaccurate” core. Gimme dat blue candy, candy man.

warm carbon
#

I am checking with the person who built it make sure it's ok to share. They never said don't, but someone else did 🤷

#

Genesis Core with the updated framework. Keep in mind that this is a YMMV core. It's deprecated, so reporting issues is akin to screaming into the void

📎 Genesis.rbf
#

@fallow dome You can pin that if you think it's useful ^^

#

Say what you will but remember #1096614378968727652 message

thorny pivot
#

Poetic that JesusFish provides Genesis. Bless you! 🫶

#

How recent is that build?

warm carbon
#

April of 2024

hard silo
#

Yeah it is good that the new core is called Mega Drive

#

As it should've been since the beginning

#

🙂

amber gulch
warm carbon
pine crystal
#

Doing the Lord's work. 🙏

fading hare
pine crystal
#

The beginning is literally Genesis. 😉

drowsy hemlock
#

lol genesis

amber gulch
#

The G in Genesis stands for genius. smugnep

drowsy hemlock
#

The r in Mega Drive stands for replication elmorise

#

And the e would stand for emulation but because there are two of them it’s negated. Meaning “no emulation”

amber gulch
#

The N in Genisis stands for: nuh uh!

warm carbon
#

actually it's nintendont

fringe zodiac
#

Jesus does what nintendont

tulip surge
fallow dome
worldly dust
#

am I losing my mind?

#

there's no Toy Story theme playing in the background? It's just silent???

image.png
#

(both new and old core)

warm carbon
#

nope, no sound until the first demo starts

worldly dust
#

do I have another goddamn Mandela going on

worldly dust
#

this game is a wonderful example of composite blend doing wonders

shut aspen
#

damn, Woody's a nasty little guy here

glass shale
#

Reminds me of another Mandela: I’m pretty sure Moonwalker had the thriller song playing at the cemetery stage when I played it as a kid

worldly dust
#

it's likely not

#

I mean it's likely not a Mandela because that game had a lot of revisions to remove MJ's songs

worldly dust
drowsy hemlock
#

There goes my 1g1r strategy of preferring later revisions 😆

worldly dust
#

there's also an MD+ version of the game that has all appropriate CD-audio karaoke tracks

glass shale
#

What are the chances I had played that prototype back then?

#

Well, it was a bootleg, so there’s a chance

tulip surge
#

more games needed dancing dogs

glass shale
#

Doggos are great dancers in Moonwalker haha

night cape
pale plover
#

That does sometimes happen. For example, a leaked prototype of Sonic 2 was distributed as a bootleg, which is how some people played the game prior to the release date.

rancid wedge
#

One of the most iconic games for the Sega/Mega CD is 'Night Trap' It's strange that it doesn't function properly on the MiSTer

fallow dome
rancid wedge
#

It's very strange. The game seems to autostart, skipping the intro, and then the directions lock up so it can't be played. I tested the European and US version and both behave the same.

#

At first I thought it might have been a timing issue as the game relies heavily on timing. E.g you can't play the Sega CD version at all on a European Mega CD even with a bypass cart because of the 50/60 hz difference between regions.

compact garden
#

Id test myself but I don't even think I have dumped my copy of Night Trap

#

Oh I might have done

#

I think I'm booting into might trap

rancid wedge
#

It would be good if somebody could test this

compact garden
#

What's the into that supposed to be skipped for you?

#

It's showing the beginning credits for me so far

#

Just pressed start and it's skipped all the beginning stuff, now I am playing

rancid wedge
#

The game shows the credits for a moment and then the part with the commander debriefing the player skips and goes straight to the game. Then the D-pad is locked and you can't switch rooms.

compact garden
#

Ok, il reset and not press anything on my controller

#

Yeah the commander talking to me fine in the intro

#

Telling me about traps and giving me control of the cameras and traps

fallow dome
#

Thanks for testing @compact garden

compact garden
#

I'm using my USA dump, which consists of 2 discs.

#

Huh

rancid wedge
#

The whole thing skips for me. It must be something on my setup. I'm going to do more tests. Thanks for checking

compact garden
#

Scat system disconnect

#

Woah that's pretty neat

#

So if I don't press anything, the commanders like "your not up to the mission". Pulls the plug and resets the game.

(Not played Night Trap before even though I own a copy)

rancid wedge
#

Yes you can game over in the intro. I remember that haha

woeful goblet
#

There’s a new rom hack of Sonic 2 called Sonic 2 Delta Ultimate that unfortunately doesn’t work on MiSTer. The old version of Sonic Delta game was amazing. Hope that someday Sonic 2 Delta Ultimate works too

#

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3dkS7r446VE

YouTube
DDAS Sonic
Sonic The Hedgehog 2 Delta Ultimate (2025) - Tails • Sonic Hack Lon...

ENG - Now Sonic 2 Delta has its separate version, still in the testing and development phase. We can access a Menu to choose different gameplay, layout and music options, among other things. The game follows the style of Sonic 3 & Knuckles and for this reason the sprites are like that game, in addition to giant rings being spread throughout the ...

▶ Play video
rancid wedge
#

I used to spend hours playing Sonic 2 back in the day. I was searching for 'The Hidden Palace' which I was convinced was hidden somewhere on the Aquatic Ruin zone. It was rumoured to be in the game and the music for the stage is in the sound test. So I was convinced it was there. Someone told me recently: Oh yeah, Sega cut that out at the last minute. Thanks Sega for the hours of my teens wasted ;p

fallow dome
pine crystal
#

Supposedly runs on real hardware... with 'help'.

#

So yeah... probably not going to work on MiSTer as-is.

woeful goblet
woeful goblet
fallow dome
pine crystal
#

Good to know. Thanks for that!

#

There's a link to that Discord in the first link I posted.

glass shale
#

Night Trap hangs for me with a picture of Alejandro 😔

worn lake
woeful goblet
warm carbon
woeful goblet
pine crystal
#

No telling what the Mega Sg is doing in FPGA to allow it to boot.

warm carbon
#

so yeah, likely not happening on mister as @pine crystal said

worn lake
#

The discord says that any emulator needs to support the Sonic Delta mapper. So do we have a quirk in the core to detect that and it needs to be updated for an additional cart ID or something?

#

May be similar for Mega EverDrive pro as that does not set the correct mapper type for this game either

rancid wedge
#

Figured it out. The issue with Night Trap was due to mouse control being enabled in the options.

fallow dome
worldly dust
#

40mb, what the hell did they cram in

worldly dust
#

by weird coincidence I've managed to run a regular MD game inside 32x core

#

that's kinda funny

stoic flame
#

I think Sonic Delta 40Mb mostly needed the ability to enable both SSF2-style ROM banking and PS4/Beyond Oasis-style SRAM banking in the same game, which AFAIK was supported by the Sega mapper chip but was never used together in any released cartridge.

#

Its sound driver code also had an issue with the Z80 interrupt mode in the Genesis core, but that just kept music from playing.

drowsy hemlock
#

Night trap definitely works for me on the SCD core. I’ve played it (not to the end) before

sour yarrow
#

@worldly dust You can put MD/G game carts into a real 32x. They just wont use the extra hardware. 32x still uses the base console hardware as it was considered an addon, so the core would still need the Mega Drive's guts

night cape
stoic flame
#

Are "32X-enhanced Genesis games" potentially a thing? I don't know of any actual examples, but it seems like there ought to be a way to do it, a la GBC/GBA-enhanced Game Boy games or DSi-enhanced DS games.

thorny pivot
#

We're all waiting for you to answer your own question because you have a yellow name. lol

#

PS. I love Porcupine Tree.

night cape
vital idol
#

Pretty sure paprium can at least detect a 32x, and maybe benefit?

#

I am not one of the chosen few to receive it to verify though.

split moth
split moth
plain quiver
#

You can have some 32x explosive boxes that you can throw to the enemies sometimes inside the game, if you connect a 32x system.

livid spire
#

As a semi-related out there idea;
Seeing discussions on linking to physical media (perhaps Megadrive cartridges being easier than reading a PSX disc. Maybe not!), a fun side effect here...

If Megadrive "could" do cart reads, could it then be a way to make Master System 3D glasses support work via the Megadrive SMS converter?

worldly dust
#

This is really dumb uneducated parrot of Coury, but

#

Maybe through the tape jack?

#

-# mmmmhhh yeah it's not gonna work

livid spire
#

See, if not the tape jack then a cart slot instead! elmorise 🤣

left willow
#

otherwise if you want a close to svideo image out of composite, use the core in PAL60 and use the PAL/NTSC switch on your active yc adapter. waterfall wont look very composite like though lol

spare summit
left willow
#

You configure the mister to pal60 and if you just run the mega drive core and run NTSC games it will be NTSC but using pal color encoding

#

In the mister.ini ntsc_mode=0 ; Only for S-Video and CVBS vga_mode. 0 - normal NTSC, 1 - PAL-60, 2 - PAL-M.

#

The core Is running with NTSC timings and frequencies but PAL color encoding when you change the mister.ini, so as long as the yc values are tuned in yc.txt which for mega drive they already are, it will just work

spare summit
#

Will the sound also change to PAL? I just noticed this when I was switching video modes on my console.

left willow
#

No it doesn't work like a regular console in pal

#

The core is still using NTSC when you run an NTSC game

#

It's just the color encoding

#

So the game will be running at 60hz regular NTSC speed etc

#

But the video signal will be pal60

#

So if you have a pal only crt you can play NTSC games at the correct speed and so on

sour yarrow
# left willow just for anyone else thats using composite out of mister and wants a slightly be...

Wow - testing this now and the new YC value looks MUCH better over composite. There is a slight vibration to the image, but less severe than any 480i content. Worth it for the graphics clarity. The Revenge of Shinobi health bar is a good example.
I can't switch between PAL and NTSC with my YC adapter, so PAL60 is off the table for me.

I know you've been working on other cores with this, so do you have a spreadsheet of values to use?
Are you working with MikeS on adding the alternative values to yc.txt?

night cape
#

Test this with Sonic 2 split screen versus mode.

sour yarrow
left willow
# sour yarrow Wow - testing this now and the new YC value looks MUCH better over composite. Th...

I'll be tuning this value a bit more for the vibration I just plugged in and was surprised that it didn't have dot crawl and fixed the jaggies. I'll create a Google sheets tomorrow with all the values I have so far. Currently the cores Im looking to cover are N64,psx,mega drive,TurboGrafx and Saturn so the more popular stuff for now also maybe nes/snes NTSC values but they are already really good

sour yarrow
#

Need to check out how this looks over RF

worldly dust
#

first Sonic 2 decided to freeze on me and then Sonic 3 pulls this?

#

at least I got saves

worldly dust
#

-# and a Time Over

frigid tapir
# worldly dust https://imgur.com/y7j4y2U

I have seen this Sonic 3 Glitch somewhere before. Basically because of Super Sonic and Spin Dashing, you are basically able to go beyond the screen lock for where the boss fight would happen.

livid spire
sour yarrow
#

I did the put the new yc value with s= in the yc.txt towards the bottom with the other PAL60 stuff

worldly dust
#

the more I learn about this wonderful game

stone plinth
#

Sonic 3 is notoriously buggy

sour yarrow
#

Is it fixed with the Knuckles version?

stone plinth
#

Yeah they ironed out a lot of the bugs

#

Dr. Robotnik's Speed Traps are a lot less prevalent

sour yarrow
#

Niiice

stone plinth
#

Sonic 3 Complete is the recommended way to play it though

#

More bug fixes, QOL improvements (being able to cancel out of Super Sonic AND replace the Super Sonic music with sped up stage music) and lets you mix the best of both games

#

So if you prefer the Sonic 3 Knuckles/Miniboss theme, you can use that, for example

night cape
worldly dust
#

I was just nostalgic for base Sonic 3

#

-# even if I played it exclusively through S&K Collection as a kid

night cape
#

Fair, Sonic 3 base is very close to Sonic 2. It was even possible to enable level select on Sonic 2, then change to Sonic 3 without turn off and press reset. Boom, sound test enabled on Sonic 3.

stone plinth
#

With the actual original Launch Base and Ice Cap songs on the S&K Collection

#

That's a damn sight easier than trying Sonic 3's actual level select code

worldly dust
#

they really did not want you to find out the game got rushed out

#

I wonder if there's an MD+ hack of Sonic 3 Complete and if it works on the core

worldly dust
#

what the hell are you doing in my Sonic-only playthrough, Tails

sour yarrow
night cape
#

The TV needs to support both NTSC and PAL.

left willow
left willow
#

If pal60 was your only option for mega drive honestly I'd rather use the NTSC luma trap and get rainbowing and a bit of blur, because pal60 looks too sharp in my opinion. Once the Sonic waterfall loses transparency and looks like lines, that becomes too much for me

left willow
sour yarrow
left willow
#

What TV do you have?

sour yarrow
#

Several - but the one I was using is a 13" Apex DVD combo set. I have some other consumer grade composite sets I can try out and see if I get lucky with PAL60. It's just good to know those TVs will look great with the MiSTer now (and they already looked good before). I do have a pair of 9" Panasonic monitors that are composite only that might work, but they're being stored at the moment...

left willow
#

There's only a handful of things so far that I found look better in pal60

#

And then other stuff looks more "authentic" in NTSC

#

But mega drive was an outlier

#

Huge sharpness gain from going PAL

#

I'm going over some of the other cores in NTSC anyway cause I'm having some good success

#

Saturn annoying as hell though

#

Too many damn resolutions

night cape
#

Funny enough, the 32X had the best composite out.

thorny pivot
#

Yeah, it’s pretty good, especially with the Kevtris noise fix.

bright pivot
fallow dome
#

Is that game cool? All I hear about it is the drama from the developer and people not being able to dump it, but no one talks about the game itself.

plain quiver
#

The game is cool, I bring it sometimes in retro conventions.

fallow dome
#

Awesome!

#

It looks really nice.

thorny pivot
#

Is Watermelon games officially disbanded?

plain quiver
#

Officially, they are working on ports of Paprium and another game.

#

The near-legendary SEGA Genesis/Mega Drive Brawler is coming to the next-GEN platforms, STEAM, PS4/5, SWITCH and so much more!

light mist
#

That's a name I haven't heard for years.
Like Analog Mega Drive thing old...

#

Games ambitious and alright for what it is.

#

then you discover the jump attacks and the game gets trivial

thorny pivot
#

Thanks, Zet. Googling real/current information on them wasn’t fruitful.

plain quiver
#

The game exists.

#

Personal photo during an event 3 months ago.

thorny pivot
#

Some day I’ll play it. Some day.

light mist
#

I wonder though, has there been much progress in regards to unlocks?

#

Assuming the last time played was around a month after release

plain quiver
#

Sadly, people were playing more the other games here.
There was a Neo Geo AES with Puzzle Bobble 2 and TMNT IV on SFC on the same table.

plain quiver
light mist
#

I vaguely remember wild theories like using the fake game it launched into on analog sgs to unlock stuff

plain quiver
#

I could ask to a friend who have written a strategy guide on that game 4 years ago.

light mist
#

wasted effort as I would most likely not use the knowlege

glass shale
#

I still have my backer copy of Paprium sealed

#

The one that comes with a leather underwear Muahaha

#

Waiting for a proper dump and MiSTer support someday

woeful goblet
# glass shale I still have my backer copy of Paprium sealed

Mine is open (the game, not the leather underwear😂).
Paprium is an amazing game with a great replay factor. In my opinion, it’s one of the greatest beat’n’up of all time.
I really don’t understand why Fonzie did all the mess he did with his supporters. The game is already finished, with little fixing needed. It could be released for Switch, PS5 and Xbox but maybe he tough that it would make less than USD 900.000 selling it at those platforms and sending the cartridges to his backers.🤷🏻‍♂️

worldly dust
#

not near my mister right now, considering making a folder with dumps from official collections

#

-# red cross ruins everything again

#

I mean, uh, can I just safely rename every .68K's into .bins?

worldly dust
#

Wow, Sonic 3D Blast pulled something incredible

#

It makes my CRT lose sync with it and it's the first time I've seen something like that

#

Not regularly but usually when it switches to weird res with framebuffer effects (intro movie, special stages)

#

The 240p to 480i switch in PSX core is unnoticeable so what the hell

plain quiver
#

Did you tried the Director's Cut of that game as well ?

worldly dust
#

that's the first time a MiSTer menu does something funny to game's graphics too

#

I'll play around with og rom but my CRT lost signal as soon as I passed the special stage, right before the results screen

#

fascinating

#

I need to revisit gamehut's video on it to remind myself how these graphics work

fickle hemlock
#

is it a 480i game?

worldly dust
#

no, it's "240p" (224p) game but it uses obscure resolution switches

fringe zodiac
#

I guess that the Saturn 3D blast is the version to play anyway

worldly dust
#

I love MD's soundtrack by Tatsuyuki Maeda way more

#

but I am playing both either way

night cape
#

Also there is a cracked version of Pocket Monsters 2 that glitches out in one of the later stages when you take damage, it messes up the screen even over HDMI.

worldly dust
#

ohh hohoho, thanks for pointers

worldly dust
#

Sonic Crackers doesn't work on the current MD core, and that's pretty funny

#

hangs at A on the SEGA title screen

#

old core runs it fine

worldly dust
#

oh no

#

@fading hare my MiSTer doesn't approve my Chaotix x Heavy shipping

#

while it hangs, is there like data I can send to someone

fading hare
#

Are you using the latest build of the core?

#

Unstable that is.

worldly dust
#

latest stable

#

alright, running unstable

#

and waiting for all demo loops

fading hare
#

Yeah, I know there was an issue with the game freezing during a demo loop. I believe the unstable build in the pins fixed it if I remember correctly.

worldly dust
#

wow, TIL "Isolated Island" (intro stages) have a title card

worldly dust
#

the demo players don't make the game look good

worldly dust
#

No other issues with Chaotix at all, it was pretty smooth

#

But I need to look up how the game ran on actual 32x because it had REALLY nasty slowdowns

#

I don't remember it being so slow at times on Kega

#

Made me think of Sonic 06 on PS3

fading hare
worldly dust
#

Invincibility might as well be the slowdown monitor

fringe zodiac
#

Is the composite filter exclusive to digital out? Or will it work with analog out as well?

#

Thus enabling composite dithering on a RGB signal?

worldly dust
#

#1096614378968727652 message

night cape
#

I wish it was possible to add it back to the Saturn core, but the FPGA usage is too high on that core.

worldly dust
#

Shame

#

It would definitely help with mesh transparencies

vestal hatch
fringe zodiac
#

Maybe some HLE parts of the core (CD emulation?) can be moved off to the ARM cores at some point.

#

So that the FPGA part is just Titan and the added CD stuff is ARM.

plucky flare
#

srg already tends to push lots of cd operations to the HPS side. that's probably as good as it will get

#

only hope there is he can identify some parts of the controller or something that aren't timing sensitive

stuck gull
#

every time i check this channel someone is asking the same question. perhaps some kind of pinned response could help

tulip surge
#

Pins are good, also I like the optimism 🙂

livid spire
#

Just been testing SMS games on the Megadrive core. It seems like the 1 and 2 SMS buttons were mapped to A and B, rather than B and C on original hardware. Has this been noted before?

#

Just a quick test, but I'll get time to confirm with SNAC later too. IIRC should be B and C with the Master System Converter on original hardware. Same using a Megadrive controller on a Master System

narrow aspen
#

I think my next Sorted Set is going to be for Sega CD.

narrow aspen
#

Apparently, there’s an e-book format that runs on the X-Eye with a special cartridge called EBXA. Has anyone ever heard of it, or know if the Electronic Book Decoder for X'Eye cart has been dumped?

#

I’ve been able to find a few of them. Looks like they shipped on Mini-CD:

plain quiver
#

That's the Wonder Library.

#

But the US version (Electronic Book Decoder for X'Eye)

#

That variant isn't dumped, even privately.

narrow aspen
#

The Japanese version should work - I’ll test that with the Mode 1 / MSU-MD support and see if it runs the disc

#

Ah, okay - it’s the same format that the Data Discman used. Techmoan made a good video about that player series:

narrow aspen
#

Hmm - that just gave me a black screen when I tried to load Wonder Library in the core as boot.rom. It should at least show a boot screen there.

narrow aspen
#

Be curious if someone could look into it - there were actually games shipped on the format, too.

#

Most notably, Tsunami (a group of ex-Sierra developers, best known for Blue Force, Silent Steel, & Flash Traffic) developed a title called Adventure 101: Intro to Tourist Traps, Dwarfs and Chivalry.

narrow aspen
#

Oh, interesting - most discs actually ship with an interpreter for DOS on the disc:

#

The tiny simulated Discman for the player is actually kind of adorable. Will probably make a different pack for these via .mgl files with ao486, similar to what the 0Mhz project does.

plain spear
#

Quick little question. Is there a way to re-name the MegaCD core to SegaCD in the menu and for it to still work in update all?

warm carbon
#

isn’t there a names.txt file you can change?

plain spear
narrow aspen
#

Does anyone have a good database for MSU-MD/Mode 1 hacks?

worn lake
narrow aspen
narrow aspen
#

Here’s some footage by Mr^Burns of a copy of the Wonder Library program cart loading a disc:

#

It also seems like there are multiple generations of the player software on PCs, which I’ve heard referred to as SEBAS. I’ve found later versions designed for Win3.x, Windows 95, and Macintosh.

graceful edge
#

what causes the older Genesis core to not work on some newer 24-bit boards? i assume it’s something DAC-related, as the core works on my analog pro from misteraddons, which i would guess is because this board uses a resistor ladder rather than a true DAC?

fallow dome
#

that’s odd, didn’t know that. My ignorant assessment is that it’s probably due to the old core being deprecated so it’s not accounting for new hardware revisions.

pine crystal
#

The older core is an abomination anyway.
Blast Processing™️ doesn't need a turbo mode. It's messing with the space-time continuum.

#

Humans aren't responsible enough yet for that kind of power.

pale plover
#

The heathens that don't want to play Road Rash II the way God intended makes me sick 😡

graceful edge
#

i like the older genesis core :p i think the same issue affects some older raizing arcade cores, like battle garegga, which also won't work on some 9.2 IO boards

warm carbon
#

there is an updated version in this channel

#

I posted it a couple of weeks ago I think

pine crystal
#

Oh, that's right. I forgot about that.

warm carbon
#

#1096614378968727652 message

pine crystal
#

(Robby didn't pin it 😄 )

#

I'm glad you mentioned that. I remember you posting that, but I was at work when you did it... and when I got home, I forgot to download it.

fallow dome
graceful edge
#

are there any other cores affected by being outdated? the only ones i know of are some of the raizing cores that i mentioned earlier

warm carbon
#

I think all the arcade cores that could be updated were updated. I dunno about console cores, but maybe? Birdybro and someone else did a pass updating the frameworks of a cores earlier last year

pine crystal
#

The core for those Raizing games is not part of the official MiSTer repository, so it's up to the maintainer of that core to update the MiSTer framework.

#

...and considering who maintains it, I'm not holding my breath.

graceful edge
#

here's hoping they get updated eventually. i recall someone, not sure who, mentioning that framework updates for those cores would be coming sometime. i really hope that's the case 🤞

#

i'm surprised there's not more demand for them considering how rare and expensive the real pcbs are

warm carbon
#

they are literally working on them right now

graceful edge
#

sweet!!!

glass shale
#

Day 0

jade turret
plucky flare
#

I assume that's one of the things they want to fix

fallow dome
hard silo
#

big changes

clever nymph
#

Knuckles' Chaotix seems to still crash on the updated core.

faint onyx
clever nymph
#

During the attract mode.

burnt badger
#

I think that's the same bug that cropped up before

faint onyx
#

Happens ingame too, if you wait long enough and do nothing.

#

Game freezes

#

But i had CPU Turbo on medium, don't know if it's related.

#

Ok, disabled the CPU turbo and know the attract mode runs fine since 8 minutes.

warm carbon
#

the attract crash has been around forever. but if anyone can nail it, it's SRG

woeful goblet
pine crystal
#

Would you say it's behaving chaotically?

faint onyx
#

For me it's fixed when i disable the CPU turbo. Attract seems fine now.

#

edit: Ok, it randomly freezes. So, yes. The bug is still there.

hard silo
#

It is provably a bug from the compile from GitHub

warm carbon
#

was it fixed?

hard silo
#

Yeah some time back

warm carbon
#

but that bug has been around for as long as I can remember...so I dunno when it came back considering this was closed in April (before I had a mister)

faint onyx
#

Well, no crashes for me. But it freezes if you wait long enough, or reload the core+game. Can happen at any time as it seems.

plain quiver
#

I saw the crash some weeks ago when I tried to add the SH7604 changes back then, and explained to refrain to use it as it fixes some sounds on NBA Jam, but Chaotix regressed.

#

#1096614378968727652 message

normal rivet
#

Should we re-open the issue on Git?

plain quiver
#

Yes.

normal rivet
#

Someone else will need to. I don’t have permission.

cloud otter
#

DMA_LOCK updates most likely. That was the original cause in the old setup. The slave was never returning DMA unlock to the 68000 side (if I remember right. I fixed it like 2 years ago).

#

Really quick I'll try adding a default behavior to clear the lock if none of the checks are met. Just in case it's getting hung.

cloud otter
#

Here's a quick test. I have been running attract with turbo on High for 15 minutes without a crash. <Removed....trying a new one>

#

@clever nymph give that build a try and let me know if it fixes the issue for you. If it does, I'll submit a PR.

#

I just ran the previous Feb 12 build on the same MiSTer and got the crash. I can't say for sure my fix is correct, but it seems to solve the hang at least. Or I've got a very small sample size and just happen to be hitting a lucky run. Also possible.

#

Oop. Lucky run. Finally ran out. So that's not it. Deleting the build.

cloud otter
#

It's slightly different this time around. Last time, the bug was the fx68K either had to be reset or the BA wait state transfer had to clear the register for DMA lock, resulting in the background (68k) graphics not rendering. This time around, it looks like the foreground graphics and logic aren't rendering, so I created a new bug, referenced the old, and added my guess. https://github.com/MiSTer-devel/S32X_MiSTer/issues/58

GitHub
Knuckles and Chaotix - Inconsistent crashing/hanging during attract...

Possibly similar to #47 I believe the DMA lock is not getting reset in some situations. The opening to K&C uses a weird handoff (like WWE) between Slave SH and 68000, so I'm guessing there&...

spare summit
#

Yesterday and today marked the 30th anniversary of the game Ristar. For my posts I made screenshots from the game, which were used for the back of the box of different regions. Not exactly like the original, but I tried

Screenshot_2025-02-16_14-00-24.jpg Screenshot_2025-02-16_14-01-03.jpg Screenshot_2025-02-16_14-11-53.jpg Screenshot_2025-02-16_14-17-14.jpg Screenshot_2025-02-16_14-32-46.jpg Screenshot_2025-02-16_14-36-16.jpg
fallow dome
#

It’s funny that’s it’s basically become an obscure game now, even though it’s from the Sonic Team, thanks to @pale plover for pointing out it’s not made by the Sonic Team and in fact made by the Sonic Team.

#

It’s probably my second favorite game made by a criminal. NOT TRUE

spare summit
#

I find myself thinking that Ristar and Dynamite Headdy have something in common. It's as if Sonic Team and Treasure decided to take the same gameplay idea, but each implemented it in their own way. As a result, we got 2 great games with their own DNA

manic ridge
pale plover
#

No idea where the misconception that Ristar was developed by Sonic Team came from. If you looked at the actual credits of the game, the majority of the staff weren't even involved with the Sonic games.

fallow dome
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Ok from Wikipedia:

In a 1994 Electronic Gaming Monthly interview, Sega marketing staff Lisa Best and Terry Tang claimed Ristar was not designed by the same Sonic programming team,[18] although much of the game's staff would later go on to create Nights into Dreams for the Saturn, the next game to be officially credited to Sonic Team. This, along with Ristar's inclusion in a number of Sonic themed compilations and re-releases in subsequent years, would lead game journalists to retroactively label the game as being developed by Sonic Team.

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I’ve been fooled by journalists! linknoo

pine crystal
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The Mega Drivela Effect

fading hare
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According to Robby, Sonic Team also made Bubsy and Aero the Acrobat, because they share the same tude as da Sonics. derpsmile

nocturne glacier
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Sonic Team made Hotel Mario

fading hare
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It's the only logical explanation.

livid spire
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MD Fourier testing the SMS mode of the MegaDrive core, comparing to the SMS core. Both using the same DAC output into PC analog capture.

Has anyone tested this before?

@carmine pine As you helped guide the DAC use in #mister-hardware , thank you. I suspect my DAC introduces about 1dB at the very highest end of frequency, but hopefully shouldn't matter for the comparison when both audio captures used it

DA__ALL_SMScore_dac_vs_MEGADRIVEcore_dac_0000.png
carmine pine
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also some sms games had whiny artifacts before the filtering

livid spire
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Huh. Is that something added to the MegaDrive, or a part of the Power Base Converter?

carmine pine
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added to the megadrive core

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because jotego's sound module had a sorta high-level emulation-y style workaround for the issue of resampling causing ringing

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thje megadrive core doesn't use taht module

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so the mister framework is downsampling a variable frequency rate from the PSG when used as a 1-bit dac and when there are conflicting frequencies on each input and output

livid spire
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Oh, so not in real hardware I guess... Hmm. Was still trying to understand the odd high frequency end of output here, but I was testing with my model 2 Megadrive last night and got this comparison to my SMS2

DA__ALL_SMS2_RF_VCR_Direct_vs_MD2_SMS_RF_VCR_Direct_0000.png
carmine pine
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yeah those two will be really different

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they arent' using identical analog output chains

livid spire
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Could the core be tweaked on top of that change you noted above, to bring the MegaDrive core closer to real hardware then?

carmine pine
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what happens when you compare a megadrive 2 with the megadrive core for this?

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because that's the right comparison

livid spire
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I was curious to test it. All it took was removing the very large shell from the Power Base Converter to fit onto the Model 2

carmine pine
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it will still have a heavier LPF in the core

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no workaround for that exists yet

livid spire
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Audio filters on the MiSTer level?

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I'll get that plot.....

carmine pine
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yes, on the core

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the core is filtering more than a real megadrive, and it has to currently because of the issues in games that abuse the PSG as if it were a 1-bit DAC

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those games can have a variable sampling frequency from anywhere of like... 12khz to 280khz

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no filter (that would fit on MiSTer easily and meet timing) can cover all those bases, so a real workaround within the sound chip is the only solution, similar to what all emulators do, so that it won't output such crazy high frequencies

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those high frequencies when downsampled to 48khz create ringing artifacts

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there's no way to fix it without kinda emulation-y hacking the sound chip the same way jotego had done so with his jt89

livid spire
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Thanks for the explanation. Sounds complex alright! I guess I'll try to tweak a core audio filter, still need to try understand what those "Arcade LPF" filter X0,X1,X2 etc values mean

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That's a comparison of MegaDrive 2 hardware via composite, to MiSTer MegaDrive core in SMS mode via composite from a DAC

DA__ALL_MD2_SMS_Composite_Direct_vs_MEGADRIVEcore_dac_0000.png
carmine pine
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if you change the audio filter options in the core it should change the behavior of that plot

livid spire
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Never saw the splitting high frequency lines before

carmine pine
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yeah you can basically see the taps in the filtering there lol

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kinda funny to visualize it that way

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it's close enough, just a little more muffled than the real thing, so sorg left it at that for now

livid spire
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The splitting is fun in a way, whatever that is real hardware has some of it

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I'll try a filter in the core.

livid spire
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I'm sharing those real hardware SMS to MegaDrive results with MD Fourier too. I guess perhaps that has been looked at before, but I couldn't see any data for comparison with my findings

carmine pine
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but yeah in general it requires kind of a low-level change to the ym7101.v file which is a massive file because the PSG was integrated into the VDP on the megadrive

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and because it's like a netlist converted to verilog, it's much harder to do that change than it comparably would have been in jt89

livid spire
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Thanks birdybro. The other thing I'd realised is now having a MegaDrive Model 2 that can play SMS games with the Power Base Converter, I can do some tests to compare the light phaser over SNAC on the core to original hardware

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I'd seen that noted in a GitHub issue. Be curious to compare myself when I get some more time and space to get everything out to compare

plain quiver
fallow dome
carmine pine
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@warm falcon Do these graphical glitches in Shining Force II occur on your original core or in your simulator?

https://github.com/MiSTer-devel/MegaDrive_MiSTer/issues/61#issuecomment-2676317733

https://youtu.be/gUh3y87uzUY?t=5 - look at the top of the screen when he throws the spear. i already tried toggling on cram dots and it didn't change behavior. the user says it doesn't happen on any other platform and from memory I don't remember this glitch (I've played SF2 like 20 times) but i could be mistaken.

YouTube
Aberu
SF2 MiSTer FPGA spear glitches top of screen
▶ Play video
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i'm suspecting it's likely some instability in our port of the core, but just want to confirm with you

random marsh
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not a whole lot of updates in that channel yet builds keep popping up getting pinned daily in their separate channels

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it's weird

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so the last snes build which has some SA1 MSU fix got posted in the unstable channel. that's nice

carmine pine
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test builds is usually for developers wanting people to test it out and give feedback

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zet updates s32x with shared component updates that are from the saturn core and posts them here sometimes

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also for cores that don't have unstable nightlies setup (this is at the discretion of the main developer of that core) zet and others compiles them for the community here. so it's a little different from test builds

random marsh
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ok

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in other words, it's a mister salad

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and it's fresh and crunchy and tasty and rizz'd

fallow dome
hard silo
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same

warm carbon
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wonder if they left / were banned