WTB: Nintendo NES games...?

PoodlesAgain · Sun Oct 03, 2021 4:56 pm

Anybody got some dusty Nintendo NES games?

Found an NES console and controllers dumpster diving, just curious what it would be like to play a 1980s game or two!

rrobbone · Fri Oct 08, 2021 6:06 pm

Sorry, mine aren't for sale. I've had them packed away ever since I got into emulation. You can buy and set up emulation handhelds in all different varieties, or if you want to stick with the physical NES - there are flash carts with SD card slots that you can load up any and every NES game your heart desires and play them on your console. Emulation is a lot of fun, I'd be glad to help point you to resources. Plus, NES games are collectors' items now and can get very pricey.

Were you looking for any games in particular?

Mossman · Wed Oct 13, 2021 11:06 pm

rrobbone wrote: ↑Fri Oct 08, 2021 6:06 pm Sorry, mine aren't for sale. I've had them packed away ever since I got into emulation. You can buy and set up emulation handhelds in all different varieties, or if you want to stick with the physical NES - there are flash carts with SD card slots that you can load up any and every NES game your heart desires and play them on your console. Emulation is a lot of fun, I'd be glad to help point you to resources. Plus, NES games are collectors' items now and can get very pricey.

Were you looking for any games in particular?

They make SD card readers for the Commodore 64 and a bunch of other 8 and 16-bit computers as well. If I had to hunt down an ancient 1541 floppy drive, then it would have been game-over before it began. Those things are thin on the ground, and even non-functioning ones are expensive. I started with an SD reader, but eventually ended up using a Raspberry Pi as a 1541 emulator, and that works better. The C64 really needs a drive emulator, not just a simple card reader. The 1541 was more than just a disk drive... it was another computer in itself, and it handled some of the memory and processing tasks for the C64, which some of the more sophisticated software took advantage of. So if a program or game required more than just loading directly into RAM, it wouldn't work with the card reader. Multi-disk games didn't work, either. But for a cart-based system, I think an SD card reader should work just fine.

I think it's amazing how many people are out there designing and manufacturing modern devices to make these old machines usable again. And it's almost all home-brew. Made by fans trying to keep these systems alive. The Amiga is my other nostalgia machine, and that community is pretty impressive. Both in size and activity.

rrobbone · Thu Oct 14, 2021 1:19 am

Mossman wrote: ↑Wed Oct 13, 2021 11:06 pm They make SD card readers for the Commodore 64 and a bunch of other 8 and 16-bit computers as well. If I had to hunt down an ancient 1541 floppy drive, then it would have been game-over before it began. Those things are thin on the ground, and even non-functioning ones are expensive. I started with an SD reader, but eventually ended up using a Raspberry Pi as a 1541 emulator, and that works better. The C64 really needs a drive emulator, not just a simple card reader. The 1541 was more than just a disk drive... it was another computer in itself, and it handled some of the memory and processing tasks for the C64, which some of the more sophisticated software took advantage of. So if a program or game required more than just loading directly into RAM, it wouldn't work with the card reader. Multi-disk games didn't work, either. But for a cart-based system, I think an SD card reader should work just fine.

I think it's amazing how many people are out there designing and manufacturing modern devices to make these old machines usable again. And it's almost all home-brew. Made by fans trying to keep these systems alive. The Amiga is my other nostalgia machine, and that community is pretty impressive. Both in size and activity.

I have two handhelds that are gameboy-ish in form factor, and they do play C64 roms. Most are compatible, so I would imagine multi-disc and games requiring the 1541 would run fine.

Mossman · Thu Oct 14, 2021 2:52 am

rrobbone wrote: ↑Thu Oct 14, 2021 1:19 am
Mossman wrote: ↑Wed Oct 13, 2021 11:06 pm They make SD card readers for the Commodore 64 and a bunch of other 8 and 16-bit computers as well. If I had to hunt down an ancient 1541 floppy drive, then it would have been game-over before it began. Those things are thin on the ground, and even non-functioning ones are expensive. I started with an SD reader, but eventually ended up using a Raspberry Pi as a 1541 emulator, and that works better. The C64 really needs a drive emulator, not just a simple card reader. The 1541 was more than just a disk drive... it was another computer in itself, and it handled some of the memory and processing tasks for the C64, which some of the more sophisticated software took advantage of. So if a program or game required more than just loading directly into RAM, it wouldn't work with the card reader. Multi-disk games didn't work, either. But for a cart-based system, I think an SD card reader should work just fine.

I think it's amazing how many people are out there designing and manufacturing modern devices to make these old machines usable again. And it's almost all home-brew. Made by fans trying to keep these systems alive. The Amiga is my other nostalgia machine, and that community is pretty impressive. Both in size and activity.
I have two handhelds that are gameboy-ish in form factor, and they do play C64 roms. Most are compatible, so I would imagine multi-disc and games requiring the 1541 would run fine.

Well, you're talking about an emulator, I'm talking about the original hardware. I can run any C64 software I want in emulation, but on the actual computer, it's a little trickier. When you're in the game, and you're prompted to insert disk 2, there's no way to break out of the game to load the disk 2 file, because it's an 8-bit, mono-tasking computer.

The SD readers all claim to have a disk-swap function, but it doesn't really work reliably... or at all. I could never get it to work on the one that I have, and it was a very common complaint. They work fine for the vast majority of titles, but they have no processing power, or resources to share with the computer when it needs it, and they suck at swapping disks. That's pretty much the whole reason why the Pi-1541 emulator was developed.

PoodlesAgain · Thu Oct 14, 2021 9:17 am

OK, I now see that folks are holding on the original material.
Amazon seem to have "bundle" cartridges, various level of quality, for 35 bucks.

My interest is/was mostly to see if the unit works, and get a rough idea what the games of the era looked like. Oh well.

rrobbone · Thu Oct 14, 2021 12:17 pm

Three more suggestions:

Grab a copy of Super Mario Bros., any reseller should have 'em for around ten bucks. Arguably one of the best games on the system, plentiful and inexpensive.

Grab an Everdrive N8 Pro flash cart. They're about $150, but you would have the ability to have all the games. All of them, on one cart. (Then again, a quality emulation handheld that plays everything PS1 and older runs about the same price).

Flip that NES. If it's clean and complete it's an easy $150-$175.

Thu Oct 14, 2021 12:28 pm

I have only ever had one video game. It still works (or did when I packed it away.) I bought it from some guy named Bushnell who was selling them
out of his basement out in silicon valley somewhere. He ran classified ads in Popular Electronics & Electronics Illustrated. All he sold was printed circuit boards
with parts list & assembly instructions. It was called "PONG."

rrobbone · Thu Oct 14, 2021 12:44 pm

mickey wrote: ↑Thu Oct 14, 2021 12:28 pm I have only ever had one video game. It still works (or did when I packed it away.) I bought it from some guy named Bushnell who was selling them
out of his basement out in silicon valley somewhere. He ran classified ads in Popular Electronics & Electronics Illustrated. All he sold was printed circuit boards
with parts list & assembly instructions. It was called "PONG."

Sounds like an industrious type who might've gone on to great success, this Bushnell.

Thu Oct 14, 2021 1:05 pm

rrobbone wrote: ↑Thu Oct 14, 2021 12:44 pm
mickey wrote: ↑Thu Oct 14, 2021 12:28 pm I have only ever had one video game. It still works (or did when I packed it away.) I bought it from some guy named Bushnell who was selling them
out of his basement out in silicon valley somewhere. He ran classified ads in Popular Electronics & Electronics Illustrated. All he sold was printed circuit boards
with parts list & assembly instructions. It was called "PONG."
Sounds like an industrious type who might've gone on to great success, this Bushnell.

Perhaps, the last I heard he was selling pizza.

Mossman · Sun Oct 17, 2021 6:45 am

mickey wrote: ↑Thu Oct 14, 2021 1:05 pm
rrobbone wrote: ↑Thu Oct 14, 2021 12:44 pm
mickey wrote: ↑Thu Oct 14, 2021 12:28 pm I have only ever had one video game. It still works (or did when I packed it away.) I bought it from some guy named Bushnell who was selling them
out of his basement out in silicon valley somewhere. He ran classified ads in Popular Electronics & Electronics Illustrated. All he sold was printed circuit boards
with parts list & assembly instructions. It was called "PONG."
Sounds like an industrious type who might've gone on to great success, this Bushnell.
Perhaps, the last I heard he was selling pizza.

That crashed and burned a long time ago. Terrible... the smell of burning rodent flesh.