FRONTIER 1337 - version 0.2a - A port of FRONTIER Elite II for PSP [Archive] - DCEmu Network: The Homebrew, Hacking & Gaming Network

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Atien

May 5th, 2007, 20:15

FRONTIER 1337 is a port for PSP from the Atari version of the game "FRONTIER - Elite II".

EDIT - May 6th 2007 :
The game wasn't working because I totally forgot to add the fe2.s.bin file in it.
Now, everything should work fine! Sorry.

http://psp-news.dcemu.co.uk/pic1.gif

Here's the latest version of the game with some new things:

version 0.2a :
- The game is now running at 333MHz.
- The music has been enabled.
- All wav sounds and ogg music have been resampled to 44100Hz and are now working perfectly.
- All sub-folders (but savs) have been moved to data folder.
- The Fkeys highliter has been turned from red to black for not interfering with the intro and outro of the game.

http://psp-news.dcemu.co.uk/snapshot.gif

For a better framerate result, set the level of shape detail to 'low' in the setup screen (start button), and disable things like 'Space dust, clouds etc' and 'Background stars'...

Don't try to change commander's name when you are saving your game. If you want to change it, rename the file in the savs folder.

You can find useful informations about the game on the official website (http://atien.free.fr/jeux/1337/), or about FRONTIER - Elite II in general at Frontierverse (http://www.sharoma.com/frontierverse/index.htm)

INSTALLATION
------------
For 1.50 firmware users, unpack/copy FRONTIER and FRONTIER% folders to MS_ROOT/PSP/GAME
For OE firmware users, unpack/copy FRONTIER and FRONTIER% folders to MS_ROOT/PSP/GAME150

The game package contains the kxploited game and the sources. Download the MUSIC and SFX packs if you want, and place them in the FRONTIER/data folder.

CONTROLS
--------
Analog-stick - Move the cursor through the screen.
SQUARE - Used like the left mouse clic to select things with the cursor.
CROSS - Used like the right mouse clic.
Hold CROSS + Analog-stick - Roll the vessel.
Hold CROSS + SQUARE - Fire laser beam.
Hold CROSS + D-pad UP - Zoom-in with the camera in external view.
Hold CROSS + D-pad DOWN - Zoom-out with the camera in external view.
D-pad - Rotate the camera in external view, and make ravel the galactic chart or the stockmarket list.
TRIANGLE - Rear propulsion to increase speed.
CIRCLE - Front propulsion to decrease speed.
L and R triggers - Choose the functions that where directly available on PC with F1 to F10 keys.
L + R - Validate the choosen function.
Start - Go to the option screen.
Select - "p" key for now... to get through the police arrest thing.

I'm advancing very slowly so any help is still welcome ;)

Download and Give Feedback Via Comments

jurkevicz

May 5th, 2007, 20:39

any pics?

siulmagic

May 5th, 2007, 21:19

very nice will try it

DarthPaul

May 5th, 2007, 21:21

It sounds nice. But doesn't look nice...because I can't see anything,lol. Any screenshot? o_O

blackrave

May 5th, 2007, 21:50

Wow, that's so strange as people were talking about it earlier today. I'm about to try it and will edit this post when I have.

Nice work, and thanks!

bez54

May 5th, 2007, 22:02

vladare

May 5th, 2007, 22:09

Its starting and ... after 2-3 seconds just quits without any explanation. :( I have 3.10' OE.

Skateblind

May 5th, 2007, 23:07

Great, ive been wondering if you were on the job and I am greatly relieved to see you releasing a new update. Keep it up.

Buddy4point0

May 6th, 2007, 00:03

very nice man, keep it up

IM back!

May 6th, 2007, 00:23

i cant unzip the rar
(im usin winrar)

Atien

May 6th, 2007, 00:23

Its starting and ... after 2-3 seconds just quits without any explanation. :( I have 3.10' OE.

I've also seen posts like yours on other sites.
I'm using 3.40 OE-a and the game works perfectly.
It was also working under real 1.50, 3.03 OE, 3.10 OE and 3.30 OE...

Can you give me more informations about your psp?
Are you using custom XMB or RCO plugins?
Maybe you could try to place the game in the MS_ROOT/PSP/GAME folder?
Tell me please so I could fix the game or write an addendum to the readme.

O-bake

May 6th, 2007, 01:01

In the OE options menu (right shoulder button during boot), there's the option which kernel version you are on.
Maybe it's connected to to that. I remember problems with homebrew and not beeing on 1.50 kernel.
I can't test right now, too tired :/

And thanks for porting this great game, btw. =)

IM back!

May 6th, 2007, 01:39

it dosnt work for me ( i've got the same problem as vladare) heres someinfo on my psp:

3.40oe-a
kernel for game folder: 1.50
i did try the game in both folders.

vladare

May 6th, 2007, 01:49

Can you give me more informations about your psp?
Are you using custom XMB or RCO plugins?
Maybe you could try to place the game in the MS_ROOT/PSP/GAME folder?
Tell me please so I could fix the game or write an addendum to the readme.

1) Currently I don't use custom XMB
2) I turned off the all plugins.
3) I tried game into GAME and GAME150

The result is the same - exit.

Deathnix

May 6th, 2007, 02:33

To be honest, I have always hated the Elite games, BUT! You have done a great job my friend!
Now use thoes skills for an even awesomner game! XD

Atien

May 6th, 2007, 03:43

1) Currently I don't use original custom XMB
2) I turned off the all plugins.
3) I tried game into GAME and GAME150

The result is the same - exit.

Can you try to launch the game without the data folder? Just rename it so that SFX and MUSIC wont load at launch.

If it's still not working, then the problem must come from the 333MHz overclocking...
I'll try to solve that later.

slaanesh

May 6th, 2007, 08:52

I cannot launch this either.

I'm running 3.40 OE
I have no plug-ins or anything activate, it's just vanila.
I've tried launching from /psp/game150/FRONTIER
I've tried with no DATA dir and with just an empty DATA dir.

It always just reboots back to the start.

It's a pity as I loved Frontier for the Amiga - probably my favourite Amiga game! Can you fix this?

vladare

May 6th, 2007, 09:08

Can you try to launch the game without the data folder? Just rename it so that SFX and MUSIC wont load at launch.

Without success.

Paradok

May 6th, 2007, 09:53

Sorry new to this.

Do I just unpack the stuff to my psp and that is it it will work? Or do I need a emu to make it go? And will it work on firmware version 3.3?

Thanks Bez.

Sorry for the new guy questions.

You need either Sony's firmware 1.5 or below, one of Dark_Alex's custom firmwares, or the eLoader and a compatible Sony firmware (meaning 2.8 or below) to use this, or any other homebrew that I'm familiar with. If you're unsure of exactly what firmware you're running, look in Settings -> System Settings -> System Information -> System Software on your PSP. If it says "OE" after the firmware version number, you're good. If not, you're probably going to have some trouble.

If you're running 3.30 OE (or 1.5, or any OE firmware), you need to create the folder ms0:/PSP/GAME150, and then copy the FRONTIER and FRONTIER% folders to that folder. I would guess that the other two rars need to be unpacked into the FRONTIER folder, but I haven't tried this particular program out yet, so I'm not 100% sure. That's the way it usually works though.

If you're running 3.30 (not OE), then this program will not run, and I don't think you'll be able to run any homebrew at all on your PSP at this point in time. To my knowledge there are no downgraders for 3.30 yet either, so for now you're stuck. Don't upgrade to any new official firmwares, and eventually some enterprising coder will come out with a downgrader that you can use.

If by some chance you were completely mistaken about your firmware version and you have the official Sony firmware 2.00-3.03, you have the option of either using eLoader or downgrading to firmware 1.5. Exactly what you need to do for either of those options depends on what version firmware you're starting from. Bear in mind, however: eLoader sometimes has compatibility issues that will prevent some homebrew from running, and with downgrading (and updating) firmware, there's always a risk of bricking your PSP. Do your research, make sure you're reading all of the version numbers and folder names right, follow the steps carefully, and you should be fine.

Here are some links that'll help:

Noobz (http://noobz.eu)
Dark_Alex (http://www.dark-alex.org/)
TA-082-Motherboard-Tutorial (http://psp.about.com/od/homebrew/ig/TA-082-Motherboard-Tutorial/TA-082-code-location.htm)
DCEmu official guide - how to install 3.02 OE-A, then to OE-B, to run PSOne Games (http://www.dcemu.co.uk/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=47121)

And two last precautions. First, you cannot update from firmware 2.x/3.x directly to an Open Edition or Special Edition firmware. You MUST downgrade to Sony's 1.5 firmware first and THEN upgrade, or you will brick your PSP. Second, if you have a PSP with a TA-082 or higher, do not downgrade below the official firmware 2.5. If you have one of these motherboards, your only option at this time is eLoader or possibly HEN (which I've never used, so I can't really elaborate on it).

Good luck.

Baboon

May 6th, 2007, 10:15

Nice port of a classic game.

Downloading now. :)

Atien

May 6th, 2007, 10:28

Without success.

Ok. So I compiled the EBOOT without scePowerSetClockFrequency(333, 333, 166);
Can you replace the FRONTIER/EBOOT.PBP with this new one and tell me if it fixes the problem?
The game will be much slower, but it's just to know if the problem really comes from this.

Thanks

JazzMX5

May 6th, 2007, 10:38

Ok. So I compiled the EBOOT without scePowerSetClockFrequency(333, 333, 166);
Can you replace the FRONTIER/EBOOT.PBP with this new one and tell me if it fixes the problem?
The game will be much slower, but it's just to know if the problem really comes from this.

Thanks
Nope, not working for me (neither did the earlier version of this release).

3.40 OE-A (NOTHING added except a background)
Tried in GAME and GAME150, with and without DATA folder

Still kicks me back to the XMB. Sorry. :(

Atien

May 6th, 2007, 10:57

JazzMX5

May 6th, 2007, 11:05

mmmm... Can you try the previous release on your PSP and tell me if it works?
http://atien.free.fr/jeux/1337/download/FRONTIER_1337_v0.1c.rar

And do you know if your PSP motherboard is a TA-082 or not?

0.1c ran perfectly for me. I reinstalled it, actually, and I've posted a couple of times in the old thread (http://www.dcemu.co.uk/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=24909).

I don't know which motherboard my PSP has, unfortunately. Is there an easy way to tell without opening it up?

Atien

May 6th, 2007, 11:24

JazzMX5

May 6th, 2007, 11:32

You can check your PSP motherboard version just by opening the UMD drive.
- Check this picture - (http://www.maxconsole.net/content_img/ta82spot.jpg)

I also compiled the latest version with 333MHz overclock enabled, but I totally disabled OGG musics. How does it work now?

Anyway, thanks for your help :p

Okay, it's not a TA-082. Sadly that EBOOT results in the same... kicks back to the XMB.

I did notice that the memory stick access light isn't lit for nearly as long as it is when 0.1c loads up, if that helps.

I appreciate your efforts, just want you to know that! I'm really looking forward to playing this version. :)

Atien

May 6th, 2007, 11:55

JazzMX5

May 6th, 2007, 12:05

Damn...
The access light is blinking in 0.2a because all the sounds and musi..... LOL!

I realise my mistake while typing! I totally forgot to add the fe2.s.bin file with the game... :rofl:
Sorry :D

I've upload the fixed file on the first post.
Now, everything should work fine!

It works!

Thank you soooooooo much!!! :thumbup:

I'm not gonna lie, it could still use a bit more speed but I'm sure you're aware of that. Still, cranking the CPU to 333MHz has made a huge difference. Thanks for even making this awesome port, though, and thanks for this update! I only found the 0.1 releases a couple of days ago, so to suddenly see 0.2 was a great surprise.

Thanks again, and keep up the good work! Future updates will always have a home on my PSP. Now, about those Frontier: First Encounters and MidWinter II: Flames of Freedom ports... ;)

P.S. The new XMB icon & background that 0.2 added are really nice, good job. :)

Atien

May 6th, 2007, 13:23

Yes I know, a lot of improvement is needed for this game, but i'm working on it... slowly...

Concerning FFE, here's what Jabberwocky from the PSPDEV forum told me when I started wanting to port an Elite game for the PSP :

With a brief scan through the source distribution, I would say this would be a big job. There's lots of decompiled x86 assembly from the original game (I'm guessing), which you need an x86 compatable processor to run. As the PSP uses a MIPS, you're out of luck unless you rewrite all the assembly code. Not something I'd want to do... look for a game which already runs on multiple processors if you want something to port.
For MidWinter II, I don't think that the source code is available... Try it under PSP UAE Amiga emulator ;)

bez54

May 6th, 2007, 19:07

You need either Sony's firmware 1.5 or below, one of Dark_Alex's custom firmwares, or the eLoader and a compatible Sony firmware (meaning 2.8 or below) to use this, or any other homebrew that I'm familiar with. If you're unsure of exactly what firmware you're running, look in Settings -> System Settings -> System Information -> System Software on your PSP. If it says "OE" after the firmware version number, you're good. If not, you're probably going to have some trouble.

If you're running 3.30 OE (or 1.5, or any OE firmware), you need to create the folder ms0:/PSP/GAME150, and then copy the FRONTIER and FRONTIER% folders to that folder. I would guess that the other two rars need to be unpacked into the FRONTIER folder, but I haven't tried this particular program out yet, so I'm not 100% sure. That's the way it usually works though.

If you're running 3.30 (not OE), then this program will not run, and I don't think you'll be able to run any homebrew at all on your PSP at this point in time. To my knowledge there are no downgraders for 3.30 yet either, so for now you're stuck. Don't upgrade to any new official firmwares, and eventually some enterprising coder will come out with a downgrader that you can use.

If by some chance you were completely mistaken about your firmware version and you have the official Sony firmware 2.00-3.03, you have the option of either using eLoader or downgrading to firmware 1.5. Exactly what you need to do for either of those options depends on what version firmware you're starting from. Bear in mind, however: eLoader sometimes has compatibility issues that will prevent some homebrew from running, and with downgrading (and updating) firmware, there's always a risk of bricking your PSP. Do your research, make sure you're reading all of the version numbers and folder names right, follow the steps carefully, and you should be fine.

Here are some links that'll help:

Noobz (http://noobz.eu)
Dark_Alex (http://www.dark-alex.org/)
TA-082-Motherboard-Tutorial (http://psp.about.com/od/homebrew/ig/TA-082-Motherboard-Tutorial/TA-082-code-location.htm)
DCEmu official guide - how to install 3.02 OE-A, then to OE-B, to run PSOne Games (http://www.dcemu.co.uk/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=47121)

And two last precautions. First, you cannot update from firmware 2.x/3.x directly to an Open Edition or Special Edition firmware. You MUST downgrade to Sony's 1.5 firmware first and THEN upgrade, or you will brick your PSP. Second, if you have a PSP with a TA-082 or higher, do not downgrade below the official firmware 2.5. If you have one of these motherboards, your only option at this time is eLoader or possibly HEN (which I've never used, so I can't really elaborate on it).

Good luck.

Thanks a lot for that. I have a psp 1000. I got it when they first came out but nevver bothered with the hacks and homebrew stuff. Just kept buying games and updating the firmware on the umd's.

So I think I am ok on the Board thing. My firmware is sonys 3.03. So I could downgrade back to 1.50, I think. Then upgrade to 3.03 oa.

I will have a good look at it first and make sure everything is in place to do it.

Thanks again.

Bez

Paradok

May 7th, 2007, 09:14

Thanks a lot for that. I have a psp 1000. I got it when they first came out but nevver bothered with the hacks and homebrew stuff. Just kept buying games and updating the firmware on the umd's.

So I think I am ok on the Board thing. My firmware is sonys 3.03. So I could downgrade back to 1.50, I think. Then upgrade to 3.03 oa.

I will have a good look at it first and make sure everything is in place to do it.

Thanks again.

Bez

Glad I could help. :)

I just thought I'd mention, you'll probably notice this when you go to Dark_Alex's site, but there are custom firmwares available all the way up to 3.40. Some people seem to like the earlier 3.xx ones for one reason or another, I think mostly because of compatibility issues with PS1 emulation and with custom themes. Personally I run 3.10 OE, just because I haven't bothered to upgrade since the newer custom firmwares came out, and it does everything I need to do and then some. I'm sure they all work great; DA is quite a coder.

microchipe

May 9th, 2007, 03:48

The Fold

May 10th, 2007, 07:50

hy, Atien, i've downloaded 1.0c and 2.0a versions of frontier 1337, with sfx and music; in my psp-1000 3.30-OE-A', kernel 1.50, version 1.0c works perfectly, but 2.0a, not; fire sound, beeps, not working at all, but music. can u help me? thanks.

I'm also having problems. I'm on 3.10-OE and have my homebrew folder set to 1.50. I've put the files into MS_ROOT/PSP/GAME150 as it says but when I run the game it just goes back to the media bar.

EDIT: Sorry I'm dumb, I read back in the thread and found out about the missing file. This is what I get for a) not reading the whole thread and b) downloading the game from qj.net

microchipe

May 10th, 2007, 15:02

hy, Atien, i've downloaded 1.0c and 2.0a versions of frontier 1337, with sfx and music; in my psp-1000 3.30-OE-A', kernel 1.50, version 1.0c works perfectly, but 2.0a, not; fire sound, beeps, not working at all, but music. can u help me? thanks.

I've managed to solve this ... simple mistake. I've got the wrong sound pack, from version 1.0c. :rofl: with the new, re-sampled, all worked fine. thanks.:thumbup:

Only one question: we can take screenshots from inside the game actually?

Atien

May 11th, 2007, 13:39

Glad to see that both of you overcame those problems!

Only one question: we can take screenshots from inside the game actually?

Yes you can, but not directly. You have to use IRshell and run Frontier through it.
Then you can take screenshoots by pressing the "Musical Note" button.
They will be saved in /PSP/PHOTO/SNAPSHOT

microchipe

May 11th, 2007, 19:49

hy, atien, i follow some game ports to psp, like ur-quan-masters, and nethack, and the last one (http://payettea.googlepages.com/) is gl-based, AND have a working OSK and button combos on it. maybe u can have a look on those sources? seeya.
:thumbup:

http://virtuamunstaz.de/svn/nethack/tags/1.0b/sys/psp/

microchipe

May 25th, 2007, 21:12

i was trying to rename my commander's name on the game, and testing things on the WinUAE emulator running Frontier, and i've discovered some interesting things:

The WinUAE is an AMIGA emulator for windows, and the frontier running on it, is the 'same' game code of this port;

We CAN LOAD/PLAY/SAVE the game of PSP on Desktop emulator, using a resource of the emulator where a folder is 'mapped' like a HD, inside emulator, and this savegame file still compatible on PSP.

On WinUAE, is possible to SAVE an AVI/Xvid file from game, with sounds!!!

And... i renamed my commander's name of my savegame in the WinUAE, and worked fine on PSP.

IT'S AWESOME!!!
:thumbup:

Oxymoron28

July 21st, 2010, 22:43

just downloaded to try this out, but I get 80020148 error code, tried to google this but to no avail. I'm pretty sure it's my firmware i'm using 5.50 GEN-D3 (I had tried this on 5.00 M33-6 but had the same result) so yeah can this actually run on my fw or am I snuffed? =[