It’s January 1982. Commodore launches a legend at CES. The Commodore 64 conquered the world and was sold in almost unchanged form until 1994. If you want to revive old times, you can also emulate the Commodore 64 on much newer hardware. Read here how that works.
The Commodore 64 is the best-selling computer model ever, with some 17 million units sold. Whoever says home computers says Commodore 64 (or C64). This 8-bit system with 64 kByte RAM on board dominated the market for a period of no less than 12 years, which is unique in the fast-paced world of IT.
At the same time, that C64 also became the impetus for the downfall of Commodore. They could never really match the success of this machine. Under the motto ‘C64 or bust’ it finally came to a bust in 1994. Too bad, because Commodore could have scored very high with the intended successor Amiga.
They were just too late with it, in a market now dominated by MS-DOS and later Windows PCs. Marketing and management failures caused the eventual and final downfall. But the C64 lived on for a long time. Even now, because in recent years the C64-based hardware appeared. More on that later.
Install C64 emulator
First, we’ll look at how to emulate the Commodore 64 on recent hardware. Now emulators – in which software completely different hardware is built than the host system – are a breeze to run on modern computers. Even a complete mainframe from IBM runs like a charm on the average PC. However, some speed is required to emulate the case in real-time, which is necessary to realize the best user experience.
If you don’t want to delve too deeply into configuring the C64 emulator, there is a ready-made package: C64 Forever. The heart is formed by the open source emulator VICE, but at the same time various games and preconfigured emulator settings are included, as well as legal ROMs with the operating system of the Commodore 64.
The maker of C64 forever – Cloanto – has the official license for these ROMS. As far as the emulator is concerned, you can choose from a free but limited version or a Plus version that unlocks all possibilities. There is also a boxed version of the Plus version that will be delivered on CD, for enthusiasts.
Scanlines and GEOS
Practical tip: after installation and starting for the first time, click in the menu Tools on Options, followed by a click on the tab Emulation in the open window. Then switch under Video and Filter the option Scanlines or CRT Phosphors in. Many programmers used to take advantage of the TV resolutions and ‘shortcomings’ of picture tubes to achieve certain effects. If you leave these options off, you will quickly get a very blocky and ‘hard’ experience when using the emulator.
You can also tweak the emulator’s accuracy here as well as all sorts of other settings. The default settings have been arranged by Cloanto to provide a good user experience on most PCs. But if you have a faster system, we would say use it.
In the main C64 forever window you will find both games and a long list of demos, ready to run. Here you can see the still extensive graphics capabilities that the C64 possesses, and you can hear another revolutionary part of the computer: the legendary SID sound chip.
Be sure to check out the item Systems, you can also start other Commodore systems with this. And for enthusiasts there is also GEOS, the revolutionary graphics operating system that was developed for the C64.
Install VICE
As mentioned, VICE is the underlying emulator, you can download it for free here. You will miss the slick user experience that Cloanto’s package has to offer. And also the necessary ROMs are missing. But you can probably find it somewhere with a little Googling.
Download a binary (or executable program) for an operating system of your choice. Both Windows, macOS and Linux are supported in terms of versions. Avoid the ‘nightly builds’, which are mostly unstable beta and sometimes even alpha versions!
As soon as you click on a download link you will be redirected to the download site SourceForge. It doesn’t have a very good reputation (anymore) when it comes to tempting you to click on all kinds of links that only give you spam and spyware. What you have to do is nothing at all as soon as the page is opened, after about five to ten seconds the desired download starts, which you can then find in the download folder of your browser or of course a location of your choice. Just to be sure, run a virus scanner over it.
Unzip the downloaded file to (a folder on) the c drive in case of Windows system. You start one of the available Commodore machines by browsing to the Vice folder and opening the bin folder in it. X64c.exe start the C64 emulator. Nice detail: the required ROMs were already present in the version we downloaded, which was not always the case and in any case saves a lot of hassle!
Want to buy Commodore 64?
The C64 lived on for a long time. Even now, because in recent years the C64-based hardware appeared. Like the C64DTV before, in joystick form. Hidden in it was a 1-chip C64, a feat of ‘maker’ Jeri Ellsworth. She reverse engineered the complete chipset of the Commodore 64 and managed to create a working modern version. Battery operated, plug-and-play connectable to any TV with an analog video input.
In addition, decided Retro Games LTD recently released a revamped version of the popular home computer, the The C64. This time based on an emulator running on a modern ARM system board. The advantage of this method is that updates can be performed.
The The C64 – which at first glance looks like a regular C64 – can handle USB sticks packed with C64 software (in, among other things, .d64 format, or a disk image), so that you can basically store all your old software. can bring it back to life.
The system also has a modern user interface in the form of a carousel. A range of included games are housed here, so you can get started right away, together with the included joystick and HDMI cable. A completely free C64 mode is also available, in which you can do anything you want, including programming in Basic.
There is also the The C64 Mini, without a working keyboard and therefore more aimed at retro gamers. A The VIC 20 by the same maker has now appeared and an Amiga clone is scheduled for March this year. All this stuff is sold like hot cakes. Partly to old hands who want to relive their youth and partly to youth who want to experience ‘the past’ – but without too much hassle.
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