Best Emulators For Gp32

[CU_AMiGA]

Hi folks,

Just recieved my GP32 yesterday. I have no got a few emulators on there but was wondering what the best emulators are for:

ZX Spectrum
NES
MSX
C64
Sega Master System / Game Gear
Gameboy / Colour
Any other good emulators

I already have GP Engine, and that isa superb, i doubt very much that it can be beaten. However, has anyone got Street Fighter 2 working on it?

Cheers,

 

[extremegamer]

search the forums, there's already about 20 threads on this same topic, but anyhow, the best version of Street fighter II is Street Fighter II Turbo for SNES, use OPENSNES9x to run it, its great with frameskip 1, however the sound isn't that good.

 

[Shirohagen]

Personally I can't speak highly enough of Frodo, the C64 emulator, it's still a Beta but it really is excellent and once it gets to a final version it should have save states and some other bits and bobs too - then it will be pretty near perfect!

CaSTaway is excellent for the atari ST, and Little John for NES is another of my favourites...

Of course, SCUMM, whilst not strictly an emulator is great too!

Some of the others for SNES & Genesis etc are amazing for their advancing technical prowess, but it isn't yet like playing the real thing...

Oh yeah and I had Street Fighter for the GPEngine, but the main character sprites were all corrupted... ...played fine otherwise but was understandably confusing!

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[CU_AMiGA]

Regarding the Street Fighter 2 problem,

Yeah, that's what i got as well. What causes this, and will it be possibly fixed in the future?

-edit-

Okay so i have found out that the best would be:

SMS / GG - Would be fSMS32
PC Engine - GP Engine
C64 - Frodo
Atari ST - CaSTaway
NES - LittleJohn
MSX - fMSX (maybe?)

What about ZX Spectrum?

Regards,

 

[khephren]

ZXGP32 is pretty good.

Opensnes9x seems to offer the best snes speed, but won't run games that rely on alphas so well (but it hasn't been in Dev long) , And SNES 9xGP is very compatable, but a bit slow unless clocked (Recomended for SNES strategy games like Front mission Bahumat lagoon, Fire emblem, super famicom wars etc).

There is a Megadrive emu that runs some games ok as well, enough for me to get a fair way through Dune2 anyway

Like the name BTW, brings back memories of my favourite mag...next to Amiga format! (only kidding)

 

[_tyrell_]

For zx spectrum there's "Speccyal K"
Head to Speccyal K and get the latest version (v0.6).
It emulates 48k/128k models, has 128k sound and supports many other features.

_tyrell_

 

[CU_AMiGA]

Hi Folks,

Okay just had a search. Didn't realise how much this question had been asked already! Okay i have a list of the best of the emulators for GP32. From what i heard, ZX Spectrum emulation is pretty average. Which is a pity, as C64 and MSX emualtion seem near perfect. Surely that if PC Engine, C64, MSX can be emulated well, then surely ZX Spectrum can be emulated well?

Cheers,

 

[Bohica]

Where do you here that Spectrum emulation was weak? It's pretty much perfect! Get hold of Speccyal K and head over to www.worldofspectrum.org - you won't be sorry.

 

[TaLianOveRo]

hi,
i have the msx emu and want to play snatcher on it , now my problem :

snatcher has got 4 files
the first is the boot disk an the others are the gamedisks , so i have to boot the first file but how do i change files when the emulator is running ?? i have to switch to the second file so that i can play ............ plz help meee !!

 

[Shirohagen]

Hi

I've had a lot of trouble with Speccyal, many games just don't load at all and I have found the emulator as a whole rather confusing so I don't know whether the ROMs are at fault or I'm just doing it wrong!

For what it's worth, the ROMs I have played work really well, although they often seem to run too fast! Can you limit it to 100% speed?

®

 

[WhizzBang]

I've also had a few problems with Speccyal K. The saved key mappings and full screen mode don't work (I have tried it on 2 GP32s) and the keyboard is not as friendly as the Frodo or Castaway ones.

I also have a few compatibility problems with it (e.g. Bruce Lee, Thunderbirds, Rambo) and the sound deteriates on Bomb Jack as more monsters appear on the screen. It does appear to be full speed though.

However, the nicest feature about Speccyal'K is that it automatically loads your save states for the games if you have made one, and Speccyal'K is the best available on GP32 at the moment. Watch out for fZX in the future though...

I would love to see a Spectrum emulator on GP32 as good as ZX Advance for emulation and features, that also supported TZX and tape swapping.

 

[Bohica]

Strange. To discuss a couple of points:

I don't understand the bit about full screen mode - the border around the screen is native to the system and its games. I think the border emulation on/off option may actually apply to games that use the border flashes etc.

I think I remember the sound on Bomb Jack going wonky on the original machine. This is due to processor slow down rather than a problem with the emulator. This happens in plenty of games when there's a lot of action.

Also, I'd try some different versions of the games you're having trouble with. I've just tried my copy of Bruce Lee (.z80 - probably from WOS) and it seems to work perfectly.

I'm not an apologist in any way, it's just that I was really impressed with this emulator and can't quite understand some of the bad press it gets.

I agree to some degree about the keyboard interface - but for someone who first used the Spectrum in 1983, it's pretty nice to see again.

Oh - and TZX support would be ace.

 

[Shirohagen]

I really like the graphical recreation of the Speccy keyboard, it's part of the nostalgia factor! I would like to see something like this for the C64 keyboard in Frodo too, that would be the icing on the cake.

Generally I think that all of the emulators would benefit from taking more visual cues from the original system - using the system font like Frodo for the ROM list or just using a relevent splash screen instead of anything like CaSTaway etc (CaSTaway's menus could be like the GEM desktop etc etc...

It's a little disappointing to see the GP32 generic font in menus and other things like that when all of these systems have really strong aesthetics associated with them.

Just a thought - we've got a bit off-topic here!...

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[_tyrell_]

Thanks Bohica for supporting me lol

I've also had a few problems with Speccyal K. The saved key mappings and full screen mode don't work (I have tried it on 2 GP32s) and the keyboard is not as friendly as the Frodo or Castaway ones.

The saved key mappings *are* working, as the fullscreen mode. If it's working on my gp32, I don't see any reasons why it wouldn't be working on your's either.

Yes, my emulator is not perfect (I have to reckon that the .TAP support is not the best ...), but I think the emulation is more than accurate and complete. And it's the only emu to support 128k sound (until fZX is released ... I suppose rlyey will get a much better emulator). I don't have any more free time to add features or to fix buggy stuff.
Yes, having a girlfriend means that you have to make choices in life, and I've choosen to spend more time with her ...

_tyrell_

 

[WhizzBang]

Hi Tyrell, didn't mean to complain. Speccyal'K is probably my most used emulator on the GP32 so I really am very grateful for all your hard work and I know it's a great emulator. It is only because I use it so much that I find things that I think "if only..." about (I am a big Spectrunm fan).

One thought that occurs to me is that is it possible that the version of Speccyal K on your website is different to the one you are using? I have yet to hear anyone confirm that those features work and Bohica on this thread also says that he doesn't understand the border thing. I presume it is supposed to get rid of the loading border and thus expand the game play area.

 

[Shirohagen]

Hi Tyrell

I feel bad now as I was commenting on Speccyal. Please don't misinterpret anybody's opinions on here as unjust criticism, I think I speak for everyone when I say that I really do appreciate the effort you put into your work and have certainly enjoyed benefitting from it!

That's the great thing about this scene. here I am chatting with the Emu creator! Seriously, we all have the same aim in mind, the best possible support for the GP32 and thanks to you and your 'colleagues' we are constantly getting nearer and nearer to perfection!...



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[CU_AMiGA]

Hello

Regarding ZX Spectrum emulation,

All three ZX Spectrum emulators are okay, but there are room for improvements. Realisticly, what we have at the moment is 48k Spectrum, with non finished sound, speed (either crackled sound, too slow too fast, etc). If all these problems got a little bit polished then we would have a very awesome Speccy emu! When these problems are sorted out, then we can look forward to 128k Spectrum. No disrespect to the emulator creators, but us, as a user, always look for the best emulators for the GP32, if there are any emulators that aren't as good as others, then it is inevitable that they will get deleted. And at the moment, the only ZX Spectrum emulators that i use are: ZXGP32 Beta 3 and GPSpeccy. I use ZXGP32 B3, mostly, as this has better sound and speed, but sometimes use GPSpeccy, as this seems to play Manic Miner, unlike the other! <_< As for Speccyal'K v0.6, i am sorry to say, doesn't get much use, as the roms don't seem to load up, as they do on other emus.

As i said, no disrespect for the emu creators, i am very grateful for the support and releases of the emulators, but i only use the better ones. Having said that, 128k Spectrum emulation would very much be possible on GP32, as i have a ZX Spectrum emulator (ASp) for Amiga 1200 that runs on the old Motorola 68060 processor, and runs on AGA (full screen or window) at full speed. AGA, is an old chipset that display 256 colours! So GP32 would handle this no problem.

Regards,

-edit-

OK! Maybe i was a little harsh on Speccyal'K v0.6, i might have another try later on. As other people have seem to have got it working pretty good.

 

[_tyrell_]

Thanks for your comments.

As i said, no disrespect for the emu creators, i am very grateful for the support and releases of the emulators, but i only use the better ones. Having said that, 128k Spectrum emulation would very much be possible on GP32, as i have a ZX Spectrum emulator (ASp) for Amiga 1200 that runs on the old Motorola 68060 processor, and runs on AGA (full screen or window) at full speed. AGA, is an old chipset that display 256 colours!  So GP32 would handle this no problem.

I'd like to add that speccyal k *is* supporting the 128k model as well as AY sound.
I don't say I've been trying every 128k game out there but I've tried some and most are correctly working. The 128k .TAP version of Head Over Heels is even fully working with AY-3-8910 sound Just try it.

I really understand your attitude CU_AMiGA. If you find that (for any reason) the other emulators are better, then you use them. I don't have any problems with that. I just wanted to add some comments about the current state of my emulator.

Regards,

_tyrell_

 

[johncross85]

Most of the problems I encounter when using Speccyal K are to do with it being a little confusing to use in places (course I could just be thick). Things like having to switch between 48k and 128k modes to load certain games rather than just leaving it in 128k mode like I used to do with my +2. I've also had trouble with it remembering my keymaps and the ini file it saves for preferences once corrupted a folder and required me to reformat my memory card.

That said, I still use Speccyal K way more than any other Speccy emu...

J(ohn)

 

[CU_AMiGA]

@_tyrell_

Are you still developing your Speccy emu? I hope so, i would't let my comments put you off. If you keep at improving your emu, then it can only get better and one day maybe up there with the better ones. I see that it has TAP support, that's great, as i hate snapshots. I would use the Speccy TAPs i have on my Amiga but unfortunately, it has broken down.

Anyway, for example, if i would load Fantasy World Dizzy snapshot, i would only get 48k sound (nothing!), even in 128k mode. But if i would load up my Dizzy 3 TAP version, i would then get glorious 128k music.

As for 128k emulation, i can only guess that it is unfinished, as 48k is as well I can only really make full use of GP32 Speccy emu's until my Amiga is back up and running, as i have literally hundreds of TAPs, snapshots, etc. So i'll keep my fingers crossed for that one.

PS: Anyone have a spare old AT PSU that i could buy off them maybe? (found in old PCs!)

Cheers,