GameCube emulators

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Revision as of 22:49, 27 July 2014 by Error (talk | contribs) (Changed Dolphin to multi-platform. Made a pc and mobile section. Listed Dolphin for Android.)
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The Nintendo Gamecube (GCN)

The GameCube (GCN) is a 2001 console produced by Nintendo. Due to how similar the architecture is between the GameCube, Triforce and Wii, many GameCube emulators offer support for them.

The Triforce is an arcade system board developed jointly by Namco, Sega, and Nintendo, with the first games appearing in 2002. The system hardware is based on the Nintendo GameCube with several differences, like provisions for add-ons such as Sega's GD-ROM system and upgradeable RAM modules.

Due to having very similar (albeit more powerful) hardware, the Wii is able to natively play GameCube games rather than emulating them.

Emulators

PC
Name Operating System(s) Latest Version GCN Wii Triforce Recommended
Dolphin Multi-platform Android SVN
Dolphin (Nintendo) Windows e2.8
Gekko Windows, Linux SVN
Mobile
Name Operating System(s) Latest Version GCN Wii Triforce Recommended
Dolphin Android SVN

Comparisons

  • Dolphin is the only real emulator you should use; Gekko is still in very early development after being on hiatus for many years, and is nowhere near achieving Wii emulation either. In addition, for Triforce emulation, MAME is not optimised for 3D systems yet, nor is the emulation of the system in question very good either. Dolphin is updated on a near daily basis and has very good emulation of almost everything. System requirements are high, moreso for Wii games than GameCube.
  • Dolphin (Nintendo) is an official emulator by Nintendo of the same name as the recommended Dolphin emulator. The two are unrelated; the official Nintendo emulator does not run commercial games.

Running BIOS

If you want to open games through the Gamecube's original BIOS in Dolphin, first make sure the external framebuffer is enabled, the sound to be set to LLE, and uncheck "skip bios" in the Gamecube options. When the game window opens and the GCN startup animation begins, click File then Change Disc. You can pick literally any file, including the game you initially chose. When the intro ends, it will go into the Gamecube's menu instead of the game. You can then switch to whatever game you really wanted to play with Change Disc, or explore the BIOS.

Resources

  • Dolphin Wiki - For checking if you games work and any fixes/tweaks/settings you should know before hand.