NHL 2024 ['94] by JKline3 and von Ozbourne

[smozoma]

FYI the forum makes it difficult to know which one to download. I like Adam's system of putting the latest one under a "Current Version" heading and the others under "Old Versions"

 

[von Ozbourne]

Hmm. Good point. I mean, my thought process is that the addendums get added to the end...um, but when our esteemed competitor is using a completely opposing methodology, possibly in an attempt to breed confusion and distrust in our efforts, I suppose one can only respond with additional clarity.

I guess one could respond with like vitriol and contempt, but there is enough of that in this world as it is, and unlike our esteemed competition, I do not wish to contribute to that narrative or environment, so I mean that one should only respond with additional clarity.

I did however add some text to make clearer the chronology of updates in the original post.

[smozoma]

Haha, thanks!

I was trying to explain what to get to someone on reddit since people tend to not know what a ROM is

[von Ozbourne]

On 5/23/2024 at 9:51 PM, smozoma said:

I was trying to explain what to get to someone on reddit since people tend to not know what a ROM is

I found myself getting hung up on this as the idea seemed so foreign. But then I had to remind myself that I grew up in an era when every computer game came on a shiny disc with a hole in the center and the initials "CD-ROM" prominently emblazoned on it somewhere. Now, with physical media being less prominent [with gamers as opposed to collectors] and many game playing experiences beginning simply with "Open Steam account or home screen on device of choice and click an icon", has what used to be considered general knowledge become a barrier to entry?

[AdamCatalyst]

Here’s my best attempt. “A ROM is technically a Read Only Memory, like a Nintendo Switch cartridge. You can’t save any files on a Switch cartridge but you can read the data and play the game. When people refer to ROMs, they are often referring to a digital file that is a copy of the data on a ROM. Since many old video games were only available on cartridges, the term ROM is often associated with retro gaming. These ROM files can be played on emulator software or hardware on a computer or compatible device.”

Edited May 25, 2024 by AdamCatalyst

[Matt55]

Nicely done!

I will offer this definition for people like me:

“A ROM is ‘cartridge’ for an emulator.*”
 

      *(a computer program that imitates a video game system).

Edited May 25, 2024 by Matt55

[smozoma]

Yeah I try to break it down as the ROM is the whole game, that you play with emulator. Calling it the cartridge is a good idea. Then I mention the origin of the name ROM as an aside.

A lot of people think the ROM file is a patch. They want to install NHL'94 and then install the update.

[AdamCatalyst]

33 minutes ago, smozoma said:

Yeah I try to break it down as the ROM is the whole game, that you play with emulator.

That sounds perfect.

[von Ozbourne]

3 hours ago, smozoma said:

A lot of people think the ROM file is a patch. They want to install NHL'94 and then install the update.

Huh. I never would have thought of it that way. I wonder if that type of process is related to the prevalence of "Live service" these days.

Although to be honest, other than DLC and patches for games on my Switch, I tend to prefer to deal with "final versions" to avoid messing with updates. [and I rarely get games when they are new these days anyway] At least with a ROM, it should theoretically be easier as there is no updating to worry about, just a new standalone file.

[AdamCatalyst]

18 hours ago, von Ozbourne said:

Although to be honest, other than DLC and patches for games on my Switch, I tend to prefer to deal with "final versions" to avoid messing with updates. [and I rarely get games when they are new these days anyway]

The games industry does it backwards. They ask people to pre-buy a game based on hype, and the version on disc is increasingly useless without day one patches. They should instead sell digital versions only at launch at a slightly discounted price, and take pre-orders for the archival edition on disc, which will contain all the patches, dlc, etc and never require an online connection, but isn’t released until years later. They can then gauge the production amount of disc versions by the pre-order demand, and strategize to double dip by having hardcore fans buy it all again once it goes “archival” for a slightly premium price. If the games industry goes digital-only, they are leaving money on the table that passionate fans and collectors would gladly hand them for a proper archival ROM. 

Edited May 26, 2024 by AdamCatalyst

[von Ozbourne]

12 hours ago, AdamCatalyst said:

The games industry does it backwards. They ask people to pre-buy a game based on hype,

Unfortunately, I would have to say that the industry knows exactly what they are doing. While your idea would make the most sense for a whole bunch of reasons, The problem is that it relinquishes a bit of that control that the publishers cling to like Gollum to the ring. And similar to the NHL's issue these days, their standard operating procedure is to grab the quick buck now, even at the expense of more money later. [At least the NHL hasn't figured out how to make a terms of service for jerseys so you are not allowed to own the one you bought, but merely pay for a limited term licence. Although, they are switching to Fanatics next year...]

The other part of it is that they need the hype. And pre-orders. And embargoes on reviews. And limited run FOMO. That way they get your money before you have any idea whether or not they even deserve it. And keep the buying public in the dark until it is too late to do anything about it. Basically, this is why I'm glad I never really got out of my childhood habit of being very frugal with my allowance and would wait for games to go on sale or at least until the reviews were out and I knew if I would still find a game worth buying.

That said, I would totally be okay with your "double dip" model if it meant that physical editions would not just be code-in-a-box, occasionally with a decorative coaster included.

[AdamCatalyst]

@von Ozbourne yeah I know. My main disagreement is that they are murdering physical copies, when they should be changing the day one physical copy to a late released archival collectors item. It's a last gasp way to re-monetize a title, well after the initial sales surge (and potential sales loss because of piracy) is gone. There really shouldn't be day 1 disc versions, since as you know it is essentially a download code at worst for the consumer, and for the publisher it is essentially a way to have the media hacked and pirated. Rather than get rid of physical media, they should sell it later. There are games that I love so much I would pay for again, to have it forever, in its entirety, in a nice package. Only a small amount of people would be interested, but it would be almost pure profit at that point.

Yeah, I generally buy games after they have been out a few years, and just set price trackers to let me know when a title reaches a sale price that makes sense. My backlog is so massive, there is no point paying a premium for a new game, when there are so many modern classics on deep discount that I've yet to get to. New release prices are way outside of my comfort level. That being said, I've bought stellar titles for less than $10 that I would have easily handed over another $50 for after the fact, if they had something more to sell me.

[Ronnie]

The seasons almost here!  Woohoo!  When's the latest ROM gonna drop?  :-)

[von Ozbourne]

Unfortunately the past couple of weeks have been an absolute gong show at work and I haven't been able to find enough free time to finish this year's edition up. The good news that everything presentation-wise was done over the summer, but the NHL was so slow in releasing the new player photos [with a full third of teams only just updating their sites two days ago] that I haven't been able to convert them for use in the game. @Jkline3 is almost done with the rosters and ratings at least and I'm thinking I can have at a minimum the starting lineups ready in a day or two. I'm thinking we'll try to post the "Pre-Season" edition this weekend with the idea of figuring out the accurate bottom line combos and seeing which prospects and role players manage to stick around longer than the first couple weeks, and get the rest of the player photos fixed up by the end of the month.

So, stay tuned?

[Ronnie]

1 hour ago, von Ozbourne said:

Unfortunately the past couple of weeks have been an absolute gong show at work and I haven't been able to find enough free time to finish this year's edition up. The good news that everything presentation-wise was done over the summer, but the NHL was so slow in releasing the new player photos [with a full third of teams only just updating their sites two days ago] that I haven't been able to convert them for use in the game. @Jkline3 is almost done with the rosters and ratings at least and I'm thinking I can have at a minimum the starting lineups ready in a day or two. I'm thinking we'll try to post the "Pre-Season" edition this weekend with the idea of figuring out the accurate bottom line combos and seeing which prospects and role players manage to stick around longer than the first couple weeks, and get the rest of the player photos fixed up by the end of the month.

So, stay tuned?

Sweet dude yeah sounds good and no worries at all. 😊 No rush at all please take your time.  Life is busy and work is certainly important.  I’m thankful that you do this for our community 😊