Saturn memory/RAM carts

[Zorator]

Now that I've got all my Saturn backups running on my modded console, I'm feeling the need for a memory and RAM cart(s). I know the Action Replay carts are readily available but they don't support Dezaemon 2/Deza2 Save Game Manager, which is one of my primary reasons for wanting a memory cart. Which carts have direct saving functionality other than the Memory Card Plus by Interact? MCP has RAM functionality as well but I've heard nothing but bad things about this cart. It says on the box that it supports direct save but reviews online say it uses compression(and is therefore prone to corruption), aren't these two functions contradictory?

It would be really nice if I could get a cart that saves directly AND has 4 MB RAM. Which carts fit this criteria if any? Since tracking down such a cart may take me a while I'm thinking of just buying a regular direct save memory cart, and perhaps a separate RAM cart, in the meantime. Can anyone recommend a basic direct save memory cart that isn't super hard to find, other than the first party carts?

[Ziggy]

I would recommend nothing other than the official Sega "backup RAM cart" and many others will agree. If you must have a 1/4M RAM cart, the Action Replay Plus is your best value (because it does have other features). That's the setup I use personally. I've dealt with corrupt saves trying to move saves back and forth between the system and a Game Shark or the Action Replay. It's just not worth it. I've never had a problem with the Sega memory cart. Same is true for most systems. Third party memory cards will drop your saves.

PS: So you got the backups working now? Congrats. What turned out to be the problem(s)? Would you mind updating your thread with what you did to get everything working? All the suggestions are already in the thread, but it's nice to have the solution for people Googling with similar problems. I'm also just curious.

edit: It also does hurt to edit your first post in that thread so you can add "SOLVED" to the thread title.

[Zorator]

I would recommend nothing other than the official Sega "backup RAM cart" and many others will agree. If you must have a 1/4M RAM cart, the Action Replay Plus is your best value (because it does have other features). That's the setup I use personally. I've dealt with corrupt saves trying to move saves back and forth between the system and a Game Shark or the Action Replay. It's just not worth it. I've never had a problem with the Sega memory cart. Same is true for most systems. Third party memory cards will drop your saves.

PS: So you got the backups working now? Congrats. What turned out to be the problem(s)? Would you mind updating your thread with what you did to get everything working? All the suggestions are already in the thread, but it's nice to have the solution for people Googling with similar problems. I'm also just curious.

So the Sega backup RAM cart is just save game memory right? How much space does it have compared to other direct saving third party carts? I've seen at least one memory cart that claimed to have 8 MB of space, 2x the AR 4-in-1, although I'm not sure if it used direct save. What about compression? Is it mutually exclusive from direct save?

My backups weren't working due to a combination of me burning them wrong(didn't know you need to select just .cue) and me using some faulty images. I was so perplexed by the fact that my images worked in SSF and were even recognized by the emulator when improperly burned that I assumed it was the chip. I'll update the thread soon.

[theclaw]

Sorry. Direct save and 1MB/4MB RAM expansion are mutually exclusive.

There is no solution for users who want to play both save-memory-hog games (Iron Storm, Virtua Fighter 2, etc) and RAM upgrade games (Marvel Super Heroes vs Street Fighter, Vampire Savior, etc).

[brunoafh]

Not to derail the thread too heavily here, but if you're using the 4-1 cart to boot an NTSC-J game on a NTSC-U Saturn, can you remove the 4-1 after booting the game and swap it with a first party Sega cart to save to directly?

I plan on trying it myself sooner or later, just wondering if anyone knows off the top of their head since this thread popped up.

[Ziggy]

I've tried that with a Game Shark and a Sega memory cart, didn't work. It wouldn't detect the memory cart. I never bothered to try it with the Action Replay.

[Hobie-wan]

Not to derail the thread too heavily here, but if you're using the 4-1 cart to boot an NTSC-J game on a NTSC-U Saturn, can you remove the 4-1 after booting the game and swap it with a first party Sega cart to save to directly?

I plan on trying it myself sooner or later, just wondering if anyone knows off the top of their head since this thread popped up.

I doubt the carts are made to hot swap. It's very likely you could damage something or corrupt saves on the memory card too.