MSX 35 years!

Prophet (2123)

12-07-2018, 10:33

PC's do hold nostalgic value to many people!!
In facebook retrocomputing groups you will see people trying to rebuild from parts an old pc like 286 to pentium 1, using old soundblasters/gravis ultrasound /voodoo 2 etc... I see what they want to do: just get the stuff that was cool to have back when they were younger. Same reason we all want a msx2+ or turbo R right now and all the cartridge games, because it was cool then and we could not afford it. Same reason complete in box transformers toys go for 100s of dollars.. the kids who did not have money to get cool stuff, are grown men/women now and have money to spend on cool stuff.

So I guess nostalgia depends on the person, and is really just that: personal.

To the general public both building a '90s pc or collecting MSX has no sentimental value and makes as much sense as collecting stamps or cola bottles.

Van Latok

msx guru (3938)

12-07-2018, 13:15

Sad part is, the thrill is not as intense as it would have been when you were young.... Downside of aging....

Van Colemu

Hero (542)

12-07-2018, 14:59

@syn

No need for exclamation marks as I don't disagree about your points on building a PC. I have several PC's for different eras in DOS gaming. They are all still a collection of parts. The parts, however, hold (for me) nostalgia value (i.e. Voodoo cards, Soundblaster).

Nostalgia is personal, and I was just expressing my opinion. I, personally, hold more nostalgia for the actual eras in DOS/Windows gaming and prefer to play the games on real hardware. The systems I built were just a means of doing just that. I also have several midi units to play the games how they were meant to sound.

With MSX it's the actual computers that hold the nostalgia for me. They are specific models all holding their own charm and character. The Toshiba HX-10 is the one I grew up with

Van FiXato

Scribe (1743)

12-07-2018, 15:02

I have a hard time though to picture someone trying to put together an Intel Celeron or AMD Athlon and a generic motherboard from that era, along with some DDR1 or 2 and other generic computer parts, just to experience his first PC from that era, as parts have more and more become generic. A Soundblaster audiocard or a Voodoo 3D Graphics card were new and somewhat groundbreaking; they stood out because they offered something new. A lot of things nowadays are all integrated into the motherboard, and new generations of videocards generally are just faster and have more memory, rather than offering groundbreaking new features. Hardware also is a lot quicker replaced for newer hardware, at least in the gamer communities. I wonder if there's still enough time spent with individual hardware now, to form a 'bond' with it.

Contemporary consoles offer even more of a downside for future retrogaming, with their primary focus on digital downloads from their manufacturer's online store. Users of the Nintendo Wii are already facing this fate with the Wii Store shutting down in 2019, and eventually even being unable to re-download previously purchased games.
You could argue that the PC is potentially facing the same fate with for instance Steam, but at least Steam offers an easy way to backup your games, and the PC in general makes it a lot easier to archive and retrieve your data to separate storage media, without having to remove the entire harddisk or use homebrew software. Being able to legitimately re-experience that game from your youth, might end up being an even more expensive hobby that it already can be. :)
For PC I really applaud the efforts of GOG (formerly known as Good Old Games), as they continue to work with developers, publishers and the community to patch old games to work on current PCs, and by offering DRM-free downloads so you will always be able to reinstall that game.

Van TomH

Champion (370)

12-07-2018, 16:32

I'm affected by the Wii thing; I bought a secondhand one a couple of years ago because my wife and I love lightgun games, and had otherwise slowly been filling my boots with virtual console games but that's all over because it is no longer possible to add money to your account. I guess I'm lucky that nostalgia microconsoles are back in vogue?

And 35 isn't that old! I think George Bernard Shaw didn't even start writing until he was 35.

Van syn

Prophet (2123)

12-07-2018, 16:43

Colemu wrote:

@syn

No need for exclamation marks

No worries, i was just trying to do a playful happy post. Perhaps I should have added more smileys