Kahenraz wrote on 2024-11-23, 23:13:
I pre-ordered and Analogue 3D. The N64 is my favorite games console. I'm really looking forward to playing my old games on a crisp high resolution display!
https://www.analogue.co/3d
Looks like a nice piece of hardware, but it seems like they're pretty heavy on the advertising and tugging at CRT nostalgia considering that it isn't physically possible for the vast majority of modern displays to reproduce a CRT-like image. The closest you can get is with a high end LCD gaming monitor that has a well optimized backlight strobing feature (see BenQ monitors with DyAC\Blur Reduction, or Viewsonic's two "Blur Busters Approved" models), or on some level an OLED with black frame insertion... though most do not have BFI built in anymore so black frames have to be inserted by the source (ie, a PC), and strangely enough it seems like the Analogue3D makes no mention of providing BFI for OLED displays, despite all the CRT hype (also, BFI does not work as intended on most LCDs).
I am not a big N64 guy myself, but I can appreciate getting the best quality emulation of original hardware... so, I can see the draw of a system like this if that is your thing and you have the money for it. It just feels pretty disingenuous for them to focus so heavily on how their fancy display stuff will make it nearly INDISTINGUISHABLE* from a CRT, without mentioning that this will be heavily dependent on your display.
*Actual quote from the website:
Unlike its 2D predecessors, the N64 wasn't just about pixels. The original hardware's distinctive approach to rendering polygons […]
Show full quote
Unlike its 2D predecessors, the N64 wasn't just about pixels. The original hardware's distinctive approach to rendering polygons and textures depends on the CRT far more critically than simpler 2D systems. Even game developers had to leverage the interplay between the hardware and a CRT to achieve harmony.
While a very few modern upscalers have transformed the 2D era of video games with pixel-perfect clarity, the N64 demands something far more radical: the unmistakable essence of a CRT.
Analogue3D brings true CRT reference quality to your HDTV in 4K. Experience the N64 with unmatched authenticity and zero lag. It's the N64, reborn.
Analogue3D's Original Display Modes are meticulously reproduced, virtually indistinguishable recreations of CRT displays. Capturing the warmth, depth, and texture in every frame. The soft glow of phosphor and vibrant colors unite with immersive scanlines and shadow masks. This isn't just upscaling — it's an unprecedented transformation.
Also, the marketing seems to imply that games will run internally at 4K resolution, but realistically you're going to be playing games at ~240p upscaled to whatever your display's native resolution is. I believe that modern PCs running an emulator can pretty easily render n64 games at much higher than native resolution.
I think they're trying to differentiate themselves from just running emulators by making claims of features that don't exist in emulators (perfect-CRT-like image? Sounds awesome!)... but these are display limitations, not software\hardware\source limitations.
