Video Games Are Disappearing...
Video Games Are Disappearing...
The only Nintendo console I ever had was a Famiclone so I don't really have much nostalgia for their games.
It's just Nintendo ROMs that are disappearing. It's still easier than ever to find even the most obscure classic PC games on abandonware sites and GOG compilation torrents. It's also only the SEO abusing ROM sites that are vulnerable to Nintendo's attacks. Complete ROMsets for their consoles can still be obtained through torrents, Vimm.net, and the r/ROMs megathread especially for the older cartridge consoles.
Emulating a current gen Nintendo console has never been as good as it is for Switch emulators. Any new PC can emulate Switch Triple As at full speed. Android is getting builds of the Yuzu emulator and mobile SOCs have enough power to run less demanding titles. When a lot people who don't even own a Switch can play Tears of the Kingdom, Nintendo is understandably trying to crack down. The portable aspect of the Switch is no longer a unique advantage. It used to be just GPD making those handheld PCs now every brand is trying to compete in that form factor.
Honestly I think the state of emulation in general is experiencing a golden age.
Retroid, Anbernic and AYN are making hardware that is a better solution for most people than trying to jailbreak and refurbish old original portable consoles. The screens, the analogs and the buttons they use are as good if not better than the first party hardware. Unlike bulky handheld PC, their Linux or Android based emulation handhelds are still in the same size and weight class as the PSP.
A couple years ago the Xbox 360 and PS3 emulators were basically just experimental demos. They weren't stable enough to actually finish any game on and most CPUs weren't fast enough to run them at full speed. They're still hit and miss but the list of playable titles will only ever grow.
It has come to the point that the PC can play everything. All previous gen consoles aside from the OG Xbox have emulators at a playable state. There are almost no current gen console exclusives anymore as the PC is getting ports of PS4/PS5 exclusives, the XBone/Series never had any to begin with, and of coarse the aforementioned Switch emulation.
9I agree with everything you've said about emulation, it's never been better! My worry about the current push to always online games is their inability to be properly archived. P.T. is an example of a game locked to a console that never got a physical release. Also games are now constantly patched so there is never a finished or definitive version of them.
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Wait what? 2023 is the best year for games since a long time.
5Not for old ones. Also wdym "best year for games since a long time."
5Wdym "old ones". Players? I play the games since 80's and i said what i said. Best year as in not only many new releases but many good new releases and most important, finally many good diverse genre releases, not just the xero of EA shit plus tons of multi shooters and not much more like in lot of previous years.
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