Considering I ran GBA emulation at full speed on a Celeron ten years ago I'm pretty sure any hiccups on GBA emulation on a 5S or 6 are not down to the hardware.
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I Think That iPhone SE Is The Best Way To Play GBA Games On The Go, And Here's Why
- Thread starter HUELEN10
- Start date
Considering I ran GBA emulation at full speed on a Celeron ten years ago I'm pretty sure any hiccups on GBA emulation on a 5S or 6 are not down to the hardware.
HUELEN10
Member
If I have the time, I plan to shoot some 4K offscreen footage by Sunday. I don't wanna sound like one of those guys, but you gotta see it in person; the games look absolutely incredibble.
Interesting hearing how iPhones have good emulation quality......considering whenever phone emulation comes into play, people cite Android as the best one.
I play my GBA games on this:
Considering my DS Light broke and how my 2DS doesn't play GBA carts. But its always nice to learn about more options, so thank you OP for the heads up
. Don't own an iPhone, but will keep that in mind if I get one .
I'm so confused and honestly annoyed with some people outright dismissing and insulting the OP for making this thread :l. Emulation does not always = piracy and the OP explained how they got the roms (ripping owned GBA carts)......so do not get the instant dismissal of the OP's ideas honestly :l.
I play my GBA games on this:
Considering my DS Light broke and how my 2DS doesn't play GBA carts. But its always nice to learn about more options, so thank you OP for the heads up
. Don't own an iPhone, but will keep that in mind if I get one .I'm so confused and honestly annoyed with some people outright dismissing and insulting the OP for making this thread :l. Emulation does not always = piracy and the OP explained how they got the roms (ripping owned GBA carts)......so do not get the instant dismissal of the OP's ideas honestly :l.
There is one point however where the original system or DS may be preferable: input lag and frame pacing. In my experience, at least with SNES emulation, emulators always have issues with either input lag or frame skipping. Real time games such as Super Mario World feel noticeably worse when not running on original hardware. I'd be curious to see how this GBA emulator copes.
Not saying it looks worse it just won't look exactly the same. A lot of pixel art is built around the limitations of the screen in mind (see artificially brightened backgrounds in some GBA games or color bleed being taken into account in some NES and SNES games).
King Gilga
Member
Because who still carries those around?
Funyarinpa
Member
I suppose you were only talking about the screen when talking about the Z3C not being a flagship phone. It's a pretty damn high-end phone otherwise, though has it been one or two years since it was released?
NOLA_Gaffer
Banned
Because emulation almost always feels "off" in some way compared to playing games on the actual hardware.
Also, while the original GBA hardware may have a "shitty" screen, there are other devices that play GBA games that are not saddled with a poor screen.
I'm positive it looks great lol just in this case I think I prefer the actual hardware
I'm a massive proponent of proper and legal emulation.
Nocturno999
Member
I'm planning to buy an SE so this is relevant to my interests. Subscribed.
ethomaz
Banned
Is 5S a high-end phone today? Nope.
Z3 is not anymore... Z5 has close to twice performance than Z3.
Said that Z3C is really good phone and can run GBA emulation pretty well with some non-proportional screen upscalle or borders.
ITT we pretend that modern phones choke on performance in emulating GBA games in order to narrow the discussion of good phone emulation down to a single device made by Hueluen's fav company.
I dont give a shit if its a 1440p screen, modern phones on Android run GBA emulation just fine and have for generations. The real perfection of gameplay and timing aren't achievable on ANY phones thanks to the imperfection of emulators leading to a situation where you are going to just buy a GBA if you really value perfection.
Not sure who you are trying to fool with that crap. Android phones have had emulators since waaaaaaaaaaay back. We are very familiar with how they work and what they can and cannot do. Trying to pretend that a 640p screen specifically is such a big deal as to be a dealbreaker is laughable. As is the discussion about emulation without regard for battery performance of which an actual GBA beats the pants off of any smartphone out there.
I dont give a shit if its a 1440p screen, modern phones on Android run GBA emulation just fine and have for generations. The real perfection of gameplay and timing aren't achievable on ANY phones thanks to the imperfection of emulators leading to a situation where you are going to just buy a GBA if you really value perfection.
Not sure who you are trying to fool with that crap. Android phones have had emulators since waaaaaaaaaaay back. We are very familiar with how they work and what they can and cannot do. Trying to pretend that a 640p screen specifically is such a big deal as to be a dealbreaker is laughable. As is the discussion about emulation without regard for battery performance of which an actual GBA beats the pants off of any smartphone out there.
HUELEN10
Member
If you don't give a shit, that's fine, but don't go stirring trouble for no reason. a 640p IPS panel in this size is a big deal and to some, considered a legitimate "pro" that is rarely seen.
And before you bring up battery, do some research on the SE's battery life; it's incredible.
deletethis123
Banned
I got this installed yesterday, unfortunately I have a 6S and I like it quite a bit so I don't intend to change it. Still, is there a way to set the game resolution to X amounts? Say, 1X, 2X, 3X, etc, depending on how well it could fit on my screen so I have nice pixels? I don't mind having a black border.
Aspect ratio is unfortunately not quite right. And forcing it to the GBA aspect ratio makes the pixels off due to the screen it's using. But other than that, it's pretty close to the best option, but I still prefer my OG GBA + Backlight.
Apparently they're coming out with a Micro version that has proper scaling so that'd be great.
HUELEN10
Member
Gonna have a chance to borrow a 4K camera soon to get some off screen footage, but I realized something...
I sold this short. 1136 x 640 is perfect for GBA games, which is why I made this thread about it and not GB and GBC games which are 160 x 144 and don't add up perfectly to the math (4.something by 4.something when scaled). Except I was looking at it wrong...
Yeah, if you just play it like this, it looks like shit. Just look at the single pixels in the pic and you will see that they are not all perfect squares, some of them are fuuuuugly rectangles. Surely 712 × 640 is not the way to go, but you can just turn the damn thing 90 degrees and...
Jesus that's beautiful, math works out to 640 × 576 PERFECTLY.
In other words, I was wrong. I don't think this is the best way to play GBA games on the go no, this is the best way to play nearly ANY GB, GBC, or GBA game on the go. Have MFi pad, will travel!
I sold this short. 1136 x 640 is perfect for GBA games, which is why I made this thread about it and not GB and GBC games which are 160 x 144 and don't add up perfectly to the math (4.something by 4.something when scaled). Except I was looking at it wrong...
Yeah, if you just play it like this, it looks like shit. Just look at the single pixels in the pic and you will see that they are not all perfect squares, some of them are fuuuuugly rectangles. Surely 712 × 640 is not the way to go, but you can just turn the damn thing 90 degrees and...
Jesus that's beautiful, math works out to 640 × 576 PERFECTLY.
In other words, I was wrong. I don't think this is the best way to play GBA games on the go no, this is the best way to play nearly ANY GB, GBC, or GBA game on the go. Have MFi pad, will travel!
ss_lemonade
Member
I'm willing to bet some people won't notice the difference between the 2 on first glance. Perfect scaling is great though and its something that I appreciate as well.Gonna have a chance to borrow a 4K camera soon to get some off screen footage, but I realized something...
I sold this short. 1136 x 640 is perfect for GBA games, which is why I made this thread about it and not GB and GBC games which are 160 x 144 and don't add up perfectly to the math (4.something by 4.something when scaled). Except I was looking at it wrong...
Yeah, if you just play it like this, it looks like shit. Just look at the single pixels in the pic and you will see that they are not all perfect squares, some of them are fuuuuugly rectangles. Surely 712 × 640 is not the way to go, but you can just turn the damn thing 90 degrees and...
Jesus that's beautiful, math works out to 640 × 576 PERFECTLY.
In other words, I was wrong. I don't think this is the best way to play GBA games on the go no, this is the best way to play nearly ANY GB, GBC, or GBA game on the go. Have MFi pad, will travel!
mattiewheels
And then the LORD David Bowie saith to his Son, Jonny Depp: 'Go, and spread my image amongst the cosmos. For every living thing is in anguish and only the LIGHT shall give them reprieve.'
This is my problem, it just seems like a hassle all around compared to, say, Android emulators.
HUELEN10
Member
A brand new Tesla and a failing 93 Escort can both take you to the local waffle establishment, but even with having to wait for the charge to be complete, one allows you to enjoy the ride, making the meal much for satisfying.
In other words, it would be nice to hear of other similar options with even less of an in convince as Xcode side loading might be to some, but there don't seem to be many. Not hating on the android platform, and no one is saying you should spend this much on a new phone JUST for GBA games, but consider this...
Xcode sideloading aside, is there any Android-based option with...
- A perfect resolution for all these games.
- A screen of optimal size (3.5-5.5) inches so all games benefit from a pixel density range for the device they were made for (special true and important with 3D or 3Dish GBA games or anything with pre rendered sprites)
- A panel that meets or exceeds the SE's panel in quality and colors
- The power to emulate the games properly
- A Brand new cost of just 399 USD
- A battery that meets or exceeds the life of the SE
Like, cheaper is better for this, but I can't think of a single Android handset that would give an comparable result to this. I gladly welcome it though, as it would be awesome to be able to play GBA games this well on even cheaper hardware so that more people could play, and more people could even use it as a GBA-only device!
mattiewheels
And then the LORD David Bowie saith to his Son, Jonny Depp: 'Go, and spread my image amongst the cosmos. For every living thing is in anguish and only the LIGHT shall give them reprieve.'
Oh believe me, I have an SE and would love to have emus. But this Xcode stuff scares me off.
You don't have to use emus. You can also use BuildStore. Not sure if linking to it is bad...but it's totally legit. $10/year and as many emulators as you want. A small price to pay really.
zerodeefex
Member
Did anyone find a controller attachment that wasn't total crap for the SE? Tempted to pick one up.