Hey /vr/, does anyone of you own a PC98? I'm thinking about

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Games like this.

>>3369838
What is she going to do with such a big wrench?

>>3369850
Screw something...

How would you get the games on it?

What's wrong with PC98 emulation? NP2 fmgen is regularly updated, other platforms are a lot worse off.

>>3369969
Maybe I just used the wrong emulator before. It used to be a nigthmare for me get it running correctly with readable fonts etc..

I'd also like to use it on a CRT, that's not easy with an emu.

>>3370016
Probably Anex86, the ZSnes of PC98 emulators.
What's so difficult about using a CRT with emulation and why would you want to get a laptop of all things then?

>>3370032
Well, the laptop because it's cheaper than getting a CRT and a big beige box from Japan. They should have VGA out, AFAIK.

You're right though, I actually forgot that my 'normal' computer has VGA as well. So maybe that's the way to go.

I'd still like to hear from anons with PC98 hardware experience.

>>3370048
You won't be able to plug a PC-98 into just any old monitor you have lying around. They output a different video signal than VGA. There are likely converters that you can use, and I know that monitors are still made that support the analog RGB output of the PC-98, but they are likely getting rarer.

Laptops are nice, compact, all-in-one solution, but most of them have black and white displays and no sound card.

If you want the full PC-98 experience, expect to shell out a lot for a proper system and at the very least a new multi-input monitor that can handle its video signal, and then more on top of that to ship them from Japan.

>>3370032
> Probably Anex86, the ZSnes of PC98 emulators.
> the ZSnes of PC98 emulators.
> ZSnes
So it's objectively superior to its peers due to most of the computationally intensive functions being written in inline assembly?

>>3369824
What's special about PC98 architecture? I remember it was a custom IBM PC-compatible build.

>>3370205
>What's special about PC98 architecture? I remember it was a custom IBM PC-compatible build.
It's not, the system bus is totally different -- C-BUS for the PC-9801, ISA for the IBM PC and clones. Also, the graphic chipset is also totally different. You've been fouled into thinking that way because it does use MS-DOS, and that programs that only relies on DOS calls might work on both platforms, but when programs directly access to the hardware, beware of the crashes!

>>3370205
Mostly. The Japanese re-invented the CPU -> RAM bus architecture around their need for larger word size transfers to support the larger graphics needed to display their language.

They also optimized the higher level CPU caches to almost double the instructions per cycle count and decrease branch prediction failure by about 20%.

Both of these advances were baked into the mainline 586 architecture.

>>3370215
Also, the BIOS is different too.

>>3370216
>Mostly. The Japanese re-invented the CPU -> RAM bus architecture
Which mean it isnt a custom-built IBM compatible machine. The bus is totally different, the BIOS is different, it was thus in no way meant to be IBM compatible. Saying that it's a custom IBM is like saying the Commodore PET is a custom-built Apple II because they use the same CPU.
>the larger graphics needed to display their language.
That thing is a meme. The MSX can display kanjis and kanas in 256*192. If the PC-9801 display such a high resolution it is so it can display 80 column text. When you look at western computers, they also require 640*something to be able to display 80 column text

>>3370227
>The MSX can display kanjis and kanas in 256*192.
Poorly

>>3370216
>branch prediction failure by about 20%.
Where can I get further information on that kind of stuff? I thought the 8086 didn't even have branch prediction.

>>3371161
No, they display them good enough to be readable. The 640*200 and 640*400 resolutions of the PC-8801 and PC-9801 were only needed for the 80-column text mode display that you'd expect from computers meant for Business and Office uses (the one that was meant for home use were the PC-6001 and the likes), just like these same resolutions are needed for a readable 80-column text mode with latin characters. When you look at it, the Monochrome text card for IBM PC, which displayed 80*25 characters, had a resolution of 720*350 (and the Hercules monochrome graphic card a resolution of 720*348). The CGA card also had a resolution of 640*200 in text mode.
That "the PC-88 and 98 had a high resolution so they could display japanese text" meme is dumb and need to die, because these characters can alway be displayed on lower resolutions (how could have they made RPGs full of japanese text on famicom if they really needed such high resolutions for them to display text?) and that these computers use 80-column text modes, which is what require these resolutions.

>>3371450
>No, they display them good enough to be readable.
I find 640x400 far better readable. Even 620x200 is a pain in the ass.

>how could have they made RPGs full of japanese text on famicom
Like shit. Most games don't even have kanji so you're done to kindergarten level.
Even later systems like PCE-CD, SFC, PS1 or SS can get frustrating since complex kanji are little more than a blob.

>>3369824
>a billion good looking games.

Care to name some more obscure ones?!

>>3370184
May be right. I used Anex86 on my old Pentium II laptop and it worked okay where NP2 was too choppy.

Of course, if you have a decent computer, I'd recommand using Neko Project 2 fmgen.

>>3371485
Most games will require reading Japanese, like Artdink and Koei's games for the non-ero stuff.

Now, here's a list of games playable without this knowledge that I enjoyed:

Night Slave (well-done Valken clone)
Binyu Hunter (gun game)
Star Platinum (koi-koi)
Metal Orange (break out)
Innocent Tour (gorgeous RPG/board game hybrid)

>>3369824
I would say to get the first 5 Touhou games for it but theyre insanely rare