Emulation/Retro Games #1

Hello,
It's BaxterV again, but today with a total different subject then you might expect. Today we're talking about Emulation. For those of you who don't know what that is: Playing a console game, or an older software form (Old-skool mac, Windows Xp/Vista), on your current PC, or even other console.
I love playing Retro games, I'm not good at them, so I'll use save states here and there, but it's so much fun to be able to play something that is the origin of where gaming started! Of course there are a lot of consoles, but not everyone of them needs a different emulator, especially the older ones can be combined because their very small systems.
The more recent one like CEMU and Citra need apps of their own, they shouldn't be combined. In this blog I will mostly review emulators in a rambling form and I will be explaining which games I've been playing. If you want more of this check out Youtube, like Simply Austin, the guy is great.

Mario
I recently started playing the original Mario and Mario 2, next to that I made a start on the undo-able Zelda 2. Let's start a the beginning. Oke Super Mario Bros. is a hard game, the controls are so wobbily. When I stop pressing the button, then stop moving. In this game when you jump up, it will kind of float to one side. When I release the button it doesn't stop.
The controls make it that this game is so hard to play, the inconsistency in the movement is hard. I used some savestates, but turned out to barely needing them. I became more profecient with the controls in the end but in the beginning it's like hell why is Mario moving so weird, not the animation but just the physics. I liked the game a lot, when you study the pattern every enemy is killable.
One thing I just hated in this game, was swimming. After having done that level 6 times, just to try and get handy with it, it still didn't feel natural. Really anoying, the thing was when you press A he moves forward, but just a bit, when you hold down right, to go right in the level, it swims very fast all of the sudden. When you try to do this in any other direction it didn't work.
Moving around the fish and obstacles is uncomfortable, not nice at all. As I said I completed the level first time by accident, and loaded the savestate from the beginning of the level. I tried so hard to think that I was playing it on the classic controller and how it might've been different, but just couldn't. Then onto Super Mario Bros. 2.....wow what a shit game XD. This game is all over the place.
I do have to look up a walkthrough sometimes for a game, I don't like exploring and wasting my time on that too much. But this was just weird, you have those vases where you have to go in, I would have NEVER thought of that man. Why? I'm missing the explenation. Then there was this 'boss battle' where you had to jump onto the egg, the press B to grab it, and then throw it (with awfull mechanics) at the Yoshi.
Like that makes any sense, why jump onto the egg, It would have made sense if there was a text box or something in it, that would say what I was doing. But maybe the game is just too old for that, not possible on the cardridges back then? Maybe? Then there was this black thingy, that jumped up and down, and again the jumping and floating through mechanic made this very hard, you had to jump on it, grab it, then put it under the hilly plateau and then jump on it to the plateau.
I examined the footage of the walkthrough, but I can't for the life of me make this jump. I'm doubting wheter I'll finish it, now I've started others already.

Zelda 2
At last we have Zelda 2....What a damn hard game, and again this game wants me to explore or something. I'm watching clipps of the walkthrough to get to the dungeons, the pattern of where to go doesn't make ANY sense. So I'll skip on that. Now the game itself is very hard, really hard. When you die 3 times you lose all your XP points, which is virtually the only way to become better at this game. The patterns of the enemy's are weird, the knight is just too hard. His reaction time is too fast.
I get where they were going with the game but failed it in multiple ways, the game itself has a map. For now it's still small, when you walk around enemy's will appear, the tile of area you are currently standing on will decide the enemy's and the area you fight in. The desert thingy is weird, hurting balls flying around you, and when I want to leave at the side of the level there can still be one of those! How? I can't that coming can I? The small blubbing enemy's drop 2 XP, the skeletons 30, and the knight 50.
The problem is that I have only access to the blubby ones, the others are in dungeons, and the knight is too hard currently. I've worked through the first dungeon, and it was fun at the beginning, but when I died 3 times I decided to go grind outside of the dungeon and enter it 2 level higher, which helped a lot. Now you still have the later levels, now I have to get even more XP, where can I get it? Nowhere XD.
The solution would be grinding, although if that's the solution I'd rather just cheat myself some more levels, it's not adding to the fun or something. Also I've seen a walkthrough on the internet, which is good, but not for someone who doesn't know his way around these games. I'll look at the Youtube video which helps a lot more XD. But then to the main event: The Caves! HOLY SHIT THESE ARE UNDOABLE! I dont know if I'm missing something, but these are dark, thing fly everywhere, and I have reach of on tile XD
How do I do these? I see no way to beating these withought save states, and even with I'm stuck. It's crazy how it is designed, I cant find the pattern or the logic how to beat these. I read text from a villager about a Candle, but as far as I know that is one I can get in dungeon 3/4. So how? I know I'm not a good gamer, and I'll grind probably because it's almost vacation for me but If I cant beat the caves I can't progress. By the way I'm using Nestopia as an Emulator for these games, no problems untill now.

Nintendo 64 part
Then there is Super Mario 64 which I want to complete 100 % for once, I've connected my PS4 controller (and before that my PS3 controller) to play this game and I'm using project 64 for it. Untill now no problems at all, again walkthrough needed because the level description do not give enough explenation to how to do this. I can watch videos (sometimes walkhtroughs of the game) while playing it, no lag or frame drops. I like the game but as mentioned, a walkthrough needed. I like watching speedrun, but I've never watched a complete one of Super Mario 64 before.
I do look out to Awsome Games Done Quick every year, and watch back everything that interests me. Also today I played Mario Kart 64, and I liked it a lot. Although you have to become used to the wobelly controls at first (especially drifting) in the end it's fun. One question I've been playing on 50cc and 100cc, both doable but cutting it close at 100cc. How am I supposed to do 150cc, is it just luck or something? I'm taking sharp turns and the good route every time, but still others are in my back constantly.
I'm not a good gamer, on the DS I was never able to do 150cc XD, but it really seems to be dependened on the items you get. Also Rainbow Road is tooooooo long, 7 minutes! Maybe with sharp times I can make that 6:30 or 6 but still. Other levels are 2/3 minutes.

Concluding part
Also I've been playing Super Mario Galaxy 2, but not on an emulator, yes XD I do have dolphin, which I will start using once I've finished Super Mario 64 for Super Mario Sunshine and Super Smash Bors. Melee. I've now done my research and I know how to connect bot the Movement Sensor and Wiimote to work on PC. And for the Gamecube games I've got my controller. The games are little bit laggy, but my PC was doing multiple things and is not so strong. For Super Mario Glaxy 2, it's a great game, but one with a couple of levels that are just hard, like trying 20 times before beating it.
At last I've tried to Emulate a Nintendo DS on my phone (I've got a Samsung A5 2016) which was just awfull, not worth doing. But suprisingly on my PC using DeSuMe it was laggy aswell, and I couldn't connect my PS4 controller to it, so doing Mario Kart on a keyboard is not doable either. Maybe some other emulator will work, I'll look into it soon. I hope I've given a good description of my current state, and what I'm doing. I love emulators, the fact that I can play Nintendo 3DS games and Wii U games already is crazy. Also Xbox 360 and PS3 are getting emulators but these are far from optimal, and not yet worth getting.
Also the 3DS and Wii U are early stage things, need optimizing. So when a big update comes out, I might just try it, it might be the update that makes it playable for me. You never know XD. Thanks for reading, I'll catch ya' down the road!