Where to (legally) acquire content to play on RetroPie

CoolieCoolster

@benmclean While they currently lack many of these new itch.io games and are intentionally limited to only include finished games (or at least games in a state complete enough to have more than ten minutes worth of content), I have been working on both freeware and commercial lists of legally accessible ROMs for a device-specific wiki I edit, but they certainly might be helpful to people with other devices as well. As I was planning on turning the table section of the article into a template that I could use on different device-specific wiki I just created, perhaps such a template would be of use if another wiki were to be created.

In terms of other research I've done for my lists, I did find that Retroism, Piko Interactive, and Dotemu had quite a few classic games re-released on new platforms, several of which aren't on my lists yet, but I've been unable to confirm, either independently or by contacting the companies, whether or not the missing games are emulated and/or DRM free or not. Perhaps someone who has several games from one or more of those companies on Steam or GOG could shed some light on that? I'm pretty sure most if not all Piko Interactive releases include the ROM of the respective game in the game files, whereas DotEmu seems to add DRM and Retroism generally seems to not. To avoid people buying games expecting a ROM and not finding one, I generally prefer finding confirmation first though. I'll try compiling a list of all the games I think might be emulated in the coming days that I haven't found confirmation of yet, and hopefully one or more people here might have it.

On another note, it's quite unfortunate that in the SNES/Genesis cartridges of Chip's Challenge being released, the freeware ROM versions for both consoles were taken off itch.io, especially as now there's no way to just buy the ROMs... I wonder if perhaps they licensed those versions from the developer.

Auster

@cooliecoolster About DotEmu, they're the ones that rereleased some of SNK's NeoGeo games, right?
If it is and if I remember right, some versions don't include the ROM/BIOS in the Windows version, but do in the Mac & Linux versions.
It may take some digging, and I have some NeoGeo games on Humble Bundle, Steam, GOG and Amazon Prime, so maybe I could check those.

Also, little edit: Is there any limitation as to who can add information to those wiki pages, or can anyone do it?

CoolieCoolster

@auster Anyone is able to, though I would like to turn the pages into generalizable templates before I encourage others to edit them. While I finish testing and adding the itch.io games, I can also add anything else that is missing in the meantime, and once I turn the tables into templates, perhaps they can be hosted on a general wiki specifically for documenting legally accessible ROMs. If someone wants to create that wiki I'd suggest using the same host as I do for my wiki, Miraheze, as it's both ad-free, free, and quite a bit more customizable than Fandom. Plus since content can be transcluded between wikis, it would make content sharing a bit easier, meaning only one set of templates on one wiki would need to be maintained.

I'll see if today I can put a list of all the potentially emulated games that I'm unsure whether or not have user-accessible ROMs. In regards to Neo Geo content specifically, I so far have it listed that the NeoGeo Classic Complete Collection includes DRM-free ROM files on GOG, whereas the Samurai Shodown NeoGeo Collection on Steam is apparently emulated but currently has no known way of extracting the ROM files. Not sure about other Neo Geo games at the moment; will research the libraries of the various publishers to see what remains on Steam and GOG. And indeed, it does seem like Dotemu is one of the major sources of these releases, such as Metal Slug X on Steam, which I currently don't know whether or not it includes accessible ROM files, assuming it is emulated. As it's already in the NeoGeo Classic Complete Collection on Humble Bundle and GOG though, I'll focus on listing games with no known method of acquisition yet.

Edit: I think I have everything from DotEmu documented other than the recently released Zombies Ate My Neighbors & Ghoul Patrol Bundle, which I'll need confirmation of whether or not the ROMs of those games are included or not (and in the case of the first game, whether that ROM is a SNES or Genesis ROM).

Edit 2: Here's my list so far: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1_1j3ihSEYQ1Rj_RRl7G8_TSm2f7BIAd0g8jzBG6rRiM/edit?usp=sharing. Still going to continue researching to add more games to it, but if anyone is able to confirm the status of any game on it, let me know and I'll update the page of the wiki accordingly.

Auster

@cooliecoolster It seems Zombies Ate My Neighbours and Ghoul Patrol (Steam and GOG) come with SNES ROMs, but extracting them requires a bit of work, according to this post:
https://steamcommunity.com/app/1137970/discussions/0/3046105389665628847

Important parts of the post in case the original post can't be accessed:

Locations of ZAMN and GP's ROMs (Updated 08.18.2021)

The ROMs are located within the executable, "ZAMN_GP.exe", so the locations listed below are hexadecimal addresses. To get them, you'll need a hex editor that allows you to highlight and copy data chunks over to new files. I would recommend HxD (freeware: [url=https://mh-nexus.de/en/hxd]https://mh-nexus.de/en/hxd[/url]/ ), to complete this task.

Release build:

Steam version:
Zombies Ate My Neighbors: 1B0974C - 1C0974B
Ghoul Patrol: 19A03C0 - 1AA03BF

GOG version:
Zombies Ate My Neighbors: 1B0654C - 1C0654B
Ghoul Patrol: 199D1C0 - 1A9D1BF

1.1 Hotfix update: (Current version)

Steam version: (Thanks to Red Lettuce)
Zombies Ate My Neighbors: 1B0BD4C - 1C0BD3F
Ghoul Patrol: 19A29C0 - 1AA29BF

GOG version:
Zombies Ate My Neighbors: 1B0894C - 1C0894B
Ghoul Patrol: 199F5C0 - 1A9F5BF

The ROMs should be given the .sfc extension to maximize the number of compatible emulators. If copied over successfully, the ROMs will be 8Mb/1MB in size and be identical the verified good SNES NTSC-U dumps of both games. What this means is that they'll have the logos, licensing information, and even the secret level codes, left completely intact.

It should be possible to extract the game through command terminals such as CMD or Ubuntu's terminal, but I don't have the game to test.

If someone wants to try, just need to modify the commands from this repository to match that of the game, then do what the repository asks for each OS (adapting the steps, since it the method was made for another game):
https://github.com/sigboe/extractwings[/url]
The skip values are where the ROMs start (e.g. 1B0894C for Zombies Ate My Neighbours), but converted to bytes.
The count values are where the ROMs end (e.g. 1C0894B for ZAMN), but also converted to bytes.

Auster

Forgot to mention, but Leisure Suit Larry 7 - Love for Sail is free on IndieGala, and it appears to have the files needed for emulating it on ScummVM as well:
https://freebies.indiegala.com/leisure-suit-larry-7-love-for-sail
(it appears to have MS-DOS files too, but I can't test right now)

CoolieCoolster

@auster Added them with the link to the Steam thread to the commercial game list; thanks!

Auster

@cooliecoolster Something else:
At least the GOG version of the game The Immortal appears to be the MS-DOS version.

The store page mentions this:

This game is powered by DOSBox.

And this forum post confirms that it is just the MS-DOS version.

Can't verify if any more versions are hidden in the game files as I don't own it.

And I couldn't find any info on the Steam version as the Steam forum for the game has no mentions about the version used, and I don't own the game to check.

CoolieCoolster

@auster Ah, unfortunate then. I thought it might have been the Genesis version just by looking at it, but I guess versions can look similar. Removing that from the list I've now added everything I know about, including the buyable itch.io games, to the commercial list, so I'll finish off the remaining additions to the freeware list. If there's anything I missed though, I'll gladly add further suggestions until I decide the best way for anyone to easily add to the tables themselves, as ideally it should update the counts across the pages automatically while still being usable as a template...

Edit: And of course, if a dedicated wiki is made to compile such games, I'd be glad to help adapt the pages to include additional systems, but as the system my wiki is for only officially emulates thirteen consoles at the moment, those have been my focus for that wiki specifically. For a version of the page tailored towards a more general audience, there's certainly room to expand the article to include games for newer and/or less commonly-emulated consoles as well as computer systems such as DOS and Amiga.

Auster

Gobliiins pack - https://www.gog.com/game/gobliiins_pack
Platform: ScummVM

Slow Mole - https://slowmoledev.itch.io/slow-mole
Platform: NES

Haunting-Testing - https://astrangerontheinternet.itch.io/haunting
Platform: GameBoy

3rd person Horror Game - https://astrangerontheinternet.itch.io/3rd-person-horror-game
Platform: GameBoy

Grand Battle Stadium - https://elvies.itch.io/gbstadium
Platform: GameBoy Color/GBC

iconoclast - https://dchardin.itch.io/iconoclast
Platform: NES

The Drunk Time Traveler's Fiancée - https://miguelgonzalez66.itch.io/the-drunk-time-traverlers-fiancee
Platform: NES

Mr.Potato in Potatoland - NES Version - https://crazy-duck-games.itch.io/mrpotato-in-potatoland-nes-version
Platform: NES

Auster

Rescue Time (SJ Games - NES) - https://dale-coop.itch.io/rescue-time-by-sj-games-nes
Platform: NES

ROB.N (SJ Games - NES) - https://dale-coop.itch.io/rob-n-nes-game-by-sj-games
Platform: NES

KUBO 3 (SJ Games - NES / FAMICOM) - https://dale-coop.itch.io/kubo-3-nes-game-by-sj-games
Platform: NES

Press Start Again (NES) - https://dale-coop.itch.io/press-start-again-nes
Platform: NES

Press Start Game (NES) - https://dale-coop.itch.io/press-start-game-nes
Platform: NES

Underground Adventure (NES) - https://dale-coop.itch.io/underground-adventure
Platform: NES

Allison Of Astra In: "Timeless And Spaceless" - https://illneverusethis.itch.io/allison-of-astra-in-timeless-and-spaceless
Platform: NES

Platformer Text Adventure - https://illneverusethis.itch.io/platformer-text-adventure
Platform: NES

Mess Maker - https://illneverusethis.itch.io/mess-maker
Platform: NES

Magnilo - https://pauldalyjr.itch.io/magnilo
Platform: NES

Auster

@cooliecoolster About the dedicated wiki page, I created a WIP in a Wikia/Fandom page:
https://emulation.fandom.com/wiki/List_of_ROMs_that_can_be_legally_acquired
It already has some titles listed, but I was testing formatting at first. I'll be adding more titles there when I get the chance.
Should I add broader lists in the wiki too, like MS-DOS and ScummVM compatible games?

CoolieCoolster

@auster Additional lists would certainly be worthwhile, especially for ScummVM as it seems that's one of the most accessible "systems" for legal emulation. I have a few other pages on my wiki that I'm working on at the moment, but I'll see if I can help with other systems not represented by my pages afterwards. While being on a larger emulation catch-all wiki will probably help with article visibility and editor retention, at some point I'll see if I can convince the other editors of that wiki to move to Miraheze, as I'm personally not a fan of Fandom's advertising practices... Still have to finish adding the prior itch.io lists, but afterwards I'll go over these new listings to see what should be added.

Auster

"No reason for it to exist"
There goes the most obvious option.
@CoolieCoolster sorry for the ping, but what page do you suggest to use instead?

BenMcLean

@auster I'm sure you can probably open a new Fandom wiki for legal ROMs as long as you name it, "Legal ROMs" or something to that effect.

Auster

@benmclean Thanks. I'll see how that works (still newbie about Fandom's tools)

Auster

Created and already adding the pages:
https://legal-roms.fandom.com/wiki/Legal_ROMs_Wiki
If anyone wants to help, feel free to do it.

CoolieCoolster

@auster Since we're creating a new wiki, do you mind if I create it on the ad-free Miraheze instead? I'll work on making it look great in the next couple of days, plus we can import my existing table data.

Auster

@cooliecoolster Sure, go ahead!
And while the Wiki I'm working on may be a bit barebones, if you see anything good there, feel free to copy over to your wiki. The important is to give awareness to people.

And off topic, but uBlock Origin, Privacy Badger and NoScript work great on Fandom. Sure, not having to use them would be better, but at least I never get to see ads there. </off-topic>

CoolieCoolster

@auster Here, I had them create a new wiki for me: https://legalroms.miraheze.org/wiki/Main_Page. In a bit I'll work on adding the content from my wiki to the new one, but in the meantime I've enabled the MediaWiki visual editor, which should be similar to the editor Fandom has I believe. If you create an account I can give you bureaucrat permissions as well.

Auster

@cooliecoolster Thanks! I'll check it later today.