Nekketsu Kakutou Densetsu: 4 Player Nekketsu Fighting Legend

Although a mostly complete translation patch for the game by oRdErEDchaos has existed since October 18, 1998, the 4 player support in battle mode was never localized.
This controller localization enhancement hack of Nekketsu Fighting Legend was created ONLY to correct this problem.

Rev B corrects an some issues that existed due to starting with a bad dump.

Patch Features

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ReadMe-DvD_Translations-Nekketsu_Fighting_Legend.txt

This file should be viewed using a mono-spaced font like "Courier".
Use a font size where 79 columns are visible.

Please don't distribute the ROM file in patched form.
Please don't distribute the DvD_Nekketsu_Fighting_Legend_revB.ips file without
this file.
Thanks.

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(4 Player)

NEKKETSU FIGHTING LEGEND

for the Nintendo Famicom
Copyright 1992 by Technos Japan

4 Player Controller Localization Copyright 2020 by DvD Translations
Patch Version: Rev B Release Date: May 3, 2020

DvD Translations
dvdtranslations.eludevisibility.org

GAME

Code Editing: DvD
Graphics Editing: DvD
Testing: DvD

ReadMe: DvD

----------------------------------- CONTENTS ----------------------------------

INFO

(1) Kunio-kun Game Series
(2) If You Read Anything, Read This

USING THE PATCH

(3) Patching the ROM File
(4) Playing the Game on a Flash Cart or Emulator

CONTROLLER LOCALIZATION DETAILS

(5) Why DvD Chose to Translate THIS Game
(6) Why YOU Should Bother Playing THIS Game
(7) DvD's Rev A Hacking Comments
(8) DvD's Rev B Hacking Comments
(9) Project Timeline
(10) Software Used In This Translation

------------------------------------- INFO ------------------------------------

(1)------------------------- Kunio-kun Game Series ----------------------------

Before declaring bankruptcy in 1996, Technos Japan's largest game series was
Kunio-kun. Double Dragon was Technos's second largest series. Outside of Japan,
Double Dragon is much more well known because more Double Dragon games were
released outside of Japan.

This table shows where "Nekketsu Kakutou Densetsu" fits into all the Kunio-kun
games Technos Japan released on the Famicom. It also shows games in the series
made exclusively for other game systems during the time. Kunio-kun games
continued to be made for other systems up through 1996.

Original US
System Original Title Release Date US Title Release Date
------ -------------- ------------ -------- ------------
Arcade Nekketsu Kouha Kunio-kun 5 -86 Renegade 12-86
Famicom " 4-17-87 " 1-88
Arcade Nekketsu Koukou Dodge Ball-bu 1987 Super Dodge Ball 1987
Famicom " 7-26-88 6-89
Famicom Downtown Nekketsu Monogatari 4-25-89 River City Ransom 1-90
Famicom Nekketsu Koukou Dodgeball-bu 5-18-90 Nintendo World Cup 12-90
Famicom Downtown Nekketsu Koushinkyoku:
Soreyuke Daiundoukai 10-12-90
Famicom Downtown Special: Kunio-kun no
Jidaigeki Dayo Zenin Shuugou! 7-29-91
Famicom Ike Ike! Nekketsu Hockey-bu: Crash 'n the Boys:
Subette Koronde Dairantou 2-7-92 Ice Challenge Canceled
Famicom Bikkuri Nekketsu Shin Kiroku! Crash 'n' the Boys:
Harukanaru Kin Medal 6-26-92 Street Challenge 10-92
S.Famicom Shodai Nekketsu Kouha Kunio-kun 8- 7-92
Famicom Nekketsu Kakutou Densetsu 12-23-92 NEKKETSU FIGHTING LEGEND
Famicom Kunio-kun no Nekketsu
Soccer League 4-23-93
Game Boy Bikkuri Nekketsu Shin Kiroku!
Dokodemo Kin Medal 7-16-93
S.Famicom Kunio-kun no Dodge Ball
Dayo Zenin Shuugo! 8- 6-93
S.Famicom Downtown Nekketsu Baseball Monogatari:
Baseball de Shoubu da! Kunio-kun 12-17-93
Famicom Nekketsu! Street Basket:
Ganbare Dunk Heroes 12-22-93

(2)-------------------- If You Read Anything, Read This -----------------------

The only reason we released this game localization patch is that the 3rd and
4th player was not supported in every other translation patch for the game.
Now it actually works on a real NES with a 4-Score or NES Satellite. Playing
with 4 players at the same time is pretty wild.

Don't buy repro carts! They are expensive. They don't support bug fixes for
patches because they can't be modified in the future. If they aren't built
from scratch they destroy a real cart. Every time a donor cart is used to make
a repro, it raises the scarcity and price of that real cart. If you still want
to spend your money on a mulitple repro carts, instead of buying a single flash
cart, buy them from a vendor who only makes carts from scratch with new boards,
chips, and housings.

------------------------------- USING THE PATCH -------------------------------

(3)------------------------- Patching the ROM File ----------------------------

How to patch the ROM file:

You need:

1) A NES file. The file needs to include the standard 16 byte iNES header
followed by the program disk image data. With header, the ROM file is
262,160 bytes in size.

The header should be as follows:

4E 45 53 1A 08 10 40 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00 00

You must have a 16 byte header for this patch, but even if your header
is wrong, this patch will fix it because it replaces the whole thing. So,
if you have a file without a header, you can just insert 16 of any byte at
the start of the file.

I'm not telling you how to get the NES file, but once you do, call it
"Nekketsu Fighting Legend.nes". Note, this can be the raw file OR it can
be pre-patched with the "oRdErEDchaos" 0.95 translation patch released on
October 18, 1998.

3) Patch File: DvD_Nekketsu_Fighting_Legend_revB.ips

4) An IPS patching program
Remember to patch the file only AFTER it has a header.

Recommended IPS patching program for IBM PC: Lunar IPS.exe by FuSoYa
Recommended IPS patching program for Mac: UIPS by Lucas Newman

Using Lunar IPS / UIPS:

a) Double-click "Lunar IPS" / "UIPS"
b) Click "Apply IPS Patch" / "Apply Patch"
c) Choose "DvD_Nekketsu_Fighting_Legend_revB.ips"
e) Choose "Nekketsu Fighting Legend.nes"

(4)------------- Playing the Game on a Flash Cart or Emulator ----------------

All emulators and flash carts that can play the original Famicom file can play
the translation. The 3rd and 4th player is supported by NES 4-Score or NES
Satellite emulation and, thus, is not supported by Famicom 3rd or 4th player
emulation.

The PowerPak flash cart emulates it perfectly.

Games designed for the original Famicom/NES hardware have one or two 16k
program banks and one 8k character bank. Later, all games made for the NES
used special mapper chips to expand the size of the addressable ROM beyond
these limitations. Some even included RAM for the character bank,
instead of ROM.

Game file size: 8 x 16 kBytes of Program ROM
16 x 8 kBytes of Character ROM
256 kBytes
= 262,144 Bytes
+ 16 Byte Header
= 262,160 Bytes

This game uses mapper 4, known as MMC3, which is a very common mapper made by
Nintendo. It is one of Nintendo's more sophisticated mappers, but not the
most sophisticated one.

----------------------- CONTROLLER LOCALIZATION DETAILS -----------------------

(5)------------------ Why DvD Chose to Translate THIS Game --------------------

The main reason I wanted to work on this game is that someone asked me to! I
had just finished Twinbee 2, which I added the 3rd controller support to. I
really enjoy fixing games so that they can be played on the real NES, so I said
sure.

(6)---------------- Why YOU Should Bother Playing THIS Game -------------------

If you have a NES Satellite or 4-Score and at least 3 controllers, you will
finally have a new game you can play with them. Playing a 4 player brawler on
the NES is not very common! Invest in a flash-cart and play this and many
awesome translations. This game only supports 4 players in the Rumble mode.

(7)---------------------- DvD's Rev A Hacking Comments ------------------------

I've been on a kick localizing Japanese games so that they can be run on North
American hardware. When I was asked to hack this game, I thought, why not?
I know how popular Kunio-kun games are and I'm sure there are people who still
play this game today. I quickly finished the hack and tested it out on my
NES with my PowerPak. Then I added my credits into the title screen.
I made my patch work both with the original game and the "oRdErEDchaos" Riki
Kunio patch. While doing that, for the latter, I restored Technos's copyright
and restored the awesome looking Technos Japan logo back to the splash screen.

But then, to release it. DvD Translations have never released a hack that
wasn't a translation. I just didn't feel this was big enough to release on
it's own, and I really spend a lot of time making ReadMe's and editing the
website, which I didn't feel like doing. So I waited until I had something
else to release with it. Wow, two years went by very fast...

(8)---------------------- DvD's Rev B Hacking Comments ------------------------

So, a week goes by and then... When trying to submit the patch to RHDN, I had
the website check the ROM I started with and it said unknown ROM... Oh crap.
I found a clean copy and found 3 differenes. Damn. After lots of dumping and
comparing, the following 3 things were wrong (all of these deal with compressed
screen layouts):

1) A splash screen tile was wrong making a single pixel on the splash screen
not be there, the one on the right of the - above the small TECHNOS's "O"

2) The compressed attribute of 00 that was written to the entire attribute
table was changed from 0 to 10. But even worse, the entire [End] character
for the compressed table was change to 10 so it had no end. Ouch. The Riki
Kunio patch actually makes this mistake. I fix it here.

3) 3 random bytes in the middle of unused data after a compressed screen

(9)---------------------------- Project Timeline ------------------------------

Apr 15 2018 - Project started

Apr 16 2018 - Added 3rd and 4th player player support on a NES
- Added credits to title screen to work with the original "Nekketsu
Kakutou Densetsu" and oRdErEDchaos's "Riki Kunio" patch
- Alpha tested 3rd and 4th player support on a NES Satellite

Apr 26 2020 - Patch credits copyright updated to 2020
- ROM 4 player controller localization released along with Demonic
Castle Dracula and Bomberman

May 3 2020 - Project title changed from Nekketsu Fighting Legend to
(4 Player) Nekketsu Fighting Legend
- Bugs from wrong starting ROM and bug from Riki Kunio patch fixed

(10)------------- Software & Hardware Used In This Translation ----------------

* Emulator

FCEUX 2.2.2 (FCEUX 2.2.3 has too many problems)
by zeromus, adelikat

* Disassembler & Table Dumper

Table Dumper Pro (version 18.03.25)
by DvD

* Hex Editor

Beyond Compare 4.3.4
by Scooter Software

* Tile Editor

Tile Layer Pro 1.0
by Kent Hansen

* Disassembled code manipulation, script editing, & ReadMe creation

Notepad++
by Don Ho and the rest of the Notepad++ team

* IPS Patch File Creator

Lunar IPS
by FuSoYa

* Testing on a real NES

PowerPak
by retroUSB
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987654321098765432109876543210987654321 123456789012345678901234567890123456789

Database match: Nekketsu Kakutou Densetsu (Japan)
Database: No-Intro: Nintendo Entertainment System (v. 20180803-121122)
File SHA-1: 13266BC2E52D37BCC1987D04FA6F62B1752A7DBE
File CRC32: 1D714F05
ROM SHA-1: E7AD3BE8DB19F705CB4BF834554FD8E0CC20E4E2
ROM CRC32: 37E24797