– Retrodrömmar
The Dreamcast was released in 1998 and is still going strong. However, as with any old console, it requires some maintenance and updates to keep functioning. Even if the Dreamcast is built like a tank, one weak point is the power supply unit (PSU). It may fail over time, and generates heat that may shorten the lifetime of other components. Thus, it is a good…
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It has become increasingly popular to release small modern versions of classic consoles and computers as examplified by The NES / SNES mini, the C64 mini / maxi, and also the Amiga 500 (A500) mini. In this post I will describe how to add extra games to your Amiga 500 mini, for those of you who want extra games in addition to the 25 built…
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The original Xbox was released in 2001, way over 20 years ago at the time of writing this post. The console is built like a tank, but as any old piece of electronic, it has some weaknesses. Except for failing DVD-drive and old IDE hard drives, many of the early Xboxes suffer from old capacitors. If left untouched, these capacitors may start to leak and…
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I love the TAC-2 joystick! I tend to buy them whenever I see them at a good price at Swedish eBay. However, every other joystick has an issue with a direction or button not working. The most common cause of these failures are a broken cable. Luckily, it is fixable with a replacement cable, and some soldering, as shown below. This may be a suitable…
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In this post I will write a few paragraphs about my “Victor” 386. The computer is a “Swedish” made 386, with a rather unique form factor. I bought it for about $50 in 2019. I remember back in the early 2000s when these computers were collecting dust in the second hand stores for $5 a piece. Quite the price development! Victor V386MX specifications CPU: 386…
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I recently bought a faulty “Gakken Super Cobra” game on Swedish eBay. It is a handheld device that was released in 1981/82, based on Konami’s arcade game. In this post I describe the quick repair I conducted on the game, and provide some images of its inside. The unit would not power on with batteries, and the reason was quite obvious, as the battery connectors…
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In the mid-90s, the gaming industry was experiencing a switch from 2D to 3D gaming. With advancements in technology, the potential for more graphically advance video games was at an all-time high. The Nintendo 64 (N64) was Nintendo’s sequel to Super Nintendo (SNES). Released in 1996, what set the N64 apart from its predecessors was its capability to render 3D graphics, a significant leap from…
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When I bought a Wii U the other year (2022-ish), it was mostly out of curiosity. A failed console often has an interesting story behind it, and a few interesting games that make it worth a revisit. If it is possible to run homebrew games or modify the console to run non-commercial software (including pirated games), it enhances the possibility of creating a nostalgic fan-base…
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I recently bought an AMIGA CD32 from Swedish eBay. This console has been on my wanted list for quite some time. I never owned it as a child, but I have a very clear memory of playing the game “Microcosm” at a demo room in a store in the mid 1990s. The AMIGA CD32, released in 1993, was Commodore’s last stand to avoid bankruptcy, and…
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World of Warcraft (WoW) hardcore mode started out as a fan made version of the original game, with a lot of restrictions of what the player was allowed to do (no trading, quest grouping etc), and one fundamental rule: if you die, you have to delete your character. The people at Blizzard were not late to monetize on this idea and therefore created official hardcore…
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