3 ms·

It depends.. the waterfall effects in the likes of Sonic are pretty hard without a real CRT. If you're using an emulator, there are quite a few filters that ca

It depends.. the waterfall effects in the likes of Sonic are pretty hard without a real CRT. If you're using an emulator, there are quite a few filters that can help to recreate that old feel, none are quite right though.

pezezin 3y ago
The waterfall effect of Sonic is more of a result of composite video artifacts. Using a RGB cable, the effect is much less pronounced.
- tracker1 3y ago
  I know.. and it was designed that way. It wasn't a bug but a feature of the game where the designer/developer knew how that would artifact on the screen, and was done intentionally. It really doesn't emulate/simulate well on a modern display.
Wowfunhappy 3y ago
The waterfall effect is basically just blur! The problem with adding blur is that—although it makes the waterfall effect work—it makes the image blurry. Personally, I don't think it's that the CRT is better than the filters, I think you're just used to the imperfections of a CRT. Also, I really do think you need a 4K HDR screen (with good HDR, there's a lot of variance) in order for filters to really emulate the look of a CRT.
- tracker1 3y ago
  It's not a blur so much as intentionally designed to use how a CRT/Composite video would artifact on a CRT. It's not a matter of better or worse, just that filters/simulation won't work well for that same effect. Also, in a lot of ways a good CRT does look significantly better than all but OLED displays for games. The down side is they're heavy. I used to have two 22" calibrated flat screen displays that I loved, and only very recently are new displays visual quality on par. I stopped using them more because of space and size than quality. They weighed 85# each and had a permanent bow in the desk I was using back then. Moving 3x in one summer I decided to go with flat pannel. Not as good, but was doing less design work and more programming since then.

pezezin 3y ago

The waterfall effect of Sonic is more of a result of composite video artifacts. Using a RGB cable, the effect is much less pronounced.

tracker1 3y ago
I know.. and it was designed that way. It wasn't a bug but a feature of the game where the designer/developer knew how that would artifact on the screen, and was done intentionally. It really doesn't emulate/simulate well on a modern display.

Wowfunhappy 3y ago

The waterfall effect is basically just blur! The problem with adding blur is that—although it makes the waterfall effect work—it makes the image blurry. Personally, I don't think it's that the CRT is better than the filters, I think you're just used to the imperfections of a CRT. Also, I really do think you need a 4K HDR screen (with good HDR, there's a lot of variance) in order for filters to really emulate the look of a CRT.

tracker1 3y ago
It's not a blur so much as intentionally designed to use how a CRT/Composite video would artifact on a CRT. It's not a matter of better or worse, just that filters/simulation won't work well for that same effect. Also, in a lot of ways a good CRT does look significantly better than all but OLED displays for games. The down side is they're heavy. I used to have two 22" calibrated flat screen displays that I loved, and only very recently are new displays visual quality on par. I stopped using them more because of space and size than quality. They weighed 85# each and had a permanent bow in the desk I was using back then. Moving 3x in one summer I decided to go with flat pannel. Not as good, but was doing less design work and more programming since then.