Sunrise starts sale of MSX Game Readers on Bussum

Source: Bazix

This Saturday, on the annual MSX fair in Bussum, Sunrise will start the sale of the Sunrise MSX Game Reader. These USB devices can be used to connect genuine MSX game cartridges to an ordinary Windows PC, allowing you to play the games on your PC using the official MSX emulator MSXPLAYer.

Bazix, the representative of MSX Association outside Japan has granted the licenses needed to make distribution of this device possible. In Japan, ASCII released a Japanese version of the Game Reader in February 2004. A review of the ASCII Game Reader can be found over here. Please note that, although compatible, the Sunrise Game Reader will come in a different casing.

The Sunrise Game Reader package will contain an English version of MSXPLAYer for Game Reader and Game Reader drivers for Windows.

Relevant link: Sunrise

Comments (26)

By Sonic_aka_T

Enlighted (4130)

30-09-2005, 00:58

I wonder if I got the link to the Bussum fair info correct...

By Samor

Prophet (2165)

30-09-2005, 09:09

Very nice - I was already afraid I had to wait 'till after Bussum

I hope other emulators, like BlueMSX, will support it very soon as well.

By Manuel

Ascended (19301)

30-09-2005, 09:23

I'm not sure about how Daniel Vik feels about supporting the device, but the openMSX team will support it if we get specifications of the device (how to support it), without having to sign any NDA's or other contracts. We want openMSX to stay fully GPL'ed.

Anyway, this is great news! Good to see that the problems/misunderstandings between Sunrise and BAZIX on this topic seem to be resolved.

By [D-Tail]

Ascended (8263)

30-09-2005, 09:37

Now I for one am curious as to what it's gonna cost... And I'm sure I'm not the only one who wants to know that ^_^

By sunrise

Paragon (1091)

30-09-2005, 09:56

Oke, I start with d-tail 75 euro non-extended.
The extended version remains for the time being a wish.
That gives indirectly also an answer to manuels first alinea.

By Latok

msx guru (3927)

30-09-2005, 10:42

Great news!

By Samor

Prophet (2165)

30-09-2005, 10:50

75? That's more than previously reported, right?

I think I can guess why.
hm; in that case, MSXPlayer better be good. I assume there's one being demo-ed saturday?

By sunrise

Paragon (1091)

30-09-2005, 11:10

The reason is not the msx-player, but the fact that it appeared that soldering of the usb-chip itself couldnot be done by ourselves. So that had to be done elswhere.

By Samor

Prophet (2165)

30-09-2005, 11:16

I see.

Still, if (for the time being?) it will only work with MSX Player, I'm really hoping that emu won't be a dissapointment - I love the ability to use real MSX carts on a PC (It's also a very good way to test if the carts are still in good shape; it's harder to tell on an older (real) MSX which may or may not have worn out cartridge ports), and it'd be nice if it's as close to the real deal as possible

Not a gamereader related question, but I also read that MSX Player has real disk support - how safe is it though to use real MSX disks on a PC? I better not waste them

By Sonic_aka_T

Enlighted (4130)

30-09-2005, 13:44

Write protect?

By Samor

Prophet (2165)

30-09-2005, 13:55

thats what Im guessing. just want to make sure

By SaebaMSX

Hero (533)

30-09-2005, 14:39

Hey, cool news!!!

I think that I will find interesting stuff for sale there.

By Edwin

Paragon (1182)

30-09-2005, 15:09

Write protect only protects you from the software issues, but not from a bad drive. So if your disks are important, better be sure your drive is clean and in perfect working order.

By Manuel

Ascended (19301)

30-09-2005, 16:06

Sunrise: how does that answer anything of my first paragraph in my previous reaction?

Is there or is there not going to be an open specification of the protocol?

By Samor

Prophet (2165)

30-09-2005, 17:00

>Write protect only protects you from the software issues, but not from a bad drive. So if your disks are important, better be sure your drive is clean and in perfect working order.

I'd better try with some copied disks first then...

Aside from that, some of the original disks I have still work but they aren't in the best of shape
("sputter-load", but they still load)

By Samor

Prophet (2165)

30-09-2005, 17:01

^that's on a real MSX, with diskdrives which are in good condition.

By BiFi

Enlighted (4348)

30-09-2005, 17:07

oh yeah, a rotten diskdrive is really something we want emulated

By Samor

Prophet (2165)

30-09-2005, 17:18

I could send the samples to Daniel Vik

anyway, I don't think my pc drive is rotten (and the MSX ones sure aren't).
I was just wondering if the differences could be damaging for MSX disks.

By dvik

Prophet (2200)

30-09-2005, 23:33

It would be fun to add support for the game reader in blueMSX. But if they encrypt the rom data or have other features to for example support copy protection it would be hard to do an open source implementation since it would expose the secrets. It is of course always possible to make a non open source build of the emulator but that kindof defeats the purpose of open source.

But if sunrise is interested and have the authority to support other emulators I sure am interested in doing it.

In either case I think its great news and it will be fun to see it in action

By djh1697

Paragon (1696)

30-09-2005, 23:57

Sunrise must be commended for having a working product avaliable! There is nothing worse than a product been annouced (or worse getting sold) with out been complete and working.

I wonder when the Ethernet card will avaliable? I know I will purchase one!

By tfh

Prophet (3316)

01-10-2005, 20:42

@dvik:

There is also another option of course in case the details won't be open source.
Just make it possible for the emulator to work with plugins for external hardware. Maybe "someone" will develop a plugin

By dvik

Prophet (2200)

02-10-2005, 09:16

I wouldn't mind creating a plugin interface to support the game reader if thats required. Having a closed source plugin doesn't really contradict the open source philosophy of blueMSX since the emulator itself would still be 100% open source. But of course it requires sunrises help, either by developing the plugin or provide enough information for us to write it. I don't see any problems signing an NDA's to develop a plugin to the emulator as long as the emulator itself remains open source.

The only problem I see is if the rom data is encrypted somehow in the gamereader. Then an open interface would make it possible to use the game reader in blueMSX to access data that was ment to be secret. But if this is not a concern I don't see any problems to support the game reader in blueMSX.

By pitpan

Prophet (3155)

03-10-2005, 12:40

I'm looking forward to see also the USB adapter for MSX. Joining both hardware items, I'll be able to boot MSX cartridges in my real MSX! Cool

By djh1697

Paragon (1696)

06-10-2005, 20:12

Sunrise, why is there no mention on your site / price list about the product ?

By BiFi

Enlighted (4348)

14-10-2005, 21:51

I'm affraid the site is hardly up to date...