Retro games and emulation - Discuss retro shit in case you're stuck in the past or a hipster

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Been enjoying Super Metroid Map Rando recently: https://maprando.com/ You probably know normal item randos but this one reconnects every room in new ways and then places items according to logic so you can beat the map.

It's configured for hardcore speedrunners to race against each other but you can configure it to be playable by filthy casuals like me. I mean I've beaten the main game a couple times, but that's about the most I've done with it. Really makes you think about the rooms in a new light.

If you're looking for chill nostalgia and you like Super Metroid, it's worth a run or two.
 
Tom Nook's Gloryhole said:
I cannot believe that N64 emulation was so fucking bad everyone just decompiled all the good N64 games instead.

Like if I was the guy behind Project64 I'd probably top myself.
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Still prefer just using a real N64 on a CRT. Framerates didn't bother me when I was 10, they don't bother me now.
 
Tom Nook's Gloryhole said:
I cannot believe that N64 emulation was so fucking bad everyone just decompiled all the good N64 games instead.

Like if I was the guy behind Project64 I'd probably top myself.
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Its honestly not bad tbh, Project64 was the best since the early 2000s. People just decompiled cause they wanted to decompile shit, N64 and psx was the first gen of games with pc compatibility and simultaneous developments. So some people are autistic enough to want Ocarina of Time and Mario 64 on pc. People even decompiled Super Mario World I think, thats how they were able to build the widescreen fix for it. Problem with Project64 is its a pain in the ass to set up with plugins n shit.
 
Project64 absolutely cratered their reputation with the nagware (plus rumors of spyware?) bullshit. Even today, I see people bring it up when discussing N64 emulation.
 
Samuel Fuller said:
No, the reason for improved framerates for previous-generation games on Xbox One and Series is that you’re not actually playing the old version.

Xbox “backward compatibility” is actually recompiled binaries. You’re playing a very basic remaster of the game. That’s why you download a file the size of a full game when you put an old disc in, and it’s why you can’t just play any older game on a newer Xbox.

Calling it backward compatibility is actually bullshit.
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I get what you're saying, but I don't think it's a bad thing that Microsoft is basically giving previous owners a basic remaster of a game they already own for free. I wish Nintendo would do shit like that.
 
Never Scored said:
I get what you're saying, but I don't think it's a bad thing that Microsoft is basically giving previous owners a basic remaster of a game they already own for free. I wish Nintendo would do shit like that.
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It’s fine that they do it, I picked up a fairly cheap One X just for that, but the incorrect nomenclature for the purpose of deceptive marketing is typical slimy MS bullshit that gets parroted by gamers who don’t know shit about technology.
 
Friendly Primarina said:
Project64 absolutely cratered their reputation with the nagware (plus rumors of spyware?) bullshit. Even today, I see people bring it up when discussing N64 emulation.
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Unfortunately it's also one of the few emulators to offer the Transfer Pack feature right out of the gate (which is handy if you play the Pokemon Stadium games)

Although looking online, there's a couple more that can do that as well. Ares, Gopher64, RMG, and Mupen64-Plus-Next can do the Transfer pack feature.

Regarding the nagware, removing it seems simple enough by changing a few things in RegEdit, but yea.... shouldn't be a thing in the first place
Version 2.4.0.1555 introduced a new method, with a per-machine ID that gets generated on the user side and requests a confirmation code associated with it. You can avoid it thanks to this script by Rosalie241.

Another way to do so is by using Regedit and removing the user REG_BINARY key from the HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Project64, then changing the permission from the Project64 folder (on Regedit) to deny Full Control and Read on the user you are currently signed in, as explained on this video. Doing so will disallow Project64 from creating the key again, which is responsible for the nagware screen popup.
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I don’t know why anyone would still use Project64 when better alternatives have existed for probably a decade. It’s like continuing to use ZSNES.
 
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Anyone ever play Quest 64? I bought it recently after randomly seeing it out in the wild. Back when it came out, I asked my dad for it but he said no because he heard bad things about it. Playing it now, I see what he means, but also the adventure-loving side of me thinks that being able to explore surprisingly fleshed out towns and fields would have been fun as a kid. The combat’s a wonky version of something like XCOM with positioning yourself within a certain movement range and attacking. Maybe it’ll get fleshed out as the game progresses, but I’m undecided on it.

Shifting gears, has anyone ever changed out a Gameboy cartridge battery? I wanted to play my old Pokemon games with my son but discovered that just about all my OG Pokemon carts no longer hold a save.
 
Großmann said:
Shifting gears, has anyone ever changed out a Gameboy cartridge battery? I wanted to play my old Pokemon games with my son but discovered that just about all my OG Pokemon carts no longer hold a save.
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If you don't want to fuck around with ordering a pre tabbed battery and soldering it in, you can use a razor to cut the little metal tabs off the battery and use electrical tape to tape them around a new battery. It fits so snugly in the Gameboy cart it's never going to move. I've done it with three or four carts where the battery went dead an have never had a problem.

People in the modern retrogaming community are weird about it because it's not the "proper" way to do it, but it's how everyone did it for years when batteries died before replacements were easily accessible.

*Edit* Here's a video:
 
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Großmann said:
Anyone ever play Quest 64? I bought it recently after randomly seeing it out in the wild. Back when it came out, I asked my dad for it but he said no because he heard bad things about it. Playing it now, I see what he means, but also the adventure-loving side of me thinks that being able to explore surprisingly fleshed out towns and fields would have been fun as a kid. The combat’s a wonky version of something like XCOM with positioning yourself within a certain movement range and attacking. Maybe it’ll get fleshed out as the game progresses, but I’m undecided on it.
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There's a "QoL patch" that improves a significant number of the brutally buggy shit like accuracy checks and bosses negating passives. Quest 64 is probably my third favorite JRPG on the system because of the idea of the elemental spirit system. It's total shit and exploitable where only specific moves are worth anything, don't get me wrong, but the idea is great and you can just feel how close it gets, and how good it could have been. Maybe the decomp will see someone try to fix it.
The JP version is notable for having a SIGNIFICANT number of bug fixes, and even additional story content. The patch fixes even more and backports some of them to the ENG version.

Earth-24 gives you Avalanche, that's far and away the most powerful spell and will carry you from the instant you get it to the final boss. Water/earth is the easiest way to snap the game in half, but every element has some utility.
Großmann said:
Shifting gears, has anyone ever changed out a Gameboy cartridge battery? I wanted to play my old Pokemon games with my son but discovered that just about all my OG Pokemon carts no longer hold a save.
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It's not hard at all, and honestly one of the best ways to get comfortable opening up hardware. Battery changes on GB games are some of the easiest and lowest risk. I've left whole chunks of solder sitting on chips and literally nothing happens to the game. Here is the ifixit guide. It's not necessary to check voltage if you know your batteries are dead. I'll give a basic rundown in doing it without solder:
To start you use a 3.8mm security bit (Colloquially "nintendo bit/gamebit"), remove the singular screw on the back of the cart, then once the screw is out, you flip it around so the art is facing you, and pull down on the front of the cart (sort of like removing the battery cover for a TV remote) and it will pull down, then forward and off exposing the pcb.
To actually deal with the battery you can de-solder if you're comfortable using a soldering iron (300c~/500-ish f should get you there with flux), or, and there is risk with this, pop that bitch off with a flathead and some pliers. Pics related. Cover the actual points of risk of contact with some tape to reduce risk of shorting if you're not confident in steadiness. But essentially you just pry the top prong holding the battery in place away with the flathead, then lift the battery away from the bottom prong with pliers (or the flathead but it's significantly harder). This will break the old solder. Make sure to remember the orientation of the battery because gameboy games are notorious for having some boards with an upside down battery holster. If you didn't use solder to remove the prongs and get the battery out, you can just throw some tape on there when the new battery is in place and the top prong is placed back over it and it's good to go. The tape is mostly just to ensure it stays in contact constantly. Put the front of the cart back on, test it and make sure it works and saves, then put the screw back in and you're cooking with pokemon.
 
ForgedBlades said:
After years of saying that I'd rather die than part with it, the time has come to sell off the high end items in my Saturn collection. Pour one out for a nigga (:_(

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Take solace in the fact that ODEs for Saturn hardware are quite easy to get nowadays and also Saturn emulation itself is quite excellent.

tbh even if I was a collector autist, I'd still consider selling in this market just because of how overinflated prices have gotten. At worst, I clear out some junk and just have to play games from backups/emulation (the horror). At best, I make some money and then buy back for cheap when the bubble pops.
 
Two Dollars said:
I don’t know why anyone would still use Project64 when better alternatives have existed for probably a decade. It’s like continuing to use ZSNES.
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I can't be the only one that thinks this but I feel there's something, especially for older millennials, where subconsciously they believe that emulation hasn't changed in the last 20 years, like Project64 being the best but still not very good, Saturn emulation sucking, and other stuff. I was pretty shocked to find out how much NES multicarts had changed in more recent years.

I wonder how much of the sucking off of MiSTers and original hardware is from outdated views of emulation.
 
Two Dollars said:
The N64 only has three JRPGs…
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Custom Robo
Custom Robo V2
Hybrid Heaven
Mega Man 64 / Rockman DASH (debatable, but Japanese websites count it as an RPG, so...)
Mystery Dungeon: Shiren the Wanderer 2
Ogre Battle 64
Paper Mario
Quest 64 / Eltale Monsters
Robopon 64
Super Robot Wars 64

Wow, just enough to make a top 10 list out of! It is quite a weird bunch though. The N64 really didn't have any "normal" JPRGs, did it? They're all Action RPGs, Strategy RPGs, a Rougelike, or little kid-aimed games with unusual mechanics.
 
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