Play ZC games on your GBA/GBAsp ?

[Zelda_Warrior]

OMG soultaker you actually took that picture seriously? Somunknown just found a picture of the DS, took a screenshot in ZC of the title screen, and opened up the picture of the DS in paint and then pasted the pictures from ZC into the DS picture. It's not that hard and it's simple, really. No, you can't get ZC on a DS, and no, nobody made it. You couldn't tell that the angle of the picture and the angle of the DS screen didn't match up? I know the screen made me believe it for a little bit but i realized the faults in the picture. No, ZC WILL NEVER BE RELEASED ON A CONSOLE!!!

[zyrixnet]

Not hard really, remember ZC is working on a Linux port, and Palm is thinking about switching it's PalmOS to a Linux-based PDA. Think about it, if that happens, then ZC can also be on a Palm PDA. There's also a DS projects, not part of Nintendo, thats actively working on a Linux port for the DS. They are initally trying to create a PDA like system for the DS, but will also be-able to run Linux binaries.

There's two possibilies there, if one or even both of these comes into play.

And if worsed comes to worsed, and ZC never finishes the Linux port, then just pop on a DOS emulator on the DS-Linux port, or the Palm linux port. There's always a way, and how. Never, say Never. Nothings impossible.

[DarkFlameWolf]

No one ever said porting ZC to GBA or DS or to any console system was impossible. Its simply the real question is that, does anyone want to take the time and effort to work with a dev kit and re-program the entire thing to work on a console, and then to have quest developers remake their quests to be used on it? That's the real question.

[zhila]

I think this is like the 7th time I've said this, I'm unsure at this point. Emulating the current Zelda Classic (either Windows Emulator or DOS emulator, or running it natively via LinuxDS) on NDS is not very practicle in any sense. First, PC's only really support a dumb framebuffer. Tiles and the such (with exception to it's more limited text mode) are lost on a PC. framebuffer mode runs significantly slower on NDS than tile mode on NDS, yet if Zelda Classic were to run on NDS without modifications, it would require Framebuffer mode, and thus loose all the special "optimizations" of a tile mode game. Also, we are talking about a 64MHz+32MHz processing environment. Zelda Classic on the PC fits and complains a bit if it's running on a 300MHz PC. And you are talking about "emulating" it on a 64MHz+32MHz processing environment? Only way Zelda Classic is getting on the NDS is for the code owners to rewrite it specifically for the NDS. And that in itself is no trivial task. One has to redo the entire "tile engine" currently in place, not to mention working with two processors, porting sound over, basically end up completely rewriting Allegro itself for the NDS, or abandoning it. Best case woudl probably be to start over, while taking some knowlegde of how Zelda Classic works, rather than trying to port it over.

[zeldafannick]

i dont know much about programming and stuff,but here's my two cents on making a ds/gba/pda/WHATEVER ZC:If one was actually made,then I have no doubt that it wouldn't be free.I fine with the free pc version,thank you.

[SomUnknown]

It would have to be free, or else Nintendo wouldn't be pleased.

[DarkFlameWolf]

I think what Zeldafannick is saying is that, the job to port/recode over ZC perfectly to a portable console system would be so huge a job, I don't think anyone would want to do it for free. I know I wouldn't. I'd want to get paid for spending a buttload of time doing that.

[MottZilla]

I think this is like the 7th time I've said this, I'm unsure at this point. Emulating the current Zelda Classic (either Windows Emulator or DOS emulator, or running it natively via LinuxDS) on NDS is not very practicle in any sense. First, PC's only really support a dumb framebuffer. Tiles and the such (with exception to it's more limited text mode) are lost on a PC. framebuffer mode runs significantly slower on NDS than tile mode on NDS, yet if Zelda Classic were to run on NDS without modifications, it would require Framebuffer mode, and thus loose all the special "optimizations" of a tile mode game. Also, we are talking about a 64MHz+32MHz processing environment. Zelda Classic on the PC fits and complains a bit if it's running on a 300MHz PC. And you are talking about "emulating" it on a 64MHz+32MHz processing environment? Only way Zelda Classic is getting on the NDS is for the code owners to rewrite it specifically for the NDS. And that in itself is no trivial task. One has to redo the entire "tile engine" currently in place, not to mention working with two processors, porting sound over, basically end up completely rewriting Allegro itself for the NDS, or abandoning it. Best case woudl probably be to start over, while taking some knowlegde of how Zelda Classic works, rather than trying to port it over.

It's the first time I've seen you say this, and I must say I'm pleased to see someone with a good grasp on things.

One thing to remember though about the NDS over the GBA is that the framebuffer sort of drawing is far better than the GBA's horribly slow bitmap mode. With proper optimization ZC could probably run comfortably on it. But there are then all the usual problems. Storage and execution could be worked out via the DS firmwire passme flash technique using the GBA flash cartridges. After that though, you still have the actual development of the program meaning all the graphics and sound routines. It's a big job no matter what. Oh another thing to metnion, the NDS has only 4MB of RAM. So for ZC to be ported to DS, it would require its own closed and well refined version.

So like DarkFlameWolf was saying, it's a hell of a big job for someone to do for the "fun" of it.