PlayStation emulators

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Revision as of 17:05, 27 April 2014 by Oranjelo100 (talk | contribs) (Emulation issues)
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The slim version of the Playstation console.

The PlayStation (known shorthand as PS1 or PSX) is a 5th generation console produced by Sony Computer Entertainment in 1994. It used CD media. It was a commercial success in part to being relatively easy to program for compared to others at the time.  

Emulators

PC
Name Operating System(s) Latest Version

Plugins

Accuracy Recommended
PCSX-R Windows, Linux, OS X SVN (Windows,OS X) Plugin dependent
XEBRA Windows 08/15/2013 Build High
Mednafen Multiplatform 0.9.33.1 High
RetroArch (Mednafen) Multiplatform 0.9.28 High
ePSXe Windows, Linux 1.9.0 Plugin dependent
pSX Windows, Linux 1.13 Mid
Console
Name Operating System(s) Latest Version

Plugins

Accuracy Recommended
WiiSX Wii, Gamecube 2.1 beta ?
POPS PSP/PS2/Vita 6.60/r12/2.60 ?
Mobile
Name Operating System(s) Latest Version

Plugins

Accuracy Recommended
RetroArch (PCSX-Rearmed) IOS, Android r15 High
ePSXe Android 1.9.4 High

Comparisons

PC

PCSX-R is actively developed (though mostly OSX and Linux versions), and is open source. Also a plugin based emulator similar to ePSXe, but is active and has more features. It has a widescreen hack, rewind save feature , fewer glitches, proper multitrack CUE support, and support for superior plugins, such as LilyPad. Though please do note if you actually find an issue, as whatever it is could likely be looked into through their issue tracker.However Windows version is currently unmaintained[1][2][3][4] and has inferior feature set so if you are on Windows ePSXe may be better.

XEBRA has very high compatibility. Games that require subchannel data are not supported, but most other games run flawlessly. User interface is often complained about by people who can't work technology. ARBEX is an alternate build of XEBRA that doesn't require a PSX bios.

Mednafen psx is an emulator focused on accuracy. It seems extremely compatible since 0.9.28WIP. Do note if you find an exception, though. Requires a minimum of a Core 2 Duo at 2 GHz clock. Mednafen itself is command line only and has no frontend. There are external frontends available. 

RetroArch can use the Mednafen psx core and includes some bonuses, such as superior synch, strong shader support and a built in frontend.

PSXfin is simple and has a "standard" interface, which is easy to get into. It has a lot of compatibility issues[1]. Dead development, closed source, no hope. Despite this, it has many hangers-on that continue to praise it as the best PlayStation emulator. Really only useful for very old toasters.

ePSXe is a fairly standard plugin based emulator, and since it's closed source it gets only updates from the main developers. And only a few minor updates once every few years. Though 1.8.0's biggest addition was the Android version's advertisement. Closed source, focused on profit, and out dated. Although the basic program is near identical to PCSXR there are subtle differences. As this is plugin based, a guide to setting this up can be found here: http://forums.ngemu.com/showthread.php?t=85600 . Also note that PCSXR uses the same plugins so the knowledge gained can be ported over.

It's generally recommended to use Mednafen or PCSX-R. Many use Mednafen for 2D games because of its accuracy at native resolution ,ePSXe or Linux/OSX version of PCSX-R for 3D games because of support for plugins which allow for better graphics quality than original hardware.Unfortunately best PSX plugins which can increase internal resolution and have support for shaders(Pete OpenGL2 v2.9 and Edgbla gpuBladesoft v1.42a) are closed source and weren't updated for years so they are quite outdated and are not bug free.

Consoles

POPS (short for PlayStation On PSP System) is the PS1 emulator for PSP made by Sony. It utilises EBOOTs, a form of binary file for PSP, instead of bin/cue/etc, which can be made using a converter if required. Compatibility is very high due to being made by Sony for their PSN releases of PS1 games, including support for multi-disc games (within the one EBOOT). Only native PS1 resolution is supported, with games being stretched as the user wishes to fit the screen.

WiiSX is a port of PCSX to the Wii. Compatibility is fairly low due to the weak power of the Wii, plus the lack of updates to this emulator mean that it generally isn't worth using. Still the best PS1 emulator on Wii, though, which isn't saying much.

PCSX-ReARMed is essentially the ARM version of PCSX-R, sharing a similar core, but optimized for portable handheld devices. Its biggest draw is its NEON software renderer, which is both fast and accurate, and has the ability to render at a higher resolution without resorting to HLE plugins.



Left showing native resolution and unblended dithering. Right showing HD and no dithering.

Emulation issues

Several problems occur when running PS1 games, and they become more noticeable at resolutions higher than native internal resolution when using plugins which can increase it like Edgbla's GpuBladesoft, Pete's OpenGL2 and GSDX. Though they're still apparent at native, the low resolution's aliasing and blurriness kills almost any visibility, hiding the issues.

Jittering polygons are caused by low-precision fixed-point (to the native res, essentially) math. And more accurate math where relevant helps, i.e. GTE Accuracy. Though it can often create holes in the seams.

The PS1 hardware didn't have a z-buffer. The lack of a z-buffer causes things like polygons popping over others. Tekken character limbs are a good example to see that.Its theoretically possible to implement Z-Buffer in PSX emulators/GPU plugins.[5]

No texture perspective correction causes distortion to texture angles at certain viewing angles. Notably at the bottom near the camera. Which probably could be mitigated with modern texture filtering methods if someone implemented them in PSX emulators/GPU plugins.

PlayStation Resources

  • PlayStation DataCenter - Tons of PSX related things. Emulator files like plugins, game manuals, game configurations, and many tutorials are just some of things you'll find here.

References