Comments 340

Re: Punch Robots Into Little Itty Bits In This New 8-Bit Style Action Game, Coming To Kickstarter

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

SHATTERHAND! This looks great. I hope the music ends up just as catchy. I'll support this one, for sure. Shatterhand is legit one of the unsung heroes on the NES, and has some of my favourite music on the system, too!

Here's a link to an old obscure remix of one of the best songs in the game from back in the old VGMiX days... I haven't stopped listening to it since 2004-ish - catchy AF!
https://vgmixarchive.com/songs/vgmix2x/Homard%20-%20Alloy%20Fists%20(Shatterhand).mp3

Re: One Of The Best Non-Sega Arcade Racers Just Got A Recompiled PC Port

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

@smoreon That's the jitter, alright, haha! The Dreamcast has more of that smoke/water slowdown that the other ports, but I still think it looks the nicest. But yeah, I have no idea what that corner jittering is. It almost looks like interlacing. It's not, but that's about as much as I can describe it. Funny that is doesn't appear at all in Battle, Stunt and Practice modes :/

@dedant Yeah, SEGA are the first to come to mind when it comes to pure arcade racing. You can't make gold like OutRun, Virtua Racing, Daytona USA, SEGA Rally and not kinda be the king of the genre

Re: One Of The Best Non-Sega Arcade Racers Just Got A Recompiled PC Port

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

@smoreon I thought that too, but the actual race modes in the DC, GC, PS2 & Xbox ports have a screen jitter when you turn a corner only in the racing modes that hampers the actual racing gameplay. The issue existed on OG hardware and still persists even emulating today. That doesn't exist here, so the racing is much, much better. Car physics are also a little different in the home ports... likely to cater to the added Battle, Stunt and Practice Modes, and the addition of the car wings.

It's most definitely worth playing, and I'm saying that as somebody whose favourite Dreamcast game IS RUSH 2049

Re: Retro Fighters' PlayStation 'Defender' Controller Just Got An Impressive Upgrade

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

@JJtheTexan I got one recently, and was a tad disappointed. The build quality doesn't feel up to par with their more recent stuff, but it feels nice in the hand regarding shape. I wish that it felt more like a Dual Shock, however, and the button placement for Start + Select feels wrong to me.

The dead zones on the analog sticks are wildly inconsistent, depending on what I use it on. It's generally OK on PC, and is phenomenal for BallisticNG and PS1/PS2 emulation, and feels right there. PS3 emulation feels a little laggy to me, but that's down to RPCS3, at least on my set-up. It's not all that great for racing games, thanks to the short range of the L & R Triggers, but the sticks feel nice

I also tried it with the Brook Wingman XB2 on my Xbox 360, and the dead zones are even worse there, with me pushing right on the left stick stick taking longer to kick in than if I push the stick left. I am sure it's down to the use of two adapters, but I don't have the issue with any other controller I've tried with the XB2.

It feels nice on Switch, but the sticks are excellent-to-average, depending on the game. It's not too crash hot with any FPS title, but seems to be pretty great with everything else - I've been having a lot of fun with the Defender and Abathor!

I've not used it on real hardware yet, but I'm looking forward to it once I can get around to repairing my PSOne Slim model

Re: This Indie Dev Seems Pretty Serious About Making A Spiritual Successor To Ridge Racer

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

@Masacheez I understand your perspective, there is definitely something magical about the first couple of games. Rave Racer arcade was amazing too.

They did create an entirely new identity for R4, too. Though definitely informed by GT, I think it was as equally - if not moreso - influenced by WipEout. The more serious electronica edge those games had was most definitely transferred over to R4.

Though R4 is still super accessible and arcade-y, though. I think most people these days could pick up and play R4 over the earlier games, at least if we're talking the Playstation ports. EDIT: At least in regards to gameplay. Menu navigation on the other hand...

R4 & Wip3out kinda live together in my mind. Both are insanely stylish, unique and were a divisive at the time in regards to the aesthetic departure. I personally think time has proven them classic in that regard.

Anyways, really looking forward to this! Followed on BlueSKy, though I haven't jumped fully into it yet, I only barely have wrapped my head around X and don't have the bandwidth to deal with more than one form of Social Media in a serious way.

Textilis is a musician and developer I follow on X who has also been creating a Ridge Racer-inspired racer. It's been fun watching the progress of the drifting gameplay and aesthetic! https://x.com/Textilismusic

Re: Limited Run And Retro-Bit Under Fire For Using Recycled Chips In Shantae Advance

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

Absolutely garbage company.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvkZkgmpg2w

This is an absolute MUST WATCH/LISTEN for anybody remotely interested in how much Limited Run Games rips off it's customer base.
This video needs an article of it's own.

No two ways about it, there is no way to justify buying from them. If you do, they are laughing at you, hold you in contempt and you are less than even a cash cow.

Re: Retro Fighters Latest Release Is A Wireless "Evolution" Of The Classic Xbox 360 controller

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

It looks gorgeous, and I am definitely in the market for a new Xbox 360 controller. The Brooks adapters are great, and I use many other controllers on the console, but unless you play wired, it's easy to feel the extra bit of latency.

Also, I re-shelled a couple of controllers. One turned out well, the other squeaks to high-heaven and made the d-pad even worse. So a nice, news 360 controller would be fantastic.

Awesome stuff, this is a definite, must purchase for me

Re: What Happens When An Arms Dealer Publishes Your Video Game?

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

@JenniferRaye There is literally NO GOOD GUY/GIRL in the video games industry. They're all megalomaniacal. They're all after money. They all want you hooked. Whether it's Nintendo, Sony, MS or anybody else, nobody is a good guy/girl.

Palmer Luckey is just vocal and opinionated. Imagine all the other slimy ones who don't say anything because they don't want the bad press. People praise Phil Spencer, but that guy is horrible. Slimy, and so corporate "good-guy" that it's irritating.

Whatever side you're on, I guarantee that they literally don't care about you. You'll die on that hill defending whoever, but yeah, they don't care.

Re: New Xbox 360 Recompilation Tool Will Give Lost Classics Another Chance To Shine

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

@PZT I have my PC and Xbox 360 side-by-side for capture purposes, and Xenia is definitely slower in regards to input lag feel. I can feel it in racing games, at least, most definitely. I've tried many controllers, configurations native and adapters. It is especially felt in any of the 30fps racers. I don't play shmups. EDIT: I do have Radiant Silvergun, though, I might see how that works out? Thanks for the video link

Re: New Xbox 360 Recompilation Tool Will Give Lost Classics Another Chance To Shine

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

@mjparker77 It's not. It's merely OK, and lots of things don't work well. There's also a tonne of input lag right now, owing to the fact it's emulation. And just in general, it uses more power than those games should reasonably demand. Native ports mean lower system requirements, and much less power consumption.

MY ROG Ally X can run the 360 library on Xenia at the native res /frame rate of each Xbox title, and pretty much no more. But with the Sonic Unleased Port, it can do 1440p/60 without even breaking a sweat, uses less power and input lag is non-existent.

Also, city folk may not care, but I live in the country and rely on solar, so lowered power requirements are always something I like to see and always welcome.

Re: This New Unofficial PC Port Of Sonic Unleashed Could Be The Best Version Of The Game Yet

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

This is AWESOME stuff. Automatically, it brings PC requirements for Xbox 360 down, down DOWN - which is amazing stuff. Of course it relies on interest in certain titles, but I'm super excitedat the prospect of being able to play stuff like PGR 4 on PC natively, at much, much higher framerates and resolutions without the hassle of emulation, which still has a ways to go.

That era has some of the best games out there, and there's now a chance that many of those amazing games locked to the Xbox 360 will be available to play in a form that could stomp out all of the performance issues and limitations that the generation was known for.

Amazing work!

Re: The Mega Drive / Genesis Shmup 'ZPF' Gets New Lore Trailer & Release Date

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

@ChromaticDracula @MARl0 Yup, Mega Cat Studios is really bad like that. I'll definitely grab this on Steam, but not having a ROM option for sale is poor form for 2025.

Even if they delayed the ROM release a while to give the physicals a chance would be A-OK with me.

It kinda irks me when these indie publishing houses act like a bigger companies; it feels like it goes against the indie spirit vibe entirely. But the middle-man has to justify his existence, and is always gonna middle-man his way around town

Re: "The Most Bafflingly Poor Products We Have Ever Reviewed" - Marseille's mClassic RGB Collection Fails To Impress The Experts

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

@Razieluigi I got the red mClassic during the pandemic for my Switch. Most Switch games need all the help they can get in regards to image quality on a monitor, and mine is docked 100% of the time, and it worked as an AA/Sharpening/Saturation pass for it, and worked well.

It didn't work on ANYTHING else I had. My Xbox 360 for example never looked any different - and I sat at my monitor and scrutinized the hell out of it.

Anyways, it broke last year and shows nothing at all, so that is that, haha.

Re: Almost 20 Years After It Ended Production, A Brand-New PS1 Motherboard Is In Development

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

@lorentiobrodesco Super sorry to hear that. I'd hug you if I could!

Yeah, there's plenty of room for things you enjoy. I'm definitely not saying not to do things you like. I also think when you find absolute happiness, there's still room for those things, it just takes a different form. We've got to give our life meaning.

The difference is when people do it out of FOMO and to chase trends. That's disingenuous, and not real. There's a thrill of the chase, the thrill of millions of parcels arriving - all that stuff is a band-aid, and I guarantee those people make it look like they're enjoying stuff by posting about how much they enjoy the things they buy, but it's all for show, and most of that stuff just sits there looking pretty, taking up space, just to be shown off on social media.

Also, when you've got people buying and acquiring building stuff up without actually balancing that out with a bit of giving to their fellow man, then that's what grinds my gears a lot!

And your project isn't meaningless - like I said, it's important for actual repairs and legit preservation. It's not at all like somebody just collecting for approval, likes and out of FOMO.

Keep up the good work, and really sorry to hear about your troubles. All the best to you

Re: Almost 20 Years After It Ended Production, A Brand-New PS1 Motherboard Is In Development

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

@Porco You can emulate on anything, basically, so I get the whole FOMO thing in regards to all those emulation handhelds, trust me, haha. You sound very much like me, and you're preaching to the choir, for sure!

I see this replication motherboard as a bit different, in that it will aid in repairing broken systems. Spare parts isn't the same as an emulation handheld though, although they could very well be used in the creating of yet MORE devices, I totally see that happening.

People lack purpose and meaning, and will collect just about ANYTHING to fill a void. There's a large echo chamber around it these days too, so it's easy to find a million others out there who will seemingly justify one's lack of self control in just constantly consuming; I know, it used to be me, haha! I thought I was happy, but it started to go WELL beyond nostalgia and warm and fuzzy feelings and into territory I wasn't comfortable in.

Sold it all off and stick to emulation on mostly PC. I will get an FPGA solution for my Saturn games eventually, though!

Re: Taki Udon Teases FPGA PS1's "SuperDock"

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

Yeah, this will be my first foray into FPGA gaming. I'm going with the black, so match my recent neGcon acquisition!

I've been wanting a, small dedicated PSX/SAT machine that looks good and this is it. It'll take my DualShocks, neGcon AND my Retro-Bit Saturn controllers

Re: The Genesis Just "Broke Another Myth" By Replicating Classic Castlevania Tunes

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

@UtopiaNemo The Mega Drive FM synth has aged better I think, thanks in no small part due to the abundance of Electronic Music out there. The crisp synth sounds of the YM2612 are easy to listen to, because those very particular sounds are not only out there in 90s music, but also in Synthwave, House.

I really, really dig some SNES music too, but it's gotta be as crisp as the SNES can do for me to still listen to - not all of them sound like Dracula X, CastleVania IV, Super Turrican and PLOK!

I also prefer SR's Theme of Simon - it sounds so arcadey, boomy and meaty

Re: Valve's Unshackling Of SteamOS Could Give Switch 2 Some Welcome Competition

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

@Slobbert You don't have to mess about with a 'PC Handheld' with Steam OS. It just works. Hence the competition

Every empire falls. Once somebody does the handheld thing just as well as Nintendo, without their *****, then they will fall again too.

Nintendo have the hubris right now that Sony does. Because they are popular, they will feel the need to not have to work as hard because everybody worships the ground they walk on. They all do it, unfortunately.

Re: Best Of 2024: Is It Time To Change The Narrative On The Sega Saturn?

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

I'm still playing Saturn in 2025

I grew up with the console, but have since sold my Japanese unit and collection. I kept my OG PAL Saturn unit though, and I plan on fixing it up and modding it for 60hz so I can play my back-ups on it. Until then, Mednafen and the Retro-Bit line of Saturn Controllers are the perfect replacement

I did a video recently playing some originally 30fps Saturn racing games at 60fps on PC via Emulation, if anybody is interested at all! It's mostly just a celebration of Saturn racers in general !!! https://youtu.be/Q1gUTCxaFjQ

Re: Sega's Western CEO Isn't Interested In Saturn And Dreamcast Mini Consoles

ArcadeRacingCENTRAL

@KitsuneNight I mean, they could yank games off if they're connected to the internet, right?

But from a preservation point, yeah, I definitely see your point - respect.

I just think of the housing as really nice looking e-waste these days, with the multitudes of ways to play. So personally, I'll stick with Emulation.

Even when that rumoured subscription service rears it's ugly head