There are a lot of clone consoles, mini consoles, and online streaming services that provide a lot of ways to play your favorite classic console games.
This is a really good thing for console gamers, but where does that leave arcade games and the players that love them?
It can be hard to find the time, money, and even location of an arcade you can go into these days for that authentic arcade experience. Well the guys over at Recade want to change the game when it comes to the traditional arcade experience. They want to bring the arcade into your living room. But how are they going to do this, what is Recade, and will it stand out among all of the current options available?
Well today, I got to sit down with Adam from Recade and we get some of these questions answered and then some.
Ryan:
Could you please provide a detailed description of the Recade hardware and software configuration? I am particularly interested in understanding whether it operates as a closed system focused solely on emulator access through a dedicated UI, or if it offers a full desktop environment, potentially based on a low-power PC or Raspberry Pi architecture. Furthermore, if the current configuration involves a locked-down PC, are there any future plans to enable full desktop access, akin to the functionality offered by the Atari VCS?
Adam:
Access akin to functionality offered by the Atari VCS, great question. So a detailed explanation for the hardware and software configuration is it’s still in the works at at this time.
So we are aiming for a very specific type of power, we’re we’re aiming for a quad-core processor, it’s going to have Wi-Fi, Bluetooth all that.
We we have a demo unit that we’ve already built uh to demonstrate the capabilities for what we’re trying to do.
The platform to answer sort of your most pertinent question on that, the platform is going to be a closed platform.
We’re going to be working with a bunch of licensors to get officially licensed arcade titles on this machine, and in order to do that we’re going to have to give a certain amount of assurances that that code for their games isn’t going to be accessible to the general audience; you know we are going to have to protect their IP of course.
So it’s going to be a closed environment and there’s going to be a couple of benefits to having it be a closed environment.
Number one it’s going to help us work easier with licensors when it comes to getting IP and delivering officially licensed arcade games to the platform uh it’s going to give them assurances that we’re going to be taking every step that we can in order to protect their IP.
Number two, it means that with our closed platform we’re going to be able to design our hardware and our software base in order to optimize to work together. This means we’re going to be able to provide a gameplay experience that is the most authentic that we can get across and make sure that when it comes to any problems or issues. So that we know exactly what’s going on since we won’t be sort of piecing things together, we have it built and optimized for our own hardware.
Ryan:
Recade has been described as affordable. Could you please elaborate on the anticipated cost and how current economic conditions are being considered in determining that price point?
Adam:
We’ve done some cost analysis, interviews with potential customers, and we’ve had surveys out and things like that. We have an idea of where we want to be and I can say that the idea is less than half the cost of current generation systems that are out there.
We’re working of course with a couple of manufacturers and suppliers in determining what those costs are going to look like. We are also looking at some potential North American based partners to to to help us out with those kinds of things.
As much as I would like to say the system will cost “X” with the monthly subscription is going to cost “Y”, we’re a little too early in our journey to really be able to peg things down to that number.
What I can say however is because we are working with software designed 30, 40+ years ago; we do not need a high-end PC in order to run the things that we’re trying to run.
So there’s a huge benefit on our side that we can develop a system that is both flexible in terms of power and is also not needing a ton of CPU and GPU power on its side.
So we can say that we we are keeping affordability in mind when it comes to ultimately what we’re going to be charging at the end of the day. Again I really wish I could give you a specific number and say it’s going to cost X, but with the way things are happening right now I can’t.
Ryan:
Will the console’s gaming model be purely subscription-based streaming, or will it incorporate a downloadable game library accessible with a subscription, like Game Pass?
Adam:
Yeah that’s a great question. So the way that we’re operating right now, everything is going to be downloadable directly to your local hardware. That way everything is performing in that optimized fashion that we were discussing earlier, everything is running locally. The multiplayer aspect of it obviously there’s going to be some back-end servers that are going to be handling the communication back and forth between consoles, but yes everything will be running locally on your hardware. This is the way that we’re designing it and that’s the way that we’re taking it step forward.
Ryan:
To go off of this question, will the downloadable titles work as long as you’re subscribed; does it actively check for the subscription?
Adam:
Yes. So you will need an active internet connection in order to be able to access everything that’s on the platform, you cannot play it offline. I can understand how some people would feel maybe not quite at ease with a constant internet connection. I do feel that it’s the norm when it comes to consoles today that you have to have an internet connection in order to access everything.
When you think about it, it’s ultimately in this environment that we’re building of trust with our IP partners in order to access and be able to use all of these incredible games, and that that requires certain assurances. That’s going to require that we’re on at various stages of access through the console, that it’s going to require a check-in with the server to say “Hey this is an active subscription, you can access all of this.”
Now obviously we’re taking privacy concerns into account when it comes to this as well as concerns for our our IP license partners. So that is to say that we’re going to be treating this with the the same level of respect on both ends of the spectrum. We want to make sure that we’re delivering the most optimal game performance and gameplay experience for the end users. Along with that, the security and assurances that our partners are going to require as well.
Ryan:
Okay so I understand the connection can be an issue for some consumers. Could it be looked at to treat the subscription similar to what NSO does with the retro library of Game Boy NES games, where it knows how long you have a subscription for and then once that subscription ends, your access to the game library ends unless you re-subscribe. Can that be implemented in your system potentially?
Adam:
I can say potentially. There’s going to be requirements. So just kind of backing up a little bit here, I think one thing that maybe doesn’t get talked about enough in the industry is something that kind of happens you know behind the scenes is there’s a negotiation process that happens when you start licensing IP.
Different organizations are going to have different requirements. They’re going to make certain kinds of demands or they’re going to have certain kinds of things in place that you either need to agree to or you don’t get access to their IP. So at the end of the day it’s it’s going to be sort of looked at in a multi factor kind of way.
We have an idea from a consumer perspective. The whole reason why we started this company was because me and my two co-founders are huge gamers and we grew up playing arcade games. I mean one of the things that we’re trying to do is to build this system for what we desire and for what we wanted to actually play and access. So we built it from that perspective of being on the player side of the table.
Ryan:
What level of configurability can we expect from the system? Will there be per-game settings for elements like lives and difficulty, similar to dip switch functionality?
Adam:
So we’re going to be providing all of that functionality to the end user. More than just that, there’s going to be control configurations. So if we have a game set up in a default fashion that doesn’t work for you and you say “Well I think it feels more comfortable in my hands if this button does this action versus the button that you have set as a default.”
You’ll be able to customize that and it will save that for every title individually. So that way you can set up each game exactly the way you want to play it and the system will recognize and remember that moving forward.
Ryan:
Will the system offer features such as save states and the ability to rewind gameplay?
Adam:
Yes of course save and load states are going to be there for every individual title, absolutely.
Rewind functionality is something we’re going to let the community decide. There’s something to be said for the playability of these games. Arcade games have a certain amount challenge when it comes to playing them. If you’re playing Street Fighter 2 for example right and you’re getting your butt kicked, do you really want to rewind? If you do that’s totally fine, like we are not against that of course but it’s going to be something that we’re going to leave up to the community to decide. So if the community decides that they want that optionality enabled then that’s something that we can work with of course.
Ryan:
Regarding game availability on the service, what is the expected time frame for titles to be guaranteed, and if games are subject to rotation or removal, what advance notice would subscribers receive?
Adam:
So I can say that we are trying to operate on the understanding of transparency as much as possible. This company doesn’t work unless we have a community behind us that is excited about what we’re doing. That being said, we will be as completely transparent as we possibly can be when it comes to what games are going to appear how long they’re going to be on the platform. Some of this is going to involve negotiations with IP license holders and they may have certain kinds of demands. There may be certain requirements that they need whether that’s money upfront or they only will have games available for license for certain periods of time and then re-negotiations have to happen after that.
Ryan:
Given Recade’s focus on bringing the arcade experience home, can we expect the release and support of accessories like arcade sticks?
Adam:
Absolutely. So the initial launch of what we’re building is a controller that we’ve designed in house. It’s set up very much like a traditional type of controller that everyone is pretty familiar with when it comes to at home console gaming. We’ve designed this to have the functionality to be as versatile as possible. Aside from the controller, we do plan on having a arcade stick style setup coming out in the future.
Ryan:
Beyond classic arcade games, will the service offer original titles designed with arcade-style mechanics and presentation, games like Donut Dodo?
Adam:
We’re focused initially on arcade games from the 70s through the 90s. That is the core focus of what we’re building right now. We have some road-map ideas around where we’re going to be going into the future. We definitely have a soft spot for indie titles and we definitely want to support the indie community and I believe that will be a place that we expand to in the future is develop
support for indie games. Then of course we want to start opening things up more and more as we start to grow our base and as we start to become the go-to spot for retro arcade gaming. Of course we have plans, it really just depends on what the audience is responding to.
Ryan:
Similar to collections like the Atari 50th Anniversary Celebration, could the service feature unreleased arcade games? Furthermore, regarding partnerships, are there any agreements in place that might lead to the inclusion of games from companies such as Atari, Sega, and Konami?
Adam:
So I want to be very clear, we we have some initial talks that have been started. I don’t want to say with what partners because we’re not at liberty to discuss that just now, but the companies that you had just mentioned; those are definitely companies that are in our target audience of companies we want to start connecting with and making partnerships with.
To answer your the question about are we going to see like potentially unreleased sequels and things like that, that is absolutely our intention. But there have been a few games that have been either in development back in the 80s or 90s that never saw the light of day because they got canceled. We absolutely want to fund those projects, to bring those projects to life and have those on the Recade platform 100%. Whether or not the licensing can be worked out for that is another story but our intent is 100% to make those games see the light of day.
Ryan:
What is the road-map for Recade’s expansion in terms of storage upgrades, feature additions, and the potential inclusion of non-arcade gaming experiences?
Adam:
Yeah, so that’s a great question. A lot of that is really going to be determined by our capability of getting funding our ability to get funding and what the audience reaction is.
So everything that we’re going to be doing in terms of hardware expansion at least initially for the first couple of years is going to take the form of different control styles and different controllers.
We’re really going to focus on making sure that we’re offering a connection to these games in a way that feels authentic and is a way that feels accessible to people.
As far as additional storage or upgraded hardware, that kind of thing may end up coming in a few years down the line depending on what we end up expanding as far as our library is concerned and the hardware requirements and power requirements that are going to be needed for that.
We don’t have any road-map at the moment to release different versions of the hardware right off the bat because we want to be able to provide a stable platform that functions in the way that we optimize for. So we’re not going to be looking at multiple versions of the hardware right off the bat.
Initially we’re focusing on as I said before arcade experience from the 70s through the ’90s but yes we do plan on having an indie section, potentially even into the consoles and things like that in the future.
That’s definitely something that we’re looking at as far as our road-map is concerned. We do want to be that one-stop shop for retro gaming. But it really does depend on what the audience reaction is to our initial offering and the initial experience.
We are 100% focused right now on offering the best possible play experience for arcade games And that’s the future of what we plan on doing.
If we start to receive more positive feedback from the audience, if we start to receive support from the audience, then we will start to expand upon all of these things.
So the Recade platform sounds like an amazing concept and if done right, it could do very well. I am excited to see what the future holds for Recade and this unique attempt at bringing the arcade into the living room.
If you would like to check out the extended interview, you can check out the link below to my video interview with Adam of Recade.
Interview with Adam Daywalker from Recade:
In addition to writing articles, Ryan Byers also creates content for his YouTube channel called "Obscure Games and Consoles", collects video games, and dabbles in video game development.