iPhone Game Emulator

[warmi]

What killer apps does the iPhone have that couldn't be replaced with a freedomware rewrite?

Why would you want to waste your time replacing something that already exists ...

 

[dflemstr]

What killer apps does the iPhone have that couldn't be replaced with a freedomware rewrite?

Why would you want to waste your time replacing something that already exists ...

Many reasons: speed, better design, better integration, usability across all platforms, better hardware utilization, usage of platform-specific features etc.

 

[warmi]

What killer apps does the iPhone have that couldn't be replaced with a freedomware rewrite?

Why would you want to waste your time replacing something that already exists ...

Many reasons: speed, better design, better integration, usability across all platforms, better hardware utilization, usage of platform-specific features etc.

For a device like this, it would make much more sense to actually create an emulator if possible then rewriting every darn game from scratch.

In any case, it is a moot point - there will not be a working iPhone emulator running on Pandora.

 

[Dauric]

Many reasons: speed, better design, better integration, usability across all platforms, better hardware utilization, usage of platform-specific features etc.

For a device like this, it would make much more sense to actually create an emulator if possible then rewriting every darn game from scratch.

In any case, it is a moot point - there will not be a working iPhone emulator running on Pandora.

In other words you'll have to "rewrite every darn game from scratch" anyway.

 

[MistaGiggles]

It would be useful in a sense for the little apps that you don't commonly find for linux systems, but there is also the issue of getting the apps onto the Pandora. I think the only way to get the files for an application is to either pirate it, or to have your iPhone jail broken so that you can transfer files from it.
As EmuGuy said; the developer may do a Pandora port, but why would they if they can't really sell it after they do (opposed to selling it for a few pounds on the AppStore.

 

[ilovevideogames408]

What killer apps does the iPhone have that couldn't be replaced with a freedomware rewrite?

Why would you want to waste your time replacing something that already exists ...

Many reasons: speed, better design, better integration, usability across all platforms, better hardware utilization, usage of platform-specific features etc.

I agree that is the more sensible thing to do if one wants to achieve a pleasant gameplay experience, and perhaps that's the first option, but not every single dev is going to do a port. All the more reason for an iPhone emulator.

I think the only way to get the files for an application is to either pirate it

The only ways to get ROMs on an emulator are to either pirate it

or to have your iPhone jail broken so that you can transfer files from it.

or to have your cartridge/cd ripped so that you can transfer the image from it.

the developer may do a Pandora port, but why would they if they can't really sell it after they do (opposed to selling it for a few pounds on the AppStore.

Technically, developers should be able to sell their games commercially because I don't ever recall open source OSes meaning everything is free.

You should be able to use your legit app with your emulator legally since you bought it, but I may be wrong. Anyone a bit more familiar with the legal restrictions of the iPhone, correct me if you will. Maybe using the .app folder or the IPA itself plays a role in the legality of it?

Than there's the other option. Pirating ROMs/ISOs? Pirating IPAs? There, and I'm guessing, is probably going to be a very large percentage of Pandora users who will pirate.

 

[Gary13579]

Except that the iPhone's touch screen is multi-touch and the Pandora's touch screen is single-touch. And the processor is 620MHz, which is more than two-thirds of the Pandora's processor's max capacity. Sorry, but we're more likely to see the PS2 emulated than the iPhone.

Uh. They're both running on an ARM CPU, so unless the instruction sets are THAT different, it would take significantly less work building an emulator for it than PS2, or hell, even PS1. If you knew enough of how the iPhone works, it would be pretty simple to do, actually.

Either way, stupid idea. As stated before, none of the useful apps on the iPhone would work without GPS, multitouch, accelerometer, etc...

 

[ilovevideogames408]

The input methods can easily be emulated. I'm just an idea guy, but this should be feasible. Any touch-related input methods can be binded to a key or if the game does not require the multi-touch, then the stylus would br enough.

An iPhone Game Emulator would be appealing to a lot of people. But the problem is how to actually use the controls. Sure, the accelerometer can be used by the nub, but what of the multi-touch.

the game screen can be treated as a graph and keys could be mapped to certain areas like the topmost area or the leftmost area, etc. That could take care of the controls.

 

[lulzfish]

Mapping keys to a screen?
And we've still only got 3 keypresses or so... That's hardly enough for multi-touch.

Just use the touchscreen for single touch and don't bother emulating hardware we don't have.

 

[Dauric]

While it's possible to technically remap the controls, it's something else to have -useable- controls. The challenge isn't to simply remap the inputs, but to have an interface that someone can react to as closely as possible the original setup. Most controller emulators work on the basic mechanic of the button, simply remap an "Insert" button to by your "Y" button and you've got your keyboard working as a Nintendo controller. A similar philosophy was applied to the "Nub Mouse" concept, however that has fallen out in favor of a touch-pad controller because a nub and a mouse have distinctly different 'feels'. Stylus input has more in common with mice than analog or digital directional controls.

The bulk of the difference has to do with how the brain reacts to the controller device. With analog inputs we have to think about moving "Up" or "Right" to the desired destination, and the input we impart to the device is "Up" or "Right" until we reach the destination. With a mouse or a stylus we rely on the autonomic functions to take care of the details of direction, our brains simply focus on "Go there" and our hand is guided by the biomechanics of our nervous system to the desired destination. In the case of the mouse we transpose our hand's location on the table to the location of the cursor on the screen, bio-feedback takes care of the rest.

(Man, it's weird to use a mouse when you're thinking about it...)

When you use a directional control to substitute for a direct pointer like a mouse or a stylus, you're bypassing the part of the nervous system that, when you go to reach for a glass of water, performs the precise movements of up/down/side-to-side/rotation, relax and contract of the hand, that we often take for granted. Instead the control that you need to consciously input to the device (through the analog nubs) is the raw-directional data.

Now it's possible to adapt to the new control schema, however it will take time and it will be more effort on the part of the user. A fun multi-touch game on the iPhone will be laborious to play on a Pandora using nubs simply because of the change in input and the need to consciously be aware of actions that they were doing on the multi-touch screen on a bio-mechanical level.

This assumes that you have an ideal controller setup for the inputs. If the controller setup is awkward or burdensome in some way, like requiring three or four hands to accomplish (one nub for accelerometer, the other for one finger, the stylus for the other finger, function button to switch between angular and linear inputs on the accelerometer...) then the effect and the frustration becomes even more magnified.

If it was just a matter of buttons then remapping is simple. The Pandora is well equipped to handle game controller remapping, it's got a keyboard, no shortage of buttons. However accelerometer-equipped devices like the iPhone and the Wii use a completely different control schema that is based on natural biomechanical response rather than detail-driven commands.

Sure the iPhone inputs can be remapped, that's simple to do. It's how that remapping sits between the user's brain and the device that is where the control issue really lies.

 

[chris68227]

ive got an ipod touch, which supposedly has a better processor than the iphone. does anyone know if the pandora will have gba emulators eventually? otherwise i might just stick with the touch..

 

[Exophase]

ive got an ipod touch, which supposedly has a better processor than the iphone. does anyone know if the pandora will have gba emulators eventually? otherwise i might just stick with the touch..

iPod Touch has the same hardware as iPhone. I'm sure Pandora will have GBA emulators, because zodttd agreed to port gpSP. If he doesn't maybe notaz will. Or worse, me ;p

 

[guenthar]

I wouln't mind an Iphone emulator since there are a couple of old school rpgs on there and I have the goal of playing every rpg that exists. I think it would be far simpler to create an Iphone emulator then it has been to create WINE and can't be really compared. Windows is a far more complicated system and the developers of WINE have had to keep up with all of the different versions of Windows that have been released. Also like above not everything would have to have a new API since some things are the same unlike Windows and Linux.

 

[WizardStan]

If your goal is to play every RPG in existence, I suggest you start here
By the time you finish with all these RPGs that are totally free, we'll be approaching the heat death of the universe, so you won't care much for the ones on iPhone that you have to pay for.
A pity that RPG maker can't be ported to ARM.