Why Retro Games Look Better on CRT TVs: The Tech Explained
According to Engadget, retro games look better on old CRT TVs because they were designed for that display technology, not just nostalgia. Key factors include motion clarity and resolution handling.
CRT displays use electron guns to draw horizontal scanlines on a phosphorescent screen, rather than displaying individual pixels. Each frame is drawn from left to right and top to bottom, which appears instantaneous to the human eye. LCD and OLED screens, by contrast, use a sample-and-hold technique that holds a full frame until refresh, which historically resulted in less motion clarity. High refresh rate displays have only recently matched CRTs in this aspect.
Resolution also plays a major role. CRTs have no native resolution, so they can render various resolutions without the smearing that occurs when a flat-panel runs at a non-native resolution. The console industry standardized around 240p and 480i before the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 era. The "p" in 240p stands for progressive, drawing all lines consecutively, while the "i" in 480i stands for interlaced, requiring two alternating passes. Standard definition CRTs leave even-numbered lines black for 240p, creating the scanline effect many associate with retro games.
According to Engadget, the mismatch seen when playing original hardware on modern TVs is the result of removing games from their original display context. Developers of that era often kept a consumer CRT nearby to preview how games would appear to typical players.