partious

16 minutes ago, Colonel Panic said:

 

https://www.antoniovillena.es/store/product/vga-composite-s-video-adapter/

 

I use one of these with S-Video but it supports composite. A small warning though, apparently the dot crawl with composite is REALLY bad. 

 

 

Thanks for the info. Doesn't sound like it's worth the effort for composite when I already have the original hardware and pi on the crt.

I'll try to figure out how to improve my mister experience over HDMI on my monitor. 

Anyone here running one of these on a 1440p monitor? Can't help but feel it looks and feels pretty bad on mine (ASUS ROG Swift PG279Q) compared to my old non-gaming 1080p HP one. I tried changing the mister.ini for 1440p but I get an "out of bounds" message on the monitor (using the HDMI cable that came with the monitor) maybe I'm missing something. 

I have a crt that only has composite. What's the cheapest/easiest way to output composite from a mister? Sort of surprised it's not easier to find this info. Surely more people have an old 14 inch composite consumer CRT than a pvm.

I'm interested in this for the keyboard and mouse.

 Are there still no more interesting cases available to buy for this than "small metal box" and "small plastic box"?

 I love the look of some of the Amiga inspired keyboard cases people have 3d printed. 

On 23/06/2022 at 12:08, partious said:

 This thread has helped me decide not to upgrade my 1200p pc monitor or 1080p TV.

 

 Great as they clearly are an LG OLED TV isn't on the menu due to size and price (not that I think they're overpriced for what they are, it's just far more than I want to spend on a screen). 

 A more modest upgrade to a cheaper 144hz/1440p/4k monitor just doesn't really seem like a massive leap in terms of the experience for my use case/the type of stuff I play, and chasing ultra high framerates/resolutions would put me back on the "need to upgrade PC again" treadmill much sooner. 

Well, I lied. I recently bought a 165hz 1440p gsync monitor and it makes a noticeable difference. I've never really been impressed by the ones on display in shops but now I'm wondering if those demos were even running at 1440p/a framerate above 60 because the difference on my PC is immediately noticeable. Also the picture quality is definitely good enough for me. It isn't OLED quality but it has its own charms. 

No more horror/jumpscares/zombies.

4 hours ago, robdood said:

Then don't get VR, basically.  Being 'in' it and moving around is part of the magic, dude! 

For me, the visual immersion and 3D is 90% of the appeal. 

I wonder if we might have seen more ports etc if there wasn't a vocal part of the VR community ready to absolutely trash anything that doesn't fit their idea of the full VR experience, full interaction using motion controls etc. 

They insist on the full VR experience and nothing less will do, so nearly a decade into this VR cycle we're still dealing mainly with low budget minigames built from the ground up for VR, despite the fact that AAA games can be modded for "acceptable" VR by a single modder. I'd say "If one modder can do it, would it kill these big  companies to just get one or two devs to do it officially" but I guess the companies know that if they released anything less than the full VR treatment they'd be trashed and review bombed, so they're better off just ignoring VR. 

As an aside, the Quest 2 price increase is shocking. Going from 37000 yen to 59000 yen in Japan. Disc drive PS5 is 55000. Series S is 32000. I'd really strongly discourage anyone I know from spending that much on a Quest, it's just not remotely worth that price for anyone but the biggest vr fans, who I assume already have one. 

  The praise for Resident Evil 4 makes one thing clear, and that's that if the will/money isn't there to make quality vr games from the ground up, the quest should get more late 90s/ early 2000s ports. There'll be a new quest at some stage with higher resolution etc but who cares if the library remains as disappointing as it is now, other than the PC sim enthusiasts chasing higher resolution for their sim racing setup?

The vocal elements of the vr community are too focused on hardware, resolution, fov, refresh rates, wires etc and not enough on the fact that there just aren't enough games worth playing.

I'm getting a bit tired of buying new headsets for a few games at this stage too. People wouldn't buy a traditional console to play an equivalently pitiful library to that of the quest 2. 

To be honest, I'm not overly optimistic about the next few years of VR, in terms of what companies themselves are going to bring to the table, in particular "meta".

PSVR2 hardware will be impressive and Sony will at least have a few big hitters ported to VR, but I fear the wider library will be more cut down "vr content" and low budget stuff. 

My hopes for the future of VR gaming are with the PC modders. I got on board with VR from the start, but at this stage I have very little interest in the short low budget made for vr stuff. For me, VR headsets are a way to add immersion to the games I'd want to play anyway, not something that's going to shift my gaming tastes to rhythm games, zombie shooters or mini experiences.

The problems with Quest begin after you finish Resident Evil 4 and take a look at the rest of the standalone quest library. I think people really understate just how crappy the overall game selection is. Not a single worthwhile racing game, adventure game, etc etc. Hope you like indie rhythm games. 

I don't understand people's big issue with having a wire. PSVR is a pain because of the camera and the atrocious move controllers that just aren't fit for purpose. I played HL:Alyx using my Quest connected to my PC via a single long USB cable. Takes no time to set up and has no negative effect on the experience since you're not spinning around anyway. Seems like psvr 2 will be similar to a quest wired to a PC. No separate camera or tracking issues etc.

 This thread has helped me decide not to upgrade my 1200p pc monitor or 1080p TV.

 Great as they clearly are an LG OLED TV isn't on the menu due to size and price (not that I think they're overpriced for what they are, it's just far more than I want to spend on a screen). 

 A more modest upgrade to a cheaper 144hz/1440p/4k monitor just doesn't really seem like a massive leap in terms of the experience for my use case/the type of stuff I play, and chasing ultra high framerates/resolutions would put me back on the "need to upgrade PC again" treadmill much sooner. 

2 minutes ago, Mr. Gerbik said:

I upgraded to a LG CX 55" OLED and man that was one of the best gaming investments I've ever made going from 1080p LCD. It's astounding the difference it made. Gorgeous, simply gorgeous. I could never go back. It was transformative - playing old 360 games like Mirror's Edge and FFXIII which have been enhanced on XSX are mind-blowing to look at on that telly. It still impresses the fuck out of me every time I fire them up. Worth every penny and then some.

Yes, this is the one upgrade I know is definitely a major step up, it's the options below it that I'm not so sure about. 

And for those of you who got something more modest than a 4K OLED(we know they're great), how worth it was the upgrade when compared to your old 1080p, 60fps screen?

I recently put together a decent PC, mainly for playing VR games. My previous PC was still doing OK at 1080p in non-vr stuff despite being ancient (old i7 and gtx780ti).

Now that I have the PC I'm feeling like I should upgrade my monitor since 1080p 60fps feels like a waste of the hardware/doesn't feel any different than my old PC in most games. Large 4K OLED TVs and other high end displays aren't on the menu. To be honest I haven't been blown away by 1440p/4K display monitors in shops (aside from high end OLED TVs) and the "compare 60hz and 144hz by moving a mouse in a fps demo" thing in my local computer shop did nothing for me. 

Are these the type of things that once you spend some time with them you realize they're a big jump, or is 1080p and a rock solid 60fps good enough?

I don't think we'll see a new console anytime soon. Why would they bother when it basically has no competition and is still selling well? 

Also I see the "people didn't understand the Wii U name/what it was and that's why it didn't sell" thing coming up again. It's amazing that consumers can tell the difference between Xbox one, Xbox one s, Xbox one x, Xbox series s and Xbox series x well enough but they just couldn't wrap their heads around a move from Wii to Wii U with a gap of years between the two.

I have a switch that gets basically zero use, in large part because I played a lot of the games on Wii U.

I would have bought any of the current gen consoles when they first came out if it had been possible, due to the usual new console hype etc.

Any interest I had in them has really cooled off at this stage though so I'm not bothered anymore. I wouldn't be able to think of a single game I'd be interested in getting either PS5 or Series X for.

I'll see how PSVR2 is, and how many big games it gets to make it worthwhile. Won't be an impulse buy like the first PSVR was though, the novelty of vr has worn off, if some genuinely impressive big games aren't there, I won't get it. It will probably be another impossible to find item for a year or more after release, so it's not happening anytime soon. 

I skipped the PS3/360/Wii gen, I was regularly playing games during that decade or so, but exclusively old stuff.

I think I might be in a similar phase now. Still enjoy games as much as ever, but my gaming tastes haven't moved with the times at all so I'm happy to play what I already own.

Anyone have any recommended games that are fun to play frequently and also provide a half decent bit of cardio exercise? I have Creed so not really looking for another boxing game. I've heard people mention Pistol Whip, and it's currently on sale, but the comments seem mixed so I'm not sure if it provides any noticeable cardio workout if you're already in decent shape.

Tried the Beat Sabre demo but it isn't really my cup of tea.

If you want a new one I'd say its a bit much to pay at this stage, but it depends how much you want to play the games you have I suppose.

If you're OK with a used one, which I know some people aren't when it comes to VR headsets, Janpara in Nipponbashi usually have some going cheap (they had a bunch for between 6000-10000 yen a couple of months ago). I've seen them for below 10,000 used in good condition in some other used game shops too in the past year or so.

I know this is just the usual post release "latest From game is best ____ ever!!" topic, but From fans really are quite awful at putting the appeal of these games into words to explain the hyperbole to people who aren't already fans of the From template.  I will however accept that if your previous favorite game was the last From release, and before that the one they released before that, this probably is the greatest open world game because why wouldn't it be?

I've read this entire thread and have no idea what people think makes this the best open world ever. Best I can gather is that it's the latest game with Souls mechanics and happens to be open world and therefore it must be the best open world game. Is that about it, or is there anything more to it? What does this game do in terms of the open world that elevates it above other open worlds and might help explain the appeal to people who aren't already sold on From games, other than be a From game set in a large/open world?

I don't think BOTW is the perfect game but even in this Elden Ring thread its fans are certainly far better at articulating what they feel it added to the open world genre, beyond just " it's a Zelda game and it's open world therefore best open world".

Hyperstone Heist is the best of the Turtles belt scrollers, in terms of gameplay, solely due to the ability to run by tapping a single button. It's one of my favourite MD games, the ability to keep rushing enemies and pushing ahead with the run button really makes the moment to moment gameplay feel far more frantic and exciting than stuff like Streets of Rage. 

The arcade games are superior in terms of sound and visuals, but as mentioned by others they're extremely unfair coin guzzlers. The home versions aren't just ports with inferior graphics, they're totally rebalanced due to the fact they don't need to kick you off a machine/get you to put in more money. It's an interesting example of the "inferior" home conversions being better games in hindsight.

I think all the NES TMNT games are varying levels of garbage.

I'm glad this thing looks quite chunky. I found the Wii U gamepad very comfortable but the switch with original joycons extremely uncomfortable to use for more than a few minutes. Vita was pretty unpleasant for anything that used the analogue sticks and shoulder buttons too. 

For me the appeal of this device is mainly just the convenience of being able to play at home without isolating myself in a separate room for hours etc. Maybe occasionally bring it somewhere, but I can safely say I wouldn't be carrying it around in my pocket like a DS to play my steam library on the go regardless of size.

Will definitely order one if if they ever open pre-orders here

I've claimed every game in the last couple of years (and played precisely none of them, of course) and I never had an issue claiming them through the website. 

It's only more recently with the Origin/other launcher games that I've been using my pc to claim them.

I've started with the audio cassette case method for gameboy games. Got some little storage boxes for cassette cases that hold about 20 and it looks pretty tidy. Far better than a bunch of loose carts strewn in a box anyway. 

Unfortunately I don't know any cheaper way to get tape cases than buying cheap blank tapes so I now also have a bunch of low quality blank tapes with no cases

On 24/01/2022 at 09:25, strider said:

 I’ve got just over 1,137 games which feels ridiculous (and doesn’t include the 90 odd limited run vita games in my loft). 

15 hours ago, strider said:

 I find myself with very little time nowadays so I'm looking at moving back towards focusing on shmups as they fit into my life better. I was recently going to go for every Switch shmup, but after hating Aces of the Luftwaffe I realised that was a waste of money so that's now been put on hold. 

 Despite my defense of having a collection above, I can't relate to this. I assume you bought at least some of those 90 limited run vita games because they were limited run games and not because there were 90 games you wanted to play and own that happened to be limited run vita games. 

 "Maybe I'll play some shmups because I have little time" becoming "I'll buy every switch shmup" is also a thought process I can't quite relate to. 

It sounds like collecting things for the sake of collecting something and in that sense it seems pretty straightforward that once you've accumulated that arbitrary collection you might not have much attachment to it. I remember as a kid the premier league sticker book wasn't particularly interesting once it was completed. 

Did you buy the limited run games because you wanted to play them all or because they seemed like a safe bet in terms of likelihood of appreciating in value?

 I have my collection of games from consoles I'm interested in and never sell anything. We can talk about everdrives, raspberry pis, misters and the rest, but it isn't the same experience as putting the cart into the original console, looking at the boxes/manuals etc. 

I didn't buy any of my stuff for market rate on eBay etc so I look at my games and can remember a little story attached to where each thing came from. That makes me less likely to sell them. My boxed nes and boxed games that happen to now be valuable aren't just some junk I randomly accumulated. I trudged through Sunday morning car boot sales every week when I was 18 and got lucky a few times when someone was selling off some classic for pennies.  I bought a virtual boy boxed for 30 quid in some rural recycle shop in Japan that I went out of my way to get to 15 years ago. Bought my ps2 while studying abroad and had many a good late night gaming session on it with people who then went back to the four corners of the earth never to meet again.

Everything else that I have was something I went out of my way to buy or at least was happy to stumble across randomly. Didn't fall into my house like a hoarder's bunch of shit stained nappies or expired tins of dogfood or whatever did.

I'll happily clear out various other things to make space, certain books I'm finished with etc, but I like having the games to look at/play if the mood takes me. I don't find decently organised retro games take up that much space, comparatively speaking, and of the various things I own that take up space I'd say they're about the closest to something that actually "sparks joy" as people like to say in these topics. I'd certainly sooner downsize my collection of old t-shirts and other clothes I haven't bothered throwing out yet than my game collection. 

I guess it depends whether you're tight on space (I don't have a huge amount but I have a spare room and choose to use it for games as opposed to something else), want to cash in on inflated retro prices (I bought anything I have because I wanted to own it so I don't sell anything) and whether your owning of certain things bothers people you live with , in my case it doesn't but it certainly seems to be a factor in a lot of retro collection selloffs. 

I have a mix of loose carts and boxed games for the 8/16 bit systems, with the balance leaning more one way or the other depending on system. For example, I have a lot of gameboy/GBA games cart only. 

As we all know the price of a lot of complete in box games is a bit silly these days. 

Has anyone tried any self made/purchased solutions? I've seen a few options, like GBA games in DS boxes with appropriate covers and also gameboy games in cassette tape cases with covers etc printed (I quite like the look of the latter). 

What are you opinions on such things? Better than having all your loose carts thrown together in a big box or pointless as the only reason to have a box is as a display of the monetary value of your collection? 

15 hours ago, SeanR said:

Anyone else picked up their headset recently to find the black rubber on the headband is coming off?

 

Just me?

 

had to peel it all off in the end.

Dropping that shit everywhere otherwise.

Yes, I noticed this recently. I hate that disgusting shit they use to coat things as it always seems to flake off after a few years on headphones etc too and makes a total mess when it does.