(Please note that the downloads can change quickly, if one doesn’t work any more, please tell me. I’ll see what I can do.)
Have you been searching high and low for your favourite old PlayStation games or wanna try playing them for the first time? Are you having trouble getting your head around all the tricky things you’ve gotta get to make it work, with the ‘emulators’, the ‘plug-ins’, the ‘torrents’ and the ‘roms’? Or do you have no idea what any of those even are?
Well then, here is the guide for you, my friend. I’m gonna to do my best to give you detailed and easy-to-follow steps to get these games.
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Let’s start with the basics, here’s what you’ll need:
Internet (congratulations! If you are looking at this, you have internet!)
Half decent computer, with half decent video-card
A Torrent client (I recommend BitTorrent but Azureus/Vuze or even Limewire will work. You can download all of these for free on the internet. Yes they are clean of viruses)
Winrar/something like it (a zipping and unzipping program, that compresses files to make them smaller. Like packing all your clothes into a suitcase)
Patience
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How to get the first few games
There are three things you will need to download. Two of them are torrents (a torrent is like a download that you download from not only the website, but other people. They download off of you too. Its called leeching when downloading and seeding when uploading and sharing.
When finding a torrent look for a large amount of seeders, you will download faster)
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Download this torrent:
http://thepiratebay.org/torrent/4879206/Crash_Bandicoot_1_2_3___Spyro_%5B_PS1emulator-ePSXe%5D_Instructions
This beautiful person has most generously shared not only Crash Bandicoot 1 2 3 and the first (but only the first) Spyro. But they have also included instructions and the emulator (the thing the games need to be played) which is mostly set up.
When you click download, a box will pop, select open with bitTorrent or whatever torrent client you have. Your download will begin, all you need to do is wait.
While you are waiting you may or may not need to download something else called a plug-in. (Plug-ins are files that make the emulator work, different plug-ins do different things. You have a different computer from mine so I cannot tell if you will need other plug-ins) Try this one for graphics: http://www.pbernert.com/html/gpu.htm
Once your download is done right click on it in the Torrent client, click ‘open containing folder’ or something to that effect. This should open a folder with the download selected. Follow the instructions the best you can. Then test the game.
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How to test the games
Follow the instructions in the text document included with the torrent.
You may want to change the controls, go config, game pad, pad 1. Click on a letter and press another letter to change a control. Mine looks like this:
Then once the ISO is running, four options should appear. Use the arrow keys to scroll through the games and select one (with the select button, not enter). If everything is running smoothly and to your liking, then make no more changes.
If you have an issue with graphics go config>Video, change the graphic plug-in (to say, the one I recommended) or adjust the settings (don’t be afraid to experiment, it may crash a few times but just make sure the program is no longer running in the task manager and try again). If you having trouble with size then make sure it looks something like this (change it to your resolution);
If the sound is bad or not there, make sure you have ticked the first three options under ‘ePSXe SPU core 1.5.2.’.
If it says something about a ‘bios’ go config>bios then amongst the files of the ePSXe program should be a folder named ‘bios’. Select whatever’s in it.
If anything has not been covered, please let me know.
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Download Spyro 2 (Riptos Rage!)
Download this torrent:
http://thepiratebay.org/torrent/5164960/PSX_-_Spyro_the_Dragon_2__Ripto_s_Rage_.iso
This one may take longer as few people are seeding it, but its the best I could find. If you manage to get the whole thing downloaded, then please seed it.
This file should work as is, just go run ISO and select it. If not, try the things listed above.
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Download Spyro 3 (Year of the Dragon)
This one is different, see the youtube video here (links in the description):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v3YnGyJDMmM
(the maker of the video asks you to subscribe if you download. You probably should if you have an account and you liked it)
This one is a bit trickier. You need to download four packages.
For this to work, make sure you have all the downloads where you want them (in their own folder together, preferably). Make sure they are all in the same folder! Now select all four files and right click on one of them. Click extract to here. They should make a few files. The one you need is the IMG file.
Usual routine to make it work, see above.
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Here’s a list of the problems discovered.
Spyro/Crash Bandicoot 123
None/unknown. Everything seems to work fine as long as the plug-ins are in order.
Spyro 2 (Riptos Rage!)
Plot developing videos. The sound in the videos get progressively (and hilariously) worse. It starts out fine, then sounds and words get more and more jumbled. For example, at one point I was told to “carry this trouble around Avalar.” This may be fixed by other plug-ins, but I’m unsure.
Spyro 3 (Year of the Dragon)
Sound. The music in some (if not all) levels start out fine then stops and restarts. It can get annoying. Creatures’ dialogues sometimes get cut short. Changing plug-ins doesn’t seem to work.
Plot developing videos. Basically the same as above but worse.
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Ethics
Yes I realise that some people disapprove (including governments apparently) of downloading games. I really don’t care, since this is just a guide for people who want to play Spyro/Crash Bandicoot, like they use to, without a huge fee. Since Spyro was never released for PC, this is the only way you can get it without spending hundreds on the games and on the PlayStation (number here). And if you wish to have a smug feeling of self-satisfaction at the fact that you have more money to throw around than me and countless other people, then don’t let me stop you, you can try ebay or amazon for the games. It’ll probably be second hand and won’t actually make a difference to the original creators, but oh well.
Those who use this guide, are saving money whilst getting to play six games they’ll love. They know all the risk and problems with the game (as listed in this guide). There’s no messing about with ‘accessories’ and scratched disks, fake sales on ebay to get conned into and waiting for the bits and pieces to arrive. You get what you see as fast as your internet will allow you.
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Thank you for reading! Please enjoy your shiny new games!
