Creating repros of Famicom games (case: Splatterhouse)

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lemonpotato
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Creating repros of Famicom games (case: Splatterhouse)

Post by lemonpotato »

Hey there,
is there any guide on how to create repros for US/European NES consoles from games such as Splatterhouse Wanpaku Graffiti?
Looking at the NES Databse, it uses a NAMCOT-340 chip, which is only used by a few famicom games from Japan. How does one make a repro for that? Are there any guidelines?

Would appreciate the help :)
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tokumaru
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Re: Creating repros of Famicom games (case: Splatterhouse)

Post by tokumaru »

I think you have 2 options in this case:

1- Find a ROM that has been hacked to use a mapper that's more common in the US;

2- Use a cheap Famicom cart that has the same mapper and use a Gyromite 60->72 adapter.
lemonpotato
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Re: Creating repros of Famicom games (case: Splatterhouse)

Post by lemonpotato »

@tokumaru: With regards to option 2: Do you know if this works in terms of space in the cartridge, e.g. when I use a normal 3-screw NES cartridge? Or does the screw in the middle prevent adapter + famicom game to fit properly?
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koitsu
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Re: Creating repros of Famicom games (case: Splatterhouse)

Post by koitsu »

The 60->72 pin adapters found in old Gyromite cartridges, as well as some other early first-gen games, looks like this when opened up (I can attest to this because I have one):

http://www.vintagecomputing.com/wp-cont ... o7_big.jpg
http://www.classicplastic.net/dvgi/edit ... ert002.jpg

The cartridges that contain these are usually 7-screw (see first picture) -- 5 for holding the front/back casing together (these are your standard NES casing screws; older revisions usually can be opened with a flathead, but some may be reverse Torx), and 2 "internal" screws of a different size (larger, and silver) which actually screw into plastic posts in the casing. The "internal" screws actually hold the adapter in place -- without these, as well as without the large round plastic peg (which the centre screw goes through -- note the large circular hole in the Famicom PCB!),a Famicom PCB may wiggle/jostle around (this could impact reliability of the 72-pin connector making good contact with the NES itself, if there's a ton of mishandling).

Here's an example of a "non-official" 60-pin PCB (an Everdrive, actually! Note that the Everdrive PCB has a large circular hole in it -- now you know what it's for!) using one of said adapters in a Gyromite cartridge shell:

http://i.imgur.com/msiz3VZ.jpg

This comes from this source (worth reading): https://krikzz.com/forum/index.php?topic=373.0

Could you use the 60->72 pin adapter in a NES cartridge shell/case that doesn't have the plastic posts for the adapter screws? Yes, but I would strongly recommend creating some kind of makeshift way for the adapter to be held in place very firmly. I'd think it'd be possible to create some makeshift plastic posts with holes in them (pre-drilled for the screws) which could be glued to the inside of a normal NES cartridge, at the correct spots. Another possibility would be to use globs of hot glue as makeshift posts (screws WILL go into them), but I'm not sure how well hot glue will "merge" or "connect" with the plastic on the inside of a NES cartridge. Maybe an alternate solution would be to make some kind of makeshift plastic filler that sits on the right/left sides and holds the adapter a bit more securely in place. There are several options, but most require work.

Sorry for the long-winded response, but this is more a manufacturing/moulding subject than "will it work". :-) Yes it'll work, but stable/secure case fitting may pose a problem.

Finally: thankfully the Namcot 340 doesn't offer the N163 expansion sound -- because if my memory serves me right, the 60->72 pin adapters *do not* pass audio through. (Note to readers: if I'm wrong on this, please correct me, I'm going off of memory when I did continuity tests some time ago)
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Sumez
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Re: Creating repros of Famicom games (case: Splatterhouse)

Post by Sumez »

tokumaru wrote: 2- Use a cheap Famicom cart that has the same mapper and use a Gyromite 60->72 adapter.
I think my anti-piracy bias might be clouding my understanding on the subject here, but I don't really understand what the point of this approach would be? Wanpaku Grafiti is not a terribly expensive game to begin with, so it seems like the easiest way out would be to just... buy the original cart.
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tokumaru
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Re: Creating repros of Famicom games (case: Splatterhouse)

Post by tokumaru »

I was assuming it was expensive because that would be one way to justify the need to make a repro. If it isn't, to me it'd be a much better idea to just get the original cartridge and a good 60-72 pin converter. A proper Famicom collection seems like a much better deal than some hacky repros.
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Sumez
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Re: Creating repros of Famicom games (case: Splatterhouse)

Post by Sumez »

$31 on eBay, and that's with a "buy it now" price. I got mine quite a bit cheaper in an auction.
You'd probably be hard pressed to find another cart with the same Namco brand mapper that much cheaper.
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