What Retrogaming topics did you/do you find intimidating?

[racketboy]

I'm trying to think about the big picture goals for organizing existing content and developing new content. I want to think about people that are coming to the site with a problem/goal in mind. I want Racketboy to be the place that solves their problem.

What items in the world of retrogaming were most intimidating to you a while back before you dug in?

What items are still intimidating for you to learn or research?

I hear a handful of people that seem to fall in this area with Raspberry Pi / modern emulation stuff. Are there other topics that come to mind?

I know there may be really detailed, geeky stuff but I'm trying to think about the middle ground that isn't beginner stuff but not deep expert.

[SamuraiMegas]

would console hardmods and softmods count?

[miked]

What items in the world of retrogaming were most intimidating to you a while back before you dug in?

Video signals and quality. I always knew the basics like component is better than S-video, S-video is better than composite etc. and I knew that my retro consoles looked better on a CRT, but I didn't really understand why until earlier this year.

I had no idea that SD CRTs were capable of displaying a progressive 240 resolution and just always assumed everything was running at 480i. Right when I figured this out I booted up my softmodded Wii and set my emulators to display in "original" mode aka 240p. My mind was blown. No more soft flickering image. I had tried that mode on an LCD years ago, but it didn't support 240, so I always thought it was kind of an automatic "make my games look crappy" setting.

Besides getting into the connections supported by consoles in the US, get into SCART cables and using SCART to component converters to connect them to American TVs. Also the aftermarket solutions like the HD Retrovision cables (which now support the Sega Saturn BTW) and mods like the NES and N64 RGB kits.

would console hardmods and softmods count?

I have always wanted to see more articles like this on the front page.

[racketboy]

Of the mods, can you list a top 5 or 10 systems/mods to cover?

The video stuff is good ideas too!

[Nemoide]

Imports.
Is there any actual value in a step-down voltage converter for Japanese consoles in the USA? Are there ever issues with playinbg PAL games on non-region-locked NTSC consoles (eg Sega Master System)? These are questions I *still* have despite being fairly seasoned in the realm of imports.

[marurun]

Japan to the US? Nah, not really.

[Sarge]

Hacks and mods are always a bit obtuse, and as I saw someone else lamenting on another forum, the steps for them are almost always poorly written and organized.

[racketboy]

Hacks and mods are always a bit obtuse, and as I saw someone else lamenting on another forum, the steps for them are almost always poorly written and organized.

We can try to help with that

[SamuraiMegas]

Xbox/Wii/psp softmods let you do crazy amounts of stuff. Ps2 soft mods let you boot burned games. Dreamcast doesn't need mods, but burning stuff could be covered.

I don't know much about hardmods but there's some for PS1 I kniw for burned games

[CFFJR]

Arcade hardware at home. Not cabinets though.

Superguns
Consolized mvs or other hardware
Explanations for connections and what you actually need for greatest or at least minimum compatibility
The best source for these things and what to avoid

Essentially, this is what you need to accomplish _____.

I've found information for this stuff that still seems to be assuming I know things that I actually don't.

In any case, I don't think the site has coverage for this subject yet, so I'd like to see it.