Preservation

Palm OS Archive Preserves Gigabyte of Development History

Palm OS Archive Preserves Gigabyte of Development History

A project called Palm OS Archive has compiled roughly a gigabyte of material covering 25 years of Palm OS development. The collection brings together software development kits, documentation, utilities and source code that had grown scattered or hard to find since the platform's decline. It is aimed at programmers and enthusiasts who want to study or revive software for the once-popular handheld operating system. Palm OS powered a wide range of PDAs and early smartphones from the late 1990s through the 2000s before being eclipsed by newer mobile platforms. via console-classics.com

Fan Translator Chapu Discusses PS1 Projects in Interview

Fan Translator Chapu Discusses PS1 Projects in Interview

Time Extension has published an interview with the fan translator known as Chapu Translations, discussing his work bringing obscure PlayStation 1 games to English-speaking audiences. The interview covers his 2024 release of a fan translation for Gust Co., Ltd.'s PS1 slapstick adventure Welcome House 2, a project he describes as fulfilling a decade-long dream after earlier failed attempts in 2014 forced him to pause. He also talks about gaming in Argentina and his interest in resurfacing lesser-known PS1 titles, arguing that even games that are not considered great still deserve a chance to reach wider audiences. via timeextension.com

WHDLoad Adds New Amiga Installers Through October 2026

The WHDLoad project has published a fresh batch of installers for Amiga games, letting floppy-based titles run from hard disk. New additions include a Secret Weapons of the Luftwaffe installer by Vesuri, alongside a new Prince of Persia 2: The Shadow and the Flame installer. Existing installers were also updated, including a fix for Prince of Persia 2's out-of-memory and credits issues, an improved trainer for Turrican, and Addams Family fixes covering restored backgrounds, removed self-modifying code, music corrections and blitter waits. WHDLoad is a long-running Amiga utility used by the scene to preserve and run classic floppy software from hard drives. via amiga-news.de

1996 Turbo Pascal DOS Shooter Revived With Free Pascal, SDL2

A developer is resurrecting a scrolling shooter originally written in Turbo Pascal for DOS in 1996. The project traces the game's code through a chain of tools, moving from Borland's original Turbo Pascal through Delphi and on to the modern open-source Free Pascal and Lazarus environment, with SDL2 used for graphics and input. The work documents how an old DOS-era codebase can be updated and kept running using current cross-platform development tools. via reddit.com/r/thisweekinretro

Dead of the Brain PC-98 Horror Game Hits Steam

Dead of the Brain PC-98 Horror Game Hits Steam

Publisher FAKKU has released Dead of the Brain: Day of the Living Dead on Steam, giving the 1992 PC-98 horror title its first official English translation. The game was originally made by Japanese developer FairyTale, which shifted from erotic games to horror following a real-life incident tied to its earlier release Saori: The House in Sunny Hill. Dead of the Brain is being launched as the first entry in FairyTale's "Nightmare Collection." The PC-98 was a Japanese personal computer platform known for hosting many niche and cult games that rarely saw release outside Japan. via timeextension.com

Haunted House ZX Spectrum Platformer Rereleased Free

Haunted House ZX Spectrum Platformer Rereleased Free

Developer Jonathan Cauldwell has made Haunted House, his 1991 ZX Spectrum platformer, available on itch.io as a name-your-own-price download. The game originally appeared on a Your Sinclair covertape in 1992 and tasks players with guiding a character called Izzy through a haunted house, collecting keys while avoiding rotten floorboards. Izzy can perform a super-jump by ducking before pressing upward, letting her reach higher platforms. The release is distributed as a TZX tape file. via itch.io

Six Sega Saturn Games Get AI-Assisted English Patches

Six Sega Saturn Games Get AI-Assisted English Patches

A new batch of six English fan translation patches has been released for Japan-exclusive Sega Saturn games. Half of the titles are fighting games, which draw much of their English text directly from their worldwide releases rather than translating from scratch. The patches were produced using AI assistance as part of the ongoing wave of Saturn translation work covered by Sega Saturn Shiro. The Sega Saturn had a large library of Japan-only titles that fan translators continue to work through decades after the console's release. via segasaturnshiro.com

Tomb Raider Game Boy Color Dev Recalls High Review Score

Tomb Raider Game Boy Color Dev Recalls High Review Score

Time Extension has published an excerpt from the upcoming book Making of Tomb Raider 1997-2000, written by Daryl Baxter, covering the series' debut on Nintendo hardware. The excerpt focuses on the Game Boy Color version released in 2000, featuring recollections from developer Matt Charlesworth. According to the piece, the game's review scores were so high that editors reportedly had to adjust them because they exceeded contemporary scores given to Pokémon and Zelda titles. Tomb Raider originally launched on PlayStation, Saturn and PC in 1996 before later reaching Nintendo's handheld. via timeextension.com

Rhapsody Marl Jong!! Joins PS1 Console Archives

Rhapsody Marl Jong!! Joins PS1 Console Archives

Hamster has added Rhapsody Marl Jong!! to its Console Archives series, bringing the obscure Japan-only PlayStation title to modern platforms. The game originally released in 1995 as a mahjong game featuring cute character designs. It joins a growing lineup of lesser-known PS1 games Hamster has been preserving through its emulation-focused Console Archives label, following the recent addition of Raiden Project. via timeextension.com

Preservationist Revives Lost Sega Mobile Game Shining Wind X

Preservationist Revives Lost Sega Mobile Game Shining Wind X

Preservationist Yuvi, known as YuviApp, has rescued Shining Wind X from being lost, after Sega had deleted the mobile title years ago. Released in 2008 as "Shining Wind Cross," the game was a spin-off/sequel to the 2007 PS2 title Shining Wind, continuing its story with the same cast but switching from hack 'n' slash combat to turn-based tactical gameplay. Yuvi specializes in preserving obscure titles that would otherwise have been considered permanently lost, and has now reactivated this rare mobile release. via timeextension.com

Hidden Debug Mode Found in Devil Summoner, Patch Enables It

Hidden Debug Mode Found in Devil Summoner, Patch Enables It

A new "Under the Microscope" feature examines Shin Megami Tensei: Devil Summoner and reveals a hidden debug mode built into the game that was disabled before its retail release. The author has created a patch that re-enables this dormant debug mode, allowing it to be accessed in the shipped version. Devil Summoner was originally released for the Sega Saturn as part of the Shin Megami Tensei series. via segasaturnshiro.com

NES Launch Warehouse Identified as Hackensack Building

NES Launch Warehouse Identified as Hackensack Building

A warehouse in Hackensack, New Jersey, used by Nintendo during its risky 1985 US launch of the NES, has been identified as still standing. The building was part of Nintendo's effort to get the console into American stores after the 1983 video game crash had left retailers wary of the industry. Its location highlights the uncertain early logistics behind one of gaming's most significant comebacks. via console-classics.com