openMSX

News

2024 September 22 openMSX 20.0 released

openMSX 20.0—Autumn Spring—is a major release, in which we introduce the new Graphical User Interface, replacing the OSD menu. A faster and more powerful debugger is now included in openMSX itself. Configuration for MSX joystick/JoyMega has been improved drastically using the new GUI. If you still want to use Catapult, you can use the Catapult release that came with openMSX 19.0. Please read the release notes for details of the openMSX changes.

Please note that as of now, a system with OpenGL 2 support is required to run openMSX.

2023 August 30 openMSX 19.1 released

openMSX 19.1—Reflection—is a bug fix release for openMSX 19.0, as we found some rather nasty issues after releasing, mostly that LaserDisc support was broken. No new Catapult will be released, as it has no changes. Please read the release notes for details of the changes. Thanks for those who gave us the feedback so that we found out about these issues.

Reminder: please note that this will be the last release that supports systems without OpenGL 2 or later.

2023 July 25 openMSX 19.0 released

openMSX 19.0—Last Attack—is again a release with mostly bug fixes and smaller improvements. Biggest improvements are on the OSD menu and the diskmanipulator. Together with openMSX an updated version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released, but there were again no functional changes this time. Please read the release notes for details of the openMSX changes. Special thanks to all the contributors of this release who are not in the core team! Keep these pull requests coming!

Also, please note that this will be the last release that supports systems without OpenGL 2 or later.

2022 June 12 openMSX 18.0 released

openMSX 18.0—Lucky Number—is again a release with mostly bug fixes and smaller improvements. And of course a little more blasphemy out there adding support for Sega SG-1000. Together with openMSX an updated version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released, but there were no functional changes this time. Please read the release notes for details of the openMSX changes. Special thanks to all the contributors of this release who are not in the core team! Keep these pull requests coming!

2021 Jun 1 IRC channel moved to Libera.Chat

As some of our IRC regulars weren't feeling comfortable anymore on the freenode IRC network lately (this article does a reasonable job of summarizing events), we have moved to #openMSX on the Libera.Chat network. If you don't have an IRC client installed, you can use web chat instead. Come and visit us there!

For those people who think IRC is too retro (can anything be too retro?), we also have a Discord channel nowadays, which is bridged to our IRC channel. You can find it via this invite.

2021 May 18 openMSX 17.0 released

openMSX 17.0—Quibus Birthday Release—is a major release with mostly bug fixes and smaller improvements. Most notable may be the usability improvements of the OSD menu. Together with openMSX an updated version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released. We again only made a few small bug fixes. Please read the release notes for details of the openMSX changes. Special thanks to all the contributors of this release who are not in the core team! Keep these pull requests coming!

2020 August 25 openMSX 16.0 released

openMSX 16.0—Oh Shucks—is a major release in which we finally migrated to SDL2 and Tcl 8.6. And we moved to a simpler versioning scheme, stripping off that 0. prefix now :) Other than that, there are loads and loads of improvements. Some often requested ones are copy/paste functionality and drag and drop support. But we also added a super accurate YM2413 emulation (originally written by NukeYKT), fixed MIDI-in/out support on Windows, a new keyboard mode, much improved OSD menu, etc. Together with openMSX an updated version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released. We again made a small amount of improvements: fix hidden openMSX window when launching from Catapult, migration to Python 3 and wxWidgets 3.0, make supported extensions consistent with openMSX command line, replaced Accuracy control with VSync button and Min and Max Frameskip controls with fast forward speed controls and added a button to enable full speed when loading ("Fast Load"). Please read the release notes for details of the openMSX changes.

2018 December 8 openMSX 0.15.0 released

openMSX 0.15.0—Sinterklaasphemy—is a release which was due because we did quite a lot! This time the major new stuff is support for ColecoVision (including Super Game Module and MegaCart mapper), Musical Memory Mapper and Carnivore 2. And we have fixed a lot of long-standing OPL4 emulation issues, thanks to Valley Bell. Furthermore, we overhauled the Android port, but you'll mostly notice the scale factor 2 there. And several other (sometimes very long standing) issues were fixed.Together with openMSX an updated version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released. We again made a small amount of improvements: disable controls for joystick/printer port if the machine doesn't have them, fix trashing the replay at time 0 (when reversing back to time 0), added the .hdd extension when browsing for harddisk images and made the test machine for extensions C-BIOS_MSX2+ (if available). Please read the release notes for details of the openMSX changes.

2017 August 3 openMSX 0.14.0 released

openMSX 0.14.0—Blasphemy—is another mix of some new features and additions and a lot of smaller fixes and improvements. This release adds support for Konami Ultimate Collection and basic emulation for the Spectravideo SVI-318 and SVI-328 pre-MSX computers, increases FDC accuracy in such a way that we think all copy protections (captured in a DMK file) should now run in openMSX. Moreover, we now put the SDLGL-PP renderer as the default, so let us know how that works for you. You can of course always set the old default setting for your system if you don't like SDLGL-PP. But then we would really like to know why... We also removed the Windows DirectX sound driver, as it was buggy and caused a lot of complaints. And finally, we added a button in the top left corner to easily invoke the OSD menu.Together with openMSX an updated version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released. We again made a small amount of improvements: added noise control to Video Control Page, fixed the browse extension for the openMSX executable and some build support improvements. Please read the release notes for details of the openMSX changes.

2016 July 31 openMSX 0.13.0 released

openMSX 0.13.0—Black Cat—again was meant to be (mostly) a bug fix release, but again it also has some nice additions and improvements to enjoy. Important improvements are much better support for VDP I/O delay in turbo machines (fixing graphics issues due to too fast VDP access there), more accurate MSX1 color palette, progress reporting for long operations and ALSA MIDI-out support for Linux. This is also one of the first releases that drops support for older platforms: Windows XP, Dingoo A320 (but introducing support for GCW Zero) and non-64-bit MacOSX. If you still want to run openMSX on these, you'll be stuck on using a previous release or start maintaining these platforms yourself. Together with openMSX an updated version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released. We again made a small amount of improvements: fixed Catapult interrupting replay directly after loading it, performance improvements while reversing, fixed drag-and-drop for media and some smaller bug fixes. Please read the release notes for details of the openMSX changes.

2015 September 15 openMSX 0.12.0 released

openMSX 0.12.0—Mulligan—was going to be (mostly) a bug fix release. But at the end we also got inspired by Grauw to add a lot of MIDI devices. And, reviewing what we changed the last 10 months, we saw that we also got loads of help from several people to add many new machine configurations and added some fun stuff like Sensor Kid and (experimental) Beer IDE emulation. On the emulator features category we give you stuff like triplesize video recording, some TAS enhancements and a callback for too fast VRAM access. So, enjoy this 'various features and bug fixes' release! Together with openMSX an updated version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released. We again made a small amount of improvements: no need to specify the share dir anymore, automatically fetch the list of supported mappers from openMSX, fix handling of MIDI connectors and some small bug fixes. Please read the release notes for details of the openMSX changes.

2015 June 25 openMSX on the move

As some core openMSX developers felt uncomfortable at SourceForge.net given the recent events, we decided to say goodbye to them after 14 years. So far we have moved our code and tickets to GitHub and our website to private hosting. With that, please update your git clones and links to our website! Our GitHub project page (where you can find the code and the ticket system) is at https://github.com/openMSX/ and the official URL of our web site is now http://openmsx.org. The coming weeks we will see if and how we will move the rest of our stuff off of SourceForge.net.

2014 November 8 openMSX 0.11.0 released

openMSX 0.11.0—NotOneButDoubleOne—brings you the following important new features: VDP access timing now also for MSX1 modes (corruption with too fast VRAM access will be visible now), implementation of most defailed differences between all used VDP chips and emulation of MegaFlashROM SCC+ SD. On top of that, there are some important (long standing) bug fixes, like the proper implementation of envelopes for MSX-AUDIO, fixing for example "Copy is Crime" by Impact. And last but not least, a lot of work was done under the bonnet, giving you even better performance and preparations for the future. Together with openMSX an updated version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released. We only made some minor improvements to it this time. Please read the release notes for details of the openMSX changes.

2014 May 1 openMSX 0.10.1 released

openMSX 0.10.1—StillNotOneToo—mostly fixes bugs we introduced with 0.10.0 or were already present for a bit longer... sorry for those, but most should be fixed now :) There are also some small but nice additions, like much extended MIDI support on Mac (thanks Grauw!), support for harddisk images in the OSD menu and more fine grained control in which slots carts and extensions will end up. Together with openMSX an updated version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released. Again, we actually made some improvements to it this time, mostly more code cleanups to enable quite some bug fixes (mainly in the settings tab), but also some features, like ability to change cartridges at run time and support for hard disks. Please read the release notes for details of the openMSX changes.

2014 January 5 openMSX 0.10.0 released

openMSX 0.10.0—StillNotOne—adds many larger and smaller features, but most outstanding are: cycle accurate VDP command engine timing, an Android port, subdirectory support for dir-as-disk and Neos MA-20 support. These features meant a lot of work was done in practically all parts of the code, but at the same time we also freshened up much of the code using many of the new C++11 language features. All in all, it was time to release this stuff officially... Together with openMSX an updated version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released. We actually made some improvements to it this time, mostly code cleanups to make it easier to help us with this subproject, but also some small features, like ability to set up multiple IPS files, control video source and disable sprite settings and DMK support in the file filters, next to some smaller bug fixes. Please read the release notes for details of the openMSX changes.

2013 April 23 openMSX moves to Git

Today we moved all openMSX projects to Git (still on SourceForge.net), after having used Subversion for about 6 and a half years. Git is now the state of the art on source code management and rapidly getting more popular. Anyway, this means that you have to use a different way to get the latest openMSX sources now: click on one of the repos to see the instructions at the top. The Subversion repository will be deleted soon. Also, we've converted the project on SF.net from classic to Allura. You'll notice that when visiting the project page, especially when you check the new Tickets system, e.g. the bug tracker.

2012 September 30 openMSX 0.9.1 released

openMSX 0.9.1—Enigma Take Two—mostly fixes a bug in dir-as-disk that was introduced in openMSX 0.9.0, when adding support for the DMK format and low level disk emulation. We not only fixed that bug, we rewrote dir-as-disk almost completely, making it a lot more robust. Together with openMSX an updated version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released. Please read the release notes for details.

2012 August 12 openMSX 0.9.0 released

openMSX 0.9.0—Enigma—improves a lot on accuracy of floppy support, especially by the introduction of support for the DMK format. This means it should be possible to run all MSX disk software without patching it. Furthermore, our efforts to improve performance has some results: start up time has almost halved on a Dingoo A320! Together with openMSX an updated version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released. Please read the release notes for details.

2012 January 25 openMSX 0.8.2 released

openMSX 0.8.2—Small Guy—mostly fixes loads of bugs and adds many smaller features and improvements. Together with openMSX an updated version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released. Please read the release notes for details.

2011 March 12 openMSX 0.8.1 released

openMSX 0.8.1—Tasmania—builds on the previous release, in the sense that we worked out the features a little more. We added a lot of scripts to help you with Tool Assisted Speedruns (TAS), one of the reasons openMSX got officially approved as a TAS capable emulator on tasvideos.org. The reverse feature also got some updates while doing this. For the rest we have again mostly fixed smaller issues and added smaller features. Together with openMSX an updated version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released. Please read the release notes for details.

2010 October 17 openMSX approved for TAS

TASing—Tool-Assisted-Speedrun—is the hobby of creating run-throughs of video games that resemble superhuman-like playing sessions. Its main community web site is tasvideos.org and it has a limited list of approved emulators which can be used to create a new TAS and is accepted for submission. Today, the site announced that openMSX is now officially approved to submit TASes! The first MSX TAS has already been submitted by our team member Vampier, which is of course no surprise. Neither is the game: Metal Gear. Who will improve his speedrun and submit a better TAS? The game is on!

2010 June 6 openMSX 0.8.0 released

openMSX 0.8.0—CSI Dresal—includes two major new features: reverse and Laserdisc. Reverse is similar to what you can do in meisei: you can 'rewind' time with your finger tip, to correct game playing mistakes or inspect what caused a crash. Laserdisc is the Palcom system introduced by Pioneer in 1984: now you can play all the Palcom MSX Laserdisc games in openMSX! With this release we also provide a first official binary package for Dingux on your Dingoo hand held. For the rest we have mostly fixed smaller issues and added smaller features. Together with openMSX an updated version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released. Please read the release notes for details.

2009 June 30 openMSX 0.7.2 released

As promised, openMSX 0.7.2 is now available, identical to 0.7.1, except for the already mentioned bug fix. Enjoy!

2009 June 29 openMSX 0.7.2 will be here soon...

Oops, we found a problem in openMSX 0.7.1, just after we had released it... Due to a small bug in a Tcl script, openMSX wasn't able to load savestates with paths that contain spaces, which is the most common case on standard Windows installations. 0.7.2 will be available very soon to fix that.

2009 June 28 openMSX 0.7.1 released

openMSX 0.7.1—IWCA approved—includes a brand new installer with binaries which have been created in a brand new way, using Microsoft Visual C++ 2008. This means smaller binaries and also support for 64-bit Windows operating systems. Also, several long standing problems have been fixed in the Windows release of openMSX. E.g., it now includes full support for unicode! For the rest we have mostly fixed smaller issues and added some cool demonstrations of what one can do with the combination of (Tcl) scripting, the debug command and the OSD. Together with openMSX an updated version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released. Please read the release notes for details.

2009 January 7 openMSX 0.7.0 released

openMSX 0.7.0—Lazarus—includes the long awaited save states feature, fully automatic host to MSX keyboard mapping and an improved dir-as-disk feature with full transparency. Furthermore, we have added a technology preview of our new On-Screen-Display. Also we have an even better performance and several other enhancements and bug fixes on many places. Together with openMSX an updated version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released. Please read the release notes for details.

2007 December 11 openMSX 0.6.3 released

openMSX 0.6.3—Crystal Clear—includes advanced resampling for aliasing-free sound, a stereo balance setting for each sound chip, recording of separate channels, PSG detune and vibrato and some non-sound-related improvements as well. Also, a hang on Windows PCs with multi-core/HT CPUs is fixed. Together with openMSX an updated version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released. Please read the release notes for details.

2007 August 27 No Windows support anymore??

We've said it before: we need someone in our team to help us maintain the Windows port of openMSX. At the moment there is no one who provides us structural support for the Windows port. Without a person who can very regularly build and test openMSX and help in case of (rare) Windows specific issues, we cannot maintain the Windows port any longer. We may find a way to build the next release, but even that is uncertain; if we can manage, it will most likely be released (much) later than the Source and Mac versions. If you care and you want to help: please contact us as soon as possible!

2007 April 15 openMSX 0.6.2 released

openMSX 0.6.2—Oscar—includes video recording, more realistic PSG and SCC sound, significant optimizations, easier to use game trainers, as well as a lot of other improvements and bugfixes. Together with openMSX a new version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released. Please read the release notes for details.

2006 September 17 openMSX moves to Subversion

Today we moved the main openMSX project to Subversion (SVN). This means that you have to use a different way to get the latest openMSX sources now. It is explained in the updated online manual, in the Compilation Guide. Snapshots are now also taken from SVN. We removed the snapshot of Catapult, because Catapult as has been released so far is pronounced dead. A rewrite using Python and Qt4 is in the works though. You can get a snapshot of that project, instead.

Other news that we forgot to post here: there is a universal binary available for Mac OS X users, see the download section.

2006 July 31 openMSX 0.6.1 released

openMSX 0.6.1—Chernoton Meltdown—includes runtime switchable machines and extensions, a lot of new video filters (some of which use pixel shaders), as well as a lot of other improvements and bugfixes. Together with openMSX a new version of Catapult, our user-friendly GUI, was released. Please read the release notes for details.

2006 July 23 Web site restyled

A redesign of the openMSX web site was long overdue. And with the restructuring of the site, we've also included 2 different layouts. Hurray for CSS :-)

2006 July 23 openMSX needs you!

That is, if you've got some spare time and want to develop fun software for Windows. The openMSX team desperately needs Windows developers, both for coding on the openMSX code itself, and also for Catapult. Don't hesitate! Fire up you IRC client and visit us at #openmsx on Freenode.net. We won't bite. Really!