Good portable for homebrew/emulation?

[monkeychemist]

Hello,

I was just looking at the Zodiac and its capabilities (after seing that zodiac 2 rare thread) for playing homebrew and emulated games. So far so good, but I was wondering, are there others like it? or more recent types of gaming systems?

Is the PSP more "customizable" now than it used to be?

Thanks,

Jeremy

[Poofta!]

the psp now you can upgrade or downgrade any version. the newest DarkAlex custom firmwares play everything as well as ISOs and any PS1 games. there are loads of emulators and homebrew. the recent firmware releases have just rekindled the psp scene. its really the best portable on the market if youre looking for multimedia and homebrew support.

[jonjandran]

The Psp is the best right now with the GP2X a close second.

The Zodiac is farther behind.

[Snapple]

Emulation is the one reason I haven't sold my PSP. It's the best, and it's getting better all the time.

[monkeychemist]

how is the battery life for the PSP? is it still something like 3 hours?

Also, how high up does it emulate at normal playing speed? SNES, PSX, N64?

[geneshifter]

how is the battery life for the PSP? is it still something like 3 hours?

Also, how high up does it emulate at normal playing speed? SNES, PSX, N64?

Well, for sure the N64 emulation is coming along nicely but it's no where near full speed yet. The one that pushes the limits of mine is the NeoGeoCDZ emulator. If I play Metal Slug and there's a lot of explosions, there is a drop of FPS for a second or two. Otherwise, it runs great. My SNES emulator works great. There is also a metric ton of homebrew that's actually worth playing. The PSP is good for this and my battery will last about 3-4 hrs on emulators only. If I play some UMD games, it goes down a bit.

You may also want to look into DS emulation. A friend of mine does that but it involves putting in a cartridge to boot up. Plus, a lot of the games just do not look as good on its screen compared to the PSP.

[monkeychemist]

Well, for sure the N64 emulation is coming along nicely but it's no where near full speed yet. The one that pushes the limits of mine is the NeoGeoCDZ emulator. If I play Metal Slug and there's a lot of explosions, there is a drop of FPS for a second or two. Otherwise, it runs great. My SNES emulator works great. There is also a metric ton of homebrew that's actually worth playing. The PSP is good for this and my battery will last about 3-4 hrs on emulators only. If I play some UMD games, it goes down a bit.

You may also want to look into DS emulation. A friend of mine does that but it involves putting in a cartridge to boot up. Plus, a lot of the games just do not look as good on its screen compared to the PSP.

Well, actually I was just throwing the N64 out there as a joke...I can't believe that you can actually almost run that...the people out there making it happen are amazing!

I'm glad SNES runs well, that is actually the one I would use most. PS1 would be next, and I hear that there is good progress with that too.

I will look into the homebrew out there too. The PSP seems to be like the "perfect" system at this time. The only thing I don't like is the short battery span. Oh well, I guess I can live with that.

I did think about the DS, but being left handed, it just isn't gonna work for me. Most DS games require left hand on the pad and right hand with the pen. Also, it seems like the PSP can be a lot more versatile.

Jeremy

[geneshifter]

Well, actually I was just throwing the N64 out there as a joke...I can't believe that you can actually almost run that...the people out there making it happen are amazing!

I'm glad SNES runs well, that is actually the one I would use most. PS1 would be next, and I hear that there is good progress with that too.

I will look into the homebrew out there too. The PSP seems to be like the "perfect" system at this time. The only thing I don't like is the short battery span. Oh well, I guess I can live with that.

I did think about the DS, but being left handed, it just isn't gonna work for me. Most DS games require left hand on the pad and right hand with the pen. Also, it seems like the PSP can be a lot more versatile.

Jeremy

hehe, you'd be surprised at how well the N64 emulator runs. It's called Daedalus and it can currently run Mario 64 fairly well. The latest version helped a lot and I bet they can get it running full speed by the time the year's out.

[dairugger]

with the gold psp battery pack 3.6v/2200mah i can usually take it to work with me watch umd/s, play mp3's and watch movies off my memcard as well as play my emus and games and still have a good couple hours when i get home.

i usually have the thing running all my work day the charge it up at night for the next days work. i got my battery at gamestops used psp bag items for around 7.00.

[monkeychemist]

with the gold psp battery pack 3.6v/2200mah i can usually take it to work with me watch umd/s, play mp3's and watch movies off my memcard as well as play my emus and games and still have a good couple hours when i get home.

i usually have the thing running all my work day the charge it up at night for the next days work. i got my battery at gamestops used psp bag items for around 7.00.

nice! that is what I would be doing. I barely have any work to do at work and thus I need something to keep me from dying of boredom.

Another question: is it easy to make to work? If I buy a new PSP, then I have to downgrade the firmware, flash or do something weird? buy a game that exploits the system?

In the end I don't want to buy a chainsaw if I only really needed a knife. If something like the zodiac can play NES and more importantly SNES at full speed with less hassle to "crack" it and a longer battery life, then I would prefer going with that.

Jeremy

[Chris]

I will look into the homebrew out there too. The PSP seems to be like the "perfect" system at this time. The only thing I don't like is the short battery span. Oh well, I guess I can live with that.
I wouldn't callo the PSP perfect, the horrible digital pad kind of ruins many games, the DS is better in this department.

It could be a good idea to at least wait until the new redesigned PSP is out, maybe they'll improve the pad, but a t least there should be a price drop for the current.

[fishsandwich]

I've been getting into emulation on heldheld in the last year and here are my thoughts...

N-Gage: Awesome for 8-bit emulation, small, light, cheap to replace if stolen or lost.

Zodiac: Awesome for 8 and 16-bit emulation, good buttom layout for SNES. Battery life 5-6 hours, nice screen. Feels expensive. I keep this one at home.

Gizmondo: Really good 8-bit and even 16-bit emulation and great screen but it's thick, heavy, and is more like a tiny PC than a handheld gaming device. Too expensive to replace. This stays at home, too.


I am THIS CLOSE to buying a PSP. I think I am going to wait for a redesign though.

[zektor]

I've been getting into emulation on heldheld in the last year and here are my thoughts...

N-Gage: Awesome for 8-bit emulation, small, light, cheap to replace if stolen or lost.

Zodiac: Awesome for 8 and 16-bit emulation, good buttom layout for SNES. Battery life 5-6 hours, nice screen. Feels expensive. I keep this one at home.

Gizmondo: Really good 8-bit and even 16-bit emulation and great screen but it's thick, heavy, and is more like a tiny PC than a handheld gaming device. Too expensive to replace. This stays at home, too.


I am THIS CLOSE to buying a PSP. I think I am going to wait for a redesign though.

The Gizmondo is a viable emulation handheld. I was really into it for awhile (released some previously unreleased games, donated one to Reesy who in turn ported the excellent DrMD emulator to it), and it had the best controls of any of the other handhelds (best d-pad). But, all in all, I believe the PSP to be the best emulation handheld to date. The GP2X was excellent too, but that stick controller was horrible. The PSP doesn't come without flaws tho. The fact that it's d-pad cannot pull off diagonals (Try SNES Street Fighter to see what I mean) kind of stinks. At least the analog can be used tho.

I have owned them all...emulated on all of them. None are perfect, but the PSP comes the closest in my opinion.

[DOL_001]

There is nothing wrong with the PSP dpad. I had trouble playing SF games when I first got it but they play fine now, you just have to get use to the feel.

[segagamer4life]

There is nothing wrong with the PSP dpad. I had trouble playing SF games when I first got it but they play fine now, you just have to get use to the feel.

yeah I don't get the bad feelings people have towards the Dpad on the psp, it works fine for me, oh well.

[segagamer4life]

so there is a quality N64 emulator for the PSP, crap, I need to revist the emu section of PSP-hacks!!!

[Chris]

There is nothing wrong with the PSP dpad.

If there's nothing wrong, then why did Capcom even offer a special attachment for the PSP thumb stick along with Street Fighter Alpha 3 Max?
I think they knew, that the controlability on the PSP wasn't that good.

I don't own a PSP and haven't played a 2D fighter on it, so I can't say for sure, but you can read it in neraly every review..

But that the PSP can't compete with am arcade stick is no big surprise.
I'd rather like to know how the PSP pad fares against a PS1 or DS digipad.

[DOL_001]

If there's nothing wrong, then why did Capcom even offer a special attachment for the PSP thumb stick along with Street Fighter Alpha 3 Max?
I think they knew, that the controlability on the PSP wasn't that good.

I don't own a PSP and haven't played a 2D fighter on it, so I can't say for sure, but you can read it in neraly every review..

Well I actually own a PSP and SFA3 Max and there aren't any problems with it. In fact you don't even need to worry about the diagonals when doing special moves like a hadoken (down, down-forward, forward+punch), it doesn't need to detect the down-forward motion for it to execute.

But that the PSP can't compete with am arcade stick is no big surprise.
I'd rather like to know how the PSP pad fares against a PS1 or DS digipad.

The PSP and PS1 dpads have about the same feel. I didn't like the original DS dpad at all, but the DS Lite's dpad is definitely better than the PSP's.

But back on topic, the PSP is great for homebrew/emulation. It can do SNES, Neo Geo CD, PS1 and even CPS2 (Marvel vs Capcom, etc) very well.

[monkeychemist]

But back on topic, the PSP is great for homebrew/emulation. It can do SNES, Neo Geo CD, PS1 and even CPS2 (Marvel vs Capcom, etc) very well.

Yes, I think I will wait for the redesign this summer and get that. Hopefully it won't be too hard to crack for homebrew/emulation.

Thanks for all the comments everyone!