Can't Launch Dreamcast Games From Within Launchbox

[wichitakid71]

I decided to change my emulator to something that is more up-to-date than Demul, which never worked consistently for me anyway.  I downloaded both Redream and Flycast as standalone emulators.  Both work well on their own, launch games and let me play them with little configuration.  Redream seemed a little choppy at times, so I wanted to use Flycast with my Launchbox setup.  But, even though Flycast works on its own, every time I click on a game, the screen goes black for a second, and then Launchbox reappears.

I have virtually the same outcome with Redream, only Redream launches, and I find myself at the "games" page of Redream, where I have to use my mouse to select a game.  

My usual experience with emulators is that the click on the game launches the emulator and the game, and away I go.

Below are the screenshots of the emulator pages for Flycast and Redream.  I have tried checking some of the boxes, but neither will launch the game.

Both emulators correctly associate with Sega Dreamcast.  The ROM path is the same as used in the emulators outside of Lunchbox, so it should not be a problem finding the ROMs.

Is there a command line parameter I'm missing for either emulator?  My preference is to get Flycast working, but I'd settle for Redream if anyone knows the answer.

Thanks in advance.

Scott

[JoeViking245]

8 hours ago, wichitakid71 said:

Is there a command line parameter I'm missing for either emulator?  My preference is to get Flycast working, but I'd settle for Redream if anyone knows the answer.

Can you share a screenshot of the Associated Platforms section of your Flycast emulator (in LaunchBox)?

Also share a screenshot of a game you're trying to launch with it. The main Details section, the Launching section and the Emulation section.

[wichitakid71]

Thanks for the offer of help.  See requested screenshots below.  Let me know if it helps diagnose what I've done wrong.

[JoeViking245]

14 hours ago, wichitakid71 said:

Thanks for the offer of help.  See requested screenshots below.  Let me know if it helps diagnose what I've done wrong.

Yours looks just like mine except that my games are in zip format (and mines launches).  But you indicated you tested it outside of LaunchBox and it worked.  Also, Flycast is said to work with .cdi files. So that shouldn't be the issue.

Usually when this happens, the user is testing outside of LaunchBox with either

• a different copy of the emulator (not the one that's in the Application Path in LaunchBox)
• or a ROM that does work in the emulator (and testing a ROM that doesn't work when in LB).
• (or all the above)

The easiest way check is to verify Emulator=Emulator and ROM=ROM for both tests inside of LB and testing stand-alone.

 

A true test is to (one way at least) is to create a batch file that sends the commands that LaunchBox is sending.

Assuming your LaunchBox build is [also] on the F drive and is in the root of F, the batch file would look like:

cd "F:\LaunchBox\Emulators\flycast-win64-2.4"
flycast.exe "F:\ROMs\Other Sets and Systems\Sega Dreamcast\Capcom vs. SNK - Millennium Fight 2000.cdi"
pause

• create a new text file (i.e. FlycastTest.txt)
• copy the above into it
  • change the path to LaunchBox if it's different
• save and close
  • since we're using absolute paths, you can save it anywhere
• rename the file to have a .bat file extension (FlycastTest.bat)
• double-click the file to run it

[wichitakid71]

Before I create the batch file and run the test, can you share the following:

1. My roms are on external hdd.  Are yours in launchbox’s or the emulator’s folder or something like that, because mine are not.

2. You said your files are zipped, do you check the “extract” box as part of your settings?

Thanks.

[JoeViking245]

25 minutes ago, wichitakid71 said:

Before I create the batch file and run the test, can you share the following:

1. My roms are on external hdd.  Are yours in launchbox’s or the emulator’s folder or something like that, because mine are not.

2. You said your files are zipped, do you check the “extract” box as part of your settings?

Thanks.

1)  It kinda doesn't matter.  Because you're (as is LB) passing the absolute path to the emulator.  On one PC, the ROMs are on an internal HDD.  Separate from both LB and the emulator. On the other PC, they are on an external HDD, connected via USB (vs. on a LAN).  

2)  No. .zip is another one of the file extensions Flycast is able to run directly.  And consequently, the ROMs on the 2nd PC are in .chd format (another supported file extension).

[wichitakid71]

I appreciate the help provided by the moderator and wanted to share my solution.  Seems both Flycast and Redream required zipped ROMs and the "Extract ROM archives before running" box be checked."  It's slow to boot to the game, but both emulators launch the games in Launchbox, whereas neither did when I was using just unzipped .cdi files.  Hope this helps someone else down the road.