Today's super little article is about a nice new development for the Panasonic 3DO. Developer Todd Gill has released 3DO ODE Menu, a replacement interface for several popular optical drive emulators that makes browsing and managing games stored on SD cards easier.

It introduces cover artwork, favorites, recently played games, faster navigation, customizable themes and some useful improvements for multidisc games like Wing Commander III. Gill has also created a companion Cover Maker utility that can automatically find and prepare game artwork, which is a particularly nice touch. I've included plenty of screenshots showing the new interface and how it all works.

I love seeing developers continue to improve the experience of using original hardware, especially for consoles like the 3DO that don't always receive as much attention as Nintendo and Sega's machines. It's not a new emulator or a replacement console, just a nice, useful quality-of-life improvement for people still enjoying their 3DOs more than thirty years later!

Today's super little article is about a nice new development for the Panasonic 3DO. Developer Todd Gill has released 3DO ODE Menu, a replacement interface for several popular optical drive emulators that makes browsing and managing games stored on SD cards easier.

It introduces cover artwork, favorites, recently played games, faster navigation, customizable themes and some useful improvements for multidisc games like Wing Commander III. Gill has also created a companion Cover Maker utility that can automatically find and prepare game artwork, which is a particularly nice touch. I've included plenty of screenshots showing the new interface and how it all works.

I love seeing developers continue to improve the experience of using original hardware, especially for consoles like the 3DO that don't always receive as much attention as Nintendo and Sega's machines. It's not a new emulator or a replacement console, just a nice, useful quality-of-life improvement for people still enjoying their 3DOs more than thirty years later!

Today's mini article is about Dolphin Depot, a new project from developer Webhdx that essentially gives the original Nintendo GameCube its own homebrew app store.

Publicly announced a little earlier this week, Dolphin Depot allows everyone to browse, download and install homebrew applications directly on their GameCube, rather than having to track everything down individually and transfer files from a pc. There's also a website where you can explore the catalogue, which includes emulators, utilities and homebrew games.

You still need a homebrew-capable GameCube and a network connection, of course, but I think it's a fun addition to the console's homebrew scene. Feels and looks like a true hack! I like how it makes older projects easier to discover, like for people who are only just getting into GameCube homebrew. It's just ...nice seeing these sorts of modern things arrive on hardware that's now twenty-five years old :)

Yet again, this is one of those 'niche-within-a-niche' projects I find and write about!

Today's mini article is about Dolphin Depot, a new project from developer Webhdx that essentially gives the original Nintendo GameCube its own homebrew app store.

Publicly announced a little earlier this week, Dolphin Depot allows everyone to browse, download and install homebrew applications directly on their GameCube, rather than having to track everything down individually and transfer files from a pc. There's also a website where you can explore the catalogue, which includes emulators, utilities and homebrew games.

You still need a homebrew-capable GameCube and a network connection, of course, but I think it's a fun addition to the console's homebrew scene. Feels and looks like a true hack! I like how it makes older projects easier to discover, like for people who are only just getting into GameCube homebrew. It's just ...nice seeing these sorts of modern things arrive on hardware that's now twenty-five years old :)

Yet again, this is one of those 'niche-within-a-niche' projects I find and write about!

Here's an exciting little piece of Sega history that's recently come to light! Former Sega Technical Institute programmer Ken Rose kept a collection of floppy disks from his time at the studio in the early 1990s, and thanks to the preservation efforts of Hidden Palace and DevStash, their contents have now been recovered and documented.

Among the discoveries are prototypes, original source code and development documents from six projects, including Treasure Tails, a cancelled isometric puzzle adventure starring Sonic's sidekick, as well as Jester, B-Bomb, Dark Empires and Segapede. There's even an early build of Kid Chameleon. Some of these games were never released, while others survive in playable forms.

What I love most is how much of the development history has survived alongside the games themselves, including the reasons certain projects were cancelled and the people who worked on them. It's amazing that we're still uncovering new pieces of Mega Drive history more than thirty years later. I've included some of the recovered artwork and prototype screenshots in the article, along with links to Hidden Palace's original preservation work.

As ever, who knows if this is even worth mentioning, this is just the daily little article for my NeoCities experiment :)

Here's an exciting little piece of Sega history that's recently come to light! Former Sega Technical Institute programmer Ken Rose kept a collection of floppy disks from his time at the studio in the early 1990s, and thanks to the preservation efforts of Hidden Palace and DevStash, their contents have now been recovered and documented.

Among the discoveries are prototypes, original source code and development documents from six projects, including Treasure Tails, a cancelled isometric puzzle adventure starring Sonic's sidekick, as well as Jester, B-Bomb, Dark Empires and Segapede. There's even an early build of Kid Chameleon. Some of these games were never released, while others survive in playable forms.

What I love most is how much of the development history has survived alongside the games themselves, including the reasons certain projects were cancelled and the people who worked on them. It's amazing that we're still uncovering new pieces of Mega Drive history more than thirty years later. I've included some of the recovered artwork and prototype screenshots in the article, along with links to Hidden Palace's original preservation work.

As ever, who knows if this is even worth mentioning, this is just the daily little article for my NeoCities experiment :)

For anyone unfamiliar with it, DroidDeck is a relatively new, open-source Android application that aims to bring the full Steam client and PC gaming experience to Android devices (phones, tablets, retro handhelds), without requiring users to root their phones or replace Android with another operating system. It's a big project, particularly for those interested in handheld gaming and the possibilities of running Linux software on Android hardware.

I've been chatting with the people behind DroidDeck over the last few weeks, and what began as a feature article about the project turned into a rather extensive interview with five of its developers: The412Banner, Max, xXJSONDeruloXx, Kimchi and Astro Sky. We discussed everything: from their earliest experiments with Linux, Steam and Gamescope to the technical challenges involved, automated testing, open-source development and where they hope to take DroidDeck in the future.

I've now published the complete interview on my NeoCity/Handheld Hideout site, with all 87 questions and their individual answers, organized into linked sections so you can jump straight to the topics that interest you. There's a lot of technical detail in there, but also some personal stories about how the developers met, their early breakthroughs and what keeps them working on the project.

And to be transparent about their work, DroidDeck does make use of AI-assisted development. They discuss that openly in the interview when asked, including how the developers use AI tools, automated testing and code reviews as part of their workflow.

For anyone unfamiliar with it, DroidDeck is a relatively new, open-source Android application that aims to bring the full Steam client and PC gaming experience to Android devices (phones, tablets, retro handhelds), without requiring users to root their phones or replace Android with another operating system. It's a big project, particularly for those interested in handheld gaming and the possibilities of running Linux software on Android hardware.

I've been chatting with the people behind DroidDeck over the last few weeks, and what began as a feature article about the project turned into a rather extensive interview with five of its developers: The412Banner, Max, xXJSONDeruloXx, Kimchi and Astro Sky. We discussed everything: from their earliest experiments with Linux, Steam and Gamescope to the technical challenges involved, automated testing, open-source development and where they hope to take DroidDeck in the future.

I've now published the complete interview on my NeoCity/Handheld Hideout site, with all 87 questions and their individual answers, organized into linked sections so you can jump straight to the topics that interest you. There's a lot of technical detail in there, but also some personal stories about how the developers met, their early breakthroughs and what keeps them working on the project.

And to be transparent about their work, DroidDeck does make use of AI-assisted development. They discuss that openly in the interview when asked, including how the developers use AI tools, automated testing and code reviews as part of their workflow.

For anyone unfamiliar with it, DroidDeck is a relatively new, open-source Android application that aims to bring the full Steam client and PC gaming experience to Android devices (phones, tablets, retro handhelds), without requiring users to root their phones or replace Android with another operating system. It's a big project, particularly for those interested in handheld gaming and the possibilities of running Linux software on Android hardware.

I've been chatting with the people behind DroidDeck over the last few weeks, and what began as a feature article about the project turned into a rather extensive interview with five of its developers: The412Banner, Max, xXJSONDeruloXx, Kimchi and Astro Sky. We discussed everything: from their earliest experiments with Linux, Steam and Gamescope to the technical challenges involved, automated testing, open-source development and where they hope to take DroidDeck in the future.

I've now published the complete interview on my NeoCity/Handheld Hideout site, with all 87 questions and their individual answers, organized into linked sections so you can jump straight to the topics that interest you. There's a lot of technical detail in there, but also some personal stories about how the developers met, their early breakthroughs and what keeps them working on the project.

And to be transparent about their work, DroidDeck does make use of AI-assisted development. They discuss that openly in the interview when asked, including how the developers use AI tools, automated testing and code reviews as part of their workflow.

I've been chatting with Lazorne, IceNine, Xargon and Lahrs from the RetroDECK team again, and I've put together a fairly lengthy feature about their upcoming 0.11.0 update, which is without a doubt their biggest yet (although I do say that each time!).

For anyone unfamiliar with it, RetroDECK is a self-contained retro gaming platform for the Steam Deck and other Linux devices. It brings emulators, game engines and other tools together into one convenient package, taking so much of the hassle out of installing, configuring and maintaining everything. It has always been my recommendation for the Steam Deck, though obviously it isn't locked to just the Deck.

Version 0.11.0 is a pretty enormous step forward. The team has announced 23 new components, including Xbox 360 emulation through Xenia Edge, support for lesser-known computers such as the FM Towns and SAM Coupé, classic game engines, interactive fiction through Gargoyle, and even Mudlet for accessing old text-based multiplayer worlds. There's also a substantial overhaul of RetroDECK's underlying architecture, making it easier for the devs to integrate and maintain all these different components, while keeping things straightforward for users.

But what I found most interesting while interviewing the team was just how much of this work is driven by their personal experiences and passion for preservation. We talked about old gaming communities that are somehow still alive, forgotten hardware, the importance of making obscure systems accessible, and even Xargon's previously unannounced project to preserve and emulate the 2-XL talking robot from the 1970s.

I think projects like RetroDECK have an increasingly important role to play in game preservation. It's not just about making old games playable on modern hardware, but helping people discover systems, communities and experiences they might never have known existed. And the easier those things are to access, the better their chances of finding new audiences.

It's a long read, admittedly, but I really wanted to give the developers room to tell their stories rather than simply run through a list of new features. Hope someone here enjoys this :)

I've been chatting with Lazorne, IceNine, Xargon and Lahrs from the RetroDECK team again, and I've put together a fairly lengthy feature about their upcoming 0.11.0 update, which is without a doubt their biggest yet (although I do say that each time!).

For anyone unfamiliar with it, RetroDECK is a self-contained retro gaming platform for the Steam Deck and other Linux devices. It brings emulators, game engines and other tools together into one convenient package, taking so much of the hassle out of installing, configuring and maintaining everything. It has always been my recommendation for the Steam Deck, though obviously it isn't locked to just the Deck.

Version 0.11.0 is a pretty enormous step forward. The team has announced 23 new components, including Xbox 360 emulation through Xenia Edge, support for lesser-known computers such as the FM Towns and SAM Coupé, classic game engines, interactive fiction through Gargoyle, and even Mudlet for accessing old text-based multiplayer worlds. There's also a substantial overhaul of RetroDECK's underlying architecture, making it easier for the devs to integrate and maintain all these different components, while keeping things straightforward for users.

But what I found most interesting while interviewing the team was just how much of this work is driven by their personal experiences and passion for preservation. We talked about old gaming communities that are somehow still alive, forgotten hardware, the importance of making obscure systems accessible, and even Xargon's previously unannounced project to preserve and emulate the 2-XL talking robot from the 1970s.

I think projects like RetroDECK have an increasingly important role to play in game preservation. It's not just about making old games playable on modern hardware, but helping people discover systems, communities and experiences they might never have known existed. And the easier those things are to access, the better their chances of finding new audiences.

It's a long read, admittedly, but I really wanted to give the developers room to tell their stories rather than simply run through a list of new features. Hope someone here enjoys this :)