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June 24, 2005
A Siren's Call
As with any respectable consumer I have a mentally tabulated list of all those material goodies that I desire. Each product, good or service that occupies the list is scored in an abstract, semi-objective kind of way with its number of priority fluctuating due to a myriad of random forces. For instance: if I am desperately craving a Milky Way Midnight, my strong desire for it coupled by my ability to afford it joined with the fact that I am approaching a convenience store will instantly promote it to the number one spot (and its impending purchase). For other more important purchases (such as this delicious piece of heaven) its rank may be upgraded due to something like a price drop or free RAM etc.
Two devices that fluctuate in their priority (but rarely ever reach the top 15) are the Nintendo DS and Sony's PSP. Though they are adept at stimulating the gadget preceptors in my brain they can never find purchase on the absolutist value-oriented region of my cognitive process. I just can't justify spending hundreds of dollars on a portable object that I will never take advantage of while on-the-go. Every time I slip into a reverie while standing in front of either of the devices in question I try to mediate a discussion between the aforementioned gadget and value sides of my brain in hopes of coming to some sort of consensus.
Mr. Gadget presents flashy graphs in a Powerpoint-esque style presentation, dazzling me with facts and figures on how much joy will be gleaned from the device. Inevitably Dr. Value (yes he has a degree) responds with a single statement outlining very simply that these antecedent experiences will take place on my futon directly in front of an already purchased television, XBOX, Gamecube and N64. In a well rehearsed manner he concludes in a verbose, lucid way that this essentially would both render their purchases and the portability of this new device obsolete. I assure you he is quite persuasive and I will notify you of any lectures he may be conducting locally in the near future.
However, more recent news has arisen over the PSP which instantly promoted it on my list that would impress even the pragmatic Dr. Value.
I have always been a rabid fan of emulation citing the ability to relive my earliest experiences in electronic entertainment without having to haul out and set up the archaic hardware it once ran on as my reasons for absolute affection. I remember the first time I saw Super Mario Brothers load on NESticle in my 75mhz Toshiba Satellite Pro during my sophomore year of high school being an experience akin to falling madly in love with a women. This moment was accelerated to ecstasy when I learned I could download an unrestricted amount of these ROMs for free allowing me to have the game collection I always dreamed of.
I was so thankful to these websites that I started my very own despite the fact that at the time I was utterly incapable of doing so. I began viewing the page source of my favorite websites teaching myself to construct my own creations a la Dr. Frankenstein eventually revealing 'DaRKCaT's Emulation Zone' (oh, how I wish it still existed so I could provide a nostalgic link) as a hub for all manner of NES emulation addicts such as myself. In fact, these first piracy driven forays into web design is what led to the career I now find myself happily involved in. That first site proved to be a successful venture ending in an e-mail from Tripod stating that my creation would be taken down because of notification from Nintendo stating that I was violating copyright law. For a moment I contemplated surrounding myself with a team of savvy lawyers to fight this noble battle but decided against it considering one of my high school buddies was coming over with a freshly purchased eighth.
Though my days of ROM distribution and pot smoking are long in the past my affection for the medium of emulation remains because it allows one to experience old software on a new platform and this is exactly what the KXSpoit Homebrew Pack enables on all PSPs. What makes it different from other emulators is that this one is portable allowing one to enjoy a game of Excitebike on the train or some virtual hacky-sack in California games after a rousing session of actual 'hacking' outside of your dorm room.
What is so amusing to me about this whole situation is how adamant Sony is at obstructing the proliferation of this application to everyone who has a PSP. Now not only could you play PSP games on this thing but actual Nintendo software which would instantly help the device sell to the company's adamant fanboy contingent. Hell, you guys all remember how much I was against it but with the prospect of fluidly functioning emulation (sans card swapping) I am thrilled with the future possibilities.
I am aware of their existence but if I find myself privy to a first-party demonstration of a competent SNES emulator it will arouse in me an intense desire to have the sublime experiences of Extra Innings and Super Punchout (among others) in my pocket. Nintendo could cut off this very dangerous horse at the pass if they would just release these treasures through that downloadable content they lauded prior to the DS's release. I don't really care who does it best just as long as I can take part in the nostalgia.
Wow, three posts in a week. I'm a veritable machine.
Posted by Jon at June 24, 2005 10:11 PM