[FDS] [Feature Request] [Bug] Multi Disk Support for games with multiple Disks. #1866
Comments
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ares already has support for Famicom Disk System games that span two disks, however, for reasons I do not fully understand, it requires that both disks be combined into a single .fds file. After doing some research, it seems that until recently, this was the primary way to distribute FDS titles. As such, all older emulators, and even Mister FPGA expect this format, and ares seems to have followed the pattern. I have verified this by combining both of these into a single file. Time Twist - Rekishi no Katasumi de... - Zenpen (Japan) (Disk 1)
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Must have been how older releases were made. Most of the modern Disk Dumps I can find through No-Intro's database seems to have them separate as individual disks as they are on hardware. It is a little extra work for the more casual user, since this would require hex editing to combine both together, |
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I think I'm confused on this issue. And again, it could be due to the fact that I haven't had time to actually look in detail and it has just been rough time-wise the last few weeks to put as much into this project as I would like. But enough whining. FDS supports changing disk sides, as well as switching to the next disk if there are more then one for a game. The handful multi-disk issues we've come across I thought was because it resembled something like CD disc swap more then standard switch to side B, or switch to second disc. In some of these rarer cases, you have to play far enough into the Zenpen release to then start the Kouhen release, which is distributed as its own game/FDS joined ROM file. ares currently doesn't have a way to allow switching to what looks like an entirely differently FDS file, but there are a few games that require this in order to complete the two-part series. So it looks like we need to add functionality that lets you arbitrarily (or I guess we could only enable based on Mia DB entries) switch to an entirely FDS game without clearing the date of the Famicom/FDS. Looks like there are 6 games (two separate sets/names) and the tester application that requires this. |
Describe the issue
The FDS core with the new delay added fixes most of the loading related issues for the Famicom Disk System core.
However, Several titles will not boot directly from the FDS BIOS, throwing out Error 7, 8 or Error 20 because they are expected to load directly from their respective Disk 1, meaning they lack data for the FDS BIOS to recognize them as valid titles.
As the Disk System is currently implemented, you can only use a single disk and switch between Side A or Side B. You cannot switch the currently inserted disk without reloading the core, breaking game compatibility with several titles.
Affected Titles
Affected Titles divided into Disk 1 & 2 respectively:
Describe the solution you'd like
Allow the user to freely change the inserted virtual Disk from the drive by creating an option under Famicom Disk System>Disk Drive and adding "Swap Disk..." which will bring up a context sensitive menu asking for the new .FDS file which will then be inserted & loaded into the virtual drive as Side A.
Describe alternatives you've considered
Currently the only alternative solution is to use another emulator with Famicom Disk Sytem Support that allows you to freely swap the loaded virtual disk such as Mesen or PuNES.
Additional context
Verified the requirement for multi disk after going through the FDS titles listed as "ingame" or "Starts" on the compatibility database to determine the FDS delay fixed any known issues and rough translating on screen messages related to disk switching in the affected game and determining the cause for their respective errors.
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