👋 Hello and welcome to another edition of The Memory Core newsletter!

This week, I have an interview with the two co-founders of the upcoming ARMSX2 emulator, which may finally breathe new life into PS2 emulation on Android.

Plus, I have some new details about the M64, and it’s exciting news for fans of FPGA gaming.

As always, the news roundup is at the end, and there are a ton of interesting ROM hacks worth checking out this week.

P.S. If you haven't already, consider signing up to get every new edition in your inbox, free of charge.

ARMSX2 wants to revive the PS2 era on Android

PS2 emulation on Android has been pretty stagnant ever since AetherSX2’s developer Tahlreth left the scene nearly three years ago. Now, a new project has arisen that has the potential to revive the scene.

ARMSX2 was first conceived by jpolo, who inherited an AetherSX2 fan community Discord server. Despite being a self-described “Nintendo guy” and coming from a background in the Xbox emulation scene, he writes that, “from day one I was set on reviving the PS2 scene on Android and other mobile devices.”

But that was easier said than done. AetherSX2 is famously closed-source, with the not-so-amicable departure of Talreth (due to death threats from the community) leaving no choice but to start from scratch. Not being a developer himself, jpolo began searching for developers to partner with in January of this year.

After an initial false start, he teamed up with his good friend and fellow Xbox emulation alumnus MoonPower. Initially a web developer, MoonPower had extensive experience in the UWP and Xbox emulation scene, working on “impossible” ports such as touchHLE for Xbox.

With the initial team assembled, work began to port the latest version of PCSX2 to Android. Thankfully, it didn’t take long to find a major shortcut. MoonPower writes:

Not wasting any time, jpolo announced the project, which was later renamed ARMSX2 on August 9, and just a few months later, they’re already confident that it’s “the fastest pontos fork around.”

Although version 1.0 (which will launch on the Play Store) is just around the corner, there’s still plenty of work to be done. The fork is still using an x86 to ARM translation layer, rather than native ARM. In other words, it’s translating instructions made for PCs instead of running them natively on mobile chips, which brings a big performance hit when compared to AetherSX2/NetherSX2.

I asked both jpolo and MoonPower what to expect in terms of performance, and they were both quick to point out that this is a very early release. jpolo writes:

MoonPower gave me access to a test build on the Play Store, and I can attest that while performance is impressive for an early build, Vulkan support is still limited, and some games feature graphical issues or crashing.

Still, every game I tested booted and was playable. That’s a remarkable achievement for an emulator this early in development.

With the Play Store release expected any day now, the team is excited for more people to test it and provide “more feedback and criticism to see where the emulator falls short to improve it,” as MoonPower puts it.

But more importantly, they hope that it will garner enough attention from outside developers to bring new contributors to the project. Apart from the work of SternXD, who recently left the project, the dev work has fallen almost exclusively on MoonPower.

The biggest missing feature is native ARM support, which MoonPower readily admits he doesn’t have the expertise to tackle. He suspects that it won’t be until version 1.2 or 1.3 that this is implemented, provided they can get the right people on board.

In terms of what kind of outside expertise they’d like to bring in, jpolo writes that the team needs “Native ARM64 support and developers who have skills in that dept, graphics developers to work on perfecting the graphical issues present in certain games, as well as improvements to the Vulkan renderer.”

But the one thing the project clearly has is leadership and vision, which is what it often takes to push things across the finish line. Look no further than Eden, which Camille LaVey has single-handedly turned into the most exciting and vibrant Switch emulation community since the death of Yuzu.

Whether or not ARMSX2 reaches that level of popularity is yet to be seen, but the team is humble and hopeful about what’s to come.

“In the future, I hope that this project becomes something that all developers can contribute to and make it the best it can be,” jpolo writes. “I’ll do my best to promote all of them and give everyone the credit they deserve.”

If they succeed, ARMSX2 could do more than just run PS2 games better than the alternatives, it could breathe new life into a scene that’s been dormant for years.

If you’d like to get in touch or help out, check out the official ARMSX2 website (be careful of fakes) or join the official Discord.

M64 update: 4K output, open-source, and a secret controller

Last week I mentioned that the M64 would be showcased for the first time at the Portland Retro Gaming Expo, and although I couldn’t make it myself, there were plenty of new details revealed about the upcoming N64 FPGA console.

The biggest news is that it will be support 4K 60 output, matching the Analogue 3D. The M64 will also natively support analog outputs, although you may need to buy some “very affordably priced” cables to get the specific output you desire. This keeps the core console affordable for users sticking with HDMI.

An 8bitjoystick interview with ModRetro founder Palmer Luckey revealed a few more details, including the fact that the PCB design has been finalized. It’s now in production, with the company “getting ready to ship.” Luckey says the final product will be showcased “very soon.”

Luckey also stated that they will “open source all of the hardware and all of the software,” which is great news for the larger MiSTer community. I’ve previously reported that the M64 will be compatible with all MiSTer cores, although they will require dev time to get them working on the new FPGA.

Interestingly, the N64 core, developed by the legendary Robert Piep (FPGAzumSpass), has seen some significant changes. Luckey says it “has origins in the MiSTer core, but it’s quite different… We’re making a more more general-purpose core that’s quite easy to port between different FPGAs.”

Working in tandem with Piep, the company has built the new hardware “specifically around solving the limitations (of the MiSTer FPGA).”

However, it’s still missing direct communication between the SNAC (controller inputs) and the Linux side (menu navigation). That means players can’t use their controller to navigate the system menu, a limitation inherited from MiSTer’s architecture. The company confirmed that the physical knob on the right side of the console is for navigating menus in the system.

Fixing that would require a more substantial overhaul of the underlying architecture, which for whatever reason ModRetro has decided not to undertake at this time.

While the physical shell of the console was only teased in an illustration (Luckey states that this was to show off the board, but I have my doubts), the company has a few other surprises it’s waiting to reveal.

The biggest is a controller, which, according to a comment from 8bitjoystick, the team says will “blow everyone away.” Considering the M64’s initial reveal threw shade on Analogue/8bitdo for abandoning the trident, it’s safe to assume that it will be much closer to the original N64 controller, for better or worse.

Handheld highlights

🔜 Retroid announced an announcement that’s coming next week. It’s most likely the Snapdragon G2 Gen 2-toting Retroid Pocket 6, but with all these competitively priced handhelds coming out, it will need to be something special to stand out. [Discord]

2️⃣ ANBERNIC’s entry in the dual-screen handheld race got another teaser video this week, and it appears to be capable of handling lightweight 3DS emulation, too. I wouldn’t buy it for 3DS emulation, but it’s a nice perk for a device under $100. [YouTube]

🔱 MagicX also teased a new handheld, the MagicX One Retro45. It’s a horizontal handheld that’s clearly designed to play N64 games, sporting a single joystick with an octagonal basin, plus two face buttons and four C buttons. I’m excited for this one. [Discord]

💸 AYN has suspended the Indiegogo campaign for the Odin 3, with sales now available directly from its website. This might be due to the absolute clown show that has been the new Indiegogo platform update, but it still won’t start shipping until late November. [Discord]

FPGA Focus

🎮 Japanese developer pgate1 has released another update to the Analogue Pocket PS1 core, with some minor improvements across the board. It’s not going to match the MiSTer any time soon, but there are several new games supported. [X]​[GitHub]​

🎃 Krizz just put out some limited edition Halloween versions of its popular Everdrive flash carts. They’re the same price as normal carts, but they’ll only be available until the 31st. [Krizz]

💾 Taki Udon released several updates this week, starting with a prototype PS1/PS2 memory card. They’re based on the open-source SD2PSX, and he claims they’ll only cost around $10. [X]

🏳️‍🌈 Taki teased another device, which looks to be a colorful FPGA NES. Not too many details on this one yet, but it’s unlikely to release any time soon with the SuperStation One still in pre-production. [X]

💿 Speaking of the SuperStation, Taki released some news about the Dock accessory, and it’s not all good. While it’s capable of playing all pre-PS1 games at full speed, there are minor slowdowns for PS1 disks. It’s better to rip your disks to an SSD or SD card for perfect performance. [X]

The Emulator Report

🏆 iiSU showed off significant progress last week, and now sports RetroAchievements support, UI enhancements, and more. Patreon subscribers can download the early access alpha, but you can watch it in action across 6 dual-screen handhelds for free. [Patreon]

⌨️ GameHub released v5.2.0, with Steam optimizations, better controller and keyboard support, plus some UI enhancements. It’s not a major update, but it’s good to see progress continue. [Discord]

🌴 The folks at Gardiner Bryant published a lengthy interview with Eden founder Camille LaVey and Producdevity. There are some interesting tidbits for anyone interested in Switch emulation. [Gardiner Bryant]

🎙️ Speaking of interviews, Zophar published a video interview with ZSNES developer zsKnight, and it’s a fascinating look back at how it all got started. [YouTube]

Retro archives

🧱 Someone finally made a plug-and-play kit to turn the LEGO Game Boy into a real ‘boy. Brickboy is launching soon on Kickstarter, and although I don’t know how much it will cost, I suspect it won’t be the last kit to hit the market. [Kickstarter]

📝 Before we get to the ROM hacks, I want to point out an excellent new entry in the video game “oral history” series, this time focused on Shadow of the Colossus. If you’re a fan of the game, it’s a must-read, and you should subscribe to the new site while you’re at it. [Designroom]

🪠 A new N64 ROM hack turns Super Mario 64 into Sonic Adventure 2, and it’s fully playable on original N64 hardware. Some users have reported errors on the MiSTer core, but software emulators should also work fine. [YouTube] [Romhack]

🚀 It’s not a ROM hack, but the PC version of Simpsons Hit & Run has a new mod on the way that turns it into Futurama Hit & Run. The trailer looks incredible, and the demo is available now. Just note that you will need the original PC version to play. [YouTube] [Modbakery]

✒️ The first Pokémon ROM hack is Inkwell, which turns Pokémon Emerald into a “mystery-puzzle-roguelike.” It’s a massive overhaul with tons of replayability. [Poke Community]

🆕 If you’re looking for a shorter Pokémon ROM hack, check out Palimpsest, which was updated to v1.2 this week. It features gorgeous sprite work and an isometric overworld that resembles a classic Mega Man Battle Network game more than Pokémon. [GitHub]

🎂 Someone made a 16-bit reinterpretation of the first Portal game, turning it into a 2D platformer that retains the main mechanics. And yes, you are still trying to get cake. [Itch]

⚔️ Finally, this week saw the 30th anniversary of Terranigma, and a new co-op indie game perfectly channels those vibes. It’s called Shrine’s Legacy, and I’d highly recommend watching the trailer if you’re a fan of the SNES classic. [GoG] [Steam]

That's all for this week!

Signing out,

Archivist Rowan