MAMEWorld Forums - EmuChat - Re: Question about MAME's intended purpose

> I've got a question: The Facebook page of MAME says the following about MAME's
> purpose:
>
> "M.A.M.E. is an emulator application designed to recreate the hardware of arcade game
> systems in software, with the intent of preserving gaming history and preventing
> vintage games from being lost or forgotten.
>
> The aim of M.A.M.E. is to be a reference to the inner workings of the emulated arcade
> machines; the ability to actually play the games is considered "a nice side effect"
> ."
>
> I think this statement is a farce. If playing the games is merely a side effect while
> the actual focus is purely to provide some kind of tech demo, then why does MAME
> contain stuff like simulation of CRT monitor visuals or the possibility to use
> borders around the screen that look like the arcade machine bezels?
>
> Obviously, MAME is supposed to be a program that allows people to play the games
> seriously. Otherwise, the MAME team wouldn't invest time and energy to include nice
> gimmicks that provide a better gaming experience for an actual player, but that would
> have no value whatsoever for demonstration of the technical aspects of arcade boards.
>
> So, why is this statement about the "nice side effect" even made?

One also needs to keep in mind that the inclusion of things such as artwork and backgrounds, etc., is required in some games in order to properly display what is going on. The fact that the bezels and whatnot can be displayed in games that don't require overlays, etc. to function properly is just a side effect of that. In order to determine if the emulation is correct, one needs to be able to see what the output on the screen is in all parts of the game, so the artwork/overlays/bezels etc. play a huge role in that.

For the HLSL stuff, that is actually another form of preservation. CRT monitors are dead. There are very few, if any, in production, and each time one breaks and is unrepairable, it's gone forever. The HLSL feature, as it gets fleshed out and cleaned up over time, will be a way to preserve the way CRT monitors looked using the LCD/LED screens that are now in mass production and commonplace today.

Preservation isn't just about having documentation of the hardware. It's about being able to preserve how the hardware functioned, how the output sounded, how the output looked, how the cabinet it ran in looked, how the artwork looked, how the controls function etc. etc.

So I believe that yes, the "playing games is a side effect" is fairly true. It's akin to the preservation of old films and old books. By the act of preserving them, you are allowing them to be viewed and read throughout eternity. By preserving arcade games, you are allowing them to be played and experienced in their entirety through the future.

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