[HN] Study: 87% of classic video games are not legally available

This is why I say, with not a single drop of irony, that piracy is a public service.

Copyright laws desperately need to be updated to account for scenarios like these. Although, to many people piracy is undesirable, I take no issue with anyone using this method to acquire content that is otherwise unavailable.

This may be hot take, but I think games are art and are part of our cultural legacy, and making steps that stops us from enjoying us from that legacy should be considered a crime, especially when they put at risk art disappearing forever.

I would start with simple rules:

• 5 years after last new copies of the game stops being sold, pirating it stops becoming a crime
• 10 years after platform (console?) stop being produced, if there is no official emulator available, all emulators of that platform become legal
• intentionally trying to stop people from buying a game without breaking above rules (for example, selling one copy for price of 9999$) is a crime

As a result, I would expect all companies to either invest in backward compatibility on unprecedented level, or more likely start porting their games to PC (because they will keep being produced), even if that meant selling copies to be used with emulators. When there is money on the table, or perspective of losing money, corporations are really quick to find solutions.

This kind of thing (and e-waste in general) is why I think we need radical laws about unsupported hardware in general.

If an electronic device (phone, laptop, etc) stops receiving software support, the most recently available firmware should be made freely available under public domain.

Apple is obviously the worst offender, but it's just horrible when you have really great hardware that's 100% worthless just because the software is unsupported and proprietary.

The number of iPads, smart home products, and other devices that become e-waste every year is unsustainable. If companies were forced to release the code for free when they stopped supporting devices, maybe they would support them longer. Or at least bother innovating for a change.

Jesus that’s depressing. Thank god for the Internet or wonder how much of that 87% would already be lost forever.

Copyright as it is today is one of humanity's worst mistake.

that's why the "ahoy mateys" system exists

This is why emulation is important.

There's likely a lot of "shovelware" in that figure, which doesn't mean it shouldn't be preserved but that could be 1 reason the percentage is so high. There were a ton of DS and Wii games nobody would recognize today

Most classic everything is no longer available. This is a function of time and the general human desire to make new stuff. Otherwise antiques wouldn't really be special.

If we want our stuff more permanent, this will be a change from the past that we need to specifically enact. Otherwise it's just people being subtly out-of-touch with how time will eventually destroy not just them, but their works too. Only the influences it left behind echo into the future, for as long as our art does anyway.

He who does not pirate software steals from himself

Now do TV

I regularly donate to the Internet Archive but after reading this decided it was time to do it again!

The secret is crime

I love the sneaky Pac-Man graph.

I wonder what proportion of the average user's rom library is from the 87%

now that's a real problem

Permanently Deleted

Why was this cross-posted to bisexual?

i forget where i found this, maybe it was hacker news or the alien place that shall remain nameless, but someone posted this cool site https://oldgamesdownload.com/ from a similar discussion. found several obscure childhood PC games I've been desperately looking for, hasn't failed me yet... or set the sails on the right path.