10,786
edits
Changes
Jump to navigation
Jump to search
! scope="col"|[[Game_Boy_Advance_emulators|<abbr title="The Nintendo DS is backward compatible with Game Boy Advance (GBA) cartridges. Should not be confused with GBA/DS connectivity, see connectivity section for that.">GBA</abbr>]]
! scope="col"|[[Nintendo DSi emulators|DSi]]
|{{✗}}[https://melonds.kuribo64.net/board/thread.php?id=1229 *] ||{{✓}} ||{{~}} ||{{~}} ||{{N}} ||[https://melonds.kuribo64.net/board/forum.php?id=3 ?] ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}}
|{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{~}} ||{{~}} ||{{~}} ||? ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}}
|{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{~}} ||{{~}} ||{{~}} ||? ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{~}}
|{{✓}} ||{{~}} ||{{N}} ||{{~}} ||{{?}} ||? ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{~}}
|{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{?}} ||{{?}} ||{{~}} ||? ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} <small>(WIP)</small>
|{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} <small>(WIP)</small>
|{{✓}} ||{{✗}}[https://mgba.io/timeline.html#IN+THE+FUTURE *] ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✓}} || {{~}}<ref name="medusa suspended"/>||{{✗}} <small>(WIP)</small>
|{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} <small>(WIP)</small>
|{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}}<ref>https://corgids.wordpress.com/2018/02/12/extended-break/</ref> ||{{✗}}
|{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}}
|{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}}
|{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}}
|{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}}
|{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}}
|{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}}
|{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}}
|{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{?}} ||{{?}} ||{{?}} ||? ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}}
|{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||[https://pandorawiki.org/DraStic_Compatibility_List 68%<br/><small> 49 out of 73 reported titles (Pandora) </small>][https://xdaforums.com/t/drastic-ds-updated-to-v2-1-5-1a-xplay-compatibility-list-over-100-games-playable.2396919/ 88%<br/><small> 127 out of 145 reported titles (Android) </small>] ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}}
|{{✗}}[https://melonds.kuribo64.net/board/thread.php?id=1229 *] ||{{~}} ||{{~}} ||{{~}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{~}} <small>(WIP)</small>
|{{✗}} ||{{~}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{~}}
|{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} <small>(WIP)</small>
|{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} <small>(WIP)</small>
|{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}}
|{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}}
|{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}}
|{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||<small>[[Wikipedia:Virtual_Console#Titles_3|Only for selected titles]]</small> ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}}
|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}}
|{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{?}} ||{{?}} ||{{?}} ||? ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}}
|{{✗}}[https://melonds.kuribo64.net/board/thread.php?id=1229 *] ||{{✓}} ||{{?}} ||{{?}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{~}} <small>(WIP)</small>
|{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{~}} <small>(WIP)</small>
|{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||[[DeSmuME PSP|26%<br/><small>16 out of 63 reported titles </small>]] ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{~}}
|{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{~}}
|{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||? ||{{✗}} <small>(POC)</small> ||{{✗}}
! DeSmuME
| {{~}}
| {{✗}}
| {{✗}}
| {{✗}}
there is already dedicated DSi page, no need to bloat this page. Also GBA part fixed, now it's called backwards compatibility as it should be. Other minor stuff etc.
! scope="col"|Platform(s)
! scope="col"|Latest Version
! scope="col"|[[#Enhancements|Enhancements]]
! scope="col"|[[#ConnectivityHardware_features_and_accessories|Connectivity]]! scope="col"|[[#Special_hardware|Special hardwareHardware features<br/>and accessories]]
! scope="col"|<small>Compatibility</small>
! scope="col"|<abbr title="Free/Libre and Open-Source Software">FLOSS</abbr>
! scope="col"|[[Recommended emulators|Recommended]]
|-
!colspan="1310"|PC / x86
|-
|[[melonDS]]
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS|FreeBSD}}
|Dev Builds<ref group=N>[https://nightly.link/melonDS-emu/melonDS/workflows/build-windows/master/melonDS-windows-x86_64.zip Windows], [https://nightly.link/melonDS-emu/melonDS/workflows/build-ubuntu/master/melonDS-ubuntu-x86_64.zip Ubuntu], [https://nightly.link/melonDS-emu/melonDS/workflows/build-macos-universal/master/macOS-universal.zip macOS-universal]</ref><br/>[http://melonds.kuribo64.net/downloads.php {{MelonDSVer}}]<br/>[https://buildbot.libretro.com/nightly/ libretro core]<ref group=N name=melonDSRA>melonDS libretro core two versions out of date (still on 0.9.3), and the generation 5 Pokemons are broken. If you turn on C-Gear, after a few minutes you'll be unable to save. [https://github.com/libretro/melonDS/issues/179#issuecomment-1407488464 '''You also can't use any wifi features'''] or do in game trades either or the game will freeze.</ref>
|-
|[[DeSmuME]]
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS|Web}}
|[https://desmume.org/download/ {{DeSmuMEVer}}]<br/>[https://buildbot.libretro.com/nightly/ libretro core]
|-
|[[BizHawk]]<abbr title="Uses melonDS 0.9.5 core for nintendo DS and DSi emulation, mGBA or VBA-Next cores for Game Boy Advance emulation">*</abbr>
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux}}
|[https://gitlab.com/TASVideos/BizHawk/-/pipelines Dev builds]<br/>[http://tasvideos.org/BizHawk/ReleaseHistory.html {{BizHawkVer}}]
|-
|[[No$|No$GBA]]
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|DOS}}
|[http://problemkaputt.de/gba.htm {{No$GBAVer}}]
|-
|[[GBE+]]
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS}}
|[https://github.com/shonumi/gbe-plus/releases {{GBEVer}}]
|-
|[[NooDS]]
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS}}
|[https://github.com/Hydr8gon/NooDS/releases git]
|-
|[[mGBA#medusa|mGBA/medusa]]
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS}}
|[https://mgba.io/downloads.html#medusa alpha 2]
|-
|[[SkyEmu]]
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS}}
|[https://github.com/skylersaleh/SkyEmu/pull/321 Dev Builds]<br/>[https://github.com/skylersaleh/SkyEmu/releases v3]
|-
|[https://corgids.wordpress.com/ CorgiDS]
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS}}
|[https://github.com/PSI-Rockin/CorgiDS/releases git]<br />[http://www.emucr.com/search/label/CorgiDS SVN]
|-
|ndsemu
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows}}
|[https://github.com/rasky/ndsemu git]
|-
|[https://web.archive.org/web/20110225190819/http://neonds.com/ NeonDS]
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows}}
|[https://web.archive.org/web/20100925152735/http://neonds.com/system/files/NeonDS_0.2.1.zip 0.2.1]
|-
|dasShiny
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux}}
|[https://github.com/Cydrak/dasShiny git]
|-
|[http://ds-duos.blogspot.com/ DuoS]
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows}}
|[http://www.emulator-zone.com/download.php/emulators/nds/duos/DuoS.zip 8/25/2012 Beta]
|-
|[[Ensata]]
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows}}
|[http://www.mediafire.com/file/x0odmalrndt9m7a/Ensata+v1.4d.rar 1.4d]
|-
|[https://web.archive.org/web/20111130005614/http://ideasemu.biz/ iDeaS]
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux}}
|[http://www.emulator-zone.com/files/emulators/nds/ideas/ideas1040.7z 1.0.4.0]
|-
|dust
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|Mac|Web}}
|[https://github.com/kelpsyberry/dust git]
|-
!colspan="1310"|Mobile / ARM
|-
|<small>[https://docs.libretro.com/library/desmume/ DeSmuME_libretro]</small>
|align=left|{{Icon|Android|iOS}}
|[https://buildbot.libretro.com/nightly/ libretro core]
|-
|[[DraStic]]
|align=left|{{Icon|Android|Pandora|Pyra}}
|[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.dsemu.drastic&hl=en_US&gl=US {{DraSticVer}}]<br>[https://pyra-handheld.com/repo/apps/32 0.1 Pyra]
|-
|[[melonDS]]<small> (unofficial)</small><br/><small>[https://docs.libretro.com/library/melonds/ melonds_libretro]</small>
|align=left|{{Icon|Android|iOS}}
|[https://github.com/rafaelvcaetano/melonDS-android git]<br/>[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=me.magnum.melonds 1.8.0]<br/>[https://buildbot.libretro.com/nightly/ libretro core]<ref group=N name=melonDSRA></ref>
|-
|[[Delta]]
|align=left|{{Icon|iOS}}
|[https://github.com/rileytestut/Delta git]
|-
|[[SkyEmu]]
|align=left|{{Icon|Android|iOS}}
|[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.sky.SkyEmu v3.2] (Play)[https://www.amazon.com/SkyEmu-GBC-GBA-NDS-Emulator/dp/B0CGHK8QP5 v3.2] (Amazon)[https://github.com/skylersaleh/SkyEmu git]
|-
|[[NooDS]]
|align=left|{{Icon|Android}}
|[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.hydra.noods 0.1]<br/>[https://github.com/Hydr8gon/NooDS/releases git]
|-
|[https://inds.nerd.net/ iNDS]<br/><small>(nds4ios-derived)</small><br/><small>(DeSmuME-based)</small>
|align=left|{{Icon|iOS}}
|[https://github.com/iNDS-Team/iNDS/releases git]
|-
|nds4ios
|align=left|{{Icon|iOS}}
|[http://nds4ios.angelxwind.net/i/?page/downloads SVN]
|-
|[http://jeffq.com/blog/nds4droid/ nds4droid]<br/><small>(DeSmuME-based)</small>
|align=left|{{Icon|Android}}
|[https://github.com/jquesnelle/nds4droid git]
|-
!colspan="1310"|Console
|-
|[[Virtual Console]]
|align=left|{{Icon|WiiU}}
|
|-
|TWL_FIRM
|align=left|{{Icon|3DS}}
|N/A
|-
|<small>[https://docs.libretro.com/library/desmume/ DeSmuME_libretro]</small>
|align=left|{{Icon|Switch|PS4}}<br/>{{Icon|Vita}}
|[https://www.retroarch.com/ 0.9.13]
|-
|[[melonDS]]<br/><small>[https://docs.libretro.com/library/melonds/ melonds_libretro]</small>
|align=left|{{Icon|Switch|Vita}}<br/>{{Icon|PS2}}
|[https://buildbot.libretro.com/nightly/ libretro core]<ref group=N name=melonDSRA></ref><br/>[https://github.com/rsduck/melonDS/releases git]<small> (Switch)</small><br/>[https://github.com/Rinnegatamante/melonDS-Vita git]<small>(Vita Port)</small><br/>[https://github.com/DanielSant0s/melonDS-PS2 git]<small> (PS2 Port)</small><br/>
|-
|[[NooDS]]
|align=left|{{Icon|Switch|Vita}}<br/>{{Icon|PSP}}
|[https://github.com/Hydr8gon/NooDS git]<small> (Switch/Vita)</small><br/>[https://github.com/Xiro28/NooDS_PSP git] <small>(PSP port)</small>
|-
|[[DeSmuME PSP]]
|align=left|{{Icon|PSP}}
|[https://cdn.discordapp.com/attachments/590011753849421846/870274164748079104/desmume_psp_4.zip V4][https://github.com/Xiro28/DeSmuME-PSP git][https://github.com/Xiro28/desmume_psp_experimental Exp.]
|-
|DesmumeX
|align=left|{{Icon|Xbox}}
|[https://www.1emulation.com/forums/topic/35774-desmumex-v087-new-update 0.87]
|-
|[[DeSmuME PSP|DSonPSP]]
|align=left|{{Icon|PSP}}
|[https://wololo.net/downloads/index.php/download/1235 0.7]
|}
</div>
<references group=N />
<references group=N3/>
==ConnectivityHardware features and accessories==The DS offers five types of connections:* '''Local wireless communications''' - ''(Multiple cartridges)''* '''DS Download Play''' - ''(Single cartridge)''* '''Wi-Fi Connection''' - ''(Online multiplayer)''* '''DS/Wii connectivity'''* '''GBA/DS connectivity''' The major challenge with emulating multiplayer functionalities is timing inaccuracies, which have made many projects, such as DeSmuME, not want to implement them. So far, the only emulator to actually make any progress is melonDS, but even that is still under development.
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; vertical-align:middle;"
|- style="font-weight:bold;"
| colspan=2 | Name! NameDeSmuME
! melonDS
! No$GBA
! GBE+
! mGBA/medusa
|-
| rowspan=5 | [[#Connectivity|Connectivity]]
| [[#GBA/DS connectivity|GBA/DS connectivity]]
| {{✓}}
|-
| [[#Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection|Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection]]
| {{~}}
| {{✓}}
| {{✗}}
|
|-
| [[#Local wireless communication|Local wireless communication]]
| {{✗}}
| {{~}}
| {{✗}}
|
|-
| [[#DS Download Play|DS Download Play]]
| {{✗}}
| {{~}}
| {{✗}}
|
|-
| [[#DS/Wii connectivity|DS/Wii connectivity]]
| {{✗}}
| {{✗}}[https://github.com/melonDS-emu/melonDS/issues/1000 *]
| {{✗}}
|
|
|
|}<references group=N2/>===Local wireless communication===Players who have a copy of the same game can link together using the DS's wireless signals (given that the game offers this feature). melonDS supports wireless communication with several games, including ''New Super Mario Bros.'' and the ''Pokémon'' games, but you need to have either multiple instances opened, which can slow down overall performance, or connect multiple computers via LAN. No$GBA can connect but fails before the actual connection is finished. ===DS Download Play===This feature allows players with a DS and only one copy of a game to play together. This way, not everyone needs a copy of a game. The player with the physical cartridge will host the game while the other players connect using a "downloaded" version received from the host. Normally they are either simple mini-games, stripped-down demos of the main game, or a limited version of multiplayer. In most cases, it's better to use multi-cart instead. However, some games, like ''Mario Party DS'', require Download Play to use its multiplayer. Download Play is supported by melonDS. Like with local multiplayer, it is very hit and miss but unlocking the framerate helps. melonDS will often fail during the download process, but some games actually go as far as booting and sometimes in-game as well. | colspan===Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection=== Nintendo had an online service that was available for the Wii and the DS that was free to use. It was shut down on May 20, 2014, due to the company GameSpy, the ones who were managing these servers, shutting down its multiplayer services after being bought out. A popular game that used this feature was ''Mario Kart DS''. There was a third-party DeSmuME fork that successfully emulated WFC but has quite a bit of requirement (Ethernet cable, though this can be circumvented with external software). After the service shutdown, there was a version compatible with the fan servers (restoring all DLC data, but sadly, most multiplayer games had their content lost forever). melonDS is one of the only emulators to offer Wi-Fi capabilities. It's still a work-in-progress, but it works relatively well. Thanks to 2 | [[Preservation_projects#Backwards_compatibility_for_Game_Boy_Advance|revivial projectsBackwards compatibility for Game Boy Advance]] like [https://wiimmfi.de/ Wimmfi], [https://kaeru.world/projects/wfc Kaeru] or [https://github.com/barronwaffles/dwc_network_server_emulator/wiki AltWFC/DWC]; emulation of Nintendo's WFC servers is now possible..| {{✗}}*| {{✗}}[https://melonds.kuribo64.net/board/thread.php?id=285 Tutorial: How to Connect to WFC in MelonDS1229 *]:See [[Preservation_projects|Preservation projects]] page for more information about other revive projects. ===DS/Wii connectivity===Uses wireless communication on the DS to connect to the Wii. The idea is parallel to the GBA Link Cable for the GameCube, and just like the Link Cable, [https://nintendo.fandom.com/wiki/Wii-to-DS_connectivity only a handful of games actually have this feature]. Some notable examples include: * ''Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time'' - which is essentially the same as the DS port but can connect with other DSes with the game.* ''Pokémon Battle Revolution'' - in which players could transfer their Pokémon from the Generation IV main series games and use the DS as a controller. * ''Animal Crossing: City Folk'' - in which data could be transferred between the DS version (''Animal Crossing: Wild World''), and the ''Nintendo Channel'' on the Wii, where players could download demos of DS games to their console using Download Play (basically the same idea as the Download Station kiosk). So far, no emulator has been able to emulate this feature, nor have attempted to. If this were ever going to be emulated, it would require work on both ends. ===GBA/DS connectivity===Inserting a GBA cartridge in the Slot-2 of the Nintendo DS while a game is running can unlock various gameplay features for [https://nintendo.fandom.com/wiki/List_of_Nintendo_DS_games_with_GBA_connectivity several DS games]. It's unknown if No$GBA supports this, but it can be done in DeSmuME by going to Config > Slot 2 (GBA Slot) and selecting GBA Cartridge. Select the GBA ROM file, and make sure its <code>.sav</code> file is in the same folder. You may need to reset the game for it to take effect. As of version 0.9, [https://melonds.kuribo64.net/comments.php?id=110 melonDS supports GBA connectivity] and even added support for the solar sensor on GBA Boktai cartridges used in Boktai DS (Lunar Knight), something DeSmuME has yet to support. Either drag and drop the GBA ROM onto the program before starting or open the file before loading the NDS file. ==Special hardware=={{✗}}| {{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; vertical-align:middle;"✗}}|- style="font-weight:bold;"{{✗}}| colspan=2 | Name! DeSmuME! melonDS! No$GBA! GBE+! SkyEmu! mGBA/medusa{{✗}}
|-
| colspan=2 | Guitar Hero pad
| {{✓}}
| {{✗}}<ref group=N3 N2 name=Slot2MelonDS>If this [https://github.com/melonDS-emu/melonDS/pull/719 Pull request] gets merged, we could see Slot 2 peripherals supported on MelonDS.</ref>
| {{✗}}
| {{✗}}
| colspan=2 | Piano for Easy Piano
| {{✓}}
| {{✗}}<ref group=N3 N2 name=Slot2MelonDS></ref>
| {{✗}}
| {{✗}}
| colspan=2 | Taito paddle controller
| {{✓}}
| {{✗}}<ref group=N3 N2 name=Slot2MelonDS></ref>
| {{✗}}
| {{✗}}
| colspan=2 | Rumble pack
| {{✓}}
| {{✗}}<ref group=N3 N2 name=Slot2MelonDS></ref>
| {{✗}}
| {{✗}}
| colspan=2 | Tilt sensor
| {{✗}}
| {{✗}}<ref group=N3 N2 name=Slot2MelonDS></ref>
| {{✗}}
| {{✗}}
|-
| colspan=2 | Slide controller
| {{✗}}<ref group=N3 N2 name=SlideControllerDeSmuME> There is an open [https://github.com/TASEmulators/desmume/pull/737 pull request] that implements support for this add-on.</ref>| {{✗}}<ref group=N3 N2 name=Slot2MelonDS></ref>
| {{✗}}
| {{✗}}
|-
| colspan=2 | Sega Card Reader
| {{Y}}<ref group=N3 N2 name=CardReaderDeSmuME>Supported in the latest nightly builds, on Windows only.</ref>
| {{TBD}}
| {{TBD}}
| {{✗}}
|}
<references group=N3N2/>===Connectivity===The DS offers five types of connections:* '''Local wireless communications''' - ''(Multiple cartridges)''* '''DS Download Play''' - ''(Single cartridge)''* '''Wi-Fi Connection''' - ''(Online multiplayer)''* '''DS/Wii connectivity'''* '''GBA/DS connectivity''' The major challenge with emulating multiplayer functionalities is timing inaccuracies, which have made many projects, such as DeSmuME, not want to implement them. So far, the only emulator to actually make any progress is melonDS, but even that is still under development. ====Local wireless communication====Players who have a copy of the same game can link together using the DS's wireless signals (given that the game offers this feature). melonDS supports wireless communication with several games, including ''New Super Mario Bros.'' and the ''Pokémon'' games, but you need to have either multiple instances opened, which can slow down overall performance, or connect multiple computers via LAN. No$GBA can connect but fails before the actual connection is finished. ====DS Download Play====This feature allows players with a DS and only one copy of a game to play together. This way, not everyone needs a copy of a game. The player with the physical cartridge will host the game while the other players connect using a "downloaded" version received from the host. Normally they are either simple mini-games, stripped-down demos of the main game, or a limited version of multiplayer. In most cases, it's better to use multi-cart instead. However, some games, like ''Mario Party DS'', require Download Play to use its multiplayer. Download Play is supported by melonDS. Like with local multiplayer, it is very hit and miss but unlocking the framerate helps. melonDS will often fail during the download process, but some games actually go as far as booting and sometimes in-game as well. ====Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection==== Nintendo had an online service that was available for the Wii and the DS that was free to use. It was shut down on May 20, 2014, due to the company GameSpy, the ones who were managing these servers, shutting down its multiplayer services after being bought out. A popular game that used this feature was ''Mario Kart DS''. There was a third-party DeSmuME fork that successfully emulated WFC but has quite a bit of requirement (Ethernet cable, though this can be circumvented with external software). After the service shutdown, there was a version compatible with the fan servers (restoring all DLC data, but sadly, most multiplayer games had their content lost forever). melonDS is one of the only emulators to offer Wi-Fi capabilities. It's still a work-in-progress, but it works relatively well. Thanks to [[Preservation_projects|revivial projects]] like [https://wiimmfi.de/ Wimmfi], [https://kaeru.world/projects/wfc Kaeru] or [https://github.com/barronwaffles/dwc_network_server_emulator/wiki AltWFC/DWC]; emulation of Nintendo's WFC servers is now possible.. *[https://melonds.kuribo64.net/board/thread.php?id=285 Tutorial: How to Connect to WFC in MelonDS]:See [[Preservation_projects|Preservation projects]] page for more information about other revive projects. ====DS/Wii connectivity====Uses wireless communication on the DS to connect to the Wii. The idea is parallel to the GBA Link Cable for the GameCube, and just like the Link Cable, [https://nintendo.fandom.com/wiki/Wii-to-DS_connectivity only a handful of games actually have this feature]. Some notable examples include: * ''Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles: Echoes of Time'' - which is essentially the same as the DS port but can connect with other DSes with the game.* ''Pokémon Battle Revolution'' - in which players could transfer their Pokémon from the Generation IV main series games and use the DS as a controller. * ''Animal Crossing: City Folk'' - in which data could be transferred between the DS version (''Animal Crossing: Wild World''), and the ''Nintendo Channel'' on the Wii, where players could download demos of DS games to their console using Download Play (basically the same idea as the Download Station kiosk). So far, no emulator has been able to emulate this feature, nor have attempted to. If this were ever going to be emulated, it would require work on both ends. ====GBA/DS connectivity====Inserting a GBA cartridge in the Slot-2 of the Nintendo DS while a game is running can unlock various gameplay features for [https://nintendo.fandom.com/wiki/List_of_Nintendo_DS_games_with_GBA_connectivity several DS games]. It's unknown if No$GBA supports this, but it can be done in DeSmuME by going to Config > Slot 2 (GBA Slot) and selecting GBA Cartridge. Select the GBA ROM file, and make sure its <code>.sav</code> file is in the same folder. You may need to reset the game for it to take effect. As of version 0.9, [https://melonds.kuribo64.net/comments.php?id=110 melonDS supports GBA connectivity] and even added support for the solar sensor on GBA Boktai cartridges used in Boktai DS (Lunar Knight), something DeSmuME has yet to support. Either drag and drop the GBA ROM onto the program before starting or open the file before loading the NDS file. ===Backwards compatibility for Game Boy Advance===The Nintendo DS is backward compatible with Game Boy Advance (GBA) cartridges. Should not be confused with [[Game_Boy_Advance_emulators|Game Boy Advance emulation]] or [[#Connectivity|GBA/DS connectivity]]. None of the emulators supports this feature currently. ===Accessories===:''[[Wikipedia:List_of_Nintendo_DS_accessories|Wikipedia - List of Nintendo DS accessories]]''
;Guitar Hero pad: Used in the "Guitar Hero: On Tour" series (required) and Band Hero DS. Supported by DeSmuME (Slot 2).
;Piano for Easy Piano: Supported by DeSmuME (Slot 2).
