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Categories: Interview
Tags: nes
“I know almost all there is to know about the NES, and you can quiz me on that if you’d like,” says Sanders. From June until the end of last week, gamers were able to wallow in NES-driven nostalgia using vNES. This Java-based emulator let gamers play classic NES games in their browser. With over four hundred games (including games seen only in Japan), two-player support, and gamepad compatibility, vNES was an old school dream come true. Then Friday, vNES disappeared. Did the imminent Wii launch have anything to with the site being shut down? Game Couch talks with vNES creator Jamie Sanders to get the answers and learn what’s next for vNES. Editor’s Note: vNES is up and running
Game Couch: So who is That Sanders Kid?
Jamie Sanders: Me, actually. My name is Jamie Sanders, after all. If that’s not descriptive enough, just lemme know :P
GC: More descriptive would be good. I can always fudge my side of the interview. What do you do when you aren’t working on vNES?
Jamie: Well, I’ve got my Nintendo DS, and a neat satellite dish. So, I’m either playing games, watching TV, reading Wikipedia on my stylish 28.8K dial-up internet connection, or sleeping/eating/other human functions… There’s also school, as I’ve still got that going on.
GC: Yeah, you said you were 15?
Jamie: Yep. Fun age, really. Fact: “This is the oldest I’ve ever been.”
GC: Funny. So tell me about vNES. I’m guessing you can’t really be nostalgic for the old NES.
Jamie: Oddly, I am. I managed to inherit my big brother’s NES, so I grew up on Super Mario Bros, Duck Hunt, and Super Mario 2. (We oddly only ever bought 2 cartridges…) I got bored around June this year, so I thought I’d try my hand at writing an emulator. I’ve been messing with emulation since I was 8, and didn’t want to produce the same old crap.
GC: Was there anything about the NES that appealed to you as far as emulation?
Jamie: I know almost all there is to know about the NES, and you can quiz me on that if you’d like. So, I thought it’d be easier to do than something really intensive. Besides, it was my first system.
GC: The quiz will come later. One of the things I like about vNES is that gameplay is authentic.
Jamie: Better than some Flash recreation ^_^
GC: Yeah, was that something you were shooting for? Other emulators add bells and whistles, but yours is dead accurate
Jamie: Yeah. Thing is, I hate flash. With a passion. And I want to remember the games they way they really were. So, there’s vNES.
GC: The site’s down right now. What’s happening behind the scenes?
Jamie: Well, before the disaster of my being thrown off of Dreamhost and losing several hundred dollars that users have donated, there was a plan to add more games, and make a version that lets you run it as an application, instead of in a browser. Another idea was an internet radio station with game music.
GC: What happened with Dreamhost?
Jamie: They decided that what I was doing is illegal. So, I’m kinda in a disaster. I can’t keep pumping money in something that will keep getting deleted, and being 15, I don’t have a helluvalot of money as it is.
GC: Pretty much everywhere I read about vNES people wondered how long it would last. Who tipped Dreamhost off?
Jamie: Not really sure. I do have a sneaking suspicion that it was my 3D modeling teacher at my school. Mainly because he said “I’m going to report you.”
GC: Sounds like he was jealous. I’m guessing he’s not on Wikipedia (vNES @ Wikipedia).
Jamie: Nope. He doesn’t actually have a site…
GC: So is vNES dead right now or do you see a way to come back?
Jamie: Well, there is the idea that vNES could become open source software. This step would let people use vNES on their sites as well. If Game Couch wants to use vNES, I’m up for that. ^_^
GC: I’d have to talk to the webmaster, but that would be cool. So where’d all the games come from?
Jamie: That’s classified information. (RUSSIA!) I only had 2 games, remember?
GC: How’d you pick the titles?
Jamie: It was all semi-randomly chosen, until I started getting requests.
GC: How many requests did you get?
Jamie: Probably for about 150 games.
GC: Were they pretty obscure?
Jamie: Kinda. A few were games that I’ve never actually played (on an emulator) but none were as random as that Tom & Jerry game where Tom is smoking a joint.
GC: I missed that one. Which section was that in?
Jamie: Unlicensed & Obscure
GC: Good category. Your Japanese section was cool, although I can’t read the language.
Jamie: Yeah. Magic understanding of different languages wasn’t quite ready.
GC: Maybe in the next release.
Jamie: Who knows? I might get Punch-Out!! working.
GC: What was the problem with that?
Jamie: Punch-Out!! was weird as it used Nintendo’s MMC2 chip, and was the only game that did. So, I’ve been trying to figure out how that chip worked.
GC: I have to admit, Nobunaga’s Ambition never worked for me.
Jamie: Yeah, sometimes I got really tired and didn’t do a good job of Quality Control checks.
GC: You had over 400 games, so don’t kick yourself. Although, did you need so many baseball games?
Jamie: Lots of requests. I blame it on the World Series.
GC: And two Waldo games?
Jamie: Those were originally in a section called “Games that aren’t fun at all.” That section was merged with English.
GC: Nice. So what was up with Kabuki Quantum Fighter? I just didn’t understand using hair as a weapon.
Jamie: Hair is a very powerful weapon, especially when you’re a weird InuYasha look-alike.
GC: What NES games should everyone play?
Jamie: StarTropics. It’s underrated, mainly because everyone had a SNES by then, and Zoda’s Revenge: StarTropics II . Other than that, there isn’t much.
GC: Looking back, do you wish you had sold out when you had the chance?
Jamie: Nope. Besides, there’s lots of better things than money. Like emo girls, and karma.
GC: There weren’t emo girls when I was 15. Bush 1 was in office, so I don’t think karma was working either. Between vNES and your DS, I can tell you are a Nintendo fan. What do you think about the other platforms?
Jamie: Sony is setting itself up for failure. Remember all those systems based around stuff like the CD and Laserdisc? Full Motion Video doesn’t make a good game, gameplay does.
GC: So is a Wii in your future?
Jamie: Yeah. Probably Christmas.
GC: Which titles are you looking forward to?
Jamie: Wario Ware: Smooth Moves, Rayman Raving Rabbids, Super Mario Galaxy, and Trauma Center: Second Opinion. Also the new Sonic game looks good.
GC: Good list. I haven’t played Trauma Center for the DS yet.
Jamie: I haven’t either. I’m still waiting on a package from Hong Kong for my DS ^_^
GC: Your favorite importer wasn’t recently shut down by Sony, was it?
Jamie: No, I never actually ordered anything from Lik-Sang. Mainly places like jandaman.com. He buys in bulk and doesn’t charge loads for shipping.
GC: So what’s in your future? It sounds like you have a good background in programming and you mentioned 3D modeling.
Jamie: I’ve heard that the Wii will support indie developers. I’d like to see what I can do with that.
GC: Any chance you’ll have a blog back up soon?
Jamie: Probably. I’m going to be ordering a new hosting package probably right after dinner. It will, naturally, be located at thatsanderskid.com.
GC: Do you think that you’ll concentrate more on the emulator and less on the games?
Jamie: I don’t quite know. I’m probably going to keep working on vNES and the other projects that were underway before Friday. The other projects, of course, were vSNES and vGBX
GC: I’m there for vSNES. How big (visitor-wise) was vNES getting?
Jamie: Some days it was several million hits per day. Latley, there was about 300,000 visitors per day. I think that overall, we’ve gone through about a Terabyte of bandwidth.
GC: That has to feel good. What do your friends think?
Jamie: “Holy shit, he does have talent after all.”