Difference between revisions of "Recommended emulators"

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<!--Companies need to be H2 and consoles H3-->All links here will take you to the latest build of that emulator, if you what more info regarding the emulators, either check the [[Emulators]] page.
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== What are recommended emulators? ==
'''<span style="color:#00C000">>THERE ARE NO FUNCTIONAL 3DS, VITA, (PS3 RETAIL GAMES), XBOX 360, OR WII U EMULATORS</span>'''
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Well, they're emulators that are recommended by wiki authors/contributors.
  
==DOS==
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Please consider these while recommending an emulator:
[http://www.emucr.com/search/label/DOSBox?&max-results=12 DOSBox]
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*have high compatibility (and mappers support for systems like [[Nintendo_Entertainment_System_emulators|NES]], [[Game_Boy/Game_Boy_Color_emulators|GB/GBC]], [[Master_System_emulators|SMS/GG]])
==NES/Famicon==
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*various [https://emulation.gametechwiki.com/index.php?title=Special:Search&limit=500&offset=0&profile=default&search=%22%7Chardware+features%22 hardware features] like connectivity, peripherals and special hardware support etc.;
General: [http://0ldsk00l.ca/nestopia.html#downloads Nestopia]
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*offering useful [https://emulation.gametechwiki.com/index.php?search=%22%23Enhancements%7CEnhancements%22&title=Special%3ASearch&limit=500&profile=default&fulltext=1 enhancement features];
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*be capable of running on various modern devices/operating systems and run full speed on [https://store.steampowered.com/hwsurvey/ modern affordable hardware] - ''something like: [https://registry.khronos.org/vulkan/specs/1.3-extensions/man/html/ Vulkan 1.3]/[[Wikipedia:Direct3D#Direct3D_12_levels|D3D12 (12_1)]] GPU with drivers still up-to-date and AVX2 supported CPU'';
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*generally, be usable day-to-day by even the not-so-tech-savvy users;
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*be improved regularly--in other words, be active and, preferably, be open-source (not closed-source), as that ensures that any active programmer can keep the software in shipshape condition and able to run on latest operating systems.
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*[[Emulation_Accuracy|accuracy]]-focused emulators are '''only recommended''' when they're have reasonable amount of compatibility compared to general-use emulators. This one should only be considered for [[Homebrew_and_hack_Roms|Homebrew]], [[Game_engine_recreations_and_source_ports|Game engine recreations and source ports]] and development/developer communities or users that just want to ensure they'll be able to play most games with the least amount of unexpected/unreported glitches or timing issues etc. (Do NOT use "preserve the hardware's inner workings for posterity" mindset for recommendation on emugen wiki)
  
Accuracy: [http://www.emucr.com/search/label/puNES/ puNES] or [http://www.emucr.com/search/label/Nintendulator/ Nintedulator]
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And also there are [https://emulation.gametechwiki.com/index.php/Category:Very_early_emulation very early] or limited options for specific systems like [[Xbox_360_emulators|Xbox 360]], if that is the case, authors/contributors usually "recommend or somewhat recommend" that emulator '''if it has some level of compatibility'''.
==Gameboy/Color==
 
  
Gambatte
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The list of recommended emulators is available on each Console page. Check the console page in [[:Category:Consoles]] and look at the "Recommended" column.
  
==SNES/Super Famicon==
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== What aren't recommended emulators? ==
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Emulators that aren't the best in those categories. They still may be good emulators, and offer many great features, but are not the best option for general users or falls short compared to other emulators.
  
General: [http://www.emucr.com/search/label/Snes9X/ Snes9x]
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And also there are [https://emulation.gametechwiki.com/index.php/Category:Not_yet_emulated unemulated systems] or [https://emulation.gametechwiki.com/index.php/Category:Very_early_emulation very early] emulation systems like [[V.Flash_emulators|V.Flash]], if there are emulators for that system that can't run any of the commercial game or software then do NOT "recommend or somewhat recommend" that emulator (e.g. "just a stub with no actual execution", [[MAME]]'s "MACHINE_SKELETON" state).
  
Accuracy: [[Higan]] (formerly bsnes)
 
 
==Master System/Genesis==
 
 
General: [http://segaretro.org/Kega_Fusion#Downloads Kega Fusion]
 
 
Accuracy: [http://www.emucr.com/search/label/GenesisPlus-GX Genesis Plus GX]
 
==PC Engine/Turbografx-16==
 
General: [http://mednafen.sourceforge.net/ Mednafen]
 
 
Accuracy: [http://mednafen.sourceforge.net/ Mednafen ]
 
 
==Playstation==
 
General: [http://www.emucr.com/search/label/PCSX-Reloaded/ PCSX-Reloaded]
 
 
Accuracy: [http://www.mediafire.com/?v7bdse4b30gxtv3 Xebra] or [[RetroArch|Mednafen]]
 
==Sega Saturn==
 
 
[http://www7a.biglobe.ne.jp/%7Ephantasy/ssf/files/SSF_012_beta_R3.zip SSF]
 
 
==Nintendo 64==
 
General: [[Mupen64Plus]]
 
 
Accuracy: [http://www.emutalk.net/threads/54131-Announcement-Cycle-accurate-N64-development-underway/ CEN64] (Note, it's early in development and won't be useful for quite some time)
 
 
Really N64 emulation is a mess, I'd actually recommend checking out [http://bmgcl.atspace.cc/n64mgcl/N64ConfigList.htm this site] and using the appropriate [http://www.mediafire.com/?6c33nky4jyzc13w emulator/plugin] per game.
 
==GameBoy Advance==
 
General: [http://www.emucr.com/search/label/VisualBoyAdvance-M/ VisualBoy Advance-M]
 
==DreamCast==
 
 
[http://www.emucr.com/search/label/nullDC-optimized/ nullDC]
 
 
==GameCube/Wii==
 
[[Dolphin]]
 
 
==Playstation 2==
 
[[PCSX2]]
 
 
==NDS==
 
[[DeSmuMe]]
 
 
==PSP==
 
General: [http://buildbot.orphis.net/jpcsp/ jPCSP]
 
 
Up-and-coming: [http://buildbot.orphis.net/ppsspp/ PPSSPP]  
 
 
For most audio, you'll need some method of decoding ATRAC3+. FFMPEG plans to cover that, but for now you need [http://forums.sonyinsider.com/files/file/95-sonicstage-43-ultimate-edition/ SonicStage].
 
 
==Multi-System==
 
 
[[Retroarch]]
 
 
[[Category:Recommendations]]
 
[[Category:Recommendations]]

Latest revision as of 19:39, 18 January 2024

What are recommended emulators?[edit]

Well, they're emulators that are recommended by wiki authors/contributors.

Please consider these while recommending an emulator:

  • have high compatibility (and mappers support for systems like NES, GB/GBC, SMS/GG)
  • various hardware features like connectivity, peripherals and special hardware support etc.;
  • offering useful enhancement features;
  • be capable of running on various modern devices/operating systems and run full speed on modern affordable hardware - something like: Vulkan 1.3/D3D12 (12_1) GPU with drivers still up-to-date and AVX2 supported CPU;
  • generally, be usable day-to-day by even the not-so-tech-savvy users;
  • be improved regularly--in other words, be active and, preferably, be open-source (not closed-source), as that ensures that any active programmer can keep the software in shipshape condition and able to run on latest operating systems.
  • accuracy-focused emulators are only recommended when they're have reasonable amount of compatibility compared to general-use emulators. This one should only be considered for Homebrew, Game engine recreations and source ports and development/developer communities or users that just want to ensure they'll be able to play most games with the least amount of unexpected/unreported glitches or timing issues etc. (Do NOT use "preserve the hardware's inner workings for posterity" mindset for recommendation on emugen wiki)

And also there are very early or limited options for specific systems like Xbox 360, if that is the case, authors/contributors usually "recommend or somewhat recommend" that emulator if it has some level of compatibility.

The list of recommended emulators is available on each Console page. Check the console page in Category:Consoles and look at the "Recommended" column.

What aren't recommended emulators?[edit]

Emulators that aren't the best in those categories. They still may be good emulators, and offer many great features, but are not the best option for general users or falls short compared to other emulators.

And also there are unemulated systems or very early emulation systems like V.Flash, if there are emulators for that system that can't run any of the commercial game or software then do NOT "recommend or somewhat recommend" that emulator (e.g. "just a stub with no actual execution", MAME's "MACHINE_SKELETON" state).