I’ve been analyzing gaming hardware since the 1980s, which means I’ve held every controller generation from the original NES pad through modern ergonomic marvels. The question of whether original controllers or modern alternatives are better for retro gaming isn’t simple because it depends on what you’re playing and…

There I was, standing in a grotty service station on the M6, watching my mate Dave’s face light up like he’d spotted buried treasure. “Bloody hell, John – look what’s hiding over here.” Tucked between a knackered fruit machine and one of those claw grabbers full of teddy…

Right, so there I was last weekend, trying to sort through the disaster zone that passes for our spare bedroom—you know the type, where broken electronics go to die alongside those Christmas decorations you swear you’ll use again but never do—when I stumbled across something that stopped me…

Here’s something I teach in my history classes – the question “which was better” often misses the actual interesting question, which is “why did different people prefer different things?” The SNES versus Mega Drive debate is a perfect example. People spent literal decades arguing about this, and the…