Developer jimbob4000 released RetroFlow-Launcher 4.0. This new version adds Flycast support for Dreamcast games, as well as quality of life improvements.
RetroFlow-Launcher is a nice little GUI to browse and launch your Retro games on the PS Vita, and is originally a fork of VitaHEX’s HexFlow-Launcher.
What is RetroFlow-Launcher for PS Vita
If you need a nice GUI to browse and run your retro games on the PS Vita, RetroFlow-Launcher is for you. From the readme file:
This is a modified version of HexFlow Launcher; a 3d coverflow like launcher for PS Vita.
This version includes categories of retro games that can be launched without bubbles for RetroArch, DaedalusX64 and Flycast. Playstation and PSP games can also be launched without having to create bubbles for each game!
This version also has categories for favorites and recently played games.
Display and launch your retro and homebrew games in style.
RetroFlow Launcher features a 3D UI to display your games with their box artwork and supports lots of customization options like custom covers and backgrounds.Launch a game or application from RetroFlow Launcher will close the launcher automatically without asking.
Supported systems:
PS Vita, PSP, Playstation, Nintendo 64, Super Nintendo, Nintendo Entertainment System, Game Boy Advance, Game Boy Color, Game Boy, Sega Dreamcast, Sega CD, Sega 32X, Sega Mega Drive / Genesis, Sega Master System, Sega Game Gear, PC Engine, PC Engine CD, TurboGrafx-16, TurboGrafx-CD, Commodore Amiga, Commodore 64, WonderSwan, WonderSwan Color, MSX, MSX2, ZX Spectrum, Atari Lynx, Atari 600, Atari 5200, Atari 7800, ColecoVision, Vectrex , FBA 2012, MAME 2003 Plus, MAME 2000, Neo Geo (FBA 2012) and Neo Geo Pocket Color.
RetroFlow 4.0 – What’s New
New features
- Dreamcast category added (Flycast must be installed).
- Change ROM Folders – Go to “Scan Settings” then “Change Game Directories” to change the path to game folders. You can select your folder using the new built-in file browser.
- Rename games – Press triangle then square on the game. (The file is unchanged, the name is only changed in the application).
- Rescan function – Added to “Scan settings” menu. Now you can search for new games without restarting the app.
Improvements
- Replacing games is much faster.
- Downloading Individual Covers – The cover now updates instantly if found.
- Bulk upload of covers and snaps in the settings menu – Faster; it now only downloads missing images.
- Better adrenaline bubble detection using titles. Bubbles are not imported into RetroFlow because iso or eboot is used.
- Fixed file size information for games using cue files (directory size is now used).
Download and install RetroFlow-Launcher
You can download RetroFlow-Launcher from the project github here.
Reminder: you will need a hacked PS Vita to run this homebrew GUI and the underlying games.
Facility
1. Install RetroFlow VPKs.
Install the latest version of RetroFlow and additional VPK of RetroFlow adrenaline launcher from here.
‘RetroFlow Launcher’ is the application you will use to browse games. ‘RetroFlow Adrenaline launcher’ is required to launch Playstation and PSP games.
2. Rename your PSP games by following the steps below.
Renaming is necessary for coverage matching. RetroFlow will look for a title ID in the filename.
Windows users:
Please rename the PSP ISO and CSO files using Leecherman’s PSP ISO Renamer tool using the following settings:
The result should look like this (please note the square brackets):
Cars 2 (US) [UCUS-98766].isoGames can also be named with just the title ID like this: “UCUS98766.iso” but this is not recommended.
Mac users:
See the FAQ section for a guide on changing the name on a mac.
More information about PSP and Playstation after the FAQ section.
3. Check that your PS1 and PSP are in the correct folders
PS1 and PSP games with eboot files must be registered here:
PSP ISO and CSO games should be saved here:
uma0 can also be used.
4. Add your retro games to RetroFlow
Option 1 – Use default folders: Launch RetroFlow for the first time, RetroFlow will create the folders where you can save your games.
When loading is complete; close RetroFlow and copy your favorite retro games to the corresponding subfolders below:
ux0:/data/RetroFlow/ROMS/For PC Engine CD and TurboGrafx-CD, RetroFlow will search for “.cue” files for those CD systems. Please make sure all games are loose with system rom folder with .cue files.
For Dreamcast, both ‘.gdi’ and ‘.cdi’ games are supported.
Option 2 – Use your own game folders: If you don’t want to save your games in the RetroFlow data folder, you can use your own directories.
Go to “Scan settings” then “Change game directories” to change the path to game folders.
Once you’re done, select “Rescan” to find the games.
Point: It is important that your roms are named using the file naming convention with no intro, for example “Game Name (USA)”, otherwise the cover images will not be found.
5. Rescan to find your games
Press “Start” and navigate to “Scan Settings”, then select “Rescan”. Your retro games should now appear when you restart the app. “Startup scan” can be disabled once you are done adding your games, the app will start faster when disabled.
6. Download covers and backgrounds
To download cover images, tap Start, then choose the covers or backgrounds you want to download.