I don’t want to buy games digitally anymore until I can actually own the game rather than the license. But then some freak on eBay is asking for $500 for a copy of Klonoa on the PS1. Then there are even more freaks who are willing to bid higher than that! Then the smaller retro games stores around me base their prices on these prices. There needs to be a price cap on this stuff. We can’t let all of the richest nerds control the economy.
Or if you prefer original hardware, flash carts and optical drive emulators.
MiSTer is another great option that’s like a halfway point between software emulation and real hardware. It’s still emulation, but it’s done in hardware instead of software.
Grab a working, modded PSX (probably easier to find than unmodded), buy tubes of blank cds, go wild
Laser health and blank CD quality just aren’t what they used to be (especially after Taiyo Yuden shut down). This is still what I’m doing with my PS1, but I plan on upgrading to an ODE when I get the chance.