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dragonbox.de cartridge production service

Posted: Mon Jun 12, 2017 8:56 pm
by notaz
In support of homebrew development, dragonbox.de is announcing cartridge production service.

Edit: you can now order samples easily here:
https://www.dragonbox.de/en/195-homebrew-production

The set includes:
  • the PCB (custom 4MiB, SRAM and "plain" versions available)
  • plastic shell for the PCB (black or transparent) with a sticker
  • instruction manual
  • paper box packaging (example here)
There are several options how it all could be organized:
  • you pay all production costs, dragonbox produces and you sell anywhere for whatever price (or just order through the link above)
  • dragonbox takes the risk to produce some amount and to sell at it's shop. The product price is then set by dragonbox, and the cart has to pass some subjective quality/content checks. After sales cover the production costs, profit goes to the dev. It should still be possible to produce some extra carts to sell elsewhere too.
  • other reasonable options may be possible (a matter of negotiation)
The goal of this offer is not to make money, but to help the scene by reusing the infrastructure dragonbox has for making it's variant of EverDrive carts. Of course, the whole affair should make some financial sense to avoid generating losses for dragonbox. As for the production costs, it varies because some parts have minimal order quantities, but something like 12EUR/cart should be possible.

If you have any questions, feel free to post them here or PM me or EvilDragon17, but please don't be upset if we are slow to respond because we have unrelated day jobs and work on some other projects as well :).

Re: dragonbox.de cartridge production service

Posted: Mon Jun 12, 2017 9:45 pm
by Sik
It would be a good idea to give details about the cartridges. More specifically, whether they have a Sega logo (Sega doesn't like when people do this) and whether the shells fit in all regions (i.e. has a shape that will fit on all consoles).

Re: dragonbox.de cartridge production service

Posted: Tue Jun 13, 2017 12:29 am
by themrcul
Hi Notaz,
Thanks for this!
My game is still a while away, but if I do finish it I am interested in publishing it.

With the custom cart you are developing, I assume it will have save capability in it? And what is the largest ROM size you are targeting? (hopefully 4MB will be enough for this project).

Re: dragonbox.de cartridge production service

Posted: Tue Jun 13, 2017 11:04 am
by BigEvilCorporation
I can vouch for the quality of the cart shells from dragonbox.de, they are excellent. Correct size for the cases, correct weight, they have the notch to fit Japanese consoles, and the plastic is good quality.

There's no SEGA logo (replaced with a CE stamp) but no disclaimer text ("Do not immerse in water", "Do not feed to your dog", etc).

Re: dragonbox.de cartridge production service

Posted: Tue Jun 13, 2017 3:52 pm
by notaz
themrcul wrote:With the custom cart you are developing, I assume it will have save capability in it? And what is the largest ROM size you are targeting? (hopefully 4MB will be enough for this project).
Yes, 4MB with saves is the goal.

Re: dragonbox.de cartridge production service

Posted: Mon Feb 04, 2019 6:20 pm
by notaz
The custom cart is now available here:
https://www.dragonbox.de/en/195-homebrew-production

I've updated the first post too.

Re: dragonbox.de cartridge production service

Posted: Mon Feb 04, 2019 10:21 pm
by Chilly Willy
Nice! Now that is a proper MD homebrew cart. 8)

The price is also good. Competitive with krikzzz's FlashKit despite having level shifters.