Thoughts of repo rare arcade carts? (Ikaruga / Sega Naomi)

I'm undecided. It's a nice way to have the games working on your cabinet but then, it's not the real deal and you're paying for something that isn't real. That said I have the Modbios G-Net system which is grand. Although some games I'd like to buy the cards for in future.

Something like Progear though, I'd consider I think. Mainly because of the price it commands, you'd never get one unless you were super lucky to find a legit one and also super rich.

CiDeRmAn wrote: »

I bet Steve already has two!

Possibly. But you need to know exactly what you are buying if you want a legit Progear. It's ridiculously hard to find, hence the astronomical price a legit board commands.

I'd consider a conversion or a phoenixed version if the price was right. Cheapest conversion I saw was around €350 I think.

You need to examine the case sticker as even those are bootlegged, even on legit boards.

It's an incredible game though, I prefer it to Akai Katana (although both are brilliant games of course).

Pyongyang wrote: »

I'd consider a conversion or a phoenixed version if the price was right

Big difference between the two. A conversion is another game hacked/converted into Progear, a phoenixed progear is all original, right down to the original rom chips. So to me, a phoenixed version is way more desireable than a conversion

Pyongyang wrote: »

True. I just meant that if a phoenixed version was priced right I'd consider it. But the price would be mighty and the board difficult to source.

Hmm, a conversion sounds like an interesting DIY project. Could be worth a look-in...

EDIT: Interesting!

http://ikotsu.blogspot.co.uk/2010/01/progear-capcom-cps2-cavecapcom-2001.html

I'd a conversion SSF2HAE before, they're an ugly hack unless you have the right donor board. The one I got didn't & was missing certain sounds etc as the donor board wasn't a high enough revision.

Tbh, unless the board is stock, it's just not worth the hassle. With the likes of JPAC solutions available now, it's easier to turn a pc into a pcb without having to modify the cab's internals.

o1s1n wrote: »

I think a CPS2 Vampire Savior doesn't need any soldering to convert into a Progear.

Worth looking into I think. Wouldn't mind one myself!!

I dunno, I've always hated the thoughts of killing one game to make another. Unless its something totally rubbish I'd feel bad doing it

Re that SSF2HAE, if you dump all the roms on that board onto a G revision board, it should be perfect as far as I remember

Pyongyang wrote: »

Hmm, I'm going to look in to it. It'd be an interesting project to document I think. I'll price it up and see where the land lies then. If it's worth it, I'll seriously consider doing it.*


*aka, ruin the board with dodgy soldering then post here asking for help.

You do know that owning a hacked g-net & a converted cps2 board means we won't be listening to any purist cr@p off you in the future?

o1s1n wrote: »

Same, that's one of the reasons I hate repro carts and all that jazz.

But as far as CPS2 goes, if a game is dead due to a dead battery and it's a cheap common game nobody wants, then maybe it's not such a crime to convert it?

I don't fancy making a total hack job, but if it's just a matter of clipping in some Progear eeproms in place of the Vampire Savior ones then maybe it's not so bad.

Yeah true, a dead board is a dead board & it either has to be phoenixed or converted to ever be used again...good point.

Re clipping in the roms, I think its just a case of that with a G revision board...it also has to have a certain value hex invertor but its prob standard on a G revision anyway

Pyongyang wrote: »

Still 95% purist!

Thats just hypocritical man, a purist wouldn't use a hacked g-net

It's like saying I'm 95% vegetarian. I don't eat meat except for on Friday nights when I get some yummy take away

Sorry Sparks, your now part of the filth like the rest of us. I think only Steve & Casey have halo's on them now