Difference between pages "Game Boy Advance emulators" and "Nintendo Switch emulators"

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(updating info & added instructions for mGBA.)
 
 
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{{Infobox console
 
{{Infobox console
|title = Nintendo Game Boy Advance
+
|title = Nintendo Switch
|logo = gbagba.png
+
|image = nintendo-switch.png
 +
|image2 = switchdocked.png
 +
|imagecaption = The Switch in its two forms, portable (above) and docked (below).
 
|developer = [[:Nintendo]]
 
|developer = [[:Nintendo]]
|type = [[:Category:Consoles|Handheld game console]]
+
|type = [[:Category:Hybrid consoles|Hybrid video game console]]
|generation = [[:Category:Sixth-generation video game consoles|Sixth generation]]
+
|generation = [[:Category:Eighth-generation video game consoles|Eighth generation]]
|release = 2001
+
|release = 2017
|discontinued = 2010
+
|predecessor = [[Wii U emulators|Wii U]]
|predecessor = [[Virtual Boy emulators|Virtual Boy]]
 
|successor = [[Nintendo DS emulators|Nintendo DS]]
 
 
|emulated = {{✓}}
 
|emulated = {{✓}}
 
}}
 
}}
The '''[[wikipedia:Game_Boy_Advance|Game Boy Advance]]''' (often shortened to GBA) is a 32-bit handheld video game console developed by Nintendo. It is the successor to the Game Boy Color. It was released in Japan on March 21, 2001; in North America on June 11, 2001; in Australia and Europe on June 22, 2001. It has a ARM7TDMI CPU at 16.78 MHz and a Zilog Z80 CPU at 8 MHz and 4 MHz. It has 32KB of RAM and 96KB of VRAM.  
+
 
 +
The '''[[wikipedia:Nintendo Switch|Nintendo Switch]]''' is an eighth-generation hybrid gaming console released by Nintendo on March 3, 2017 and retailed for {{Inflation|USD|299.99|2017}}. During its development, the Switch was known as the NX (short for NeXt or Nintendo "Cross") and was widely speculated up until its announcement. Aside from specialized components unique to the console, the hardware is more or less off-the-shelf, being built around a semi-custom variant of Nvidia's Tegra X1 system-on-a-chip which was also used on a number of [[Android emulators|Android devices]]. The Switch contains 4 ARM Cortex-A57 CPUs and 4 ARM Cortex-A53 CPUs running at 1.020 GHz with 4GB of RAM and a proprietary GPU codenamed GM20B.
 +
 
 +
While Nintendo intended to step up the security of the console, vulnerabilities were still found early on that allowed tons of system files to be dumped, including dumps of games in the form of romfs.istorage archives, an exefs folder, and license files. These game dumps eventually got shared online by scene groups except for their licenses but were missing important files to run and even if they had been completed, there were no custom homebrew apps let alone solutions to load unofficial game dumps for the system. A number of prominent hacking teams (starting with shuffle2 and fail0verflow in collaboration) all came across a new exploit independently of each other that allowed complete control over the system, later officially recognized by Nvidia as CVE-2018-6242.
 +
 
 +
A "debugging emulator" for the Nintendo Switch, CageTheUnicorn (now [https://github.com/reswitched/Mephisto Mephisto]), popped up not long after the first components were dumped. It was designed to emulate sysmodules with "no support for graphics, sound, input, or any kind of even remotely performant processing [...] by design". A couple of months later, members of both the [[Citra]] and [[Dolphin]] teams announced the release of [[yuzu|their own emulator written in c++]], which was capable of booting some homebrew applications; within a couple of weeks yet another emulator named [[Ryujinx]], written in c# by developer gdkchan, was released showing successful booting of commercial Switch games Puyo Puyo Tetris and Sonic Mania.
  
 
==Emulators==
 
==Emulators==
 
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
 
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
|-
 
 
! scope="col"|Name
 
! scope="col"|Name
 
! scope="col"|Platform(s)
 
! scope="col"|Platform(s)
 
! scope="col"|Latest Version
 
! scope="col"|Latest Version
! scope="col"|GB/GBC
+
! scope="col"|<abbr title="Free/Libre and Open-Source Software">FLOSS</abbr>
! scope="col"|GBA
 
! scope="col"|NDS
 
! scope="col"|Game Link Support
 
! scope="col"|e-Reader
 
! scope="col"|[[libretro|Libretro Core]]
 
 
! scope="col"|Active
 
! scope="col"|Active
 
! scope="col"|[[Recommended Emulators|Recommended]]
 
! scope="col"|[[Recommended Emulators|Recommended]]
 
|-
 
|-
!colspan="11"|PC /x86
+
! colspan="6"|PC / x86
 
|-
 
|-
|[[mGBA]]
+
|[[yuzu]]
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS|FreeBSD}}
+
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux}}
|[https://mgba.io/downloads.html {{MGBAVer}}]
+
|[https://yuzu-emu.org/downloads/ Nightly]
|{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}}<ref group=N name=medusa>Experimental separate build under the name of [[mGBA#medusa|medusa]].</ref> ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}}<ref group=N name=ereader>Latest development build only</ref> ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}}
+
|{{✓}}
 +
|{{✓}}
 +
|{{✓}}
 
|-
 
|-
|[[higan]]
+
|[[Ryujinx]]
 
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS}}
 
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS}}
|[http://byuu.org/emulation/higan/ {{higanVer}}]
+
|[https://ryujinx.org/#/Build Nightly]
|{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}}
+
|{{✓}}
 +
|{{✓}}
 +
|{{✓}}
 
|-
 
|-
|[[VisualBoy Advance#VBA-M|VBA-M]]
+
|NSEmu
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS|FreeBSD}}
+
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows}}
|[https://github.com/visualboyadvance-m/visualboyadvance-m/releases {{VBAMVer}}]
+
|[https://github.com/RKX1209/nsemu Git]
|{{✓}} ||{{}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}}
+
|{{✓}}
 +
|{{}}
 +
|{{✗}}
 
|-
 
|-
|iDeaS
+
|Mephisto
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux}}
+
|align=left|{{Icon|Linux|macOS}}
|[https://web.archive.org/web/20150311100053/http://ciacin.site90.com/ideas.php 1.0.4.0]
+
|[https://github.com/reswitched/Mephisto/releases v1.2.1], [https://github.com/reswitched/Mephisto Git]
|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}}
+
|{{✓}}
 +
|{{✗}}
 +
|{{✗}}
 
|-
 
|-
|[[GBE+]]
+
|CageTheUnicorn
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS}}
 
|[https://github.com/shonumi/gbe-plus {{GBEVer}}]
 
|{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}}
 
|-
 
|[https://fms.komkon.org/VGBA VGBA]
 
 
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS|FreeBSD}}
 
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS|FreeBSD}}
|[https://fms.komkon.org/VGBA {{VGBAVer}}]
+
|[https://github.com/reswitched/CageTheUnicorn Git]
|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}}
+
|{{✓}}
 +
|{{✗}}
 +
|{{✗}}
 
|-
 
|-
|[[MAME]]
+
!colspan="10"|Mobile / ARM
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS|FreeBSD}}
 
|[http://www.mamedev.org/release.html {{MAMEVer}}]
 
|{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}}
 
 
|-
 
|-
|Meteor
+
|[https://eggns.wordpress.com Egg NS]
|align=left|{{Icon|Linux}}
 
|[https://github.com/blastrock/meteor 1.4.2]
 
|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}}
 
|-
 
|NanoboyAdvance
 
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux}}
 
|[https://github.com/fleroviux/NanoboyAdvance Git]
 
|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}}
 
|-
 
|[[No$|No$GBA]]
 
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|DOS}}
 
|[http://problemkaputt.de/gba.htm {{No$GBAVer}}]
 
|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}}
 
|-
 
|BoyCottAdvance
 
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS}}
 
|[http://boycottadvance.emuunlim.org/Downloads.htm 0.2.8]
 
|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}}
 
|-
 
|PlayBoy Advance
 
|align=left|{{Icon|macOS}}
 
|[https://www.zophar.net/macintosh/gba/playboy-advance.html 1.0]
 
|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}}
 
|-
 
!colspan="11"|Mobile / ARM
 
|-
 
|[[mGBA]]
 
|align=left|{{Icon|Android|iOS|Linux|Pandora}}
 
|[https://mgba.io/downloads.html {{MGBAVer}}]
 
|{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}}<ref group=N name=medusa /> ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}}
 
|-
 
|[http://www.explusalpha.com/ GBA.emu]<br/><small>(VBA-M r1097 based)</small>
 
 
|align=left|{{Icon|Android}}
 
|align=left|{{Icon|Android}}
|[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.explusalpha.GbaEmu 1.5.43]
+
|[https://drive.google.com/u/0/uc?id=15jYpgxZZKcstAqxZYg5_znDiXS41Shep&export=download 1.0.6]
|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}}
+
|{{✗}}
|-
+
|{{✓}}
|[http://allaboutwindowsphone.com/software/content/VBA8_1.php VBA8]
+
|{{✗}}
|align=left|{{Icon|W8P}}
 
|[https://www.appx4fun.com/xap/15223/ 2.27]
 
|{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}}
 
|-
 
|[https://forums.windowscentral.com/app-spotlight/252987-trio-nintendo-emulators-vba8-vgbc8-snes8x.html VBA10]
 
|align=left|{{Icon|W10P}}
 
|[https://forum.xda-developers.com/windows-10-mobile/windows-10-mobile-apps-and-games/app-vba10-emulator-t3588704 1.22]<br/>[https://emulator.games/emulators/gameboy-advance/vba10/ Alt]
 
|{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||? ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}}
 
|-
 
|[[gpSP]]
 
|align=left|{{Icon|Pandora}}
 
|[http://repo.openpandora.org/?page=detail&app=package.gpsp.notaz 0.9.2.8]
 
|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}}
 
|-
 
|[[VisualBoy Advance#VBA-M|VBA-M]]
 
|align=left|{{Icon|Android|iOS|Linux|Pandora}}
 
|[https://github.com/visualboyadvance-m/visualboyadvance-m v2.0.1]
 
|{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||? ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}}
 
 
|-
 
|-
|[https://sites.google.com/site/fastemulator/ My Boy!]
+
|[https://github.com/skyline-emu/skyline Skyline]
 
|align=left|{{Icon|Android}}
 
|align=left|{{Icon|Android}}
|[https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.fastemulator.gba 1.8.0]
+
|[https://github.com/skyline-emu/skyline/releases 0.3]
|{{✓}}<ref group=N name=myoldboy>Separate paid app called My OldBoy!.</ref> ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}}
+
|{{✓}}
|-
+
|{{✓}}
|GBA4iOS
+
|{{✗}}
|align=left|{{Icon|iOS}}
 
|[https://iemulators.com/gba4ios v2.1]
 
|{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{~}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}}
 
|-
 
!colspan="11"|Consoles
 
|-
 
|[[mGBA]]
 
|align=left|{{Icon|Wii|Switch}}<br>{{Icon|3DS|PSV}}
 
|[https://mgba.io/downloads.html {{MGBAVer}}]
 
|{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}}
 
|-
 
|[https://www.gc-forever.com/wiki/index.php?title=Enhanced_mGBA emGBA]
 
|align=left|{{Icon|GCN|Wii}}
 
|[https://files.extremscorner.org/gamecube/apps/mgba/latest Git]
 
|{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}}
 
|-
 
|[[gpSP#PSP_version|TempGBA4PSP]]
 
|align=left|{{Icon|PSP}}
 
|[http://www.mediafire.com/download/41ny5xrwxizalx4/TempGBA4PSP-26750221.zip 26750221]
 
|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}}
 
|-
 
|[[VisualBoy Advance#VBA-GX|VBA GX]]
 
|align=left|{{Icon|GCN|Wii}}
 
|[https://github.com/dborth/vbagx/releases 2.4.0]
 
|{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}}<ref group=N>As VBA-Next.</ref> ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}}
 
|-
 
|[[gpSP]]
 
|align=left|{{Icon|PSP}}
 
|0.9
 
|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}}
 
|-
 
|[[Virtual Console]]
 
|align=left|{{Icon|3DS|WiiU}}
 
|8.10
 
|{{✓}} <small>(Nintendo 3DS only)<small> ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}} <small>(Wii U only)<small> ||{{✓}} <small>(Pokemon only)</small> ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✓}}
 
|}
 
<references group=N />
 
 
 
===Comparisons===
 
;[[mGBA]]:Aims for accuracy, speed, and features. For its accuracy, it's gradually becoming the best at that. It's actively developed and has features VBA-M lacks such as a Tilt Sensor, and more recently Game Boy Camera support.
 
;[[VisualBoy Advance|Visual Boy Advance (VBA)]]:The original GBA emulator. Discovered to have an <abbr title="Arbitrary Code Execution">ACE</abbr> vulnerability detailed below.
 
:;[[VisualBoy Advance#VBA-M|Visual Boy Advance-M (VBA-M)]]:A fork with additional improvements. It is behind in terms of accuracy and performance compared to mGBA.
 
::;VBA-Next:A [[RetroArch]] fork from an older revision of VBA-M with added speedhacks and tweaks, making it useful for lower-end devices. A bit less accurate in some respects, but fixes a few games such as Advance Wars 2.
 
;[[gpSP]]:Its last official version was 0.9. There are, however, two forks of interest: [http://dl.qj.net/psp/emulators/gpsp-mod-20090720.html gpSPmod], and [http://filetrip.net/psp-downloads/homebrew/download-gpsp-j-12-06-16-f29570.htmlgpSP-J gpSP-J]. gpSP-J has superior compatibility, while gpSPmod has more options for customization (full screen, cheats, etc). Both are superior to Kai.
 
;[[higan]]:Its GBA core is cycle-accurate as of v095, but it is behind in terms of performance compared to mGBA and VBA-M.
 
;[[MAME]]:Has a <code>gba</code> driver markup as working but both graphics and sound are "imperfect".
 
 
 
'''NOTE:''' There's a ''huge'' <abbr title="Arbitrary Code Execution">ACE</abbr> vulnerability affecting VBA and most of its forks, except for VBA-M. The function for adding GameShark codes ("Import > Gameshark code file") doesn't check if the file's size is within 1024 kilobits, meaning cheat code files from dubious sources can be engineered with malware in mind. There is good news; VBA-M still doesn't do a sanity check for those files, but it just crashes instead of letting the code wreak havoc. So, depending on your use case, avoid using:
 
# Cheat code files bigger than 1024Kb that you got online from untrustworthy sources.
 
# The import code files feature.
 
# The old emulator altogether, and settle for other options like mGBA or VBA-M. All of them support the same SRAM save data the cartridge uses.
 
 
 
'''List of recommended GBA emulators for Android:'''
 
* [https://www.androidauthority.com/best-game-boy-emulators-for-android-368530/ 10 best Game Boy Advanced, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy emulators for Android] (SEPTEMBER 2, 2018. Includes some emulators not found in above charts. Reviews may be subjective.)
 
 
 
==Emulation issues==
 
 
 
===Oversaturation===
 
[[File:1406913527173-1-.png|400px|thumb|right|'''Left:''' The default game.<br/>'''Right:''' The "Gameboy Colors" mode on [[VisualBoy Advance#VBA-M|VBA-M]].]]
 
The screen on the original Game Boy Advance is not backlit and can be hard to see in some conditions. To compensate, game developers often used oversaturated colors by default so that the result would look normal on hardware. On standard computer screens, saturation is not an issue so this can look jarring and undesirable for gameplay. Some games made after 2003 may have also taken the Game Boy Advance SP <abbr title="AGS-001">model</abbr> into account since its screen was actually <abbr title="A newer model, AGS-101, was released in 2005 that was actually backlit">frontlit</abbr>. For everything else though, emudevs have given some solutions:
 
 
 
====Emulator Options====
 
'''No$GBA:''' Under "Emulation Options", select "GBA Mode". There are four modes.
 
 
 
* '''GBA (no backlight):''' Strong desaturation
 
* '''GBA SP (backlight):''' Strong desaturation
 
* '''Nintendo DS in GBA mode:''' Some desaturation
 
* '''VGA Mode (poppy bright):''' No desaturation
 
 
 
'''mGBA:''' Under Tools > Settings > Shaders, you will find three customizable '''Desaturation''' parameters.
 
 
 
'''VBA-M:''' (nightly only): Under Options > Game Boy Advance, you will find the option, '''LCD Filter'''.
 
 
 
'''higan:''' Under Settings > Video Filter, you will find the "Color Emulation" checkbox.
 
 
 
* '''Color Emulation off:''' No desaturation
 
* '''Color Emulation on:''' Gamma correction and adjusted color range.
 
 
 
====Shaders====
 
Cg [[Shaders and Filters|shaders]] can be used in [[OpenEmu]] or [[RetroArch]] that adjust the colors to those of a real GBA screen, as well as other screen types. These are available in GLSL<ref name="GLSL">https://github.com/libretro/glsl-shaders/tree/master/handheld/shaders/color</ref> for OpenGL, and Slang<ref name="Slang">https://github.com/libretro/slang-shaders/tree/master/handheld/shaders/color</ref> for Vulkan.
 
 
 
For GBA, there is <code>gba-color.cg</code><ref>https://github.com/libretro/common-shaders/blob/master/handheld/shaders/color/gba-color.cg</ref>, which simulates the color profile of a GBA screen under an external light source more accurately than VBA-M or No$GBA color options. If you prefer the darker color options that those emulators have, then use <code>vba-color.cg</code><ref>https://github.com/libretro/common-shaders/blob/master/handheld/shaders/color/vba-color.cg</ref> instead.
 
 
 
There is also <code>nds-color.cg</code><ref>https://github.com/libretro/common-shaders/blob/master/handheld/shaders/color/nds-color.cg</ref> and <code>psp-color.cg</code><ref>https://github.com/libretro/common-shaders/blob/master/handheld/shaders/color/psp-color.cg</ref>, which simulates the color profiles of the original Nintendo DS frontlit screen and the PSP-1000/PSP-2000 backlit screen, respectively.
 
 
 
===Horrible Sound Quality===
 
As a handheld rushed to the market (because of the WonderSwan Color competition), the Game Boy Advance had some cut corners. The sound hardware was affected the hardest: while it could play Game Boy Color sound in addition to samples and sequenced music like what would be heard on the SNES, the actual sound playback quality is awful compared to the actual higher quality sound samples stored internally in the ROM.
 
 
 
There were [https://www.romhacking.net/utilities/881/ tools] made to extract the internal high quality music (as midi files plus a sound font, to be played on foobar2000), however interest remains limited in implementing its playback in real time on emulators. It's worth noting it exists as a very experimental feature on [[mGBA]] (nightly versions) under Enhancements as "XQ GBA Audio", but very buggy and still limited to games using the standard sound engine, the so-called "Sappy" engine, which is still a big part of the GBA's software library.
 
 
 
===High Resolution Affine Transformation Graphical Effects===
 
Similar to the scaling effects used on the Super NES known commonly as "Mode 7" graphics, the Game Boy Advance has affine transformation effects for some backgrounds and individual sprites that can be done in hardware. Due to the GBA's lower resolution, some detail may be lost.
 
 
 
The [[mGBA]] emulator added an Enhancements menu where you can change the resolution of those graphical effects, for a smoother effect. The graphical render engine will need to be OpenGL for those to take effect. It won't work on games where those effects are done in software instead of the hardware scaling features (like the 3D environment in Asterix & Obelix XXL)
 
 
 
===Save formats===
 
Originally, when saves were implemented, nobody settled on a format, so the Visual Boy Advance devs made its own. Because other emulators often went with raw data, having to exchange different saves caused problems. The original Visual Boy Advance tries to figure out which format a given save is but often fails at it. By explicitly telling the emulator to read it as a specific type using a file called <code>vba-over.ini</code>, VBA complies. VBA-M includes this config file by default, but older revisions like VBA 1.7.2 and VBALink do not.
 
 
 
The VBA-Next and VBA-M cores in Libretro have the file baked into the binary so that it can load raw .sav files, but converts the format to its own derivative at exactly 136 KB every time, with save type info contained within the file. This completely avoids the previous issues at the cost of incompatibility with standalone VBA and most others.
 
 
 
To solve this incompatibility, Libretro devs created a
 
[https://github.com/libretro/vbam-libretro/blob/master/src/libretro/gbaconv/gbaconv.c command-line tool] to convert .srm save files made from these cores to raw .sav save data for other emulators. It takes standard input (i.e. just drag and drop the .srm onto the executable) and outputs accordingly. It can also be done in reverse. A 64-bit binary of this tool for Windows can be found
 
[https://www.mediafire.com/?6bg8ag0bjs1b7ng here].
 
 
 
==Connectivity==
 
There are five different kinds of connectivity, support varying by game:
 
*Single Pak
 
*Multi Pak
 
*Wireless
 
*GameCube
 
*Nintendo DS
 
Purple end in GBA means player 1, while a grey end in GBA means P2, P3, or P4. Daisy chaining up to three cables will set up the additional P3 and P4 by connecting the purple end to a purple mid section.<ref>https://www.nintendo.com/consumer/downloads/agblink.pdf</ref>
 
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center;"
 
|-
 
! scope="col"|Name
 
! scope="col"|Platform(s)
 
! scope="col"|Supported Version
 
! scope="col"|Single Pak
 
! scope="col"|Multi Pak
 
! scope="col"|Wireless
 
! scope="col"|GameCube
 
! scope="col"|Nintendo DS
 
|-
 
!colspan="8"|PC / x86
 
|-
 
|[[mGBA]]
 
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS|FreeBSD}}
 
|[https://mgba.io/downloads.html {{MGBAVer}}]
 
|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}}
 
|-
 
|[[VisualBoy Advance#VBA-M|VBA-M]]
 
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS|FreeBSD}}
 
||[https://github.com/visualboyadvance-m/visualboyadvance-m/releases {{VBAMVer}}]
 
|{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}}
 
|-
 
|[[No$|No$GBA]]
 
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|DOS}}
 
||[http://problemkaputt.de/gba.htm {{No$GBAVer}}]
 
|{{✓}} ||{{✓}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}}
 
|-
 
|[[DeSmuME]]
 
|align=left|{{Icon|Windows|Linux|macOS}}
 
|[https://ci.appveyor.com/project/zeromus/desmume {{DeSmuMEVer}}]
 
|{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✗}} ||{{✓}}
 
 
|}
 
|}
===GBA Mutli Pak Link Multiplayer (1~4GBA)===
 
;VBA-M: This doesn't work with old VBA versions.
 
:Just disable "Pause when Inactive", configure all four Joypads each with their own button layout, enable "Link, Enable GBA Link". Now open VBA-M again as many times needed for each player, and have them each use their separate Joypad configuration. Each player will have a separate SRAM save file.
 
;VBA Link + e-Reader:Useful if you want to use the Pokémon Battle-eCards. Downloads and instructions reside [http://projectpokemon.org/forums/showthread.php?42433-RELEASE-VBA-LINK-E-READER here].
 
;mGBA:Select "New multiplayer window" from the menu. As you load your ROMs into each window, "Player [X] of [Y]" will appear across the title bar. This can be done for up to four players. However, multiple instances of the same ROM will share a save file.
 
;No$GBA:Set the number of Emulated Gameboys in the Emulation setting to be 2 or more, and the Link Gamepaks Options to Gamepak in all GBAs.
 
  
===GBA Wireless Multiplayer===
+
;[[yuzu]] <small class="plainlinks" style="font-weight:normal;">([https://yuzu-emu.org/game compatibility])</small>
The [[Wikipedia:Game Boy Advance Wireless Adapter|wireless adapter]] has the ability to connect five players<ref>https://www.nintendo.com/consumer/downloads/agbwireless_trilingual.pdf</ref> to each other and includes its own software to download a subset of another player's game that runs when no cartridge is inserted. ''Pokémon Fire Red'' and ''Leaf Green'' came bundled with this accessory but it can also work with ''Pokémon Emerald'' and the ''Classic NES Series''.
+
:An open-source emulator made by many of [[Citra]]'s developers. As it is a hard fork of Citra it shares many of its traits, namely cross-platform support and the use of OpenGL (though unlike Citra it also supports Vulkan). Many 2D games now render graphics properly and at good speeds; many 3D games are playable. This emulator currently offers early access builds to $5/month [[Emulators on Patreon|Patreon]] subscribers which allows them to utilize new features prior to their eventual release on the mainline build. One of yuzu's notable features is its disk-based shader cache for OpenGL, negating the need to compile shaders on the fly on every boot. uses leaked sdks
  
No emulator has currently implemented this add-on. The only project whose developers put this on its roadmap is [[mGBA]].
+
;[[Ryujinx]] <small class="plainlinks" style="font-weight:normal;">([https://github.com/Ryujinx/Ryujinx-Games-List/issues compatibility])</small>
 +
:An open-source emulator that's programmed in C#. Most 2D games are now booting and running at comfortable speeds and many 3D games are playable. It also supports resolution upscaling to 4K and beyond; custom upscaling/downscaling ratios are supported. Ryujinx now has a disk-based shader cache. Unlike yuzu, Ryujinx does not offer packaged early access builds; however work-in-progress features can still be tested by using Appveyor builds or building locally from unmerged pull requests. Separately, Ryujinx has released a closed source LDN-enabled preview build supporting local wireless multiplayer across the internet, as well as LAN mode compatibility on local networks with Switch consoles on supported games.
  
===GameCube Connectivity===
+
;Skyline
The Game Boy Advance can also connect to the GameCube.<ref>https://www.nintendo.com/consumer/downloads/agbgcncable.pdf</ref> e-Reader functionality with GC games isn't emulated as of yet, but [[Dolphin]] supports connectivity through rudimentary joybus emulation made in parallel with VBA-M. Because this emulator has fallen behind, the Dolphin team is currently rewriting the feature from scratch to better interface with more accurate emulators. They showcased early higan support in a video, but nothing has been released as of yet.
+
:An open-source [[Compatibility layers|compatibility layer]] for ARMv8 [[Android]] devices. For the sake of convenience, the team bills the app as an emulator, but it functionally works like [[Wine]], running almost all of the original code on bare metal except for what interfaces with the rest of the system. At the moment Skyline does not have any graphical output, but some games do boot with audio only.
  
====Dolphin/VBA-M====
+
;Egg NS
:''Requires VBA-M r947 or newer.''
+
:Claimed the first spot in getting games running on Android. 81 titles are purported to work, and the rest are either not working or assumed to fail. There is significant controversy surrounding this emulator for the following reasons: the current version lacks any onscreen buttons and instead requires users to purchase a specific controller; it expects to run on a high-end device within the ballpark of a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855/855+/865/865+; it was discovered to have violated GPLv2 licensing requirements by using code from yuzu in a disallowed manner. Made by the Chinese illegal market.
  
# Reduce your volume. You won't want it to be high, especially with headphones.
+
==See also==
# Open Dolphin and VBA-M. Make sure neither are blocked by your firmware.
+
* [[Emulators on Switch]]
# In Dolphin, launch the game and navigate to the area where you're asked to connect the GBA. Then, under the controller options, assign the GameCube controllers as "GBA" for whichever you need.
 
# In VBA-M, uncheck Pause When Inactive in Options > Emulator. Then, under Options > Link > Joybus Options, Make sure to "Enable Joybus Connection" is on and set "IP/Hostname" to use default settings, that is <code>127.0.0.1</code> or <code>localhost</code>.
 
# Dolphin will freeze.
 
# Open the GBA BIOS in VBA-M as if it were a regular GBA ROM. The regular splash screen will stutter a bit.
 
# Dolphin should recognize the Joybus Link by then and the GC game will detect that a GBA was connected.
 
# To connect other units, open another VBA-M instance and repeat its process.
 
 
 
Notable games that work:
 
*[https://wiki.dolphin-emu.org/index.php?title=The_Legend_of_Zelda:_Four_Swords_Adventures The Legend of Zelda Four Swords Adventures]: Both two modes available for the US/PAL version work. The third Japan-only Navi Trackers mode works as well, but the game crashes after the naming screen due to a bug in the GC/GBA connectivity.
 
*[https://wiki.dolphin-emu.org/index.php?title=Final_Fantasy_Crystal_Chronicles Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles]
 
*[https://wiki.dolphin-emu.org/index.php?title=Billy_Hatcher_and_the_Giant_Egg Billy Hatcher and the Giant Egg]: You can download games to your GBA. Amusingly, a RAM dump from VBA-M can be opened as a functional GBA ROM.
 
*[https://wiki.dolphin-emu.org/index.php?title=Kururin_Squash! Kururin Squash!]
 
*[https://wiki.dolphin-emu.org/index.php?title=Sonic_Adventure_2:_Battle Sonic Adventure 2: Battle] (buggy)
 
 
 
Notable games that don't:
 
*[https://wiki.dolphin-emu.org/index.php?title=Mr_Driller:_Drill_Land Mr. Driller: Drill Land]
 
*lots more
 
 
 
===GBA/DS Connectivity===
 
:''Main section: [[Nintendo_DS_emulators#GBA.2FDS_Connectivity|Nintendo DS § GBA/DS Connectivity]]''
 
 
 
===e-Reader===
 
:''Main page: [[GBA e-Reader emulators]]''
 
This device can read content off e-Card paper stripes either as standalone content, or additional content to GBA/GC games. Can be thought of as DLC.
 
 
 
==Special Hardware==
 
Most of these have not been emulated as of yet. There used to be patches that could be applied to GBA ROMs with a utility like Lunar IPS (mostly from [http://bubbz.pocketheaven.com/?system=gba&section=patch No Frills]), but they're for the most part lost to time nowadays. Your best bet is to use Action Replay to emulate those.
 
 
 
===Solar Sensor===
 
====Emulation====
 
This feature has been emulated in mGBA, VBA-M, No$GBA 2.6 onwards, and My Boy!:
 
* mGBA: In the shortcuts editor, shortcuts can be configured to raise/lower the solar level incrementally or to set any particular brightness level.
 
* VBA-M: This emulator uses the keys of the lateral motion controls to change the Solar Sensor levels. You can find those keys and modify them in Options -> Input -> Configure... -> "Special" tab.
 
* No$GBA: Under '''Options/Emulation Setup''', you can find the Solar Sensor Level option. You are given the choice between only three brightness levels though: Darkness, 100 Watts, and Bright Sunlight.
 
* My Boy! This emulator uses a button combination or the devices light sensor to check the brightness level. You can change this under Settings -> Input -> Cartridge Features -> "Solar Emulation By" menu.
 
 
 
====ROM Patches====
 
Fixes applied directly to the ROM by various scene release groups to make it compatible with any emulator/flashcard, making the in-game brightness level controllable with L+Left/Right. It's argued this makes for a better experience actually, but sadly not all releases are covered.
 
* '''Boktai 1:''' [http://www.advanscene.com/html/Releases/dbreleases.php?id=1567 JP], [http://www.advanscene.com/html/Releases/dbreleases.php?id=1145 US], <s>EU</s>.
 
* '''Boktai 2:''' [http://www.advanscene.com/html/Releases/dbreleases.php?id=1567 JP], <s>US</s>, [http://www.advanscene.com/html/Releases/dbreleases.php?id=1992 EU].
 
* '''Boktai 3:''' [http://www.advanscene.com/html/Releases/dbreleases.php?id=2048 JP Fix].
 
* Combinations of Boktai 4 JP with earlier solar sensors to get solar sensor bonuses aren't emulated yet in any DS emulator.
 
 
 
===Motion Control===
 
VBA-M has an option for Motion controls "Input, Set, Motion". It currently works with all versions of the GBC title Kirby Tilt'n Tumble, which also was a special cartridge with a motion sensor built-in to control movement in-game. But VBA-M does not support motion controls for GBA games yet.
 
====Emulation====
 
* VBA '''doesn't''' emulate this feature, and its "Motion Control" option (with keys mapped to each tilt direction) covers the GBC title Kirby Tilt'n Tumble.
 
* mGBA supposedly includes this feature but key remapping for tilt sensors is not present in the latest builds.
 
* My Boy! uses the device's accelerometer to emulate this feature. You can change the sensitivity under Settings -> Input -> Cartridge Features -> "Motion sensitivity" menu.
 
 
 
====ROM Patches====
 
Fixes applied directly to the ROM (with the Lunar IPS utility, or at runtime using mGBA or VBA-M and naming them the same as the ROM in the same directory) by various scene release groups to make it compatible with any emulator/flashcard. D-Pad controls substituting motion controls don't work as well here as they tilt it "too much" at times to be very playable.
 
* Yoshi Topsy Turvy/Universal Gravitation: [http://www.advanscene.com/html/Releases/dbreleases.php?id=1799 JP], [http://www.advanscene.com/html/Releases/dbreleases.php?id=1947 EU], [http://www.advanscene.com/html/Releases/dbreleases.php?id=2001 US]
 
* WarioWare Twisted! (Patch: [http://www.advanscene.com/html/Releases/dbreleases.php?id=1682 JP], [http://www.advanscene.com/html/Releases/dbreleases.php?id=1979 US])
 
 
 
===Rumble Feature===
 
There are various rumble features found in GBA/GBC cards:
 
* '''GBC Rumble:''' GBC games which came on special cartridges with additional hardware for the rumble feature. It was actually used by dozens of releases, and some games like Tarzan 2 GBC were programmed to have rumble support but shipped on regular cartridges. Emulated by VBA-M GX (Wii-only), which also cover the dummied-out rumble games. Not emulated anywhere else.
 
* '''GBA Gyro Rumble:''' WarioWare Twisted was shipped on a cart with rumble support. It would rumble when you tilt to one "extreme". Emulated by VBA-M GX (Wii-only, functional), mGBA has this feature but it's not enabled in current builds,
 
* '''GBA Variable Rumble:''' Drill Dozer has rumble support, with variable force and speed depending on the rock type you drill through in-game. Partially emulated by VBA-M GX (Wii-only, functional), mGBA has this feature but it's not enabled in current builds.
 
* '''Game Boy Player Rumble:''' Many regular GBA games, shipped on regular cartridges, enable rumble during gameplay when played on GB Player hardware (which is essentially GBA hardware). These include Super Mario Advance 4, Summon Night Hajimari no Ishi, Mario & Luigi 1, Shikakui Atama wo Marukusuru Advance (both releases), Pokémon Pinball, as well as Drill Dozer which disables its original cartridge rumble scheme and enables this one instead. None of the emulators support this, though it's being under development for the mGBA emulator.
 
 
 
===Figurine Readers===
 
* '''Figurine Add-on:''' Legendz: Isle Of Trials, Legendz: Sign Of Necromu, Plaston Gate ([http://www.advanscene.com/html/Releases/dbreleases.php?id=1020 Fix]), Plaston Gate DX ([http://www.advanscene.com/html/Releases/dbreleases.php?id=2006 Fix]). The add-on is essentially Skylanders before it became popular.
 
 
 
[[mGBA]] (dev channel only) and [[GBE+]] partially support the add-on used for the Legendz series.
 
 
 
===BattleChip Gate===
 
An peripheral device by Capcom and Takara compatible with ''Mega Man Battle Network 4'' (Japanese edition). It can be connected to the Game Boy Advance and allow the player to transmit real-life toy Battle Chips to the NetNavis in the game. It's also compatible with toy Advanced PETs and ''Rockman.EXE 4.5 Real Operation''. It can also unlock minigames in ''Mega Man Zero 3''.
 
 
 
[[mGBA]] and [[GBE+]] partially support this add-on.
 
 
 
===Glucoboy===
 
* '''Glucoboy:''' An obscure medical peripheral designed to monitor a child's blood glucose levels and reward them for keeping tabs on their condition. No known emulator supports this so far, especially given the niche nature of this accessory. Not to mention that [https://assemblergames.com/threads/glucoboy-for-gameboy-is-this-the-rarest-game-accessory-for-gameboy-advance.41853/page-2 Bayer Healthcare destroyed all unsold stock] making it hard to find.
 
  
 
==References==
 
==References==
{{reflist|2}}
+
<references />
 
+
 
 
 
{{Nintendo}}
 
{{Nintendo}}
  
 
[[Category:Consoles]]
 
[[Category:Consoles]]
 +
[[Category:Handheld consoles]]
 +
[[Category:Home consoles]]
 +
[[Category:Hybrid consoles]]
 +
[[Category:Eighth-generation video game consoles]]
 
[[Category:Nintendo consoles]]
 
[[Category:Nintendo consoles]]
[[Category:Sixth-generation video game consoles]]
+
[[Category:Nintendo Switch emulators|*]]
[[Category:Game Boy Advance emulators|*]]
 

Revision as of 15:02, 21 July 2021

Nintendo Switch
Nintendo-switch.png
Switchdocked.png
The Switch in its two forms, portable (above) and docked (below).
Developer Nintendo
Type Hybrid video game console
Generation Eighth generation
Release date 2017
Predecessor Wii U
Emulated

The Nintendo Switch is an eighth-generation hybrid gaming console released by Nintendo on March 3, 2017 and retailed for $299.99. During its development, the Switch was known as the NX (short for NeXt or Nintendo "Cross") and was widely speculated up until its announcement. Aside from specialized components unique to the console, the hardware is more or less off-the-shelf, being built around a semi-custom variant of Nvidia's Tegra X1 system-on-a-chip which was also used on a number of Android devices. The Switch contains 4 ARM Cortex-A57 CPUs and 4 ARM Cortex-A53 CPUs running at 1.020 GHz with 4GB of RAM and a proprietary GPU codenamed GM20B.

While Nintendo intended to step up the security of the console, vulnerabilities were still found early on that allowed tons of system files to be dumped, including dumps of games in the form of romfs.istorage archives, an exefs folder, and license files. These game dumps eventually got shared online by scene groups except for their licenses but were missing important files to run and even if they had been completed, there were no custom homebrew apps let alone solutions to load unofficial game dumps for the system. A number of prominent hacking teams (starting with shuffle2 and fail0verflow in collaboration) all came across a new exploit independently of each other that allowed complete control over the system, later officially recognized by Nvidia as CVE-2018-6242.

A "debugging emulator" for the Nintendo Switch, CageTheUnicorn (now Mephisto), popped up not long after the first components were dumped. It was designed to emulate sysmodules with "no support for graphics, sound, input, or any kind of even remotely performant processing [...] by design". A couple of months later, members of both the Citra and Dolphin teams announced the release of their own emulator written in c++, which was capable of booting some homebrew applications; within a couple of weeks yet another emulator named Ryujinx, written in c# by developer gdkchan, was released showing successful booting of commercial Switch games Puyo Puyo Tetris and Sonic Mania.

Emulators

Name Platform(s) Latest Version FLOSS Active Recommended
PC / x86
yuzu Windows Linux Nightly
Ryujinx Windows Linux macOS Nightly
NSEmu Windows Git
Mephisto Linux macOS v1.2.1, Git
CageTheUnicorn Windows Linux macOS FreeBSD Git
Mobile / ARM
Egg NS Android 1.0.6
Skyline Android 0.3
yuzu (compatibility)
An open-source emulator made by many of Citra's developers. As it is a hard fork of Citra it shares many of its traits, namely cross-platform support and the use of OpenGL (though unlike Citra it also supports Vulkan). Many 2D games now render graphics properly and at good speeds; many 3D games are playable. This emulator currently offers early access builds to $5/month Patreon subscribers which allows them to utilize new features prior to their eventual release on the mainline build. One of yuzu's notable features is its disk-based shader cache for OpenGL, negating the need to compile shaders on the fly on every boot. uses leaked sdks
Ryujinx (compatibility)
An open-source emulator that's programmed in C#. Most 2D games are now booting and running at comfortable speeds and many 3D games are playable. It also supports resolution upscaling to 4K and beyond; custom upscaling/downscaling ratios are supported. Ryujinx now has a disk-based shader cache. Unlike yuzu, Ryujinx does not offer packaged early access builds; however work-in-progress features can still be tested by using Appveyor builds or building locally from unmerged pull requests. Separately, Ryujinx has released a closed source LDN-enabled preview build supporting local wireless multiplayer across the internet, as well as LAN mode compatibility on local networks with Switch consoles on supported games.
Skyline
An open-source compatibility layer for ARMv8 Android devices. For the sake of convenience, the team bills the app as an emulator, but it functionally works like Wine, running almost all of the original code on bare metal except for what interfaces with the rest of the system. At the moment Skyline does not have any graphical output, but some games do boot with audio only.
Egg NS
Claimed the first spot in getting games running on Android. 81 titles are purported to work, and the rest are either not working or assumed to fail. There is significant controversy surrounding this emulator for the following reasons: the current version lacks any onscreen buttons and instead requires users to purchase a specific controller; it expects to run on a high-end device within the ballpark of a Qualcomm Snapdragon 855/855+/865/865+; it was discovered to have violated GPLv2 licensing requirements by using code from yuzu in a disallowed manner. Made by the Chinese illegal market.

See also

References