"n-0" is part of a common nomenclature in the arcade scene referring to freshness of data. "n-0" (n minus zero) is the current game release, like a mathematical equation. "n-1" is the previous game release. Rarely you will see "n+1" where the next, unreleased version of a game is leaked early.
A time can also be added to specify lengths instead of versions. For example, "n-6 months" or "n-1 year".
The original policy of this repo was to accept any patch set that looked sane and had consistent style, to be a "global" repository for all games that had been released. Sometimes some private release would have hex edits appear as a PR, so I accepted them because I didn't want to get into the drama of "why does he have data but I don't".
In mid 2021, some groups decided they'd start leaking the latest updates for pretty much every game under the sun. In addition to being a hugely irresponsible idea (Sega is especially litigious), this produced a lot of noise in PRs from people hastily trying to port edits.
I have had several terrible PRs submitted that I have had to revert. These include:
- Broken patches
- Misattributed sources
- Totally-fine patch sets where I immediately received a Discord DM saying "I didn't want that to be public, delete it please"
- PRs opened and closed almost immediately by someone reconsidering
- PRs opened, merged and then reverted by the original uploader
As such, this repo now has a new rule: No n-0, unless it is more than a year old.
In addition to the obvious frustration I have with all these junk PRs, read on for some moral soapboxing as to why you should reconsider public n-0.
Remember: this is my own opinion. I like to think it's a fairly common one. You are welcome to disagree with me, but it won't change the policy.
Why the year rule? When a new game comes out, why is the n-1 from yesterday suddenly OK? There are two important aspects to my reasoning: Acting in good faith, and preservation.
You have to remember that rhythm games are an extremely niche market when compared to all other game formats. Arcade rhythm games are even more niche, and critically, comprise a different payment model (credits vs gacha/one-time-buy).
Compared to huge MOBAs and FPS games where the majority just pays and plays the game, the at-home-arcade community is big enough to cause financial problems if they all stay at home, which is why we've seen COVID hit Sega hard enough to start closing flagship arcades in Akihabara.
I have heard firsthand from arcade operators that as soon as home-data is released that matches or exceeds the version in their arcade, attendance drops sharply. After all, with no commute and no credits, playing at home on your ASC is usually good enough.
So the first point, acting in good faith. By releasing old data, you minimise depriving arcade operators of their income. Whether it's in Japan and the coins go straight to Konami, or you're in Europe and they fund your local arcade's next cab purchase, it's critical to actually financially support the games in this niche.
Adding the 1 year specifier is for games like Jubeat and Reflecbeat - games that have not seen a new release in years. I believe it's acting in good faith to release year old data. If there's been literally no updates in a year... That's on Konami for abandoning a property.
The second aspect is preservation. Except for buying an offline cab and hoping it has the right version (good luck), there is simply no way to legitimately play old releases of these games. This is why n-1 suddenly becomes "good" once the next version of the game is released. So much digital history has been lost due to bitrot and always-online games becoming unplayable. I like the idea of being able to play every game in a series ever released.
A lot of people who share my opinion like to loudly flame newcomers thirsty for the latest data, chastising them for not innately knowing the correct etiquette. This is my attempt to explain where my opinions come from. If it's useful to even 1 person, it's done its job.