Retron x86

[Yodd]

Just an FYI

I'm sure you have seen reports that the Retron5 units will be available in the next 30 days.

Here is my report from MGC. I was one of the first people in the Hyperkin room when they opened their door on Saturday around noonish. They were asked point blank about price and when they would be available. Just north of $100 (so no, they are NOT going to be $99 unless something changes) and they are already built and shipped out. They are on the boat (I presume from China) and will be available in 30 to 45 days.


I also watched them test something they had never tried. They added on the Power Base converter from the Genesis and used a Master System card game. Not a cartridge, but one of the card games. Powered up and played fine. I didn't have a chance for a close observation as the room was getting busy, but it seemed pretty neat. People were bringing them random games to try on it and it seemed to be running them all.

 

[El Maricon Loco]

Tanx for the update, Yodd. Black looks alright, I still think this thing is a good deal for an All in one, HDMI - fuck it. I'm still taking bets on store shelves on 30 days, I also wonder if it will play these?

 

[whisper2053]

I also wonder if it will play these?

Forget a picture? :P

 

[ki_atsushi]

Just an FYI

I'm sure you have seen reports that the Retron5 units will be available in the next 30 days.

Here is my report from MGC. I was one of the first people in the Hyperkin room when they opened their door on Saturday around noonish. They were asked point blank about price and when they would be available. Just north of $100 (so no, they are NOT going to be $99 unless something changes) and they are already built and shipped out. They are on the boat (I presume from China) and will be available in 30 to 45 days.


I also watched them test something they had never tried. They added on the Power Base converter from the Genesis and used a Master System card game. Not a cartridge, but one of the card games. Powered up and played fine. I didn't have a chance for a close observation as the room was getting busy, but it seemed pretty neat. People were bringing them random games to try on it and it seemed to be running them all.

Badass! I'm only paying $99 because I preordered it on Amazon. They have the lowest price guarantee where even if there is any price changes before it ships, you pay the lowest price.

 

[El Maricon Loco]

Forget a picture? :P

LOL - the temptation....

 

[Mendel]

For the retron x86 they would have to be price competitive with an actual 1990s retro pc for me to consider it.
And even then, why not just use the real thing.

 

[Kid Panda]

For the retron x86 they would have to be price competitive with an actual 1990s retro pc for me to consider it.
And even then, why not just use the real thing.

You see how much a "retro" PC goes for now?

 

[GohanX]

I think the idea if the x86 is neat, I just can't think of to many games I'd want to use it for. If it's cheap I could make it a Wing Commander box, I've always wanted one if those.

If they could figure out how to get out to play Win 95/98 games then I would be very interested.

 

[NeoSneth]

I think the idea if the x86 is neat, I just can't think of to many games I'd want to use it for. If it's cheap I could make it a Wing Commander box, I've always wanted one if those.

If they could figure out how to get out to play Win 95/98 games then I would be very interested.

There are 1000's of great games from that era. If you can't remember, you need to jog your memory.
http://www.abandonia.com/ - currently down, but a great resource to browse games.

 

[Tripredacus]

did you guys catch the part where he said Quake 3 is running at 45-60fps.

Yes and I'm wondering what the story is. I mean, he said they tested the original Quake as well. Now, my question is why would you want to load up DOS Quake on a Linux box when you can just use Linux Quake instead. Also, I doubt GL Quake is going to be an option.

 

[lantus360]

right. Quake 3 does not run under dosbox . so im guessing this device might be some pseudo ARM-Linux thing with native open source ports as well as a dosbox emulation layer to handle the x86 stuff.

 

[NeoGeoNinja]

Okay. I'll happily play the dumbass here.

I have no idea what this thing really is.

So, it's not an emulation box in the sense of what peeps were doing with the Xbox back in early 00's (i.e. CPS, Neo, Retro emu?)...? Or is it?

There's a lot of talk about old PC game emulation. Is there a market for that? I have never owned or gamed on a PC, but would be interested in playing those old school FPS's I missed out on, if this was up to task (i.e. Blood, Shadow Warrior, Rise of the Triad etc).

 

[Kid Panda]

Okay. I'll happily play the dumbass here.

I have no idea what this thing really is.

So, it's not an emulation box in the sense of what peeps were doing with the Xbox back in early 00's (i.e. CPS, Neo, Retro emu?)...? Or is it?

There's a lot of talk about old PC game emulation. Is there a market for that? I have never owned or gamed on a PC, but would be interested in playing those old school FPS's I missed out on, if this was up to task (i.e. Blood, Shadow Warrior, Rise of the Triad etc).

Outside of Doom II and Duke Nukem 3D you're not missing anything on the fps front. But, there is a buttload of classic point and click games that NEVER saw a console release, and most likely won't. Stuff from Lucasarts we will most likely never see again.

 

[El Maricon Loco]

Outside of Doom II and Duke Nukem 3D you're not missing anything on the fps front. But, there is a buttload of classic point and click games that NEVER saw a console release, and most likely won't. Stuff from Lucasarts we will most likely never see again.

Don't forget about all that dated, but still SWEEEEET Sierra shit. Also, oddball games, small dev teams, big dreams!

 

[Kid Panda]

Don't forget about all that dated, but still SWEEEEET Sierra shit. Also, oddball games, small dev teams, big dreams!

Eazy-E plz. I got all dat Sierra on floppy disks son! And to my surprise I installed all of them last night on my 486 box. I couldn't believe after sitting in the attic for all these years that they still worked.

 

[2D_mastur]

Outside of Doom II and Duke Nukem 3D you're not missing anything on the fps front. But, there is a buttload of classic point and click games that NEVER saw a console release, and most likely won't. Stuff from Lucasarts we will most likely never see again.

C'mon everybody has to play Wolf 3D ( in it's original format) at least once in their life time. That shit is gaming gold.

I'd also say that Rise of the Triad is a must play for any old school FPS fan. That game pushed video game gore to new heights. Not to mention the John Woo style double barrettas and evil-enchanted baseball bat.

Also Apogee and Epic made a handful of platformers that were pretty damned good.

So can anybody tell me any reasons why this is better than just using DosBox?

 

[Dr Shroom]

For people who are too dumb to use DosBox (with or without a frontend) and too much money its obviously better.

PS: if you want to play Duke3D just buy the Megaton edition via Steam, no need for shitty dos emulation.

 

[NeoSneth]

So can anybody tell me any reasons why this is better than just using DosBox?

At this point, none. Because there are zero details on the platform.

If it makes this kind of gameplay plug and play, then they got something interesting. People will pay for a slick and usable interface.
Some Amiga loaders take all the hassle out of playing the games, and people still pay for this service.

 

[DrScience]

When it comes to old school PC games what comes to mind for me are the classic point-and-click adventure games and if thats the case I'll just use ScummVM on my PC that works just fine.
So now I won't have to worry about the inevitability of the delays the Retron x86 will have.

 

[GohanX]

It looks like it may be easier to deal with hooking up to a tv if you don't have a htpc.

 

[SNKorSWM]

Looking at the Amazon.com customer feedback of their previous retron stuff. It seems that Retron 1 gets 3.5 - 4 stars on average, Retron 2 gets 3.5 stars, Retron 3 gets only 3 - 3.5 stars on average. I hope Retron 5 doesn't follow this trend and get even lower ratings.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=retron

 

[T.A.P.]

Does anyone else think it's weird that the SMS card game they used in that photo is the one SMS card game that isn't compatible with a real Genesis and Power Base Converter combo?

 

[NeoGeoNinja]

Does anyone else think it's weird that the SMS card game they used in that photo is the one SMS card game that isn't compatible with a real Genesis and Power Base Converter combo?

I think that was the point re: the photo.

PPL brought along a load of games they wanted to try out to test the Retron against any (known) compatibility issues. I imagine that's why you can see a Tengen Ms Pacman and Starwing Super FX title in that shot too, amongst others...

 

[GohanX]

Looking at the Amazon.com customer feedback of their previous retron stuff. It seems that Retron 1 gets 3.5 - 4 stars on average, Retron 2 gets 3.5 stars, Retron 3 gets only 3 - 3.5 stars on average. I hope Retron 5 doesn't follow this trend and get even lower ratings.

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss_2?url=search-alias=aps&field-keywords=retron

Many are hoping that the emulator based 5 will fare better than system on a chip design of their other clones, but only time will tell. The spotty history is the reason I didn't preorder.

 

[Tripredacus]

right. Quake 3 does not run under dosbox . so im guessing this device might be some pseudo ARM-Linux thing with native open source ports as well as a dosbox emulation layer to handle the x86 stuff.

So there's your Windows software comparison... IF the Quake 3 mention was not in error. For that, specifically, there is no DOS version of it. There is Windows, Mac and Linux versions. So he can say they got 45-60fps on Quake 3 this depends greatly on which of these versions they actually used. They probably used the Linux version but IF they did use the Windows version then it certainly opens up the library.

There is one problem regarding DOS games that most people seem not to remember. Most of them were a compatibility nightmare. There were a ton where you had to run Setup prior to running the game and hope to god one of the Sound option combinations you picked will result in getting sound effects AND music working. Or those games were the HQ audio never worked so you were stuck with the MIDI option. Additionally, advanced/proprietary options such as GL Quake or Forsaken isn't going to work unless they put a 3dfx chip in there.

Since it is also just a Linux computer, the best case scenario is if a Linux community picks up development for it. Because if this product truly is for people who are too dumb to figure out DosBox, they certainly aren't going to have a fun time with Linux. So an established community or longtime Linux people are going to be needed to bring these new people in and work on the compatibility issues which are bound to show up.