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Forum Index : Microcontroller and PC projects : Game*Mite: handheld game console based on PicoMite
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| Volhout Guru  Joined: 05/03/2018 Location: NetherlandsPosts: 4821 |
Tom, Did you add blocks and pico-man to Game*Mite. What other games are you looking for.? I have been looking into - maxitrek (new obstacles found) - rocks in space (but vector graphics will be very slow on lcd, need to change back to sprites) - chemi chaos (might be a lot nicer on lcd due to 65k colors) All I have started with but none finished. And using VGA for development. Volhout PicomiteVGA PETSCII ROBOTS |
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| Volhout Guru Joined: 05/03/2018 Location: NetherlandsPosts: 4821 |
Tom, Did you add blocks and pico-man to Game*Mite. What other games are you looking for.? I have been looking into - maxitrek (new obstacles found) - rocks in space (but vector graphics will be very slow on lcd, need to change back to sprites) - chemi chaos (might be a lot nicer on lcd due to 65k colors) All I have started with but none finished. And using VGA for development. And you can ask Martin to port PicoFrog…? Volhout Edited 2024-04-05 02:22 by Volhout PicomiteVGA PETSCII ROBOTS |
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thwill Guru Joined: 16/09/2019 Location: United KingdomPosts: 4245 |
Hi @Volhout, With Geoff's permission I published links to them here: https://github.com/thwill1000/mmbasic-gamemite?tab=readme-ov-file#other-programs-to-download-and-try, but I haven't added them to the "standard install" ... there is limited space on A:/ on the standard Game*Mite so I can't include everything. Any contributions are welcome - a {Super} Star Trek of one flavour or another would be wonderful. However I'm very aware it takes considerable sustained effort to create something "finished" as opposed to "mostly works" so I'm disinclined to hassle anyone. You and Martin did exceptionally well taking PETSCII Robots to 95+% done on the Game*Mite. For myself I've decided that investing the time in getting MMB4L (MMB4W over Wine doesn't "float my boat") to a state where I can use it as a development proxy for the Game*Mite will ultimately pay dividends in speeding up my personal Game*Mite software development, as well as perhaps being for use to the wider community in the future. Best wishes, Tom Edited 2024-04-05 02:44 by thwill MMBasic for Linux, Game*Mite, CMM2 Welcome Tape, Creaky old text adventures |
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Martin H. Guru Joined: 04/06/2022 Location: GermanyPosts: 1192 |
I could take a look at that, One problem could be that PicoFrog uses the screen(N), the framebuffer(F) and the layer(L). Since I don't have that on the GameMite I would have to rewrite the entire screen output. but I'm currently stuck on another programming problem. And then I'll also have to get back to Alien Syndrome. Cheers Martin Edited 2024-04-05 03:55 by Martin H. 'no comment |
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| Volhout Guru Joined: 05/03/2018 Location: NetherlandsPosts: 4821 |
Hi Tom, I released ChemiChaos for the Game*Mite.... Volhout PicomiteVGA PETSCII ROBOTS |
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Turbo46 Guru Joined: 24/12/2017 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1636 |
Hi Tom and all, In addition to the Game*Mite, I have bought a kit for Geoff"s Picomite Gamer but due to health issues I have not built it yet. Would it be worthwhile using the new RP2350A for this and any future builds of the Pico*Mite and its clones? Would some games run faster using this chip? If so, How could you slow them down a bit? A delay in the main loop? Changing (Lowering) the CPU speed? Could this be done automatically in a game by testing MM.DEVICE$? so the same game could be played on both versions. Volhout made a change in PETSCII ROBOTS to accommodate the Pico 2, was that merely to identify the chip? Or were there other changes required. Thanks Bill Keep safe. Live long and prosper. |
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| Volhout Guru Joined: 05/03/2018 Location: NetherlandsPosts: 4821 |
Hi Bill, I am not Tom, but I share my 5 cents 1/ Geoff does not use a standard pico. His version has a LiPo charger on the module. 2/ Looking at the schematics, I see that Geoff's display connection is also SPI. RP2350 is improving gamespeed. But the SPI interface to the display slows it down again. This is obvious is fast games (PETSCII) and some (ROCKS) I am not even trying to port to LCD. Going to parallel LCD will improve this. The changes between 2040 and 2350 are minimal, thanks to a lot of standardization from Peter. Adaptations needed in programs are minimal, and more related to 5.08.00 -> 6.00.01 language changes. If you decide to go for 2350, make sure you follow the "alternative package" procedure in the Game*Mite user manual. The standard uf2 file is 2040 only. Volhout PicomiteVGA PETSCII ROBOTS |
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| thwill Guru Joined: 16/09/2019 Location: United KingdomPosts: 4245 |
I'm Spartacus! ... but I haven't invested in any RP2350 modules yet. This sounds like a major issue; you can drop a 2350 onto the standard Game*Mite PCB because that has a separate charging module, but using one on the PicoGamer would require you to hack in a charger ... or wait until the 3rd party market provides a suitable 2350 module with an onboard one. The most likely issue will be with code of the form: IF MM.DEVICE$ = "PicoMite" THEN ... or the equivalent using MM.INFO$(DEVICE) as this condition won't return true for the RP2350 firmware. It will need replacing with INSTR possibly using a regular expression (Appendix E of the new manual) to avoid matches with the VGA variants. Appendix C of the Game*Mite User Manual, however I believe @Volhout experienced some issue where he had to switch to the B: drive before running the "install-a.bas" program; this may have been due to the issue with the MM.INFO$(PATH) function that Peter says is resolved now. Best wishes, Tom Edited 2024-12-02 20:11 by thwill MMBasic for Linux, Game*Mite, CMM2 Welcome Tape, Creaky old text adventures |
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| Volhout Guru Joined: 05/03/2018 Location: NetherlandsPosts: 4821 |
@Bill, AFAIK, Geoff did not publish a "alternate package" for the PicoGamer. His (2) uf2 files (4MB and 16MB) will not directly work on the RP2350A. Geoff's menu (that automatically adds games to the main menu when found on the A: drive) avoids having to add them manually. That is nice.. Volhout Edited 2024-12-02 22:40 by Volhout PicomiteVGA PETSCII ROBOTS |
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| Turbo46 Guru Joined: 24/12/2017 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1636 |
Thanks Volhout and Tom and I apologise for the lack of thought put into my questions. Of course I can't replace the Pico board on the Pico Gamer with a standard Pico 2. In future (or even now) there may be a suitable Pico 2 board but I won't bother. No matter how fast the processor is, the serial display will always be a bottleneck. It may improve processor intensive games though. Simpler to leave things as they are. Thanks Bill Keep safe. Live long and prosper. |
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| CtrlAltSockPuppet Newbie  Joined: 05/01/2024 Location: United KingdomPosts: 15 |
Hi thwill Could I purchase a kit of parts for a GameMite please? Thanks and kind regards J |
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| thwill Guru Joined: 16/09/2019 Location: United KingdomPosts: 4245 |
Of course, I will reply to your PM. @all Apropos a query that @CtrlAltSockPuppet included in his PM is there an intrinsic reason a Game*Mite could not be built with a Pico 2 W in-place of the standard Pico ? e.g. - Are any of the pins on the 2 W specially allocated ? - Is the firmware missing any of the graphics/sound features ? - I seem to recall it doesn't have the "GUI" functionality which I think maybe PicoVaders uses (the GUI BITMAP command). - Does the different firmware leave it with less RAM available ... I'm guessing that it being a 2 W rather than a standard W may help in this regard ? Thanks in advance, Tom MMBasic for Linux, Game*Mite, CMM2 Welcome Tape, Creaky old text adventures |
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Mixtel90 Guru Joined: 05/10/2019 Location: United KingdomPosts: 7471 |
The Pico 2 W is like the Pico W. From a hardware perspective they are interchangeable, but I wouldn't recommend surface mounting it if you want to use the wifi as the antenna will be next to the PCB copper unless you remove it from both top and bottom areas in that vicinity. Mick Zilog Inside! nascom.info for Nascom & Gemini Preliminary MMBasic docs & my PCB designs |
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| Volhout Guru Joined: 05/03/2018 Location: NetherlandsPosts: 4821 |
Hi Tom, I just went through the huge user manual looking for a confirmation of FRAMEBUFFER F. My memory may be confused, but are all framebuffers available in WebMite ? Or only FRAMEBUFFER L ? Game*Mite games sometimes need framebuffer L, some games need framebuffer F (some may use Frambuffer N.L and F). I am also not sure if the A:/ drive is as large as the A:/ drive in the normal PicoMite. Othewise it could not hold all thw programs. I guess it is smaller since the webmite uf2 file is larger, so there is more to put in flash. At cost of....? Volhout EDIT: petscii won't run, there is only 88kbyte program space in 2040WebMite. 2040VGA is 100kbyte, 2040picomite is 128 kbyte. petscii "just" runs in VGA. Summary: You can equip a Game*Mite with a 2040Webmite, but it will be limitted in programs it can run. Edited 2024-12-05 00:54 by Volhout PicomiteVGA PETSCII ROBOTS |
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| thwill Guru Joined: 16/09/2019 Location: United KingdomPosts: 4245 |
Hi folks, Thanks for the answers. @CtrlAltSockPuppet was asking about the Pico 2 W, so that is the 2350 not the 2040. I believe that has a significantly larger flash / A:/drive and possibly more RAM available to MMBasic (?) Anyway, Mick's comment about the antenna and the fact that Pico's are a damn nuisance to de-solder means I don't think I can recommend trying to build a Game*Mite around one. Best wishes, Tom MMBasic for Linux, Game*Mite, CMM2 Welcome Tape, Creaky old text adventures |
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| Turbo46 Guru Joined: 24/12/2017 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1636 |
Time for another silly question: Could the RP2040-Plus as used in the Pico Gamer be used in the Game*Mite to provide the Game*Mite with more flash and largely do away with the need for an SD card? That would require the "special" version of the firmware produced by Geoff unless my question of whether it could be covered by an option is feasible. Not sure whether the on board battery charger could be used with a little patching. I'll look at that later when I'm not so tired. Bill Keep safe. Live long and prosper. |
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| Mixtel90 Guru Joined: 05/10/2019 Location: United KingdomPosts: 7471 |
A: Is it *fully* pin compatible (mechanically and electrically)? B: Can it be physically mounted in the same position on the same PCB (remember, it doesn't plug in!)? C: Are all the pins used by the Game*Mite available for use (or have any been used on-board for "enhancements"!)? If the answers to all of the above is "Yes" ten probably. :) It looks like it might work but I would need to do a lot more investigation before I would say "Yes". The RP2350 is not the RP2040. Will any pull down resistors be required, for example? Mick Zilog Inside! nascom.info for Nascom & Gemini Preliminary MMBasic docs & my PCB designs |
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| Volhout Guru Joined: 05/03/2018 Location: NetherlandsPosts: 4821 |
Mick, I have build a game*mite with pico 2 board, and with minor sw changes that works. No hw changes needed. Sw changes involved center around detection of the picomite version (2350) The extra speed in the pico makes games run noticeable more smooth. Volhout Edited 2025-01-04 02:11 by Volhout PicomiteVGA PETSCII ROBOTS |
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| Mixtel90 Guru Joined: 05/10/2019 Location: United KingdomPosts: 7471 |
Excellent! :) Mick Zilog Inside! nascom.info for Nascom & Gemini Preliminary MMBasic docs & my PCB designs |
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