Nintendo DS emulators: Difference between revisions

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:; melonDS DS

:: An enhanced remake of the melonDS libretro that prioritizes standalone parity, reliability, and usability. Features included in this remake that were not available in the melonDS libretro core include full Wi-Fi support (Kaeru WFC, AltWFC, Wiimmfi), firmware overrides (name, color, birthday, etc.), homebrew save data support, screen rotation in the core settings (as the screen rotation feature in RetroArch's Video settings did not rotate touch inputs for melonDS and DeSmuME and can distort the screen), additional screen layout options, directly boot Nintendo DSi and DSiWare titles (unlike the standard melonDS — which requires manually installing DSiWare to the DSi NAND via its GUI — the MelonDS DS Libretro core includes the convenient [https://github.com/JesseTG/melonds-ds?tab=readme-ov-file#streamlined-dsiware-installation Streamlined DSiWare Installation] feature), RetroAchievements support for DSi(Ware) games, battery support, and selectable NAND and firmware images. However, some melonDS libretro core features aren't yet presented in this remake, such as local wireless connection, GDB Stub Support, DSi Camera support, and OpenGL compute shader renderer, but some are planned to be implemented. With that stated, this remake is not a perfect replacement for the melonDS libretro core but has its uses that the original core and the DeSmuME libretro core lack.

:; melonDS-Android

:: An unofficial Android port of melonDS by rafaelvcaetano, this Nintendo DS/DSi emulator is available on the Google Play Store for free. As of Beta 1.8.0 on February 3, 2023, which is based on melonDS v0.9.5, this emulator includes a DSiWare Manager, which allows users to install and play DSiWare titles in the emulator after booting the DSi boot menu. DSiWare title data is importable/exportable since Beta 1.10.0 on March 10, 2025. DSi camera has been implemented since Beta 1.9.0 on November 2, 2023, as well as RetroAchievements support for Nintendo DS games (DSiWare games booted from the DSi boot menu are not supported). External screen support from [https://github.com/SapphireRhodonite/WatermelonDS SapphireRhodonite's fork] (melonDualDS, currently known as WatermelonDS) was implemented in melonDS-Android's v2.0.0 release on April 18, 2026, but SapphireRhodonite's fork is more optimized for dual/external screens. DSiWare titles can also be boot directly in the v2.0.0 update; DSiWare titles booted directly are detected by RetroAchievements.

::; WatermlonDS

::: A fork of melonDS-Android by SapphireRhodonite (assisted by melonDS-Android's developer rafaelvcaetano), WatermelonDS (formerly known as melonDualDS until update v0.7.0 on August 7, 2026) has support and optimization for external screens, allowing the player to use both Nintendo DS game screens on two screens for gaming handhelds and accessories such as AYN Thor, AYANEO Pocket DS, ONEXSUGAR Sugar-1, Retroid Dual Screen add-on, and more (though, lower-end devices like Anbernic RG DS may struggle), though single-screen devices are still supported. Also includes Vulkan support since the v0.7.0 beta, and a brand new user interface as of v0.7.0 release when melonDualDS was rebranded as WatermelonDS. v0.7.0 also has fixes and optimizations for RetroAchievements (including detection for games in <code>.7z</code> archives, Multiset support, and the ability to earn achievements offline in Casual mode; though the latter has been implemented in [https://github.com/misantronic/RAOfflineProxy RAOfflineProxy]), and an experimental Vulkan feature called FastPath, which improves performance at higher resolution scaling. Like melonDS-Android, this fork can also boot DSiWare games directly (and has RetroAchievements support), or be booted indirectly by installing them in the DSiWare Manager and booting the DSi boot menu.

; [[DeSmuME]]

: DeSmuME has gained significant improvements since 2018; new features include less CPU/GPU resource usage and high-resolution 3D rendering, and Wi-Fi emulation has been reintroduced in the latest builds. v0.9.13 from May 2022 is the first "Stable" build in over 7 years and is highly recommended over all previous builds (though dev builds are also generally very usable). [[OpenEmu]] uses a shallow fork of the v0.9.11 build and should be avoided as well.

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; [[DraStic]]

: A (currently) closed-source emulator for [[Android emulators|Android]] devices that can run games at a decent speed even on potato phones. It is on par with (or in some cases better than) DeSmuME, and emulating it through BlueStacks on PC may actually be a viable and fast alternative aside from a slight input delay. Some rumors have spread around that the developers deliberately put in issues to mess with unofficial copies, though this is considered unsubstantiated. At the very least, you shouldn't expect any support from Exophase and company if you use an unofficial copy. It is available on the Raspberry Pi and Odroid via RetroPie, and runs {{YouTubeVideo|715kg1-hmxA|relatively well}}. As of March 5, 2024, due to yuzu lawsuits mainly focused on the Zelda franchise, the creator made it free and plans on open-sourcing the code.

:; SeedlessDS

:: A fork by SapphireRhodonite built on top of the DraStic r2.6.0.4a core, this fork includes optimizations for dual/external screens (DraStic already had external screen support), a brand new user interface, and experimental RetroAchievements implementation (not yet supported officially), while keeping the emulator lightweight for low-end devices. This fork is meant for RetroAchievements users with a low-end Android device like the Anbernic RG DS that lacks the CPU/GPU power to run Nintendo DS/DSi games in melonDS-Android/WatermelonDS, but it can also be used on single-screen devices.

; [[No$|No$GBA]]

@@ Line 337: / Line 337: @@
 :; melonDS DS
 :: An enhanced remake of the melonDS libretro that prioritizes standalone parity, reliability, and usability. Features included in this remake that were not available in the melonDS libretro core include full Wi-Fi support (Kaeru WFC, AltWFC, Wiimmfi), firmware overrides (name, color, birthday, etc.), homebrew save data support, screen rotation in the core settings (as the screen rotation feature in RetroArch's Video settings did not rotate touch inputs for melonDS and DeSmuME and can distort the screen), additional screen layout options, directly boot Nintendo DSi and DSiWare titles (unlike the standard melonDS — which requires manually installing DSiWare to the DSi NAND via its GUI — the MelonDS DS Libretro core includes the convenient [https://github.com/JesseTG/melonds-ds?tab=readme-ov-file#streamlined-dsiware-installation Streamlined DSiWare Installation] feature), RetroAchievements support for DSi(Ware) games, battery support, and selectable NAND and firmware images. However, some melonDS libretro core features aren't yet presented in this remake, such as local wireless connection, GDB Stub Support, DSi Camera support, and OpenGL compute shader renderer, but some are planned to be implemented. With that stated, this remake is not a perfect replacement for the melonDS libretro core but has its uses that the original core and the DeSmuME libretro core lack.
+:; melonDS-Android
+:: An unofficial Android port of melonDS by rafaelvcaetano, this Nintendo DS/DSi emulator is available on the Google Play Store for free. As of Beta 1.8.0 on February 3, 2023, which is based on melonDS v0.9.5, this emulator includes a DSiWare Manager, which allows users to install and play DSiWare titles in the emulator after booting the DSi boot menu. DSiWare title data is importable/exportable since Beta 1.10.0 on March 10, 2025. DSi camera has been implemented since Beta 1.9.0 on November 2, 2023, as well as RetroAchievements support for Nintendo DS games (DSiWare games booted from the DSi boot menu are not supported). External screen support from [https://github.com/SapphireRhodonite/WatermelonDS SapphireRhodonite's fork] (melonDualDS, currently known as WatermelonDS) was implemented in melonDS-Android's v2.0.0 release on April 18, 2026, but SapphireRhodonite's fork is more optimized for dual/external screens. DSiWare titles can also be boot directly in the v2.0.0 update; DSiWare titles booted directly are detected by RetroAchievements.
+::; WatermlonDS
+::: A fork of melonDS-Android by SapphireRhodonite (assisted by melonDS-Android's developer rafaelvcaetano), WatermelonDS (formerly known as melonDualDS until update v0.7.0 on August 7, 2026) has support and optimization for external screens, allowing the player to use both Nintendo DS game screens on two screens for gaming handhelds and accessories such as AYN Thor, AYANEO Pocket DS, ONEXSUGAR Sugar-1, Retroid Dual Screen add-on, and more (though, lower-end devices like Anbernic RG DS may struggle), though single-screen devices are still supported. Also includes Vulkan support since the v0.7.0 beta, and a brand new user interface as of v0.7.0 release when melonDualDS was rebranded as WatermelonDS. v0.7.0 also has fixes and optimizations for RetroAchievements (including detection for games in <code>.7z</code> archives, Multiset support, and the ability to earn achievements offline in Casual mode; though the latter has been implemented in [https://github.com/misantronic/RAOfflineProxy RAOfflineProxy]), and an experimental Vulkan feature called FastPath, which improves performance at higher resolution scaling. Like melonDS-Android, this fork can also boot DSiWare games directly (and has RetroAchievements support), or be booted indirectly by installing them in the DSiWare Manager and booting the DSi boot menu.
 ; [[DeSmuME]]
 : DeSmuME has gained significant improvements since 2018; new features include less CPU/GPU resource usage and high-resolution 3D rendering, and Wi-Fi emulation has been reintroduced in the latest builds. v0.9.13 from May 2022 is the first "Stable" build in over 7 years and is highly recommended over all previous builds (though dev builds are also generally very usable). [[OpenEmu]] uses a shallow fork of the v0.9.11 build and should be avoided as well.
@@ Line 343: / Line 346: @@
 ; [[DraStic]]
 : A (currently) closed-source emulator for [[Android emulators|Android]] devices that can run games at a decent speed even on potato phones. It is on par with (or in some cases better than) DeSmuME, and emulating it through BlueStacks on PC may actually be a viable and fast alternative aside from a slight input delay. Some rumors have spread around that the developers deliberately put in issues to mess with unofficial copies, though this is considered unsubstantiated. At the very least, you shouldn't expect any support from Exophase and company if you use an unofficial copy. It is available on the Raspberry Pi and Odroid via RetroPie, and runs {{YouTubeVideo|715kg1-hmxA|relatively well}}. As of March 5, 2024, due to yuzu lawsuits mainly focused on the Zelda franchise, the creator made it free and plans on open-sourcing the code.
+:; SeedlessDS
+:: A fork by SapphireRhodonite built on top of the DraStic r2.6.0.4a core, this fork includes optimizations for dual/external screens (DraStic already had external screen support), a brand new user interface, and experimental RetroAchievements implementation (not yet supported officially), while keeping the emulator lightweight for low-end devices. This fork is meant for RetroAchievements users with a low-end Android device like the Anbernic RG DS that lacks the CPU/GPU power to run Nintendo DS/DSi games in melonDS-Android/WatermelonDS, but it can also be used on single-screen devices.
 ; [[No$|No$GBA]]