Does one need the RetroArch Plus if they have RetroArch?

RetroArch Android devices
#1

Does one need the RetroArch Plus if they have a functional RetroArch???

Same question in reverse as well.

Also, I have questions on how to set external controllers / gamepads to function within the software. I want to be able to Bluetooth control the entire system, from navigating menus and loading games to actually playing them without ever having to touch my phone.

My intent is to be able to use my Asus ROG Phone 2 as a make shift Nintendo Switch while it is on the TV / Monitor dock and enjoy myself like I am playing on a conventional game console. Any direction is greatly appreciated.

My setup, ROG Phone 2 ROG Kunai GamePad x 2 ROG Mobile Desktop Dock II

#2

RetroArch Plus just has more cores and stuff but is less compatible with older devices.

#3

I have noticed the core capacity / difference.

Seeing how I have no idea what any of the cores outside of basic labels like PSX or PSP do, I can get away with having the standard app that has all the typical / mainstream cores available for it?

#4

Sure. If you’re happy with non-plus, keep using it.

#5

I am so silly and uninformed, I tried downloading the wolf3d something core, thinking it was somehow that old game Wolfenstein.

The less stuff I have to try to tinker with, the better off I will probably be.

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#6

Anyway, how are people setting external controllers to work with this?

Is there only a limited few that are supported and allowed?

#7

wolf3d is indeed a wolfenstein 3D core, but you need the game data to run it:

Here are the gamepads we have profiles for:

Other pads may/will work but you’ll have to manually map them (and preferably create an autoconfig profile for your own use)
#8

Where I am lost,

I read people’s steps and progress where they say things like the software will “detect” their gamepad or whatever and then they can / map the buttons as they wish, like in the “gamepad stops working after entering menu” thread.

I do not even know how to get to the point of getting the software to see my gamepad, let alone anything you are talking about, autoconfig profiles and such.

Then again, this is not a “typical” Bluetooth gamepad, if I want, I can have it wire fed directly through the phone’s USB-C and it has a custom switch style bumper where I can attach the bits directly to the phone and operate it like an oversized PSP or Switch, also taking up the USB-C.

There is a Bluetooth toggle on the gamepad and they show it being used wirelessly in their demo videos but I am starting to wonder if the software of choice has to have certain capabilities or be designed a certain way?

Because based on past experiences, we all know it is (pretty much) impossible to get mobile/phone games designed on any level of universal standard of phone accessory / peripheral functionality.

I remember my Motorola Z3, they ended up making their own game library app of gamepad friendly games to try to save the complaining general public the time of trial and error.

ANYWAY, if I can not have it be in the manner I wish, then I will just have to buy a used / good deal switch.

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#9

Problem is there are two methods of implementing gamepads. One behaves like a keyboard the other like a virtual stylus. The former is functional the latter is hopeless.

#10

I had Retroarch on a cheap android tv box, that worked fine, as with the phone I never liked the touch interface nor liked android mobile phone game controllers they feel gimmicky and they usually require some installation of a app. And those apps may be collecting data and using up resources it should not. On the android tv box it worked with a Logitech f310 gamepad, it’s plug and play pretty much with that gamepad for Linux, Android and Windows.

I’ve used a few 8bitdo products and they seem to be aware that customers want gamepads to support emulation such as RA and Retropie. You can check out this gamepad from them

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#11

After trying my phone and gamepad with other emulators and other game projects, I am feeling I made a mistake to choose such a unique and custom device.

Yes, I can do literally anything I want on this phone with the specs and resources it provides me, but I clearly and completely lack the technical know how to take advantage of said resources.

My gamepad would appear to be very very custom and uniquely programmed in order to to make it work the way it does. The 3 methods available to me are, piggy backing off of pre existing on screen virtual controls or “knock off switch” as I like to label it, direct Bluetooth key map interface (which I still have no idea how to get the app to recognize my gamepad device, cable fed (like a typical console controller), which still requires the ability for key mapping.

I should have got something a little more “generic” like a black shark or a razer device, that way I would have more freedom as to the external accessories I could use with said device.

My phone has an off set mounted USB C port so that eliminates 99% of available accessories since 99% of Android devices have center mounted charging ports, which leaves me stuck with the super custom made / custom programmed accessories specifically made for this device.

#12

Anyway, back to the original topic and question of the thread I started.

I have both apps and I understand the Plus is more compatible with more cores and devices.

Does anyone have a comparison list of the 2 apps to know what cores are and are not available between the 2?

I can not notice a difference in my list, but I also have no idea how to add a core outside of the in app core downloader function.

I have all the expected cores like NES, SNES, PSX, etc etc, but I am curious about more modern systems like being able to play Vita or Switch games.

I found a Switch project called Egg NS, but it is more confusing and more convoluted than ever to get it to work. I guess it is designed to work with only 1 single gamepad in existence and OF COURSE, they are currently unavailable for purchase.

If someone can train me in the ways of the RetroArch, I would be forever so grateful.

#13

I mostly learned by watching YouTube tutorial videos, reading the documentation and a bunch of trial and error.

Documentation: https://docs.libretro.com/guides/arcade-getting-started/ There’s also LBRY’s Odysee which others left YT for becuase of YT’s censorship and policies.

I do see that the differences in the cores isn’t always clear since some of the documentation isnt added or updated sometimes. For snes I always go to SNES9x (current). Since this is a andorid topic and mobile phones tend to use arm there’s this core for PS1/PSX

#14

You can always go to the core downloader and press retropad-select on any core to bring up a description. Not all of them are super-informative, but I tried to include information to help pick among them when there’s more than one core for the same system.

#15

Sorry, I improperly explained my question.

I meant more of a comparison between the cores the Plus app is capable of compared to the standard app. As I tried asking hunterk in the past, the standard app has cores for the more classic systems like the NES and SNES.

Would a more modern system like the Vita require the Plus app? Is there even a core for the Vita or Switch?

#16

There are no cores for Vita or Switch currently.

We try to pick the most commonly used / high-speed cores for the limited selection in the non-Plus version.

#17

I am finally seeing what you mean. There are not as many selectable cores in the standard app compared to the Plus app.

Considering my complete lack of computer and/or software programming knowledge (more correct to say -knowledge), it is best I stick with the standard app and the commonly used (hopefully more supported and functional) cores.

Seeing how there are projects out there that claim to run Switch games, maybe someday in the distant future, you all might have a Vita or Switch core?

I am done asking questions for now. :wink:

#18

Sure, maybe sometime in the future. The problem is that those programs are still under very heavy development that requires moving internal stuff around all the time, and that means everything that libretro hooks into needs to be adjusted each time something moves, and keeping up with that requires having intimate knowledge of the internals of the program (i.e., usually someone who contributes to the upstream project).

If someone from those projects is interested in working on such a thing, it could happen at any time (see: jselby, who created the citra-libretro core out of nowhere while he was still contributing to upstream Citra), but I know for Vita3k, at least, where we have some friendly co-contributors, it would just be too much work right now and not worth the effort when they could/should be focusing on simply improving the emulator itself.

#19

Obviously, my lack of programming knowledge / skill leaves me unable to understand or appreciate the complexity and fluidity of RetroArch compared to these standalone apps that are built for 1 single purpose (whatever console they are to mimic).

I am unable to try this Switch app due to the exclusive gamepad that supposedly HAS TO be used with it, more specifically, the fact that none are “available” for purchase and that it appears incompatible with my device due to my device’s offset mounted USB C port. The self created online hype behind this app claims game titles are “playable” although fps drops and overall slowdowns can be expected depending on device capabilities and graphical data loads.

I have no real reason to want a Switch core, I do not know of any game titles I care to have. I just do not care to have 8 different emulator apps (each serving 1 single purpose) on my phone.