Master System emulators
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The Sega Master System (SMS) was an 8-bit console released by Sega in 1985-1989. It was designed to be a direct competitor to the Nintendo Entertainment System, as well as being technically superior to it. There is a lot of technical similarities between the SMS and the Game Gear (GG). Notably, SMS game cartridges can be played on the Game Gear by use of an adapter. For this reason, most SMS emulators can also run GG games.
Emulators
| Name | Operating System(s) | Latest Version | SMS | GG | Mega Drive | Sega CD | 32x | Libretro Core | Recommended |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kega Fusion | Windows, Linux, OS X | 3.64 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ |
| GenesisPlusGX* | Multiplatform | 1.7.4 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| PicoDrive | Windows, Linux | 1.80 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ |
| BizHawk | Windows | 1.5.2 | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ |
| TwoMbit | Windows, Mac, Linux | 1.0.5 | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
*Only available on PC as a libretro core (e.g. RetroArch).
| Name | Operating System(s) | Latest Version | SMS | GG | Mega Drive | Sega CD | 32x | Libretro Core | Recommended |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MasterBoy | PlayStation Portable | 2.10 | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| GenesisPlusGX | Wii, Gamecube | 1.7.4 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| PicoDrive | PSP, ARM Devices | 1.80 | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ | ✓ |
Comparisons
GenesisPlusGX has very high compatibility/accuracy.
Kega Fusion also has high compatibility and offers 32x support.
TwoMbit is a cycle accurate emulator for SG-1000, Master System and Gamegear.
