Mega Engine by PCEWorks

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Galgomite
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Mega Engine by PCEWorks

Post by Galgomite »

I've been aware from PCEWorks for a long time, and I'm not sure the owner isn't on this forum. Does anyone care to share their thoughts on this proposed retro CD game console?
https://pceworks.wordpress.com/2020/12/31/mega-engine/
fernan1234
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Re: Mega Engine by PCEWorks

Post by fernan1234 »

No info on what is actually inside? With no info I can only guess a Raspberry Pi with some custom libretro image.
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SCARTicus
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Re: Mega Engine by PCEWorks

Post by SCARTicus »

This is the lamest new hardware development in a good long while; thank you for bringing it to my attention.

As far as I can tell this is basically a Polymega that plays PCE-CD games and only PCE-CD games, and you get to use a fake Sega controller! Oh it will do SegaCD games, too. Great... Did we really need another ARM-powered trashcan to play the games that our old machines already play? I can produce a better PC-Engine playing experience on my PC, effortlessly. This has been possible for way over a decade. How old is Magic Engine? Shit. Oh, and I have to pay money for the privilege. I'm sure that this will integrate effortlessly into my RGB-to-YPbPr 15KHz CRT television setup...

I have a Duo-R... and original turbo controllers. It's a very comfortable controller!

I have a SegaCD... and mine will play cartridges!

Just who do these people think is going to buy this? The SNES Mini crowd? These people like to use original style controller on hardware that resembles the original and makes them nostalgic. Is it for the PiGamerrr crowd? They have access to a far larger selection of software, and these people are, uh, frugal for the most part anyway. Perhaps they intend it for the diehard PC-Engine fans. You know, the folks who already have real PC-Engines with RGB mods and a pile of HuCARDs. Why would they buy this pile? It will have at least two frames of input lag anyway, you know it.

Head, up butt. Not you Galgomite. PCEWorks
BONKERS
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Re: Mega Engine by PCEWorks

Post by BONKERS »

Getting the best signal you can get out of a PC-Engine can be costly on a current setup. Multiple mods, or something like that 400+$ DVI upscaler add-on.
They seem pretty upfront that it's obviously powered by some off the shelf parts and software emulation (Even if they don't say what exactly).

If it's affordable, it's a great way for those people who want a plug and play method to play their existing CD game libraries (On a modern display) who haven't wanted (or had the skills) to mod their systems or spend money and time investing into complicated mods/cables/upscaling set-ups. People forget that not everyone is technically inclined nor has the time. (And it would cost even more $$$ to have someone do the work for you) Of course an existing PC setup can do it all, but again plug and play.

I'm sure though if this was an FPGA system made by Analogue and charged at a premium you'd be lapping it up :roll:.
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Fudoh
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Re: Mega Engine by PCEWorks

Post by Fudoh »

will be available as a DIY-kit as well for not much more than what you pay for a good Pi case already. With a proposed price of something like 150 EUR shipped (for the complete unit), it's not competing with Polymega (450 EUR for the base unit over here in Europe) or an Analogue Duo (330+ EUR with shipping and tax for European users). And yes, you can do a lot of things with a PC, but getting any of the arm-based setups to work with physical discs can be a big pain in the a**.

I watched a prototype test run via stream a few days ago. There were a few quirks (like setting up unkown controllers), but in general it did the job, which is getting somebody to play physical PCE or MCD discs on a standalone machine within 15 minutes. Most users won't accomplish this on a modern PC.

Do we need it? No. But is there are market for it? Probably.
Galgomite
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Re: Mega Engine by PCEWorks

Post by Galgomite »

SCARTicus wrote:This is the lamest new hardware development in a good long while; thank you for bringing it to my attention.
LOL you're welcome! I won't say it's for me either, though 5-10 years ago I'd be first in line (the whole project, photos and all, seems eerily familiar in fact). If I had to prioritize what I want in an 8/16-bit console it would be zero lag first, picture quality second and accuracy, probably third... and this wouldn't likely tick the first box.

I am glad people keep trying to find a way forward for physical media, though. Playing a physical CD, cart, DVD, etc. is its own very positive experience. I asked about CD support on the MiSTer forum and got laughed out of the room... by Sorgelig. I have a Duo-R and a Sega CD but they aren't getting any younger and I really do like the Analogue/ RetroUSB model of a "just works" experience with physical media on hardware that I don't have to baby.
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bobrocks95
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Re: Mega Engine by PCEWorks

Post by bobrocks95 »

Galgomite wrote:I am glad people keep trying to find a way forward for physical media, though. Playing a physical CD, cart, DVD, etc. is its own very positive experience. I asked about CD support on the MiSTer forum and got laughed out of the room... by Sorgelig. I have a Duo-R and a Sega CD but they aren't getting any younger and I really do like the Analogue/ RetroUSB model of a "just works" experience with physical media on hardware that I don't have to baby.
Would love to replace a few consoles with the Mister... Except they've said it will never accept physical media, so nevermind.
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drboom
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Re: Mega Engine by PCEWorks

Post by drboom »

Curious if anyone has actually bought and tried one of these from the forum. I have a Duo-R that I use with a CRT and I’m still pretty happy with that set up. I am interested in a modern version though, one I can play on my fancy non-tube TV.
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it290
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Re: Mega Engine by PCEWorks

Post by it290 »

bobrocks95 wrote:Would love to replace a few consoles with the Mister... Except they've said it will never accept physical media, so nevermind.
The irony of this is that you can now hook a Commodore 1541 drive directly to the MiSTer and use it as a physical floppy disk drive with the C64 core.
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spmbx
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Re: Mega Engine by PCEWorks

Post by spmbx »

I agree with them; a bunch of old games on some collector's shelf isnt the way forward.
jd213
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Re: Mega Engine by PCEWorks

Post by jd213 »

Seems that there's not enough IO pins for getting cartridges directly working on MISTer, but some people are apparently working on USB adapters for dumping carts on the fly, similar to a Retron or other clone console emulator box: https://misterfpga.org/viewtopic.php?f=29&t=969
Would kinda be cool, but doesn't seem like it's a huge priority for many people.

In regards to stuff like the Mega Engine and Analogue Duo, I'd personally be worried about the CD drive dying. Most of my original Duo consoles are still working fine, but I've had modern PC optical drives die on me after just a month or two, especially those slim drives for laptops.
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