Why am I still developing SNES hacks in 2025?

[SUPER-J11BIT]

In a world where everything moves fast, where new consoles drop every year and graphics seem to matter more than ideas, I keep going back to the Super Nintendo.

Maybe it’s nostalgia, maybe it’s stubbornness… or maybe some things never stop belonging to the present.
The SNES isn’t “outdated”: it’s history, it’s a creative language, it’s a different way of making games.
Working on hacks today means taking something old and making it breathe again with modern ideas and real passion.

In an era where everything is instant, I choose something that takes time.
In an era where everything is pre?made, I choose to build.
In an era where everything is digital and forgettable, I choose a piece of memory that refuses to die.

And I’m curious to see how many of you feel the same.
Who’s still connected to that era? Who still plays retro? Who understands this “madness”?

 

[Strategist's icon Strategist Strategist]

I'm with you 100%. I would love to have the patience to study the SNES instruction set and hack some SNES games. Best I've been able to do is some Fire Emblem hacks because there is tool support for them with Python scripting which is a lot more user friendly than deciphering assembly. From what I understand, GBA hardware is pretty similar to the SNES hardware so maybe there is some cross over potential if I really get into it.

 

[sandogma sandogma]

Interestingly enough, I think we are fast reaching a plateau in graphics in relation to economy. Sure graphics can look a lot better, the bar is photorealism after all, but the hardware required to do so is impossible to provide in a mass market level. Unless things drastically change, I think we are going to hit that plateau where graphics are "good enough" and at which point, gameplay and innovation will become more important and the focus of development.

 

[Pandaprewmaster325]

Because modding is love , modding is life

 

[SoThankful]

In a world where everything moves fast, where new consoles drop every year and graphics seem to matter more than ideas, I keep going back to the Super Nintendo.

And honestly, the graphics aren’t even that great. I said earlier that modern games still look like PS3 graphics to me.

And I’m curious to see how many of you feel the same.
Who’s still connected to that era? Who still plays retro? Who understands this “madness”?

I’m with you. Being able to appreciate retro games and never getting tired of them is a blessing.

 

[Strategist's icon Strategist Strategist]

And honestly, the graphics aren’t even that great. I said earlier that modern games still look like PS3 graphics to me.

I mean what can you do after achieving near-realism? Just make the textures better and add more lighting/ray tracing effects. And its not exactly like pure realism would be good for video games anyway, so we are at the diminishing returns era of pushing graphics. Gaming needs to adapt some of the extra computing power and research into other realms, like AI, pathfinding, procedural generation, new gameplay modes, etc...

 

[SoThankful]

I mean what can you do after achieving near-realism? Just make the textures better and add more lighting/ray tracing effects. And its not exactly like pure realism would be good for video games anyway, so we are at the diminishing returns era of pushing graphics. Gaming needs to adapt some of the extra computing power and research into other realms, like AI, pathfinding, procedural generation, new gameplay modes, etc...

Then just release the games on the console I already own. If I am going to upgrade, I expect a major leap forward like the jump from PS1 to PS2 or from PS2 to PS3. The last game that genuinely impressed me was MGS V, and since then it often feels like things have moved backward rather than forward.

 

[PhaseJump]

Why is the right question.

The 816 belonged in a landfill. The 68k was better.