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RETROARCH - The all-in-one emulator dreams are made of, son

L

Lettuce

Member
MoGamesXNA said:
Yeah I'm hanging out for those cores as well. I was playing some Tempest earlier actually. What Amiga games are you looking to play through the PUA core in Retroarch? Flashback (the definitive version IMO), Stunt Car Racer and Frontier spring to mind for me. Super Wing Commander and Star Control II on the 3DO core will be god tier when that's ready too.

I'm considering contributing to Retroarch (assuming they'd want additional hands). I quit game development last year but it's really tempting to help out on such a great project
Click to expand...

Amiga Stuff,

Turrican 1&2
Lotus Esprit Turbo Challenge
Lotus Turbo Challenge 2
IK+
Laser Squad
Lionheart

And on the 3DO i just want to play Road Rash
 
I

ILoveBish

Member
PCSX2 is incredibly non-portable and insanely x86 dependent. If they even did a core, it would be pc only, and i dont think they have any intentions on that atm. Dolphin is a lot more friendly in that regard, where it is a modular design and a well though out emulator.
 
L

Lettuce

Member
Where RetroArch is concerned what is regarded to be the best core to use for the MegaDrive?, Genesis Plus GX or PicoDrive?. i know PicoDrive has support for 32x games but which is the best?

The same question again for the NES, bNES, FCEUmm, NEStopia or QuickNES??
 
nkarafo

nkarafo

Member
just a quick question. Are there any "exclusive" cores in Retro Arch that are better than the standalone emulators on PC?
 
A

Awakened

Member
Lettuce said:
Where RetroArch is concerned what is regarded to be the best core to use for the MegaDrive?, Genesis Plus GX or PicoDrive?. i know PicoDrive has support for 32x games but which is the best?

The same question again for the NES, bNES, FCEUmm, NEStopia or QuickNES??
Click to expand...
Genesis Plus GX for Mega Drive/Master System/Game Gear/Sega CD and Nestopia for NES. Both are more accurate than the other cores available for those systems, but are also fast enough to run on most devices full speed.
 
Zambatoh

Zambatoh

Member
Mousnis said:
just a quick question. Are there any "exclusive" cores in Retro Arch that are better than the standalone emulators on PC?
Click to expand...

I like to think the PS1 emulator in Retroarch is really good. It up scales to HD resolutions way better then EpsxE does in my experience.
 
C

charlequin

Banned
AndresSM said:
It's great that you guys like what the team is doing.
Click to expand...

RetroArch replaced 90% of my emulation suite in one shot. I got sick of trying to actually find a version of bsnes that wasn't a total pain in the ass; now I can get cycle-accurate emulation with great visual display and no bullshit.

At the moment it's pretty much DosBOX (until the core gets rebuilt), SSF (for the stuff that Yabause can't handle), Kega Fusion (just for Phantasy Star 1), Dolphin, and PCSX2 that I'd even use for any reason now; everything else goes through RA.
 
L

Lettuce

Member
AndresSM said:
still under testing, there were problems with some cores and the trolling started immediately
Click to expand...

WHAT!, when did this happen?, just recently?, what were people bitching about? The thing I'd like to see more of is support for the 8 & 16 BIT Micro Computers (C64, Amstrad CPC, Spectrum, Amiga and Atari ST)

AndresSM said:
It's great that you guys like what the team is doing. Sometimes progress seems to slow down but a lot of work is being done behind curtains.
We've been hard at work with the buildbot, and with the wiki too!

http://wiki.libretro.com/index.php?title=Beetle/Mednafen_PSX
Click to expand...

This buildbot, will if allow us mortals to compile our own nightly builds then for all platforms? (Linux, X86, x64, Android, iOS)

So is the Beetle core regarded to have better emulation/performance/features than the other PSX core?

charlequin said:
At the moment it's pretty much DosBOX (until the core gets rebuilt), SSF (for the stuff that Yabause can't handle), Kega Fusion (just for Phantasy Star 1), Dolphin, and PCSX2 that I'd even use for any reason now; everything else goes through RA.
Click to expand...

Kega Fusion regarded to be the boss for everything Sega then? (Minus Saturn & DreamCast)
 
L

Lettuce

Member
LiquidMetal14 said:
Where are these nightly's we speak of?
Click to expand...

They can be found HERE

Updated an hour ago never the less. Lordashram is a legend for his time spent on making these nightly builds even when his at poor health as well.

And to top it off 4DO core is now included as well, yay!!!!!

giphy.gif
 
nkarafo

nkarafo

Member
I want to get into Retro Arch but the first time i did i found it confusing. Is there any guide or something on how to initially setup the thing?
 
L

Lettuce

Member
Mousnis said:
I want to get into Retro Arch but the first time i did i found it confusing. Is there any guide or something on how to initially setup the thing?
Click to expand...

Lettuce said:
Ive made a basic setup video for RetroArch showing how to load and save system configs etc if anyone is interested....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EHXyGK9DNX4&feature=youtu.be

Theres a link in the description of my video above that has all the shaders, just unzip that and name the folder shaders, then add it to your retroarch directory
Click to expand...


One extra thing to add to that guide, once you save the config for each core, go into the config folder and just rename the config file to the name of the system, ie SNES.

Also for some reason RetroArch sometimes makes 2 files for each config a .dll.cfg and .cfg im sure you dont need both so i just delete the dll.cfg file and keep the .cfg
 
L

Lettuce

Member
Also noticed there seems to be an Amiga core now as well, but cant get any games to load.

Have tired MESS for amiga games but with the game resets back to the RGUI or RA crashes, any ideas?
 
G

gelf

Member
I feel like I'm being really dumb here but which of the cores (if any) allow you to up the internal resolution rather then just stretching the image when I run them at higher then thier native? And if any do where do I enable this setting? For example the standalone version of Yabause allows an upres in OpenGL mode but I don't see this option anywhere with the core here.

I feel like I've seen mentions of it in this thread but have found it hard to find any specifics.
 
K

kaioshade

Member
charlequin said:
RetroArch replaced 90% of my emulation suite in one shot. I got sick of trying to actually find a version of bsnes that wasn't a total pain in the ass; now I can get cycle-accurate emulation with great visual display and no bullshit.

At the moment it's pretty much DosBOX (until the core gets rebuilt), SSF (for the stuff that Yabause can't handle), Kega Fusion (just for Phantasy Star 1), Dolphin, and PCSX2 that I'd even use for any reason now; everything else goes through RA.
Click to expand...

Pretty much this. And the exact cores you mentioned as well. I do kind of miss the upscaling of the ps one games, but i have grown to like native rendering of the games, and the shaders are too nice to ignore.

And the OS X port re-added CG shader support. Parameters work for OS X now. YAY.
 
E

EasyMode

Member
AndresSM said:
It's great that you guys like what the team is doing. Sometimes progress seems to slow down but a lot of work is being done behind curtains.
We've been hard at work with the buildbot, and with the wiki too!

http://wiki.libretro.com/index.php?title=Beetle/Mednafen_PSX
Click to expand...

The work you and the team have been doing is much appreciated. Being able to achieve a consistent look and behavior across systems makes it a pleasure to revisit my old favorites.
 
M

MoGamesXNA

Unconfirmed Member
AndresSM said:
still under testing, there were problems with some cores and the trolling started immediately
Click to expand...

That's sad to hear mate. The Retroarch team's work and your own, is certainly very appreciated here. Always appreciate the updates to this thread as well and for the help given earlier

Lettuce said:
And to top it off 4DO core is now included as well, yay!!!!!
Click to expand...

That's unreal news... downloading it now. Cheers for the heads up

For anyone trying out the 3DO core, you need to place "panafz10.bin" (the 3DO Bios) in your RetroArch/libretro "System Directory" folder otherwise the core will just show a black screen when you attempt to load an ISO.
 
nkarafo

nkarafo

Member
Ok i made a retroarch setup and i tested a couple of emulators already for GBA and Mega Drive. I really, REALLY love the portable console shaders, however the crt ones not so much. I have both a CRT monitor and a crt TV and most of the filters have exaggerated effects. Also, the horizontal scanlines are uneven when i test the filters on my LCD TV.

Anyway, i would love to use it for at least the portable consoles, however i noticed something that is bothersome and i can't just ignore it. Both emulators i tested had noticeable input lag. There is no such thing when i use standalone emulators or other frontends like Quick Play or Hyperspin. But with Retro Arch i get input lag. This is enough reason not to use it unfortunately, unless i'm doing something terrible wrong and its not the program's fault.
 
K

Koren

Member
Mousnis said:
Both emulators i tested had noticeable input lag.
Click to expand...
I agree...

I've tested this out of curiosity (I have a "retro" setup upstairs with original hardware, I prefer playing it this way, or I just use Wii/Wii U VC), because of the OP, and the two things that disappointed me a bit were that:

- shaders/filters were unusable (bsnes runs fine, but when I add most filters such as the ones in OP, I get a disappointing results, bad image with glitch, and 3fps... maybe because I use the integrated videocard of my sandy bridge i3?)

- there were some input lag, not awful but still there, even without shaders

Would be curious to know whether it's avoidable...
 
A

Aeana

Member
Mousnis said:
Ok i made a retroarch setup and i tested a couple of emulators already for GBA and Mega Drive. I really, REALLY love the portable console shaders, however the crt ones not so much. I have both a CRT monitor and a crt TV and most of the filters have exaggerated effects. Also, the horizontal scanlines are uneven when i test the filters on my LCD TV.

Anyway, i would love to use it for at least the portable consoles, however i noticed something that is bothersome and i can't just ignore it. Both emulators i tested had noticeable input lag. There is no such thing when i use standalone emulators or other frontends like Quick Play or Hyperspin. But with Retro Arch i get input lag. This is enough reason not to use it unfortunately, unless i'm doing something terrible wrong and its not the program's fault.
Click to expand...
Did you try enabling GPU hard sync in the settings?
 
A

Awakened

Member
charlequin said:
...Kega Fusion (just for Phantasy Star 1)...
Click to expand...
Genesis Plus GX's emulation of PS1 seems perfect to me, both the US release and the Japanese one with SMSPower's retranslation patch.
gelf said:
I feel like I'm being really dumb here but which of the cores (if any) allow you to up the internal resolution rather then just stretching the image when I run them at higher then thier native? And if any do where do I enable this setting? For example the standalone version of Yabause allows an upres in OpenGL mode but I don't see this option anywhere with the core here.

I feel like I've seen mentions of it in this thread but have found it hard to find any specifics.
Click to expand...
If a core supports it, there'll be an internal res option in it's core options. Mupen64Plus and PPSSPP support it, but Yabause doesn't yet since that core only supports software rendering so far.
Mousnis said:
Ok i made a retroarch setup and i tested a couple of emulators already for GBA and Mega Drive. I really, REALLY love the portable console shaders, however the crt ones not so much. I have both a CRT monitor and a crt TV and most of the filters have exaggerated effects. Also, the horizontal scanlines are uneven when i test the filters on my LCD TV.

Anyway, i would love to use it for at least the portable consoles, however i noticed something that is bothersome and i can't just ignore it. Both emulators i tested had noticeable input lag. There is no such thing when i use standalone emulators or other frontends like Quick Play or Hyperspin. But with Retro Arch i get input lag. This is enough reason not to use it unfortunately, unless i'm doing something terrible wrong and its not the program's fault.
Click to expand...
You can fix uneven scanlines by turning on integer scaling, but with that on you lose some vertical screen space. Some shaders have less noticeable unevenness with integer off, like easymode and Royale.

You can kill most of the lag by turning on Hard GPU Sync in the video options. With that on I felt RetroArch had less lag than most stand-alone emulators. However, turning that on can be pretty CPU intensive. There is an option below it, Hard GPU Sync Frames, which you can change to 1 if you get audio crackling with hard sync on. That's less CPU intensive, but also adds slightly more lag compared to when it's set to 0. My 2500k overclocked to 4ghz can handle most cores at 0 without crackling.
 
nkarafo

nkarafo

Member
Awakened said:
You can kill most of the lag by turning on Hard GPU Sync in the video options. With that on I felt RetroArch had less lag than most stand-alone emulators. However, turning that on can be pretty CPU intensive. There is an option below it, Hard GPU Sync Frames, which you can change to 1 if you get audio crackling with hard sync on. That's less CPU intensive, but also adds slightly more lag compared to when it's set to 0. My 2500k overclocked to 4ghz can handle most cores at 0 without crackling.
Click to expand...
Thanks, i will test some more. I have a 4670 so i shouldn't have a problem.

EDIT: i'm trying to make crt-easymode.cg to work, in order to get simple scanlines but i can't. Can someone help with this?
 
E

EasyMode

Member
L

Lettuce

Member
How do you get games to work if your using the MESS core, everything i try the game either rests back to the RGUI or causes RetroArch to crash???

This is the error i get from RetroArch....

inment System / Famicom (NTSC)
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: Creating frontend for game: Batman
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: Softlists: 0
SOURCE FILE: src/mess/drivers/nes.c
PARENT: 0
NAME: nes
DESCRIPTION: Nintendo Entertainment System / Famicom (NTSC)
YEAR: 1985
MANUFACTURER: Nintendo
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: Screen orientation: HORIZONTAL
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: OSD initialization complete
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: width=256 height=240
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: max_width=1600 max_height=1200
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: aspect_ratio=1.333333
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: fps=60.000000 sample_rate=48000.000000
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: width=256 height=240
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: max_width=1600 max_height=1200
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: aspect_ratio=1.333333
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: fps=60.000000 sample_rate=48000.000000
ChangeAV: w:256 h:240 ra:1.333333 0.000000
FATALERROR: Device NES Cartridge Slot load failed: Unspecified error
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: OSD exit called
Retro unload_game
Retro DeInit
 
Radius4

Radius4

Member
Lettuce said:
How do you get games to work if your using the MESS core, everything i try the game either rests back to the RGUI or causes RetroArch to crash???

This is the error i get from RetroArch....

inment System / Famicom (NTSC)
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: Creating frontend for game: Batman
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: Softlists: 0
SOURCE FILE: src/mess/drivers/nes.c
PARENT: 0
NAME: nes
DESCRIPTION: Nintendo Entertainment System / Famicom (NTSC)
YEAR: 1985
MANUFACTURER: Nintendo
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: Screen orientation: HORIZONTAL
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: OSD initialization complete
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: width=256 height=240
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: max_width=1600 max_height=1200
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: aspect_ratio=1.333333
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: fps=60.000000 sample_rate=48000.000000
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: width=256 height=240
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: max_width=1600 max_height=1200
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: aspect_ratio=1.333333
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: fps=60.000000 sample_rate=48000.000000
ChangeAV: w:256 h:240 ra:1.333333 0.000000
FATALERROR: Device NES Cartridge Slot load failed: Unspecified error
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: OSD exit called
Retro unload_game
Retro DeInit
Click to expand...

Paste a complete verbose log into pastebin please
 
Radius4

Radius4

Member
Lettuce said:
How do you get games to work if your using the MESS core, everything i try the game either rests back to the RGUI or causes RetroArch to crash???

This is the error i get from RetroArch....

inment System / Famicom (NTSC)
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: Creating frontend for game: Batman
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: Softlists: 0
SOURCE FILE: src/mess/drivers/nes.c
PARENT: 0
NAME: nes
DESCRIPTION: Nintendo Entertainment System / Famicom (NTSC)
YEAR: 1985
MANUFACTURER: Nintendo
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: Screen orientation: HORIZONTAL
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: OSD initialization complete
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: width=256 height=240
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: max_width=1600 max_height=1200
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: aspect_ratio=1.333333
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: fps=60.000000 sample_rate=48000.000000
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: width=256 height=240
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: max_width=1600 max_height=1200
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: aspect_ratio=1.333333
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: AV_INFO: fps=60.000000 sample_rate=48000.000000
ChangeAV: w:256 h:240 ra:1.333333 0.000000
FATALERROR: Device NES Cartridge Slot load failed: Unspecified error
RetroArch: [libretro INFO] :: OSD exit called
Retro unload_game
Retro DeInit
Click to expand...

Ok I found a problem with the stuff I added for hiscores/autofire, I'll push a fix
 
L

lobdale

3 ft, coiled to the sky
This thread made me sad cause I loaded up my delightful softmodded launch Wii and it now bricks on the health and safety warning screen every time.

...anyone got a spare Wii they don't need anymore?
 
R

Rich!

Member
On the topic of lag, it depends on your controller too. My SNES controller adapter (a third party brandless one) has terrible lag, whereas my Wii Classic Controller Pro (not the Wii U one) via the mayflash adapter is fine.
 
L

Lettuce

Member
AndresSM said:
Ok, fixed, pushed to git and here is a x64 win build
https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/149537/arcade_libretro.7z

You need official hashes for MESS/UME ofc
Click to expand...

That didnt appear to help. :(

I have the rom directory for MESS as.....

D:\RetroArch\Games\Mess\NES

and a test rom (batman.zip) in that directory

I take it i grab the hash files from, https://github.com/libretro/libretro-mame/tree/master/hash

and place that in the systems folder??

Is there anything else i should have downloaded??

AndresSM said:
Paste a complete verbose log into pastebin please
Click to expand...

Wheres the default location that RA usually stores the log file?
 
Radius4

Radius4

Member
Lettuce said:
That didnt appear to help. :(

I have the rom directory for MESS as.....

D:\RetroArch\Games\Mess\NES

and a test rom (batman.zip) in that directory

I take it i grab the hash files from, https://github.com/libretro/libretro-mame/tree/master/hash

and place that in the systems folder??

Is there anything else i should have downloaded??
Click to expand...

https://www.dropbox.com/s/3budn4m2nvxb5lh/mess.7z?dl=0
You need to put that in system\mess\hash yeah

http://www.libretro.com/index.php/mamemessume-cores/
 
R

Rich!

Member
goddamn, ppsspp core is great. I've only got two games for it though - ridge racer and space invaders extreme. May have to go on a CEX trip tomorrow

amazed at how good it looks on my HDTV with a crt shader. makes me long for a 3DS emulator.
 
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