What do you use to play retro/vintage games? \ stacker news ~gaming

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What do you use to play retro/vintage games?

1226 sats \ 31 comments \ @astro_penguin 25 Nov gaming

I was playing some Sega Genesis games yesterday, and I got to wondering what the retro gamers here generally used to play their games.

I generally have a few different ways to play.

For PC games back to the mid 90's I try to use original hardware if possible. It's definitely an experience to play some of those games on the original OS, clear down to digging through ancient forums to find fixes for things! Any other PC games are emulated using Lutris/Wine on modern hardware.

Console

I own a few consoles, so I enjoy using them as much as possible. If I don't have the console or want to use save states or something, I use my (completely legal and dumped from the cartridge) ROMs via emulators on several different devices. My Steam Deck is one of my favorite options, I installed EmuDeck on it and it works great. My spouse has a similar setup on their Deck as well. I also have RetroArch on my media center PC and a RetroPie set up too.

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33 sats \ 1 reply \ @Scoresby 25 Nov

Zsnes on Linux works well for games like super Mario, mortal kombat, street fighter, Zelda and other super Nintendo games. You can get knock off Nintendo controllers with USB ends that work on a PC/laptop. Fun times.

17 sats \ 0 replies \ @astro_penguin OP 25 Nov

That would be a good time! I generally use the 8BitDo SN30 controllers to do SNES games, but I might have to check those out. I have some original controllers for my SNES, and some of the modern controllers don't feel the same.

21 sats \ 2 replies \ @030e0dca83 26 Nov

My fried acquired Ambernic, like this one:

And I play Mario Bros. and Tony Hawk when I visit my friend

1 sat \ 1 reply \ @astro_penguin OP 26 Nov

I would like to get something like that, but I haven't to this point. They look like they would be really nice.

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @030e0dca83 26 Nov

AliExpress propose it for around 40 bucks and you can play all the games from nes, sega, PS1, etc

Games from Nintendo64 are lagging

21 sats \ 2 replies \ @john_doe 26 Nov

I use Flycast for Dreamcast games and PCSX2 for Playstation games. On Jet Set Radio (Dreamcast) however there is a bug which makes the keyboard unusable without an analog stick able to send a non binary state. I need to send a Down signal in-between center and down to continue hahaha. So I am thinking about buying a controller or two, eventually also to play Mario Kart on mupen64plus.

That being said, Steam Deck looks nice, I am considering it too. Just have some hesitations because of the small screen size, if it would still be usable by 2 people.

Thank you for mentioning Lutris, I didn't know this one!

21 sats \ 1 reply \ @astro_penguin OP 26 Nov

I've had fun with Dreamcast games, I just wish there were more of them! I really like 8BitDo controllers for older games, some of them have a nice retro look to them.

The Steam Deck has been a big thing for me since it came out. I still only use it for about 30% of my gaming, but that's usually time that I couldn't have gamed otherwise. There's a lot of PC games that work well on it.

Definitely check out Lutris, it's a great option for old PC games. It even works with a lot of console emulators too, and gives you a pretty decent library to put your games in.

21 sats \ 0 replies \ @john_doe 26 Nov

I see! I didn't know either about 8BitDo controllers, thanks!

21 sats \ 5 replies \ @7e6e393a56 26 Nov

As incredible as it may seem, I play retro games in an arcade. I know it's archaic, but the atmosphere is very friendly. I pay at the entrance and what I consume at your burger place and I play as much as I want

15 sats \ 4 replies \ @astro_penguin OP 26 Nov

That would be a lot of fun! I used to work near a retro arcade years ago. I would stop in there fairly frequently when I had the chance. I played a lot of pinball, the Skylab machine was my favorite. I also got a lot of use out of the Pac-Man and Ms Pac-Man machines as well. I remember having all of the highscores on Ms Pac-Man, but I couldn't do the same on the original! It was lots of fun, I should try finding a place like that again.

21 sats \ 3 replies \ @7e6e393a56 26 Nov

There are lots of pinball machines, fighting games and beat'm up games. I wish I had your Ms Pac-Man skills to play Metal Slug I and Cadillac and Dinosaurs I hope you find a place to remember these games at the arcade

15 sats \ 2 replies \ @astro_penguin OP 26 Nov

It sounds like it would be really enjoyable! I have a feeling all of the really good people were just playing the original Pac-Man, their scores were always way higher than mine!

I would like to play some of them again, I've never been able to get used to the Pac-Man console ports. They always feel different than the machines. I did think of trying to buy a Skylab machine, but lack of space and money is a problem!

21 sats \ 1 reply \ @7e6e393a56 26 Nov

In the past, people were forced to be great at games because the chip system and difficulty level were much higher than today. I remember when I finished Ninja Gaiden, I promised never to play again because of the extreme difficulty 😂

15 sats \ 0 replies \ @astro_penguin OP 26 Nov

I definitely know that feeling! I've been very frustrated at games a few times! 😂

21 sats \ 1 reply \ @Roll 25 Nov

https://retropie.org.uk/

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @astro_penguin OP 25 Nov

RetroPie is really nice, I have it set up on a Pi 4. It works really nice to play some games on the couch sometimes.

21 sats \ 2 replies \ @guts 25 Nov

I emulate some games in RetroArch in a Nvidia Shield Pro.

0 sats \ 1 reply \ @astro_penguin OP 25 Nov

Sounds like a lot of fun!

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @guts 25 Nov

It's a good streamer even if it's old already.

21 sats \ 1 reply \ @nout 25 Nov

Miyoo Mini Plus and Retroid Pocket 3 ☺️ Both with RetroArch for most of the emulation...

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @astro_penguin OP 25 Nov

The Retroid Pocket is something I would really like to get, but I'm afraid I wouldn't use it enough since I've got the Steam Deck. Maybe someday I'll pick one up! The big benefit I see with it is the ability to slide into a jacket pocket or something.

21 sats \ 5 replies \ @Satosora 25 Nov

I think many of the older games you actually still have to use your mind to play. Like tetris and donkey kong. Its all about problem solving. I try to play them on their original systems, l enjoy the original game boy games.

20 sats \ 4 replies \ @astro_penguin OP 25 Nov

Yes, some of them really require strategy as well as good reflexes and timing! They're sometimes quite difficult as well. I really liked handhelds in years past, they're really nice to pick up for a bit and play.

21 sats \ 3 replies \ @Satosora 25 Nov

Yes, they are just total time sucks. You could also save the game and leave for a while. This feature seems to be non existant anymore. You have to play until the game finishes.

20 sats \ 2 replies \ @astro_penguin OP 25 Nov

Yeah it's a frustrating holdover from the quarter eating arcade machines as well as trying to get as much gameplay as possible from the limited cartridge space! I do like using emulators for some games for that very reason. I'll use a few save states at times so I can put the game down for the day without erasing all the progress I've made.

21 sats \ 1 reply \ @Satosora 25 Nov

I do know the original game boy cartridges have a battery that you can carefully replace to save gameplay. Usually that battery is completely drained so it doesnt save anything anymore.

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @astro_penguin OP 25 Nov

Yeah, all of those batteries are usually well past their prime. I've had someone I know replace a few for me on some different cartridges, I didn't trust my own soldering skills!

21 sats \ 3 replies \ @fm 25 Nov

whatever i find.. Last time, me and my eldest found my old Wi-U.. We played some Mario.. Cant wait my kids to be old enough to play.. their mom is not so happy about it as me.. go figure :)

Wish i had kept my genesis.. and saturn

11 sats \ 2 replies \ @astro_penguin OP 25 Nov

I never played too much on either of the Wii systems, but the concept is interesting!

I know the feeling! My parents weren't the most excited about me getting my siblings into games when I was younger! They eventually came around and ended up enjoying it themselves though.

I really wish I had kept all of my old systems too. I bought most of mine used a generation or two late, and they now cost 5-6 times what I had paid for them!

21 sats \ 1 reply \ @fm 25 Nov

The wii-u was 100% for Call of Duty

From all the games i played, from spectrum to ps5 the Wii-U for me had the best controlers for Call of Duty..

But i havent load COD as my kid is young.. Ill have to wait :)

0 sats \ 0 replies \ @astro_penguin OP 25 Nov

Interesting! I never played much Call of Duty, but my favorite controller other than mouse and keyboard is the PS5 Dualsense. Probably best to wait until they're a little older to relive the COD days! :-)