Atari 2600+ Beta Update 1.1 REV 2

[Goochman]

Champ Games with the ARM chip wont ever run from Cart so you can mark that off your wish list

[MantaNZ]

@Ben from Plaion You guys are doing incredible work. Just got my 2600+ and loving it, as well as various other systems you produce (I just reviewed The400 Mini for a retro mag here in New Zealand). As for the 2600+, are you planning to do similar things with other consoles? A Sega Master System perhaps? Hehe. I actually quit collecting because of prices but this has got me back into it - I'm just going to buy the new releases from Plaion. Cheers!

[Ben from Plaion]

1 hour ago, m.o.terra kaesi said:

Is the impression misleading or has the topic and the corresponding further development of the firmware/dumpers fallen asleep?

In other words: are we still a long way from...
- all ChampGame releases could run?
- most 3rd party joysticks could run?
- special cartridges like Pitfall 2 could also run?

Absolutely not.

 

In fact I've been quiet recently on AA cause I've got confidence it whats happining with software and generally with product pipeline for the 2600+. Its just that at launch and shortly thereafter I was hectic in posting on AA cause there was so many fires to put out. But now taking stock, its been a success and all parties involved are planning software updates and new products. Think about it, my bosses want me to outperform the 2600+ launch in FY23 next year, and only way to do that is to present product to market that you guys actually want to buy.

 

All of your three bullets points are things we have been working on. As soon as the software devs are comfortable with a software build I'll release it. Same with new product, soon as the deals are done and the assets are made, we'll announce. I wish I could do it all tomorrow but it rarely works out like that.

 

[Ben from Plaion]

50 minutes ago, MantaNZ said:

@Ben from Plaion You guys are doing incredible work. Just got my 2600+ and loving it, as well as various other systems you produce (I just reviewed The400 Mini for a retro mag here in New Zealand). As for the 2600+, are you planning to do similar things with other consoles? A Sega Master System perhaps? Hehe. I actually quit collecting because of prices but this has got me back into it - I'm just going to buy the new releases from Plaion. Cheers!

I'll take it!

 

Of course I'm pitching for new product on a daily basis, but hey you got to kiss a lot of frogs till  a princess appears.

[MrChickenz]

12 minutes ago, Ben from Plaion said:

Absolutely not.

 

In fact I've been quiet recently on AA cause I've got confidence it whats happining with software and generally with product pipeline for the 2600+. Its just that at launch and shortly thereafter I was hectic in posting on AA cause there was so many fires to put out. But now taking stock, its been a success and all parties involved are planning software updates and new products. Think about it, my bosses want me to outperform the 2600+ launch in FY23 next year, and only way to do that is to present product to market that you guys actually want to buy.

 

All of your three bullets points are things we have been working on. As soon as the software devs are comfortable with a software build I'll release it. Same with new product, soon as the deals are done and the assets are made, we'll announce. I wish I could do it all tomorrow but it rarely works out like that.

 

Just so you know I just purchased another Atari 2600+ so I have an extra one. Now I’m just waiting on the Vader edition! Or whatever edition might be next!

Edited April 24 by MrChickenz

[Ben from Plaion]

1 minute ago, MrChickenz said:

Just so you know I just purchased another Atari 2600+ so I have an extra one. Now I’m just waiting on the Vader edition!

I thought about you today. I was working on a design of a revised IO PCB (the board that has the cart socket and levers on it) and thought I need someone to test it, you up for trying it out?

[MrChickenz]

Just now, Ben from Plaion said:

I thought about you today. I was working on a design of a revised IO PCB (the board that has the cart socket and levers on it) and thought I need someone to test it, you up for trying it out?

Sure thing!

[Ben from Plaion]

Just now, MrChickenz said:

Sure thing!

I'll dm you tomorrow to sort the details.

[John Stamos Mullet]

3 hours ago, Goochman said:

Champ Games with the ARM chip wont ever run from Cart so you can mark that off your wish list

This is false.

 

They're literally working on that right now, and from what I've heard it's very close. There's absolutely no reason why they can't get it to work.

Edited April 24 by John Stamos Mullet

[John Stamos Mullet]

On 4/10/2024 at 12:07 PM, daorriss said:

And that is what worries me.. Ben last said "lots going on" at Plaion (I would presume) but I'd really like to see completion of the investment on the work on the 2600+ otherwise I threw money away... 

The system has only been out for 4 months, and it's had 4 different updates released already.

 

You will see it, but they are working to make sure the next update includes big things, not just one thing here or there like the previous ones.

[MantaNZ]

4 hours ago, Ben from Plaion said:

I'll take it!

 

Of course I'm pitching for new product on a daily basis, but hey you got to kiss a lot of frogs till  a princess appears.

Haha awesome! Man, I'd love a new, slightly smaller SMS with HDMI. A Mega Drive too! The mini MDs were cool but I like the idea of expanding the physical library and officially rereleased games. The 7800 library is a good step though - I don't have much experience with that console and there are some neat games I'll now be able to afford! 

[tradyblix]

16 hours ago, John Stamos Mullet said:

This is false.

 

They're literally working on that right now, and from what I've heard it's very close. There's absolutely no reason why they can't get it to work.

Really ?

 

Wow, that's great. I was also under the assumption the arm chip made it impossible to run. Well, I'll have a copy of Turbo Arcade ready just in case.... y'all need any beta testers 😄

[TheRingBearer]

23 minutes ago, tradyblix said:

Well, I'll have a copy of Turbo Arcade ready just in case.... y'all need any beta testers 😄

Ready and waiting myself.  🙂

[+sramirez2008]

I can test each of the Champ Games as well. Btw, Conquest of Mars, the Original Lady Bug and Avalanche already work on the 2600+.

[John Stamos Mullet]

4 hours ago, tradyblix said:

Really ?

 

Wow, that's great. I was also under the assumption the arm chip made it impossible to run. Well, I'll have a copy of Turbo Arcade ready just in case.... y'all need any beta testers 😄

The 2600+ literally runs on an ARM chip. It’s native to native. The problems they’ve been having is with dumping to the Rom, not running them in stella

[tradyblix]

4 hours ago, TheRingBearer said:

Ready and waiting myself.  🙂

How is that version of scramble compared to the 7800 cart ?

[tradyblix]

32 minutes ago, John Stamos Mullet said:

The 2600+ literally runs on an ARM chip. It’s native to native. The problems they’ve been having is with dumping to the Rom, not running them in stella

Admittedly I don't know how it works... But I did know that the 2600+ had an arm cpu.

 

I guess I wasn't thinking that it was some sort of architectural difference. But that somehow the code in the rom chip on the cart had some kind of arm processor to accelerate certain functions that it had to access while running and that was possible on original hardware and not on the plus because the chip wouldn't be available after dumping in a dumper scenario.

 

Well, I'm not super sure why I thought that because probably that's not anything close to how it actually works.... I think I might have been thinking that because I couldn't get their free demo roms for these games working on stella on my emulation handheld either, they all crash.

 

Sounds like we are all gonna find out soon tho.

Edited April 25 by tradyblix

[shane857]

On 4/24/2024 at 9:08 PM, MantaNZ said:

@Ben from Plaion You guys are doing incredible work. Just got my 2600+ and loving it, as well as various other systems you produce (I just reviewed The400 Mini for a retro mag here in New Zealand). As for the 2600+, are you planning to do similar things with other consoles? A Sega Master System perhaps? Hehe. I actually quit collecting because of prices but this has got me back into it - I'm just going to buy the new releases from Plaion. Cheers!

Sega Master System 💪

[John Stamos Mullet]

I would love a mini SMS that plays carts because I have a real one but can’t really use it since it doesn’t display colors correctly through a retrotink mini on my Samsung TV

[82-T/A]

5 hours ago, TheRingBearer said:

Ready and waiting myself.  🙂

 

 

I don't know man, I am always careful about making sure I use the term envious rather than jealous, but I think in this case, I downright hate you! Hahaha... 

 

 

[TheRingBearer]

3 hours ago, tradyblix said:

How is that version of scramble compared to the 7800 cart ?

This version was very well done, but I have not played the 7800 version of scramble.

[+OLD CS1]

43 minutes ago, TheRingBearer said:

This version was very well done, but I have not played the 7800 version of scramble.

4 hours ago, tradyblix said:

How is that version of scramble compared to the 7800 cart ?

I have both, and I will second the appraisal of the 2600 version.  Both are fantastically well-done and well worth the money I spent on them.

[+karri]

On 4/25/2024 at 12:06 AM, Ben from Plaion said:

I thought about you today. I was working on a design of a revised IO PCB (the board that has the cart socket and levers on it) and thought I need someone to test it, you up for trying it out?

Good news imho.

[ewokmic]

Question for the pro’s. I’ve got 2 copies of Plaque Attack. One is ntsc with a bad label. One is pal with a okay(ish) label. The PAL on shows pink gums which is more realistic but I assume the NTSC red gums are the original intended? Id rather keep the nicer PAL label but assume getting the ‘better’ experience from the NTSC?

[JetmanUK]

48 minutes ago, ewokmic said:

Question for the pro’s. I’ve got 2 copies of Plaque Attack. One is ntsc with a bad label. One is pal with a okay(ish) label. The PAL on shows pink gums which is more realistic but I assume the NTSC red gums are the original intended? Id rather keep the nicer PAL label but assume getting the ‘better’ experience from the NTSC?

The screen is also bigger on NTSC and it being an Activision game the PAL version  isnt speed corrected (I haven't played this game in a while so I can't 100% verify that, but I'm quite confident). 

 

As a general rule the NTSC version of a 2600 game is superior. There is the odd occasion I've noticed a slight improvement in a PAL version, but this is very rare and the gap to the NTSC version is negligible, whereas the gap between an NTSC game when it's the better version and the PAL version can be quite large.