Mednafen
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Current version: | 0.9.36.2 |
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Active: | Yes |
OS: | Multi-platform |
Authors: | Ryphecha, Mednafen Team |
Official website: | SouceForge |
Source code: | SourceForge |
Mednafen is a multi-system emulator, driven from the command-line. Many of its cores are ports of other emulators, but many of them are also original. Its PlayStation and PC Engine (TurboGrafx-16) original cores are notable for their high quality, compatibility and accuracy.
Mednafen is an acronym for "My Emulator Doesn't Need A Frickin' Excellent Name".
Contents
Download
Supported systems
System | Based on code from: |
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Atari Lynx | Handy |
Game Boy Advance | VisualBoyAdvance |
Neo-Geo Pocket Color | NeoPop |
Famicom (NES) | FCE Ultra |
Super Famicom (SNES) | bsnes |
Nintendo Virtual Boy | Original. NEC V810 CPU core based on Reality Boy. |
PC Engine (TurboGrafx-16) | Original. CD-ROM interface based on PC2E. |
PC-FX | Original. NEC V810 CPU core based on Reality Boy. |
PlayStation | Original. |
WonderSwan Color | Cygne |
Mega Drive (Sega Genesis) | Genesis Plus |
Sega Master System and Game Gear | SMS Plus |
Overview
Mednafen only has a command line interface, so its interface might be hard to use to new users.
The best cores in Mednafen are those that are original - which are the PS1, PCE, PC-FX and Virtual Boy cores. The PCE core is one of the best emulators for that system, with a Fast and Accurate version. The PS1 core is native resolution only, and features high degree of accuracy and compatibility. The Virtual Boy core is one of the best for the system, although it does not attempt to reproduce the 3D.
Other cores improve upon emulators that have been long abandoned and rarely updated. These include the Neo-Geo Pocket, WonderSwan Color and Atari Lynx cores.
Other cores are less useful, as there are better options in stand-alone emulators (NES, Genesis, Master System and SNES). These cores might even be based on out-dated versions. For instance, the SNES core is based on an old outdated version of bSNES. This is before the performance/accuracy/balanced cores - 0.50x territory - with a couple of changes by Ryphecha.
It is unknown at this time whether Mednafen's GBA core is better than VBA-M.
RetroArch uses the PS1, PCE, Neo-Geo Pocket, Virtual Boy, and WonderSwan cores of Mednafen, so it might make sense to use that instead.
Using Mednafen
Mednafen is pretty easy to get up and running. You can use a frontend like medgui. However, a good text editor like Notepad++ is all you need if you need to change settings.
BIOS
Most cores do not require any BIOS except for the PS1, PCE-CD and PC-FX cores. BIOS files need to be placed into a folder called "firmware" in your Mednafen directory. Mednafen is very picky about which BIOS to use. The ones that you might need are:
PS1:
- scph5500.bin Required for Japan-region games.
- scph5501.bin Required for North America/US-region games.
- scph5502.bin Required for Europe-region games.
PCE-CD:
- syscard3.pce
PC-FX:
- pcfx.rom
CUE
For most systems, Mednafen only needs the rom file; but to load PS1 games, Mednafen requires CUE sheets to know where the music data is. Ensure that the CUE sheet is properly set up in order for the game to run. See the Cue sheet (.cue) page for more info.
Loading a game
To load a game in Mednafen, simply drag and drop your rom or CUE file onto mednafen.exe, or if you prefer, you can use the command line. Mednafen requires no special commands, such as the desired system. For example, in Windows, the command would look like C:/Emulators/Mednafen/mednafen.exe C:/Roms/Nintendo/battletoads.nes
Dual Analog Controllers with PS1
To enable analog sticks and rumble on DualShock controllers, open the mednafen-09x.cfg file, search for "psx.input.port1" and change gamepad to DualShock. Do this for port2 if you wish to play multiplayer games with the features of DualShock controllers.
Configuring Controls
Once in-game, to configure your controller at any time, press Alt+Shift+1 and it will guide you through the setup. Press Alt+Shift+2 and so on for each additional controller for multiplayer.
Graphical Enhancements
Sprite Limit
This is a feature on older systems, due to hardware limitations, that makes it only display so many sprites could be on screen at the same time. Most systems got around this limitation by alternating which sprites were on screen each refresh, causing the sprite to flicker. Mednafen's default settings are true to the original system limits, but this can be disabled in the cfg file. Here is the list of options from the cfg file to change from 0 to 1 if you don't wish to have the limit.
- pcfx.rom
- nes.no8lim
- pce.nospritelimit
- pce_fast.nospritelimit
- pcfx.nospritelimit
Cheats
Mednafen supports the usual cheats such as GameShark, Code Breaker, and Action Replay. The cheats menu can be accessed with ALT+C.
Further Reading
Issues
Mednafen memory cards
To transfer memory cards, follow this guide. Also, in games with multiple discs with saves that carry over, you have to follow the same procedure.
Using RetroArch#Transfer_PS1_Memory_Card_Files
Frontends
Medgui
(Windows) http://sourceforge.net/projects/medgui/
MedGui Reborn
(Windows) http://forum.fobby.net/index.php?t=msg&th=924&start=0&
Mednaffe
(Multi-platform) https://code.google.com/p/mednaffe/
NetPlay
Cores that work with NetPlay:
- PC Engine (TurboGrafx-16)/PC-CD/SuperGrafx (option for both accuracy and fast cores)
- PC-FX
- NES
- Genesis (experimental but mostly functional; 2 Players only)
- Master System
- SNES
- PlayStation
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How to |
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It's recommended that you download a frontend
For Hosting:
You can chat in-game by pressing T. Also, remember that you can drop in and out of the game at any time, so you don't need to reset the game if someone accidentally disconnects. There are way too many settings, commands and features to list, so take a look at the emulator's documentation. |