WHAT IS THIS SITE?

This is a new site on Game&Watch and handheld video-games simulators for PC.
It is not actually a site on the most famous "emulation".
If you're looking for emulators then you'll have to visit other sites, not this one!

WHAT IS SIMULATION?

It's a peculiar kind of programming. A simulator is a program which reproduces the behaviour of a certain system or software.

WHY IS SIMULATION DIFFERENT TO EMULATION?

- an emulator reproduces the hardware of a system;
- a simulator attempts to reproduce the software or the behaviour of that system.
Actually emulation is much more accurate than simulation... but simulation is much funnier for programmers!

Simulators can be considered some kind of "clones" of the original product: a programmer studies a certain software and then tries to make his simulator as much similar as possible to the original.

THEN WHY SIMULATING INSTEAD OF EMULATING?

Because of the great lack of informations about the wide range of 4-bit microprocessors used as "engine" in handheld video-games.
Every Game&Watch, handheld, LCD and LED video-game has an unique microprocessor and it would require a full "programmer's guide" to understand the way it works and, consequently, how to emulate it.

On the contrary, you may find on the Internet a great lot of informations (and ready-to-use emulators) about every 8-bit and 16-bit known microprocessor. This happens because these microprocessors were mainly used for computers and consoles, since they were too much expensive and redundant to be used inside cheap handheld video-games!
This took all of the hardware and software houses to publish many reference guides for these microprocessors, to encourage programmers to develop specific software for their own computer or console.

If you're looking for more infos about Game & Watch and handheld games simulation, please go to the links section and visit some other related sites.