Lucid Apogee 3 in 1 multi cartridges for NES / Famicom compatible systems

[lucidapogee]

Presenting the Lucid Apogee 3 in 1 educational personal computing cartridge series.

Cartridge 1 offers a math game, a puzzle game, and an action game.

Monkey Math ... IQ Puzzle ... Stalactites
https://www.lucidapogee.com/3-in-1/cart1/


Cartridge 2 offers a spelling game, a puzzle game, and an action game.

Animal Trivia ... HEX Puzzle ... Garden Snake
https://www.lucidapogee.com/3-in-1/cart2/


Cartridge 3 offers a 16 bit integer tiny BASIC, an integer RPN calculator, and a calendar.

65FC BASIC ... RPN Calculator ... Calendar
https://www.lucidapogee.com/3-in-1/65fc-os/



These software products are considered freeware, but we will be accepting donations and producing cartridges to sell in limited quantities. We already have one prototype of cartridge 1 and it works on real famiclone hardware!

These products are primarily intended to be part of the famiclone market as opposed to the Nintendo market as we are not affiliated with them in any way. We will be ordering Famiclones branded with our company to sell with our carts.

The idea is to make new, simple, and inexpensive 8 bit educational personal computer systems. The included BASIC interpreter doesn't require a physical keyboard. It displays the keyboard on screen only requiring a controller. The interpreter is severely limited compared to G BASIC or F BASIC, but it only uses the 2k RAM and is 100% homebrew.

Regardless of any limitations, here's a few examples of what it can do:

guess the number

Code Select Expand

1 N=RND MOD 100+1
2 PRINT "GUESS THE NUM"
3 PRINT "BETWEEN 1-100"
4 INPUT G
5 T=T+1
6 IF G<N 9
7 IF G>N 11
8 IF G=N 13
9 PRINT "TOO LOW"
10 GOTO 4
11 PRINT "TOO HIGH"
12 GOTO 4
13 CLS
14 PRINT "CORRECT IN"
15 PRINT T
16 PRINT "TIRES"

binary to decimal

Code Select Expand

1 N=1110
2 R=N MOD 10
3 S=S+R*2^I
4 N=N/10
5 I=I+1
6 IF N>0 2
7 PRINT S

decimal to binary

Code Select Expand

1 N=12
2 I=1
3 R=N MOD 2
4 N=N/2
5 S=S+R*I
6 I=I*10
7 IF N>0 3
8 PRINT S

prime numbers

Code Select Expand

1 PRINT 2
2 N=2
3 N=N+1
4 A=2
5 IF N MOD A=0 9
6 A=A+1
7 IF A<N 5
8 PRINT N
9 IF N<50 3
10 PRINT "DONE"

factors of an integer

Code Select Expand

1 N=22
2 I=I+1
3 IF N<>I*(N/I) 5
4 PRINT I
5 IF I<N/2 2
6 PRINT N

[fcgamer]

Please let me know when these become available, I am interested in purchasing a set of cartridges as well as the machine you are selling.

[lucidapogee]

To see interest is encouraging.

Where the project stands at the moment:

I have one test cart in my possession and need to order two more test carts.
Last night, I ordered a small batch of Famiclones with cartridge ports.

Things are coming together. I am currently looking into more "mass" production. The challenge now is to get the prices as low as possible.

Right now the carts are produced for $18 each approximately (shipping included). Hopefully I can get that down.

I was able to source the consoles for about $11.30 a piece in low quantity (that includes shipping, tax, and fees).

I am assuming that my consoles will be between $15 and the carts $25. Or something like that. Unfortunately that sounds very high to me so I need to find someone willing to make these in bulk at a lower price.

One thing that would help is if I can have some famiclones made with the games built in like with those 400 in 1s. Imagine a BASIC handheld for $10.

Hopefully I will have some good news in a month or so. These things take forever to ship from China. In the meantime, hopefully I will catch any errors and make some cool additions to the ROMs before they are committed to physical copies.

[lucidapogee]

More progress! I have ordered five of these to start with.

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When they arrive, I will test them with my cartridges to make sure they fit and function correctly. If they work out, these will be the first consoles I will have for sale. Not custom, but at least there will be another source to buy cool famiclones.

Also, last night I ordered samples for Lucid Apogee Multi Game Cart #2 and for 65FC-OS. When the cartridge samples arrive and are tested, I will order more of them.


Finally, I have contacted a factory about the production of custom 400-in-1 handhelds. I have ordered some samples of them with all 9 of my programs (games, BASIC, etc) included with the existing 400 games. These particular games are not the unlicensed pirate variety. They will be your standard Chinese titles made for famiclones by Nice Code, etc. Unfortunately, the minimum order after the sample (if it actually arrives) will be 1000. I do not have anywhere near that kind of funding right now, but if the samples work out I will save up.


There's some new examples too! Including two new example "games."

TREASURE HUNT

Code Select Expand

1 PRINT "TREASURE IS"
2 PRINT "HIDDEN IN A"
3 PRINT "10X10 GRID"
4 PRINT "(0-9) 10 TRIES"
5 T=10
6 A=RND MOD 10
7 B=RND MOD 10
8 PRINT "X="
9 INPUT X
10 PRINT "Y="
11 INPUT Y
12 IF X=A AND Y=B 27
13 IF Y=B 18
14 IF Y<B 17
15 PRINT "NORTH"
16 GOTO 18
17 PRINT "SOUTH"
18 IF X=A 23
19 IF X<A 22
20 PRINT "WEST"
21 GOTO 23
22 PRINT "EAST"
23 T=T-1
24 IF T>0 8
25 PRINT "YOU LOST"
26 END
27 PRINT "FOUND IT"

FIGHT

Code Select Expand

1 H=10
2 N=10
3 PRINT "PLAYER -"
4 PRINT H
5 PRINT "NPC -"
6 PRINT N
7 PRINT "(A)HIT (B)HEAL"
8 K=KEY
9 IF K=6 12
10 IF K=5 15
11 GOTO 8
12 H=H+RND MOD 3
13 N=N+RND MOD 2
14 GOTO 3
15 D=RND MOD 2
16 N=N-D
17 PRINT D
18 PRINT "DAMAGE DEALT"
19 D=RND MOD 2
20 H=H-D
21 PRINT D
22 PRINT "DAMAGE TAKEN"
23 IF H AND N 3
24 IF H<1 27
25 PRINT "YOU WIN"
26 END
27 PRINT "YOU LOSE"


[lucidapogee]

I have some updates about this project here

https://lucidapogee.itch.io/65fc-os-for-nes-famicom-compatible-systems/devlog/923273/major-bug-fixes

https://lucidapogee.itch.io/65fc-os-for-nes-famicom-compatible-systems/devlog/923916/more-updates

Also, the Onestations have arrived in the US and are on the way along with some handheld samples. One step at a time, things are coming together.

[fcgamer]

Oh wow, I have one of those exact clones sitting in my collection at the moment, found at a local junk shop for about $7.

For what it's worth, which is probably not much at all:

I think having the games built-in to clones is much less appealing to collectors. For me personally, I'd gladly drop a couple $100 for a brand new Famiclone with your brand, as well as copies of your game software. Keep in mind that I am a collector and I don't have much of a use for using my Famicom as a PC alternative, especially when I already own some similar type games / Famiclones from years back. That said, this is a neat project and I'd like to have copies of these games and the branded hardware.

Thanks for the update!

[lucidapogee]

The samples have arrived! Here's a few notes about my findings.

You cannot see attachments on this board.

onestation (VW-T02)

the bad:

- Lucid Apogee carts barely fit (takes a good push)
- evergame doesn't work
- lcd screen cart doesn't work
- manual in spanish (not really bad, just random)

the good:

- epic design
- cool and collectible
- built in games AND cartridge port

226 in 1 (GC26 D TYPE V V2)

the bad:

- sprites are displaying incorrect order
- crash sfx not playing
- missing av port for rubber placeholder
- annoying to re assemble
- not compatible with other handheld controllers
- many included games do not function correctly or at all
- there's an invisible 227th option in the menu  (broken menu?)
- I'm fairly ceratin there's some unlicensed titles in the mix despite claims otherwise

the good:

- bigger 3" screen
- USB C charging
- has battery charging icon in game select menu (HOW DOES THIS EVEN WORK?)



At this point, I need to order more samples as I have fixed bugs since ordering these. I'm not content with how this handheld came out, so I will be ordering more with my updated ROMS on one of their previous handheld models.

As for the Onestation (VW-T02), I can't say these will be my top product. I will still offer them as they are cool to collect. More in the world is a good thing. They will not be specifically for my carts. For that, I need to order more samples until I find something that works well with my carts and is higher quality like my Yobo. Another option is to find a source for higher quality cartridge production. The samples I am working with right now are of the cheapest quality and for some reason the PCB sits too high in the cart to fit in many Famiclones.

There's probably more I need to mention, but that's the summary.

I'm having fun and learning a lot from this project. Totally worth it.

Thanks for the update!

Ideally, I would save the built in game stuff for handhelds. You're right about collectors I think.

The whole use your Famiclone as a PC thing is more of a gimmicky toy than a serious thing at this point, although it can do a few neat learning demonstrations for newbies that want to code. I need to add fixed point notation for it to be a "serious" calculation tool. For everyone else, you get the thrill of doing a HELLO WORLD.

To make sure I understand your suggestion fully, are you wanting to see a new model / enclosure? Visually, a new system? I was starting with the idea of offering the Famiclones to have something compatible with my carts. I'm not sure about customization yet.

Are there any recommended Famiclone models to base off?

I appreciate your input.