Hey guys,
Sort of a related subject. While everyone is waiting for Battleforge to be reborn and/or decent games to come out on the PC, the emulator scene has made noteworthy progress on all fronts when it comes to the 7th generation and beyond. These teams are fighting a similar battle for unsupported games to stay relevant and playable, ever since the systems these run on have become or are becoming redundant. Wow, I just described Battleforge and EA's BF server. What were the odds of that?
At any rate, this topic was by no means created to condone piracy but rather to offer a starting point, shedding light on the interesting and exciting world of emulators. If you own any of the systems listed herein, chances are you're able to dump the game discs or cartridges you own and play them on your PC. Making your beloved games immortal in process. But I digress.
Let's make a start, shall we?
:: Nintendo Wii U ::
Might as well get the big guns out and talk about an 8th generation console that's now fully emulated. Yep, you read that one right.
You know that game everyone is on about - it's considered the best open world free roam game of the current generation. Of course you heard about it. It's the main reason why people flock to buy the Nintendo Switch. That's right. The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. OK, now guess which game was the last to come out on the Wii U? The answer is indeed The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild.
We got CEMU, the Wii U emulator that's able to run most games for the system - including the one we mentioned above - with little to no graphical glitches at whatever resolution your PC is able to handle.
There are some other cool games for the system, depending on what genres you're into of course. Mario Kart 8, New Super Mario Bros. U, Pikmin 3, Super Mario 3D World, Xenoblade Chronicles X and other Zelda games like The Wind Waker or Twilight Princess. Some of these you are able to play in split screen mode with your friends or partner, using Xbox 360 controllers for example, hooked up to your PC outputting onto a big screen TV.
The website for CEMU is cemu.info with monthly build downloads that are getting better and better. The CEMU team has also set up a Patreon page, therefore if you think they deserve your monetary support then they'd be more than happy to express their gratitude by offering patron-only updates in form of nightly builds and posts. For the most part you're only required to have a decent PC, however BotW requires a more beefy rig or it won't be up to snuff to run this gem.
:: Nintendo DS and 3DS ::
Before we leave Nintendo territory, let's mention a couple of their handhelds. There is some potent stuff here, especially if you happen to own an Android device.
OK, so let's look at the DS first. This aging handheld has got quite a few strong titles despite what the name might imply. The emulator you want to be looking for is called DraStic and is available on the Google Play store. Of course there is an application for the PC as well, but this is not an all encompassing thread about emulation so let's stick to Android for now.
If you need a refresher, the DS has two screens: one that's standard, and one touch-sensitive. This translates great onto mobile phones, as you got a touch screen readily available at your eager fingertips. DraStic doesn't even require a high-end expensive phone to run the games. To name half a dozen titles to boot, you might want to look into the Kirby games, Orcs & Elves, Warhammer 40k Squad Command, Grand Theft Auto Chinatown Wars, Mario & Luigi games, the Dementium series and The Warlock of Firetop Mountain. So get your games and start dumping those cartridges onto your PC.
3DS. Right. For this you're going to need an adequately powerful PC for the emulator called Citra (https://citra-emu.org). Games are a lot larger and due to the stronger hardware of the original handheld, boast better graphics and 3D capabilities you -by default - won't be able to experience on your monitor, but who cares if you can re-play your beloved games? Am I right? Of course I'm right.
In case you're unfamiliar with the system, here are some of the best titles (again, subject to your genre-specific preferences) to get you started on your merry way: Donkey Kong Country Returns, Kirby Planet Robot, Luigi's Mansion, Mario Kart 7, Mighty Switch Force, Nano Assault, Super Mario Bros. 2, Shadow Wars and Super Mario 3D Land.
As with all emulation and resurrection - or should I say, reborn - endeavours, please consider donating to the development team of Citra in the form of hard cash or even game cartrtidges.
:: Sony Playstation 3 ::
Oh yeah baby. You read that one right too. There is definitely a number 3 at the end of that title.
This one is without a doubt my most anticipated project of the bunch. As much as I love playing Mario Kart 8 in split-screen on my PC, nothing comes close to 7th generation console exclusive titles for the PS3 (or Xbox 360, for that matter). Red Dead Redemption, anyone? Need I say more?
I mean come on, that game blows all the Grand Theft Auto titles out of the water including San Andreas and Vice City. Not to mention most other games in existence, irrespective of genre.
Keep you knickers on though, as things aren't that magical. As opposed to CEMU - you remember, the Wii U emulator? - that eats emulates its games down to a T in wonderful high-definition, the Playstation 3 emulator has only just started spreading its wings. Going back to Red Dead Redemption... the game does boot up with a whooping 1 digit frames per second, is no means playable as of yet. The team of RPCS3 are making fantastic progress though. There are several triple A titles that work fine and are enjoyable with the right setup such as Catherine or Ni no Kuni Wrath of the White Witch that looks like a game made by Studio Ghibli, probably because they're indeed responsible for the animation.
However, the time is now to dust off those PS3 games you got on the shelves and start dumping the disc contents onto your hard drive.
Just look at the progress they've made in the past month, and how far the team has come in emulating this unquestionably brilliant, but now discontinued console. More and more games boot up and become playable. As I said, you do need a hefty PC to get the more demanding titles to run but that should come as no surprise. PS3 games are still very good looking.
This is the part where I'd mention some titles worth considering, however this system isn't that old therefore most of you should be familiar with its library. Not to mention all the RPGs I've no interest in playing... you surely know better what those are than I do. Alright, let me throw around some game titles then: Okami HD (the best Zelda game that's not a Zelda game), the Sly Collection, Dragon's Crown, Fat Princess, Journey, Diablo 3 (don't write this one off, the local multiplayer and unique movement exclusive to consoles makes this worth of attention), the Condemned series and of course Red Dead Redemption. You should own that game even if you never had a PS3. And now it makes sense to.
I'd strongly advise anyone who has the means to support the fine people at RPCS3 to do so. They have a Patreon page set up and truly deserve credit (literally) for what they're doing. Visit the RPCS3 website and their forums. The community is very friendly and informative.
honorable mentions
Dolphin, the Nintendo Wii and Gamecube emulator
PPSSPP, the Sony Playstation Portable emulator for both Android and the PC
Xenia, the Microsoft Xbox 360 emulator (still in early stages requirng a Vulkan capable GPU meaning a very powerful PC)
want to know more?
Visit the links in my post (all the underlined texts) and get onto Youtube. Enter the emulator's name with the title of the game you're interested in and hit search. Plenty of resources around to get you going.