The power of a modern computer and special programs allow you to run old console games without the use of appropriate equipment. Since it’s quite difficult to find a good set-top box with a set of original games, any user can configure the PS1 emulator on a PC and enjoy the classics. In this article, we will figure out how to do this.
Description
The first version of this application was released in 2000. The software is currently distributed free of charge. With the release of new versions, players receive support for more and more old games. At the time of the release of the version in 2007, the percentage of supported projects was 95% of the total number of games on the console. At the moment, almost 99% of all games work without any problems.
Download
First you need to download the installer for running console games. It is distributed completely free on the official website of the ePSXe developers. The creators are constantly releasing stability and optimization updates, so even on Windows 10 with the new hardware you will not have problems. Also on the site you can download special versions of the emulator for Linux and Android operating systems. You won’t be able to play classic games from the console on iOS.
If you have problems with the performance or configuration of the PS1 emulator, you can always install the previous version - they are not deleted from the official site.
Installation
First of all, you need to install this program. If you downloaded a separate archive, then it is enough to simply unzip it to any folder on your hard drive. Many users recommend unpacking to the system partition of the hard drive in order to avoid problems with the emulator. Also, the path to the program folder should not contain special characters or Russian letters.
Launch and initial settings
Let's move on to the ePSXe emulator configuration guide. When you first start, you will see a welcome window with a brief description of the features of the application. You can skip this step or configure all parameters using the wizard. If this is your first time using such software, it is better to use help. Therefore, click "Customize."
The program immediately prompts you to select the BIOS for ePSXe 2.0.5 (latest version). By default, developers recommend using HLE Bios, so we agree with this option and click Next.
After that, a window with a choice of a graphical plug-in will appear. Here you can configure the image settings in detail, but we will return to this later. Choose one of two options and move on to the next step.
Now a choice of sound plug-in will appear. By default, the program offers one standard option called ePSXe SPU core 2.0.0. If necessary, you can download third-party versions and add them to the emulator.
Next come the control settings windows, drive for drives and the like. Finally, close the initial window and see the emulator main screen in front of us.
Video options
To configure a new PS1 emulator, you must first set the graphics options. To do this, open the "Configuration" menu and select the "Video" item. You will see a large window with many options. Here you can choose the window or full screen mode, exact resolution, color depth, brightness, acceleration of shaders, stripes, vertical synchronization and much more. If you do not want to manually select the settings for the ePSXe 1.7.0 emulator, then specify one of the ready-made presets. They can be selected at the bottom of the window:
- Speed. This set of settings implies maximum performance on slower computers. Exposes low resolution, removes anti-aliasing and so on.
- Quality. This option of graphics settings will allow you to enjoy the smoothness of the picture and a large number of frames per second. However, the load on the computer is significantly increased.
The "Quality" option is the optimal graphics settings. You can set even greater values.
Sound options
The sound options window also opens through the "Configuration" menu. Unlike video, there is much less choice in audio settings. This is because the reproduction of melodies and soundtrack has virtually no effect on the level of performance. In this window you can adjust the sound delay (low or standard), as well as select the quality of sound effects (turn them off, leave the sound without filters or enable full sound effects).
Control
In ePSXe, an option is available that supports two controllers at the same time. You can connect two gamepads or a keyboard + joystick. Emulator on PS1 (BIOS HLE) allows you to configure the keys for each input device individually.
To open the menu for installing control buttons, you need to go to "Configuration", then go to the "Management" subsection and select one of the two ports. After that, a window with a selection of keys will appear on the screen. In the center is the image of the gamepad and the designation of each button. To assign control to the keyboard, you need to click on each of the fields and click on the button that will be responsible for this action.
If you want to configure the PS1 emulator for playing on a gamepad, then you need to switch the type of controller. The list contains a number of popular presets for a wide variety of gamepads. For example, there is built-in support for the latest version of DualShock 4.
Game launch
We figured out the emulator settings. Now you need to start the game. If this is your first time doing so, go to the "File" menu and select "Run from CD Image" if you downloaded the game to your computer in advance. After that, specify the path to the folder with the game image through the explorer window that opens.
The game will start immediately. The emulator will take the form of a window based on the resolution settings and aspect ratio. If the game supports the built-in storage system, then ePSXe is able to simulate virtual memory cards. When you start the next game session, you can boot with saved progress. Also, the emulator tools allow you to quickly save and load even in those games that do not support this function initially.
Additional settings
It remains to consider additional settings for the PS1 emulator, which are located in the same section. These include:
- overclocking the central processor - this option allows you to speed up the gameplay;
- enable / disable widescreen mode (not supported in some games);
- interface language switching;
- the use of cheats;
- Switch between game profiles.
If the described guide is not enough for you and you want to dive deeper into the study of the emulator, then use the "Help" section. For full help, you can open the official website. The only negative of this manual is the lack of translation into Russian.
System requirements
Finally, we consider the system requirements for the computer. ePSXe uses not so many resources, since the graphics in games from the first generation of the console from Sony are not so demanding by modern standards. Most of the PC’s power will be spent on emulating the console’s operating system itself. Minimum requirements include the following features:
- Pentium 2 processor or more powerful;
- at least 64 MB of RAM;
- graphics accelerator with a memory capacity of more than 64 MB.
And the recommended requirements are as follows:
- Intel Pentium 4 or later processor;
- 128 MB RAM or more;
- graphics with 128 MB of memory on board.
It is worth noting that the most demanding component to the emulator is a video card, since it bears the main burden from the program and running games.
Conclusion
So, we examined all the basic settings of the PS1 2.0.5 emulator. The program is quite friendly, so even a novice user can cope with it. In some cases, individual instruction for a specific game may be required. This is due to the fact that classic projects with PlayStation 1 were created more than 15 years ago on outdated engines and using old technologies.