Proposal: Retro Computing
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4 Answers
Don't see any reason why it shouldn't be for certain types of questions. I'd argue that questions about particular games and how to beat them etc. do not fit.
Questions about developing new software for old consoles, and repairing or modding them for modern AV would be a good fit.
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2I agree about "how to beat them" but I wouldn't discard "particular games", especially with their peculiaities. I'd say e.g. "How to replace the battery in my Legend of Zelda cartridge" should be on-topic. (these weren't meant to be replaceable, so it requires quite a bit of tinkering).– SF.Feb 4, 2016 at 8:55
May I suggest a guideline to the effect that we stay mostly on technological topics rather than gaming? For instance, I'd be interested to hear about Atari 2600 programming, but not about "How do I solve E.T.?"
Wish I had my answer to this from the last Retrocomputing proposal. But basically, yes, all retrocomputing hardware and software should be allowed.
Many of the consoles shared hardware components with contemporary computers.
Some games were different on different platforms. For instance, the folks over at the Arqade community might not know this about Ultima I: "The original (non-remake) Apple II version uses an undocumented 6502 opcode that makes it impossible to hit the alien ships to become a Space Ace when using a 65C02. (The fix is in file "FGT3". Change the bytes at 74D1 to 46 43 45 43.)"
I say yes, if only because of the MAME/MESS connection. Resurrecting or emulating old consoles uses very similar techniques to resurrecting genera purpose computers, so as long as this aspect of the topic is respected I think we are good.
Not to mention that managing to play a game on any emulator, or loading a game onto some old tech, is often a really good soak test. One of the first things I load on an old computer is WUMPUS.
