I know, not really “retro” per say, but maybe in spirit it is.
Id like to know if anyone here has one and what you’ve been using it for.
I use the built-in atari os when I want to play a game quickly and with no issues. I also installed mint on an external ssd for playing low power steam games and emulating ps1/ps2. I eventually wanted the VCS to be my media center pc and get rid of the horrible smart tv.
Biggest issue is wireless controllers in mint. In atari os they work great, so I wonder how atari made that work since its debian based.
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I know, not really “retro” per say, but maybe in spirit it is.
Ironically, that’s exactly what retro means. Gamers use the word “retro” incorrectly.
“Retro” means:
Involving, relating to, or reminiscent of an earlier time; retrospective.
Of, or relating to the past, past times, or the way things were.
So a modern VCS is precisely retro. When people say retro gaming, what they really mean is vintage gaming.
I don’t know why every other group gets it right, but gamers don’t. Vintage clothes, vintage sneakers, vintage cars, vintage watches, and on and on. Meanwhile, retro clothing, cars, and watches are a thing, too! Think of the modern VW Beetle, or the PT Cruiser, or modern bell-bottoms jeans. Those things are retro. But if you have the real article from the past, you have something vintage. Yet gamers—and only gamers—call vintage things “retro”. It’s so weird!
Okay, I’ll bite.
My brother and I routinely dig out our old N64 when we go home for the holidays and enjoy an afternoon of retro gaming. In your opinion, I am using this incorrectly, because I’m actually vintage gaming, since I am using original hardware and software to do it (if I understand your assertion correctly).
But, our specific purpose in using that original hardware is to, as you say, “[relate] to the past, past times, or the way things were”. We engage in this ritual as an homage to when we were kids and getting a new game for Christmas was one of the highlights of the first quarter of the year. So, I argue our use case meets your definition of retro as well vintage, and that you’ve invented a false binary where none actually exists.
I was speaking about what you would call a console, not what you would call the experence of enjoying old games. An original VCS is in no way “retro”, but a modern VCS clone is perfectly fine being called retro, but not vintage.
If you want to call gaming on a vintage console, “retro gaming”, then cool. That actually makes sense. You’re recreating an experience from the past. I was talking more about the devices themselves, which is why my other examples were also about products like cars and clothes.
OP said they weren’t sure if they should call a modern VCS clone “retro”, and I was reassuring them that their usage was actually the correct usage! And that most people use it wrong. The use of “vintage” and “retro” when talking about products is very clear and binary.
All that being said, I still prefer to say playing a VCS is “vintage gaming”, but I won’t say you’re wrong for calling it “retro gaming”.
Ah I see, I misunderstood how you were applying the terms. My bad. I suppose I don’t typically talk about consoles or games independently of the experience that they offer, so whether it’s a new product with a vintage inspiration, or something vintage all the way through, I’d think of both products as retro, because, to me, they are both offering an experience reminiscent of an earlier era. I understand that’s an incredibly subjective experience though, and your take is probably more factually correct.
Its very confusing.
I don’t really even like the word retro. When people call a ps2 retro it feels a little cringe but probably just because im old and that system is still new age to me.
When people call a ps2 retro it feels a little cringe
Well, it’s not. It’s vintage, and so are you! :D
Sure its old, but its not in the realm of a 2600 or nes.
It could be as complicated as a special kernel module that you don’t have access to or as simple as a udev rule you’re missing. You’d have to dig in to the Atari OS a little to see what’s going on.
Hardly doubt it since Atari consoles are low-power (except maybe Jaguar) and are easily emulated.