This is why the importance of emulation should never be underestimated.
#Sega saturn emulator software#
Game consoles don’t last forever, and without projects like this, entire libraries of software could essentially lose it’s function someday. What I can tell you, and this is pretty much inarguable, is that SSF is by far the best means of playing a Saturn without actually owning one. There’s bound to be some knowledge to be had in his forum, but we’ll need someone to translate. So how did just one person accomplish that which all others could never quite reach, including Sega itself? I wish I had that answer for you, but I’ve yet to find any kind of interview with this mysterious Japanese programmer, who goes by the alias, Shima.
#Sega saturn emulator professional#
If such a console were so hard for experienced, professional programmers to work with, the notion of emulating the machine must strike fear and doubt into the hearts of all who dream it. Developers struggled to produce the experiences they envisioned within the time-frame allotted. In fact, it’s one of the key factors which led to machine’s downfall in the face of the Sony Playstation. It’s no secret that many developer interviews in the mid-90’s cited the Sega Saturn as a very complex and challenging machine to work with. It may be time to dust off some old consoles and relive one of gaming’s greatest eras.SSF: A Nearly-Perfect Sega Saturn Emulator Is that worth the nearly $200 price of something like the MODE? For a lot of hardcore gamers - especially those who are privy to the Saturn and Dreamcast’s vast Japanese libraries - the answer could be yes. But emulators simply don’t have that magic that original hardware does. Most of these games can be played on an emulator. While read times are carefully kept the same as an actual optical drive, the lack of seek time on solid state media means that games should load much faster. The device supports SD cards, 2.5-inch SSDs and hard drives and USB drives, which can hold and load a variety of (legally obtained) ROM files. It’s plug-and-play, so once the optical drive is removed, installing the MODE is just a matter of fitting it into the console and connecting the power and data cables.
The MODE’s firmware is the same for both consoles, meaning users can order one device that will work for either console. Terraonion, which has shipped various flash carts for Neo-Geo and Sega Genesis, is aiming to make an optical disc emulator that works with all Saturn and Dreamcast models, and is easy to obtain and install. However they’re not a panacea - only certain console revisions are supported, some chips need to be soldered to the console and, with the company being a one-man operation, the products are extremely scarce.
A small company named GDEMU has made similar devices for the Saturn and Dreamcast since 2015. Replacing optical discs with more modern storage media isn’t a new idea.
The Terraonion MODE - Multi-Optical Disc Emulator - simply drops into your console of choice, reads ROMs from a storage medium, and passes the data onto the console for processing. Hardcore gamers who miss titles like Panzer Dragoon Saga and Power Stone may want to perform life-saving surgery on their Sega Saturn or Dreamcast consoles this summer, as a new solution will be able to replace dead disc drives, with no soldering skills needed.
As their optical drives burn out, they’re rendered unplayable, which is a shame - these systems were the peak of gaming in the eyes of many. Classic disc-based consoles are getting long in the tooth.
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