Any good Mega Drive games with a password/save feature?

[Ziggy]

Interesting post. Where do you think I can order one from? And will it be impossible for a noob or just way hard?

Both Mouser and DigiKey (two really great places to order from) carry RAMTRON products.

http://www.mouser.com/Semiconductors/Me ... on&FS=True

http://search.digikey.com/us/en/cat/int ... ?k=ramtron

Off the top of my head, I don't know what size RAM Sonic 3 uses, so you'll have to further narrow down those searches. You can probably safely go over the amount need (to a certain extent). 64Kbit would be a good guess...

http://www.mouser.com/ProductDetail/Ram ... 78izSsw%3d

Datasheet: http://www.ramtron.com/files/datasheets/FM16W08_ds.pdf

38 years of data retention and 100 trillion read/writes... yup

$5? Hmm, I thought it would have been more than that. The only catch is that it's a 28-pin SOIC (surface mounted) chip. What's on the Sonic 3 cart is a DIP (through hole) chip. That's not exactly a problem though. You can get SOIC-DIP adapters for pretty cheap on eBay. Like, about 5 adapter boards for $5 or less. Super cheap. IIRC, the RAMTRON chip on the Sonic 3 cart is 28-pin. So assuming the size is enough (and I think it is) the replacement would cost you maybe $10. I would have to look up the info though, I don't have this fresh in my memory right now.

The thread I talked about, that guy found a RAMTRON DIP chip that he used. But that might have been a few years back, DIP components are being phased out. Surface mounted ICs are always gonna be cheaper anyway. Even with the cost of an adapter board. But if you weren't dead set of using RAMTRON specifically, there's probably other NV RAM chips you can use that you can find in the through hole package (so you wouldn't need the adapter board).

As far as how hard it is... If you're an absolute newb to soldering, I would suggest practicing a bit and watching some videos before you attempt it. It's not exactly a hard skill to learn, but you have to learn it. You can't expect to do a good job on your first try. Also, through hole soldering is usually a LOT easier than surface mounted soldering, so it will take a little more practice if that's the route you go.

If you really wanna attempt this, I'll look up the nessecary info and try to find that thread I was talking about. I'll also give you some good soldering videos for you to watch and explain a good (and cheap) way to practice soldering.

PS, I kinda lost my train of thought halfway through this post, so hopefully it makes sense.

[ZeroAX]

Guys like you with posts are like that, are the reason reading these forums makes me feel dumb.

[GameMasterGuy]

Guys like you with posts are like that, are the reason reading these forums makes me feel dumb.

That makes two of us, buddy. Things get even more incomprehensible when you read about making repros.

[Czernobog]

Landstalker has a save feature if you enjoy action RPG style adventures.

[deathsled]

Pier Solar lets you save

[Ziggy]

Guys like you with posts are like that, are the reason reading these forums makes me feel dumb.

That makes two of us, buddy. Things get even more incomprehensible when you read about making repros.

It's really not super complicated stuff. If you have any questions, just let me know.

[markeconrad]

Castlevania Bloodlines has a password system, but I think it's an annoying one.

...

[Ziggy]

It was the standard Castlevania password system. I don't find it hard to write down. You just have to draw a little grid. That isn't any more annoying than the password system for Mega Man games. And it's way less annoying then writing down and inputting the passwords for Castlevania II and Metroid on the NES. Those were torture.

What is annoying about the Bloodlines passwords is that they keep track of the lives and continues you have left. So in any other Castlevania game, you would die and get the password. When you restarted, you start with the standard amount of lives. In Bloodlines, you get the password after beating a stage, and it keeps track of how many lives you get. And IIRC, if you lose all your lives and continues you get a real game over.

But at least you can get passwords online that will start you at each stage with 9 lives and multiple continues. It also helps if you don't wanna write down the passwords. Example: http://www.gamewinners.com/GEN/Castleva ... dlines.htm

[Erik_Twice]

How long is Castlevania: Bloodlines? Can't you beat it in one sitting like the original?

[Ziggy]

How long is Castlevania: Bloodlines? Can't you beat it in one sitting like the original?

It's 6 stages, I think. Maybe if you know the game well enough, you could probably play through it in one sitting. But to quote the OP...

I love my retro games, and I love my Sega Mega Drive 2(TM), but unfortunately I just don't have the time to beat a game in one sitting, specially when it's something new so I don't know it by heart, to be able zoom right past it (like I do with the sonic games).

I feel the same way. I might not have the time or patience to play through the game in one sitting. Or, when you keep dying on a stage, you might wanna put the game down for a while and come back to it.

As far as Bloodlines in particular, I definitely don't play it in one sitting. It's not a game I play very often, so I'm not the best at it. The first Castlevania on the NES, I play through that game in one shot. But I can't do that with Bloodlines.

I've always complained that more Genesis games should have had a password or save feature.