Tweet
Although the topic of retro emulation is often treated with disdain by purists who see it as unethical, the truth is that replicating an old system on your PC actually delivers a raft of significant benefits. You can overcome legacy AV standards and get a crystal-clear, pixel-perfect image on your HDTV via digital or VGA connections, or utilise save states to make those tortuous sessions of Super Star Wars all the more bearable. It's easier to tailor the experience to suit your own personal taste and you can even perform peripheral tasks such as using video capture programs to record your performance or taking screenshots.Much of the negativity surrounding retro emulation stems from the fact that the use of such a program implies the support of piracy, as most players resort to shady ROM download sites in order to service their pangs of rose-tinted nostalgia. Thankfully, the Retrode 2 is here to solve this rather troubling moral conundrum; it allows you to play your original SNES and Mega Drive cartridges on a selection of PC or Mac-based emulators.
The original Retrode was essentially a device which allowed you to rip the data from your cartridges to create functioning ROMs, but this updated variant removes the temptation to tread on potentially dodgy legal ground by instead turning the code on the cartridge's ageing circuit board into data that your PC can interpret directly from the source media. This means you can play them without having to drag-and-drop the files to your computer - although collectors who wish to create digital backups of their games will be pleased to know that such a procedure is still an option with this device.
Read more…
More...