WOOMB.net - MSX games

[rolins]

Great news. WOOMB, the partner of D4E's Amusement Center, has now got a lineup of MSX games for customers outside of Japan. All games and manuals are now localized, meaning they're in english.

They now have Neo Golvellius in English too! 

http://www.woomb.net

[grahf]

Once they finally release that single-chip-MSX, im going to be all over this.

[ParanoiaDragon]

This makes me happy

[Keranu]

Do you pay to download these games or something or is it an actual package they ship? I am confused.

[rolins]

Do you pay to download these games or something or is it an actual package they ship? I am confused.

Nothing is mailed to you. You pay a fee and download the games to your computer, and run them using their launcher program. The manuals are on pdf format and they're free when you purchase the game. The extra goodies are available for registered members only.

At the moment I plan on getting Neo Golvellius, I've never been able to finish that game in japanese. I might also grab Aleste 2 just so I can finally read the dialogue and understand the back story.

[Keranu]

That sounds pretty cool still. Can someone please explain the One Chip MSX a little more to me? What I really want to know about it is if you can play original MSX games on it, like the cartridges and floppies?

[akamichi]

I wonder if these localized versions will be available on the Wii?

I actually got to play with that one-chip MSX console at TGS.  It was pretty cool.

[rolins]

That sounds pretty cool still. Can someone please explain the One Chip MSX a little more to me? What I really want to know about it is if you can play original MSX games on it, like the cartridges and floppies?

The OCM is cool machine. The whole MSX2 system is built into a single FPGA chip, which means if you know VHDL programming you can create any video game console you want, right down to the circuit level and it's more accurate than software emulation. Create a Nes, MegaDrive, Atari, PC-Engine, just about anything. A great example is Kevtris's Nes console that he programed inside a FPGA. The same could possibly done on the OCM.

Anyway, the OCM can definitely play original games thru the two cartidge ports that it has. If you want to use the original floppy games then you'll need to use an external disk drive via cartridge port, which are quite expensive. Otherwise you can play them using disk images from the SD/MMC flash memory port.

Original msx controllers can also be used and it has two controller ports built-in. Atari, SMS, and Genesis controllers can be used but you'll have to modify them to get two fire buttons working. The keyboard is connected thru the PS/2 port. There's two USB ports on the OCM but they're not working. It's there for expansion possibilities and if you want to use them then you'll have to program them using VHDL code.

[FM-77]

They're SELLING pirated games? This is a disgrace.    Somebody needs to upload these games to stop this madness. Sharing pirated games is one thing, but actually SELLING them...  

Edit: Looks like they're not pirated, but I still think this is insane - I doubt they have Compile's (now Compile Heart) licenses.

[rolins]

Compile and Compile Heart are not the same company, Seldane. Most likely they're possibly former employees of Compile or avid fans.

Moo Niitani + other former Compile employees, and remaining Compile licences were transfered to Aiky.

---EDITED; forget what I said above.

Compile Heart doesn't own any of Compile's licenses. When Compile went down, Moo Niitani setup a new company called Aiky. The remaining Compile licenses to Zanac, Aleste, Disc Station, Golvellius, etc were transfered to Aiky.

Aiky now lets D4E, the owners of Amusement Center, to distribute old Compile games. And since Bazix's WOOB is a partner of D4E they have the right to distribute Compile games too.

Afaik Compile Heart has no association to the former Compile or Aiky. They seem to be avid fans or possibly former employees.

[SignOfZeta]

That sounds pretty cool still. Can someone please explain the One Chip MSX a little more to me? What I really want to know about it is if you can play original MSX games on it, like the cartridges and floppies?

Yeah, it plays carts, but I'm not sure how you'd play floppies since it has no drive, and no MSX-era I/O other than joystick. It has USB ports though, so I suppose there is some way to run an image or something.

English info: http://www.bazix.nl/onechipmsx.html

[rolins]

Yeah, it plays carts, but I'm not sure how you'd play floppies since it has no drive, and no MSX-era I/O other than joystick. It has USB ports though, so I suppose there is some way to run an image or something.

English info: http://www.bazix.nl/onechipmsx.html

If you look the post I made earlier I answer most of these questions. Floppies can be used but only if you use an external disk drive via the cartridge port.

Disk images can be ran from SD/MMC cards using the flash memory port.

A keyboard can be connected thru a PS/2 port and a mouse thru one of the joystick ports.

The USB ports, is not utilized right now. They're just there for expansion possibilities. If you want to use them then you'll have to program them using VHDL code.

I'm still wondering if it's possible to connect a data recorder so I can play games on cassette tapes again.

[SignOfZeta]

I'm still wondering if it's possible to connect a data recorder so I can play games on cassette tapes again.

Well, if they make it possible to use one of those driverless USB mic inputs, then you could use the line out from a regular tape deck. Maybe?

[Keranu]

Thanks a lot for the info Rollins and Sign of Zeta, that thing sounds really nifty. Would it be more worth getting over an original MSX system? I know that might sound stupid, but I've only used MSX emulators and not the real thing and don't know much about how they work. I like to collect the original stuff, but if the One Chip MSX is easier and more consolized, I might just get one instead someday.

[Dark Fact]

Holy crap! Golvellius 2? In English??? 

I'm so tempted to sign up to this right now!