ResidentDante
Member
Does playing MS games, specifically the Japanese versions, on a Mega Drive take use of FM sound? Anyway to make this work with a MD Everdrive? Or is it a hardware specific thing that the MD simply does not have.
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The Sega master system appreciation thread of SegaScope 3D!
- Thread starter catmincer
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Marky Mark
Member
For such a long time I didn't realise it was endless and would spend ages trying to get to the "end" of the levels.From there, the early days were filled with Teddy Boy (endless shooter):
It is a hardware specific thing that the MD does not have. But there are newly made powerbase adapters that include the FM chip.
http://db-electronics.ca/product/power-base-fm/
D.Lo
Member
Different FM chip, so no it doesn't work.
It might just be preference too. Like I said, I've essentially worked out I'm biased to an 80s arcade sound
ResidentDante
Member
That's kinda neat, but I don't think I'll be investing in it anytime soon!
Well, I first heard FM sound in the Wonder Boy remake literally this weekend and fell in love with it!Different FM chip, so no it doesn't work.
It might just be preference too. Like I said, I've essentially worked out I'm biased to an 80s arcade sound
Laevateinn
Member
Glad everything got there just fine. I was a little rushed when I sent it out and was unable to fit everything into the box I originally intended to use.
I was tempted to test out the controller myself but have been pretty busy since returning so I'm eager to hear your thoughts on it!
Always happy to spread some Shining around as well.
The western Master System came out before the Japanese one though. Sega probably made the decision to build in the FM chip after the western design was finalized.
digoutyoursoul
Member
Global Defence, I don't think it scored high with critics but I really enjoyed it. One of my favourite Master System games.
IrishNinja
Member
D lo/anyone: having issues with this Mark III paddle, playing Megumi Rescue & Woody Pop, and the character flickers really fast across 2 places at once - should I carefully open this thing & clean it? its in great shape otherwise!
D.Lo
Member
Been slower going recently, but I have now 100% completed my Mark III 3rd party release collection
lol
lol
Yeah give it a clean, it's optical I believe? Could be anything though.
Yea flicker is dirt or wear. One of my PS1 paddle does that and pushing some compressed air inside solved most of it.
If the flicker is between two extreme positions, check that your console is set as Japanese, iirc that's what happen when the incorrect region is set.
I'm still missing Rygar, but Solomon's key is stupidly difficult. I enjoy the concept though.
If the flicker is between two extreme positions, check that your console is set as Japanese, iirc that's what happen when the incorrect region is set.
I'm still missing Rygar, but Solomon's key is stupidly difficult
. I enjoy the concept though.
IrishNinja
Member
cheers, gonna try this soon - compressed air sounds easiest
and i wanna say it wasn't extreme positions but that can't hurt to check as well!
IrishNinja
Member
follow up: found this YT video and just before the 2 minute mark is exactly what i'm getting, so it seems like you're right!
ive no idea what to do here though; the FM mod i had installed has a JP setting (for stuff like Wonder Boy III to work) but i'm still getting that flicker...not sure what to try next!
Paddles are region-locked, sort of. Japanese paddles and Western paddles don't send the same data, and games with paddle support were coded to check for these different data depending on whether they were played on a Japanese or Western console, with the expectation that the paddle would be from the corresponding region. But Western paddles were never released (you can mod a Japanese one though).
His process is a bit convoluted. The BIOS replacement is to get (non-western) non-header games working, and the ROM edition is to force it into Japanese-paddle compatibility even on a western console. He could have been just a little bit more thorough with his Hex hack and add a header so that the BIOS replacement mod wouldn't even have been needed.
This is not what you want to do. Since you're using an Everdrive, you already bypass the header check, you only need to either:
- mod the paddle to make it western
- hack the game to make it compatible with a Western console / Japanese paddle combo
- mod the console to be in Japanese mode. (You want this one)
Try with a game that has differences depending on whether started on a Japanese or Western console, so that you know your mod works fine. Power Strike / Aleste comes to mind, it has a different title screen, plenty of games add a blue MarkIII screen right after the BIOS.
I wonder if the Everdrive messes with the region detection. Maybe try with an original game too?
Laevateinn
Member
I'm going back in January so if you haven't gotten this sorted out by then I'll see if I can find a Mark III of Japanese Master System for you to go with the controller.
D.Lo
Member
They're quite hard to find in Japan, best to just look on Yahoo if wanting one.
Khaz is right though, a simple 'real' Japanese mod would be the best option.
Laevateinn
Member
Not really. I saw a couple Master Systems and tons of Mark IIIs in Osaka.
D.Lo
Member
May go in phases/be luck. Two years ago I looked long and hard at every Hard Off and Kantiden in various parts of the countryside I could find (and the actual game shops) and only saw one beat up MS and no Mark IIIs or SG1000s. Plenty of games though.
I'm in Tokyo in another month for a bit so may have time for another look.
IrishNinja
Member
yeah that's my concern - i can finally try tonight, but if i'm just booting a japanese ROM of aleste, won't i just see that on the tile screen instead of power strike?
ive one mark III game but no converter at the moment, not sure how else i can test this mod & see if its that
appreciate it m'man but it's currently sounding more like the mod than the paddle...hopefully i'll know more soon!
IrishNinja
Member
okay so yeah, with Aleste the title screen says just that, and i'm getting what sounds like FM sound too. is there a better way to test for the mod itself?
Try an original game. The Everdrive may be messing with things.
Use one that was released worldwide with a common ROM. With a Japanese console you should get a blue SEGA Mark III screen right after the black BIOS screen. Use an emulator with a region switch, like Kega to see the differences. It shows with Action Fighter for example.
IrishNinja
Member
trying this with that exact title now - thanks man!
*edit: damn, no mark III screen on Action Fighter, and that's with the switch in the down position (what should be the JP one). i'm guessing my friend installed the mod for FM but left off the setting for the 3rd/JP option? balls!
IrishNinja
Member
nah, had to boot the different ROMs to get those screens - it's a stock model, i'm not using it to boot into any other BIOS (if that's what you're asking?)
I didn't know there were two ROMs for Power Strike / Aleste. The Western ROM when played on a Japanese console displays the Japanese title. I was confused for a moment how you were able to get the Japanese title on your console.
So it seems your console never goes in Japanese mode.
So it seems your console never goes in Japanese mode.
IrishNinja
Member
right, i was thinking that too - if the mod's on right, the ROM shoudln't matter right? hopefully this last part isn't hard to do, im gonna look into it this week
Laevateinn
Member
sixteen-bit
Member
Nice. Congrats!
D.Lo
Member
The original game has that Sega charm, and it has a catchy tune and nice graphics/world design, but yes it's pretty tier-2 overall. And the sequels on Master System are all far worse, the Mega Drive game was actually a return to form and the only true sequel, gameplay wise.
Lost Stars was a direct conversion of a crappy arcade game, BMS trials is a very hard overhead racer, and all the rest were Doki Doki Panic style retrofits of non-AK games.
Interesting didn't know that. I MW had a lot of cool mechanics but the difficulty of the game meant you really couldn't get to use it.
eXistor
Member
Very nice, I was also looking for a good condition copy for the longest time, but they were always too expensive at the retro conventions I go to. But when I noticed the price going up I just decided to go for it and they were all gone, nowhere to be found but eBay and such places. In the end I did end up going the eBay route, but at least the condition was great.
Laevateinn
Member
Congrats!
Alex Kidd is okay. It's a charming title with great music but some significant design flaws. I don't have a bad time while playing it but I only ever play it for 10 minutes or so.
While being a reskin, I quite enjoyed Alex Kidd in Shinobi world.
Thanks, it was the only one i was missing (already had 2, 3 and 4 for Mega Drive)
I went for eBay too.
The manual is in great conditions, the cartridge has a "OK" written on it, but i'll live with it (i could probably take it off with a little bit of alcohol, but i won't risk it).
IrishNinja
Member
got a copy of dragon's crystal for a solid price finally - thank you ebay bucks! between this and master of darkness, i'm checking the biggest ones off my list, so cool. same buddy got rid of a bunch of stuff too so i picked up time soldiers, zaxxon 3D, carmen san diego (boy i need the book for that one, one day), space harrier 3D, my hero, astro warrior & others too..had to make another shelf on my sega display for SMS stuff!
related: maaaan if anyone sees a $20 copy of psycho fox cart only...lemme know!
related: maaaan if anyone sees a $20 copy of psycho fox cart only...lemme know!
baudelinog
Member
Alex Kidd in Shinobi World is a very good game.
It's one of my favourite game on the system. Some monsters in the later levels have some nasty effects though, like making you lose a level or max HP.
D.Lo
Member
True it's decent (though I don't have it and haven't played in it 20 years, might grab a copy!). Actually it might even be the best one since it's basically a straight Shinobi game.
It was actually released well after the Mega Drive game.
Combichristoffersen
Combovers don't work when there is no hair
Lugged my old Master System with me when coming down here after being home on vacation. Just needed a new AV cable and it was up and running. Now I need new controllers.. Also ordered Sonic 1 off eBay, so only Sonic Chaos left to get to have all the relevant Sonic games (Sonic Spinball can suck it).
IrishNinja
Member
jesus..I die eaelyish on from starvation if monsters don't team up. this feels significantly harder than fatal labyrinth!
Yeah, the food mechanism can be upsetting. I try not to pick up the food unless I'm near starvation, or at least when I know it won't get me full. Only once I found the exit I backtrack to try to get to the next level at max food.
It's not that difficult of a game once you get it. But the crippling effects are near undiscoverable unless you constantly keep track of your stats. Thankfully they are limited to certain specific items and monsters, that you can discover or read about.
smbu2000
Member
Haven't posted in here in awhile, but I just picked up this JP Mark 3 at a local used store. It was sold as "Junk" and it was console only, but only cost me about 4000 yen (~$36 USD) with tax.
After I brought it back home I saw that it had no screws on the bottom (uh-oh!) and the power switch wouldn't stay on. Anyway, the screws don't seem to be a problem and when I tested it out with my SMS cables (actually MD1 cables) and I was able to test a game fine with composite (looks worse than my SMS) and RGB (very dark compared to the SMS).
Everything else seems fine with it, except for that power switch. It turns on when I push it, but just goes off again if I let it go.
Seems small next to my JP SMS! I thought they would be about the same size.
After I brought it back home I saw that it had no screws on the bottom (uh-oh!) and the power switch wouldn't stay on. Anyway, the screws don't seem to be a problem and when I tested it out with my SMS cables (actually MD1 cables) and I was able to test a game fine with composite (looks worse than my SMS) and RGB (very dark compared to the SMS).
Everything else seems fine with it, except for that power switch. It turns on when I push it, but just goes off again if I let it go.
Well I cracked it open and took off that silver protection plate and took some pics of it. If anybody has a picture of a working Mark 3 power switch mechanism I would appreciate seeing it so maybe I can jerry-rig something to get it working. I have an idea in my head of how it should work with something catching on that lower piece to hold it in place, but seeing a working one would be helpful.
Standard position: off
On position (with me holding it)
D.Lo
Member
My favourite Sega console! Looks like an 80s sci-fi prop. Unfortunately the composite is bad and you'll need this for RGB:
https://nintendosegajapan.com/2015/...xternal-rgb-amplifier-with-fm-audio-break-in/
Funny how Sega consoles went in colour:
White
White
White
Black
Black
Grey/White
White
SMS posters!
Man, I want to take hold of The Sega Adventure after seeing this poster, it looks awesome. Space Harrier, Fantasy Zone, Outrun... I love me some classic Sega.
IrishNinja
Member
please believe I have that poster up at my place
also all my Sega consoles are black
also all my Sega consoles are black
Laevateinn
Member
I can open my Mark III this weekend and takr pictures.
Once you go black...