Emulators don't *FEEL* like the Speccy!

edited January 2006 in Games
I just recently played Ghostbusters II on my ZX Speccy emu and i miss the difference in graphics quality from playing on a lil old 15 inch CRT telly to a LCD Digital HDMI flatscreen Monitor...

Kinda ruins the 'old school' feel when you try playing retro stuff on super modern equipment.

Someone should code a graphics filter for SPIN or ZX32 so that you can get 'TV style' graphics, with slight blurring and old tv look about the graphics!
Post edited by Resident0 on

Comments

  • edited January 2006
    Maybe Mel would be willing to provide the smell of 'burning rubber' ;)

  • edited January 2006
    If you use spectaculator try the 'mimic TV screen' option for a really authentic feel
  • edited January 2006
    Can you also set it to yell 'get of that bloody thing' in my mothers voice at random intervals?
    My test signature
  • edited January 2006
    some emus even have an option to be put into black n white like the real old skool
    Professional Mel-the-Bell Simulator................"So realistic, I found myself reaching for the Kleenex King-Size!" - Richard Darling
  • edited January 2006
    If your graphics card has got one, why not go that one step further and use the 'video out' socket and play it on a real telly!
  • edited January 2006
    In zx32 I just use fullscreen and half scanlines, it makes Spectrum graphics look a lot less blocky and more 'fuzzy'
  • edited January 2006
    On 2006-01-08 18:03, mel the bell wrote:
    some emus even have an option to be put into black n white like the real old skool
    On 2006-01-08 17:59, Glue wrote:
    If you use spectaculator try the 'mimic TV screen' option for a really authentic feel


    de Vandemar wrote:
    If you use spectaculator try the 'mimic TV screen' or ?Black and White TV?option for a really authentic feel.

    Spectaculator solves it all.
    (and switches automatically to/from 256colour mode unlike ZX32)

    also: uncheck the Fast loading, AutoLoad and Auto Play/Stop in Spectaculator?s cassette recorder to enjoy the realtime loading - you can always mind-control the loading chuntey - that?s the best part of the real emulation.


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    [ This Message was edited by: de Vandemar Croup on 2006-01-09 13:21 ]
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  • edited January 2006
    On 2006-01-09 10:03, de Vandemar Croup wrote:
    [.....]
    you can always mind-control the loading chuntey
    [...]
    Only in this forum can you not only get away with making that statement without being vilified, but everyone knows what you're talking about :)
  • edited January 2006
    :)

    worst nightmare experienced with emulator is again ...you won?t believe... Tape Loading Error!
    got this terryfying experience with Joe Blade 2 I guess, not remember exactly, and few more TZXs, I?ve almost collapsed when this happened.
    (it was wrong convert of course..but chuntey is really enchanted, you never know...)

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    [ This Message was edited by: de Vandemar Croup on 2006-01-09 13:37 ]
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  • JmkJmk
    edited January 2006
    Emulators are better than the real thing!

    Why?
      <LI>Good picture quality.
      <LI>No joystick problems.
      <LI>No wobbly or overheating hardware.
      <LI>No "snow" crashes.
      <LI>No dodgy keyboard membranes.
      <LI>Fast access to the core gameplay.

    I remember having to tune in an old portable which would constantly drift and require retuning. Later, there was a teletext TV that would always jump off the signal and I had to try and boost it by passing it through a video. :mad:

    I don't go for scanlines in emulators either, I like a nice clean picture (even if it is blocky). I think you must be sitting too close to your TV if you go for that. ;)

    Apart from the terrible rewired "SJS" joystick ports introduced by Amstrad, the +2A/+3 joystick problem was the worst - no way to use both joysticks at the same time without interfering with the other person's controls.

    Wobbly and overheating hardware. Grr... :mad: Speaks for itself.

    "Snow" crashes - I hated these. Having to play in 48K mode because of a poorly placed IM 2 table.

    I wouldn't want to go back to those problems again.

    I know we can change the experience these days by hacking the games, using IDE interfaces and buying new membranes but, in these lazy times, I prefer the PC (although I wish the fans were a bit quieter and the OS a bit cheaper).

  • edited January 2006
      <LI>TV picture quality.
      <LI>Joystick problems.
      <LI>Wobbly or overheating hardware.
      <LI>"snow" crashes.
      <LI>Dodgy keyboard membranes.
      <LI>Access to the core gameplay.

    That?s the smell of the lost childhood...
    "Snow" crashes - I hated these. Having to play in 48K mode because of a poorly placed IM 2 table.

    Good ol? 48k and buzzer... (why was 128k manufactured anyway?!)

    *wakes up from the trance*
    G! - That makes sense in BASIC 0:1
  • edited January 2006
    I much prefer emulators, thats the main reason why i got back into Speccy games and discovering other consoles etc. Can obviously try many more games on an emulator than before for the Speccy.

    The good thing is it does encourage many people to buy an old Spectrum and load up a game on tape.

    I am Mr Emulation BUT i have got a few Speccys and a few games which i sometimes like to have a journey down memory lane but on the whole i play most games on my PC and other gadgets.
  • edited January 2006
    I prefer the real thing actually. There's something about using an actual Spectrum that can't be replicated in an emulator.

    I do use emulators but usually only for a quick game when I'm bored or to check things like cheats or for to play games that I've downloaded before I transfer them to real tape.

    Necros.
  • JmkJmk
    edited January 2006
    On 2006-01-09 15:31, de Vandemar Croup wrote:
    Good ol? 48k and buzzer... (why was 128k manufactured anyway?!)

    Ha ha, that reminds me of one thing that you don't get on emulators - the "missing sound channel".

    Namely, the background hum that would change depending on what was on screen.

    It was most prominent in 48K games, as you would walk around silent rooms getting a slightly different hum in each one.

    I remember Dandy in-game clearly and Gauntlet as the logo changed colour and the different high score tables appeared.

    It created a bit of atmosphere when played in a dark and quiet room.

  • edited January 2006
    I like using both, if I'm playing on a emulator I don't usually play a game for more than 5 minutes before I start digging around the code. At least when I'm playing the real thing I play for a bit longer...
    I wanna tell you a story 'bout a woman I know...
  • edited January 2006
    On 2006-01-09 16:18, Jmk wrote:

    Ha ha, that reminds me of one thing that you don't get on emulators - the "missing sound channel".

    Namely, the background hum that would change depending on what was on screen.

    It was most prominent in 48K games, as you would walk around silent rooms getting a slightly different hum in each one.

    I remember Dandy in-game clearly and Gauntlet as the logo changed colour and the different high score tables appeared.

    It created a bit of atmosphere when played in a dark and quiet room.

    That's one of the subtle things about the ol' Speccy that made it great. I notice that too, especially when played at night.

    For me, it has to be the real thing. The graphics look better, they don't look lifeless and static like they do on an emulator. I also don't like seeing the blockier graphics. It's almost like the emu is revealing things that should stay hidden, and I prefer the graphics to blend in. I just instinctively don't like it and never did.
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  • edited January 2006
    On 2006-01-09 16:18, Jmk wrote:

    Ha ha, that reminds me of one thing that you don't get on emulators - the "missing sound channel".

    That can be emulated - eightyone, the zx81 emulator emulates pretty much perfectly the graphical interference that went hand-in-hand with this phenomenon. This can be seen on any real hardware as very faded vertical bars in the "paper" area of the screen.

    But I don't think any speccy emulators do the sound component. Or the visual, for that matter...

    D.
  • edited January 2006
    Does any emulator emulate dot-crawl, or the rather washed-out colours that I got on my third-hand TV? :)
    I never make misteaks mistrakes misyales errurs — oh, sod it.
  • edited January 2006
    On 2006-01-09 20:53, [email="robert@fm"]robert@fm[/email] wrote:
    Does any emulator emulate dot-crawl, or the rather washed-out colours that I got on my third-hand TV? :)

    Not yet, but we've a few ideas how to do it. Don't expect any kind of frame rate though :)

    D.
  • edited January 2006
    it?s like... to emulate the chauntey ;)
    very hard to achieve...
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  • edited January 2006
    On 2006-01-09 23:22, de Vandemar Croup wrote:
    it?s like... to emulate the chauntey ;)
    very hard to achieve...
    chutney...
    I wanna tell you a story 'bout a woman I know...
  • edited January 2006
    On 2006-01-09 23:33, karingal wrote:
    On 2006-01-09 23:22, de Vandemar Croup wrote:
    it?s like... to emulate the chauntey ;)
    very hard to achieve...
    chutney...

    Saucy! :D

    And you mean chuntey... :p
    I never make misteaks mistrakes misyales errurs — oh, sod it.
  • edited January 2006
    On 2006-01-09 23:42, [email="robert@fm"]robert@fm[/email] wrote:
    On 2006-01-09 23:33, karingal wrote:
    On 2006-01-09 23:22, de Vandemar Croup wrote:
    it?s like... to emulate the chauntey ;)
    very hard to achieve...
    chutney...

    Saucy! :D

    And you mean chuntey... :p
    LOL, dyslexic fingers...
    I wanna tell you a story 'bout a woman I know...
  • edited January 2006
    @ karingal who wrote:
    chutney...
    On 2006-01-09 10:03, de Vandemar Croup wrote:
    [.....]
    you can always mind-control the loading chuntey
    [...]
    On 2006-01-09 23:22, de Vandemar Croup wrote:
    it?s like... to emulate the chauntey ;)

    consider the last one to have more sensitive feel, gets more enchanted look, sounds more magic... looks I?m gonna prefer this one
    .... maybe I?ll marry this word once (and will be only mine!) :D


    _________________
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    ART.SPECCY.CZ - Gallery of Contemporary ZX art -

    [ This Message was edited by: de Vandemar Croup on 2006-01-10 09:53 ]
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  • edited January 2006
    On 2006-01-09 20:20, Dunny wrote:
    That can be emulated - eightyone, the zx81 emulator emulates pretty much perfectly the graphical interference that went hand-in-hand with this phenomenon. This can be seen on any real hardware as very faded vertical bars in the "paper" area of the screen.

    But I don't think any speccy emulators do the sound component. Or the visual, for that matter...

    EightyOne also does the sound interference too. You Speccy guys really should try to keep up :)

    MikeW
  • edited January 2006
    accidentaly I bumped into a site with SpectrumAnyWhere emulator, which was only a while ago unknown to me :D ooooh, this is fun...

    very simple emu, not much to expect of it, but it provides you with real taperecorder (hmm, rather player than recorder) and real TV - coloured, B&W or green monitor with reflections of the room behind "you" on the TV glass :D these people must be crazy! I love it...

    just the reflections are too much visible, you can see much of the windows and a lamp in the room... not beareable, this doesn?t work for me much.

    tender, subtle reflection on the egde of the TV glass would be just fine, a bit over the screen, that?s all.

    but the idea is really lovely.

    _________________
    Bytes: wingS tHAt Swing
    *you have shot cold food*
    ART.SPECCY.CZ - Gallery of Contemporary ZX art -

    [ This Message was edited by: de Vandemar Croup on 2006-01-10 15:55 ]
    G! - That makes sense in BASIC 0:1
  • edited January 2006
    well...in oposition to not playing the games at all...I think emulators are great!

    my only problem is not the emulator...is just that with so many games to chose and such a fast time to download them, I rarely spend more than 15 minutes on a game, while back then I would play them for hours,and it didn't matter if it was a piece of crapp or not!(while now most of the times I play the first seconds and just say: this is crapp, bring me the next one!)
  • edited January 2006
    On 2006-01-10 21:13, VanTammen wrote:
    well...in oposition to not playing the games at all...I think emulators are great!

    my only problem is not the emulator...is just that with so many games to chose and such a fast time to download them, I rarely spend more than 15 minutes on a game, while back then I would play them for hours,and it didn't matter if it was a piece of crapp or not!(while now most of the times I play the first seconds and just say: this is crapp, bring me the next one!)

    But that's the point. You spend too little time on a game to find out how to actually play it. You need to play a game several times to understand what's going on. Only then do you get the true gameplay, something which is invisible the first three times you play something.
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  • edited January 2006
    Emulators are great, but just like sex you can't beat the real thing. Still, with emulation you have the chance to play all the games you never had as a nipper. And best of all, with fast loading you don't have to wait ages for each level to load.

    I love it when a plan comes together :)
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