A Dark Emulation Scene

This week is a very dark one for the emulation scene if what is said is true. I've never been a huge fan of bsnes/higan, which is a Super NES emulator that strived for accuracy and making all games work. SNES9x I thought was a better one. But that doesn't mean anything for the time being as the guy who created higan has supposedly passed away via suicide. Near/byuu took his own life and fingers are being pointed towards online bullies that harassed him and make things worse for him and anyone close to him. It has upset a lot of people involved in gaming and the emulation scene.

Online bullying is not new. It has grown out of control in the last ten years or so. Controversial figures, teenagers, anyone can be a target, whether it's real criticism or straight up harassment. In the realm of people getting picked on, I feel like that's more from teenagers who feel that the whole world is against them. But this can also apply to adults as well. Near was the target of a group that has been in the spotlight at points for other types of tragedies. There were things about him such as being non-binary and several other things that no one will realize.

Near had been working on emulation for over 15 years. The dedication from that is a huge welcome. If only others would do that for stuff like Sega Saturn and obscure systems that don't get enough love. But the dedication has also lead to people who flat out hate the guy. I would have to wager that it got so severe that he lost it mentally. You act in ways you typically don't do. It wouldn't surprise me if he had depression. Unfortunately, that is still a stigma whenever mental health comes into play. Nothing ever gets done and almost always when it's too little, too late. While a different situation, this feels a lot like what happened with comedian Robin Williams. Top of their game and then they end their life. No one to help them or to even see a doctor.

Also unfortunate is the online bullies getting doxxed. Groups can get pissed, but fighting fire with fire was a very bad idea. The best way to fight back is to go after the people in charge of running those types of sites and create a huge stink. Some question if Near even passed away. There was a confirmation made by someone close him that it did happen. Some have suggested punishments for the future. That won't happen. I look at it as huge legal issues since anyone around the world can say anything and laws are different everywhere.

The best anyone could potentially do is to talk to a suicide helpline or speak to doctors. Maybe we can stop making mental health and depression so taboo. Let's make more people aware of this. Very unfortunate with what happened to Near. The best we can do is celebrate the efforts made to make emulation much better. A lot has changed since 2004 and if not for people like him, the scene would not have thrived.

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25 Years of Play

Tuesday the Third marked 25 years since the first PlayStation sold in Japan. It wouldn't be worldwide until the end of 1995 when it hit the States in September and later on in Europe. When you think about it, it is one of gaming's most consistent home consoles. The ability to have tons of support, sales, and companies behind it. You forget that Nintendo is one of the reasons why this exists.

The idea formed around the time the SNES was being made in Japan. Ken Kutaragi was instrumental in all this because he was interested in gaming. Ever think why the system had a good sound chip? Because of him. Plans were made to make an add-on capable of playing CD's and was unveiled in the early part of the 90s. But Nintendo began partnering with Philips to do stuff for their cd-I. It's a complicated story, but Nintendo still wanted Sony involved, but due to that partnership and Nintendo wanting full control of everything, Sony left and began working on PlayStation.

When you look at it, it strived for an audience that was more than kids. Sega had that idea with the Genesis at the start of the 90s, but Sony pushed that envelope further. But, it was able to get all audiences. Kids were able to play their Crash Bandicoot and Spyro, while adults could play Metal Gear Solid and Resident Evil. The hardware was easy to make games. Companies figured out how to use CD's properly compared to earlier CD systems. Memory cards became the norm. System reliability has been a notorious issues. But Sony keeps chugging.

Without Sony, you don't see gaming as it is today. They are not the main reason for how it is, but it paved the way for how we look at stuff. I've been around for every home console with the exception of the PS3 (which I'm trying to make up for lost time). Getting them a few years after they released. The brand is still viable for gamers. And when PS5 shows up, it's going to continue one of the strongest names in all of gaming.

YouTube Videos: Sep 13-19

Ten Years of Game Collecting

Before I begin, I would like to do a quick thanks. This year has been very strong for the blog, which has over ten thousand views and seems likely to reach 15 thousand by the end of the year. Now, let's end August with a quick story.

It wasn't until August of 2009 that I started to get more into older games. While I did enjoy playing PS2 and PSP, I would go back to the Genesis, SNES. Sometimes, the Game Boy Color. One day, I decided go to this local used game store that carried a decent amount of systems and games. And this was before game collecting became a big commodity to many. Please note that unlike most, I actually play my games.

For about 15 dollars I got five games. On the Genesis, I got Joe Montana Football, Evander Holyfield's "Real Deal" Boxing, and Jurassic Park. Later on, I did get complete versions in the box with manuals for the first two games, but I got a lot of enjoyment out of them. Jurassic Park was okay. On the SNES, I was starving for sports games and went with NHL 96. Now these days, I love a lot of the 16-bit NHL games, but this was the first one I played that wasn't the first one on Genesis. A lot of fun and a game to go to sleep to, especially the following spring in 2010.

The last one was for PlayStation and this was before the series became double digit prices. That was the original Crash Bandicoot. I had all the games as a kid, but scratched them badly before starting to care for the game cases and discs when my family got a PS2 in 2003. Now these days, I have all but the second game for that system, and all of them work. At the time, this was the only one I didn't beat and to go through it as a teenager and get 100 percent was very nice. To do something I couldn't do back then, which was one of my very first PlayStation games back in 1997-98. To get it before prices spiked on it, I will cherish my copy.

That wraps up my story. Over the last ten years, I have gotten many systems and games, though I have slowed down a little bit where I'm not constantly buying games 24/7. What were the games that got you into collecting?

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PlayStation Mini?

Plug and plays have been popular for a very long time. Even with system ones such as Atari Flashback and Sega Genesis Classic. Nintendo has thrown their hat in the last few years with their NES and SNES ones. Sony is the next to join in on what was announced with a PlayStation Classic. What is happening?

Sony knows the nostalgia fad is a huge deal now and is attempting their own take of it with their very first system, which will turn 24 in December. Speaking of which, it is set to come out on the third of that month(it's debut in Japan back in 1994) for a hundred dollars. Set with two controllers and 20 games, it is an opportunity and a risk they are willing to take. As far as 3D gaming goes, this particular generation is not easy for many to get back into primarily on graphics and maybe controls that weren't top notch.

The very few titles that got mentioned include Final Fantasy VII and Tekken 3, huge sellers for their time. I'm sure the rest will be announced sometime the end of this month or early October. They got some good choices right now, but how the rest pans out is up to them. It's a nice way to celebrate a phenomenal system that had a nice library.

This is a big chance. I do believe this will perform very well and keep the fad going for a while. It's always nice when there's some good competition, even with these Minis.

Here is stuff The Verge said about it.
https://www.theverge.com/2018/9/19/17877890/sony-playstation-classic-console-20-games-release-date-pricing

YouTube Videos Sep 7-13

Mortal Kombat Overview/Review

September of 1993 brought in huge hype for the port of Mortal Kombat to the home market. It was an institution in the arcades the year before and was more for its graphics and violence compared to Street Fighter II. With its release on the 13th known as Mortal Monday, it showed up on the SNES, Sega Genesis, Game Boy, and Game Gear. Within the next year, it was on the Sega Master System in Europe, DOS computers, Amiga, and the Sega CD. I'll have my thoughts on the SNES and Genesis versions.

All versions followed the same story as the arcade. The seven fighters all have their reasons for being in Shang Tsung's tournament. As far as intros, at least the computer versions retain the stuff the arcade had. Windows 3.1 and the Amiga were very capable of doing a lot more compared to home consoles.

With that in mind, graphics outside of the computer versions had to be toned down. If we're digging into the 16-bit ones, the SNES version was mostly accurate. A little toned, but it was there. Animations were very strong. The Genesis suffered from the color palette, but was decent on its own. Its animations were minimal. Audio, the computers and Sega CD version were in touch with the arcade, especially on computers. The SNES version was more accurate, but was very quiet and didn't have that oomph that the arcade had at times. On the Genesis, it was more lively and felt more action like. Everything except the Genesis handled sound effects and voices with strong efforts.

The emphasis for Mortal Kombat was on the blood and fatalities. It has the basic moves that most fighters had. You had to fight everyone including yourself, a few endurance matches and then the final bosses. With the SNES port, the controls were a little sluggish, but it wasn't unplayable. It took some time and once you got the hang of it, you could do some damage. Regarding the Genesis, it was a bit smoother despite the limited animations. There wasn't any lag or anything.

If I'm going to put a knock into those two ports, it's the very high difficulty. Even on easy, you will have problems. At least the SNES version allows for infinite continues. Of course, we can't talk about that one without mentioning the censorship. That was dumb on Nintendo's part.

If you're looking for a port of the original, it can go either way. The arcade version itself may still be on PS3 and 360 if you're looking for that.  Mortal Kombat has its place in both success and controversy. It wasn't a slouch back then, but may change depending on your tastes in fighting games and the series.

Genesis: 6.5 out of 10      SNES: 6.5 out of 10

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