The SAM isn't dead. Not in the technical sense anyway - people are still developing for it, albeit on a VERY small scale. But there are some basic facts we should all be told:
* How many new SAMs are being sold a month? If we're talking about single figures here (or even zero) then it's time to start seriously thinking about accepting a combined future with SimCoupe. * How many units of any particular software title are being sold a month? * Is there any possibility of the older titles being rereleased either on a compilation or separately. Single figure sales and no commitment to rereleasing or compilations means that these titles are not marketable anymore, so is there any good reason for not putting them onto an FTP site? There are plenty of parallels with today's Spectrum scene - there's about the same amount of support (hardware and software) for the Spectrum today as for the SAM, yet there's a thriving emulation scene. The World of Spectrum website has been actively hunting around for permissions from game writers and old publishers, and when contact has been made, the response has usually been very positive (the same can be said about my YS Rock'n'Roll Years website - the people involved are usually quite honoured to have their work remembered with fondness). Emulation is welcomed in the Speccy scene (for non-new games), why not the SAM? Is there any money being made by programmers anymore? Is Chris White still getting any royalties from Prince of Persia or Lemmings? Is Rob Holman getting any royalties from any more sales of the first few SAM games? Would the authors of any SAM games not getting any more royalties please stand up? Would YOU mind your games being made available on an FTP site? IMHO any game that's not being sold in higher quantities than single figures a month should be considered fair game in the emulation scene. Nick
