Reicast PSO not saving serial [SOLVED!]

stoo

@EndersEnigma @pjft I tried a Reicast build on Windows. It didn't save anything to the flash when I registered a serial and activation in PSOv2.

Demul (probably the best DC emulator available for Windows) DID write to the flash when I exited the emulator, and when I restarted the game it didn't ask for the activation again!

The flash that Demul uses is called dc.flash in the \demul\nvram folder. I copied it to my Reicast data folder, renamed it to dc_flash.bin and it worked! PSOv2 didn't ask for a serial/activation!

However, I found that any saved characters I created in Reicast prior to switching to the Demul flash will not load from VMU.

I don't know if this is because the emulated DC is different between Reicast and Demul, so the actual code it generates, even if you use the same serial and activation, is different or it's just the usual bug where Reicast sometimes creates invalid VMU files.

You'll have to try it yourself and see how you get on. Worst case scenario is you have to start from the beginning, but hopefully you won't have to enter the key anymore.

Good luck!

EndersEnigma

@stoo
Problem Solved! Thank you!

stoo

@endersenigma Oh, one last thing. Demul doesn't use dc_boot.bin and dc_flash.bin. It uses MAME-style zipped ROM files. The file you need is called dc.zip.

I'm not going to link it here for obvious reasons, but a common sense Google search works wonders.

stoo

@EndersEnigma Ok, really last thing this time.

Formatted VMU in Reicast to fix any issues.
Swapped back to original, unmodified flash file.
Started Reicast, loaded PSOv2, entered serial/activation, created character, saved and exited.
Swapped in Demul flash file with activation code already saved.
Started Reicast, loaded PSOv2.
Game didn't ask for serial and loaded saved character without any problems at all.

So you should be fine to use your existing VMU file.

EndersEnigma

@stoo
yep, worked and i kept my original char.

EndersEnigma

@stoo
not sure if i need a new thread, but do you have any suggestions on how I can improve the performance of REICAST? It is pretty choppy when trying to play. Thanks!

quicksilver

@endersenigma overclocking will help somewhat. Although even with overclocking a lot of games will be out of the reach of the pi 3. Also it seems that the version of reicast that retropie is using is somewhat out of date so there may be some compatibility issues there as well. (Don't quote me on that last part, someone who knows more about it might be able to weigh in).

EndersEnigma

@quicksilver
I have toyed with some overclock and have the game running better than before. There are some minor overlay issues that are manageable. The bigger issue I have is the choppy-ness (sure, ill make it a word) at seemingly random times during gameplay. it seems like framerates drop down to single digits, though I do not know how to show FPS on the Reicast.

quicksilver

@endersenigma unfortunately some games are going to slow down especially when there is a lot of activity on the screen. With my overclock I can play crazy taxi for a bit without issue. But once I get to the first hill with a lot of cars it really slows down. Dreamcast emulation is really out of the reach of the pi 3 but it can handle some games ok with minimal slow down. Don't expect most games to run well. If you find some secret to making dynmite cop run well you let me know though ;)

EndersEnigma

@quicksilver
I dropped the framebuffer res down to 320 X 240 and got a much better performance out of it.

XVO

Can you play pso online with reicast? I know it's not really OT but I think it's not worth making another thread about a simple question ;)

EndersEnigma

@xvo
I have not tried, the original pso servers went down a looooong time ago. If you find a 3rd party server that works on retropie let me know. :)

XVO

@endersenigma
I will give it a try, sylvarant and schtserv are still up ;)

stoo

@xvo Reicast doesn't have BBA emulation support. Demul on Windows is the only DC emulator that can play online, as far as I know.

There are premade disc images for Sylverant called PSO DC Ives Pack 2.0. They're all bugfixed, online and offline capable and ready to go. Not linking them here, obviously.

I'm sure there are other private servers out there too.