What parts of Retro Gaming take up your time?

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scotland
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What parts of Retro Gaming take up your time?

Postby scotland » February 11th, 2016, 11:23 am

Wikipedia says retro gaming is playing or collecting obsolete or discontinued console, computer or arcade games. It can be on original hardware, or modern via emulation or comlilations and ports.

Currently, I am spending lots of time learning and repairing, reading books and manuals, searching forum posts for technical help these days. Add to that trying to find old parts and games, and getting them to work, and it takes more time than actually playing classic games. I enjoy it, but I noticed my Genesis is looking disused, and that ain't right either.

Others here seem to be collectors, or focus intensely on one game at a time to master, or listen to podcasts and watch videos, or play by emulation, etc.

When you are spending time on retro gaming, what part of the hobby is getting the most time?

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LuckyMan
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Re: What parts of Retro Gaming take up your time?

Postby LuckyMan » February 11th, 2016, 2:22 pm

That's an interesting question. I know I hear many collectors complain that they don't get enough game time in. For me, the collecting part of the hobby is just as fun. I would say my retro-gaming breaks down like this:

1. Online forums and research
2. Updating game lists
3. Playing!
4. Organizing game collection
5. Cleaning and repairing games, controllers and consoles
6. Attending classic gaming conventions and meets

I enjoy all aspects of the hobby except for maybe the extremely dirty, disgusting games I sometimes get in the mail. Yuck! Although if they're not too badly damaged. It's very satisfying to clean them up and get them working good again.

Sut
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Re: What parts of Retro Gaming take up your time?

Postby Sut » February 11th, 2016, 3:19 pm

Another thought provoking topic Scotland.

1). I would still say actually playing them is my primary filler (just).

2). Reading and researching. When it's time to add a game to my collection I like to do my due diligence, especially if it's a pricey acquisition. Also whilst I'm playing a game I'll try and find out as much as I can about it. What's the other ports like in comparison ? Does it have any secrets ? An interesting development process ? Was contemporary reviews in line with more recent reviews ?

3). YouTube and Podcasts. Love watching YouTube reviews on retro games especially for systems I have an affinity with. Podcasts are a recent phenomenon to me but I got really into the excellent Sega Does podcast and started finding more like Retro Asylum, Channel F files and Back in my Play.

I used to make loads of lists when I was into emulation but now I've focused my retro habits on real hardware and one console per generation plus my two favourite home computers. So I'm now into finding the best experiences these systems can offer. However I do use an iPhone app to track my games collection and games progress.

I've never been to a classic gaming convention and it's really something I would like to do.

matmico399
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Re: What parts of Retro Gaming take up your time?

Postby matmico399 » February 12th, 2016, 6:36 pm

1. Playing!
2. Watching Youtube and message boards.
3. Checking Ebay out!

That's about it!

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Rev
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Re: What parts of Retro Gaming take up your time?

Postby Rev » February 13th, 2016, 10:11 am

1. Collecting and finding games - I spend more time doing this than actually playing games. I like going to used game stores, thrift shops, etc and looking out for games. I also spend a lot of time on the internet creating lists of games I'd be interested in playing, owning, whether they are supposedly "hidden gems" or defining games for a console.

2. Cleaning/sprucing up Used games - I sadly spend a lot of time sprucing up used games so they look as new as possible. Whether that is cleaning the contacts, removing permanent marker from the games/cds, removing stickers, etc.

3. Playing games - Sadly, this is #3 on my list.

4. Organizing - I have a limited amount of space so I've had to get very creative with how I'm organizing my game room.

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VideoGameCritic
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Re: What parts of Retro Gaming take up your time?

Postby VideoGameCritic » February 13th, 2016, 12:37 pm

This is an interesting topic because retro gaming goes so far beyond playing old games.

Since I have a game room I'm constantly reorganizing to make room. Occasionally I'll have a relocate a large box to the attic just to make some more space

Classic gaming can be high maintenance. Although classic consoles tend to age MUCH better than modern consoles, they still have problems. Trouble shooting is often the hardest part, especially when you have a bank of switch boxes and a nest of wires.

I have a list of games I want (it's huge) but I try to look out for the deals. I never really read other review sites or listen to podcasts.

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Retro STrife
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Re: What parts of Retro Gaming take up your time?

Postby Retro STrife » February 13th, 2016, 6:07 pm

Very interesting topic. The older I get and the less free time I have, the more I find myself enjoying the other aspects of retro gaming besides playing. Especially searching for games and buying games. Sometimes I wish there wasn't so much to collect, because it's truly an endless hobby. And it only grows--I once tried to promise myself that I would cut off my collecting at the Dreamcast, but I now find myself collecting for failed systems from the 2000's too, like Nuon and N-Gage.

As for the internet, this is the only site I regularly visit for reviews and forums. However, if I am in the midst of collecting for a particular system, my research on what games to buy will lead me to check this site, other review sites, Youtube, other forums, etc. My style is usually to buy a few new retro systems per year and try to get a representative library of games for each system. So I tend to do a lot of research into the best games to buy when I'm gearing up for that next system purchase. Unfortunately, after frivolously spending my money, I have little time to play the games I've bought, and many only get played for a few minutes, if at all. Fact: a $100 gem and a $2 dud play exactly the same if you leave them both sitting on the shelf. I wish I would finally realize that someday.

At the moment I don't have the space for a gameroom (instead, I rotate things in and out of storage), but I will someday, and I imagine that'll take up a lot of my time once I have the space for it.

Gleebergloben123
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Re: What parts of Retro Gaming take up your time?

Postby Gleebergloben123 » February 19th, 2016, 12:38 pm

Scotland, nice thread as always.

Not sure if my reply matches your original question, but I find that reading about classic gaming takes up most of my retro gaming time. I've read 'Atari Inc., Business is Fun' many times about the history of Atari. At first I thought the book was a one-time read, but it's a great book. Also books such as Steve Kent's The Ultimate Guide to Video Games, and others.

I really enjoy reading the business side of Atari, INTV, and CV, including anecdotes, successes, and failures. I just find the whole period from the early 70's to the early 80's (especially late 70's to early 80's) just fascinating, reading about the rise and fall of classic gaming, and the personalities that were a part of the period.

I also enjoy reading about the arcade scene during this time frame as this was such a big part of my life growing up. Pac-man, Tempest, Robotron, Atari Football, Dragons Lair, Sinistar, etc. just reading about the games, their history, the programmers, etc.

Finally, I like reading about prototypes and vapor ware, such as the Atari Protos, the INTV III and INTV IV, the CV Super Games Module, the Odyssey III, etc. I guess I find these prototypes so fascinating because since these devices were never released, anything could have been possible. Who knows, maybe the INTV IV could have been more powerful that the PS4 :mrgreen:

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scotland
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Re: What parts of Retro Gaming take up your time?

Postby scotland » February 19th, 2016, 12:49 pm

Gleebergloben123 wrote:I find that reading about classic gaming takes up most of my retro gaming time.


That's awesome. I've never read the Atari Inc, Business if Fun book. Maybe you could do a reader review?

I just bought some books from storybundle.com with a history of Roguelikes. This bundle was not particulary great, but check it out. With self-publishing these days, more and more of these niche gaming stories are being told. I have one on my list about the CoCo computer, which I have no hands on experience with. That late 70s and 80s were a fascinating Wild West time for video gaming.

Gleebergloben123
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Re: What parts of Retro Gaming take up your time?

Postby Gleebergloben123 » February 19th, 2016, 2:21 pm

scotland wrote:
Gleebergloben123 wrote:I find that reading about classic gaming takes up most of my retro gaming time.


That's awesome. I've never read the Atari Inc, Business if Fun book. Maybe you could do a reader review?

I just bought some books from storybundle.com with a history of Roguelikes. This bundle was not particulary great, but check it out. With self-publishing these days, more and more of these niche gaming stories are being told. I have one on my list about the CoCo computer, which I have no hands on experience with. That late 70s and 80s were a fascinating Wild West time for video gaming.


Thanks Scotland. I'm going to check out storybundle as I'm always looking for more literature on classic gaming.

Also, I did post a review of 'Atari Inc., Business is Fun' about three years ago. Two points I'd like to make about my review.

First, I mistakenly thought that the book mentioned that Atari President Ray Kassar was gay; however, THAT was NOT in the book. If memory serves, I saw that info in another book or website, so that was completely my mistake. I don't know if it's even true, but I found it interesting.

Second, the book really ages well. After I read the book the first time, I thought I would just put the book away, but I've been using it as a quick read or as a reference book since I purchased it. The authors put a lot of time and effort in the book, and it shows in the final product.

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