ROMHacking.net, a repository for ROM hacks, translations, utilities, homebrew, and a variety of other software, will cease operations and go read-only as of August 1st, 2024. The state of affairs from this point forward will be as follows:
- Excluding account and profile information, RHDN and the content it hosted has been uploaded to archive.org for long-term preservation.
- Other than news items, no submissions will be accepted and the website will be read only.
- “Downloads and images will be available for as long as DarkSol, FCAndChill Calico will allow.”
- The forums will remain “up”, although it is not especially clear if they will become read-only as well.
- RHDN’s Twitter and Discord accounts are “no longer affiliated” with RHDN’s owners.
Based on the news item posted earlier this evening by Nightcrawler—RHDN’s owner—it appears that the burden of running RHDN has grown increasingly difficult to bear since its inception in 2005. They had apparently been trying to set up some kind of succession plan since late 2023 but weren’t able to find candidates that they were comfortable handing the site off to. In their post, Nightcrawler cites increased traffic, legal threats from copyright holders, and an alleged harassment campaign as contributing factors to the site’s closure.
If I may editorialize for a moment, RHDN’s closure feels like a devastating blow to gaming as a whole. The conversation surrounding retro-gaming preservation has been front and centre for a while, but something that RHDN and its community focussed on that I find equally important is accessibility. Whether it was bug fixes, translations for unlocalized games, quality of life improvements, or a complete remix of a game, the patches I would find on RHDN completely changed how I engaged with the games I know and love. I know that there are other sites with similar mandates that are still out there doing their thing, but RHDN has been a pillar of this community for a long time and I am going to miss it.
So long ROMHacking.net, and thanks for all the patches.
(Update, 24-08-01) Moderators on the RHDN Discord server have released a statement:
“Rom Hacking Community:”
“For those who haven’t heard, the site romhacking.net is winding down and has switched to read-only mode. To the best of our knowledge, the content on the site will remain available for download. Additionally, while we aren’t going anywhere, this discord server is no longer affiliated with the website or its ownership.”
“It’s an end of an era and it’s a bittersweet thing. Problems were mounting, baggage was accumulating, and relationships were souring. But this is a community built by builders and doers. In recent years new options have emerged, and more may yet. We have nothing but hope for the future.”
“Unfortunately, we feel the need to address some remarks posted by the owner of the web site.”
My personal details had been given out. Secret deceitful plots had been made to cut me out, and drop a bomb like I am a target to destroy. My family has seen this and after discussion, we are immediately ceasing all related site operations. We are cutting ties to Discord and Twitter social media outlets, and will have no further contact with these individuals.
“Things have been rocky between site staff and discord staff for a while, and while discord staff had been exploring possible ways forward, likely including severing the relationship with the existing site and its ownership, we are deeply confused and disappointed by the accusation of doxxing and the implication that we’ve been threatening. We categorically reject these allegations.”
“We would appreciate if the community would refrain from engaging in speculation or gossip within this server.”
“Thanks to everyone that has been a part of this community over the years. We look forward to whatever the future may bring!”
