Really? Well ok, for a start with Haxchi: This is interesting as it stops the web stuff. Although not THAT much of a big deal for me as I had a way around this anyway - I used my pc running a web exploit server incase it ever disappeared from the web. I'm interested in Retroarch - Can that be run without having to do any Haxchi stuff and just using the access method I have to the homebrew channel already?
Well, first of all, yes, RetroArch can be used without Haxchi, just with the regular web exploit. But Haxchi has its own set of advantages that make it the superior option (IMO). For starters, you can boot into a signature patched Home Menu, which allows you to install The Homebrew Launcher as a system title, meaning you can boot it directly without having to go through the web exploit. Granted, the only scenario that takes full advantage of this is if you're coldbooting into patched sysNAND.
RPX RetroArch has better compatibility than the ELF versions, though. I think you need a patched sysNAND to use them, but I may be mistaken.
Anyway - So I'll have to get a DS game, so I'll have to unblock all my dns settings. Once I've got a DS game and started the Haxchi install process, it seems to modify the rom to launch a fw.img file. There is no fw.img in any Haxchi zips I've downloaded..? What? Will I risk bricking the system doing this without a fw.img? Where could i grab a safe fw.img.
Unfortunately, fw.img has to be compiled by the user, since it contains copyrighted data. But luckily, Dimok has created
a completely copyright-content-free signature patcher that can be used instead of the fw.img. When you make you configuration for your Haxchi install, make it point by default to that file instead of the fw.img and it should boot automatically into it.
This is before I've even thought about replacing all my back up loadiine enabled games with ones with 'tickets', etc, which I understand is a slow process to get from my disks? Pretty annoying when I have them there on SD already, just to get them all on a much bigger USB storage solution (which would be great long term I admit!)
You have two options to "transform" your physical games into digital versions. The first one is to dump your games with Wudump, turn them into .app installable files with wud2app and then install them with Wudinstaller Y Mod. You don't need to modify your tickets for this to work, since Wudump does it automatically. The (shadier) alternative is to use a tool like
Wii U USB Helper to download the files from Nintendo's servers, which is more of a grey moral area but a much faster method for getting your games into a digital format.
Forgive me, I'm confused as to why the Loadiine method is more complicated than this? The only added bonus for myself I can see is the extra storage of using a USB device to hold my disk games. I just don't want to spend literally days to end up in a situation not too different than what I have now...
Easy of use and access is one of the main advantages, if you ask me. Once you have the games installed on your HDD, they behave the same as any game downloaded from the eShop. You don't need to boot the Homebrew Launcher and then another app to play them. Morever, compatibility is 100% perfect, while Loadiine is slow to load, very fickle about the names of the folders and not fully compatible with every game.
Think of the two methods like this: the USB method is like having a shortcut to a game on your desktop. Loadiine is like having to first boot up Steam and then boot up Steam Big Picture to be able to load your game