GRcade

Those boxes are in awesome condition Andy, would love to have a SNES collection in such good condition. One day perhaps!

I've been working on modernising my Retro setup lately, as much as CRT's give a much nicer picture they're an absolute pain for taking up space.

I've ended up with an OSSC (Open Source Scan Converter) which line doubles the image (can do up to 5x but my TV/Monitor don't seem to like those modes), can add artificial scan lines and doesn't add any lag.

Really impressed with it so far even if I can't appreciate all the features right now, playing a SNES game through it on my monitor it creates an image comparable to the SNES Mini but of course with the benefit of original hardware (and being across all devices).

Unfortunately my NES/N64 weren't compatible with it because they don't output RGB so I've had both modded to add RGB support and they look brilliant. The N64 RGB mod adds 'deblur' as well and I don't think I've ever seen my N64 look so clear and colourful.

It wasn't cheap, buying a big old CRT is definitely the more affordable option for retro gaming but being able to run all my systems through one monitor and them look and play great is a big plus. Would definitely recommend all three highly if any of you have ever thought of them.

I still really enjoy my tiny PVM alongside the 37" HDTV for anything GC/PS2 onward (I have an Xbox but never play it, and the PS3 is backwards compatible so that means all PS1/2/3 game in HDMI). I actually play GC games on the Wii over component however and they look great. I use the GC for GameBoy player on the PVM so it's a bit like a "giant" GameBoy screen (only 9" though). I'm very happy with it. The thing is deep but it uses up pretty much no space and is only a bit deeper than where I place my TV against the wall along with the fullsize speakers. That cost £42 on eBay - the digital stuff all sounds really expensive as well as requiring fancy mods and cables. The nice thing about CRT is gooseberry fool just works and it's 2-3x better than consumer sets anyway, a small size keeps things really sharp. Almost 1:1 with the HDTV so 240p versus 1080p (about or 1:4 total screen area with similar pixels).

Green Gecko wrote:...I have an Xbox but never play it...

I like the original Xbox . Buy, yeah, I haven't played on it for a while now, either; my "gaming space" is fairly small and I have to pick and choose what systems to setup. One day the mighty Xbox will make a glorious return to action .

The main problem is it's modded so I have no incentive to collect any games as I could just download them. Pretty much the only one I'd want to play (Burnout 3) we have on PS2/3 too so.. that's better image quality, even if I'm convinced the XB version is definitive thanks to triggers, higher resolution and better framerate.

Strangers Wrath and other oddworld games are on PC.. Halo.. I never really got into it.

Green Gecko wrote:I still really enjoy my tiny PVM alongside the 37" HDTV for anything GC/PS2 onward (I have an Xbox but never play it, and the PS3 is backwards compatible so that means all PS1/2/3 game in HDMI). I actually play GC games on the Wii over component however and they look great. I use the GC for GameBoy player on the PVM so it's a bit like a "giant" GameBoy screen (only 9" though). I'm very happy with it. The thing is deep but it uses up pretty much no space and is only a bit deeper than where I place my TV against the wall along with the fullsize speakers. That cost £42 on eBay - the digital stuff all sounds really expensive as well as requiring fancy mods and cables. The nice thing about CRT is gooseberry fool just works and it's 2-3x better than consumer sets anyway, a small size keeps things really sharp. Almost 1:1 with the HDTV so 240p versus 1080p (about or 1:4 total screen area with similar pixels).

There's definitely a lot to be said about the convenience of CRT's, I've been running an old 21 inch Trinitron CRT for a while and stuff looks nice whilst obviously having the benefit of being plug and play. I'd love a PVM but they seem to be pretty pricey these days in decent condition.

Unfortunately the weight/depth of most CRT's with decent size screens means it's near impossible for me to implement one into my new set up so going the digital route has been a little forced really, once the cabling is set up it's simply SCART (from an automatic switcher) into the OSSC and then HDMI out to the TV so it's not too bad from that point of view.

Still no solution for Lightgun games though

Sounds like a neat solution, my set up is hardly feng shui. You need to know how to look out for art students selling theirs after the degree shows in May/June, that's how I got mine!

Just picked up Mario Galaxy in good condition for £3.33 which I'm pretty happy with.

Green Gecko wrote:Just picked up Mario Galaxy in good condition for £3.33 which I'm pretty happy with.

Sigh, I wish the retro games I bought were that cheap...

Andy, any high quality pics of your recent pickups?

Drumstick wrote:Andy, any high quality pics of your recent pickups?

See the previous page of this thread for a pic. of R-Type 3 and Axelay.

Cybernator arrived today, and is in just as good condition

Facebook Marketplace is worth a look because it being Facebook you have all the lowest common denominators, mums and dads etc.

Picked up endless ocean along with it and chucked in wii play for a tenner as well (couldn't really be arsed asking for change). They were asking £4 per game and sometimes you see good ones in a pile of shite.

A "Nintendo DS" recently sold for £20. It was a 2DS.

AndyXL wrote:

Drumstick wrote:Andy, any high quality pics of your recent pickups?

See the previous page of this thread for a pic. of R-Type 3 and Axelay.

Cybernator arrived today, and is in just as good condition

Wow, they are top notch.

How can you tell the difference between the real thing and repros?

Drumstick wrote:
How can you tell the difference between the real thing and repros?

I can just tell. As I had the real things at the time, I know what they felt like, how the box flexed a bit when you squeezed it, and even small flaws in the printing which left white marks when the game was new. Plus I know the original colours. Hell, I can even tell from the smell of the box, but it's the feel and look of the cardboard which for me is the main give away. I just know as soon as I hold it whether it is genuine or fake.

Green Gecko wrote:Facebook Marketplace is worth a look because it being Facebook you have all the lowest common denominators, mums and dads etc.

Picked up endless ocean along with it and chucked in wii play for a tenner as well (couldn't really be arsed asking for change). They were asking £4 per game and sometimes you see good ones in a pile of shite.

A "Nintendo DS" recently sold for £20. It was a 2DS.

I can confirm this. Picked up Mario sunshine, luigi's mansion and sonic adventure 2 for £15 total.

Green Gecko wrote:Sounds like a neat solution, my set up is hardly feng shui. You need to know how to look out for art students selling theirs after the degree shows in May/June, that's how I got mine!

Funnily enough I have found one going for that exact reason within pickup distance of me and due to end on Tuesday, only at £20 at the moment. Might try and get it just to satisfy my curiosity about them, I think a PVM would probably be easier to fit into my set up too.

Green Gecko wrote:Facebook Marketplace is worth a look because it being Facebook you have all the lowest common denominators, mums and dads etc.

Picked up endless ocean along with it and chucked in wii play for a tenner as well (couldn't really be arsed asking for change). They were asking £4 per game and sometimes you see good ones in a pile of shite.

A "Nintendo DS" recently sold for £20. It was a 2DS.

Absolutely this, I'm on a few Facebook groups for Retro games and somebody flagged up one today of somebody selling a Multi-Mega and a good range of games for £40 which is absolutely crazily cheap. (It's in Monmouth if anybody lives around there and it hasn't been snapped up!)

Oh gooseberry fool, link pls

Ad7 wrote:Oh gooseberry fool, link pls

Sorry mate, only just seen this.

They didn't post a link in the group, just the image below but you may be able to track it down from that if the guy still has it (maybe just go straight to him!)

"Megadrive" plus games half of which are master system lol

In the past few days I've twice seen wii stuff listed as "wii fit and games" or "wii fit games". Even if there is no Wii fit at all.

Thanks jamo, I've found the group it's on (or looks to have been on, he's posted other things there) so I'll try my luck.

Edit: It's gone

Wii fit plus games It shows how strawberry floated the Wii U was from the start when people who owned a Wii didn't even know what it was called. I worked with a woman who apparently played Mario karts on her Wii fit

Ad7 wrote:Thanks jamo, I've found the group it's on (or looks to have been on, he's posted other things there) so I'll try my luck.

Edit: It's gone

Wii fit plus games It shows how strawberry floated the Wii U was from the start when people who owned a Wii didn't even know what it was called. I worked with a woman who apparently played Mario karts on her Wii fit

Shame, with a bit of luck another person will come along who doesn't know what they're selling at some point!