General Emulation Questions.

[TSE]

So at home i have an N64, a PS2, a Sega Genesis, a Super Nintendo, an original Nintendo, and yeah... you get the point.

Unfortunately I am going to college so I have to leave all that behind.

What I want to do is have my MacBook Pro FILLED with ROMs from all different consoles and have emulators with each one.

I also plan on either buying USB controllers for each emulator according to the console emulator I am using, or using original controllers with a USB addition onto it.

My questions go as followed:

1. In general, are Windows emulators better than the ones built for Mac? I'm hoping there are really good ones for Mac so I don't need to boot into Windows as much.

2. Is playing multiplayer on N64, PSX, PS2, etc. games supported by emulators?

3. What are the best emulators out there (either Mac or PC) for:

-N64
-PSX
-Sega Genesis
-PS2
-Super Nintendo
-Nintendo DS
-Gameboy

4. Is this a good idea? Or am I being too optimistic on how well this will work?

Thank you all for your time!

 

[bushidounohana]

1. In general, are Windows emulators better than the ones built for Mac? I'm hoping there are really good ones for Mac so I don't need to boot into Windows as much.

By and large, Windows emus are probably better. It's been a while since I've been on the Windows side of things, but certain things like PSX and N64 emulation are going to be better on the Windows side ... but you can work around that with things like Wineskin. You might also find things a bit more customizable on the Windows side than the Mac side.

That said, for older consoles and arcade games, I think you'll find the Mac side of things to be very functional and elegant.

2. Is playing multiplayer on N64, PSX, PS2, etc. games supported by emulators?

If you're asking about online gaming, I'm afraid I don't have a frame of reference for that. I do a lot of multi-player gaming in person, though, and I think all emulators will support whatever the original console did.

3. What are the best emulators out there (either Mac or PC) for:

-N64
-PSX
-Sega Genesis
-PS2
-Super Nintendo
-Nintendo DS
-Gameboy

For most of the older systems, try OpenEmu. It's a one stop shop for lots of systems.

For N64, PSX, and PS2, you might want to look into porting Windows emulators to OS X through a tool like Wineskin. It's incredibly easy, and I have working ports for Project64 and ePSXe (which I'm happy to share, just let me know!).

I like to use EMUlaunch as a front end for my emulators, which is an elegant way to access all of your ROMS and emulators. It's a program that never fails to impress all of my Windows friends since it's so easy to access everything.

4. Is this a good idea? Or am I being too optimistic on how well this will work?

I've been emulating on the Mac side of things for years and love it. There are very few hitches (online multiplayer may be one of them) as far as I'm concerned.

If there are any further specific questions, don't be shy!

 

[TSE]

What I meant by multiplayer was non-online multiplayer but connecting additional controllers into my computer and playing with friends.

A classic game of Goldeneye 64 with my buddies in the dorms on a snowy Iowa night makes me smile.

Thanks for the help thus far, more input would be greatly appreciated!