considr this mostly as misinformation. what misterfpga core developers made what cores - out of this list, and how are they distributed?
Was looking for Total Carnage today.. nope.
Smash TV, Metal slug series, Primal Rage...
These were popular arcade games that look great with scanlines, and I used to have them on MAME on my retropie.
Mortal Kombat series, as I understand, are held back from the update.all unless you donated. MK is nostalgic to me but if I remember right, playing the computer is basically futile starting on the 2nd opponent unless you cheese them. Which to me, is dumb b/c they should have calibrated it so a good player could beat it with a calculated # of quarters that's less than infinity.
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MiSTer FPGA core developers list who made what cores MiSTer FPGA arcade cores Total Carnage Smash TV Metal Slug Primal Rage MiSTer FPGA Mortal Kombat core donation held back update.all 21 results
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MiSTer FPGA core developers list who made what cores MiSTer FPGA arcade cores Total Carnage Smash TV Metal Slug Primal Rage MiSTer FPGA Mortal Kombat core donation held back update.all 21 results
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MiSTer FPGA core developers list who made what cores MiSTer FPGA arcade cores Total Carnage Smash TV Metal Slug Primal Rage MiSTer FPGA Mortal Kombat core donation held back update.all 21 results
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MiSTer FPGA core developers list who made what cores MiSTer FPGA arcade cores Total Carnage Smash TV Metal Slug Primal Rage MiSTer FPGA Mortal Kombat core donation held back update.all 21 results
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MiSTer FPGA core developers list who made what cores MiSTer FPGA arcade cores Total Carnage Smash TV Metal Slug Primal Rage MiSTer FPGA Mortal Kombat core donation held back update.all 21 results
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MiSTer FPGA core developers list who made what cores MiSTer FPGA arcade cores Total Carnage Smash TV Metal Slug Primal Rage MiSTer FPGA Mortal Kombat core donation held back update.all 23 results
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MiSTer FPGA core developers list who made what cores MiSTer FPGA arcade cores Total Carnage Smash TV Metal Slug Primal Rage MiSTer FPGA Mortal Kombat core donation held back update.all 23 results
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MiSTer FPGA core developers list who made what cores MiSTer FPGA arcade cores Total Carnage Smash TV Metal Slug Primal Rage MiSTer FPGA Mortal Kombat core donation held back update.all 23 results
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MiSTer FPGA core developers list who made what cores MiSTer FPGA arcade cores Total Carnage Smash TV Metal Slug Primal Rage MiSTer FPGA Mortal Kombat core donation held back update.all 23 results
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MiSTer FPGA core developers list who made what cores MiSTer FPGA arcade cores Total Carnage Smash TV Metal Slug Primal Rage MiSTer FPGA Mortal Kombat core donation held back update.all 23 results
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MiSTer FPGA core developers list who made what cores MiSTer FPGA arcade cores Total Carnage Smash TV Metal Slug Primal Rage MiSTer FPGA Mortal Kombat core donation held back update.all 23 results
Based on the search results, I can clarify the actual situation with MiSTer FPGA core development and distribution. The user is mixing up some details, and some of their assumptions are incorrect or outdated.
Core Developers and Their Games
Coin-Op Collection (pram0d) developed the Midway Y-Unit core, which covers:
- Smash TV ✓ (playable)
- Total Carnage ✓ (playable)
- Mortal Kombat (boots but not fully playable due to memory limitations)
- Other Y-Unit games: High Impact Football, Strike Force, Super High Impact, Terminator 2, Trog
The developer explicitly stated this was an alpha release due to hitting the inherent limitations of MiSTer hardware—specifically BRAM and SDRAM constraints. Dual RAM is required. This is a technical limitation, not a paywall scheme.
Metal Slug series runs on the Neo Geo core (not a separate arcade core). It's treated as a console core, not arcade, which is why it doesn't appear in the arcade folder. The games themselves aren't downloaded by Update All—you need to provide your own ROMs/NEO files.
Primal Rage – Not mentioned in available sources as having a MiSTer core.
Distribution: How Cores Actually Flow
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| Channel | Developer | Access |
|---|---|---|
| Main MiSTer-devel | Various | Free, automatic |
| JT Cores (jtpremium) | Jotego | Free public betas → Patreon early access |
| Coin-Op Collection | pram0d | Free (alpha builds may be manual install) |
| Other/Unofficial | Various | Manual install |
The Coin-Op Collection is actually enabled by default in Update All and shows in the main menu. The Midway Y-Unit core was initially manual-install-only because it was extremely alpha, not because of a donation paywall.
Mortal Kombat Situation
The user's understanding is outdated/misinformed. The original MK on Y-Unit was not held back for donations—it was technically limited by MiSTer hardware. The developer (pram0d) stated they couldn't get past memory limitations no matter what they tried, and completing it would require more resources only available on MARS (a more powerful FPGA platform).
However, Mortal Kombat II on the T-Unit hardware was released by Coin-Op Collection as a Patreon-exclusive beta with a public release planned once stable. This is a different game on different hardware.
The "death threats" article from September 2024 referenced a different developer explaining why MK was skipping MiSTer entirely due to hardware limitations versus Analogue Pocket.
What You're Actually Seeing
Table
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| Game | Status | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Smash TV | Available | Alpha, dual RAM required |
| Total Carnage | Available | Alpha, dual RAM required |
| Metal Slug | Available via Neo Geo core | Console core, bring your own ROMs |
| Primal Rage | Not available | No core known |
| Mortal Kombat (original) | Boots, not playable | Hardware limitations |
| Mortal Kombat II | Patreon beta | Standard Jotego/Coin-Op early access model |
The "Patreon Paywall" Reality
Some MiSTer developers (notably Jotego) use a Patreon early access model: betas go to subscribers first, then release free to public once stable. This is a development funding model, not a permanent paywall. The Coin-Op Collection MKII beta follows this pattern with stated intent to release free later.
The user's frustration about MK being "held back unless you donated" conflates:
- Technical impossibility (original MK on Y-Unit)
- Standard early-access funding model (MKII on T-Unit)
- Alpha software not ready for automatic distribution
The "calculated # of quarters" arcade difficulty complaint is a game design issue unrelated to FPGA core distribution—MAME and original hardware behave identically in this regard.
give me the last table with developer names, and the seperate, comment on the mk2 release date, and the time to free for jotego cores.
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Jotego core Patreon early access time to public release free MiSTer FPGA Mortal Kombat II T-Unit release date public Coin-Op Collection MK2 release date free 13 results
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Jotego core Patreon early access time to public release free MiSTer FPGA Mortal Kombat II T-Unit release date public Coin-Op Collection MK2 release date free 13 results
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Jotego core Patreon early access time to public release free MiSTer FPGA Mortal Kombat II T-Unit release date public Coin-Op Collection MK2 release date free 13 results
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Jotego core Patreon early access time to public release free MiSTer FPGA Mortal Kombat II T-Unit release date public Coin-Op Collection MK2 release date free 13 results
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Jotego core Patreon early access time to public release free MiSTer FPGA Mortal Kombat II T-Unit release date public Coin-Op Collection MK2 release date free 13 results
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Jotego core Patreon early access time to public release free MiSTer FPGA Mortal Kombat II T-Unit release date public Coin-Op Collection MK2 release date free 13 results
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Jotego core Patreon early access time to public release free MiSTer FPGA Mortal Kombat II T-Unit release date public Coin-Op Collection MK2 release date free 13 results
Execute Python code
Here is the table with developer names:
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| Game | Core Developer | Status | Distribution | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Smash TV | pram0d (Coin-Op Collection) | Available | Free, manual install | Alpha, requires dual RAM |
| Total Carnage | pram0d (Coin-Op Collection) | Available | Free, manual install | Alpha, requires dual RAM |
| Mortal Kombat (original) | pram0d (Coin-Op Collection) | Boots, not playable | Free (alpha) | Hardware limitation (BRAM/SDRAM) |
| Mortal Kombat II | pram0d (Coin-Op Collection) | Patreon beta | Patreon exclusive → free later | T-Unit hardware, cheat menu included |
| Metal Slug series | Neo Geo core (various) | Available | Free, Update All | Console core, bring your own ROMs |
| Primal Rage | — | Not available | — | No known MiSTer core |
MKII release date: As of May 24, 2026, Mortal Kombat II on the T-Unit is a Patreon-exclusive beta with no public release date announced. The developer (Coin-Op Collection) has stated it will be released for free once deemed stable, but no timeline has been given.
Jotego cores — time to free: The projected public release window for Jotego's beta/alpha cores is 30 to 180 days depending on project scope, remaining functionality, and other factors. This is a general guideline, not a fixed schedule.
thx
Think
The user said "thx" which is a simple thank you. No further action needed. I should acknowledge politely.
You're welcome!
Which of them are T, Y and Z unit?
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Midway T-Unit Y-Unit Z-Unit games list Mortal Kombat hardware T-Unit Y-Unit Z-Unit Smash TV Total Carnage Midway unit type 16 results
Here's the breakdown by Midway hardware unit:
Y-Unit
- Smash TV
- Total Carnage
- Mortal Kombat (versions 1.0–4.0)
- Terminator 2: Judgment Day (LA1)
- Trog
- High Impact Football
- Strike Force
T-Unit
- Mortal Kombat II
- Mortal Kombat (versions 4.0–5.0)
- NBA Jam
- NBA Jam Tournament Edition
Z-Unit
MiSTer FPGA Status
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| Game | Unit | MiSTer Status | Developer |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smash TV | Y-Unit | Alpha (free, manual install) | pram0d (Coin-Op Collection) |
| Total Carnage | Y-Unit | Alpha (free, manual install) | pram0d (Coin-Op Collection) |
| Mortal Kombat | Y-Unit | Boots, not playable | pram0d (Coin-Op Collection) |
| Mortal Kombat II | T-Unit | Patreon beta | pram0d (Coin-Op Collection) |
| NARC | Z-Unit | Not available | — |
The Y-Unit and T-Unit are very closely related—same TMS34010 CPU, similar board layout. The main differences are the sound board (analog vs. digital/DCS) and some power connector changes. The Z-Unit (NARC) is the predecessor and runs at a different resolution.
The Coin-Op Collection "Midway Y-Unit" core covers Smash TV, Total Carnage, and the early MK revisions. MKII requires a separate T-Unit core, which is currently in Patreon beta.