Programmable 10-in-1 cartridge for homebrew?

[LatchKeyKid]

Obviously the normal limitations of the 2600+ would still apply in that games utilizing in cartridge hardware wouldn't work... but would this make sense for current Atari to produce and sell?  I'm referring to a 10-in-1 style cartridge like the one that comes with the 2600+ console that was just released but rather blank with a USB port so that it could be attached to a computer and have homebrew ROMs loaded onto it easily (like having a different directory for each memory slot on the cartridge selectable by the dip switches).   Basically the equivalent of a memory card with dip switches to select between the games but the 2600+ only ever sees the single game to dump.

[Sean_1970]

Sounds groovy.

 

i also think it would be cool to do a series of carts like that with games pre-loaded on them and give the homebrew devs some dosh, kinda like Evercade does with their “Indie Heroes” carts. Some of the homebrew games that got cart releases are out of print and pretty expensive on the secondary market, so it would be nice to see Atari putting resources behind re-releases of well, all the good stuff generally.

[LatchKeyKid]

Sorry if it wasn't clear but I'm more referring to blank cartridges where you add your own ROMs just like people can do with a memory card in the recently released Gamestation Pro.  But, yeah, I agree that there is plenty of room for them to release either ten pack carts of official OG releases they own as well as "indie" 10-in-1's as long as the original owners agree obviously and are properly reimbursed.

[+Gemintronic]

This is pretty close:

 

 

[Sean_1970]

57 minutes ago, LatchKeyKid said:

Sorry if it wasn't clear but I'm more referring to blank cartridges where you add your own ROMs just like people can do with a memory card in the recently released Gamestation Pro.  But, yeah, I agree that there is plenty of room for them to release either ten pack carts of official OG releases they own as well as "indie" 10-in-1's as long as the original owners agree obviously and are properly reimbursed.

No it was perfectly clear and I’d probably get one to play homebrew ROMs myself, I was just saying that in addition or as an alternative homebrew comps are also a great idea so we are of the same mind 😊

[+Gemintronic]

You could probably also find someone to make you UnoCarts.  Not USB on those but at least STM32 compatible connections.

[LatchKeyKid]

1 minute ago, Gemintronic said:

You could probably also find someone to make you UnoCarts.  Not USB on those but at least STM32 connections.

True and I think both are great options for a hobbyist but I'm suggesting a more plug and play item for the mass consumer (or at least as "mass" as you can get with the Atari retrogame fandom!). 

[LatchKeyKid]

7 minutes ago, Sean_1970 said:

No it was perfectly clear and I’d probably get one to play homebrew ROMs myself, I was just saying that in addition or as an alternative homebrew comps are also a great idea so we are of the same mind 😊

Good point.  I could see some of the more prolific homebrew developers and publishers coming out with combo carts of their own potentially.  I doubt there is anything proprietary about dip switches! 

[+Gemintronic]

Just now, LatchKeyKid said:

True and I think both are great options for a hobbyist but I'm suggesting a more plug and play item for the mass consumer (or at least as "mass" as you can get with the Atari retrogame fandom!). 

 

Order them with the SD / TF card slot then 😛

[Sean_1970]

40 minutes ago, Gemintronic said:

 

Order them with the SD / TF card slot then 😛

SD card slot also a nice idea, though I can’t imagine Atari would be jazzed about that 😉

[tradyblix]

I gotta say, the dip switches on the damn thing are so cool, and it's a really good idea. There's many homebrews I would be afraid to try because not sure of them and they are expensive, but if on a 10-in-1 that could make a lot of sense. 

[+karri]

52 minutes ago, tradyblix said:

I gotta say, the dip switches on the damn thing are so cool, and it's a really good idea. There's many homebrews I would be afraid to try because not sure of them and they are expensive, but if on a 10-in-1 that could make a lot of sense. 

I did actually put together a cart using two buttons and a rotating dial. They cost just a few cents on ebay.

The wires are still a mess as it was my first attempt to make a 7800 cart and I did not know that I needed logic for creating the OE signal for the rom. This works with the 2600+ like the dip switch version. But a 512k flash could hold just 8 games at the 48K size.

 

[tradyblix]

Oh wow that is pretty cool. I have never seen anything like that before. 

[+karri]

34 minutes ago, tradyblix said:

Oh wow that is pretty cool. I have never seen anything like that before. 

The cart can be programmed by the Atari Lynx programmer. It actually has two separate cart connectors. So it can be plugged in the Lynx as well. There is Lynx cart programmer hats for RaspberryPi and also stand alone Lynx programmers that you can connect via USB and just drag the files on the cart. As the Lynx connector can see all 512k at once it can program 8 games on it in a single session.

 

The only problem is that I did not understand the 7800 cart design so there is no logic on the board for generating the OE signal for reading the data. Therefore I have some evening hobby in soldering in a 74LS02 chip by hand for every cart. There is 40 of them... Sigh...

[tradyblix]

On 11/18/2023 at 12:55 PM, LatchKeyKid said:

Obviously the normal limitations of the 2600+ would still apply in that games utilizing in cartridge hardware wouldn't work... but would this make sense for current Atari to produce and sell?  I'm referring to a 10-in-1 style cartridge like the one that comes with the 2600+ console that was just released but rather blank with a USB port so that it could be attached to a computer and have homebrew ROMs loaded onto it easily (like having a different directory for each memory slot on the cartridge selectable by the dip switches).   Basically the equivalent of a memory card with dip switches to select between the games but the 2600+ only ever sees the single game to dump.

Great idea but make it USB C please. I had to go find the ancient and obsolete "mini usb" to use the harmony dev mode lol... already hate legacy micro-usb devices... can we finally get to one keyless plug standard ? 

[+LS650]

One path I can see Atari going down are more "10-in-1" collections.  They have quite a back catalog of 2600 games to choose from, and I could even see them making a deal with other IP-holders.  Imagine an "Best of Activision" multicart, etc.  Of course, they also have a fair number of 7800 games; that might make for a "Best of the 7800" multicart as well.

[+sramirez2008]

2 minutes ago, ls650 said:

Imagine an "Best of Activision" multicart, etc.

This please. 

[+karri]

9 hours ago, tradyblix said:

Great idea but make it USB C please.

There is a difference in user flash carts and "fixed" game carts. This design was to create an adventure cart for myself as I had  a bag of unused 512k chips that I did not want to throw away. These carts will be giveaways at retro events as they are not professional quality. I am making a fixed KiCad design. So if someone wants the design just drop me a PM.

 

I am a also trying to write new Interactive Fiction today. Here is a screenshot of the  7800 screen.

 

For development I already have a Dragonfly with a text menu and 4 buttons for scrolling to the next game.