Since there doesn't seem to be a definitive list of how generally difficult certain games are to get up and running on Dolphin on more mainstream PCs, I figured it wouldn't hurt to get something going. It's obviously a WIP, and probably won't ever truly be "final" but it's better than nothing.
I started this because I saw in the CPU Benchmark thread that they broke it down to categories of games (A,B,C,D) with tiers of requirements, but there's also the GPU thread that generally addresses resolutions. I know many people can more likely play Medium stuff to some degree, but have no clue what falls into that category and below, so I figure if there's a list of the heaviest games that would help folks narrow it down to what they can't play rather than trying to list everything they can.
Feel free to just post the games you know have the high level requirements and I'll keep tabs as best as I can.
Personally, I'd say anything that REQUIRES a 1x in IR to run on moderately reasonable machines should be at least Medium-Light. By moderate machines, I mean something that's maybe 5 years old or less, has at least a Core 2 Quad and has an decent mid-to-lower tier GPU in it. If you can run a game in 1.5x on that level of machine without any special settings, and no issues with sound or notable slowdown, it's absolutely light. If the whole game stutters at 1.5x or it does so frequently on a Core i5 with a ok GPU, it's probably near the Heavy category. If at 1.5x it has occasional hiccups and maybe the sound pops a bit here and there but 90% or more is completely playable without issue, somewhere between Med-High and Heavy.
You gotta use judgment here. Obviously there are a lot of factors that can cause a game to run like crap, but if you look at a reasonable Core 2 Quad / i3 level PC with like a AMD's FirePro V3900 or some other entry level ok GPU and 8GB RAM, and it has issues running at 1.5x then depending on how frequent and harsh the issues are, you can gauge how much higher it needs to go up the scale. If there's a bad sound issue with tracks making annoying noises the whole game, I'd put it in Med somewhere. If it studders a little on 1.5x just on occasion, it's Med-Light or even Light. It just depends on how bad it is and how common those defects are.
So, feel free to gauge how you feel it runs for you and mention what you're running it on, and if your rig plays differently than someone else, it can be adjusted to somewhere in between as needed until they settle somewhere. I just figure there are going to be some really obvious ones out there like Rebel Strike. And it's more helpful to know those ones up front then folks will know what they most likely won't be able to play if they don't invest in a better machine.
Thanks!
Running list of requirement weights.
HEAVIEST:
Star Wars: Rebel Strike
HEAVY:
Star Wars: Rogue Leader
Metroid Prime
Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
Mario Kart DD (Split Screen)
Timesplitters Future Perfect
Super Smash Bros Melee
MEDIUM:
F-Zero GX
The Legend Of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Resident Evil 4
Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance
MEDIUM-LIGHT:
Sonic Adventure DX
Skies Of Arcadia Legends
LIGHT:
Luigi's Mansion
Bomberman Generation
Bomberman Jetters
Zelda Four Swords Adventures
Super Mario Sunshine
Eternal Darkness
Kirby Air Ride
Wind Waker
I started this because I saw in the CPU Benchmark thread that they broke it down to categories of games (A,B,C,D) with tiers of requirements, but there's also the GPU thread that generally addresses resolutions. I know many people can more likely play Medium stuff to some degree, but have no clue what falls into that category and below, so I figure if there's a list of the heaviest games that would help folks narrow it down to what they can't play rather than trying to list everything they can.
Feel free to just post the games you know have the high level requirements and I'll keep tabs as best as I can.
Personally, I'd say anything that REQUIRES a 1x in IR to run on moderately reasonable machines should be at least Medium-Light. By moderate machines, I mean something that's maybe 5 years old or less, has at least a Core 2 Quad and has an decent mid-to-lower tier GPU in it. If you can run a game in 1.5x on that level of machine without any special settings, and no issues with sound or notable slowdown, it's absolutely light. If the whole game stutters at 1.5x or it does so frequently on a Core i5 with a ok GPU, it's probably near the Heavy category. If at 1.5x it has occasional hiccups and maybe the sound pops a bit here and there but 90% or more is completely playable without issue, somewhere between Med-High and Heavy.
You gotta use judgment here. Obviously there are a lot of factors that can cause a game to run like crap, but if you look at a reasonable Core 2 Quad / i3 level PC with like a AMD's FirePro V3900 or some other entry level ok GPU and 8GB RAM, and it has issues running at 1.5x then depending on how frequent and harsh the issues are, you can gauge how much higher it needs to go up the scale. If there's a bad sound issue with tracks making annoying noises the whole game, I'd put it in Med somewhere. If it studders a little on 1.5x just on occasion, it's Med-Light or even Light. It just depends on how bad it is and how common those defects are.
So, feel free to gauge how you feel it runs for you and mention what you're running it on, and if your rig plays differently than someone else, it can be adjusted to somewhere in between as needed until they settle somewhere. I just figure there are going to be some really obvious ones out there like Rebel Strike. And it's more helpful to know those ones up front then folks will know what they most likely won't be able to play if they don't invest in a better machine.
Thanks!
Running list of requirement weights.
HEAVIEST:
Star Wars: Rebel Strike
HEAVY:
Star Wars: Rogue Leader
Metroid Prime
Metroid Prime 2: Echoes
Mario Kart DD (Split Screen)
Timesplitters Future Perfect
Super Smash Bros Melee
MEDIUM:
F-Zero GX
The Legend Of Zelda: Twilight Princess
Resident Evil 4
Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance
MEDIUM-LIGHT:
Sonic Adventure DX
Skies Of Arcadia Legends
LIGHT:
Luigi's Mansion
Bomberman Generation
Bomberman Jetters
Zelda Four Swords Adventures
Super Mario Sunshine
Eternal Darkness
Kirby Air Ride
Wind Waker
