emulation or the real thing ?

[Deja-Q]

I use the emulator on my smartphone to shorten the waiting time e.g. when visiting the doc.

Or to have a preview of games I don't own.

 

In all other cases I only use "the real Thing"!

 

Like Marco(2) said... Emulators are a little bit like an inflatable doll. Some people may have fun with it but it's not comparably with the "reality"

[VectorGamer]

Real thing

 

Emulation ruins the experience

[20ohm20]

Emulation ruins the experience

 

I agree with this. Playing on real/original hardware is much more enjoyable.

[Schizophretard]

After 10 Years...!

 

Now...

 

1. CRT TV's are dying and hard to find...

2. Real Atari connected to LCD TV looks very bad...

3. Atari Emulation with CRT simulation (Stella, Mess & HLSL) looks very nice...

 

So after 10 years do you still think it's better to play on the original Atari ?

 

OR running an emulation with some CRT simulation is better than real Atari connected to the LCD TV ?

 

What do you think ?

 

They must be dying very slow because one of my four functioning CRT's is from 1978(It's older than me!). I have one from the 70's, one from the 80's, one from the 90's, and one from the 00's. They all work. I bet they will outlive my LCD.

 

I don't think they are hard to find. I can't find them brand new obviously, but I could find at least 20 of them at thrift stores and flea markets before I could find an Atari. Then there are the ones on Craigslist, ebay, and the ones I see in the trash every week. I could cheaply and quickly fill up a shed full of them if I wanted to(hmm... That might be a profitable investment for the future?). They will become more rare, but I'm confident that I won't be able to find a functioning Atari before I won't be able to find a functioning CRT. Even if I couldn't find a functioning one, I could find someone to fix it. There are people that collect VHS, Betamax, 8-tracks, vinyl, cassette tapes, antique radios,.... So there will be a community of CRT collectors/hobbyists that I can buy them from and/or get them fixed. Also, there is the possibility that brand new ones will be made in the future. I'm not saying they will have a comeback but released in a similar fashion to those vinyl/cassette tape/CD/radio combos that look like old fashion radios.

 

I agree that Atari looks horrible on LCD's, but flat panel TV's are new and the technology is advancing every year. By the time CRT's aren't an option(if that happens), Atari may look beautiful on them.

 

I haven't seen Atari emulation with CRT simulation yet but why emulate an Atari I already have and simulate CRT's I already own? All you need is an Atari, controllers, Harmony Cart, and a CRT to play Atari the way the gods intended. The cyborgs of the 22nd century can worry about emulations and simulations.

[mtshark7]

I’d have to agree with Schizophretard about combining emulation and the real thing by using an actual Atari 2600 and a harmony cart with all the roms dumped onto it…even tho I have yet to pick up a harmony cart from what everyone says on here it’s a great investment.

 

I must also disagree with it looking horrible on LCD TV. I have 32” in my room and I think the picture looks excellent. It looks even more impressive on a 65” Plasma tho. I play both my 3-modded Atari 2600 and a random regular direct connect coax one.

[Schizophretard]

I’d have to agree with Schizophretard about combining emulation and the real thing by using an actual Atari 2600 and a harmony cart with all the roms dumped onto it…even tho I have yet to pick up a harmony cart from what everyone says on here it’s a great investment.

 

I must also disagree with it looking horrible on LCD TV. I have 32” in my room and I think the picture looks excellent. It looks even more impressive on a 65” Plasma tho. I play both my 3-modded Atari 2600 and a random regular direct connect coax one.

 

In a way the Harmony Cart is an emulator because it is emulating carts and the Supercharger but in a way it isn't because it is sending the exact same games into the Atari. It is a great investment and you will love it.

 

Your LCD and Plasma must not have the blocky mess look that my LCD does but I'm skeptical that it would look as good as a CRT. If they could look as good as a CRT then I don't see why it would be necessary to have CRT simulation for an emulator when an LCD monitor should already have the ability to look as good as a CRT. Someone must have created a CRT simulator to try to add to what the LCD monitor is lacking and a LCD TV is basically a big LCD monitor. In short, screen shot or it didn't happen.

[PsychoKittyNet]

CRTs aren't hard to find, bought mine last year for 15 bucks, so legit hardware for me. Might get me a harmony cart though to play those rare titles.

[Keatah]

I'm a huge fan of emulation! Emulation does indeed capture the essence of the original code. Emulation will most likely be the only way these games survive in the future. Eventually the original hardware will break and no longer be available. It may go through some hand-downs and garage and estate sales. Eventually it will end up in the land fill. And, someone will need to build new CRT's and consoles, as well as joysticks and switches and chips - things like that. Emulation has a much better chance of being around 50 years from now than the original hardware. I also like the ease and convenience that emulation provides; and especially the reliability. The pervasiveness of a modern PC is also a key here.

 

The spooky part is that emulation somehow captures the ghost of the machine and preserves it. Ethereal! The game is neither here nor there, yet it runs. Like a reanimated almost-dead person after a heart attack, the personality is different, yet the same. Some brain damage, but not a lot. A zombie. The spirit is captured by strange forces inside "alien" hardware.

[disjaukifa]

If I have a choice, I will alway prefer real hardware to emulation, but emulation does have its place and can work very well, but nothing can replace hooking up an old Atari and playing it. I have to say I've been playing Berzerk on my 32 Sony Bravia, and it looks fantastic, I really haven't noticed a different between playing on my LCD TV and my CRT TV.

 

-Disjaukifa

[Schizophretard]

I'm a huge fan of emulation! Emulation does indeed capture the essence of the original code. Emulation will most likely be the only way these games survive in the future. Eventually the original hardware will break and no longer be available. It may go through some hand-downs and garage and estate sales. Eventually it will end up in the land fill. And, someone will need to build new CRT's and consoles, as well as joysticks and switches and chips - things like that. Emulation has a much better chance of being around 50 years from now than the original hardware. I also like the ease and convenience that emulation provides; and especially the reliability. The pervasiveness of a modern PC is also a key here.

 

The spooky part is that emulation somehow captures the ghost of the machine and preserves it. Ethereal! The game is neither here nor there, yet it runs. Like a reanimated almost-dead person after a heart attack, the personality is different, yet the same. Some brain damage, but not a lot. A zombie. The spirit is captured by strange forces inside "alien" hardware.

 

Well, in 50 years when I'm 80 I'll use emulators.

[Deteacher]

Of course, nothing beats (or will ever beat) playing on real hardware with real carts, but playing in emulation offers the luxury of convenience. It's nice to know that if I'm at work, or on vacation and I need a little break, or get the urge, I can fire up Stella and play some Atari. That being said, if you're going to play on an emulator, I feel it's imperative that you have a Stelladaptor and the controller of choice. Playing Kaboom with the trackpad/mouse is pretty ugly, IMO.

[Miss 2600]

I was wondering why no one in the early posts mentioned Harmony...then I saw the dates!

 

I just got a Harmony cartridge not long ago, and I'm hooked. I can play so many more games along with hacks and homebrews I wouldn't have been able to before right on my Heavy Sixer! It doesn't seem like emulation to me. I just downloaded Cosmic Bowling and am looking forward to checking it out.

[littleman jack]

I like to play on the real 2600, with a single cartridge. I do like emulation for trying homebrews in development though. But once a game is released, I'd rather have a cart and play it on a 2600.

[akator]

My collection isn't as big as it used to be, but all of it still won't fit into my game room. Things about the original hardware that I do not enjoy:

 

- the space requirements

- the monetary investment

- having things break

- repairing electronics

 

For these reasons, I still like emulation.

 

I would enjoy owning original hardware more if I could get things repaired without being forced to do it myself. I dislike the entire process of repairing electronics, and wish I could still find someone reliable and affordable to do the work. Unfortunately, those days are past. Parts and labor are too expensive, so unless I do it myself it isn't going to get done, and because I don't like doing electronics repair, owning and using classic hardware is becoming far less enjoyable for me.

[israelg]

Thanks for your answers...

 

Do you play emulated Atari more on pc or on mobile device?

 

I.G

[Miss 2600]

If Harmony is considered emulation, then I play mostly on my Heavy Sixer. I played on my computer once in a while for the HSC if I didn't have the featured game before I got the Harmony cart. I won't be playing on the computer anymore except for A Slow Year, which isn't available for download.

[20ohm20]

You haven't lived until you've played an Atari 2600 on a 13" black and white Goldstar T.V. from 1979 with audio that cuts in and out randomly.

[Keatah]

Harmony is not emulation. It's as much emulation as is the supercharger..

[Lord Helmet]

Nothing but emulation on the Wii for me at this point. No cords. No carts. No fuzzy picture. Pure bliss.

[chuckwalla]

You haven't lived until you've played an Atari 2600 on a 13" black and white Goldstar T.V. from 1979 with audio that cuts in and out randomly.

 

Better than what I had when I got my VIC-20. A slighlty burned-out, small, early 1970's b&w Heathkit tv (built by my Father) with regions of burn-in resigned in the corner of the spare room upstairs, but playing my first game - Scramble - on it made me feel like I was on top of the world!

 

Back to the question at hand, though.

It's gotta be the real hardware with the exception of the Commodore 64 (i'm never returning to the days of cassettes, floppy disks, disk drive alignment issues, or long loading times).

 

This past week I lucked out and bought a 13" Sony Wega Stereo tv in mint shape for $10 on Craigslist and the picture and sound on this baby outdo my other Sony's --- 2600 Pitfall Harry, ColecoVision Donkey Kong and Mario, and 7800 Joust never looked prettier!

[+TwentySixHundred]

Hi all ,just signed up and stumbled along this great site full of old school fans like myself ,always been into 2600+Classic gaming ever since a young lad. I like all types of hardware/software as i think they all have a place in the history of gaming/computing technology. Just thought i would quickly introduce myself before jumping into topics ,now i will get back to the subject.

 

Personally i think both emulation and the real deal have their place as there is many advantages i like about emulation. As i have my PC connected to my LCD TV i do find emulation alot better at times ,such things as aspect ratio,stereo/mono sound,cart change,screen capture and "GFX" make a nice transition to the LCD TV. To me Stella does wonders with this compared to other emulators like snes9x,gens ect ect. However with that been said i also think emulators for all classic gaming is alot better for transition to a LCD or Plasma type TV's. Reason i say this is mainly because i am picky when it comes to aspect ratio's ,has to be in sync for me to enjoy. I will also add that they help save the wear and tear of the real deal for later use.

 

On the other side of the fence i think it is hard to beat any old system on an old CRT TV as that is what really brings back the memories of them golden days. This is very fun with mates around a few beer/snacks and some good old space invaders ect. It is no where near as good fun playing emulation style with old friends.

 

Personally i have both for the reasons i had listed and use both for different occasions ,online 2 player battles would be a nice feature on Stella if its possible. Anyway hope my comment was not too long i could just jabber on all day so will finish up on that note. Cheers. TT2600.

[Schizophretard]

Welcome. I agree that 2 player online battles(make that 4 player. WARLORDS!) would be cool.

[Amstari]

A real Atari 2600 for me! Connected to a big CRT TV.

 

If I own the console I use the original hardware. However I don't own every console so I use emulation sometimes, using emulators on either the Dreamcast or Wii.

 

I've got emulators on my Android phone but I don't like the touch screen controls so I modified a ZeeMote Bluetooth controller and put it inside an old PSX controller.

 

 

So if emulation is like masturbation maybe I shouldn't do it on the bus

[Keatah]

The last games of Atari VCS I played that involved real hardware was Moon Patrol on my gramma's big old zenith console, a monster of a 25-incher. You know, the ones that had a crescent shape to them.

 

This tv was starting to have problems with arc'ing potentiometers in the RGB gain control circuit. Evey now and then we'd have to kick it hard with clod hoppers or go as far as hitting it with a hammer. But to be honest the clod hoppers worked better because they imparted a heavy basso-profoundo thump that often temporarily reconnected the cracked solder joints. We never did fix this set, though it would have been a simple thing.

 

I've always been deathly afraid of CRT's since my dad shot out our Motorola with his 12GA..

It was late at night and he was in one of those teenage drunken stupors. Well, the lights went out because the shot-up tv shorted out the mains something nasty.

[Schizophretard]

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