Vanessa (Vanessaira)

DreamShell Loader 0.7.X Beta & Dreamcast IDE Mod

Posted on by Vanessa (Vanessaira)

PC Wzrd13 from the Dreamcastic Channel just posted news about an update on the DreamShell Loader (version 0.7.X Beta) which can be used for the Dreamcast in conjunction with the IDE mod.  This is a mod that replaces the GDROM drive for an IDE setup that could allow a user to boot from a Hard Drive Disk.  This mod and program is a different GDROM replacement solution which is similar in ways to the GDEMU but offers some unique advantages.

 

DreamShell Loader is an open sourced project that has now achieved a games compatibility of 96% with the current library of Dreamcast games.  There is a list which you can check out for the few games that are still not compatible.  The program also has future enhancements coming in the pipeline that would allow for cheat codes, or other types of code enhancements and storage that would normally have to be entered every time when booting on devices like Code Breakers, etc.  Furthermore tweaking and custom settings for individual games is a possibility with this mod allow to set screen resolutions and aspect ratios for example.  Coupling these options and program loader with an IDE Hard Drive allows for the fastest possible game load times as stated by PC Wzrd13 on his video.

 

The DreamShell Loader games compatibility is being further worked on by the user Megavolt85 from the DC-SWAT, with some notable games achieving playable status in this patch.  These are the 2K Sports games, Shenmue, and Metropolis Street Racer (one of my favorite racing games of all time <3) just to name a few but there are many more.  Missing CDDA audio support hopes to be addressed soon as well as the last remaining games that need compatibility fixes as well as some bugs that appear during game play.

 

LINKS:

Megavolts85  |  http://www.dc-swat.ru/forum/thread-3525.html

Games Compatibility List  |  https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1-I8SkhBr5cNHcXZYPw9zsjQr0vKxePjvLsfvtgqzYf4/edit#gid=0

PC Wzrd13 from DreamcasticChannel