Replace SMB (nes) soundscape completely with audio files..?

Paco · 03-16-2012, 09:33 PM

How impossible would it be to replace all of the 1st Super Mario Bros game's sound effects and music with true audio files (eg wav) and have it play on an emulator. I know getting it on a cartridge and playing on the console would not work, but I guess what I'm asking is is there any emulator that could interpret a modified ROM to link to and play audio files instead of the traditional route it produces sound..?

If this has never been done before is it theoretically possible, and how many hours of effort are we looking at?

Paco · 03-22-2012, 04:24 PM

no one?

InVerse · 03-23-2012, 10:54 PM

Definitely possible.

As for how many hours of effort it would require, that depends. A genius programmer who has already written an emulator could probably do it in less than an hour. Someone with no clue what they're doing would probably take a few years, at best. The fact that you had to ask the question in the first place suggests you're much closer the the latter than the former.

Of course, the above time frame reference only applies to readying the emulator. You would also have to go through each individual game and reverse engineer the sound engine so as to feed the proper data to the emulator. That'll take a bit longer than the first step.

Paco · 03-24-2012, 10:48 PM

Thanks for your reply!

Yeah, unless it's already been done I couldn't pull this off myself. So I guess my only option is to hire someone.. can you recommend how to find the right person for the job?

InVerse · 03-24-2012, 11:03 PM

For a job like this, the best way to go about finding someone is to not bother. I've seen many, many cases throughout my near 15 years on this site where people were offering cash for emulation/romhacking related jobs. Never once have I seen anyone actually bother to take such a job. Not because the money wasn't legitimate but because ROM hacking doesn't work that way. Unless you're capable of paying at least $50,000, you're not going to entice anyone. And even if they're getting paid $50,000, they're likely going to be miserable the entire time and may or may not decide it's worth the trouble.

Paco · 03-27-2012, 03:14 PM

Wow, ok, well now I know!

Paco · 07-23-2012, 07:59 PM

I've looked a bit into Max/Msp/Jitter and it seems like I'll be able to replace the sounds by analyzing the audio output and instead triggering another sound. The problem is I need to add sound to non-existant actions as well (eg footsteps) so I probably won't be able to use this.. but I thought I'd share!