3dSen PC will turn classic NES games into 3D on June 19

I got the VR version of 3DSen from https://geod.itch.io/3dnes and it came with a Steam key. There use to be a download link but it has been removed.

That's pretty impressive. The video thumbnail of the title screen doesn't do it justice.

(Now someone do the C64 or Spectrum. :) The NES wasn't really a thing in Europe.)

Quoting: DuncThe NES wasn't really a thing in Europe.

Maybe that was just your corner of Europe? Plenty of people had them up here. I had a proper computer of course but I had several Nintendo (and Sega) console plebs in my circle of friends back then.



Console fans please don't murder me, that pleb bit was a joke.

Quoting: DuncThe NES wasn't really a thing in Europe.

It most definitely was a thing.

The video game crash of 1983 hit USA hard, but didn't register much in Europe. The massive NES sales in USA (34 million) was a turning point in history where the western video game industry exploded back into life. Imagine if things had gone the other way...

The NES launched in EU late 1986, over three years after Japan and nearly a whole year after USA, and the next generation was already looming. The belated launch, distribution issues, lack of marketing, being second fiddle to Sega in the market did nothing to boost sales.

Eventually Nintendo stepped up to properly distribute the NES in EU, but by then it was the 90's and the SNES was knocking at the door. Nintendo must love distribution issues as they keep having them with every damn console... :P
The NES eventually sold well in EU, while not quite matching the Master System. NES ~6 million, MS ~7 million.


From my Swedish point of view, everyone and his mother had a Nintendo console and Sega barely registered on the radar. ^_^


Anyway 3dSen is awesome.

Quoting: dpanter

Quoting: DuncThe NES wasn't really a thing in Europe.

It most definitely was a thing.

When I say “a thing”, I mean it wasn't the phenomenon it was in Japan or North America. 6 million sales is nothing compared to the 34 million it sold in the US.

QuoteThe video game crash of 1983 hit USA hard, but didn't register much in Europe. The massive NES sales in USA (34 million) was a turning point in history where the western video game industry exploded back into life.

The crash did register, but it didn't hit as hard. The European games market had already begun turning away from the first-generation consoles towards 8-bit computers by 1983, and North America's difficulties just accelerated that shift. At the time, it felt more like a generational change rather than a catastrophe. And, with little competition from either the US or Japan, the mid-'80s were actually the European games industry's gold-rush years. Ocean Software (now Bandai Namco UK) and Infogrames (now Atari) were founded in 1983. By '85, Ocean had the Konami arcade licence as well as a bunch of major movie tie-ins. Business was booming.

It's actually possible that if Nintendo had launched here in '83 or '84, soon after Japan, they might have found an even more receptive market than the US, but I doubt it. The main impact of the crash in Europe, although it's hard to believe today, was that consoles were seen as a thing of the past. Remember, computer games were being sold in filling stations and newsagents for pocket money prices at this stage. Why buy a console when you could get 20 games for the price of one cartridge? (And convince your parents that a computer would help with your school work, too. :D )

QuoteThe NES launched in EU late 1986, over three years after Japan and nearly a whole year after USA, and the next generation was already looming. The belated launch, distribution issues, lack of marketing, being second fiddle to Sega in the market did nothing to boost sales.

Eventually Nintendo stepped up to properly distribute the NES in EU, but by then it was the 90's and the SNES was knocking at the door.

Yes, that's pretty much it. By late 1986, the Japanese consoles had a well-established, highly talented, indigenous European industry to contend with. And the next generation of home computers looming on the horizon. They were just too late.

The best way I can describe how the NES and Sega Master System were seen by the European market is that they were a bit like the “PSOne” that Sony relaunched after the PS2 came out: outdated technology for younger kids who might not care that it wasn't the latest thing. Toys, really. (Which seems ridiculous when the whole market is games, but if you remember the PSOne, I hope you understand what I'm saying.) Less so with the SMS, because Sega was smart enough to emphasize is arcade connections*, which is possibly why Europe is one of the few markets it “won”. But both had to deal with the pricing problem, the established European developers (what good is a machine you can't play Starglider or Paradroid on?), and the rise of the 16 bit computers.

Sure, both had managed to save some face by 1993, and there's no doubt that the 16-bit generation very firmly re-established console gaming in Europe (assisted by the collapse of Commodore and Atari), but the 8-bit consoles always played second-fiddle to home computers.

*The only 8-bit console game I've ever played on real hardware was Space Harrier, back in 1987. And yes, it was better than any of the computer ports. (Although, much to my disappointment ever since, the friend who owned the console didn't have the 3D glasses. :( )

I don't know why but I thought that was a free software project or something, still nice.
It seems there isn't alternatives, for now at least.

Quoting: DuncIt's actually possible that if Nintendo had launched here in '83 or '84, soon after Japan, they might have found an even more receptive market than the US, but I doubt it. The main impact of the crash in Europe, although it's hard to believe today, was that consoles were seen as a thing of the past. Remember, computer games were being sold in filling stations and newsagents for pocket money prices at this stage. Why buy a console when you could get 20 games for the price of one cartridge? (And convince your parents that a computer would help with your school work, too. :D )

I heard games were even cheaper on school yards, which was an important reason for kids to prefer them over consoles as well... ;)


Last edited by Eike on 20 May 2020 at 11:03 am UTC

Quoting: Eike

Quoting: DuncIt's actually possible that if Nintendo had launched here in '83 or '84, soon after Japan, they might have found an even more receptive market than the US, but I doubt it. The main impact of the crash in Europe, although it's hard to believe today, was that consoles were seen as a thing of the past. Remember, computer games were being sold in filling stations and newsagents for pocket money prices at this stage. Why buy a console when you could get 20 games for the price of one cartridge? (And convince your parents that a computer would help with your school work, too. :D )

I heard games were even cheaper on school yards, which was an important reason for kids to prefer them over consoles as well... ;)

About the price of an empty cassette if you had a double deck?

Quoting: tuubi

Quoting: EikeI heard games were even cheaper on school yards, which was an important reason for kids to prefer them over consoles as well... ;)

About the price of an empty cassette if you had a double deck?

It was floppy discs for the computers that were far spread here in Germany (mainly Commodore 64), but yes, that kind of price. :D

(I had an MSX and was exchanging games via mail. The letter kind of mail, you know... :) )


Last edited by Eike on 20 May 2020 at 12:16 pm UTC

Quoting: EikeIt was floppy discs for the computers that were far spread here in Germany (mainly Commodore 64), but yes, that kind of price. :D

I had all but one of my C64 games on cassettes (didn't own a disk drive). That's how games were sold in shops. The one that wasn't on a cassette was one of those console-style cartridges you inserted into the slot at the back of the system. Can't remember which game it was.