Powerful PC? Let's play Melee online.

[Dan Salvato]

I'd like to see how reliable GCN netplay is with the Dolphin GCN/Wii emulator. The dev team has incorporated netplay in the public build, so I figure it should be at least somewhat reliable.

In any case, it would be a good experience to figure out what works well and what doesn't. If we play around with settings and techniques to keep things synced, then we can set a standard for many to follow and truly expand the Melee community in a way we only once dreamed was possible.

I imagine some of you use and are familiar with Dolphin, so why don't we give it a shot? If you have a powerful PC but aren't familiar with Dolphin, I can help you out.

 

[Kal]

Two threads advertising your good PC? I'm jealous. My PC is like five years old and lags when I play Starcraft II and League of Legends at medium settings.

Is there any way to network Dolphin with GGPO? I'm sure there are copyright issues (****ing intellectual property bull ****), but it would probably run a lot smoother. Some sync problems would probably occur with random stuff like Peach's turnip, but it would be very cool to be able to play Melee online and not have it feel terrible.

 

[Dan Salvato]

Looks like GGPO only works for a very limited number of games (Melee not being one of them, of course), but I actually read a thread about somebody using TeamViewer to play online. Maybe this would be possible with good enough bandwidth and a small screen area to transmit.

As a side note, it's possible to find a GCN-to-USB adapter that works well. They've gotten harder over time, but I have an old one by Mayflash that works perfectly.

 

[Krynxe]

I have a beast custom built computer, I'm sure I could give this a shot. Also, lol @ teamviewer. It sends off like 3-5 fps normally and can't display video properly from games and videos, at which point it just lags and freezes to no end. Gl with that tech skill. I'll try to pick up a GC to USB cable, I already have the ROM but I'll probably need to update Dolphin.

 

[Dan Salvato]

Yeah, just grab the latest build available on the site. If you have a USB pad at all, you could use that for the time being just so we can test how well synchronization holds up.

 

[Krynxe]

Yeah, I have a joypad but it's really bad so I couldn't play well. I'll be home later today and we can do that.

 

[Sinji]

They should have online tourneys like what they do for brawl on AIB.

 

[Dan Salvato]

They should have online tourneys like what they do for brawl on AIB.

They can't until we test and work around its reliability issues. =P

Also, I don't think enough people have the right equipment.

 

[Krynxe]

Alright, I can test this out now. You have skype or fb or something?

 

[Dan Salvato]

I'm not around until 9:30 or so, but PM me for my Skype username. Or, you can find me on AIM. My screen name is: SKRAAAAA

 

[telemaster]

what specs would you consider as a beast computer?

 

[Dan Salvato]

what specs would you consider as a beast computer?

As long as you have a desktop i7 and a good video card, you shouldn't have any problem.

 

[Krynxe]

I'm running an Intel Core i5-2500K 3.7GHz OC, GeForce GTX 560 Ti, 8GB ram. It's obv not super top of the line, but it's way more than enough for running new games max settings let alone emulation.

 

[Massive]

As long as you have a desktop i7 and a good video card, you shouldn't have any problem.

i7 is a bit overkill, there have been reports of the game running very smoothly on less beefy than dual core machines for well over a year.

 

[telemaster]

im running i5 2500k @ 4.5ghz, gtx 460, 8gb ram

ive played around with settings on dolphin and think i have a pretty smooth emulation for melee now

 

[Dan Salvato]

i7 is a bit overkill, there have been reports of the game running very smoothly on less beefy than dual core machines for well over a year.

Netplay requires dual-core to be turned off, which is why I specified. You need a CPU that performs well under one core since the others can't be taken advantage of. Even my mid-level i7 has occasional small frame drops in single-core mode.

Also, I tested it today and it's incredibly laggy because my school internet is horrible. I need to wait till I get home before trying again.

 

[Tichinde925]

This Topic:

http://www.smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=296229

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rekKJxGrt1Q

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yc9jL6vP7NQ

Gimpyfish has a beast Bowser on Netplay

He pwnt me!

 

[Massive]

Netplay requires dual-core to be turned off, which is why I specified. You need a CPU that performs well under one core since the others can't be taken advantage of. Even my mid-level i7 has occasional small frame drops in single-core mode.

Also, I tested it today and it's incredibly laggy because my school internet is horrible. I need to wait till I get home before trying again.

I highly recommend pinging whoever you're going to play before you engage in a match with them, it will determine if it's even worth it to try.

 

[Krynxe]

This Topic:

http://www.smashboards.com/showthread.php?t=296229

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rekKJxGrt1Q

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yc9jL6vP7NQ

Gimpyfish has a beast Bowser on Netplay

He pwnt me!

I tried doing that, but they were using a weird dolphin build and it kept bugging on me and wouldn't run properly. Looking for people with the newest version of dolphin.

 

[Sinji]

My friend and i play on dolphin sometimes. it lags at times but its great.

 

[Krynxe]

I'm willing to try it with anyone, I just don't have a gc joypad or converter so I can't play very well until I do. Anyone know a good gc controller to usb converter I could get?

 

[Dan Salvato]

I'm willing to try it with anyone, I just don't have a gc joypad or converter so I can't play very well until I do. Anyone know a good gc controller to usb converter I could get?

I've been looking for a long time, and it seems this is basically the last one in existence:

http://www.amazon.com/Gamecube-XBox-Controller-Adapter-favorite-PC/dp/B000ND3XXA

 

[Tichinde925]

Best One, gimpyfish uses this:

http://spawnlinux.dyndns.org/Bliss-Box/index.html

 

[Sinji]

We should make a group to plan out which day is best to have an online bracket so everyone can play each other.

 

[Dan Salvato]

We should make a group to plan out which day is best to have an online bracket so everyone can play each other.

That would be wonderful, but we first need to figure out who has the right equipment, which probably isn't too many people. Not only would you need a usable pad, but you'd also need a fast wired internet connection, which rules out anyone in college or with primarily wireless at home.

In any case, if we can throw something together on Facebook or the Boards, we might see some success. Having just a few people to play against would make me more than happy.

 

[Smasher89]

Would be nice to test this out, no idea how the lag from Sweden to the US would affect this but it would be nice to test out.

If using keyboard, both players would need the exact same inputlist for it to work right?


Btw anyone know about frame data checking, what is used for it?

 

[Krynxe]

Pretty sure sweden to US would have pretty terrible latency. Also, you can have your controls any way you want, and you always set the controls to p1 controls.

 

[Dan Salvato]

Btw anyone know about frame data checking, what is used for it?

Nothing. The two games don't look at each other whatsoever, as far as I know. All that synchronizes between the two is controller input. Ideally, frame data would be sent, but no one has gotten around to implementing it.

 

[Smasher89]

Nothing. The two games don't look at each other whatsoever, as far as I know. All that synchronizes between the two is controller input. Ideally, frame data would be sent, but no one has gotten around to implementing it.

Was thinking more in general with Dolphin, would be nice to be able to use it for checking hitboxes and options in certain situations for competive use.

 

[Dan Salvato]

Was thinking more in general with Dolphin, would be nice to be able to use it for checking hitboxes and options in certain situations for competive use.

I see. Enable debug mode with a cheat and you're all set. Dolphin can advance frame by frame. It's great.

 

[j00t]

Just ordered a USB adapter, hopefully I'll be able to play online by Wednesday.

Is there some sort of magical settings that make the game not have frame skips? :<

 

[Dan Salvato]

Just ordered a USB adapter, hopefully I'll be able to play online by Wednesday.

Is there some sort of magical settings that make the game not have frame skips? :<

Just read the descriptions of everything in the graphics settings and do the things that provide speedup. Make sure you render the game at its native resolution or lower.

Unless you get a perfect frame rate, online play won't work.

 

[telemaster]

ill be ready to play some online melee starting november, i live in arlington VA so lets play!

 

[Sinji]

I gotta tell Liam about this

 

[Leviathan741]

i7 is a bit overkill, there have been reports of the game running very smoothly on less beefy than dual core machines for well over a year.

You make it sound like it works on those... I've spent a lot of time on emulation and you have to have a powerful pc to do run the game. Also I7 does not automatically mean it is stronger, it depends on the grade. a 5.7 i5 is stronger than a 2.7 I7

 

[j00t]

Alright, someone play with me so I can test my settings.

AIM is jturner2k6

 

[telemaster]

who wants to play? i live in arlington VA

i got dolphin rev 7719 and relatively fast internet. the 3 in 1 magic joy box is pretty cool

i found these pad settings online for the GCconfig.ini:

[GCPad1]
Device = DInput/0/TigerGame XBOX+PS2+GC Game Controller Adapter
Buttons/A = Button 0
Buttons/B = Button 1
Buttons/X = Button 2
Buttons/Y = Button 3
Buttons/Z = Button 6
Buttons/Start = Button 7
Main Stick/Up = Axis Y-
Main Stick/Down = Axis Y+
Main Stick/Left = Axis X-
Main Stick/Right = Axis X+
C-Stick/Up = Axis Zr-
C-Stick/Down = Axis Zr+
C-Stick/Left = Axis Z-
C-Stick/Right = Axis Z+
Triggers/Threshold = 99.000000
Triggers/L = Button 4
Triggers/R = Button 5
Triggers/L-Analog = Slider 0+
Triggers/R-Analog = Slider 1+
Rumble/Motor = Constant
Rumble/Motor/Range = 0.000000
D-Pad/Up = Hat 0 N
D-Pad/Down = Hat 0 S
D-Pad/Left = Hat 0 W
D-Pad/Right = Hat 0 E
Options/Background Input = 1.000000
[GCPad2]
[GCPad3]
[GCPad4]

lets play

 

[Captain Smuckers]

So I'm a little confused, this thread says that playing online via Dolphin is possible, while Massive's thread "Melee Online: Why it isn't an option right now" says otherwise. Just to be clear, does it work?

 

[Massive]

It will desync rather rapidly, you can give it a go, just don't expect a good experience.

This thread should probably be closed, actually.

 

[Dan Salvato]

It will desync rather rapidly, you can give it a go, just don't expect a good experience.

This thread should probably be closed, actually.

I'm actually not sure how susceptible to desyncing the latest client is. I think the current netplay works under a device which pauses emulation while waiting for packets, meaning it might not desync but will be incredibly laggy and slow.