Sega's Dreamcast broke the mould by introducing 480p rendering to consoles, backing it with the legendary VGA box. Modern 480p options are available but none have the same pure digital quality as the brilliant DCHDMI. John Linneman tests out the mod and ranks it up against the analogue-to-digital alternatives.
For those times when you’d rather watch than play — these games are as binge-worthy as your favourite Netflix series.
It’s time game developers stop ignoring one of the most beloved features in gaming history: split-screen couch co-op. I miss it!
It's a shame to me that so few indie devs seem interested in catering to this era (split screen era) of nostalgic gaming. Many of them are interested in retro gaming, obviously, but almost all of them seem to drift either to platformers or Metroidvanias (no issue with either, there have just been so many). I'd love to see an indie dev really try to capture that late N64/PS1 through early Xbox/PS2/GameCube era of split screen gaming.
Nick Fernandez writes, "After decades of questionable practices around emulation, a chance conversation with a retro game store owner changed my views forever."
This is a great article and it's what many in the retro community feel.
I still play on original hardware if I have nostalgia for those systems I have my nes, mega drive, PS1, n64, PS2 connected through a retrotink 2x to a OLED Bravia and I'm happy with the image. Sometimes it's not even the games but the sound of a PS1 laser firing that makes the experience the changing cart or disc it's cathartic
If I don't have nostalgia for the system like SNES, Saturn, Dreamcast I'll emulate and maybe use a Bluetooth knock off controller or NSO controller to feel sort of genuine like the SNES NSO gamepad is awesome.
I also use ever drives for the cart based systems I own a few classics I love like super Mario Bros games, sonics etc but retro gaming is expensive so everdrive gives me that full library like emulation but I have the right gamepad in my hand because some systems just don't feel right unless you have the right controller mainly the N64.
But I'm under no illusion I'll have my retro systems forever all the console will inevitably die and that where emulation becomes vital. Its great for preservation and it helps make these old games accessible to younger generations who may wonder where their favourite franchises started and expose them to new things like games from the 8 and 16 bit era which still hold up really well.
I enjoy articles like this. It's actual game journalism. I would love to read more about the context of the store and the owner one day.
I started out completely against downloading emulators and roms. I considered it stealing.
However, recently, with companies like Ubisoft and others, telling me I don’t own my digital only game, and even the physical games that I do own are incomplete on physical media, some with nothing more than an executable file, on disc so that I have to download the entire game anyway. I have since changed my opinion on the subject. If game publishers don’t care about me, trying to do the right thing, then I’m not going to care about them. The industry brought this upon themselves.
At this time, emulation is the number one way to ensure game preservation. Even Sony and Nintendo is using this method officially to make older games playable on their consoles.
If my emulation were to go away then there is a chance the retro gaming market is likely fall into an even smaller niche since the newer generation of gamers will not even know those games existed.
Sega should just come out with another console already. I'd support it.
Stunning is an odd choice
Actually, the Nintendo 64 offered 640x480 rendering before the Dreamcast. I think the PS1 did too.
Edit: oh, nevermind. They are talking progressive scan.
Random anecdote about DREAMCAST. Originally Matrox were the ones slated to produce the chip for the system, And the G400 series graphics chip was the product of the venture. Of course it would not have been clocked like the warm-running G400 MAX but the hardware T&L the chip could do was a first.
SEGA was absolutely moronic at the time and after Matrox announced the partnership without Segas permission they scrapped the contract and went with a PowerVR chip, which actually was a downgrade in many aspects (outside maybe the hardware texture compression) from the Matrox solution.
I still wonder what the DC may have been with that chip in it, given that the G400 was not only a very advanced chip and could have moved a good bit more geometry bringing it closer to PS2 output, but also Matrox is famous for its extremely clear video quality.
A Dreamcast classic mini console with all the classics would be awesome.