MORTAL KOMBAT TRILOGY: Emulating a 24 year old N64 gem with an Android phone + touch controls

3A1898FC6E4D41B6997B7F40D7A399BB.gif

After clearing Super Mario 64 on my phone using only touchscreen controls I’m really getting used to it and am feeling more confident so I decided to take on Shao Kahn, release some fellow Kombater’s souls, and show everyone Scorpion is still boss today. Join us in mortal combat to save some poor sprites!

CF9DDA5A784C41BE95B08596858D5EB7.jpeg

Here are the best N64 ROMs to emulate and play with a bluetooth control on a phone in my opinion. What do you think?

FB00C6859CF941B683B721C69DD168AE.jpeg

I can’t find a bluetooth controller in Luang Prabang, so I’m limited to using touchscreen controls only. Here is my list of games that work best. Did I forget any great games that can be controlled using touchscreen? I looked for some Super Mario 64 mods, but couldn’t get them to boot on the phone. We’d really appreciate any suggestions you may have!

79B9DDDFD90F4C5E91C381B215AB9365.gif

I found the AI was still very difficult to trick into a counter-attack trap after all these years even though I cheated like crazy using Mupen64Plus to save state, try again and again, and even slowed down time to 10%. I think Mupen64Plus does a good job of emulating most games, but it fails to fully take screenshots half the time. If you use your phone’s built in screenshot, the image will come out too small and you may see the onscreen N64controller. Do you know of a better emulator than Mupen64Plus?

You can download Mupen64Plus here:
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.mupen64plusae.v3.fzurita&hl=en&gl=US

All of the images were saved during gameplay using Mupen64Plus. I used Procreate to stack all the pictures then exported them as animated GIFs. Thank you for looking back on this classic gem from gaming history with us today. No sprites wear harmed during the creation of this post

STAR WARS: A look at some of the upcoming shows in our redeemed universe…

Star Wars has just exploded with exciting new content! Thanks to the success of The Mandalorian, we’ll be getting a whole bunch of new adventures. How great was that season finale? It gave me goosebumps. I felt like a kid in the theater again! Thank you for showing Star Wars the way Mando!

Ahsoka

This is the show I’m the most excited to watch. I love Ahsoka. She is a great character and will surely make for a great series. We got a peak of what’s to come with her appearance in The Mandalorian‘s second season and it was pure awesomeness. There isn’t an official trailer for Ahsoka yet, but this fan made concept trailer on Leia’s Lair Youtube channel is pretty cool.

https://youtube.com/watch?v=E_rYTFZrOmk

Kenobi

I remember George Lucas talking about the possibility of this show many years ago, but the technology wasn’t ready until now. It looks amazing. I can’t wait to see how Obi-wan has been doing and the return of Hayden Christensen as Darth Vader.

Andor

I never thought I’d see Cassian return after he got smoked with Jyn by the Death Star in Rouge One, but he’ll be back for 12 episodes in 2022.

Rogue Squadron

Patty Jenkins looks like she’s going to really put her heart into this film. It’s going to be fun seeing a new squadron of X-wing pilots kicking ass!

The Bad Batch

I honestly have ignored all of the Star Wars animated series until I noticed their characters appearing in The Mandalorian, but I’ll give this one a shot.

The High Republic

This Youtube video doesn’t show us much other than the writers, but it looks like an interesting show too. It will be set 200 years before The Phantom Menace, so a younger Master Yoda will probably be the only character we’ll recognize.

The Acolyte

Did you ever hear the tragedy of Darth Plagueis The Wise? It will be fascinating to learn the ways of the Sith and to explore the secrets The Dark Side.

Rangers of the New Republic

This is where our favorite characters from The Mandalorian will likely reappear. I hope Cara Dune doesn’t get cut by Earth’s crazy cancel culture.

There will also be a show about Lando, the droids, and a Japanese animation called Visions to look forward to. After the fan backlash of the sequels and Solo, I was really worried for the future of Star Wars, but it looks like we’re going to have a lot of Mando quality entertainment to keep us happy for years to come! Which show are you most excited to see? I have spoken. This is the way.

SUPER MARIO 64: Finally to Yoshi with 120 ⭐️ – Part III

I honestly wasn’t sure if I’d have the patience to clear this with annoying touch screen controls, but as you can see from my screenshots, it is possible. Super Mario 64 emulates well even on very old Android phones. I got it to work fine on a jailbroke iPhone 5 a long time ago, so I’m sure it works well today too. Do people still jailbreak iPhones? If you want to play this on a phone, I highly recommend using a bluetooth controller, but I got pretty good at controlling Mario and even doing multiple wall jumps by the end of the game using the touchscreen. I wonder how long it is until our VR headsets can just read our thoughts and our gameplay will be seamlessly linked with our intentions.


DD3AA1D652A44B22A56B12BE9ED164EF.jpeg

I don’t think there was ever a bigger jump in quality gameplay then when Nintendo added the 3rd dimension with this classic gem. If I could travel back in time and meet my teenage self, it’d be fun showing myself how good I am at this game now. I’m sure I’d ask my future self about my favorite game and GTA would be the answer. I would explain how fun GTA is, but my past self would be shocked that the same game lasted over seven years and spanned three gaming generations. I’m 40 years old now. Does that mean GTA 6 VR Online with an Oasis account will be the final version for my lifetime? After talking about video games, I’d advice my young self to still join the army, but not the navy. That my 30s will be better than my 20s. To buy lot’s of Google and Amazon stock as well as 2 million Bitcoins. One to shadow Satoshi’s original million and one million BTC to play around with and enjoy life. That everything will be fine, just look out for the year 2020!


FAD4A5C4EF5947C89D1B67DD73E2685F.gif

Dear Nintendo,

I sent an email to you when I found out about the Wii U. It was a failed system because most people confused it with the original. In my email, I suggested calling the new machine: Super Wii. My suggestion still stands. It would be a marketing home run of a name especially if it were back compatible with old Wii games and used that fancy new AI that makes old games look 4K. Anyways Nintendo, I love you and am a fanboy for life. Thanks for all the great memories.

The Tortuous and the Mario

FBEA324E59D940358E7138C81996ED7F.jpeg

When you first have to race the big turtle it’s a piece of cake, but he was the hardest star for me to get this time. I slowed down time, saved state cheated and long jumped like crazy until I beat him.

Conclusion

B12FB423E3544CBE9EE42DEB75477C27.gif

It took me 17 days of relentless gameplay to clear all 120 stars the first time in 1996.
I posted Part 1 of this post over a month ago and Part II two weeks ago. I had Youtube, save cheats, and the ability to slow down time, so it wasn’t the same as doing it blind 24 years ago, but it was still a fun experience.


C1B17D56B3AA44F6B4D264E46B02B3D1.jpeg

Here are the N64 games I like playing using Mupen64Plus. Do you think I forgot any that can also be emulated and controlled well using a phone and touchscreen? I feel Super Mario 64 is the best game on the list. I think I will search for any fan made Super Mario 64ROMs to play next. Do you know of any? Thank you for going on this old Mario adventure with me again. All of the photos in the post were captured while playing on my Android phone. Has anyone else cleared Super Mario 64 on their phone?

SUPER MARIO 64: Midway to Yoshi with touchscreen controls – Part II

While the rest of the gaming world is all stoked about the new PlayStation and Xbox, I am stuck in Laos and in 1996 via the N64 emulator, Mupen64, on my Android phone. My last post made it to about 14 stars. I made it to 66 stars this time. Even though 66 is more than half way to 120, it doesn’t feel that way due to the difficulty of the final stars.

The Controls +

I know there are good bluetooth controllers that would make this a whole lot easier, but I don’t have one. I’m in Laos. It’s not like I can drop by Wal-Mart or order it on Amazon and the local shops all say I need to ride down to the capital city, a twelve hour drive, to find one. It took over a year for my son’s 2019 Christmas gift to arrive from Florida. I would still like to read any suggestions on controllers in the comments though.

9B4FC36610684CB3BDA8E8D6E412BDBC.jpeg

The only thing that is difficult to do with the Z button at the top left is long-jumping. It’s still possible, but you’ll mess up if the pressure’s on or you haven’t gotten used to it. My last phone couldn’t process more than one touch on the left side at the same time, so I had to learn how to play without long-jumping at all. The D-pad is missing which isn’t a big deal unless you’re playing Starfox 64 which needs it for certain moves. For most N64 games, it isn’t used at all or does the same thing as the analog stick.

Slow Motion –

One of the ways I dealt with the frustration of touchscreen controls not being as responsive to the real thing was by cheating. I would try to beat the penguin without cheating, but he’s a really sticky AI. If you thrash down at full speed, he’ll catch up and if you let him have a head-start, he’ll slow way down for you to catch up. I found 40% game speed was best for beating slides.

Slide for 100 ⭐️

5F8572DB797645CDB7052D3FF245F2B1.gif

I wasn’t looking to beat Mr. Penguin this time. I was on the quest to find 100 coins in the level. The star appeared near the end of the race. I couldn’t long-jump to it so I went down again. When I came back down, the star wasn’t there. I should’ve collected coins from the slide first then scavenged the left overs to 100 around the mountain. Now I have to do it all over again. The save game cheat can’t help in this situation.

Random Path

EBF21425F9C5430CB178D76BA7D5AEFB.gif

I’m sure world record speed runners have determined the most efficient path for clearing Super Mario 64, but I just went around and collected whichever star I felt like at the time. I was surprised that I had forgotten a few stars and that there were warp points that I’d never known about until now.


091760D6402F437EA25AB244D4E2FF49.jpeg

Thanks for reading about my painful journey to find all the stars. Do you think I’ll make it all the way to 120 stars and see Yoshi or will there be a spot which is impossible to pass using touchscreen? I’m afraid any spots requiring multiple wall jumps will be my final roadblock, but it should still be possible to do with the touchscreen if time is slowed down. Has anyone else attempted this frustrating way of clearing Super Mario 64?