Tutorial How to play PS1 games on New 3ds ~50-60fps!

Did this tutorial help you?


  • Total voters
    52

LowEndC

ǝɹıℲ ɥʇıM ǝɹıℲ ʇɥƃıℲ
OP
Member
Joined
Jan 25, 2019
Messages
342
Trophies
0
Age
35
Location
You have to die before you can wake.
XP
489
Country
Niger
UPDATED 2/9/2019 2pm
Final Edit, unnecessary info removed, easier to read/follow

(after thought edit:
Tldr;
this tutorial is to try and get the most speed out of this port.
most of these directions are for turning basically all sound off, plus adjusting a couple other settings.
i want to note that some games play fine with sound. but if its unplayable or not playing at all, read this tutorial.
lets keep in mind, this emu was not designed for the 3ds, its a port,
while i do not consider it abandoned and unfinished, it could use some updates.
while the core its self uses a built in bios, you can increase your compatibility with games by using the proper bios file.
Or just by a used psp for 50 Dollars on craigslist. :yaypsp:



ONLY WORKS ON NEW 3DS/NEW 2DS XL!! WILL NOT WORK ON OLD 3DS/2DS

Here i will tell you how to get games to play at 50-60 fps on the PS1 emulator, "PCSX reARmed" that is included in RetroArch for the NEW 3ds/2ds.



If you already have Retroarch installed, backup your config files to your SD somewhere or your PC.
you may need to update your build if installed version is lower than 1.7.6.

Step 1. Download the latest stable release of RetroArch first, if having some problems, try a nightly.
or an earlier stable version.
The .3dsx version method is not recommended. For some reason it runs slower that the CIA version.


Stable versions can be found here:
http://buildbot.libretro.com/stable/

Nightly Versions can be found here:
http://buildbot.libretro.com/nightly/nintendo/3ds/


2. Unzip your download with 7z on your desktop,
you will see a cia folder and a retroarch folder

3. Inside that cia folder, move the retroarch.cia to the cia folder on your 3ds SD card
and put the retroarch folder on the root of the SD card.

4. Put your SD back into your system, use fbi, navigate to the cia folder to install retroarch,
5. Then navigate to the retroarch folder>cores, and install the PCSX core



----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
IF you downloaded a game, and extracted it and found multiple .bin files instead of just 1, merge them, super simple.
1. download isobuster
https://www.isobuster.com/dl.php?d=isobuster.com&v=1&l=0
2. open iso buster and drag your .cue file into it
3. Click File>CD>Extract CD (Image)>RAW .bin
4. it will combine all .bin files into 1 and will make a new .cue.
there you go, delete the old bins and old cue file.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


If you have any trouble during any process, like accidentally changing a button layout (which made the app unusable, i made the left dpad do something....idk...)
With a file explorer or on your pc, Navigate to SD/retroarch/retroarch-core-options.cfg, and any .cfg files, and delete them.
then restart PCSX and dont forget to change ALL settings again.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

Before we launch the pcsx core,

Put the games in .bin+.cue format anywhere on the sd card,
I put my games in SD/RetroArch/Games/PS1/

Place your Bios in SD/retroarch/cores/system)

(have different bios in a different folder or on ur pc, some bios dont work with certain games, the PCSX core has a bios built in so you dont need one, but is recommended for better compatibility.)


Launch the PCSX core from the 3ds home menu, don't load a game just yet.


Before we load any games,
1. Go down to settings
2. Go to driver, make sure audio re-sampler is set to null/off.
(also while in Driver, if you want that fancy Sony XMB menu style,
head to menu/ui and choose xmb, a reset is required to take effect)
there are a few other choices, r is default. I dont believe there is a performance lag using the xmb ui, i tend to use the default ui for better speed, cuz im weird and paranoid.:ph34r:)
3. Go back, head to audio, turn audio enable off, make sure audio sync enable is off, everything in audio off.
(try this first, then experiment with sound later.)
then go back to main menu, load your game
3. when game loads, tap the touchscreen,
(Note: touching the bottom half of the screen in-game will toggle the menu while touching the top half of the touchscreen will toggle the bottom screen on/off)
go to options,
set frame-skip from 1-2 depending on the game, 3d games run slower than 2d,
make sure sound reverb and sound interpolation are off.

then resume the game (tap the touchscreen)
HAVE FUN!!!!

--Try the game in .bin format first. which is what it should be when downloaded.
-- if that doesnt work,
-- try a different bios,
-- if problems persist, backup, then delete the bios and use none.
-- if that doesnt work, get the rom from a new source, repeat steps 3 and 4,
-- if still doesnt work, convert it to a .pbp (PSP EBOOT)
(.ISO format will not work)

------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Want everything pixel perfect? Go to Settings and set these: Video -> Aspect Ratio: Set it to 1:1 PAR. Video -> Integer Scale: Set it to On.

Note that this will make some consoles quite tiny, but do as you'd like.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------




All screenshots taken with Rosalina from my console
New 2DS XL 11.0.9-42U - Luma3DSv9.1 CFW B9S
RetroArch Nightly build 2/8/2019 9:48


XMB GUI




R-Type Delta



Chrono Cross



Lunar - Silver Star Story Complete



Tenchu 2 - Birth of the Stealth Assassins








:!:What you deem playable/ unplayable is subjective and might not be the case for others:!:
:!:you might get a better result fps-wise by using a newer build:!:
:!:Preferably use the PS1 BIOS and have your games be in .Bin format, if it doesnt work, try deleting bios and cfg files in retroarch folder, or downloading the same game but from a different source, you may have a bad dump. if that doesnt work convert it to .pbp format (PSP eBoots):!:
:!:To get higher fps you may try having V-sync/ audio-sync turned OFF, audio resampler set to nearest and use frameskips:!:
:!:Combining Maximum run speed >1.0x and turning V-sync ON can, in some cases, give you a positive result fps-wise:!:




wam bam thank you mam.


:nds::whip:
 
Last edited by LowEndC,

LowEndC

ǝɹıℲ ɥʇıM ǝɹıℲ ʇɥƃıℲ
OP
Member
Joined
Jan 25, 2019
Messages
342
Trophies
0
Age
35
Location
You have to die before you can wake.
XP
489
Country
Niger
I tried crash and spyro, which are supposed to work according to the compatibility list

u may of had an older version of retroarch.
game compatibility has gotten better with newer builds.

also,
did you use bios?
did you experiment with different bios?
use recommended emulator settings in the compatibility list?

forgive me if i seem like im insulting your intelligence, i just want to know why it doesnt work for you.
 
  • Like
Reactions: sian23

AutumnWolf

JRPG enjoyer, Xenoblade, YS and DQ connoisseur
Member
Joined
Sep 15, 2015
Messages
1,314
Trophies
1
Age
24
Location
Somewhere warm
XP
2,351
Country
Costa Rica
u may of had an older version of retroarch.
game compatibility has gotten better with newer builds.

also,
did you use bios?
did you experiment with different bios?
use recommended emulator settings in the compatibility list?

forgive me if i seem like im insulting your intelligence, i just want to know why it doesnt work for you.
I'm not even sure how to use bios on retroarch, I tried first loading the bios and then the game but retroarch kept crashing, what's the right way to do it?

I also tried putting the bios in the same folder as the game(s)

BTW you may not know this but the latest retroarch nightlies for 3DS are kind of broken
 
Last edited by AutumnWolf,

LowEndC

ǝɹıℲ ɥʇıM ǝɹıℲ ʇɥƃıℲ
OP
Member
Joined
Jan 25, 2019
Messages
342
Trophies
0
Age
35
Location
You have to die before you can wake.
XP
489
Country
Niger
I'm not even sure how to use bios on retroarch, I tried first loading the bios and then the game but retroarch kept crashing, not sure what's the right way to do it?

BTW latest nightlys for 3DS are kind of broken

im sorry, at time of post, i read the stable was broken. well i can change the link to the stable 1.7.6 version.
also
bios are put in the retroarch>cores>system folder.

As long as audio emulation was disabled, I've had good success in the past with Crash Bandicoot 1 & 2
alot of the games are touchy, follow the required emulator settings in the compatibility list.
 
Last edited by LowEndC,

AutumnWolf

JRPG enjoyer, Xenoblade, YS and DQ connoisseur
Member
Joined
Sep 15, 2015
Messages
1,314
Trophies
1
Age
24
Location
Somewhere warm
XP
2,351
Country
Costa Rica
im sorry, at time of post, i read the stable was broken. well i can change the link to the stable 1.7.6 version.
also
bios are put in the retroarch>database folder.
As long as audio emulation was disabled, I've had good success in the past with Crash Bandicoot 1 & 2,
I'll try again then, maybe I am wrong and it's the stable releases that are broken like you just said?
 
Last edited by AutumnWolf,

LowEndC

ǝɹıℲ ɥʇıM ǝɹıℲ ʇɥƃıℲ
OP
Member
Joined
Jan 25, 2019
Messages
342
Trophies
0
Age
35
Location
You have to die before you can wake.
XP
489
Country
Niger
I'll try again then, maybe I am wrong and it's the stable releases that are broken?

and seeing as there are two releases today, nightly wise, i think they was trying to fix it.

well i have my ps1 running.
im going to go back and play some wonderswan games, or maybe some sega32x

will try to help anyone with info, although alot of info can be gathered by just taking your time to read and pay attention to details.
and maybe use some gbatemp or google fu.
there was a lot of trial and error in the comments on this thread, people posted what worked for them (already include link in the tut)

https://gbatemp.net/threads/pcsx-rearmed-compatibility-list.489357/
 
Last edited by LowEndC,

LowEndC

ǝɹıℲ ɥʇıM ǝɹıℲ ʇɥƃıℲ
OP
Member
Joined
Jan 25, 2019
Messages
342
Trophies
0
Age
35
Location
You have to die before you can wake.
XP
489
Country
Niger
also, if you seem to be having trouble, please check if your rom is good,
also, try a different retroarch build, maybe the one listed in the compatibility list the that the game was tested on
dont forget bios
 
Last edited by LowEndC,
D

Deleted User

Guest
I am basically putting all the info i found on the ps1 emulator for the New3ds/2ds together, in one place, because playing ps1 games on 3ds can be ultra slow or just don't work.
there's a reason why.
This is a Frankenstein post, some parts taken from different posts.
so without having to read multiple posts yourself, i put all relevant info together.

here i will tell you how to get games to play at 50-60 fps on the PS1 emulator, "PCSX rearmed" that is included in RetroArch

On NEW 3ds/2ds only,
this will not work on old 3ds/2ds.


1. Download the latest retroarch cia nightly build from here

http://buildbot.libretro.com/nightly/nintendo/3ds/

2. unzip that with 7z on your desktop
you will see a cia folder and a retroarch folder

3. inside that cia folder, put the retroarch.cia in the cia folder on your sd card
and put the retroarch folder in the root of sd card.

4. then use fbi to install retroarch,
5. then with fbi, navigate to retroarch folder, in the cores folder, and install the PCSX core

6. Use this compatibility list before downloading games

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1KDOo9FncjtlMbd24HJmLPEfJBVr0xjkUJYZ_cDTGvaA/edit#gid=0

7. then find ps1 games according to the compatibility list
i will not provide links for games obviously

If the compatibility list says it plays best in psp eboot (pbp)
and you downloaded an iso/bin, download this converter here: (this is the main part of this thread, converting to pbp will net you 50-60fps)
(it is possible to find ps1 games already in this format.)


https://filetrip.net/psp-downloads/tools-utilities/download-psx2psp-1-4-2-f9588.html

Read the directions for that here

https://gbatemp.net/threads/guide-to-converting-ps1-games-for-psp.206195/


people found out that games run almost 60fps by converting the iso to pbp.
some pbp games crash, so a bin format of the game is needed.

i usually use poweriso for converting iso files to bin+cue files
poweriso is free.
or daemon tools.

https://www.poweriso.com/tutorials/convert-iso-to-bin.htm

you will see what version of the game runs best(pbp or bin etc)
convert it accordingly.
you also need to adjust the emulator settings with each game, as each game works differently with different settings, also found on the compatibility list.


find a bios pack for the ps1.

Go here, read the comments for games that may have been recently put on the compatibility list and what settings that person used in the emulator.

https://gbatemp.net/threads/pcsx-rearmed-compatibility-list.489357/


:!:Barely any games run perfectly (~60 fps) but ps1 usually runs at 30, :!:

:!:What you deem playable/ unplayable is subjective and might not be the case for others:!:


:!:Some games were tested on older builds of PCSX, thus you might get a better result fps-wise by using a newer build:!:

:!:Preferably use the PS1 BIOSes and have your games be in .pbp format (PSP eBoots):!:

:!:To get higher fps you may try having V-sync/ audio-sync turned OFF, audio resampler set to nearest and use frameskips:!:

:!:Combining Maximum run speed >1.0x and turning V-sync ON can, in some cases, give you a positive result fps-wise:!:



wam bam thank you mam.

:gun::yayps3: :bow::nds::bow:
Never thought this was possible. If this is possible then n64 should be possible too
 

Zense

Well-Known Member
Member
Joined
Apr 20, 2008
Messages
1,977
Trophies
2
XP
4,271
Country
Italy
I saw a couple of games I'm interested in are not listed so I'll test them as soon as I have time. Hopefully installing Retroarch will go down smoothly...
 

LowEndC

ǝɹıℲ ɥʇıM ǝɹıℲ ʇɥƃıℲ
OP
Member
Joined
Jan 25, 2019
Messages
342
Trophies
0
Age
35
Location
You have to die before you can wake.
XP
489
Country
Niger
Never thought this was possible. If this is possible then n64 should be possible too

as you can see, the threads have already been there way before i posted this tut. i had the same thought, the last thing i read was there was a ps1 emu for 3ds but it only loaded that 3d cube demo as a proof of concept.
so i did more looking.

I saw a couple of games I'm interested in are not listed so I'll test them as soon as I have time. Hopefully installing Retroarch will go down smoothly...


please use the menu to quit out of retroarch emulators.
do not force close the app.
it has a process of shutting down/unloading plugins.

i agree retroarch on 3ds looks finicky, but it works wonderfully.

also, in luma config, i check the Clock+L2 to use the faster processor
 
Last edited by LowEndC,

LowEndC

ǝɹıℲ ɥʇıM ǝɹıℲ ʇɥƃıℲ
OP
Member
Joined
Jan 25, 2019
Messages
342
Trophies
0
Age
35
Location
You have to die before you can wake.
XP
489
Country
Niger
I saw a couple of games I'm interested in are not listed so I'll test them as soon as I have time. Hopefully installing Retroarch will go down smoothly...
How do you enter the menu when running a game?

you tap the touch screen

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

Also, you said nothing about the cubic vs Gaussian sound settings?

i usually disable the sound.
i have provided the necessary links to get this running smoothly.
i am new to this as well, but last night i did some research on my own and gathered enough info to be able to play this myself.
a quick google search may help you understand the difference between the two settings
 
Last edited by LowEndC,
  • Like
Reactions: Zense

LowEndC

ǝɹıℲ ɥʇıM ǝɹıℲ ʇɥƃıℲ
OP
Member
Joined
Jan 25, 2019
Messages
342
Trophies
0
Age
35
Location
You have to die before you can wake.
XP
489
Country
Niger
I meant by telling others to try those sounds settings.

I usually play Breath of Fire III on any system that'll load it; generally, after messing with the audio, I get an averaged 47fps.

i literally just installed the emulator last night, im playing nothing but FF7 and crash.
i was like ok, so i put the instructions up here.
and the articles i read that helped me get this running.
by looking at the poll, it seems everyone is having trouble.
idk.
beginners luck?
 

Site & Scene News

Popular threads in this forum

General chit-chat
Help Users
    Xdqwerty @ Xdqwerty: Good night