yuzu
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| Developer(s) | yuzu Team |
|---|---|
| Latest version | Mainline 1734 Early Access 4176 [+] |
| Active | No |
| Platform(s) | Windows Linux Android |
| Emulates | Nintendo Switch |
| Compatibility | Official List |
| Website | yuzu-emu.org |
| Programmed in | C++ |
| License | GPLv2 |
| Source code | GitHub |
| BIOS/Keys | Required |
yuzu is a discontinued open-source Nintendo Switch emulator and debugger written in C++. Prior to its discontinuation, it was the most popular Nintendo Switch emulator and was easier to set up Template:Why? than its main competitor, Ryujinx. It is no longer officially available for download, but archived downloads are available.
Archived Downloads
 
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Early Access Builds (built by pinEApple) Patreon releases | |
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Latest Archived Builds | |
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Latest Archived Builds | |
- We do not recommend using Yuzu anymore. Instead, we recommend using active forks of Yuzu.
Overview
As of March 2022, an estimated half of the Nintendo Switch library can be played from start to finish, like Super Mario Odyssey, which had correct graphics and speed after 1 year of it getting to boot up.
History
yuzu reached in-game on several Nintendo Switch exclusives in November 2019,[1] and has been improving in compatibility by the day with active developers ever since.
The Binding of Isaac: Afterbirth+, Puyo Puyo Tetris, and Cave Story+ were the first games to boot.[2] In late April 2018, yuzu booted its first Switch exclusive, 1-2-Switch. Three months later, yuzu was able to run its first 3D rendered game, Minecraft: Story Mode.
This progress report from July 2018 details the extensive work required to research the Switch and get yuzu up and running, chronicling the compatibility status of a small bundle of games and apps over time. The post also covers a surprising number of similarities between the hardware and firmware of the 3DS and Switch, and why portions of Citra were reused in yuzu.
Yuzu started showing some 3D rendering on Super Mario Odyssey in early August 2018.[3] This long-awaited exclusive brought a lot of interest in the project. The team covered all the changes that month in another progress report from September 2018.
In May 2020, multicore CPU emulation was implemented, improving framerates on many titles. This feature appears to cause audio slow down, so the developers recommend enabling audio stretching in order to mitigate it.[4]
In July 2021, yuzu's shader decompiler was rewritten, allowing the generation of pipeline cache for Vulkan users and providing a considerable performance boost.
In October 2021, resolution scaling was added to the emulator that allowed it to render games up to 6x the original resolution or 0.5x on the low end. It also added AMD FidelityFX™ Super-Resolution as a window adaptation filter among others.[5]
On May 30, 2023, the emulator was ported to Android. This version was in early access, with a free and a paid version available.
Lawsuit
Nintendo sued Yuzu (TROPIC HAZE LLC) on February 26, 2024[6][7], over copyright infringement. On March 4, 2024, Nintendo and Tropic Haze settled out of court, with US$2,400,000.00 in Nintendo's favor, along with an injunction preventing Yuzu's management from continuing development of Yuzu or assisting Citra with development.[8] Distribution of Yuzu and Citra ceased after the lawsuit's conclusion,[9] and a statement was put on the websites of both emulators and the official Discord. Also see Legal Status of Emulation.
External links
- Official compatibility list (archived)
- Official website (archived)
- Twitter news feed (abandoned due to the lawsuit)
- Donation email link (archived), (No longer avaliable to donate due to the lawsuit)
Forks
- For more information about other Switch emulators, see Nintendo Switch emulators#Comparisons.
| Name | Platform(s) | Latest version | Hardware features | Enhancements | Compatibility | License | Active | Recommended | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| x86 | |||||||||
| Citron |
|
2026.02.1 | ✓ | ~ | ? | GPLv3 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Sudachi |
|
v1.0.15 | ✓ | ~ | ? | ? | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Torzu | 
|
git (Dark Git) git mirror (NotABug)‡ git mirror (free-git.org) |
✓ | ~ | ? | GPLv3 | ~ | ~ | |
| Suyu |
|
Releases | ✓ | ~ | ? | GPLv3 | ✗ | ✗ | |
| ARM | |||||||||
| Citron |
|
2026.02.1 | ? | ~ | 85% 1275 out of 1500 reported titles |
GPLv3 | ✓ | ✓ | |
| Torzu |
|
git (Dark Git) git mirror (NotABug)‡ git mirror (free-git.org) |
? | ~ | ? | GPLv3 | ~ | ~ | |
| Sudachi | 
|
v1.0.15 1.0.2 (ipa)(obsolete) |
? | ~ | ? | ? | ~ | ✗ | |
| Pomelo |
|
Official Site git |
? | ~ | 63.97% 87 out of 136 reported titles |
GPLv3 | ✗ | ✗ | |
| Suyu |
|
Releases | ? | ~ | ? | GPLv3 | ✗ | ✗ | |
| Citron logo.png | |
| Developer(s) | Citron team |
|---|---|
| Latest version | 2026.02.1 [+] |
| Active | Yes |
| Platform(s) | Windows Linux Android |
| Architecture(s) | x86_64, ARM64 |
| Emulates | Nintendo Switch |
| Website | citron-emu.org |
| Programmed in | C++ |
| License | GPLv3 |
| Source code | citron-emu.org |
| BIOS/Keys | Required |
- Citron
- A fork of yuzu, known as uzuy until October 2024. After a line of Nightly releases dating from November 2024 and a failed server migration that took the site down [2], Citron reappeared with a newer Canary pre-launch version on January 2025. Since the partial suspension of Sudachi development and the recent inactivity of torzu, this emulator is one the most active yuzu fork to date.
![[2]](https://www.reddit.com/media?url=https%3A%2F%2Fpreview.redd.it%2Fhas-citron-been-taken-down-v0-uxtrqvqkt19e1.jpeg%3Fwidth%3D1179%26format%3Dpjpg%26auto%3Dwebp%26s%3D0d7ea6999148d1ca858d9f6fc05695fe20dcc3c2){kind=link}
- Sudachi
- Initially conceived by Jarrod Norwell as an experimental port of yuzu to iOS/iPadOS, the project was rebased on Yuzu's EA-4176 build following the yuzu takedown. Subsequently, the project evolved to include further improvement of the project and distributions for Linux and macOS. While it was once available on separate repositories for Windows and Android, DMCA takedowns led to the closure of both repositories and the associated Discord server[3][4] (see "2024 - Yuzu (Switch) vs. Nintendo" section of the Legal Status of Emulation page). The project is now distributed through its own hosting platform. Requires a paid Apple Developer Account or TrollStore to use the
com.apple.developer.kernel.increased-memory-limitentitlement.
- Sudachi is nearing its end, according to a tweet from project developer Jarrod Norwell. He stated, "Nintendo Switch emulation and most of the community surrounding it are making it a very unsafe and unpleasant environment. Between the various forks that exist providing no benefits, the accusations, the immature and predatory nature of a lot of "leaders" it just is not worth hanging around it anymore."[5]
- Suyu
- A fork of yuzu from where that project left off (based on the latest EA-4176). Unlike its parent project, the Switch firmware is required (like older versions of yuzu) as well a title.keys file for eshop/nsp games, updates and DLCs (on yuzu, they were auto generated if missing). The repository was originally hosted on GitLab, but it was forced to move after GitLab took it down, citing the use of the raw yuzu code. It is hosted on a self-managed instance of Forgejo. This decision, along with various precautions[6], suggests a desire to avoid legal claims similar to those faced by yuzu. Later, the team tried to recruit programmers to start to study the code. Thus, there is an adaptation period needed to see some serious advancements, and in the meantime, in response to concerns about the project's financial motivations, the suyu team emphasized a strict policy against accepting donations; they assure users that there is no intention to profit from the emulator. But there have been inexperienced coding criticisms from some in the community directed at the developers' work. Their discord server was shut down (see "2024 - Yuzu (Switch) vs. Nintendo" section of the Legal Status of Emulation page)
- Messages from suyu developers about leaving the project: kksowo's message on Paste.bin, The Death of Suyu by u/AMA2581 on r/suyu. After this, however, the founder of the project states that they will still try to maintain the project as much as they can. Their Discord server is shut (see "2024 - Yuzu (Switch) vs. Nintendo" section of the Legal Status of Emulation page), and with the announcement in February 13, 2025, the project could be considered ceased and dead.
- torzu
- A fork of yuzu. To prevent take-downs, the Git is preliminarily hosted using the Tor network, needing the Tor browser to access. Currently, it has a mirror on NotaBug, but this may be taken down without notice. torzu still aims to remain "compilable on Linux and Windows" and serve as a "good base to fork" in the future. torzu doesn't publish official releases or offer official support.
System requirements
See Computer specifications#Yuzu and forks
References
- ↑ Pokémon Sword and Shield go in-game (November 14, 2019)
- ↑ JMC47 (April 15, 2018). First games are running!
- ↑ First 3D Graphics (August 8, 2018)
- ↑ Yuzu Multicore Released | This Update is INSANELY FAST (May 11, 2020)
- ↑ New Feature Release - Resolution Scaler (October 24, 2021)
- ↑ Nintendo of America Inc. v. Tropic Haze LLC (1:24-cv-00082) On CourtListener.com
- ↑ Case 1:24-cv-00082-JJM-LDA Document 1 (February 26, 2024)
- ↑ Case 1:24-cv-00082-JJM-LDA Document 10 (Mars 04, 2024)
- ↑ Case 1:24-cv-00082-JJM-LDA Document 10-1 (Mars 04, 2024)