Posted by MameMole on 27, 2001 at 11:14 AM:
In Reply to: Short Rant - Which is better Emulation or the Real Thing? posted by Tim C. on 26, 2001 at 12:05 PM:
...I still like to stop by the local Retrocade to occasionally play a game of Tempest or Defender. For the most part though, I always end up wondering why I bothered. I can play them in the comfort of my own home anytime I want via emulation, and in my opinion the gameplay is exactly the same. Also, nine times out of ten at least two or three of the games I want to play at Retrocade are broken-down and not working. I DO love to check out the cabinet artwork however, and the worn-out leafswitch joysticks on their Robotron game are AWESOME!
: This is kinda in response to the end of ArcadeOS (which I am a big fan of) and his reason for quitting.
: At one time, I really liked arcade collecting. I own several real arcade machines, mostly classics, Pac, centipede, galaga, galaxian, SI, and I average about 60% of them being playable at any one time. The rest seem to be a never ending battle of power supplies, bad ram chips ,burned connectors, etc. With a full time job and a family, machines set for weeks before I can find the parts, put them in, find that it did not fix it, order more parts, etc..
: But, by using ArcadeOS and VSyncMame, (and a correctly oriented arcade monitor for the relevant game) I can play all these classics at full frame rate, with perfect smooth scrolling, and accurate sound and colors, without worrying if the machine is going to work the next time I turn it on. And I cannot tell the difference between "real" and "emulated" on these games, even with the machines side by side. I agree not every game in MAME is perfectly emulated but %90 of the CLASSICS are. And these are the games most people care about.
: I just like the ability to get my arcade "FIX" without having to "FIX" the machine before I can play it.
: I will miss the updates on ArcadeOS and the fastest vertical emulator, Vantage.
: -Tim C.