Support NeoGAF

[Kiddy Dong]

If you're using a CRT, then the Wii is far and away the best option, no contest. There really is nothing to debate here.

Retroarch is still being updated and is more reliable than ever for NES/SNES, GBA emulation has made immense strides in the last year thanks to mGBA, and all in 240p since the Wii can support it. Genesis Plus GX is also excellent.

 

[HappehLemons]

It will work fine, people have been shoving raspberry pi's into old crt's and arcade cabinet's with fantastic results.

Does it support 240p? I'm more interested in it now but I want to make sure it's super simple and straight forward.

 

[MRORANGE]

Does it support 240p? I'm more interested in it now but I want to make sure it's super simple and straight forward.

I was able to get it working at 320x240 on one of those 3.5" composite display with no modification..

 

[PrankT]

Ouya or Wii U.

 

[entremet]

Like virtually any video card from 1999 to 2008 likely has an SVIDEO out on the card itself. Just go buy a used 8600 GT from ebay for $20 like this:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/EVGA-GeForc...806633?hash=item41b31ba129:g:kF4AAOSwNuxXYGK6

And you're good to go.

S-Video is pretty hard to find in CRTs these days.

Component is much easier. This is coming from some one that is obsessed with them lol.

 

[ss_lemonade]

I'd probably go with a wii or wii u at this point. About the OG xbox though, I always thought it had emulators with the best interfaces. The arcade emulators, xport stuff as well as the other emulators that came after by nes6502 were pretty amazing (and looked great at 1080i on our TV).

 

[soxinthebox]

I think a Wii will be the simplest to set up and use. Plus they are cheap as nowadays.

 

[deadscreensky]

One potential issue with the Wii is it has terrible video output quality. I'd probably avoid it for that reason alone. It just looks awful.

I'd go mini-PC/Raspberry Pi, personally.

 

[whitehawk]

Wouldn't a mini Android console be best for something like this?

 

[CrashPrime]

I actually only ever used it with NES and SNES pads, so I never noticed the issues they talked about there. Those wireless pads look nice, but there's just something about using the same controller I played with as a kid

Trust me when I say, the SNES30 is better than the Nintendo SNES pad. I didn't think such sorcery was possible, but they feel identical but are brand new. So unless you stumble on new old stock SNES controllers, the 8bitdo are insane.

I would agree the nostalgia factor for NES is nice, but my recommendation is (hopefully) to grab some NES Classic Mini's for $10 a pop and adapt to USB.

Raspberry PI has composite though:

Yes, but composite is hot garbage.

 

[Rembrandt]

i can only speak for the ps3 but it was all pretty easy and accessible besides the initial jailbreaking part which is more annoying than anything. idk about hooking up the original controllers, though. i also only played SNES games so i have no idea how well it runs other systems.

had a great run playing LBP2 and SM A-S and DKC.

 

[RowdyReverb]

Trust me when I say, the SNES30 is better than the Nintendo SNES pad. I didn't think such sorcery was possible, but they feel identical but are brand new. So unless you stumble on new old stock SNES controllers, the 8bitdo are insane.

I would agree the nostalgia factor for NES is nice, but my recommendation is (hopefully) to grab some NES Classic Mini's for $10 a pop and adapt to USB.

Yes, but composite is hot garbage.

I would be more tempted by the NES30 if it came in the "dogbone" fashion I spent more time with as a kid. The SNES30 on the other hand...

 

[Big Green Anus]

Nothing to search bro.

Step 1) Buy Raspberry Pi of choice (B+, 2, 3, or Zero)
Step 2) Load RetroPie per instructions
Step 3) Hook-up input device of choice
Step 4) ???
Step 5) Profit.

Edit: Still check out that wonderful thread MRORANGE posted.

What's the best Raspberry Pi model? I never heard of this, but it sounds like a lot of people are recommending this.

 

[To Far Away Times]

The original Xbox had one of the greatest menus/front ends ever made with XBMC.

That was an incredible undertaking.

But I would recommend either the PS3 or the Wii today for console emulators. I tend to like the PS3 better for emulation due to the conroller, but your millage may vary. Wii homebrew is very easy to install.

 

[CrashPrime]

What's the best Raspberry Pi model? I never heard of this, but it sounds like a lot of people are recommending this.

3 is the most modern/fastest, but the Zero is tiny, cheap, and capable which can lead to fun like "Pi Zero in an SNES controller" type projects.

But for general use stuff the 3 is what you want.

The original Xbox had one of the greatest menus/front ends ever made with XBMC.

That was an incredible undertaking.

But I would recommend either the PS3 or the Wii today for console emulators. I tend to like the PS3 better for emulation due to the conroller, but your millage may vary. Wii homebrew is very easy to install.

It still exists today as Kodi and is very much compatible with the Pi.

 

[petran79]

If you can get a good computer CRT monitor instead, the better. No input lag and much better picture quality than regular CRT TVs.

 

[c0de]

Buy a Wii U and use it to run Gamecube, Wii and Wii U games Natively thanks to nintendont.

Are there any native WiiU emulators that use the additional computing power of the system?

 

[KojiKnight]

Are there any native WiiU emulators that use the additional computing power of the system?

The scene is VERY lethargic at this point... the only native console emulator is gameboy I think. It's not because they can't simply no one has done anything with it yet.

 

[c0de]

The scene is VERY lethargic at this point... the only native console emulator is gameboy I think. It's not because they can't simply no one has done anything with it yet.

I guess the system being ppc doesn't really help, too.
I was only wondering if there is any because Wii had a good amount of emulators which would benefit greatly from the better hardware.

 

[-shadow-]

Raspberry PI has composite though:

Can you also use this for component? I happen to have such a plug/cable for that.

 

[gelf]

I'd go with Wii. I'd say it's the easiest to set up and there are a lot of video output options for a CRT. Not just limited to composite like you are with a Raspberry Pi.

I've long tried to use a PC with my CRT but have never been able to get anything other then a horrible picture.

 

[manueldelalas]

Why not buy a Mi Box and an 8bitdo SNES controller?

Android emulation is the fastest growing today and it should work great, you may even be able to play some PSP games on it.

If you are going CRT, then a Pi should do it, but seriously, but an old PC...

 

[EmiPrime]

If you don't want to use a PC then the Wii fits your criteria the best.

 

[mooooose]

No one is mentioning it, but Xbox was pretty great for N64 emulation. Better than both Raspberry Pi and Wii. Something to keep in mind tbh.

 

[MooMilk2929]

Wii is best overall cause it has tons of emulators.

 

[Asparagus]

Raspberry Pi is composite/480i only for SD.

A Wii will be best for you. It's easy to set up, you can rip your GC/Wii games to a USB stick and it runs NES/SNES/SMS/MD/MCD games in 240p. N64 emulation is really good on it as well.

There are also adapters for hooking up original controllers to the GC ports.

 

[Nategc20]

OG Xbox with coin ops.

 

[CrashPrime]

No one is mentioning it, but Xbox was pretty great for N64 emulation. Better than both Raspberry Pi and Wii. Something to keep in mind tbh.

No it wasn't. The original Xbox was never even "good" for Nintendo 64 emulation. Even now Surreal64 (the best of the Xbox OG, and still seemingly being updated) is not on the same quality level of the Wii Virtual Console N64 emulator or the libretro Mupen64 core.

Why not buy a Mi Box and an 8bitdo SNES controller?

Android emulation is the fastest growing today and it should work great, you may even be able to play some PSP games on it.

If you are going CRT, then a Pi should do it, but seriously, but an old PC...

There is varying reports of Android introducing significant input lag. Certainly worse than Windows 10 (best) and Linux. The Pi is likely well below the Mi Box in terms of raw power, but the input lag improvements on the Pi would make it more ideal for pretty much every 2D console.

 

[Tain]

Wii:
Also has RetroArch. I just don't know if it's better or not. I've seen people says PS3 is more accurate and such, but without any context or examples.
And supports 240p for NES games.

240p goes beyond NES games. Most console games up through the PSX generation are 240p.

This is why the Wii is an easy best choice here. If you're using a CRT SDTV it is a no-brainer.

 

[spoonztt]

I recently bought an android box off of ebay to use with Retroarch. Works well so far. If you plan on going that route, make sure its running Android 5.

 

[SURGEdude]

WiiU, Wii, or Android would be my suggestion.

On the topic of the OG Xbox it's easy to hack but a pain in the ass to upgrade the HD with the requisite locking and unlocking. Especially now that IDE connectors aren't common. I keep an 2003 era PC around just for that and 360 upgrades.

 

[manueldelalas]

No it wasn't. The original Xbox was never even "good" for Nintendo 64 emulation. Even now Surreal64 (the best of the Xbox OG, and still seemingly being updated) is not on the same quality level of the Wii Virtual Console N64 emulator or the libretro Mupen64 core.



There is varying reports of Android introducing significant input lag. Certainly worse than Windows 10 (best) and Linux. The Pi is likely well below the Mi Box in terms of raw power, but the input lag improvements on the Pi would make it more ideal for pretty much every 2D console.

Lag is introduced by badly ported emulators, find a good emulator and the problem is gone, this is not the fault of the OS.

OP specifically said no PC, which is obviously the best option. I would go as far as suggesting an older laptop with Svideo.

The Pi can be a pain in the ass to set up correctly, IMO. If you want to understand computers or build an arcade cabinet, or anything with a one time setup, it's great, but I honestly think a mini Android console is better in every other case, especially if you are looking for simplicity and ease of use (good N64 and PS1 emulation don't hurt, should be able to play some PSP games too).

A Wii is great too, because it can output 240p and connects directly to a CRT. I'm not sure about the accuracy of emulators though, SNES or Genesis should not be great with that CPU. But it's completely playable, again, a pain in the ass to set up.

 

[My words exactly!]

Absolutely Wii.
You have true 240p and great native controlles (cc and cc pro).
You can also have Wii, Wiiware, Gamecube, Triforce (arcade), NES, SNES, GB, GBC, GBA, SGBP, Sega Genesis, Master System , Sega CD, Game gear, SG 1000, CPS1, CPS2, lots of earlier MAME & FBA arcade titles, early DOS games, Amiga games,N64 select games (VC and Not64), select PS1 games(WiiSX Reloaded), NeoGeo games (retroarch & VC), Quake 1 and 2 with IR controls and all their mods, ditto with Duke Nukem 3D and Descent, Atari 2600, 5200 and Lynx, MSX, Colecovision, C64, Spectrum and lots more in one place.

You can have them all in gui that looks like this
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=NLnpgtXCs7A
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=qBIk3tAP7ug

Emus are still being updated on the Wii. Last month for example, mGBA, Genplus GX,FCEU GX and SNES9X GX all got updates.

 

[CrashPrime]

Lag is introduced by badly ported emulators, find a good emulator and the problem is gone, this is not the fault of the OS.

OP specifically said no PC, which is obviously the best option. I would go as far as suggesting an older laptop with Svideo.

The Pi can be a pain in the ass to set up correctly, IMO. If you want to understand computers or build an arcade cabinet, or anything with a one time setup, it's great, but I honestly think a mini Android console is better in every other case, especially if you are looking for simplicity and ease of use (good N64 and PS1 emulation don't hurt, should be able to play some PSP games too).

A Wii is great too, because it can output 240p and connects directly to a CRT. I'm not sure about the accuracy of emulators though, SNES or Genesis should not be great with that CPU. But it's completely playable, again, a pain in the ass to set up.

How do you account for the differences between RetroArch running OpenGL on Windows 10, Linux running OpenGL, and Linux running DispmanX?

It isn't as simple as finding the right emulator. The OS matters, the render path matters.

 

[Trogdor1123]

I have a fat ps3, a wiiu, and a pstv that I'm willing to homebrew. Which is best and easiest? I only really want emulators.

 

[chronic_archaic]

I have a fat ps3, a wiiu, and a pstv that I'm willing to homebrew. Which is best and easiest? I only really want emulators.

Wii U. PS3 has a pretty steep learning curve if you haven;t done console hacking before and PS Vita is too underdeveloped and the PSP mode options simply aren't as good as what you can get on the Wii. Not only is it easy to mod and setup but it offers the most user flexibility and ease of use.

 

[TheGamingBox]

I have a fat ps3, a wiiu, and a pstv that I'm willing to homebrew. Which is best and easiest? I only really want emulators.

wiiu would be the easiest if you have the certain games needed to install homebrew on a wiiu wii mode

 

[Trogdor1123]

Wii U. PS3 has a pretty steep learning curve if you haven;t done console hacking before and PS Vita is too underdeveloped and the PSP mode options simply aren't as good as what you can get on the Wii. Not only is it easy to mod and setup but it offers the most user flexibility and ease of use.

wiiu would be the easiest if you have the certain games needed to install homebrew on a wiiu wii mode

Thanks, do you know a nice easy, clear guide?

 

[TheGamingBox]

Thanks, do you know a nice easy, clear guide?

well it depends on which hack you use

of these games, do you own any of them for wii
smash bros brawl
lego indiana jones
lego batman
Yu-Gi-Oh 5D's Wheelie Breakers

Tales of Symphonia: Dawn of the New World"

 

[mooooose]

No it wasn't. The original Xbox was never even "good" for Nintendo 64 emulation. Even now Surreal64 (the best of the Xbox OG, and still seemingly being updated) is not on the same quality level of the Wii Virtual Console N64 emulator or the libretro Mupen64 core.

Maybe not as accurate but it had more compatibility. There's no way to play WWF Wrestlemania 2000 or No Mercy on Wii. On Xbox it runs great, with mods.

 

[DJKhaled]

The scene is VERY lethargic at this point... the only native console emulator is gameboy I think. It's not because they can't simply no one has done anything with it yet.

That's bullshit, it still isn't fully hacked yet, they don't even have USB access, the IOSU hack is very close and it will be wide open once that's happened. At least know what you're talking about before commenting.

No one is mentioning it, but Xbox was pretty great for N64 emulation. Better than both Raspberry Pi and Wii. Something to keep in mind tbh.

That's also not true and people have mentioned it.

 

[Barkley's Justice]

A Pi will top-out at PS1, performance-wise. N64? Forget about it. Just an FYI.

 

[harz-marz]

If you can stretch to it,the Nvidia Shield TV is amazing for emulation.

 

[wowbaggerBR]

A Pi will top-out at PS1, performance-wise. N64? Forget about it. Just an FYI.

The Pi 3 handles N64 pretty well here.

 

[Mega]

Wii is the best choice if you're going to play on a CRT. The console itself is very low priced. The Component cable is cheap and will give you RGB-like picture quality similiar to original hardware (cheap S-video is an alternative if your CRT only has this). It's stupid easy to set up the Homebrew Channel. It supports 240p res. It has very good emulators. It has ridiculously low input lag. The Virtual Console will expand your options beyond SNES/GBA emulation.

The PSP has crappy emulation, a bad screen and TV output that sucks.

The Wii U is a terrible choice because it lacks 240p and vWii has terrible picture quality next to Wii.

The Pi is an inferior choice to the Wii because it has a ton of input lag (yes, it's true) and only Composite.

One potential issue with the Wii is it has terrible video output quality. I'd probably avoid it for that reason alone. It just looks awful.

I'd go mini-PC/Raspberry Pi, personally.

No, it doesn't. Wii has somewhat blurrier output than the GC but it would be unnoticeable on a CRT.

Wouldn't a mini Android console be best for something like this?

Android emulators also have ample input lag. It's a hindrance to games with tight platforming, shooters and anything requiring timing and reflexes.

If you can get a good computer CRT monitor instead, the better. No input lag and much better picture quality than regular CRT TVs.

Most PC monitors lack 240p and will have a VGA connector.

Lag is introduced by badly ported emulators, find a good emulator and the problem is gone, this is not the fault of the OS.

OP specifically said no PC, which is obviously the best option. I would go as far as suggesting an older laptop with Svideo.

The Pi can be a pain in the ass to set up correctly, IMO. If you want to understand computers or build an arcade cabinet, or anything with a one time setup, it's great, but I honestly think a mini Android console is better in every other case, especially if you are looking for simplicity and ease of use (good N64 and PS1 emulation don't hurt, should be able to play some PSP games too).

A Wii is great too, because it can output 240p and connects directly to a CRT. I'm not sure about the accuracy of emulators though, SNES or Genesis should not be great with that CPU. But it's completely playable, again, a pain in the ass to set up.

Android OS introduces input lag, not badly ported emulators. I'm not savvy enough to explain why but it's a known fact regarding the way the OS operates. The several frames of lag are present in all its video game emulators.

Wii's emulators are accurate and fast. It's braindead easy to set up.

It's not a simple task to set up a PC with modern Windows and run low resolutions that will display on a CRT.

 

[gingerbeardman]

How good is Amiga emulation on Wii?

Last time I tried, probably 4-5 years ago, frameskip was required to run Sensible Soccer at a decent speed - which meant the game was unplayable.

 

[The Real Napsta]

Raspberry Pi does what you are looking for better than consoles.

Xbox hardware is trash in comparison to Wii/PS3. You miss nothing going with a newer choice.

Wii is probably best CONSOLE as its near Pi in cost, and gets you Gamecube & Wii, in addition to what you would on Pi.

PS3 would be viable if you can actually load CEX/DEX firmware. You would be getting PS2 & PS3 in addition to your classics. (and PS1 but you get that choice with Wii/Pi).

Dark Horse choice might be Wii U. Gets you basically what a Wii does minus native gamecube ports but plus the wonderful Wii U library.

Xbox is not "trash" compared to Wii

 

[Theonik]

I'd say go for Wii if you really want to use a console. They are much easier to find than an Xbox in good condition these days and the PS3 is a pain.

But better yet, I'd suggest getting an nVidia Shield or Raspberry Pi. You give up on Nintendo's controller support but get better software support.

I can't imagine the emulator scene on PS3/Xbox is anywhere close to the Wii's. I'd chose it on just having the smallest box alone.

The Xbox emulation scene is quite similar to the Wii actually. Most of it ended up moving to the Wii though. Performance wise they are quite similar too.
For the Xbox you might want to look into a RAM mod though if you are serious which is out of scope for the OP.

 

[KojiKnight]

That's bullshit, it still isn't fully hacked yet, they don't even have USB access, the IOSU hack is very close and it will be wide open once that's happened. At least know what you're talking about before commenting.

I do know what I'm talking about, if you think IOSU is what's keeping emulators from being ported, I'm afraid it's you that has no idea what they are talking about. Just looks at the current scene in the form of the homebrew store... It's literally a bunch of tech tools, and a bunch of simple game ports, a GB emulator, and then tools for playing backups and pirating games. That's it. That's SUPER lethargic.

I guess the system being ppc doesn't really help, too.
I was only wondering if there is any because Wii had a good amount of emulators which would benefit greatly from the better hardware.

It being PPC doesn't mean anything. The PPC is a well known architecture and as you've pointed out, there are already a lot of Wii based emulators that are quite mature. Even then though, there are already a ton of compilers and open source projects that would be (relatively) easy to port and use.

PPC isn't some super complex or difficult to program for CPU that requires perfect timings and deep knowledge to get it's best from.

 

[DJKhaled]

I do know what I'm talking about, if you think IOSU is what's keeping emulators from being ported, I'm afraid it's you that has no idea what they are talking about. Just looks at the current scene in the form of the homebrew store... It's literally a bunch of tech tools, and a bunch of simple game ports, a GB emulator, and then tools for pirating games. That's it. That's SUPER lethargic.

It's not what's keeping them from being ported but to say it's lethargic when a permanent hack hasn't even been released yet is stupid. Any emulator released won't have usb access which is a semi-big deal to a lot of people. Once IOSU hack is out it will take off. So yeah, you don't know what you're talking about.