Damo

@BLAZINOAH I was offered this by 33 Games last week. I didn't reply as my investigation was ongoing.

@slider1983 Taking that into account, and the fact that you know full well what the site stance is on AI, perhaps it would be best if you avoid posting comments on these kind of articles?

@slider1983 GenAI is based on stolen data and there are multiple legal cases pending which will shape regulation moving forward. Data centre pushback is considerable too, and there's the small issue that despite the insane money being invested in AI, the only people actually making profits are the chipmakers and data centre owners. The bubble is about to pop so don't assume things are going to stay the way they are currently.

If I were you, I'd move over to GenerationAmiga, I think that site is more up your street.

@slider1983 That was the least convincing reply to my point you could possibly have given 😂

"It's inevitable so there's no point in complaining" is a very odd take for what is supposed to be the future. I don't recall the internet or smartphones being talked about in this way, which probably tells you everything you need to know about the people pushing AI.

@slider1983 AI is "not a major issue"? I think you probably should educate yourself a little more on this topic. Misinformation, copyright theft, slop filling up every corner of the internet, deepfake scams, environmental damage, web search being impacted... if you think none of this matters then there really is no point in us discussing this any further.

@slider1983 Covering something doesn't mean you support it, and we've outlined the issues with both SNK and ModRetro.

A subscription to AntStream is direct financial support.

Serious question - given that the executives of the companies involved here have admitted that GenAI is theft, could you explain why you're acting like anyone who questions this technology is incorrect?

@metaphysician You've hit the nail on the head.

@gojiguy The world is pretty depressing at the moment, I'm afraid.

@16bitGeneration Are you trying to claim that this piece of reporting paints Antstream in a positive light?

@slider1983 I've just done a rough count and out of 70-odd replies the majority are negative, there's a few people who haven't commented either way and a smaller number of pro-AI replies.

You seem to be blissfully ignorant of why people dislike GenAI and oblivious to the rising anger over its use, and that's your prerogative - but please don't try to tell me what I stance I should take on my own website when it's clear that the vast majority of people who comment here are anti-AI.

@16bitGeneration We've explained our stance on ModRetro very clearly, and while SNK's ownership is problematic, it's one step removed from the situation ModRetro presents, where the owner is literally the guy in the videos holding the product.

@slider1983 "Do you see why the comments gets as many pro-AI people as anti-AI people?"

Did you use AI to work out the math on that one? You might want to check again

@16bitGeneration Unfortunately, these kinds of events will affect the games you play for the foreseeable future. It's our duty to report what's happening so people can make measured, informed choices about who they give their money to.

If you subscribe to Antstream, you're supporting this.

@-wc- I don't think anyone makes resistive screens anymore. I agree that, for maximum authenticity, a resistive panel would have made sense here, but to be honest, capacitive ones last longer; the stylus is decent enough.

@Glassneedles Actionloop / Magnetica

@CookieByte We covered that the other day: https://www.timeextension.com/news/2026/09/daytona-usa-sega-32x-fan-port-is-being-built-on-the-virtua-racing-deluxe-engine

@Martin_H I thought I'd mentioned this in the review, but I must have forgotten. I've updated it, but the hinge (which can lock at any angle) feels really solid so far.

@GlamReaper Suffer like G did

@slider1983 You seem very pro-AI; maybe you should have a read of this: https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2026/09/microsoft-exec-called-ai-scraping-the-largest-theft-of-labor-in-human-history/

Maybe that goes some way to explaining why people have such a dim view of this technology, irrespective of the many, many other issues it presents?

@gmar You can check out some BTS footage here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kaAGPso2CLs

And some of the props went up for auction recently, I think: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5mHydo9pwQ

@WhoderMan I think that was also by Yuke's, but I might be wrong. That movie is another of my son's favourites!

@Guru_Larry I'm amazed that opinion is so divided on this! It got positive reviews at the time of release, and I remember being blown away by the sprites, the detailed environments, and the multiple gameplay mechanics.

I'd argue that precious few games from the Game Boy's first year have aged all that well, with the exception of Tetris and Super Mario Land... so nostalgia has a part to play here, obviously. But I take issue with anyone who claims this is a 'bad' game.

@Thad I imagine the packaging was handled by LJN, and not Rare.

@SaKo We try to strike a balance (and I can assure you that these articles are nowhere near half of what we post), but unfortunately AI is news in EVERY walk of life now, including retro.

@breach187 I could not have put it better myself.

@-wc- As mentioned in the review, there's not a lot of 'throw' on the triggers, so it's really not a big issue

As for the face buttons, as long as they're arranged the same way, I don't see a big issue, but I get what you're saying. Muscle memory counts for a lot with these legacy pads!

@-wc- The analogue triggers are there because they can be used with systems that support analogue.

And forgive me for being dumb here, but what's the issue with the face button layout? It's the same as on the original N64 pad?

@-wc- A Saturn-style rolling pad would have been perfect, yep

@Deway @TinoBambino And we'll keep on calling this out.

@dodgykebaab "Inspiration" is magnitudes different from hoovering up every image, video, song, and piece of artwork into a machine that then regurgitates it on command.

Human creativity inspires and influences other human creativity; all of the examples you've given iterate on the previous concept to create genres of games that have supported the careers of countless creatives and driven gaming as a medium forward.

(And, in cases where blatant infringement takes place in this way, we have regulations which allow the wronged party to challenge it - as it stands, there's no such mechanism for GenAI content, not yet at least).

Using GenAI to mash together generic assets isn't even remotely the same thing as one human-made game inspiring human-made game, as only the idea carries influence; it's not like Namco stole all of the code, visuals and music to create Galaxian, for example.

@axelhander Sadly my friend, your rather underwhelming selection of Substack and YouTube links hasn't gotten anyone excited either.

@axelhander And, as you can see, there are plenty of people in this thread who can clearly spot the shortcomings of your own argument.

Have a great day!

@axelhander "a threat to useless executive roles" - this is only true in as much as executives are, by and large, the ones who benefit the most from the hard work of others. Many of them should be replaced, I agree.

But if you honestly think the power is going to shift away from such people thanks to AI, you've not been paying attention - execs of such companies are getting richer thanks to the fact that they're laying off workers and using AI instead.

None of the links you have provided has debunked anything, just for reference. I've given you academic links, links from research firms, respected news outlets and other journalists. You gave me a list of Substack, Patreon, and YouTube links. With all due respect, why should I listen to that over the evidence I provided? I get that there are differing opinions out there on this topic (like any topic), but what you have provided doesn't move the needle for me, I'm afraid.

We do seem to be in agreement that a lot of the AI hype is unfounded, however; despite the Terminator 2-style tales of mankind ending, I don't believe the LLM approach is going to end humanity - but it is doing damage to the quality of content online, the environment, the job market and more.

@axelhander You literally have no idea what you're talking about, and I did read the links you posted - they were exactly the same.

AI IS theft - because AI isn't inspired like a human is. It takes images it has hoovered up (without permission) and them mashes them together. It cannot create. It cannot innovate. It simply mushes existing data together, and that's the exact opposite of how a human creates things. Even the youngest child can grasp this logic.

I see you also completely ignored my reply to you saying AI is somehow 'redistributing skill and wealth' to benefit more people, when the exact opposite is true - the only people benefitting from it at the moment are the tech companies and the billionaries that own them.

If you don't want to listen to my "nonsense" about AI, stop posting in the comments of articles I write on the topic. Just an idea.

@Ruka Amen to that.

@axelhander So let me get this right, you post a bunch of (bogus) links which weakly argue your point, and we're supposed to believe them, but you dismiss the many, many reports and articles I've referenced in the past on the same topic?

Here, have some more, from legit sources rather than YouTubers:

https://globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/digital-threats/enabled-emissions-how-ai-helps-to-supercharge-oil-and-gas-production

https://unu.edu/inweh/collection/environmental-cost-of-AIs-Enrgy-Use-Carbon-water-and-land-footprints

https://cultureforclimate.scot/environmental-impact-of-ai/

"AI is predicted to be the main contributor to an increase in global water use from 1.1 billion to 6.6 billion cubic metres by 2027 as highlighted in an article on the UK Government Sustainable ICT blog. A single query sent on a generative AI platform like ChatGPT is estimated to use anything from 0.3 ml to 500 ml of water. However, as previously mentioned, this information is also not being regularly disclosed by AI companies which makes it hard to agree on a concrete figure."

The data centre argument is so flawed it's almost laughable; it's a bit like saying, "well, your bicycle can go on the road, so that means that it's as bad as a car". Data centre expansion is off the charts PURELY because of AI.

https://boma.org/resource/how-ai-is-fueling-the-rapid-growth-of-data-centers/

As for the "AI is not theft" point, I don't even know where to start there. Why has Anthropic paid all that money out in settlement if it didn't do anything wrong, then?

https://dissentmagazine.org/article/ai-property-data-theft-anthropic/

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2025/sep/10/tech-companies-are-stealing-our-books-music-and-films-for-ai-its-brazen-theft-and-must-be-stopped

https://goodlawproject.org/ai-giants-are-stealing-our-creative-work/

https://writersguild.org.uk/jack-thorne-ai/

https://jskfellows.stanford.edu/theft-is-not-fair-use-474e11f0d063

You also say: "One reason AI is an amazing tool is because it puts what used to be at the exclusive disposal of the rich and powerful at the fingertips of anyone, allowing creativity and ingenuity to shine through."

There are layers upon layers of irony here. I know plenty of really talented artists who aren't rich, so it's odd that you believe artistic talent is somehow the sole domain of people with money? That isn't true, and hasn't been throughout the whole of human history. Same with music; not every person who can play a guitar is a millionaire.

The second irony is that GenAI is DIRECTLY BENEFITING the billionaires who run these tech firms.

And thirdly, GenAI doesn't empower anyone; it enfeebles human creation by delegating it to a machine which simply mashes together data it has hoovered up to produce an approximation of what you ask it to do.

@Martin_H @axelhander I'd disagree with that quite a bit. While humans can influence each other, even the smallest child, when they're old enough to pick up a pen, can create something original and unique to them.

AI cannot do that, and will never be able to. It's based entirely on pre-existing data, and it cannot create or innovate on its own. AI cannot create anything original.

Comparing humans to AI is borderline insulting to humans.

@LordBritish I wouldn't be investing my time and money into a tech which is based on theft, for starters.

And while AAA gaming is certainly in trouble, indie development is thriving (as @Eogram says), with small teams scoring amazing successes. Why not take a more modest route this time around, with a smaller team?

Your next Ultima doesn't need to be a AAA blockbuster, and it certainly doesn't need to taint itself with GenAI - something which is likely to prevent sales rather than generate them.

You're the man who built an entire world on the most basic of computers, who has marshalled the evolution of an entire fantasy world on hardware which could run on someone's wristwatch today.

You don't need GenAI to make your talent shine through - the past has proven that beyond doubt.

Oh, and one more thing, there's no such thing as ethical AI. "As we stated at DragonCon, we are exploring ethical uses of AI, such as to hire voice actors whom we will pay to use and expand their dialog, for the 1000+ NPCs a world might have." With all due respect, that's impossible. Even if you hire someone to use their voice and their voice alone, any model you use will also have to leverage data it has gathered from countless other voices. To train a new model entirely on one person's voice would be impossible.

This is why AI companies have scraped the entire internet without permission - the volume of data required to train these models is so vast that doing it legally would be near impossible due to the licencing costs involved.

@michaelf SNK is the company, Neo Geo is the console / arcade brand. I'm not sure these collections will include any SNK games from before the Neo Geo was released.

@Peteykins They've got a whole bunch of these up and down the country, so they're doing something right.

I've only been to the Manchester one, and that's pretty great.

@Fighting_Game_Loser I imagine the rise of components due to AI - something that Plaion perhaps couldn't have foreseen - is to blame here.

@DestructoDisk Sadly, AI is impacting EVERYTHING in our lives, including retro games, so it will continue to be reported on.

If we stop reporting on it, the danger is that it becomes normalised and people who would rather not be in contact with GenAI projects won't be able to make an informed choice.

@R3TRONAUT I'm not sure Trump or his party can even understand the basics of satire, let alone deploy it.

@AllieKitsune The fact that it was intended for an 8M cartridge wasn't known until now. So yes, it's loading something, but the reason behind that is the drop from 8M to 4M.

@-wc- Holy Grail reference? Please tell me it's a Holy Grail reference.

@metaphysician No, but it IS Nintendo's duty to refund money that doesn't belong to it.

@metaphysician The thing is, the US government doesn't have the money any more. It refunded it back to the manufacturers. So the onus is on them to refund the consumers, irrespective of where anger or blame should be attributed.

@Ruka MS also releases its games on PS5. By your logic, that means MS isn't in competition with Sony, correct?

@Ruka Microsoft and Nintendo are absolutely in competition with each other, I'm not sure why you would assume they aren't? A lot of the same games are even releasing on both their systems (CoD, Elden Ring, etc).

@Ruka You might not consider them to be, but they are. They both produce portable gaming devices.