PS2 Emulator BIOS

[Prismere]

Hi guys.

Sooo, I'll probably start off by saying I'm new in this field of stuff and never really done this kind of thing before. Was really wanting to play Dragon Quest VIII as I do not own my PS2 anymore so looked into to play it on PC.

So looked around the internet, found this, downloaded the emulator NSX2 (Is this ok, or is there a better option?) and found that I need a PS2 BIOS. Read the "READ BEFORE POSTING" thread, got the links and downloaded it.

Problem is, after extracting it I found a crap load of files inside the BIOS Collection and have no idea whatsoever as to what I should do with them. I can see there's different versions (e.g V3) and different regions for them(EUR/UK e.t.c), but that's all I see. What am I to do next? Was extracting it all that needs to be done (doubt it) or is there something else I need to do now?

[SOLDIERSeeD]

PCSX2 is way more advanced and compatible than NSX2. Download it from http://pcsx2.net/download/releases.html

Then place the BIOS inside the bios folder after unpacking the emulator. Those BIOS are from different console regions and in most cases, PCSX2 doesn't care for the region. You may run into problems when using a very old BIOS though, so just select a BIOS from 2004 or so and you should be fine.

[Prismere]

Found out how to do the BIOS and set-up controls for using a "controller" as a keyboard, however I now have a problem where when I get to the disc screen where I can choose to go into my Memory Cards or the Disc (I went into the Memory Card 1 and it asked me if I want to Format now, I did - Is that OK?).

Whenever I choose to play the "disc" inserted, the screen fades to black as if the game is starting but after a bit, it takes me back to the selection screen.

[SOLDIERSeeD]

Are you using NSX2? Then I'm afaid I cannot help you because I never used the emulator. In PCSX2, there is a Fast Boot Option which directly boots up the game, effectively bypassing the BIOS screen to avoid problems such as yours. Maybe search for a similar command?

[Prismere]

Nah I did what you told me at the start and got PCSX2. I edited and deleted my previous post quite a lot as I found answers to my questions (Like how to get the BIOS selected e.t.c) elsewhere and deleted those, with the part where I got PCSX2.

And as for what you reccomended, thanks! I was booting it up "(FULL)" before but now that I tried the "Fast" option instead, it loads up perfectly. Only problem now is that the game lags, or goes in slow motion in most parts rather.

• Combat feels just a tad slower than normal.
• Dialogue (voices) very slow indeed.
• Moving around quite slow.

Need to figure out if I can fix this. Then again, using a Laptop with an integrated graphics card maybe the reason lol.

[SOLDIERSeeD]

Yeah that may be the reason. Can you post your specs? And tell me what the EE and GS percentages look like while playing? You can find them on top of the game window.

[Prismere]

Specs:

Windows 7 Home Premium 64-Bit
Intel Core i3 M 370 ~2.4 HZ
4 GB RAM
DirectX 11
Intel HD Graphics (Core i3) Internal 1755 MB 1366 x 768 (32 bit) (60Hz)

FPS EE GS
55 80 85~ - Average in Town, a lot lower (mainly FPS) or slightly higher in different parts of the area. (35/60/80 on laggy parts)

45 68 80 - NPC's without voiced dialogue

60 50 50 - In Menu's like your items e.t.c

61 49 70 - In small areas like inside a small shop with little to no lag

60 60-92 60-90 - However this is when dialogue (voiced) is fine.

The FPS (60) drops sometimes (mostly I guess), and stays, at something like 20-30 and that's when everything goes slow motion, including the audio in the dialogues. EE around 50-60 while GS around 80-90 at these times.

It's wied though. Some conversations (with audio) are like at 60+ fps while others - mainly with the fat and green guy at the start of DQ VIII) is where it drops / some other people...

What are the recommended speedup options for me? At the moment I have done this:

• superVU compiler
• EE Cyclerate - 2
• VU Cycle Stealing - 2
• All boxes ticked in "Other Hacks" and "MicroVU Hacks"
• Widescreen Mode
• Audio Disabled Effects Processing
• Direct3D9 Hardware (Have upto 10 available)
• All Boxes in Hardware Mode Settings (Enabled HW Hacks - Alpha/Half Pixel Offset/Skipdraw - 4)

P.S Note that I hardly know what (if any) of these options mean lol XD
Oh and how can I bind the analog function to a key? The D-Pad keys only allows me to walk whereas the analog is used to run, but I can't use that with a keyboard... Extremely frustrating lol.

[SOLDIERSeeD]

Yeah, that's what I thought. Your EE percentage is fine while your high GS percentage signifies a GPU bottleneck. It means that your integrated intel graphic chipset is bottlenecking your CPU. DQ VIII is a rather demanding game especially on the GPU so lowering the resolution might help (tick native resolution or try a lower custom resolution) but it will look pretty ugly.
In case of GPU-limited games like DQ VIII, speedhacks are not very effective because they lessen the load on the CPU. Depending on the details on the screen your GPU will be overloaded and cannot process the graphics quickly enough and stalls your CPU. What you can do is:
-use microVU compiler(superVU is outdated)
-keep the EE and VU hacks as it is, putting them on 3 might actually break the game
-diable "enable fast CDVD"(only relevant when using a original DVD) and MTVU hack ("only relevant for CPUs with more than 2 cores;your i3 has only two physical cores)
-Switch to Direct3D10 Hardware mode(much faster in most games than Direct3D9)
-try "allow 8-bit textures"
And hope it might reduce the lags since your IGP is very weak.

PS:You can map the analog keys to the keyboard the same way you map all keys. Just press the keys on lilypad you want to map then press the keyboard key you want to map to.

[Prismere]

I did what you said and it improved the the lag a bit, however the EE percentage dropped to around 50 while the GS went upto 90.
A few things though:
What about clamping mode, should I keep it as normal or None?
VU0/VU1 Advanced Re compiler Options - Chop / Zero is ok?
For speed hacks, by "keep the EE and VU hacks as it is" do you mean keep them at 0 or 2/2 on both?
Allow 8-bit Textures - already had that, but what about HW Hacks (Alpha and Half Pixel Offset) or Edge Anti Aliasing?
And already had native resolution, thought I used a custom even lower setting (like 380/380...lol) for better fps.

[SOLDIERSeeD]

- you could switch both clamping modes to "none" result depends on the game but may improve speed by 1~2 FPS
-Chop/Zero is ok
-keep EE/VU at 2/2 you can also diable EE and put VU to 3 or vice-versa since they sometimes conflict with each other when enabled simultaneously
-HW hacks are there to correct graphical glitches, only skipdraw has some effect on he FPS I think, but I'm unfamiliar with these options
-what FPS do you get by setting the res to 286X286? it's f***ing ugly though...

[frustradata]

Just wanted to say thanks, both of you--I've been waiting to play the very same game, but my PS2 was destroyed in a hurricane a few years ago. I'm clueless with the settings of PCSX2, and this thread has made all the difference! Thank you!

[Nik1895]

Get a better CPU. Emulation is all about CPU. I really doubt that one can achieve reasonable game speed with 2.4 GHz. And you should probably buy normal GPU instead of that integrated Intel crap.