http://www.cnet.com/news/retro-freak-ga … one-place/

"Supports NES, SNES, Sega Genesis, Sega Megadrive (with converter), Game Boy (Original, Color and Advance), Turbo Grafx-16, PC Engine and PC Engine Super Grafx games"

Dang... I wonder if it really works and if so how well?

Isn't there already machines that supports NES/SNES, Sega and Gameboy stuff, but they're just machines with android or other system emulation that allows you to use original cartridges and so on, some even might let you rip the rom image.

"while surely thumbing its nose to any concept of copyright and intellectual property"

im pretty sure that the IP for console compatibility expires after 20 years,,

Yep, which is exactly why so many of these things are popping up and being sold over the counter right now.

Big difference between so-called "abandonware" and copyright. Copyright in the USA lasts for the life of the author + 70 years. This includes video games. A company may not care or look the other way, but they still have the copyright.

Emulation, even hardware emulation, isn't illegal. So long as there's no bios, etc, involved.

Slight correction to what I posted earlier.

U.S. copyright laws state that copyrights owned by corporations are valid for 75 years from the date of first publication.
https://www.nintendo.com/corp/legal.jsp#emergence

As for emulation, software emulation is 100% illegal unless approved by whomever owns the trademark. Hardware emulation is typically not illegal, but most people use illegal software.

That machine's like, "O Great Krishna, please help me; I'm getting all of my slots f***ed at once!"

True, but you know what I have to say about that?

Most, if not all the games I own as ROMs, I at one point purchased official hard copies of lawfully at full price, and in some cases, TWICE (for example, remakes and digital downloadable console re-releases).

I think I oughta have that right to have 'em on my PC as well, DRM-Free; I bought them enough times as it is.

Fact that I had to re-purchase elsewhere games I had on Steam after I got locked out of my account still burns me up; that said, I only decided to re-purchase 4 out of the 25 I had on Steam, and didn't pay more than $5 for each re-purchase.

IMHO, most emulators are superior to the official, legal digital downloads, because with emulators, you can use save states, cheats, hacking, and not to mention, that function that allows you to speed the game up. Most JRPGs (SNES, or especially NES - because NES RPGs run so slowly), I never even finished until I got ZSNES with that accelerator function.

The law disagrees with you, and it's not about to change. Whether you think the law is "just" or not is rather a moot point. Also you said "at one point purchased" so I assume you no longer have them. If you sell a game, why should you be "entitled" to have a copy of it? I don't see that as legitimate. In most cases game companies won't bother since it's too costly to try and stop people from downloading old ROMs, but despite what you think you have "no right" to own them.

OHHH, DUDE, have you awakened my righteous indignation!

You buy physical copy of the damn thing, you have the rights to use it how you see fit. You supported the commercial release of it, THEY HAVE YOUR MONEY (SOMETIMES MORE THAN ONCE), and after the original creator ceases to make money of it, they could care less about it.

Besides, without ROMs and emulators, that's a lot of content that would've otherwise fallen by the wayside, and wouldn't have been preserved otherwise!

(For that matter, owning a physical, old-school console isn't that great, when you consider the potential for malfunctions said devices have, so many years later; sold my NES around to time it seemed like it was starting to malfunction [1995], and sold my SNES BEFORE it ever started malfunctioning; my Genesis, never got much use of that one, so that's why that one got sold off! Wii? Virtual Console, baby! PSX? Have all those games on my PS3 from PSN, LEGALLY. PS2? Never want to play any of those games ever again. Really, I bought the PS3, and just ended up getting a bunch of classic PSX titles, after I discovered that most of modern gaming just SUCKS, Final Fantasy XIII! - maybe I'll start using that as an insult, just calling people "Final Fantasy XIII?" Nah, that's just stupid. Daikatana would probably work, though!)

The only reason that anyone complains about ROMs and emulators and such, is because the large corporations that are already out there don't want you playing good old games for free, they want you buying their shitty new games, and they could care less whether you actually play them, so long as you buy them, and make them profitable!

Simply put, these large corporations feel threatened by free, better content that exists out there, so they convince people like you that it's somehow "Wrong" when essentially, it more or less amounts to picking through trash that someone else threw out, which, people often throw out perfectly good, usable stuff (watch some dumpster-diving videos on YouTube, and you'll see what I mean!)

AND JUST FOR THE RECORD, I PAY FOR current gen games and content (unless it's offered for free to begin with), BECAUSE I want to support the developers that created that content, just in case you wanted to pre-emptively accuse me of something there, too.

None of your rant provided a moral justification for taking something that belongs to somebody else.  If you buy an old, used, legit copy of a game, then by all means go ahead and emulate a ROM of that exact game guilt-free.  Otherwise admit what you're doing.

Here's the real kicker: if you buy a used legit copy, none of that money is going to the devs either, so it's pretty much the same thing as emulating it.

Funny how that berndragondogwhatever tells that his NES started to malfunction when NES and SNES consoles still work just fine.

Heck, I think even disc based consoles just work fine, only problems that might be the laser lens and so on, and those should be still somewhat easy to replace or cheap. Though, on modern times, I'd rather make/download ISO-copies of my old school library if they're not for instance re-released digitally on some platform.

And can't be bothered to even comment the silly "old games good, new games bad" ideology. Rose retrospection and all that. And before someone starts to say that game Y or X is still a good game, yes, there are classics that still are damn good. But that's like 1-5% of the console's library. Or even less.

But back to that emulation machine thingy, I wonder what emulators they usually run and what OS they use. As not all emulators are as accurate as they should be. And can you switch like their choice of SNES emulator to something like BSNES or whatever it is nowadays.

I'm talking in the capacity of games for obsolete consoles.  The devs won't make money on an NES/SNES/N64/PS1/etc. game sale today even if you found a brand new copy somewhere.  If a game is sold used, it was already sold new and the devs got paid for that.  I have no animosity toward the used game market like some people do.  I used to buy tons of old games, but haven't really in a long time because I have the games from my childhood that I have nostalgia for.  I don't usually buy games unless I am strongly convinced I will like them because new games are expensive.  I don't sell games even when I don't plan to play them anymore, but obviously not everybody is that way.  It's up to game companies to make games good enough that people want to keep them forever.  Used game stores drown in copies of crappy, iterative sports games that are churned over every single year with negligible updates.

Fixed that for you.

I'm so glad I stopped chasing retro games. The prices are insane anymore.

I was going to buy my friend a copy of Einhander. I fugured like $60-$70 bucks at most considering I paid $35 years ago. Nope. Try $100-$150. Hell, Einhander is a great game (that I suck at) but geez.

Don't get too discouraged about physical game prices. There's always a chance to get a deal if you keep watching.

I picked up a boxed and complete Soul Blazer in 2010 for $63 on Amazon, around a time I was prepared to pay $100. Last year I bought a complete Mario RPG for $125, selling my old one loose (actually I sold the newer Made in Mexico one and kept my original '95 Made in Japan version, mainly for sentimental reasons) for $66 with a beat up player's guide. I also caught the flipside of it, selling my Rockman & Forte on eBay, only getting $55 for it, boxed and complete. Yes, retro gaming is hotter than ever because of Youtube shows and newer generations getting into it but there's always cyclical activity in every OOP marketplace. Just be patient!

I once declared never to buy OOP VGM again because of this discouragement about "domestic" prices until last year, I discovered other places to buy (in Japan, where prices are more realistic and the exchange rate was more favorable). Landed some of the best deals on albums I had never seen at prices I got them in *and* they were complete!

This same discouragement and sour outlook of the market made once me piss on sellers like Boyblunder, who has proven that there are buyers out there for very rare CDs and I applaud him for getting the price he wants!

Just last year, I got Mario World complete with the 3D card and Obi for $135, sold my old one for $113 without either.

I've gained and lost on VGMdb because I like stepping on people who don't research the market nor want to get rid of their "Sale" items by offering lower prices, selling it already and just moving on with life.

I think it all just balances itself out anyway.

Like I said, some of these DAMN GAMES I've bought MULTIPLE TIMES, on the console they debuted on, the remakes for current consoles, and then digitally for the Wii or PS3. I'M PAYING FOR THE SAME DAMN GAME THREE TIMES!

Remember Final Fantasy Anthology (FFV & VI) and Final Fantasy Chronicles (Chrono Trigger & FFIV) on the PSX? No? I'll BET you forgot about them, BECAUSE THEY PHUQING SUCKED!

So PHUQ your insinuations that I'm stealing from anyone, and PHUQ your self-righteous, sanctimonius, supposed-moral grandstanding, too!

I SAID MY NES started malfunctioning back in 1995, you really want to doubt that and say that I'm lying or whatever? Just because mine started malfunctioning doesn't mean everyone else's going to, but just everyone else's haven't, doesn't mean mine DIDN'T!

PHUQ your pile of aggravation, too!

Those things are never cheap or easy to replace; for the price, you might as well just buy a whole new unit. And that's the sad thing; nobody knows or wants to fix things anymore.

You're still not allowed to download the roms from those games you've already bought multiple times. And why even download when they've been re-released digitally, usually with ok prices. With same logic, I could just download the movies I've seen on theaters, AS I'VE ALREADY PAID FOR IT. Or download the tunes that I heard from the radio channel that my almost non-existant tax moneys paid for!

And I forgot to give the impression that NES and SNES consoles were made to last. Of course, all depends where you live (humidity etc.), and so on, if the house is non-smoking etc. matters too. Even so, could have been so that in your case, cleaning the connector pins could have made the NES work just fine (and kids, don't blow into the damn carts).

Replacement parts seem to be from 10 dollars to 30 dollars, depending on the console. And so far from what I gathered from one guide (original PS3), replacing those seem to be easy, just unscrew few screws, pull a cable off, remove the stuff, replace, and so on. And now that we live in the (un)glorious time of internet, there's guides, with pictures and moving pictures, whoo.

Answered that already:

Yeah, you're right, I guess when I get home tonight, I'm just gonna go ahead and delete all that stuff; it's not like I've played any of it in the last 3 years anyway, and the stuff I never installed on Windows 8 seems to be blocked anyway.

So, I guess I'm the only here who's played Seiken Densetsu 3, or Mother 3, eh?

The whole reason ROMs and emulators were created in the first place, was so you could back up your games on your PC, 'cuz everyone knew those "Decks" and cartridges weren't going to last forever.

Just to check: When I directly record audio off of a game I own, that's stealing, too, right, because I'm not paying the greedy motherfuckers their exorbitant amount they want for the soundtrack album ($30?)

At any rate, I'm getting PHUQING TIRED of talking about this. I'm literally becoming physically stressed out.

Great Krishna, no wonder Phil Fish bowed out of the gaming industry. PHUQIN' whiners, man.

You apparently have no morals at all.  Buying something and selling it doesn't give you a right to keep a copy of it.  No, I'm not insinuating it.  I'm flat out telling you that you are stealing.  Or do the meanings of words escape you when you're in rage mode?

Nevermind that I bought the SAME GODDAMN PHUQIN' GAME THREE TIMES IN A ROW!

'Cuz you're just SO GODDAMN MORALLY SUPERIOR FOR HANGING ONTO A BUSTED PHUQIN' CARTRIDGE!

AND WHEN DID I EVER SAY ANYTHING ABOUT RE-SELLING ANYTHING?

Do it.  We could do with less whinging.

I've played Seiken Densetsu 3, and other fan translated games, but NEVER I though that I have a bloody right to download the games and play them. I've always known that downloading roms is illegal.

And yes, emulators and ROMs were made to keep old games not vanish, and do you know how people made ROMs originally? From their legally bought (I hope) games. Which you still can do easily, with these Super Emulator machines.

Direct recording isn't stealing, as you probably in your mighty wisdom did know, but try sharing it and then it's different thing. And how the f--- it's greedy if album costs 30 dollars? Importing costs, you try ship stuff from your place to across the world. Just plain idiotic whining about importing prices.

And I hate when people use term stealing when talking about piracy/copyright infringement. You're not stealing anything, you're pirating and so on. Sheesh.

Also, you're almost cute with your silly attempts to be edgy with changing the word f--- (Which of course will be now censored). So edgy, that it huuuurts.

So, how about that shooting that happened in Orlando, FL?

Was it just this past weekend?

We're under attack from a foreign power, and everyone thinks gun control is the answer, so we can all be sitting ducks for the terrorists and other foreign invaders.

Yes, that conversation is going to go down MUCH better than the emulation one, Bernhardt.

At least move it to a separate topic.

Stop calling me that STUPID LOSER PHUQIN' NAME.

All of you here, I hope you all have nice lives.

Especially the people who HAVEN'T been trying to take snipes at me every chance they've been able to.

I mean it.

I hope that the people who serve you your food never desecrate the food that they serve you.

Because no one deserves that.

NOT EVEN YOU.

Everyone everyone... let's calm down

We're all entitled to our own opinions. If you disagree, fine, but let's keep it civil. Not addressing anyone in particular. Personally, I like it when people have different opinions and interject new ideas into conversations. For example, I may not agree with everything Dragonfish Dog says, but so what? Now then, how did we get so offtrack from the original thread?

I know, off topic, but did Bern get banned by Adam or did he just burn out after his last sad attempt at trolling (kinda like he is right now) and start lurking? Has anyone ever been banned here? We should experiment

Was Bern really a troll? I vaguely recall being amused by his posts more than annoyed...

Some people believe it does. I've seen head reps from actual record labels claim that it's /perfectly fine/ to buy a CD, rip it, and sell it keeping the rip.

CDs and video games are NOT the same thing, despite what people may think. Believe it or not, video games are not considered media like CDs and movies. Software has its own laws, whether you agree with them or not. My understanding is that it IS LEGAL to copy a CD you own. I'm doubtful you can legally keep the copy once you sell the original, but perhaps. I'm honestly not sure about that point.

That definitely sounds atypical to the norm to me.  Even if some individual labels would allow it, that's not protected by fair use laws, which would be limited to keeping backup copies while you still own the product.

(Probably just asking to get my teeth kicked in, but)

How's it any different than when you just buy the music digital from the get-go?

I buy most of my music digital nowadays, if only because I don't have to rip it anymore, and I can't even bring myself to figure out how to do in WMP on Windows 8; last 5 CDs I've bought, I ripped through my PS3.

The only reason I ever buy the CD to begin with, is so I can rip it to my computer/portable audio player; after that, the physical CD is completely superfluous - no sense keeping it around if you can make your money back on it. Besides, I hate clutter. I like having everything digital. It's more easily portable and preservable...and it's less physical shit that gets destroyed if and or when you house burns down/gets destroyed by a tornado/hurricane/flood/quake.

I like owning the physical media. When I Bern money on something, I like the fact that I'm getting something tangible in return that can be stored or resold (and may even appreciate in value). Also with digital, I tend to forget I own stuff and have bought things multiple times through it.

As for these multi-consoles, I'm unimpressed because using hardware emulation defeats the purpose. It's already going to be inaccurate right off the bat. Better off buying the original systems, especially if you're serious about collecting. If you want to use ROM images, go the flashcart route.

I would say, Nintendo blew their chance to profit off the truly classic libraries with the Virtual Console. It succeeded in some ways (bringing classic games back to life for a new generation) and totally dropped the ball in others (too few releases especially recently, could have enhanced the games with new levels or online play, no cross-console versions and ARGUABLY the prices).

Stop it.

P.S. Who the hell IS this Bernhardt, why do you hate him so much, and what parallels are you drawing between me and him?

I have the right to know this, as much shit as everyone is giving me for whatever perceived slight I am being judged for.