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is the raspberry pi console or pc good for retro games ?

Posted: July 8th, 2018, 1:35 am
by imderfnz
because i dont know should i get it or get the real consoles they say its good for retro games and getting the real console costs alot compared of getting a bunch of retro games on the raspberry pi. has anyone ever had a raspberry pi and played retro games on it what should i do ?

Re: is the raspberry pi console or pc good for retro games ?

Posted: July 8th, 2018, 10:05 am
by scotland
In years past, the topic of emulation could spark some bad feeling about piracy, but I think its a fair question.

Just the other day, a RetroPie article was posted on Ars Technica
https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2018/06/one-upping-the-nes-classic-edition-with-the-raspberry-pi-3-and-retropie/

Emulation has gone from modding a console to what companies like Nintendo are doing to resell their classic games, yet again, in little bundles for use on HD tvs. The functions of the NES Classic can be duplicated on the Retro Pie for about the same price, and the RetroPie can be loaded with more emulators and ROMS. Emulation of 8 and 16 bit consoles on these systems seems to be pretty good. Of course, its the "loaded with ROMS" part that used to cause the conflict in the past.

So "Real Console or Emulation" - if your sites are on 8 and 16 bit games, then emulation on a Retro Pie seems like a perfectly functional way to achieve that, with modest costs and taking up very little space.

Personally, I really like playing on vintage hardware. I find having lots of ROMS encourages quick sampling of games, instead of playing them more deeply like you would if you had a small library. I love slapping in a cartridge, or using different controllers. The look of the console itself becomes part of the gaming experience.

On the other hand, I have all these physical systems and physical games that just take up space (and can cause discussions with people you might live with about storage) and cost money. Some things also are fragile, some haven't been used in a long time. I really like playing on vintage hardware if I can, but there are systems I don't own and want to learn about and enjoy, like the Apple IIe. Trying to set up an Apple II system would be a big project to try to do, and emulation for it is readily available. Plus emulation has so many advantages like screenshots, video capture, etc that can promote discussions and sharing. Having access to lots of games instead of just a few that happen to be in your physical library gives you a larger scope to learn about the system.

Re: is the raspberry pi console or pc good for retro games ?

Posted: July 8th, 2018, 11:41 am
by DrLitch
A Raspberry pi is one device that can emulate retro video games. The laptop or PC that you used to make this post will also be able emulate retro video games without costing you anything. Be forewarned though, some consoles have poor emulation accuracy on PC's outside of perhaps a handful of games. Some emulators also require beefy hardware beyond what a Raspberry Pi can do.

In some instances you are better off owning the console. Want to play Battle of Naboo or Rogue Squadron on the N64? Cannot do that on any known emulator on the N64. Just one example.

Re: is the raspberry pi console or pc good for retro games ?

Posted: July 8th, 2018, 10:56 pm
by BanjoPickles
Personally, considering space and budget, I’m all for emulation....but there’s a caveat. I won’t download the games that are all but guaranteed to be released, unless I own it on another device. For instance, I just sent my SNES Classic away to have games added on. For the most part, I requested games that were never released in the states Terranigma, Live a Live), or games that were very obscure or caught in a web of licensing issues (SOS, Prince of Persia, TMNT, Tiny Toons). I can’t have these games in physical form (impractical), so it’s nice having the chance to revisit them.

I messed around with a Retropi, and it seems pretty awesome, especially if your expectations are realistic. Using it for an Atari-Sega Genesis emulator is pretty rad! It was nice being able to play Food Fight again!

Re: is the raspberry pi console or pc good for retro games ?

Posted: July 30th, 2018, 5:38 pm
by Tron
I have one and am very satisfied

Re: is the raspberry pi console or pc good for retro games ?

Posted: July 30th, 2018, 11:07 pm
by DrLitch
The Pi cases you can get range from cute to absolutely cool. Wish we could post pics.