Let's parse the string:
| Component | Possible Meaning |
|-----------|------------------|
| full | Complete set; not trimmed, split, or patched. Contains every file/byte. |
| -gm | Could stand for Game Master, Game Music, or General MIDI. Most likely Game Master (emulator context) or Genesism (Sega Genesis) Mod. |
| info | Information dump—metadata, headers, debug data, or a database file. |
| 36 | Version number, revision, or maximum track/level count. Possibly an address offset or data size indicator (e.g., 36 bytes, 36 sectors). |
| -gb | Almost certainly Game Boy (Nintendo handheld). Could also mean Gigabyte (size), but in ROM circles, -gb = Game Boy. |
Thus, full-gminfo36-gb likely means:
“Full dump of metadata/information for a Game Master or Game Music project, revision 36, specifically for Game Boy.”
Scenario:
A multi-emulator frontend (like LaunchBox or RetroArch) needs to update its Game Boy game database. It downloads full-gminfo36-gb. This file contains:
The frontend reads it and enables “full” features (cheats, achievements, BIOS emulation) for those 36 categories.
MAME uses -gm for certain drivers (e.g., Game Master – a Spanish multi-cart system). full-gminfo36-gb could be a CHD or DAT metadata file containing:
