Let's talk about Lodgenet. If you've never heard of it before, Lodgenet was a service offered in over 500,000 hotels throughout the United States from the mid 90s to early 2000s. Lodgenet allowed hotel guests to rent SNES, N64 and Gamecube video games on a pay-per-hour basis. The games would be streamed directly to the user's TV set and played using proprietary Lodgenet controllers with additional built-in functions. Moreover, many of the games had differences from their retail counterparts, making the Lodgenet versions of said games valuable for archival purposes.Did you ever use one of these systems? If so, do you have any fond recollections? I only had a few experiences, but I've always been fascinated by them, and a dream of mine is to one day own an original unit. However, they extremely difficult to come by, and no doubt expensive. I've never seen one pop up on eBay.
They were a complete rip off if you wanted to play anything with a story, but most of the time it was just a time waster for kids that didn't like swimming/water slides and didn't think to bring a game console of their own. Owning a lodgenet system would be highly impractical as you'd need the lodgenet server and end user network just to play games you can emulate. The only difference in gameplay is a timer that was onscreen if I recall correctly, and even then that timer could very well be superimposed on the game screen video toaster style. I'm not even sure if the games were different in any way
here's a screenshot of archival footage that displays the US patents, so you couid determine how the system works by looking them up if you can be bothered.
>>12072469>Owning a lodgenet system would be highly impractical as you'd need the lodgenet server and end user networkI don't want one practical purposes, I want one because it would be neat to have and get working again.>The only difference in gameplay is a timer that was onscreen if I recall correctly, and even then that timer could very well be superimposed on the game screen video toaster style. I'm not even sure if the games were different in any wayIt varied frok title to title, but many Lodgenet games had noticeable differences from retail copies. For example, Ocarina of Time:https://tcrf.net/The_Legend_of_Zelda:_Ocarina_of_Time/Version_DifferencesFun fact, this is the only version of the game that has the censored sheikah emblem everywhere in the game, except on the mirror shield which retains the original crescent moon design. It's also the most updated N64-hardware version.
I used this once to rent Super Mario World at a hotel we stayed at when I was a kid. No memory of it besides that we rented it and I played it.
>>12072478Excellent tip. I've yet to find any meaningful documentation online that explains how to get the system working, so this helps. But first, actually finding one...
>>12072439I was at a Quality Inn in St. Louis in 2012 and they had it. I wanted to play it but my mom said no. The hotel was demolished a year later and I never got to experience hotel N64. We were technically homeless at the time and it was 10 dollars but I'm still mad.
>>12072556I hope things turned out okay for you and your mom. One day I'll let you play Lodgenet 64 at my future air bnb.
I used them a few times. A huge ripoff and but its a neat idea. Plus all the n64 roms of value for lodgenet were ripped and I believe one of the SNES exclusive games (just tic tac toe) got ripped
>>12072469iirc their were very minor differences, like save being disabled and telling you the game is in stores now
>>12072469>>12072481The ROMs are all dumped and available online
>>12072587Pretty sure a few are still missing (I believe there were 38 ROMs total for N64 alone, not sure about the SNES/GCN), but that isn't really the issue for me personally. I just think it would be extremely neat to get one of these systems running again.
>>12072439I have a very fond memory of browsing through one of these things at a hotel many years ago. I didn't actually play it, but I had fun looking through the options and I remember thinking how weird and cool it seemed. I even remember the exact date, it was September 2nd, because it was the same night that Adult Swim first aired and I caught the first (pilot?) episode of ATHF.
>>12072439My first video game ever was super mario world on lodgenet. i have a lot of fond memories and wasted a lot of his money as we motel hopped around america
>>12072439i always played fzero for snes in hotel rooms as a kid. idk if it was lodgenet or not, but same idea. It was a treat because i never owned that game until decades later.
>>12072621That's pretty sovlful.
I do remember this, but did they ever expand to PS1 games? I vaguely remember one having DBGT Final Bout.
>>12072439My old man got his belt off and whupped me simply for ASKING if he would pay for Lodgenet, once he saw what it cost. My mom cried, they had a big fight (we were on vacation) and in the end, to make it up to her, he bought me 2 hours of DKC2
>>12072654jesusI hate abusive parents so much
>>12072654I hope you're joking, but for some reason I believe you.
>>12072654>Daddy, the TV has Nintendo games... Nintendo games, daddy!>...>C-can I rent one? It's only $6.95 per hour, daddy...>...>$6.95?>SIX DOLLARS AND NINETY-FIVE CENTS, BOY?>SEVEN DOLLARS'A MY EARNIN'S FOR YOU TO PLAY THEM LITTLE 'TENDUH GAMES?>YOU KNOW HOW HARD YOU DADDY GOTTA WORK FOR THEM DOLLARS, BOY?>I got... I got half a mind, boy... half a mind to take this belt right off my pants rightchere, and whoop you little...>Richard, stop! You're drunk!>I AIN'T DRUNK WOMAN!>*SMACK*>Ow! Riiichard! Stop! Please!!!>DON'T TELL ME WHAT TO DO!>*SMACK*>Come here boy...>*unstraps*>YOU GON' LEARN A LESSON ABOUT RESPECT, BOY!>*WHABAM*>*WHABAM*>DADDY! OW! DADDY!>YOU DONE LEARNED THE VALUE OF A DOLLAR NOW, SON!>*WHABAM*>Richard! Richard, stop! Stop! Look!>*heavy breathing*>...>Richard... Lodgenet doesn't just have games... It also lets you rent the summer's most popular movies...>M-Movies...? Like... What Women Want featuring Mel Gibson, or... or, Gone in 60 Seconds featuring Nicolas Cage?>...That's right, Richard. You can even watch hot TV series like Dream Car Garage, Andromeda... even Jack of All Trades, starring Bruce Campbell!>W-well... Well now, that sounds mighty fine... Whew... man... son, I'm... I'm sor-... I'm g-gonna letchu rent that 'tenduh game... That there, what was it? The uh, Donkey King World 2, you been talkin' about...>*sniffle* T-Thanks, daddy...>Whew... Thanks Lodgenet.
>>12072654Lead brain is real.
>>12072439I remember begging my parents to let me play one of these and they told me fuck off no its too expensive.In retrospect they were right.>>12072654Similar experience minus the ass whooping. Just a verbal "what the fuck is wrong with you this is why I'm poor because you never stop asking for things".
>>12072805You are fucked in the head.
>>12072805cinema
>>12072654Family holidays can be a stressful time
I used it at a Hilton in the mid 2000s which was the first time I played smash 64. I felt bad that my mom would get billed if I played more when the timer ran out so I only played for the 45 minutes or however long it was
>>12072834
How many trafficked rape prisoners played it?
>>12072654You were already on a vacation he paid for, in a hotel with a pool you could swim in. I'm not saying "beat your kids" but I get why he was mad.
I caved and bought a Sonic SD card.
>>12072439please be a bot
I wasted so much of my parents' money on those fucking things on a trip to canada in the early 00s, I only had a PSX at home so I was on that shit every time a hotel had it, no regrets.
>>12072654Meeemorieees, light the cooorners of my miiiind...
>>12073601You good?
>>12072439i recall this being a thing but when we were on vacation vidya games were a non-starter. however one time my brother pretended to be sick so he could stay at the hotel and he bought a porn movie and pretended it wasnt him even though it was obvious kek
>>12073782based coomblaster older bro
>>12072805KINO
>2003>be kid>stay at hotel sometimes>see controller>"whoa, games!">ask mom to play>she thinks>nope>never get to play games on hotel TV>remains mystery for long time>years later>irate gamer does video on it>ohboy.png>he rants about price, video ends>still mystery>eventually roms dumped, but by then who cares
>>12072439I didn't remember what it was called. I got to experience it with SNES games during the Summer of 1996 when staying in a hotel on the only family vacation I ever got to take before my dad died. The only reason he paid for it was because we stayed with a family member the night before who lived in an area we were traveling through and the only SNES game they fucking had was Vegas Stakes. I couldn't stop crying and just went to bed extremely heartbroken.
>>12073778>Me cope?Have you ever done otherwise?
>>12072587Wasn't this dump the reason Forest of Illusion got shut down or something?
>>12072556The answer is always no
>>12074482What are we mad about today?
>>12074818>What are we mad about today?You will immediately cease and not continue to access the site if you are under the age of 18.
>>12074923That's great, but I'm still not sure why you're upset.
>>12072439I played one of these once in the early 00's in Calgary. I played Paper Mario, a game I had already beaten multiple times, and wanted to see just how far I could get in the initial time limit. I don't remember any differences between it and the regular N64 version.
>>12074517I thought they just quit of their own volition because you don't get to keep your pseudo-anonymity once you release something as insane as 1997 Zelda 64
>>12072805admittedly it was a lot to pack into a 30-second advertisement, but it seemed to sell hoteliers on the idea.
>>12072439I remember these well. Have a fond experience I remember very well on a family vacation at an Econo Lodge in Lancaster, PA.>"Wow this is cool! Dad, can I rent a game?">"No."The End. I get it though, it was probably expensive and the other 5 of my siblings would've wanted turns and renting different games or arguing, etc.
>>12074957>people laught at me because they're upset
>>12075174>people
>>12072439>>12072593What would be the point of getting one of these systems working again? I imagine the infrastructure would be a nightmare since the hardware itself is split between the board, a server and the input devices, not to mention the software, and there's barely any documentation on any of it. It's cool but it has no real purpose other than booting it up a few times and thinking "huh, nifty" and that's it.
>>12073330Miles' should have been 1tb
>>12075313It's not about convenience, it's about interacting with relics from the past and appreciating their eccentricities in an increasingly soulless, vapid world devoid of creativity. However, I can tell you that my ideas, were I to ever possess the necessary equipment for running a Lodgenet server, would not stop at simple tinkering. No. I have plans. Big plans.>purchase a small house in a rural area with the intention of renting it out as an Air BnB>fix it up and make a few structural changes>the front porch will be an enclosed area with vending machines, central AC, 24/7 lighting, muffled acid jazz music played through overhead speakers, leather couches, a water cooler (with hot water option), and a bar with paper cups and coffee/tea packets>a welcome desk in the corner will be manned by a Windows XP PC which will prompt guests to sign in and receive their code for unlocking the house door>upon entering, guests will find themselves in a home with the styling of a typical Courtyard by Marriott>toilet paper and towels will be provided, as well as kitchen utensils, but little else aside from the usual baubles: an ash tray, various single-use soaps and small bottles of shampoo, and an ice dispenser complete with plastic buckets and plastic bags (if guests need anything more, they should refer to the vending machines in the front lobby)>there will be two rooms, each complete with a Zenith brand CRT television>there is no wifi, only ethernet and cable television with HBO (optional)>that is, except for Lodgenet>guests will have the option of perusing a bi-weekly rotating catalog of N64 titles, as well as a rotating catalog of 90s and 2000s movies>a team of polish women will be tasked with cleaning the unit after every visit, restocking the vending machines and coffee bar, and ensuring that no Lodgenet controllers or remotes are missing ($39.95 charge for any missing equipment, billed upon release).I don't expect good reviews.
>>12075373my fucking god thats cringe.im not ever going in an air bnb.
>>12075384You're getting billed $39.95 either way.
>>12072654>My old man got his belt off and whupped me simply for ASKING if he would pay for LodgenetLMAO>PAY UP BOOMER!!! AAACKKKKKKKK!!!!!KEK
My parents only ever let me rent once. Me and my brother got Super Punchout and played it a bit. They never let us rent again. I think they preferred having their mixed drinks and watching America's Funniest Home Videos. They never enjoyed watching me or my bro play games.
>>12075373Based
>>12075373You joke, but if I get a large chunk of money (waiting on my lawyer) I actually plan to do something similar and just buy another house but have this one as a vrbo w a heavy emphasis on retro game shit for whenever you aren’t out enjoying the surrounding mountains rivers lakes and whatever else.
>>12072439Did they have online via lan?
>>12072834Grow a fucking pair
>>12075351the fatso writer at SEGA hates Tails and Shadow glazing is at an all time high
>>12072805Actually good. Proud of you
>>12077510not that i remember
>>12077418>You joke, but I larpI lol
