Atari/Legends Flashback Expansion Builds

[TampaBay]

@rocketfan That worked perfectly!  Thanks.  Pole Position is fixed.  You were right, I didn't see the extra "data" subfolder and I'd put the button mappings in the duplicate mame folder.  It works great now.

 

I was also able to get the the menu trick to work by putting that "restart_return" file in the emulator folder.  You were right, it's Select-Joystick Down to go to the selected game's menu, then you can back up to the Main Menu from there, all without the AFB9 Player 1 joystick menu buttons.  Super helpful.  That trick works just about everywhere in Nexus such as all the Atari consoles and the arcade cabinets.  It doesn't seem to work in the non-Atari consoles like Sega, but no big deal, I'm mostly in Atari and the arcade games anyway.  Thanks so much for all the help!  Awesome!!

[rocketfan]

Hey @TampaBay, very glad it's sorted out!

 

I've been taking a little break from the coding this weekend, and just learning a bit about VIC 20.  Before my recent fiddling with it, I didn't know William Shatner was their spokes-model.  🤣

 

 

What strikes me most if VIC 20 had a pretty good library of games, and a lot of ports of classics which appeal to me - they are on the chunky side somewhere between the 2600 and Atari 8bit in terms of graphical quality.  Maybe around the level of Colecovision games, which I really like.  Also, the VIC 20 used a blatant rip-off of the Atari joystick (which they were sued over) so many of the games are one-button.  It's a really good fit for these devices! 

 

I have recently played both the DOS and the VIC 20 versions of Shamus in my early testing efforts for a next update.  They are both kind of cool - not as good as the Atari 8-bit version, but the VIC 20 one is pretty amazing considering the system, and it is a really challenging game in terms of the difficulty level.

Edited February 4 by rocketfan

[TampaBay]

1 hour ago, rocketfan said:

Hey @TampaBay, very glad it's sorted out!

 

I've been taking a little break from the coding this weekend, and just learning a bit about VIC 20.  Before my recent fiddling with it, I didn't know William Shatner was their spokes-model.  🤣

 

 

What strikes me most if VIC 20 had a pretty good library of games, and a lot of ports of classics which appeal to me - they are on the chunky side somewhere between the 2600 and Atari 8bit in terms of graphical quality.  Maybe around the level of Colecovision games, which I really like.  Also, the VIC 20 used a blatant rip-off of the Atari joystick (which they were sued over) so many of the games are one-button.  It's a really good fit for these devices! 

 

I have recently played both the DOS and the VIC 20 versions of Shamus in my early testing efforts for a next update.  They are both kind of cool - not as good as the Atari 8-bit version, but the VIC 20 one is pretty amazing considering the system, and it is a really challenging game in terms of the difficulty level.

 

That's awesome!  And that's funny about William Shatner.

 

Yeah these computers were great.  They were around when I was growing up, and while I personally had a TI 99/4A, most of my friends had a VIC-20.  I remember going to friends' houses and playing games on the VIC-20 for hours.  That would be cool to play some of those games on Flashback!

 

 

[OrangeKryptonite]

Rocketfan, do you think you will release another build of NEXUS with VIC-20 support added in so we don't have to modify it ourselves? Also wondering if there might be compatibility with the Atari Flashback 12 or Atari Flashback 50th Anniversary Edition? Wondering if these units may have similar or same specs to the FLashback X.

 

Also...any chance that C64 capability will be coming? 

 

 

[rocketfan]

On 2/6/2024 at 2:48 AM, OrangeKryptonite said:

Rocketfan, do you think you will release another build of NEXUS with VIC-20 support added in so we don't have to modify it ourselves? Also wondering if there might be compatibility with the Atari Flashback 12 or Atari Flashback 50th Anniversary Edition? Wondering if these units may have similar or same specs to the FLashback X.

 

Also...any chance that C64 capability will be coming? 

The answers should be yes to all of the above.  C64 works.  I will make sections for C64 and VIC 20 and make new bundles.  I may be improving some other areas as well.  It's just a question of time.  I want to get to it before say Easter, because in April I start to get busy with cycling and then it's unlikely I'll be very productive on this stuff.  I would usually set up the LFB with something first.  It's easier because more content will just work (more buttons) and in general the LFB sections did not get customized as much.  Then I will follow on with the Atari Nexus version.  For Nexus Dr. Axxon was amazingly fast at cranking out a new section with a professional look.  He did a unique theme with music and artwork and often even bezels for everything on the Nexus pack.  I would like to keep something close to that standard, but honestly I am challenged by that stuff and still trying to figure out how exactly he did the modified backgrounds (not kidding).  Plus I always play test every bit of NEW content, then I always start enjoying playing the games - so it takes longer than I expected.  😆

 

As far as support for newer 50th/12 devices, I should include the custom firmware for those in the Tools folder in the upcoming builds, so that is one thing I'll add to the list. 

 

Point of clarification:  These Nexus and Legends packs are NOT "firmware" as such - they are really just big bundles of content for your custom firmware modded device.  The actual custom firmware concept was created and implemented by others, I believe originally by @rmr_md and for the Atari Flashbacks specifically by @Brad_from_the_80s.  Those are what enables the content to run on/from the flash drive, then we went sort of wild building on that concept.  Here below are the links to the topics where the custom firmware for the 50th and 12 can be found.  The Atari Flashback 12 Firmware was just added recently and so far I don't see that anyone came out and said it worked for them, so that would be good to see.

 

For any of the devices, once the install of the custom firmware is performed, then a Nexus build on a flash drive is very likely to work.  I can say it does work on a 50th anniversary device because I picked one of those up myself.  Warning:  More than one person mentioned to me that the overclock (a separate smaller firmware update I made) produces instability on their 50th anniversary edition.  I believe that may just be an issue of tolerances on specific units or CPU batches though.  Overclocking devices is always hit and miss.

 

 

[Brad_from_the_80s]

2 hours ago, rocketfan said:

The Atari Flashback 12 Firmware was just added recently and so far I don't see that anyone came out and said it worked for them, so that would be good to see.

 

One user reported the AFB12 cfw working for him, although it was in the AFB 50 thread.  So hopefully than one is fully good to go.

[OrangeKryptonite]

Thanks so much for the responses. Super exciting!! Can't wait for C64 to be supported

[TampaBay]

On 2/7/2024 at 9:27 PM, rocketfan said:

For any of the devices, once the install of the custom firmware is performed, then a Nexus build on a flash drive is very likely to work.  I can say it does work on a 50th anniversary device because I picked one of those up myself.  

 

I'll be curious to see if anyone can confirm that everything works fine with the paddles for both the stock paddle games and added rom games on the Nexus build for AFB 12 Gold. 

 

I have Nexus working great on my Flashback 9, but I've not tried to put it on my AFB 12 Gold yet because right now I'm using the AFB 12 for paddle games.  If Nexus works on the AFB 12 and the paddles work on all games, I'll probably add it to the AFB 12 as well.  I love it on my AFB9 !!

[Gabe]

On 2/7/2024 at 9:27 PM, rocketfan said:

The Atari Flashback 12 Firmware was just added recently and so far I don't see that anyone came out and said it worked for them, so that would be good to see.

I just flashed it to my Atari Flashback 12 Gold and it worked perfectly. 

[rocketfan]

Just a short update.  I spent some time this weekend researching the C64 section. Much like Atari 8-bit it's very "target rich" since there were literally thousands of C64 games.  I watched (at high speed) quite a few "best of" and "hidden gems" videos on YouTube - a great resource!  So, I'm feeling good to make a nice starter section with a lot of unique and classic titles.  Also, I found a great pack available (C64 Dreams) with 3D box art and many resources that also includes a lot of home-brew in addition to classics from back in the day.  Here are some example boxes for the home-brew.

 

 

 

 

Edited February 12 by rocketfan

[rocketfan]

13 hours ago, Gabe said:

I just flashed it to my Atari Flashback 12 Gold and it worked perfectly. 

Awesome - thanks for the feedback!

[chicane71]

Hiya

 

Can also confirm that it works with the AFB50G / AFB12G with @Brad_from_the_80s latest 1.1.1 CFW

 

However, after 10-15 mins it freezes and have to hard reset it (power disconnect).

 

Was mentioned by @rocketfan that it is perhaps overclocked and causing the instability? If so, it there a way to downtune this.

 

TBH I'm really only after 2600 / 7800 titles, everything else is a bonus

 

 

Cheers!

[rocketfan]

@chicane71 I have heard that type problem mentioned if someone applied the"overclock".  If you didn't, then it's also possible your device is just flaky.  A user also mentioned that applying this undo for the overclock helped.  It is really only going to help if you have applied the overclock in the first place.  The undo was meant for the AFBX and AFB50th,  I don't recommend applying it to the AFB12 - it is untested and there's a chance it would brick the unit.

 

 

Edited February 19 by rocketfan

[rocketfan]

Oh man, I played a lot of C64 games over the weekend!  I can say there are a bunch of good and unique games.  Compatibility was overall good, a little less so with cartridge based games I tried.   Quite a few games from my source had to be run in PAL mode to avoid graphical glitching.  I also got a list of which joystick they are requiring (the vast majority actually want stick 2) so that in the final section they can all be set to use the first stick.  You need that one to get into the on screen keyboard anyway.  Almost all games require some keyboard interaction - at least to start past the introduction screens.  Great news is that they are virtually all one button games.  Set stands somewhere around 140 games to make a nice representative "best of" section.

[OrangeKryptonite]

12 hours ago, rocketfan said:

Oh man, I played a lot of C64 games over the weekend!  I can say there are a bunch of good and unique games.  Compatibility was overall good, a little less so with cartridge based games I tried.   Quite a few games from my source had to be run in PAL mode to avoid graphical glitching.  I also got a list of which joystick they are requiring (the vast majority actually want stick 2) so that in the final section they can all be set to use the first stick.  You need that one to get into the on screen keyboard anyway.  Almost all games require some keyboard interaction - at least to start past the introduction screens.  Great news is that they are virtually all one button games.  Set stands somewhere around 140 games to make a nice representative "best of" section.

Awesome news. Hoping for some of my favorites in the build! Snokey, Space Taxi, Summer and Winter Games, Spy VS Spy, the Archon games... 😃

[CapitanClassic]

I cannot say I have played much C64, as most of my exposure to 8-bit computer games came from Atari 800. Most of the time, alternate (and may times superior) ports exist on other platforms.

 

Still, some people have compiled lists over the years.

From those lists these seem the most appropriate.

 

Space Taxi: Highly ranked exclusive (until the a800 homebrew gets released)

 

Great Giana Sisters: Appropriate because the lawsuit for ripping off SMB.

 

Maniac Mansion: Ported everywhere, but probably the best on C64.

 

International Karate +:

 

Last Ninja

 

Depending upon how much keyboard controls are necessary, some strategy games might be good.

Defender of the Crown

 

[rocketfan]

@OrangeKryptonite @CapitanClassic - Most of those mentioned above are in there already but a couple were not on my radar, so I'll look those up!  I had about 20 out of 165 games total I tried not work, but a lot of these C64 games have been hacked with cheats and so on, so IMO something like 12% having compatibility issues is not too bad.  One that I put a little extra effort on already was Maniac Mansion.  Multi-disk games are problematic because the VICE emulator relies on the front end (normally Retroarch) to support the disk swap and so we are SOL on those.  However, I had found a cart based version (which people use to install on a C64 flashcart) and was hopeful, but so far it was a no-go.

 

I have steered away from keyboard intensive games - meaning almost everything is action oriented like shmups, platformers, and some of the best sports games. There are a few rpg's in there for sure though. 

 

Lemon64 says Defender of the Crown is primarily joystick control, so I'll give that a go!

 

Edited February 23 by rocketfan

[wilfwilfus]

Good to see the Nexus project is still going strong!

 

I put together the ZX Spectrum pack a few years back with a little help from @rocketfan & Dr Axxon, also added a fair amount to the different Sega systems too.

 

Will be looking forward to see how C64 works!

 

For any Spectrum fans, a reminder to use menu/game select switch to bring up the virtual keyboard and use the joystick in port2/right to play the game.

[OrangeKryptonite]

On 2/22/2024 at 11:22 PM, rocketfan said:

@OrangeKryptonite @CapitanClassic - Most of those mentioned above are in there already but a couple were not on my radar, so I'll look those up!  I had about 20 out of 165 games total I tried not work, but a lot of these C64 games have been hacked with cheats and so on, so IMO something like 12% having compatibility issues is not too bad.  One that I put a little extra effort on already was Maniac Mansion.  Multi-disk games are problematic because the VICE emulator relies on the front end (normally Retroarch) to support the disk swap and so we are SOL on those.  However, I had found a cart based version (which people use to install on a C64 flashcart) and was hopeful, but so far it was a no-go.

 

I have steered away from keyboard intensive games - meaning almost everything is action oriented like shmups, platformers, and some of the best sports games. There are a few rpg's in there for sure though. 

 

Lemon64 says Defender of the Crown is primarily joystick control, so I'll give that a go!

 

Thanks so much for posting this update! I cannot wait for your next build with the C64 capability!!!

[Batchman]

So, for a time I had a Commodore 128, but don't remember doing games on it. Then again, maybe I did, but it just slipped my mind. How did V20/64/128 work with games ... were most of them usable on any system, or did each require their own?

 

I seem to recall that Commodore Gauntlet was quite close to arcade quality.

 

And did somebody indicate that paddles were working well on the Flashback 12? Is that like close to a real 2600? Or the last that I heard, that they were getting closer, but that the distance needed to turn to get to the other side of the screen was variable, depending on where you were on the screen? I miss paddle games!

Edited February 25 by Batchman

[rocketfan]

On 2/23/2024 at 11:10 AM, wilfwilfus said:

Good to see the Nexus project is still going strong!

@wilfwilfus Glad you "stopped by". 🙂  Yes, still moving along.  C64 took a long time.  Play testing is a little complex between the "crack" front ends on the games, the determination of whether a game is best run as PAL or NTSC, and whether it defaults to joyport 1 or 2.  Yesterday was the final assembly of the whole thing for the Legends Ultimate Flashback build.  Now (AFAIK) everything is tweaked for the right video setting and to use the primary joystick at start up.  The section is a big add for the device.  I have never played any games for C64 before this effort, but there are a lot of good/unique titles and some like for example "Rod Land", "Heavenbound", and "Mayhem in Monsterland" have very cool style and artistry.  Now with the suggestions above and getting some of the previous fails working - it is at about 160 games.  Now moving on to VIC-20, which should not take as long!

 

[rocketfan]

@Batchman  

 

As far as I know from just limited reading the C128 would generally run C64 games due to full backward compatibility.  Games often say C64/C128 on the box.  However, I'm not sure if many/any exclusive C128 games were ever made.  VICE can be compiled exclusively as a C128 emulator.  I think in addition to better HW there was one more video mode.  VIC-20 is not compatible and as I have been told, had no sprites so just earlier and limited technology.  Things were moving fast in those days and both Atari computers and the C64 had a lot better graphical features built in.  However, the VIC-20 was very popular for a while and does have a big game library.  It also used a rip-off of the Atari one-button joystick.  So, like with C64, the games are made "one button compatible" meaning they will work great with our Atari joystick on the flashbacks. 

 

6 hours ago, Batchman said:

And did somebody indicate that paddles were working well on the Flashback 12?

GenXGrownup (youtuber) did a nice job of demonstrating the problem for AtGames and they did respond and make a big improvement.  I am assuming the fix was then carried forward to the 11 and 12 which seem like more "name changes" than anything else.  Maybe someone with a 12 out there can say if they are working well?  You can see the video on the improvement below.  Over the last couple years I picked up an original 2600 and 7800 so I have to admit if I play a paddle game it is generally on one of those.  I think the best "modern" way for VCS paddle games is probably the 2600+ and I still want to pick up one of those someday, but the 400 mini is much higher on my list.  Too many choices these days.  I also mean to buy the new paddles Atari is making, because one of my old paddles (brittle with age I think) fell on the floor and is now held together with duct tape.  🤣

 

 

Edited February 25 by rocketfan

[Batchman]

So according to that video, much improved, but still twice as 'insensitive' as the original ... and I went back and looked through his video history, no indications of more updates since that time, so *probably* still out of luck. (On the other hand, he has not done any videos on the 12, so it's still *possible* there's been further progress.)

[TampaBay]

3 hours ago, Batchman said:

So according to that video, much improved, but still twice as 'insensitive' as the original ... and I went back and looked through his video history, no indications of more updates since that time, so *probably* still out of luck. (On the other hand, he has not done any videos on the 12, so it's still *possible* there's been further progress.)

@Batchman, @rocketfan  I have an AFB 12 and I play the paddles games on it (it might have been one of my posts that you saw earlier).  The AFB 12 is pretty much the exact same unit as the 50th Anniversary.  Just a name change as mentioned.

 

In the video, he's pretty spot on.  Prior to the "fix" with the firmware, the games were more unplayable since the movement was inconsistent across the width of the screen.  You'd rotate the paddle a certain amount on the left side of the screen, but if you were on the right side of the screen, you'd rotate a different amount to get the same movement.  So that's obviously a major problem.  The firmware update does fix that.  It is now consistent across the screen, but as you mention, it is apparently still "insensitive" when *compared* to an original 2600.  I personally don't mind that it doesn't match an original 2600 as I have no muscle memory from when I played the original 2600 way back as a kid.  The games on AFB 12 play just fine for me.  I wonder if I might like it even better than the original since there is more granularity when you spin the paddles.  You can fine tune your movements since a spin of the paddle doesn't jet you entirely across the screen.  Of course if you like the way the games played on the original 2600, then as the video suggests, it's probably best to wait until they refine it even further and make it closer to the original.  Since the AFB 12 is the same as the 50th Anniversary in the video, you can make the call if it's worth rolling the dice.  For what it's worth, I really like it.  I did pre-order the new Atari CX-30+ paddles and will try those out whenever they ship.

[Andreatari]

On 2/20/2024 at 1:56 AM, OrangeKryptonite said:

Awesome news. Hoping for some of my favorites in the build! Snokey, Space Taxi, Summer and Winter Games, Spy VS Spy, the Archon games... 😃

Hi friend,

I know that there is a WIP for a 2600 version but for Atari 8bit Home Computer it already exists...

you can find Space Taxi for any Atari with at least 48K (128kb are requested for speech sinthesys) here:
https://www.santellocco.com/atari/spacetaxi.htm

The game has just won the ZeroPage Homebrew Award 2024 in the Atari 8BIT/5200 Port category 😎

Edited February 25 by Andreatari