Let me just say first, to remove all doubt, that I am not making any kind of request for someone to work on this or anything. I'm just asking what kind of insights people have in the subject.
Do you guys remember the Pioneer Laseractive? For the most part, it really wasn't all that special, especially in light of other good Mega Drive clones like the Wondermega/X'EYE. But there were a couple dozen games made for it that utilized the LD-ROM format, and unless you own a Laseractive, you simply cannot play them even now. This goes for both the Sega PAC and the TG-16 PAC. Many of these games are completely exclusive to the system, too.
So, what do you guys think? Can such a thing be emulated? I suppose there are a couple big questions to ask. What would be the best way to rip the analogue video content? How might one rip either that or the data directly from a laserdisc? Would you need a really custom drive? I would imaging that emulating these LD games would be a piece of cake if there was a standard method of imaging them.
The entire Pioneer Laseractive system may not have a single great game in it - I've heard as much myself - but it's sad and also intriguing to think that these games may be doomed to fade into history as their original hardware and software dies out. I'm surprised to find myself thinking of buying one of these just to try out some of the extremely obscure shmups on the thing.
EDIT: I found out all about the DAPHNE project for arcade laserdisc games, and in their forums I found this very insightful topic. I'd still like to hear what people here think, though.
Do you guys remember the Pioneer Laseractive? For the most part, it really wasn't all that special, especially in light of other good Mega Drive clones like the Wondermega/X'EYE. But there were a couple dozen games made for it that utilized the LD-ROM format, and unless you own a Laseractive, you simply cannot play them even now. This goes for both the Sega PAC and the TG-16 PAC. Many of these games are completely exclusive to the system, too.
So, what do you guys think? Can such a thing be emulated? I suppose there are a couple big questions to ask. What would be the best way to rip the analogue video content? How might one rip either that or the data directly from a laserdisc? Would you need a really custom drive? I would imaging that emulating these LD games would be a piece of cake if there was a standard method of imaging them.
The entire Pioneer Laseractive system may not have a single great game in it - I've heard as much myself - but it's sad and also intriguing to think that these games may be doomed to fade into history as their original hardware and software dies out. I'm surprised to find myself thinking of buying one of these just to try out some of the extremely obscure shmups on the thing.
EDIT: I found out all about the DAPHNE project for arcade laserdisc games, and in their forums I found this very insightful topic. I'd still like to hear what people here think, though.