Frontends
Frontends are ...
Frontends have different Graphical User Interface (GUI) types. Some use the WIMP type, that uses Windows, Icons, Menus and a Pointer (like a mouse), examples of these interfaces are LaunchBox and OpenEmu. Others are intended for viewing on bigger screen (like a TV or arcade cabinet), and have navigation mostly optimized for game pads or joysticks (they usually also work with keyboards), these types of interfaces are here referred to as HTPC - RetroArch, HyperSpin and MAME's integrated frontend MEWUI are examples of this. There's also Touch interfaces which are intended for smartphones and tablet computers, mostly found in Android frontends.
Contents
Launcher types
These "Launchers" or "Executors" use their own graphical interface to start emulators. They're generally very adaptive and can support different arguments between emulators to ease integration. These frontends can be used with almost any emulator of your choosing, as long as they support command-line arguments.
Name | Platform(s) | Latest Version | Interface | FOSS | Active | Recommended |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
PC / x86 | ||||||
LaunchBox | 10.0 | WIMP, HTPC[A 1] | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | |
Attract-Mode | 2.6.1 | HTPC | ✓ | ✓ | ? | |
Nostlan | 1.6.0 | WIMP | ✓ | ✓ | ? | |
Pegasus | Alpha 13 | HTPC | ✓ | ✓ | ? | |
RetroFE | 0.9.0 | HTPC | ✓ | ✓ | ? | |
EmulationStation | 2.0.1a | HTPC | ✓ | ✗ | ? | |
HyperSpin | 1.5.1 | HTPC | ✗ | ✗ | ? | |
Mobile / ARM | ||||||
LaunchBox | 0.33 ($) | Touch | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | |
Attract-Mode | 2.6.1 | HTPC | ✓ | ✓ | ? | |
Pegasus | Alpha 13 | HTPC, Touch | ✓ | ✓ | ? | |
EmulationStation | 2.0.1a | HTPC | ✓ | ? | ? | |
HyperSpin | 1.1 | Touch | ✗ | ✗ | ? |
- ↑ This feature is called Big Box and is only available in the paid version.
Comparisons
- LaunchBox
- Was originally built as an attractive front-end for DOSBox but has since expanded to support both modern PC games and emulated console platforms. It comes with an integrated metadata scraper, and the interface is highly customizable, likely the most customizable alongside HyperSpin, but only with a license for the premium version. Premium also includes Big Box, which is an HTPC version of the frontend. Launchbox can also be launched natively from Kodi.
Integrated emulator types
These "frontends" have a graphical user interface that lets you launch emulators that are included with the system, meaning it's not possible (or very difficult) to incorporate other emulators. They may or may not contain original emulator cores. If a program has mostly original cores, then it's called a multi-system emulator and is not included here.
Name | Platform(s) | Latest Version | Active | Recommended | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
PC / x86 | |||||||
OpenEmu | 2.4.1 | ✓ | ✓ | ||||
BizHawk | 2.9.1 | ✓ | ? | ||||
RetroPie | 4.5.1 | ✓ | ? | ||||
Mobile / ARM | |||||||
RetroPie | 4.5.1 | ✓ | ✓ |
Comparisons
- OpenEmu
- A frontend for various emulators that runs under macOS.
Launcher mods
These programs aren't launchers themselves, but instead tools for changing other launchers.
Name | Platform(s) | Latest Version | Active | Recommended | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
PC / x86 | |||||||
Steam ROM Manager | 2.2.22 | ✓ | ? | ||||
Ice | 1.0.0 | ✗ | ✗ |
Comparisons
- Steam ROM Manager
- A tool that adds emulator launching capabilities to the Steam client.
Project-specific Frontends
Libretro
Name | Platform(s) | Core support | Interface | Latest Version | Open-Source | Active | Recommended |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
PC / x86 | |||||||
RetroArch | Full[B 1] | HTPC, WIMP[C 1] | 1.19.0 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
Ludo | Most non GL cores | HTPC | 0.10.4 | ✓ | ✓ | ? | |
minir | Limited | WIMP | Git | ~ | ✗ | ✗ | |
Phoenix | Limited | WIMP | 0.0.1 (pre-alpha) | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | |
Mobile / ARM | |||||||
RetroArch | Full [B 1] | HTPC, Touch | 1.19.0 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | |
Ludo | Most non GL cores | HTPC | 0.10.4 | ✓ | ✓ | ? | |
Lemuroid | Limited | Touch | 1.0.0 | ✓ | ✓ | ? | |
Blast16 | Genesis Plus GX, PicoDrive | HTPC | 1.0.18 (2020-01-18) | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | |
SNESES | Snes9X? | HTPC | 1.0.7 (2020-01-22) | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ | |
Consoles | |||||||
RetroArch | Full[B 1] | HTPC | 1.19.0 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
- ↑ Press F5 for WIMP interface. Only available on Windows and Linux.
Comparison
- RetroArch
- The flagship project for libretro, and the most widely available.
MAME
MAME was originally designed as a command line program. However, when the project relicensed as open source in February 2016, they merged the frontend MEWUI into the main project as part of the MAME executable. MEWUI uses the ten-foot interface philosophy which accounts for large television displays where the user is expected to use a TV remote-like input device to navigate the menus. However, MAME still supports command line arguments, so many old launchers still work with newer versions.
Name | Platform(s) | Latest Version | Active | Recommended | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
PC / x86 | |||||||
QMC2 | 0.195 | ✓ | ? | ||||
MAMEUI64 | 0.266 | ✓ | ? | ||||
Negatron | 0.99.7 | ✓ | ? | ||||
Mobile / ARM |
Mednafen
Mednafen is a command line program with no graphical interface whatsoever. These programs generally ease the process of launching games, but doesn't address things like controller configuration which is done by pressing hotkeys in-game.
Name | Platform(s) | Latest Version | Active | Recommended | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
PC / x86 | |||||||
Mednaffe | 0.8.8 | ✓ | ✓ | ||||
MedGui Reborn | 0.110 | ✓ | ? | ||||
MedLaunch | 0.5.25.3 | ✗ | ? | ||||
MedGui | 1.99999 | ✗ | ✗ |
Others
Name | Emulator | Platform(s) | Latest Version | Active | Recommended | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
PC / x86 | |||||||
Mupen64Plus-Qt | Mupen64Plus | 1.14 | ✓ | ? | |||
mupen64plus-gui / m64p | Mupen64Plus | Git (frontend only) 2020-02-19 (m64p package) |
✓ | ? | |||
Sega Model 2 UI | Model 2 Emulator | WIP 2019-04-02 | ✗ | ? | |||
Sega Model 3 UI | Supermodel | WIP 2019-04-12 | ✗ | ? | |||
MedSat | Mednafen (Saturn core) | 1.8 | ✗ | ? |