Topics

1

Classic Video Games / Limited Run E3: 2021

« on: June 15, 2021, 09:14:53 am »

I'm always excited this time of year, but this year I found one thing that felt like it was put in to E3 just for me: Limited Run is doing a release of Castlevania, Dracula X: Rondo of Blood, in English, officially licensed by Konami for the Turbo Duo.

There have been unofficial reproductions in the past, but this is an official Western release, something like 30 years later. With how many of these Rondos you find on Ebay being fake, for someone like me this is the perfect compromise. I will absolutely be picking this up.

The other notable release for folks here might be the Zombies Ate My Neighbors release for Super Nintendo and Sega Genesis.   

2

General / Collecting games Based on "Themes" rather than genre or franchise

« on: May 10, 2021, 03:46:32 pm »

Hi all,

I'm always looking for ways to inspire my collecting, experimenting with different strategies for finding games I want to play.

In the past I've gone for genre. Early on I was attempting to get the "must have" RPGs for the consoles I owned. I quickly learned that A) they were too expensive and rare, B) too long to actually play through (they just sat on the shelf), C) occasionally I'd get s stinker.

I've also done franchises. I've gone for complete collections (or at least one version [e.g. PS3 or 360, but not both] of a game in a franchise) for series I enjoy. For example I have dozens of Bomberman games, and I'm closing in on all the Wonderboy games (curse you Dynastic Hero...). I enjoy this, but sometimes I move on to a new series before I finish and lose steam.

Lately I've been going for theme. I've been reading a lot of Cyberpunk and Cthulhu Mythos literature. I've recently acquired the Deus Ex games (super excited to dig into those tonight), and I grabbed a ton of games with Lovecraftian vibes such as: Eternal Darkness, The Sinking City, Call of Cthulhu: Dark Corners of the Earth, Dead Space, etc.

I've found it incredibly fun and rewarding. There's no rhyme or reason to the franchise or even genre. Many of them are FPS's, walking sims, platformers, RPG's, whatever, but I've found myself getting and playing games I would not have otherwise considered. I'm still looking for Cyberpunk games. I did play Snatcher (so good!), and I'm waiting for the Observer physical release.

Has anyone done this? What themes do/would you collect for? Happy collecting!

3

General / MJR Collection tracking in 2020 video

« on: March 20, 2020, 12:12:00 pm »

Metal Jesus Rocks just uploaded a new "tracking your collection" video. I've used completionator and Backloggery in the past but always felt this site was the most complete and intuitive. Doesn't have some of the bells and whistles, but is consistent, and of course has the best community!

Anyway, MJR didn't mention VGCollect, but he definitely should have!

4

General / Gross story... Check your carts before you power up!

« on: October 03, 2019, 10:24:18 pm »

It's fall in Midwest USA and that means... Lots of bugs trying to get into my place to stay warm. Seriously these invasive stink bugs. I suck up like, no joke, 30 of them every day with the vacuume. Did I mention they stink? When alarmed they release this putrid stink that is somewhere between piss and formaldehyde.

Anyway, I picked up a few new games today at a new store in town. As usual I test them all out at home to make sure everything is in working order. A few snes games don't work, which lead me to my other post in the Hardware/tech sub. So I pull out a few other carts from the shelf to test.

When things aren't going well I pull the snes off the shelf and start inspecting it for issues. I open the cartridge flap to discover a familiar putrid odor... It's stink bug. I don't see the bug, and immediately assume they've snuck in and, becoming alarmed by jamming carts in and pissed all over in my system

Just to be sure, I start looking in my carts just to make sure there ren't any stow aways, and low and behold, a smashed stink bug in my super Mario world. I could smell it before I saw it.

Moral of the story, always look inside your cart before you plug it in. Multiple scrubings with alcohol hasn't gotten rid of the smell...

5

Hardware and Tech / Cartridge Warmup?

« on: October 03, 2019, 10:11:05 pm »

So, story...

Picked up a few games from a new game store in town (anyone from the Cincinnati area checkout RLA Games in Eastgate Mall!!!, Awesome quality!). I get home and neither of the snes games will load (Darius Twin and Space invaders). Click the power button and nothing. I'm playing through a framemeister, rgb scart, top quality cable. Because both games don't work I start to freak out.

I had just tested a Genesis pickup (Virtua Racer) through the same setup (Framemeister , rgb scart) and it worked flawlessly. Okay, so not the setup.

I try a different cable, s-video, on the snes. Nothing from either of the new games. Try an older game, Kiby superstar. Nothing. Try another, super Mario world, works instantly, flawless picture.

Okay, so I try a few more, some work (turtles in time, star fox), some don't. After a few more tries with with space invaders, I finally get a black screen (instead of the default framemeister no signal blue screen). I wait a few seconds then hit the restart button. Comes up flawlessly. Turn off then back on and it's working. I take the cart out to try Darius Twin again. Nothing. Put space invaders back in, and nothing again, except this time I leave it on for about 15 seconds. Turn off, then back on, and it's working again.

This time I put Darius Twin back in, turn on (nothing) and let it sit for about 20 seconds. Hit the reset button, and Bam it's working flawlessly (played for about an hour and died on the last boss...)

Thinking I'm on to something, I put Kirby superstar back in. Turn on, and nothing, but let it sit 20 seconds. Hit the reset button and, you guessed it, fired right up perfectly.

TLDR: do your carts need to warm up ever? Is there something about my snes or my carts that would cause this? I tested with a few Genesis carts i've had work inconsistently in the past and sure enough leaving them in with the power on for about 20-30 seconds cause them to boot up from blank screens.

I do have a few theories:
- the power supplies in a few of my consoles might be on their way out and are failing to provide adequate voltage until the cart has time to build up.
- the capacitors in my consoles/some carts may be going bad (didn't check to see if these particular carts had capacitors) and take time to warm up.
- flash memory must be "refreshed", with manufacturers advising you to power up flash memory every 2-3 years to ensure the memory holds data and to keep the cells healthy. Could these carts literally just need to be refreshed? This one is hard to believe as my NES carts don't exhibit this behavior, only (per my testing) my 16 bit carts. Could be something about the memory used during this time period?

Anyway, thanks for reading. Next time your cart doesn't work, try laving it in with the power on for 20ish seconds then reset the console!

6

Modern Video Games / Collectors' opinions on Switch Joystick Drift

« on: July 23, 2019, 03:44:57 pm »

I'm seeing and reading so much about this, but I'd be interested to hear ya'lls opinions.

Personally, I was suspect. A friend I used to play rocket league dropped off the map because of the drift. We were playing some NES online at a bar (yeah, we're those guys), when suddenly, my (left) Super Mario Odyssey Red joycon began to drift left pretty significantly. Bummer... But, as a collector I'm quite used to pulling consoles and cartridges apart and resoldering, etc...

Went home afterwards and tested all of my 11 joycon, and found three more with significant drift. I'm a collector, dust my displays monthly, have no children or pets, and otherwise keep my collection in fairly good shape. Opened up my joycon, pulled apart the joycon and can all but confirm that contact cleaner on the ribbon cable INSIDE the joystick housing to remove the excess graphite (from poorly designed contacts), reassembly and all of my drifting joycons are now fully responsive. Had I any on hand, a bit of lithium grease on the contacts themselves would likely permanently fix the issue. But I will likely have to perform the procedure again eventually as more graphite is scraped off, and once the graphite is worn through the whole ribbon will need to be replaced (though I've heard of folks using pencil graphite to replace these types of conductors once they're worn through).

This was a process and one the average consumer SHOULD NOT have to deal with, considering I have piles of 15+ year old joysticks still working.

My point is not to say Nintendo=bad, folks need to treat their stuff better, or are we all fanboys and should give Nintendo a break (cuz really who cares about our opinions, amiright...), but I guess as collectors, what other stuff have you had to deal with or fix in the past. The N64 is one I've had to replace or repair multiple joysticks in, and none of the rumble motors work in my OG Xbox controllers. At one point I had a tub of PS2's I was scrapping for parts.

Thoughts? (be nice!)

7

Classic Video Games / Arcade Ports for Project

« on: August 08, 2018, 09:58:55 am »

Hi all,

So, I am working on a personal arcade project and could use some recommendations. Before anyone feels compelled to tell me I'm doing it wrong, or suggests retropie, mame, or emulation, please know that I am well aware of these options and am choosing to do this this way for my own reasons...

That said, I'm building a modular Arcade cabinet, but I will be using a retrobit retro trio (NES, SNES, and Gen), cartridges and their console arcade sticks (NES advantage for example) that will be easily rotated in when needed. I'll probably be hooking up a Switch as well for SNK/neogeo, and some actual arcade games and such.

What I am looking for are suggestions for "must have" arcade ports from the NES, SNES, and Genesis. Examples that I am thinking of already are:

- Super Street Fighter II Turbo (SNES)
- Mortal Kombat II (Gen)
- Altered Beast (Gen)
- Golden Axe (I & II; Gen)
- Double Dragon II (NES)
- Super Hang On (Gen)
- After Burner II (Gen)

All game types are welcome, as I hope to eventually get some racing wheels (will definitely have one hooked up to the Switch), But I am especially interested in side scrolling Beat'em ups, SHMUPS, anything multiplayer, and many of the older generation ports (late 70's and early 80's). The only stipulation is that they are arcade ports.

Thanks!

- Mitch

8

General / Non-Hardware/Software Video Game Collecting

« on: June 06, 2018, 08:10:51 am »

I've recently taken the plunge into collecting vinyl records. I'm keeping everything to strictly video game related records and original soundtracks. Sonic Adventure OST is on its way, and I preordered TESV and DOOM which should both be coming next month. There are tons I want to get so I will have start budgeting these in every month. CDs are great and all, but I like the novelty of the records as a collector, and I think they will display much better. There is also something more intimate about pulling out a record and letting it rip as opposed to just whipping out your phone.

Anyone else have a favorite non-hardware or software, but still video game related collection they're proud of? Plushies, cards, art, manuals, OST's, vinyl, magazines?

EDIT: Playing CDs on my PSOne as my dedicated CD player is still pretty awesome...

9

Classic Video Games / CRT Eulogy

« on: May 21, 2018, 11:23:15 am »

Returning from my game hunt this weekend, I went through my normal habit. Open up the game (Kirby's Adventure, NES), dust the board, clean the contacts, etc. Popped it into the NES, turned on my sound bar, and pushed power on my 29 inch almost 30 year old Zenith television, only to see a single horizontal scan line across a blank black screen. After years of re-soldering broken cold joints to get the video-in signal working, I knew right away this was going to be the death knell. The dreaded vertical-line deflector failure. I just don't think I've got the patience, energy, or skill to fix this one.

While this serves as a eulogy for a television that I have been playing NES games on for close to thirty years, it also got me thinking about classic gaming in general.

I now need a new way to play my 18 or so classic consoles. Picture quality isn't essential, it just needs to be a classic feel. The disgusting mess that results when I upscale composite to my UHD flat screen is exactly NOT what I'm looking for. So what do I do?

- Pick up one of the dozen CRTs at the thrift store down the street?
- Settle for upscaling with composite, and s-video and RGB where possible?
- Mod everything for RGB and find a Framemeister?
- Sell everything that can't output HDMI and replace them with clones? Retrons/Analogues/wait for the Polymega?

This experience has rocked my world and I'm not sure I even want to deal with original hardware. Another CRT is likely to fail, then I have to drag another 200lb tv out of my third floor apartment (no elevator/lift). I don't have confidence in upscaling, and moding kind of defeats the purpose for me. Clones seem like the most effective way, but I love the consoles. Maybe I'm still grieving and I should wait until I can think more clearly. All I know, is right now I don't have a satisfying way to play the stacks of games I have, and I'm losing it!

So without saying what "I should do", what would you do?

10

Classic Video Games / Physical Quality of Carts

« on: September 01, 2017, 10:03:05 am »

Hey all,

I've been collecting for a few days... In the last few years I have really picked up the hobby again. I have noticed the quality of carts really declining. It is to the point where cleaning and resuscitating carts is part of the hobby. I have piecemeal cleaning kits and tools; my girlfriend says I'm performing "surgery". It's mostly getting rid of corrosion on the pins, and re-soldering cold joint and broken components, and removing what I can only imagine was orange juice spilled into a cart 20-30 years ago.

This is strange, as most of my carts that I purchased so long ago really don't have this, I pop them in and they work like new, and I was just as grimy as anyone else when I was a kid. But, I don't think I have purchased a single cart in the last two years that worked on first play; i.e. that didn't require "surgery".

My theory, we're at a stage in cartridge/collecting history where the quality, well tended consoles and cartridges are all in collections, and the remaining carts/consoles in the wild are the picked over and less cared for. I am kind of pleased with myself, in a way,  because these are carts that in the hands of others may end up in the garbage, but instead are getting a new life.

Any other theories out there? Anyone having similar experiences with carts in the wild? Any fascinating surgery/resurrection stories? What tools/kits/strategies have you for keeping your collection running in top shape?

Thank all!