Multigame development update!
Clay Cowgill
I've been quiet for a while (busily working!), so I thought I'd give a
little update here on what I've been working on and where things are at:
Williams Multigame - ALMOST DONE! Unless there are any nasty last-second
surprises this is a 99% plug and play kit. The only soldering required is
attaching one wire to the sound board (and you could probably just wrap that
around the pin in a pinch). The kit plays Robotron, Joust, Defender,
Stargate, Splat, and Bubbles. The I/O Widget board is replaced with a new
one and controls are automatically mapped depending on the game selected.
There is a graphical menu system that shows each game's marquee graphic to
choose the game. Each kit will come with a JAMMA adapter. You will need to
make a control panel to be able to play all the games however (or use it in
a JAMMA cabinet which should work quite well actually...) Pressing P1 and
P2 start at the same time calls the menu system. The kit is installed on a
Robotron, Joust, or Bubbles board.
BattleZone Supercharger - 90% done. This kit plugs into the CPU socket on
the BZ boardset and replaces all the program EPROMs on a BattleZone (which
should make them more reliable!) and provides standard BattleZone as well as
"BattleZone Turbo" (faster, different gameplay elements) and "custom"
BattleZone that allows you to customize all sorts of things like turning
speed, forward speed, bullet speed, repeat-firing ("Gorfian bullets" :-),
bullet range, 180 degree flip, etc. Installation is completely plug-n-play.
(Remove CPU, plug CPU into daughtercard, plug in daughtercard. Remove the
program EPROMs if you want to save some power/heat in your cabinet.) The
dip-switch settings are also made and saved from on-screen menus (no more
opening the game up to change settings!) Shooting for January-February
release. Hardware is done, "custom" menu needs completion and testing.
MissileCommand Multigame - 80% done. This kit is also completely
plug-n-play. (Same installation as the BZ Supercharger). It provides
"standard" Missile Command as well as Super Missile Attack. The main menu
system is done (Missile Command is... 'er... "interesting" to program on),
but I haven't finished the dip-switch setting part of the code. It uses the
same hardware platform as the BattleZone Supercharger, so it'll be done
around February as well.
TRON/Satan's Hollow Multigame - 50% done. This kit simply allows you to
play Satan's Hollow in a TRON machine. I have all the software done on this
one, but not the hardware. I just bought my TRON back from the guy I sold
it to a few years ago, so I can work on the hardware much easier now. ;-)
It will probably be a labor intensive install-- lots of damn EPROMs
everywhere on MCR II boardsets... Probably Q2,2001 release.
Asteroids/Deluxe/Lunar Lander Multigame - 40% done. All games run on
Asteroids hardware now, but there's lots of control tweaking left to do, and
I have to decide what to do about the hardware. Availability date is TBD.
Exidy Multigame - 70% done. I think the hardware is all OK and working now,
but I have a bunch of software to write... Availability date is still TBD.
(This is still the most complicated one yet. It's huge. About half the
size of an ATX motherboard!)
Just FYI, I'm totally falling behind due to the holidays, so orders are slow
in going out. Things will probably clear up after the new year. In the
meantime expect some delays!
Happy Holidays!
-Clay
--------------------------------------------------------------
Clay Cowgill - Multigame.com
Parts, upgrade kits, and information for classic arcade games
http://www.multigame.com
Rob Carroll
to save high scores??
"I'd buy *that* for a dollar!" ;^)
Rob
John in NH
John in NH
~~~
My arcade collection:
http://www.vaps.org/members/nh/rush...@aol.com.html
Why the U.S. legal "system" is a joke:
``They won. We lost. We're appealing,'' Gore lawyer David Boies
Tom®
I can't wait to get one though. :)
"Clay Cowgill" <cow...@home.com> wrote in message
news:i9vY5.128441$U46.4...@news1.sttls1.wa.home.com...
Clay Cowgill
Rob Carroll wrote in message <3A328420...@thecia.net>...
>That sounds awesome! Any chance the Battlezone Supercharger could be
modified
>to save high scores??
>
>"I'd buy *that* for a dollar!" ;^)
Oh, duh. It does that too. So does the Missile Command Multigame. (teach
me to write off the top of my head instead of looking at the feature list.
;-)
-Clay
MacMan
Time to finish my Williams Multigame cab (It's a Pigskin 621AD that I'm
doing new artwork and panorama for).
I thought Bubbles used opto's or 49 way - I assume you've mapped it to
eightway.
I was going to ask for a hint of how the controls are mapped so I can
start drilling the CP - but you get back to work and finish it - that's
more important!
Thanks a bunch!
MacMan
In article <i9vY5.128441$U46.4...@news1.sttls1.wa.home.com>, "Clay
Tom®
painted over as well. I'm going to make it a Multi-Williams now. All I
have to do is figure out the control panel and make a marquee :) Who made
the Multi-Pac marquees anyways, Clay?
"MacMan" <rgvac...@dingoblue.net.au> wrote in message
news:rgvac_aust-8F08F...@news.dingoblue.net.au...
Tim
Tim
Clay Cowgill
>eightway.
They were 8-way, but optical. You could probably use something like the
Happ optical sticks and get really nice performance from them.
>I was going to ask for a hint of how the controls are mapped so I can
>start drilling the CP - but you get back to work and finish it - that's
>more important!
That's actually easy to cut-n-paste, so...
The connector is a .1" header with the following lines:
1 - GND
2 - GND
3 - n/c
4 - Player 2 Start
5 - Player 1 Start
6 - Left player "Flap" (for Joust)
7 - Hyperspace
8 - Inviso
9 - Smart Bomb
10 - Thrust
11 - Fire
12 - Reverse
13 - Right Stick, Right
14 - Right Stick, Left
15 - Right Stick, Down
16 - Right Stick, Up
17 - Left Stick, Right
18 - Left Stick, Left
19 - Left Stick, Down
20 - Left Stick, Up
You can make a cable using a couple parts from Jameco:
( 1) 103181 - 20 pin housing
(20) 100765 - female pin connector
...or by cutting end off a 40-pin IDE hard-drive cable and just using every
other wire.
I'll probably buy some of the Jameco connectors and sell them with the kits.
-Clay
saruk...@yahoo.com
different than normal people...they are super human) like Clay! Making
the unbelievable a reality (for us who can barely plug the games in
right!).
Keep up the fantastic work Clay!
Pete May
In article <XMzY5.128962$U46.4...@news1.sttls1.wa.home.com>,
Sent via Deja.com http://www.deja.com/
Before you buy.
Jeff F.
>
I'll second that! :o)
Happy Holidays,
Jeff
--
PhillyClassic - the East Coast Classic Gamer's Event
http://www.phillyclassic.com/
Vidiot's Video Arcade:
http://www.geocities.com/vidiotsarcade/
--
<saruk...@yahoo.com> wrote in message news:90ujm9$bcn$1...@nnrp1.deja.com...
Tony Perkins
- Near future owner of Star Wars/EBS kit.
SalahiAndSon
a special chip like Sinistar?
Clay Cowgill <cow...@home.com> wrote in message
news:i9vY5.128441$U46.4...@news1.sttls1.wa.home.com...
Tim
Inferno and Turkey Shoot.
Tim
MacMan
Cheers
MacMan
PS: You'd have to have a menu to re-map Turkey Shoot inputs to
joysticks, but what the hell - Clay can do anything!
In article <3A33222A...@arcadecollecting.com>, Tim
MacMan
I'm drilling baby! I'm drilling!
Thanks Clay
MacMan
In article <XMzY5.128962$U46.4...@news1.sttls1.wa.home.com>, "Clay
Rob Carroll
epg3
Eddie
"Clay Cowgill" <cow...@home.com> wrote in message
news:XMzY5.128962$U46.4...@news1.sttls1.wa.home.com...
Clay Cowgill
epg3 wrote in message
>Which pin is the Right player "Flap"?
>
>Eddie
It's "fire" for Defender/Stargate...
-Clay
Clay Cowgill
SalahiAndSon wrote in message
<3UEY5.8942$wo2.1...@typhoon.austin.rr.com>...
>How about adding Mystic Marathon to the Williams Multi game? Or does it use
>a special chip like Sinistar?
It's a different animal. More closely related to Inferno than the older
Williams games. Blaster is sorta half-way between on the evolutionary
scale...
-Clay
Classicgamefan
I've been eagerly awaiting you Exidy 440 System multigame. Is there
any chance that the Exidy multigame will have a hardware/software
option to disable Chiller? I may get flamed on this, but I don't
necessarily think it's an appropriate game for my nephews/nieces to
play or watch (and I know their parents wouldn't approve). Although
the graphics of the game are admittedly crude, the subject matter is
about as gratuitous as any game I've ever played.
I think a hardware disable (cutting a trace?) would be most foolproof,
but a software disable would probably be effective as well.
I welcome anyone else's opinion on this and for the record I do own a
Chiller board set.
-Jon
In article <i9vY5.128441$U46.4...@news1.sttls1.wa.home.com>,
"Clay Cowgill" <cow...@home.com> wrote:
> Hi all,
<cut>
> Exidy Multigame - 70% done. I think the hardware is all OK and
working now,
> but I have a bunch of software to write... Availability date is
still TBD.
> (This is still the most complicated one yet. It's huge. About half
the
> size of an ATX motherboard!)
>
> Just FYI, I'm totally falling behind due to the holidays, so orders
are slow
> in going out. Things will probably clear up after the new year. In
the
> meantime expect some delays!
>
> Happy Holidays!
> -Clay
>
> --------------------------------------------------------------
> Clay Cowgill - Multigame.com
> Parts, upgrade kits, and information for classic arcade games
> http://www.multigame.com
>
>
Clay Cowgill
Classicgamefan wrote in message <911u93$mp9$1...@nnrp1.deja.com>...
>Hi Clay,
>
>I've been eagerly awaiting you Exidy 440 System multigame. Is there
>any chance that the Exidy multigame will have a hardware/software
>option to disable Chiller? I may get flamed on this, but I don't
>necessarily think it's an appropriate game for my nephews/nieces to
>play or watch (and I know their parents wouldn't approve). Although
>the graphics of the game are admittedly crude, the subject matter is
>about as gratuitous as any game I've ever played.
Yep, I saw this coming... ;-) The menu system allows any of the games to be
removed from the menu.
>I think a hardware disable (cutting a trace?) would be most foolproof,
>but a software disable would probably be effective as well.
There's sort-of a "configuration" mode in the multigame hardware that's set
with a jumper. You basically fire up the game in "boot" mode, make your
settings and calibrate the gun for each of the games. Then, you move the
jumper and start up the machine. The games then run immediately when
they're selected (you don't have to wait through the self-test) and any
"hidden" games are not accessible unless that jumper gets moved again.
-Clay
Derek Litton
saving my high scores in Missile Command and being able to Super Missile Attack
is a great bonus. I keep having this fear that I will break 500,000 and not be
able to save it! =) The William's mutigame sounds awesome as well and I know I
will definitely want one.
Keep up the good work and please don't burn yourself out. But if you do burn
out, please please please finish that MC/SMC board first! =)
Derek
bo...@my-deja.com
sticks, does this mean no dual play on Splat!? I could live fine
without this, but am just trying to get a head start on my control
panel.
Bob
Clay Cowgill
burn
>out, please please please finish that MC/SMC board first! =)
Thanks...
Actually, working on half a dozen things at once kinda *keeps* me from
burning out. When I get PO'd at something not working I can wander off for
a couple weeks and putz around on something else. (Which happened on a few
occasions with the Williams stuff!)
-Clay
Clay Cowgill
bo...@my-deja.com wrote in message <91636m$2ap$1...@nnrp1.deja.com>...
>Clay, just a question about the controls. With mapping for only 2
>sticks, does this mean no dual play on Splat!? I could live fine
>without this, but am just trying to get a head start on my control
>panel.
Yeah, for the moment plan on just two sticks (one player) for Splat. I have
an idea about that, but I need to figure out how Splat expects to address
the P2 controls. (Anyone have a widget board schematic for Splat?)
for most control panels I think four sticks would be too crowded anyway, but
if I can support it without messing up the PCB's I'm going to still try.
-Clay
MacMan
I was looking for something on David Haynes site the other day and he
had a big 'Coming Soon - Splat schematics' sign there. Hopefully David
can help you out.
Cheers
MacMan
In article <OpFZ5.142336$U46.4...@news1.sttls1.wa.home.com>, "Clay
James E. Cross
Missile Command kit. A question about the Williams kit though. We'll
still need a Williams harness right? Is the Jamma harness just used for
the controls?
Thanks!
In article <i9vY5.128441$U46.4...@news1.sttls1.wa.home.com>,
cow...@home.com says...
Clay Cowgill
>Wow Clay, this sounds awesome. I'm also really looking forward to your
>Missile Command kit. A question about the Williams kit though. We'll
>still need a Williams harness right? Is the Jamma harness just used for
>the controls?
What you'll need to do (to play all the games anyway) is build/buy a new
control panel.
It'd be something like this:
o o
| o | o o o
--o-- o --o-- o
| o |
1p 2p
flap inviso thrust fire
reverse smart bomb
hyperspace
I guess I could have used "reverse" for the flap button now that I think
about it...
I suspect some enterprising invidual will make an overlay and pre-built
control panels. (at least I hope so!)
Anyway, a JAMMA cab makes a pretty decent substitute in mose cases (just
about enough buttons anyway), so the JAMMA adapter is for that.
For a real Williams cab I'd expect people to remove the original control
panel and make a replacement with the new layout. (Hopefully nobody will
carve on an original CP!)
I'd think that a pre-made control panel with a nice overlay would probably
sell for $100-150 or so depending on the types of controls used. A "DIY"
kit (maybe just wood and overlay pre-cut and drilled with hardware, but no
buttons or sticks) would probably be do-able for $75? (That's not my cup of
tea, so I leave that up so someone else!)
-Clay
James E. Cross
Jim
In article <k%Q_5.155616$U46.5...@news1.sttls1.wa.home.com>,
cow...@home.com says...
Ben Dover
> BattleZone Supercharger - 90% done.
I WANT!!!!