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Azimer

Azimer

Emulator Developer
Moderator
Where is the party at in the emulation scene? I know I feel terribly out of touch with everyone and everything involving emulation. What has everyone been up to?

The last year has been quite interesting for me. Unfortunately I can't discuss most of it in a public forum. I have come to a stunning realization that there seems to be less interest in emulation now than there ever has been. Are most of the achievements achieved and most of the fun had from emulation? Sadly, I think so. There is hope still that the scene we are left with are those who want to be here for the enjoyment of it and not so much for free games.

The Nintendo 64 was released in 1996. I was working with emulation before that time and it makes me curious that the NES was released about 11 years previous to us in the states as is N64 about 11 years ago from today. Does this now mean N64 is no longer a "Next-Gen" emulator and is classified with the NES and SNES as legacy systems? I find that incredibly interesting (even if none of you do).

Last week I went to visit some guys I knew on IRC who have been working with NES for years. I couldn't believe quite a few of them were still around and working on NES development. Most of they were kindly helping the new people and it was the same atmosphere just different people. Why can't N64 development become like this? If there is such a group of people, why do I not know them? I might work a full-time job, pay taxes, vote for a losing candidate on tuesdays, but I will always find a spot of time for N64 emulation.

What is currently being developed for N64? From what I know there's a MESS N64 driver, schibo appears to be dinking around with 1964 privately (based on his post 6 months ago), zil and jabo slowly hacking at PJ with no promised release timeframe (both busy with their individual money making ventures), and Mupen has some 3rd party updates. Am I missing anything? Is there any new blood I haven't caught up with yet?

As some of you have known, I fell into the World of Warcrack population cesspool and have yet to kick my addiction. In addition to working 50-60 hour weeks when we get a new contract, I didn't have a lot of time for things. Why would I want to sit in from of a programming environment plugging away at an emulator when sitting in a zombie-like state staring at the backside of a tauren's ass seems much more entertaining? Unfortunately, that entertainment has run its course and they are planning to launch a new expansion. Unlike the last expansion, I have zero interest in seeing this new one. What I need now is something else to begin focusing my energies toward. Where's the party at and where can I get an invitation?

And to make this post relevant to the current forum. :apollo:
 
smcd

smcd

Active member
dreamcast emulation has picked up in the past year or two (nulldc, makaron, demul, and lxdream emerging and chankast fading into oblivion) gamecube and ps2 emulation are still being picked apart with fair progress too. the changes to mupen64 are welcomed by many, and pj64 changes will be too when it happens. emulation isn't dead, i don't think. another thing that seems to be popular these days is porting emulators to consoles/handhelds like the gp2x, psp, ds and creating a whole new "scene"
 
Cyberman

Cyberman

Moderator
Moderator
The people who were interested in emulation grew up and got jobs?

I still have the little bit of source left from the Apollo GL graphics plugin.

I am involved quietly in two emulation projects (3 actually)
  1. emulation of Square Soft's game engines (think scumvm for Square data instead of Lucas arts).
  2. emulation of 80c51 micro controllers for expermentation purposes
  3. Related to hi rez texture pack stuff. Not to be discussed really outcome should be interesting (I have finally settled into schedule I can get stuff done in for the projects).
  4. I forgot a little bit of modification to PCSX this may prove to be a totally useless bit of fun but, after examining PCSX GTE and GPU interfaces I think I can have some fun.
  5. Considering a project using soruce engine and GMOD. This should be a lot of fun.
I tend to have too many interests to get things done.

Another problem is I love playing games a LOT. :D

I do not like the net games too much however. I love NWN (NWN2 is not good for online just playing single player). I have every version of the FF series save XI and I never will have XI either. It's the worst of all the FF series of games. I like to work at my pace on games so net stuff is no good for me. :)

Cyb
 
OP
Azimer

Azimer

Emulator Developer
Moderator
Cyberman said:
The people who were interested in emulation grew up and got jobs?
Click to expand...

Jobs are bad mmkay! {}:{

Yeah this is about what happen. However, I have the hope that emulation can evolve into something more mature.

It's good to see you are still involved. In the near future I am looking to get more involved. My subscription ends soon and my job is currently between contracts with no prospects for the rest of this quarter. :)

These Hi-Rez texture projects seem interesting and I wonder how difficult it would be to implement in a graphics plugin. I know I've been wanting to take that graphics plugin you've mentioned and rewrite it for DX9 using shaders. There is also the promised MusyX support that is only half implemented. We'll see what happens.

Either way I am happy to not have so much work to do... :bouncy:
 
X-Fi6

X-Fi6

New member
I know what hasn't changed: me using your HLE Audio v0.56 WIP II! Seriously it's the best audio plugin I've ever used. I use it to send audio lists and Jabo's to produce the sound with Hacktarux's RSP plugin that comes with Mupen64.

And N64 emulation isn't dead yet--only lots of features in EmuTalk. :p Whatever happened to that .htaccess rewrite add-on? It's annoying when in old posts I have to copy the parts in the URLs and paste them into another one to make the link work...
 
R

revl8er

That Damn Good
I still use the audio plugin as well, but I haven't had the time for emulation as I did before. I'm too much into my other games right now. I'm looking forward to some new updates for me to try out in the future though.
 
S

Slougi

New member
I'm a bit saddened by the current state as well. I think many many old-timers still check the board every now and then, but many have also simply taken off. Grown up, got jobs, started families, not interested in the community or what is left of it, or whatever the reason. You need just look at the emu64 irc chan to see just how much activity there is nowadays - pretty much none at all. In fact:

Code: 
06:20 -!- Azimer [[email protected]] has joined #emulation64
06:20 -!- CKemu [[email protected]] has quit [Ping timeout: 615 seconds]
06:33 -!- CKemu2 is now known as CKemu
07:03 -!- Azimer [[email protected]] has quit []

That about sums it up I guess. A far cry from a few years ago.

I also find it interesting that N64 emulation has not become like the (S)NES emu scenes. I think one aspect of it is that the n64 is just that much more complex and doing developing emus or doing rom hacking is a lot more difficult. From a personal perspective I must also admit that the old 2d games have much more charm in general than most n64 games...

If there's a party somewhere I'd like an invitation as well. Hint hint. ;)
 
MasterPhW

MasterPhW

Master of the Emulation Flame
Azimer said:
Where is the party at in the emulation scene? I know I feel terribly out of touch with everyone and everything involving emulation. What has everyone been up to?

The last year has been quite interesting for me. Unfortunately I can't discuss most of it in a public forum. I have come to a stunning realization that there seems to be less interest in emulation now than there ever has been. Are most of the achievements achieved and most of the fun had from emulation? Sadly, I think so. There is hope still that the scene we are left with are those who want to be here for the enjoyment of it and not so much for free games.

The Nintendo 64 was released in 1996. I was working with emulation before that time and it makes me curious that the NES was released about 11 years previous to us in the states as is N64 about 11 years ago from today. Does this now mean N64 is no longer a "Next-Gen" emulator and is classified with the NES and SNES as legacy systems? I find that incredibly interesting (even if none of you do).

Last week I went to visit some guys I knew on IRC who have been working with NES for years. I couldn't believe quite a few of them were still around and working on NES development. Most of they were kindly helping the new people and it was the same atmosphere just different people. Why can't N64 development become like this? If there is such a group of people, why do I not know them? I might work a full-time job, pay taxes, vote for a losing candidate on tuesdays, but I will always find a spot of time for N64 emulation.

What is currently being developed for N64? From what I know there's a MESS N64 driver, schibo appears to be dinking around with 1964 privately (based on his post 6 months ago), zil and jabo slowly hacking at PJ with no promised release timeframe (both busy with their individual money making ventures), and Mupen has some 3rd party updates. Am I missing anything? Is there any new blood I haven't caught up with yet?

As some of you have known, I fell into the World of Warcrack population cesspool and have yet to kick my addiction. In addition to working 50-60 hour weeks when we get a new contract, I didn't have a lot of time for things. Why would I want to sit in from of a programming environment plugging away at an emulator when sitting in a zombie-like state staring at the backside of a tauren's ass seems much more entertaining? Unfortunately, that entertainment has run its course and they are planning to launch a new expansion. Unlike the last expansion, I have zero interest in seeing this new one. What I need now is something else to begin focusing my energies toward. Where's the party at and where can I get an invitation?

And to make this post relevant to the current forum. :apollo:
Click to expand...
It's great to see some old known faces back at ET.
You, as a great pioneer of N64 emulation, said some wise words.
It would be really great to have a community like in the (S)NES scene, but I think that won't happen in near future. But we'll see, eg. the Mupen Linux port is already a big community project, it happens more, than all other N64 emulators together.
Btw: I've remember some years ago a little IRC chat, where you told, that you want to rewrite Apollo nearly from scratch, but I think you've dropped that, didn't you?
I'm still using Apollo and your Sound Plugin aswell, would be great to see some more contrubition from you! ;)
:apollo:
 
OP
Azimer

Azimer

Emulator Developer
Moderator
MasterPhW said:
It's great to see some old known faces back at ET.
You, as a great pioneer of N64 emulation, said some wise words.
It would be really great to have a community like in the (S)NES scene, but I think that won't happen in near future. But we'll see, eg. the Mupen Linux port is already a big community project, it happens more, than all other N64 emulators together.
Btw: I've remember some years ago a little IRC chat, where you told, that you want to rewrite Apollo nearly from scratch, but I think you've dropped that, didn't you?
I'm still using Apollo and your Sound Plugin aswell, would be great to see some more contrubition from you! ;)
:apollo:
Click to expand...

I did rewrite large sections of it but it was far from scratch. I am slightly uplifted knowing some still lurk around here. As slougi said earlier, some people have grown up, started, families, etc. etc. I've decided to be selfish with my life and not have any children. My siblings have done enough of that where I don't have to! :) Now if only I could find a woman who agrees with my attitude. You wouldn't think that would be so hard. lol
 
MasterPhW

MasterPhW

Master of the Emulation Flame
Azimer said:
I did rewrite large sections of it but it was far from scratch. I am slightly uplifted knowing some still lurk around here. As slougi said earlier, some people have grown up, started, families, etc. etc. I've decided to be selfish with my life and not have any children. My siblings have done enough of that where I don't have to! :) Now if only I could find a woman who agrees with my attitude. You wouldn't think that would be so hard. lol
Click to expand...
Let's go clubbing Azi, we'll find you a fine girl! :party:
Yeah, I didn't remember the IRC chat completely (long time ago, you know), but I had in my mind, that you said something like that, scratch or not, that's not important, it's just nice to hear, that you really worked a little bit on it, even when it probably never go public.
:apollo:
 
E

EmuFan

Emulation Fanatic
I first got into emulation back in´98, and have been following it up close ever since. I have to agree with most of the points you are making, back then, when N64 emulation entered the scene, it was crazy.

I actually tried UltraHLE when it first came out, but my computer wasn´t strong enough (2 GB HDD, lol), so i had to put that on hold for awhile.

I have been getting into DS emulation lately, since i now have a chance to with my upgraded PC. And Lo and behold, seing the games that i already have on the original run full speed is just...magical.

There may be a little spark of interest left considering emulation, but it has weakened since there isn´t so much going on. I mean gosh, we were bombarded with emulators when it first started. A bit slow at first, but eventually they were rolling at quite an impressive pase. (emulation, not emulators.)

When i ran DS emulators full speed, i got the very same feeling as when i tried Atari NES, SNES and N64 emulation. Sort of a exilerating feeling.

My brother says "you already have the game, what´s the point?" Seeing it happen, is what! Seeing what normal mortals like us is capable of. The fact that you don´t have to be Shigsy to make it happen.
 
OP
Azimer

Azimer

Emulator Developer
Moderator
MasterPhW said:
Let's go clubbing Azi, we'll find you a fine girl! :party:
Yeah, I didn't remember the IRC chat completely (long time ago, you know), but I had in my mind, that you said something like that, scratch or not, that's not important, it's just nice to hear, that you really worked a little bit on it, even when it probably never go public.
:apollo:
Click to expand...

I canceled my subscription today and have plenty of free time I suppose. Let's go have fun, have a few brews, and paint the town red. Then I must get serious!

My intention is to spent quite a bit of this new found time finding new work. The job I have is great but I am tired of the rollercoaster ride. Between February of last year until December I was working close to 50 hours a week! Now I am finding enough time in the office to write posts on emutalk! I am bringing in a flashdrive of source code and pissing around with emulation at work. I am waiting for the bread crumbs of support from past projects to hit my todo list. Me being bored is a bad thing as I get restless and lazy.

That said, I am excited about things ahead. I had a conversation with a former co-worker (and now a good friend). He is actually interested in playing around with a NES emulator after I described the design challenges of writing an efficient and accurate emulator. I told him he's my padawan... he then called me master (bater). We then had a row of sorts all in fun.

Anywho... this isn't some flash in the pan interest in emulation from me. I am intending to keep this thread going and keep you updated on any of my developments.

Speaking of developments, stop by the tech forum and answer my question. I am looking for a solid development laptop to spend my tax return on. Any good leads is appreciated.
 
O

olivieryuyu

New member
Good to see you back Azi :)

Well the N64 emulation scene slowed down, that is true.

But there is still a lot of interest for this system which appears more "legit" to be emulated than few years ago (as the nes; snes). If the Mame team is developing a N64 driver, it is clear that N64 emulation reached another step.

From my point of view the big change are:

- LLE emulation (Mame) with its incredible development of a gfx plugin, Z64 from Ziggy. It helped a lot some HLE developments.

- HLE emulation is now leaded by Glide64. With the coming next release it will be the most advance gfx plugin in HLE.

- Mupen is now the most attractive and interesting project. I hope that its development will continue futher

- In sound nothing at all :(.

- The input plugin nrage is still in dev. Very good plugin.

- Few others things as n64 prototypes found, some source releases, some things understood (For WCC and Stunt Racer)
 
mudlord

mudlord

Banned
These Hi-Rez texture projects seem interesting and I wonder how difficult it would be to implement in a graphics plugin. I know I've been wanting to take that graphics plugin you've mentioned and rewrite it for DX9 using shaders.
Click to expand...

Now that would be cool. I could use some help with the project. Its not helping my interest is starting to wane and I'm extremely busy with university.

But, if your interested, that would be super cool. And it would put some life back into the thing, after what I did.
 
OP
Azimer

Azimer

Emulator Developer
Moderator
olivieryuyu said:
Good to see you back Azi :)

From my point of view the big change are:

- LLE emulation (Mame) with its incredible development of a gfx plugin, Z64 from Ziggy. It helped a lot some HLE developments.

- HLE emulation is now leaded by Glide64. With the coming next release it will be the most advance gfx plugin in HLE.

- Mupen is now the most attractive and interesting project. I hope that its development will continue futher

- In sound nothing at all :(.

- The input plugin nrage is still in dev. Very good plugin.

- Few others things as n64 prototypes found, some source releases, some things understood (For WCC and Stunt Racer)
Click to expand...

Glad to see you too! Tell me a little bit about what you bullet-pointed. What is Z64 and who is Ziggy? What HLE developments? Sounds very interesting as LLE emulation has been around for awhile, just not publically.

HLE by Glide64? Isn't Glide dead? I thought it was a wrapper. Tell me more.

I am most interested in your last bullet point. If you are unable to say anything for the world to see, please PM.

Thanks for the summary. :)
 
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