Gameport

[retrofan]

Hi all,

I'm new to this forum so I have a simple question regarding this.

Does anyone of here owns a PSP, DS, and/or GP2X and have tried a 2600 emulator on it? I know this is the most difficult system to emulate due to several technical reasons (no video RAM, TIA artifacts, use of illegal opcodes, etc). This is why it's very difficult to have a 2600 emulator that can run ALL ROMs faitful to the original in REAL TIME (60 fps). So, any of you guys have tried this on these portables?

For what I'm reading the Gameport doesn't do emulation, but recreation. This means that when running 2600 games the system will be "programmed" as if it was a 2600 console (technically the FPGA will be configured with the 2600 hardware, including CPU, TIA, etc). This is why it's possible to run original ROMs at full speed from a 28MHz clock divided (we have to remember that the 2600 CPU runs at around 1MHz !!!). So, there is no need to have an expensive 200MHz CPU running an emulator. The same applies for the other consoles.

About target price, if this product turns out to be a consumer electronics (production runs of 100K or more) the cost of parts gets really low. At these quantities the TFT LCD price is less than $20. This should be the most expensive component, so a target price of $59.99 should be doable.

retrofan

[Reaperman@home]

yeah, the commodore one has kind of the same thing going for it--but I think it is still fair to call it emulation.

to get prices down that low with a massive order means these things should be getting out already. News stories, fan sites, tons of video, I just don't see it. I also don't know how realistic a 100k order is--if nobody's talking to, say, walmart right now there's little chance of selling more than 1k of them.

IMO, I smell vaporware. I don't want it to be, because a handheld 8-bit computer is a fine thing, but I just don't see interest in it outside of a few hundred vintage gaming nerds.

[CronoTriggerfan]

IMO, I smell vaporware. I don't want it to be, because a handheld 8-bit computer is a fine thing, but I just don't see interest in it outside of a few hundred vintage gaming nerds.

I have to agree. Not only is the interest only for a niche market, that market has no clue this device exists! Honestly, when the 2x and GP32 came out, there was at least SOME rumblings among the community of their coming, I've heard nothing of this. Not to mention the fact that they're sitting on the device's release, which is exactly what happened to Gamepark's XGP series right before they crashed and went bankrupt.

CTFan

[retrofan]

Well, I said "IF this product turns out to be a consumer electronics" with production runs of 100K or more to estimate a target price. I really have no idea of what production volume this will get or when and if we will see it on the street.

I hope it's not vaporware too since it sounds cool to me.

retrofan

[gamemasterAS]

I have 2x/psp/ds and I haven't tried a 2600 emu on any of them, if you link me to one of those emulators I can try it for you.

[retrofan]

I have 2x/psp/ds and I haven't tried a 2600 emu on any of them, if you link me to one of those emulators I can try it for you.

Here is one I just found for the 2x:
http://zx81.zx81.free.fr/serendipity/in ... final.html

[atari2600a]

If they package it w/ all the freeware ROMS they can find, it might have success...

[Reaperman@home]

If they package it w/ all the freeware ROMS they can find, it might have success...

more success with the 100 people who've heard of the system and were going to buy one anyway...
besides, it's not like freeware roms can always just be scooped up and distributed.

looking at it more, I thought msx used a z80. does that mean it can do all of those too? and how many chips will it emulate, will it be able to handle the special chips in the more complex machines on the list--the riot chip on the ataris for example. And what color are the artifacting modes going to show up as--or will they just be totally broken?

don't get me wrong, this is the best concept idea for a game system I've ever seen, but I'm just not sure it's going to happen and really don't want to get my hopes up. and where the heck is the keyboard...

[atari2600a]

on-screen.

[Reaperman@home]

on-screen.

it's going to be mighty tricky to play ballyhoo with that...

think I'd rather have the other bits moved around and something like this fit in:

[Kenny_McCormic]

although the gameport is a WONDERFUL concept I HATE the controls

[Twisted Warthog]

How can you hate the controls its not even released yet.

[Reaperman@home]

although the gameport is a WONDERFUL concept I HATE the controls

How can you hate the controls its not even released yet.

They could be okay, it's hard to say without one in hand, but I think I'm leaning more toward kenny's camp too. The button layout looks great for one button games, but what about the two button games? A little too much like gamecube. As long as the D-pad has some curve to it, it should do alright.

I actually think the NES retrogamer is a larger target to hit with two main buttons. But I'm still selfish and want my keyboard...

[gameport]

we can bring a few answers here:

Target price is around $75 retail / $50 online.
The system is based around a FPGA + a CPU and can handle pretty much all the 8 bits, and some 16 bits.

The case Ben did was rushed for a TV appearance, it is currently being redone; Ben has come up with a very nice design which is totally different from the original one. When it is ready, he will post about it.

In the meantime, the gameport.tv web site was released a bit too early, it will feature more content shortly, along with the complete list of platforms and also how they do work (for machines with keyboards for example, etc).

Now, we have heard an many web sites comparisons with the GP2X; we are using a radically different architecture. Using a gate array was the only way to go for a true re-creation of the original game systems; The GP2X processes everything sequentially on a the CPU, while the GamePort's processing is mostly parallel. For example, the Atari 2600 is run with a 8x clock divider for the video and 16x divider for the CPU (1.79Mhz), which would be impossible on a machine like the GP2X, clock frequency means nothing with our architecture. Now, the GamePort is not meant to run a complex OS, etc and in that respect the GP2X will be much better; but for classic consoles, we wouldn't be releasing the gameport if it had a real competitor.

we have a mailing list with updates you can subscribe to at:
http://www.gameport.tv/mailman/listinfo/mailinglist

[cowsgoquack101]

Can we reserve one?