ROM check for PAL vs. NTSC

[Alex]

Is there any tool to test whether a ROM is PAL or NTSC? I have some pirate carts that I'm not sure about, and my TV plays most PAL games ok so that doesn't help.

[Eckhard Stolberg]

If you use z26 version 1.52 and go to video mode 9 (ALT-9), then it will display the number of scanlines that the game does. A proper NTSC game should do 262 lines per frame, and a PAL game should do 312. If a game does more than 290 lines or so, we are treating it as a PAL game in z26. Of course there are the PAL-M games from Brazil, that use NTSC resolution but the PAL palette. In z26 the "-" key should let you switch between the NTSC/SECAM/PAL palette. You could try out which suits your game best to determine which standard it might be meant for.

 

 

Ciao, Eckhard Stolberg

[Alex]

Thanks Eckhard, I'll give it a go. Most of the games in question are not from Brazil, so it should be sufficient. It's more a question of North America vs. Europe. But that's interesting to know, I had no idea Brazil used such a hybrid.

[Thomas Jentzsch]

quote:

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Originally posted by Eckhard Stolberg:

If a game does more than 290 lines or so, we are treating it as a PAL game in z26.

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What about Great Escape which does 288 lines? Both palettes look ok, but which one is correct?

[Eckhard Stolberg]

I think this is a PAL game. In this mode the radar screen is green during normal gameplay and turns red when the mothership approaches.

 

 

Ciao, Eckhard Stolberg