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Is there actually any emulator that respects the user's time?
- Thread starter .Pennywise
- Start date
Soodanim
Gold Member
To be fair, the RA team know the UI isn't perfect, but it isn't their priority at the moment.
I've seen this, but what end user is supposed to care? Does anyone really expect people to drop a program with fantastic features and convenience because one person on the team is a cock? Even if he is a huge arsehole as a lot of testimony suggests, it doesn't diminish how good RA is overall despite its imperfections that this person wants to push like it brings the emulation industry into disrepute and he's the head of an emulation governing body.
CyberLab Death To Pixels Shader Preset Packs
Disclaimer: I present these to you without making any claims, representations, warranties nor acceptance of any liabilities including any arising out of the use of this software whatsoever. They are just my presets that I use and I’m sharing with you in the hope that you may have an as...
forums.libretro.com
Find me another multi-core emulator front-end that supports the LR/RA shader system that allows games to look as good as this as well as the other features, and you might have my attention. Until then, drama between people I have neither met nor spoken to has no effect on what software I choose to use, and I'm not going to get caught up in someone's righteous hate boner over software he doesn't like. It's the same attitude as when people wanted to abandon all of Gearbox's games because they don't like Randy Pitchford, like he's the entire fucking company. If I want to play Borderlands, Randy having porn on a USB drive isn't going to stop that.
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stranno
Member
RA could have been a cool project, but sometimes it sucks. Like those claims: Woaaaaahhh, texture replacement, PGXP, link cable emulation, next level PS emulation!!1!!1!!
Yeah, until Blade Arma did all of that 10 years before.
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All you need to know about us software developers. We're one of the largest markets for manual transmission cars.(I think sums us up pretty well and what a lot of people in the field think about ease of use.)
alabtrosMyster
Banned
I was on the PS3hack forum when retroarch started (back in 2010/11), the initial retroarch dev had serious issues from the get go... back then there was another similar project based on mednafen, but with a nice GUI, anyway there was a spat between the two for some reason, and well that guy do started the retroarch project drove the other one out (not sure how these things go).
So not surprising that the guy is driving people out of the scene, he has been like that since day one.
Pegasus Actual
Member
Wow poor you. You should demand a refund.
thicc_girls_are_teh_best
Gold Member
??? Other than getting PS2 and Neo-Geo CD to work (tho that one I can resolve easily if I wanted), I've not had any issues with RetroArch other than my retroachievements login sometimes not synced so I'm forced to relaunch to get that working.
All the cores I've downloaded and tried worked either out of the box or with putting the relevant BIOS files where they needed to be. Even DOSBox worked out of the box. Also UI-wise it's pretty clean and straightforward IMO; maybe a bit minimalist but it's fast and organized the way it feels should be.
All the cores I've downloaded and tried worked either out of the box or with putting the relevant BIOS files where they needed to be. Even DOSBox worked out of the box. Also UI-wise it's pretty clean and straightforward IMO; maybe a bit minimalist but it's fast and organized the way it feels should be.
Squarehard
Member
I agree. If anything, this is the most respectful use of people's time.
InfiniteCombo
Banned
Wanting an awesome piece of free software to "respect the user's time" is peak entitlement.
RetroArch has a bit of a learning curve, but it makes sense since it's a very customizable and powerful tool. Once you get the hang of it, doing what you want is very quick.
RetroArch has a bit of a learning curve, but it makes sense since it's a very customizable and powerful tool. Once you get the hang of it, doing what you want is very quick.
fart town usa
Gold Member
nesticle
mcjmetroid
Member
I 100% agree.
Emulators created by citra are very annoying and lack obvious features a lot of the time and they're the ones that have "early access" offers so no sympathy for shitty service there.
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mcjmetroid
Member
This is a very boring argument. This is a discussion on how difficult emulators are to use at times, it doesn't matter if they're free, you can't price gate a discussion. It doesn't need a price tag.
People bitch about bing, Google, Facebook, internet explorer all day long and it doesnt cost shit to use.
Yumi
Member
I get what you are saying. “Respects the users time”, comes off a little harsh in context to me.
I think what your getting at is a fully functional user friendly UI out of the gate with easy rom implementation. I think the nature of making emulators for each system make this a hard task. Where as PS1 needs specific bios for certain games, and different consoles had different controller option that you have to map yourself.
I get what you mean. But I think you have to put some of your own time into emulation to get it to work the way you want it.
The beauty of Retroarch is that you get multiple systems under the same UI.
Early system are relatively easy to emulate, and the emulators snappy, responsive, and easy to map buttons. But once you get to 3rd generation consoles, it gets a bit messier.
Expecting emulation to be plug in play sets you up for failure. We’re not there yet, and maybe never will be.
I think what your getting at is a fully functional user friendly UI out of the gate with easy rom implementation. I think the nature of making emulators for each system make this a hard task. Where as PS1 needs specific bios for certain games, and different consoles had different controller option that you have to map yourself.
I get what you mean. But I think you have to put some of your own time into emulation to get it to work the way you want it.
The beauty of Retroarch is that you get multiple systems under the same UI.
Early system are relatively easy to emulate, and the emulators snappy, responsive, and easy to map buttons. But once you get to 3rd generation consoles, it gets a bit messier.
Expecting emulation to be plug in play sets you up for failure. We’re not there yet, and maybe never will be.
sainraja
Member
Polymega. I know its not technically what you are asking for but it does work as designed. You can expand the internal with an SSD or use a microsd card. Your games will install to the system so you don't need to keep your games inserted.
Honey Bunny
Member
If you cant figure out Dolphin you shouldnt be near any electronic device or open windows
LiquidMetal14
hide your water-based mammals
Oh the irony given how far we've come since 1995/6~
We truly are spoiled and honestly, none of this has ever been so easy and should it be considering perfect emulation takes dedication by talented people excluding the topic creator.
We truly are spoiled and honestly, none of this has ever been so easy and should it be considering perfect emulation takes dedication by talented people excluding the topic creator.
YeulEmeralda
Member
PPSSPP literally a retarded zoomer can use it. However they would rather preorder Elden ring than play an old game so...
TheGreatMusashi
Member
I’ve always found that if you know what you’re doing they all work without wasting your time.
What a weird thought.
This emulator doesn’t care about my time!
Wow.
Basic computing skills should be relatively universal in this day and age, especially if you’re on this forum. I’d expect you’d know a little more than your common douche.
Even back in the day NESticle wasn’t very hard to figure out.
Maybe emulation isn’t meant for you.
But then again, if you find basic emulators vexing, I couldn’t imagine you fumbling to figure how to connect a NES to a modern TV.
I guess you’re fucked?
Just focus on new games. They don’t require much thought.
What a weird thought.
This emulator doesn’t care about my time!
Wow.
Basic computing skills should be relatively universal in this day and age, especially if you’re on this forum. I’d expect you’d know a little more than your common douche.
Even back in the day NESticle wasn’t very hard to figure out.
Maybe emulation isn’t meant for you.
But then again, if you find basic emulators vexing, I couldn’t imagine you fumbling to figure how to connect a NES to a modern TV.
I guess you’re fucked?
Just focus on new games. They don’t require much thought.
Ev1L AuRoN
Member
Retroarch is actually very simple, but it has a learning curve. If you use a front-end like Launchbox it is quite easy and clean (after you configure everything).
Currently, I use:
Retroarch for NES/GB/GBC/GBA/NDS/N64/SNES/PS1/SATURN/MAME/PSP/3DS/GC/WII/DREAMCAST/PC-ENGINE/GENESIS/3DO/JAGUAR/MASTER.
PCSX2 For PS2
RPCS3 For PS3
Yuzu For Switch
Launchbox as a front-end.
Currently, I use:
Retroarch for NES/GB/GBC/GBA/NDS/N64/SNES/PS1/SATURN/MAME/PSP/3DS/GC/WII/DREAMCAST/PC-ENGINE/GENESIS/3DO/JAGUAR/MASTER.
PCSX2 For PS2
RPCS3 For PS3
Yuzu For Switch
Launchbox as a front-end.
theclaw135
Banned
Most emulators do have dull interfaces. But I don't get what else would work. There's far too many options to comfortably fit into a jazzy menu.
The author can't assume things like how many buttons your controller has, or what resolution and filtering settings you'd like.
The author can't assume things like how many buttons your controller has, or what resolution and filtering settings you'd like.
TheMan
Member
Psx worked great with very little hassle
There were some neo geo emulators that were just as easy.
Really I think a lot of the old school emulators from the early 2000s were pretty easy. I think epsxe was the exception with all its stupid plugins.
Nowadays like people mentioned you have a lot more flexibility but the cost is complexity. I had such a hard time getting saturn emulation going a couple of years ago. I think I finally got it working with retroarch but it was a pain
There were some neo geo emulators that were just as easy.
Really I think a lot of the old school emulators from the early 2000s were pretty easy. I think epsxe was the exception with all its stupid plugins.
Nowadays like people mentioned you have a lot more flexibility but the cost is complexity. I had such a hard time getting saturn emulation going a couple of years ago. I think I finally got it working with retroarch but it was a pain
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01011001
Banned
zSNES is super easy to use and plug and play basically..
most 8 bit and 16 bit emulators are.
PS1 also is getting there. if you wanna play in og quality and settings then most modern PS1 emulators are super plug and play as well.
PSP with PPSSPP is also easy to use, no Bios File needed either:
Retroarch takes like 2 minutes to set up properly, and after that most cores work out of the box too. some cores will need a Bios file or other files, but everything 2D that isn't a home computer will work out of the box and usually even sort your ROMs automatically for you if it properly detects what the roms are
most 8 bit and 16 bit emulators are.
PS1 also is getting there. if you wanna play in og quality and settings then most modern PS1 emulators are super plug and play as well.
PSP with PPSSPP is also easy to use, no Bios File needed either:
Retroarch takes like 2 minutes to set up properly, and after that most cores work out of the box too. some cores will need a Bios file or other files, but everything 2D that isn't a home computer will work out of the box and usually even sort your ROMs automatically for you if it properly detects what the roms are
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ThatGamingDude
I am a virgin
A man once said:
If it doesn't require effort, it's not worth doing
Keep at it, RetroArch is stupid simple once you use it for a few weeks
If it doesn't require effort, it's not worth doing
Keep at it, RetroArch is stupid simple once you use it for a few weeks
01011001
Banned
also Retroarch is the best if you actually wanna use it on a TV using a controller. the menus are so easy to navigate that it is basically a must if you wanna play with a controller on a big screen.
ThatGamingDude
I am a virgin
Many guides and prebuilds out there for all sorts of hardware too
For instance
MilkLizard
Member
Unfortunately MacOS only but Openemu is super easy to use, looks nice and gets the job done.
Cryio
Member
It's always easiest/fastest when you already know what you're doing. And really, nowadays it's also easier than ever.
With Dolphin/PCSX2/RPCS3 for example:
1. download latest build of emulator
2. download/rip BIOS (not applicable for Dolphin),
3. have a look to see if controller is already seen or configure if not
4. Increase render scale resolution at least
5. Load ISO
6. Optional: depending on game, you might need to look up the Wikia for emulator settings if a game isn't acting properly at default settings
Depending on what you want to play, usually the first 4 steps are set and forget. You literally just need to open your game and everything (usually) works perfectly.
Where is the waste of time?
With Dolphin/PCSX2/RPCS3 for example:
1. download latest build of emulator
2. download/rip BIOS (not applicable for Dolphin),
3. have a look to see if controller is already seen or configure if not
4. Increase render scale resolution at least
5. Load ISO
6. Optional: depending on game, you might need to look up the Wikia for emulator settings if a game isn't acting properly at default settings
Depending on what you want to play, usually the first 4 steps are set and forget. You literally just need to open your game and everything (usually) works perfectly.
Where is the waste of time?
NinjaBoiX
Member
What, you mean the emulators that a team of people toiled for hours and hours over, and offer you entirely for free, purely for the love of the community?
Yeah, who do they think they are right?
Yeah, who do they think they are right?
This.
DarkestHour
Banned
All I hear from the OP is bitching about something they got for free from someone that devoted tons of their time to make for them.
Tams
Member
If you pay for something, then you have the right to demand it at least be useable and decent.
But if you don't and aren't prepared to, then really you have no legs to stand on. You're relying someone else's good favour to offer their work for free.
And all those you listed do cost you; just not monetarily. They still make their creators money in some form or another.
It's not like we're stopping discussion here. And as free as OP is to bitch; we are free to mock OP for being entitled.
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THE DUCK
voted poster of the decade by bots
I think this may have been said, but there are 128gb and 256gb pre-builds out there to download that you can then use with a rasberry pi 4, just load in on SD card and they have already done all the work pre-loading and organizing everything. Of course technically, you must own all the games on said rom for it be totally legit (and even then some say not), but lets face it, if you are emulating the odds are you didn't load your own roms.......
JimboJones
Member
Well you could buy repackaged emulators of varying quality and availability from publishers or buy physical hardware, clutter up your house with old games, monitors and video upscaling equipment.
01011001
Banned
downloading roms is always illegal, doesn't matter if you own the game or not. the only actually legal way to use an emulator is to use your own backups
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TheSHEEEP
Gold Member
I get you.
I think I tried every single emulator there is and when it comes to those covering every possible system, RetroArch already is the most user friendly.
And I agree that it isn't user friendly. At all.
Unless you are trying to use it with a controller - which is obviously what the horrible UI was designed for.
Trying to look for a title by name? Yeah, there's some shortcut for it. Is it Ctrl+f like in every single fucking program since the 90s for "search"? No... no, it isn't.
Trying to filter by games that allow co-op? Not possible - don't think that information is even available anywhere (to be fair, I don't think it is for any emulator or interface?).
Trying to launch a game? First, you need to load a core (yeah, this will already confuse most people "wtf is a core") and then you can load a game. You can hear every UX designer groan loudly.
Trying to configure controls? First, you need to assign which controller is actually assigned to which "slot"...
And there's more. So much more.
And it's still the best... the others are even worse.
That said, there is a button (or F5?) that lets you switch to a more PC-centric interface. Looks like an early 2000s Java program, but I find it much easier to use nonetheless.
One thing you have to understand is this:
The entirety of the retro community, including the developers slaving their free time away on improving stuff, is comprised of people who have been into it since many years and know all the ins and outs.
They have a tunnel vision that tends VERY STRONGLY to prevent them from creating interfaces for anyone but the already initiated. This is not an attack, tunnel vision is unfortunately a very natural phenomenon and requires great care to be dealt with - not something that can be reasonably expected from hobbyists. They simply don't know what someone new might struggle with.
Many, many hobbyist areas suffer from exactly the same problem.
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THE DUCK
voted poster of the decade by bots
Well if you want to get technical, you don't own anything other than license to play the game on the original machine in most cases.
So your in violation of the licensing agreement if you copy it and play it on different hardware.
nkarafo
Member
Υou dont need to load a core before you load a rom. Its the other way around. You choose a rom and then it asks you what core you want to load for it.
You can also scan rom directories to create per-system playlists and attach default cores for them so it won't have to ever ask you ever again.
I use RA for 5-6 years now and forgot the "load core" function exists. I think i hidden it so it wont appear in the interface. Yeah, you can also do that for things you dont use, to make the UI have less clutter.
Optimus Lime
(L3) + (R3) | Spartan rage activated
If you are struggling with the supreme emulation experience - Retroarch + Launchbox - maybe emulation isn't for you, and you should download some fun iPhone games that you can enjoy with your whole family.
nkarafo
Member
Yes. Lets talk about how each one costs a shit ton of money and can only simulate a single home system or arcade board.
Lets also talk about how everyone boasts about how more accurate they are compared to software enulators when there is no such thing.
01011001
Banned
that shit fall under a EULA, which is not legally binding. Laws on this are different per country, I just know the laws in Germany and making a copy of a game in order to play it on an emulator would fall under the backup copy laws and it is 100% legal to make a backup of any software you bought the license to. any "rule" by the actual IP holder is overruled here.
pretty sure the copyright laws in most western countries are very similar, so I expect this to be very similar in the UK, US and most EU countries.
TheSHEEEP
Gold Member
No, it is exactly the way I described.
What you describe is just RetroArch asking you which one you want to load before the rom is loaded. Because afaik, the rom is never loaded before the core (as it is technically the core that loads the rom). It might just be inspected on a surface level by RetroArch itself to give reasonable suggestions for a core.
Either way, the user friendly variant would be:
Select a rom, rom starts playing. There is no core selection, ever, because the system knows which core can play the rom. Users (at least new users) don't even have to know that cores are a thing. For advanced users, there can still be some selection, but most people don't care as long as it works.
All those dozens of different cores for (for example) SNES? Nobody should be bothered with that by default.
As I said before, A new user never should have been asked to begin with - selecting a core should be an advanced feature.
The scanning is actually very cool, though.
But why do I have to jump through hoops to have the scan results filled with additional information like screenshots, package images, manual, cheats, etc.? And it won't actually work at all if the file name is not exactly a certain string that was attached to that title. As if string metric comparisons were not a thing...
I can see some merit in not automatically downloading everything available for space reasons, but there should at the very least be a question what a user wants to download for a rom by default the first time a rom is scanned.
Q.E.D.
TwiztidElf
Member
What is this thread?
The vast majority of emulators completely respect your time by providing state-save. Not to mention that they're nearly always free also. The entitlement.....
If you really want plug and play emulation, you could BUY (gulp), a plug and play emulation experience like a Super Console X Pro, PowKiddy RGB10Max, or any of the excellent Abernic products.
The vast majority of emulators completely respect your time by providing state-save. Not to mention that they're nearly always free also. The entitlement.....
If you really want plug and play emulation, you could BUY (gulp), a plug and play emulation experience like a Super Console X Pro, PowKiddy RGB10Max, or any of the excellent Abernic products.