Drop in your Atari mojo?

[Mclaneinc]

 

To quote Jazz guitarist legend, George Benson.

 

Never give up on a good thing
Remember what makes you happy [Whoa, whoa]

 

When I created the thread it was to see if I was being odd, turns out, no, I'm one of many, BUT there's also a huge number of people still loving the hobby and that brings a big smile to my face.

[Tickled_Pink]

I've barely touched my stuff for years, although I'm hoping my mojo'll come back soon. Only time I've touched them recently was to test them. Most of my computers are dead but hoping to start off a new YouTube channel this weekend that sees if a total noob can fix this stuff with limited tools and limited know-how.

[Mclaneinc]

Good luck with that.. Post a link when it starts please..Love all that stuff..

[MrFSL]

4 hours ago, Tickled_Pink said:

hoping to start off a new YouTube channel this weekend that sees if a total noob can fix this stuff with limited tools and limited know-how.

I would subscribe to that.... but I wonder what you mean by "limited tools" ---- a rock and a pointy stick? If so I would definitely subscribe ---- maybe, if your repairs were successful I'd even support you on Patreon.

 

[ClausB]

This forum rekindled my old hobby 14 years ago. A collecting binge started soon after but subsided after maybe 5 years. I visited some VCFMWs and even a VCFE. Then some old school hardware mods. Most recently I enjoyed (obsessively) porting A2-FS1, though that was done on modern hardware with modern tools. It's been up and down, side to side, I guess. But through it all I've enjoyed this forum. It's the first and last site I visit most every day.

 

[Tickled_Pink]

14 hours ago, MrFSL said:

I would subscribe to that.... but I wonder what you mean by "limited tools" ---- a rock and a pointy stick? If so I would definitely subscribe ---- maybe, if your repairs were successful I'd even support you on Patreon.

 

? Actually, that would be a fun side channel. ?

 

I was thinking the other week, while trying to fix a set of headphones and failing, that the videos you see on YouTube are by people with all the tools and skills they need. But what about ordinary mortals? You have people on YouTube who make great content and amazing projects but they've often got their own workshops. Not everyone has a workshop or a large amount of space to work in.

Luckily, I rarely throw anything away so have a lot of things that need work. Apart from the Ataris, I have my family's original 16K Sinclair Spectrum and a couple of ZX81s in bits. Plus a couple of 1050 drives (including my first one) that need fixing or renovating and a 1010 with a stuck button. Plus several phones and tablets. Oh ... and a Vectrex. Don't know if that's completely gone but I'm hoping it's an overvoltage problem caused by a faulty power board. If it is, and I can get it working then I might design a new case for it. I sold the back panel a couple of years ago thinking I'd just sell it as spares.

Bought one of those overhead camera arms from Amazon the other day. One that attached to the desk. Sturdy enough but can just about hold the weight of our Canon EOS 750D with its stock lens.

Limited tools just means nothing big and bulky. Something you might be able to use in the house. Like a small table saw. And nothing too expensive. For example, a couple of weeks ago I bought a vacuum pump solder sucker because my hand one was more than 25 years old and wasn't doing the job with the Xbox One PSU I was trying to fix. Couldn't even get the faulty capacitor out with it. Did it in a few seconds with the new tool. But that's about as expensive as I want any tools to go.

Edited May 21, 2022 by Tickled_Pink

[Keatah]

On 4/27/2022 at 5:59 AM, Mclaneinc said:

Has anyone in here had a time when you just are not touching your machines, there's no drive to play them, does it go?

[..]

Like I said, I have no wish to get rid of my gear and not fed up with stuff, just not interested in doing...Feels very weird..

Well. I certainly don't game as continuously as I did in the 70's and 80's. Nor as feverishly. But I still do. And I've set personal high-scores. And I do go in cycles. Sometimes I really really get into something - then forget about it - only to revisit it again some unspecified time later on. The hobby/activity has always been there in some form or another since the Pong and KIM-1 days. Apple II and Atari included.

 

As many of ya'll know.. I do emulation-only for classic stuff, minus Apple II and vintage PC. For those I do a mix of emulation and real hardware. Apple because of sentimentality/nostalgia. PC because of versatility and new shit, like 12th gen processors. And some sentimentality there too. Apple II and PC have repeatedly amazed me over and over again - in countless aspects.

 

I had patience in the halcyon days for playing around with the hardware at a soldering-iron and logic analyzer level. But as of the past 10'ish years (give or take) I'm all into software. Modern PC hardware is so capable I see little need to be tinkering there. At most I'll wire up a custom controller or cable or something. Have a nice workshop for repairs and such or making the occasional project.

More recently I have ZERO patience for recalcitrant vintage hardware. The continual fight against degradation can be depressing in and of itself. Costs time and money to look up replacement parts or purchase something on ebay to cannibalize from. Or do necessary things like recapping or socketing or conducting video mods. Once in a while is alright. Once in a while!

 

On 4/27/2022 at 10:46 AM, Mclaneinc said:

I should have made it a little more clear that be it emulation or real hardware, I'm just not touching, I just think it more strange that I ignore the actual hardware that I've invested time and money in to isn't appealing to me at this time. I just keep the emulators up to date so that if this is a phase I am all geared up still. Not a mood issue, I'm fine, just bored with gaming at the mo Something I never thought I'd have myself thinking that way..

I keep most all my emulators up to date. And archive some previous versions. Usually update them because of excitement for new features and added realism. The schedule is a little haphazard. I mean I don't always get the latest version zero day. Or I don't hear about a release till later. But I do keep up.

 

Just this year I added some shmups to MAME and went through a phase there. Last week I was into Planetary Defense 2012, and that was fun. Eventually I'll start on a Descent and Doom run again sometime soon. There's always something new around the corner. Archiving and preservation is a time consumer and can be quite tedious - sometimes it's fun - sometimes it's burnout material. But I've been doing it for years now. There could be times when I don't play anything at all for weeks. But instead read about the history behind it all. Or write short sci-fi stuff about the early technology, a pastime of mine more or less. Always something to rotate in to and out of with this hobby.

 

Emulators have kept this hobby alive and well and interesting. Their very nature of inherent reliability, versatility and convenience makes practical use (and clean up) far easier than shelves and piles and boxes of real vintage hardware. A HUGE plus for me. And the wife appreciates the elegance of it all. Without emulators I would be beyond frustrated and lamenting the old days.

 

[Mclaneinc]

 

I gave up on updating MAME about 2yrs ago, the level of pointless non working stuff just made it me filling up a HD for no actual benefit. As it stands it has enough of what I like to be fun in it's non updated state. I keep the emulators updated for the most, even one's I rarely touch like the Apple II, like you I hope for nice extra features that will rekindle my enjoyment. In a year or so I'll get an Amiga mini when they start hitting the 2nd hand market, in the meantime I'll use the superb Winuae. While I love real hardware I don't have a big flat, the bedroom is my mancave and I try and keep that as compressed as possible so me and my wife have some room. Filling the room with hardware just would not work and as we are private renters, should we have to move, I have to hump this stuff and that is getting pretty hard to do these days.

 

I'm so pleased to see how this place has energized people to enjoy their gear again (be it real or emulated) and it's nice to see that I'm not the only one who sometimes has a slump in their enthusiasm, life itself tends to be periods of up and down so it seems perfectly normal to have the same thing in your hobbies. Thanks to the replies in this thread, I'm starting to get the taste again, will I become a 7 till 3am gaming animal, nah, those days are behind me but if I can pick up a joystick and have a blast for however long, then that will be me pleased as punch. I've been worried I would get older and see all this as a 'young persons' thing, thankfully I'm not in that mood as yet. Long may I platform and shoot em up

 

And the same to all..

 

Paul..

[Peruchi]

This conversation about “mojo working” or not, dying hardware, health problems, emulation, etc. got me thinking about a project called BMC64, which brought the VICE emulator to run as a bare-metal application on the Raspberry pi 3 and zero (not the zero 2). This feels like the real deal, boot times are fast as there is no Linux under the hood to hog resources. You can almost be fooled into thinking you are using a real vintage computer! I wonder if there is a similar project being considered for the A8 platform, as it would be awesome!! 

[mozartpc27]

Good thread topic, mostly a Commodore guy but I have an 800XL.

 

@mimo, I am so sorry to hear about your health issues.  Different things can sap interest and make one re-prioritize, and I totally understand, but I add mine to the voices that have told you not to sell off your stuff until you have really thought it over.  I have sold and re-bought a TI-99/4A and PEB as well as a Commodore Plus/4; fortunately I didn't take too much of a bath but it was enough to make me think I won't sell for a loooonnnnggggg time.  If I ever get the itch it's right there waiting for me in the closet.

 

In general, I am in a phase of hardly playing around with my stuff.  I got divorced, a process that started last year and ended in February.  I now have my own house and I thought - wow, I can set up a nice big space for myself and play around whenever / as much as I want!  But it's been the opposite.  Between work, having my son half the week (I am trying to delay him getting hooked on video games as long as possible, so it doesn't become the only thing he knows how to do, as with so many kids these days), and, since December, having a new girlfriend, I don't have the time, and when I do have it, I don't have the desire really.  

 

But I assume some day it will come back as I settle in.  I won't cash out unless I have really gone multiple years I think without touching the stuff.  Easier to have than to re-acquire.

[Mclaneinc]

 

Thank you for the kind words re the thread topic..

 

Good move re your lad and keeping him away from the games, I don't think it's as bad as it used to be. I live next to a park, and mostly I see the youth out playing footy or basketball, but yes, when they do get addicted to it there's no let up. I recently was shown a video of a young lad who is live streaming himself playing a FPS, at one point the boys mother comes in and demands he stop playing as he clearly needs the toilet but the lad (who sounds special needs) refuses to stop, what follows is his mother screaming at him as he's now crapping himself but he refuses point blank even after his mother tries to wrestle the joyapd away from him...It's a harrowing listen. Be warned, if you go to YT and want to see it, there's swearing galore..Not one for the kids..

 

Wise move re keeping the gear, stick it in a corner until you either go back to it or you know it's times to sell it so someone else gives it some love. As I said in a older post, I never want to get to the mentality that gaming is for 'young people'. I still love the retro scene, it's just that I don't feel the want to play games as much as I did, it had got to where I wasn't playing at all but I'm back picking up the odd title and having a bash. Today I played the fan remake of Metroid, had a good 30 mins on it before my neck played up, but it was good fun..

 

Paul..

Edited May 22, 2022 by Mclaneinc

[TGB1718]

@Mclaneinc , think I've caught it too, although I'm still very active on this and another forum, I've not "played"

with my real hardware for a few weeks now, hardly loaded Altirra and I'm normally an avid World of Warcraft player,

but I've only loaded it once in about 3 weeks now, and then only for 1/2 hour ?

 

Hopefully it's just a short term thing.

[+Stephen]

My mojo has luckily been running at a very high level for some time.  Enjoying the hell out of hardware upgrades.  I was very fortunate the last 10+ years to help test prototypes for many pieces of hardware.  Incognito, 1088XEL, 1088XLD, 576NUC.  I've finally started not only coding for VBXE, but doing so using MADS (no more BASIC).  I've definitely had periods where I was away and I know I will again.  I've never spent time away from this forum since 2001 (some may say good, some may not ).

[oracle_jedi]

For me its become a seasonal thing.

 

During the winter months the soldering iron is always out, and I work through my list of projects, upgrades and fixes.   Each project is followed by lots and lots of testing of all of the new releases of the last 12 months, plus all of my favourites, and sometimes a round or two of the HSC.   With all of the amazing conversions and ports, each Fall is a bit like Christmas 84 all over again, with new games to explore.  Although this past winter was dominated by repairs to the Falcons and the PC1 ISA project, getting to explore the Fujinet cart for the first time, and play Prince of Persia on the 8bit was an amazing experience.

 

During the summer I don't have the time for retro projects.  The time is better spent outdoors.   Usually one of the Ataris is still out on the bench so gets occasional use during dull conference calls when the camera doesn't need to be on.  "That man is playing Galaga! Thought we wouldn't notice. But we did.”  Well it would be Galaga if such existed for the A8, but in the meantime....

 

[Mrarkus]

Great topic! I am guilty of this myself, although I share my retro hobby time with motorcycle riding, so it goes in waves, and a lot depends on the weather

 

These days I find myself enjoying fixing and/or upgrading old machines. I think I spend most of my time with a soldering iron. The days of intense coding sessions are over, at least for now, and I've ventured out to other systems, like the TRS-80 Model I-4 line, MSX, and some older Apple II stuff. Amazing what the hobby market has created for these old computers, and armed with a 3D printer, there is no limit to what you can do with them!

[Chris+++]

 

I go through intense waves of game fixation as well, although a day hardly ever goes by when I don't play something, whether it's to feed my light addiction to Klax or explore one of the myriad fan-made maps in Doom II.

 

But yeah, like most of you, I have more than one strong interest, so I'll go through major phases involving different things. It's only natural, I think. Do you guys have stuff that you do only once every few years, but you get really into it, because it's been long enough to sort of "forget" its coolness? Every four or five years, I'll find myself in the mood to just sit on the floor and check out all of my Marvel comics from the '70s and '80s. My girlfriend just kind of looks at me sideways, like, "Well, at least he's having fun."

 

The interesting thing is that with no arrested development in sight, I enjoy it at least as much at 50 as I did as a kid. What can I say...maybe I never quite lost touch with that youngster, as I've never delineated my life with a wife-and-kids chapter, so it's all been one long continuum.

 

Anyway, after many months of, say, obsessively writing and recording songs, I'll start to miss intensive game-playing again and the cycle will start over. It's funny -- I've never looked at all of that with such objectivity before reading through the newer posts in this thread.

 

One factor is that I never see game-playing as a waste of time, or even a mere time-filler during periods when I "could be" or "should be" doing something else. Life is for enjoying in the moment, and I find that the quality of life increases when I'm simply having a great time.

 

Being a classic-game fanatic, it's easy to do that, via what the editors of the first issue of EG called the noble art of electronic gamesmanship.

 

 

[Mclaneinc]

Ha ha...We could be related Chris, I still have that child / young mentality and I am a comics head but my years also include the late 60's. I was devastated to learn of the death of George Perez and the legend that is Neal Adams, all in the space of a week or two just the other day. As for gaming and the enjoyment of it, I've always been a player and a tinkerer, I find it as much fun to finish Spelunker as I do to hacking a game to do what I want it to. I find that if I don't miss a game then I do miss hacking and that cycle swaps around.

 

I think for me and my wife it's been this bloody pandemic, it's left us with long COVID and it saps the life out of you, I have several simple soldering projects that I keep putting off as I just can't gather the enthusiasm to do them, yet one is to replace the flyback transformer in my monitor which I really need to do as the LCD screen I'm using is just not great. So it's not just gaming I'm flaky about, it's life in general. I'm still very happy and I do play but it's like breaking through a wall of 'do it later when you feel better', sadly that wall never goes, so we have to punch through it. Don't get me wrong, my life is infinitely better than most of the planet, especially at the moment, compared to a vast many, I'm very alright.

 

So there you have it, I'll get back to tinkering and looking through my retro catalogue of real and emulated stuff and maybe something will catch my eye, the important thing here is that I'm still looking, for me that says I still see all this stuff as fun.

[Leonard Smith]

My interest usually ebbs and flows, depending on my job and other interests.  I'm also in a downsizing phase, so I'm finding great pleasure in divesting of my various collection pieces.  Such a liberating feeling and sets me up for a more care free life later on.

I tend to increase focus in the winter months.  Lately I've had very little Atari mojo as the weather changes.

[Keatah]

Yes. Ebbing and flowing is as good a description as any. I do that on multiple levels, when into the hobby in general I gain and lose interest in various platforms and genres. So far I've stuck with Apple II and PC (w/emulators) as my main physical platforms, for decades now. With a side interest in TRS-80 Pocket Computers and TI-59. If I want to explore other regions of the 8 & 16 bit console/computer/arcade ecologies, it'll be through emulation. Totally past past the point of acquiring and fixing up hardware I may not keep for the long term - because the handiness of emulators is too easy to ignore.

 

Apple II is the exception here because I grew up with it from early gradeschool times. It doesn't have to worry about being left for the dustcart. It may see some downsizing/rightsizing in some areas, expansion in others. A bit of rebalancing or filling in the gaps with something I wanted as a kid but couldn't afford. Or just simply gotten overlooked or missed-out on.

 

Emulation makes for a carefree life of videogaming/computing for me in a simple way. I can start and stop working with it anytime anyplace. The absolute worst I need to do to "clean up" is tidy the wiring for a couple of SFF PCs and dust them out.

 

And when actually playing the stuff think of adjusting CRTs and cleaning contacts and other tedious maintenance. Naw! I did enough of that years ago! I'd rather be opening and closing files. Tweaking some sliders in MAME, to get the desired distortion or NTSC imperfections. Or be eliminating them. Make adjustments, check it out, repeat.. till classic look achieved. That kind of thing. That kind of thing transcends playing with plastic tuner tweakers and twisting pots and coils and stuff.

Edited May 25, 2022 by Keatah

[ClausB]

8 minutes ago, Keatah said:

and TI-59

Have you found a forum or a resource community for the TI programmable calculators?

[Keatah]

I haven’t looked in recent times.

[rocketfan]

The posts above sound like me (not just because I was a major Marvel Comics geek in the late 70's - Jack Kirby art always dazzled me).  Summer I get into cycling, and retro-gaming takes a back seat.  For the OP, man I say take a break and get into something else for a while.  Take up hiking or woodworking or bird watching, whatever (just not drinking - LOL).  As far as gaming specifically, I have gone through whole periods of my life into different things.  Maybe a lot of people went through similar phases?  For me:

 

80's - Atari 8bit games on my Atari 400, plus hung out at arcades (a lot).

90's - Mainly PC gaming.   Graphical adventures - played through Loom, Myst, etc. etc..  Plus lots of doom and so on.

2000's - Got into MAME in a big way and the earliest Plug N. Plays, built my own MAME cabinet.

2010's - With kids I sort of stopped gaming completely for like a decade, they had Wii and I played a little, but I was working a ton and just didn't care too much.  The MAME cab was also mostly gathering dust for 10 years.  I spent a lot of time reading instead.  ?

 

Starting in 2019 or so I saw some of the atGames flashback type products and long story short they rekindled my interest in retro gaming.  They ultimately also helped to revive my interest in emulation and also Atari 8bit games.  So, I guess that is the full circle.  Probably don't have 40 years more for another circle, so maybe I'll stick to Atari now.  ?

 

On 4/29/2022 at 9:26 PM, suspicious_milk said:

I want an A8 mini console.

Yeah, me too!  I was looking for a topic on that, which led me here.  The closest thing I know of is that you can run Atari 8bit games on the atGames Atari flashback 9/X if you are willing to install a firmware mod.  I worked on that with some others as part of my Covid lockdown project.   ?   I still want a real A8 mini as well - someday.

 

 

[Keatah]

46 minutes ago, rocketfan said:

 

80's - Atari 8bit games on my Atari 400, plus hung out at arcades (a lot).

90's - Mainly PC gaming.   Graphical adventures - played through Loom, Myst, etc. etc..  Plus lots of doom and so on.

2000's - Got into MAME in a big way and the earliest Plug N. Plays, built my own MAME cabinet.

2010's - With kids I sort of stopped gaming completely for like a decade, they had Wii and I played a little, but I was working a ton and just didn't care too much.  The MAME cab was also mostly gathering dust for 10 years.  I spent a lot of time reading instead.  ?

 

Starting in 2019 or so I saw some of the atGames flashback type products and long story short they rekindled my interest in retro gaming.  They ultimately also helped to revive my interest in emulation and also Atari 8bit games.  So, I guess that is the full circle.  Probably don't have 40 years more for another circle, so maybe I'll stick to Atari now.  ?

One does not simply revive an interest in emulation. There is none to revive. Once you start doing it you never stop. Never go back. There is only ebb & flow.

 

Butt-hh.. Sounds like a typical progression in this hobby. Get introduced, do the real thing, get distracted and busy with real life, slow down, and get back into it with a much more leisurely pace. Typically via emulation so as not haffta dick'round with recalcitrant hardware. Emulation is perfect here because of reliability, versatility, and convenience. And class and elegance if you do a nice setup.

 

Pretty sure emulation (for 40+'ers) is the best choice for classic arcading. You don't have to sit in traffic for 2 hours, especially in the dead of winter, or on a beautiful sunny Sunday. You don't have to feel bad about wasting time. It's far more compatible with family life.

 

I do think though MAME cabs were an over the top attempt at reliving the fad. A gusto full-on effort to relive the 80's arcade. You see - a MAME cab by itself is an incomplete experience without the Oxygen VOC smell of a fresh arcade. The 80's rock music is missing, as is the subdued lighting, dark carpets, and aura of discovery of new games.. the anticipation of socialization with the opposite sex. The noise, the hi-score competition, the rationing of quarters. The hollow booming sound of attract mode. The activities that came before and after an arcade visit. The lead-in and lead-out stuff. The Mall experience. The cab is just but once piece of all that.

 

And there's many subtle "technical" conflicts in emulator cabs:

 

1- Stand-up full-size. As you get older you're not interested in stand-up game playing for hours on end. You'll at least want a barstool - which wasn't really a thing in the casual arcade.

 

2- The control scheme. Each game is different. Some have track-balls, others joysticks, tank sticks, spinners, or multiple button arrays. A single cab is not easily going to incorporate all that.

 

3- CRT purity. Some games just don't want to play on LCD. And there's no arguing about it with them. Even the best tweaked shaders won't do here.

 

4- Always a front end to get in the way. Have to have a menuing system to select between games.

 

So I tend to say a small simple dedicated SFF PC - here you only need a monitor, the 5x5" PC box, and whatever controller of your choice. It doesn't pretend to be something it's not. But yet it's a powerhouse of vintage gaming - capable of playing Pong and old VCS titles all the way to today's ridiculous AAA games. It'll integrate into your lifestyle we (you) worked so hard to achieve.

 

Format. It's all about format. The upright cab is fine for a professional amusement establishment constructed for commerce and entertainment. But it isn't fine for home use. I mean you can do it. Sure. But they're so bulkyass and unreliable. Creaky, rickety, danky things 2BSHUR. They don't fit decor (unless you're building an arcade in your basement), and even then you've got maybe 15 games consuming an average of 3000 square ft. And when the novelty wears off you're gonna be left with 8,000 lbs of sagging particle board ready for the garbage truck.

 

Not so with an emulation PC. When your interest goes on hiatus you can tuck it under the bed away from the monsters and come back to it anytime. By presenting the exact games you knew as a kid in this stupid-easy format, you're pretty much assured to have mental space to enjoy the nostalgia and those good times.

 

See.. Most all of us nowadays have comfychairs/recliners/gamerdesks, 60" TV sets, our own "I'm a big-man now" room, with configurable lighting, significant others to serve us meals at the snap of a finger, and all other supporting accoutrements. To have the best classic gaming experience, just insert SFF PC with emulators! Get in the Groove!

[WizWor]

1 hour ago, Keatah said:

I do think though MAME cabs were an over the top attempt at reliving the fad. A gusto full-on effort to relive the 80's arcade. You see - a MAME cab by itself is an incomplete experience without the Oxygen VOC smell of a fresh arcade. The 80's rock music is missing, as is the subdued lighting, dark carpets, and aura of discovery of new games.. the anticipation of socialization with the opposite sex. The noise, the hi-score competition, the rationing of quarters. The hollow booming sound of attract mode. The activities that came before and after an arcade visit. The lead-in and lead-out stuff. The Mall experience. The cab is just but once piece of all that.

 

I started playing video games in an arcade.  For me, the Atari computers (including the VCS) were a way to simulate the arcade experience at home.  A couple years ago, I bought a Legends Ultimate Arcade.  I no longer simulate the arcade experience at home.  I now HAVE the arcade experience at home.

 

And there's many subtle "technical" conflicts in emulator cabs:

 

1- Stand-up full-size. As you get older you're not interested in stand-up game playing for hours on end. You'll at least want a barstool - which wasn't really a thing in the casual arcade.

The LUA is close to full size and works fine standing up or sitting on a bar stool.

1 hour ago, Keatah said:

2- The control scheme. Each game is different. Some have track-balls, others joysticks, tank sticks, spinners, or multiple button arrays. A single cab is not easily going to incorporate all that.

 

The LUA has joysticks, buttons -- lots of buttons -- and a track ball plus pinball controls.  Much higher quality than anything released for the A8.

 

1 hour ago, Keatah said:

3- CRT purity. Some games just don't want to play on LCD. And there's no arguing about it with them. Even the best tweaked shaders won't do here.

 

Except for the light gun issues, I can't see this.

 

1 hour ago, Keatah said:

4- Always a front end to get in the way. Have to have a menuing system to select between games.

 

Most of my Atari flippies have a menu system.  Never got in the way.  On the LUA, the UI is simply a list of games.  Not really in the way.

 

1 hour ago, Keatah said:

So I tend to say a small simple dedicated SFF PC - here you only need a monitor, the 5x5" PC box, and whatever controller of your choice. It doesn't pretend to be something it's not. But yet it's a powerhouse of vintage gaming - capable of playing Pong and old VCS titles all the way to today's ridiculous AAA games. It'll integrate into your lifestyle we (you) worked so hard to achieve.

 

So, I tend to have a standalone arcade machine in the corner of my man cave.  "Alexa, turn on arcade."  And I am playing arcade games.  Not console versions of arcade games.  Real arcade games.  Not part of a lifestyle.  Just the greatest toy ever made.

 

1 hour ago, Keatah said:

Format. It's all about format. The upright cab is fine for a professional amusement establishment constructed for commerce and entertainment. But it isn't fine for home use. I mean you can do it. Sure. But they're so bulkyass and unreliable. Creaky, rickety, danky things 2BSHUR. They don't fit decor (unless you're building an arcade in your basement), and even then you've got maybe 15 games consuming an average of 3000 square ft. And when the novelty wears off you're gonna be left with 8,000 lbs of sagging particle board ready for the garbage truck.

 

The LUA comes with 350 games and is extensible.  The cabinet is right at home in a living room or man cave.  It stands 66 inches tall, 28.5 inches wide and 21 inches deep and weighs less than 100 pounds.  About 7000 games occupying two square feet.  When the novelty wears off, you still have an awesome arcade cabinet.  If your cabinet is sagging particle board, you should learn to take better care of your toys.

 

1 hour ago, Keatah said:

Not so with an emulation PC. When your interest goes on hiatus you can tuck it under the bed away from the monsters and come back to it anytime. By presenting the exact games you knew as a kid in this stupid-easy format, you're pretty much assured to have mental space to enjoy the nostalgia and those good times.

 

See.. Most all of us nowadays have comfychairs/recliners/gamerdesks, 60" TV sets, our own "I'm a big-man now" room, with configurable lighting, significant others to serve us meals at the snap of a finger, and all other supporting accoutrements. To have the best classic gaming experience, just insert SFF PC with emulators! Get in the Groove!

 

The nice thing about the LUA is that it does not require much interest.  When you feel like playing Pac Man, simply power on the machine, select the game, and play.  No need to maintain a computer, no 'good enough' USB controllers, and no emulation.  While I have a 75" television in my bedroom, it's not a CRT.  By presenting the exact games I played in an Arcade and emulated on a console, the LUA provides the best possible gaming experience for less than $500.

 

[Keatah]

Stock, shopped, and scraped.

 

But at least it isn't as bad as the abhorrent abominations on this page.

http://www.wickedretarded.com/~crapmame/

(note the NEXT>> button doesn't work on all pages, so you will need to manually change the url, it currently goes to 31.)