Homebrew Genesis Plus GX - Black Screen ?

hardenmetapod · May 2, 2016

Hi All,
So I am running a wii with homebrew. I just installed Gensis Plus GX from the homebrew channel, which I believe is version 1.7.3.

I have transferred all my genesis roms, with file extension .gen into the roms folder within my SD card. When I run Genesis Plus GX all my games can be seen and launched, but all that loads is a black screen. The wii is not frozen, and I can navigate around.

I have haphazardly been browsing through my games and trying to run them, and all but one do not load.

Does anyone have any suggestions?

AaronZ · May 2, 2016

Try the latest SVN build by eke:
https://bitbucket.org/eke/genesis-plus-gx/commits/cddba6f02bb6969a59677be7748caa3e0c420c39

hardenmetapod · May 5, 2016

AaronZ thanks. I have installed the update.

Before I performed the update, I downloaded some new roms to try and got one working. After the update that same rom no longer works. In my new list of roms, I am getting either a black screen, the game playing, or the game showing a black screen then throwing an exception. Any suggestions? There seems to be no rhyme or reason to the pattern of working / non working games.

Also, when I remove the SD card to move files, within the ROMS folder there are two blank files with unusual names, the first one the name is just the symbol of a square, and the second, the symbol is of a triangle, no extension.

Adding an update.
I attempted to reload the entire app today, and when I tried to load it on the Wii it no longer showed up. I looked on my SD card and it is now a file with no extension, and the folder is gone. I assume this is some sort of corruption on the SD.

Attempting to copy over SD contents and start with a new SD card.

hardenmetapod · May 6, 2016

I have replicated my entire SD card onto a new SD card, and installed the roms, removing the old ones. Now it works.

Updating with solutions for any one else having the same issue.

Inveracity · Aug 11, 2018

Oddly enough I'm having the same problem OP was having, gonna try the link AaronZ posted and see if it'll help. Its a black screen unless I pause the game, then I can see Genplus and the game at the pause menu. Unpause and it's back to black screen, super weird.

Edit: If either of you guys happen to see this, where would I put these files from AaronZ's link in the Genplus directory? I only see genplus_wii.dol but the rest I don't see at all in any folder.

Maeson · Aug 11, 2018

If you're able to see the emulator option's, but it goes to black when you play the game, couldn't it be a resolution issue between your system and your tv or display? If a tv can't reproduce the resolution it will stay black. You should check the video options of the emulator just in case, or check if you're playing ROMS from a region your tv does not support.

"genplus_wii.dol" has to be renamed Boot.dol and put in the genplus folder inside Apps folder, which should be in the root of the SD card. You're supposed to replace the old Boot.dol with it.

Sonic Angel Knight · Aug 11, 2018

If you are having problems, first make sure your SD card is functioning properly. First used this tool to check it.

https://www.heise.de/download/product/h2testw-50539/download

Download and open the tool. (You may want to back up your sd card files before continuing.) Format it then use the tool. If it says no problems, then the sd card is safe to use. Otherwise you need a new one.

After you determine if the sd card is okay, just install the file here to the sd card in the folder called SD:/apps/Genesis plus GX then rename it Boot.dol.

The homebrew should load if there is no problems. ENJOY.

Inveracity · Aug 11, 2018

MaeseJesus said:
If you're able to see the emulator option's, but it goes to black when you play the game, couldn't it be a resolution issue between your system and your tv or display? If a tv can't reproduce the resolution it will stay black. You should check the video options of the emulator just in case, or check if you're playing ROMS from a region your tv does not support.

"genplus_wii.dol" has to be renamed Boot.dol and put in the genplus folder inside Apps folder, which should be in the root of the SD card. You're supposed to replace the old Boot.dol with it.

I appreciate the response dude, I'm over here scratching my head and I know I'm way late to Wii modding lol I didn't know it was a thing until two weeks ago.

When I check the Wii settings, 480p is greyed out and I'm not able to select it (which I think might be the Wii recognizes I have crappy 3-cord connection to the TV, not even a composite cable) but the ROMs are all U.S. so that's the only thing I can think of. I have boot.dol and genplus_wii.dol in my folder and its running okay (when I pause it lol), should I just go ahead and delete boot.dol and replace it? The genplus_wii.dol I have was updated I do believe in 2018 IIRC, so I assume that'd work better anyway. I don't think it'll be a solution to this, I may just need to check Amazon for a composite cable.

--------------------- MERGED ---------------------------

Sonic Angel Knight said:
If you are having problems, first make sure your SD card is functioning properly. First used this tool to check it.

https://www.heise.de/download/product/h2testw-50539/download

Download and open the tool. (You may want to back up your sd card files before continuing.) Format it then use the tool. If it says no problems, then the sd card is safe to use. Otherwise you need a new one.

After you determine if the sd card is okay, just install the file here to the sd card in the folder called SD:/apps/Genesis plus GX then rename it Boot.dol.

The homebrew should load if there is no problems. ENJOY.

Everything else is running well, and I can see the games and Genplus working when it's paused, it's just when I unpause will it black out again. If I push buttons to get through menus the game is running, I've goofed around with that a little bit to make sure. I really do think it's just resolution issues and I am pretty sure it's because I have obsolete cables hooked up to a smart TV, the Wii has 480p greyed out in its menu (the HDMI option) and I'm doomed to Standard 480i says the console.

Sonic Angel Knight · Aug 11, 2018

Inveracity said:
Everything else is running well, and I can see the games and Genplus working when it's paused, it's just when I unpause will it black out again. If I push buttons to get through menus the game is running, I've goofed around with that a little bit to make sure. I really do think it's just resolution issues and I am pretty sure it's because I have obsolete cables hooked up to a smart TV, the Wii has 480p greyed out in its menu (the HDMI option) and I'm doomed to Standard 480i says the console.

Maybe consider a HDMI adapter for the wii. You can find them for less than $10 on ebay and it helps if you want to use it on HD TV.
(NOTE: It doesn't enhance the image, just converts the signal from component to HDMI cable use) Although I don't know if that is your situation with the problem, have you tried messing with the video settings in genesis plus gx? Did you set your wii to 16:9 or 4:3, just asking, never know what can help.

PS. the link to the genesis plus gx homebrew is the latest build since 2 months ago.

Inveracity · Aug 11, 2018

Sonic Angel Knight said:
Maybe consider a HDMI adapter for the wii. You can find them for less than $10 on ebay and it helps if you want to use it on HD TV.
(NOTE: It doesn't enhance the image, just converts the signal from component to HDMI cable use) Although I don't know if that is your situation with the problem, have you tried messing with the video settings in genesis plus gx? Did you set your wii to 16:9 or 4:3, just asking, never know what can help.

PS. the link to the genesis plus gx homebrew is the latest build since 2 months ago.

Tried all of the options in Genplus to see if anything helped and unfortunately not. I did see the notes on Amazon that an adapter won't make it 1080p but the photos it showed for comparison were much cleaner which I'll take anyday! I am hoping that'll help since I can't even change the Wii's settings to 480p with this dumpy display cable I have (it was free, I can't complain) so until it shows up in the mail I'll just have to make due with the other emus. Super Mario RPG should keep me busy for a while. :rofl2:

Sonic Angel Knight · Aug 11, 2018

Inveracity said:
Tried all of the options in Genplus to see if anything helped and unfortunately not. I did see the notes on Amazon that an adapter won't make it 1080p but the photos it showed for comparison were much cleaner which I'll take anyday

You did say you only had access to Interlace signals, progressive signals usually have slightly improved output which is why most people aim to get it, especially on HDTV. If you do have money to spare, you should get a HDMI adapter which isn't expensive and will allow you to get Progressive signal or EDTV as the wii calls it. Again, i dunno if it will fix this specific issue but then again, I never had this problem since using genesis plus gx.

Inveracity · Aug 11, 2018

Even if it doesn't help I wouldn't mind having the adapter. If that's the case, as much as I hate admitting defeat, lots of people in Discord have been recommending Retroarch. Maybe that'll work and solve this mysterious problem.

Sonic Angel Knight · Aug 11, 2018

Inveracity said:
Even if it doesn't help I wouldn't mind having the adapter. If that's the case, as much as I hate admitting defeat, lots of people in Discord have been recommending Retroarch. Maybe that'll work and solve this mysterious problem.

Since I never had a problem with genesis plus gx, I can't say that retroarch is a solution even if it could be. But maybe just try reconnecting your cables again. (Perhaps something is loose) or try some other cables if you have. (the same Av cables are supplied with many nintendo systems from the past including Gamecube, N64, snes)

Still find it hard to believe the emulator is the problem, have you had issues with other homebrew?

Inveracity · Aug 11, 2018

HBC, Fceugx, Snes9xgx, Wii64, Nintendont all work just fine. I even have a bunch of Wii .isos (shhh don't tell anyone!), everything except Genplus runs just fine. The one thing I haven't tried is reseating the cable connection, I'm always paranoid this TV is gonna fall off its mount lol I'll try that though. I didn't hook it up, fiance did, so maybe she plugged something in the wrong spot? Didn't think about that before since everything else works.

Jacobeian · Aug 11, 2018

Just switch 'render mode' from 'ORIGINAL' to 'INTERLACED' in emulator video settings. Your TV probably does not support 240p video signal.

Maeson · Aug 11, 2018

Don't worry about not knowing this stuff, nobody borns knowing.

As I said, Genplus GX may have as its default option to render the games at a resolution your display may not support; screen going to black but going back to being visible on menus is a classic thing for such issues. That's why I said to check the video options, just as Jacobeian mentioned. I got the same issue when messing around the options sometimes and I always solved through them.

If the other emulators and software work, it must be definitely some setting in Genplus GX.

Going for an HDMI adapter, if you end up with a decent one, is an okay solution. Actually, anything is better than Composite. The quality of the image is comparable to Component (maybe slightly better as you'll avoid noise caused by interferences if you got a mediocre component cable); and you can set your system to 480P which is the best native resolution, and it is a substantial improvement over composite 480i. Another important factor in how much this adapter does to you depends on the tv your using, as some are pretty bad at scaling analogue output, but better at digital, so the improvement can be bigger in those cases.

I never tried one of those that supposedly scale up (my hdmi adapter has the "1080P Full HD" thing printed into it, but only outputs 480P), so I have no idea of how well they work.

Inveracity · Aug 12, 2018

Jacobeian said:
Just switch 'render mode' from 'ORIGINAL' to 'INTERLACED' in emulator video settings. Your TV probably does not support 240p video signal.

Unbelievable... this fixed it lol I have been tearing my hair out trying to figure this out. THANK YOU! I really thought I was losing my mind here.

@MaeseJesus I'm still gonna get myself a HDMI adapter just for the clearer picture but it won't go any higher than 480p according to not only everyone that's tried one but Amazon's seller even mentions it there. I really hate the composite POS I have now lol the games look grainy and just... not quality. But I'm just so thrilled to be able to see my Genplus games, I don't mind waiting a few days until I get paid and can order an adapter. What a relief!

Sonic Angel Knight · Aug 12, 2018

Sonic Angel Knight said:
Although I don't know if that is your situation with the problem, have you tried messing with the video settings in genesis plus gx? Did you set your wii to 16:9 or 4:3, just asking, never know what can help

Inveracity said:
Tried all of the options in Genplus to see if anything helped and unfortunately not.

Guess you didn't check all the settings until now.

Inveracity · Aug 12, 2018

Sonic Angel Knight said:
Guess you didn't check all the settings until now.

LOL I could have sworn I tried that but apparently not, I was just going back and forth changing stuff and manually resetting my Wii, now I can breathe easy and play some of the handful of ROMs I actually wanted. :grog:

Maeson · Aug 12, 2018

Glad to see it was indeed the emulator using another resolution when running games.

You'll see a big, big change once your hdmi adapter arrives and you plug it, composite truly is the worst. Don't forget to go to the Wii Options menu and change the resolution to 480P for a better image. But once you do this, you should go to Genplus and change the Display options in the Video menu from "interlaced" to "Progressive" so it works through 480P, with all the improvements. You could also disable the Bilinear Filter option for a cleaner image (although that's more personal preference).

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