Mapper: Difference between revisions
(→iNES 1.0 mapper grid: three of the Bad mappers are known to refer to Front Fareast products) |
|||
| Line 21: | Line 21: | ||
| [[File:Mfr icon Nintendo.png]] [[INES Mapper 004|004]] | | [[File:Mfr icon Nintendo.png]] [[INES Mapper 004|004]] | ||
| [[File:Mfr icon Nintendo.png]] [[INES Mapper 005|005]] | | [[File:Mfr icon Nintendo.png]] [[INES Mapper 005|005]] | ||
| [[File:Mfr icon | | [[File:Mfr icon Front.png]] [[INES Mapper 006|006]] | ||
| [[File:Mfr icon Rare.png]] [[INES Mapper 007|007]] | | [[File:Mfr icon Rare.png]] [[INES Mapper 007|007]] | ||
| [[File:Mfr icon | | [[File:Mfr icon Front.png]] [[INES Mapper 008|008]] | ||
| [[File:Mfr icon Nintendo.png]] [[INES Mapper 009|009]] | | [[File:Mfr icon Nintendo.png]] [[INES Mapper 009|009]] | ||
| [[File:Mfr icon Nintendo.png]] [[INES Mapper 010|010]] | | [[File:Mfr icon Nintendo.png]] [[INES Mapper 010|010]] | ||
| Line 33: | Line 33: | ||
|- | |- | ||
| [[File:Mfr icon Bandai.png]] [[INES Mapper 016|016]] | | [[File:Mfr icon Bandai.png]] [[INES Mapper 016|016]] | ||
| [[File:Mfr icon | | [[File:Mfr icon Front.png]] [[INES Mapper 017|017]] | ||
| [[File:Mfr icon Jaleco.png]] [[INES Mapper 018|018]] | | [[File:Mfr icon Jaleco.png]] [[INES Mapper 018|018]] | ||
| [[File:Mfr icon Namco.png]] [[INES Mapper 019|019]] | | [[File:Mfr icon Namco.png]] [[INES Mapper 019|019]] | ||
| Line 291: | Line 291: | ||
Nintendo-made boards with numerous publishers get the Nintendo icon; Nintendo-made boards dominated by one publisher get that publisher's icon. | Nintendo-made boards with numerous publishers get the Nintendo icon; Nintendo-made boards dominated by one publisher get that publisher's icon. | ||
Other icons refer to status: | Other icons refer to status: | ||
* [[File:Mfr icon Bad.png]] This mapper is "bad": it was used for something other than an actual cartridge. Some are mapper | * [[File:Mfr icon Bad.png]] This mapper is "bad": it was used for something other than an actual cartridge. Some are [[mapper hack]]s designed for early disk-based copiers. Others are duplicate mappers that were assigned by mistake. | ||
* [[File:Mfr icon Pirate MMC3.png]] "Pirate MMC3" mappers. Many are used for unauthorized [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/VideoGameDemake demakes] of 16-bit fighting games. | * [[File:Mfr icon Pirate MMC3.png]] "Pirate MMC3" mappers. Many are used for unauthorized [http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/VideoGameDemake demakes] of 16-bit fighting games. | ||
* [[File:Mfr icon pirate.png]] Mappers used primarily by illegally copied games, usually multicarts, sometimes single-game mapper hacks. | * [[File:Mfr icon pirate.png]] Mappers used primarily by illegally copied games, usually multicarts, sometimes single-game mapper hacks. | ||
Revision as of 17:40, 6 October 2012
A mapper is a piece of hardware soldered to a cartridge's printed circuit board that performs address decoding, bank switching, and possibly other tasks. Some mappers can generate interrupts for timing; some Famicom games' mappers even have extra audio channels.
NES cartridges can include extra hardware which allows the use of large program and graphics ROMs and extra features. This extra hardware is usually referred to as a "mapper", as it is used primarily to map the relatively small CPU and PPU address spaces to a portion of the larger address space of the ROM(s) on the cartridge.
Mappers vary in how they translate addresses. The various CPU memory mapping schemes expand the maximum program size above the standard 32 KiB to larger powers of 2, while PPU memory mapping schemes can add new graphic features.
Most mappers fall into one of two categories: discrete logic, and ASIC based. Some discrete logic mappers are susceptible to bus conflicts. Nintendo uses the term Memory Management Controller (or MMC for short) for its ASIC mappers ("Why Game Paks Never Forget" article in Nintendo Power).
Discrete logic mappers are often referred to by the name of a board that they are commonly used in (e.g. "UNROM"). ASIC mappers are named after the ASIC (e.g. "MMC1" or "FME-7"), except in boards that use an ASIC in an unusual way (such as "TQROM", "TLSROM", or "NES-EVENT"). The emulation community generally refers to mappers by a numbering scheme that originated with the iNES emulator (e.g. "mapper 002").
iNES 1.0 mapper grid
Most icons next to mapper numbers refer to publishers. Nintendo-made boards with numerous publishers get the Nintendo icon; Nintendo-made boards dominated by one publisher get that publisher's icon. Other icons refer to status:
This mapper is "bad": it was used for something other than an actual cartridge. Some are mapper hacks designed for early disk-based copiers. Others are duplicate mappers that were assigned by mistake.
"Pirate MMC3" mappers. Many are used for unauthorized demakes of 16-bit fighting games.
Mappers used primarily by illegally copied games, usually multicarts, sometimes single-game mapper hacks.
Mappers for which we have some information but no identified manufacturer.
Mappers that are not yet documented on this wiki. Do not assume undocumented mappers are currently unassigned; consult other sources.
See also
- Nintendo: MMC1, MMC2, MMC3, MMC4, MMC5 with audio, MMC6
- Konami: VRC1, VRC2, VRC3, VRC4, VRC6 with audio, VRC7 with audio, VRC irqs
- Others: Color Dreams, Namco 106 with audio, NINA-001, NINA-03/06, SUBOR, Sunsoft FME-7
- List of discrete logic mappers
- List of iNES mapper numbers
- Comparison of Nintendo mappers
- List of mapper names and corresponding iNES mapper numbers
- Hardware pinout, including mapper pinouts
External links
- Disch's detailed list of over 50 mappers at romhacking.net
- Kevtris's mapper checklist as implemented in his FPGA NES
