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The Best Emulator to play Game ROMs for Every Console (2024 Update)

The Best Emulator to play Game ROMs for Every Console (2024 Update)

Hello, readers of ROMSdl.net. If you are here, you are probably looking for a free and good enough emulator to enjoy your favorite game ROMs on PC or Mobile. There are different options for an emulator of a console, but not all of them are good. In fact, some emulators contain malware that destroys your data, while others have not been updated for a long time. If you are looking for the best emulator for every big console in 2024, check out this article. In this article, I will share what I think are the best emulator choices to use for every major console released, I know that RetroArch is not really an emulator, but instead, it is a front-end that houses many cores, basically it is an emulator for many consoles, so I will include retroArch because sometimes a core can be better than the standalone emulator itself, now let’s get started with the list of best emulators for every emulator rated by us.

Atari 2600

We will start everything with the Atari 2600 system. It was released in 1977. To be honest, I have not played many Atari games, and I am really not a fan of this system. It is just too hard to find original hardware to enjoy Atari games. But right now, if you want to experience playing those classic games from Atari, then the best and easiest way is through emulation. The good thing is we have a few really good options to run Atari game ROMs: RetroArch, Stella, z64K Emulator, and Javatari.

If I had to pick just one of these names, I would call out Stella. Stella is now available on PC and Mac. This is a super easy-to-install emulator, and really, once you have downloaded it, all you need to do is set up your controller, then load up the game and enjoy. It is so simple that you don’t need to mess with any settings.

NES

The next system we will mention is the NES. This console was released in 1983. With millions of units sold globally and a quality game library, the NES is certainly a fond memory for many gamers. For me, this console holds a special place in my heart. It is simply because the NES was the very first video game console I owned. It was a huge leap over Atari by bringing massive hardware and game library upgrades. Today we have some awesome emulators to run SNES game ROMs on all major platforms, including Windows, MACOS, and Mobile. We have a list here:

They are all good NES emulators but if I had to just pick one, I would advise you to go with Nestopia. It is available on Windows, Linux, and Mac. Like the Atari emulator, this one is also super easy to download and install. And the only thing it requires you to set up is connecting your controller, after that, you can upload NES ROMs and jump straight into the games. It is really all simple. That always wins for me right there. Additionally, the performance of this emulator is also fantastic.

Sega Genesis

The Sega Genesis was released in 1989, this was the second console I owned, and I quite liked it. To be honest, there were not that many great games ever released on this platform, but there were some real standouts. I’m talking about Sonic 3, Streets of Rage, Golden Axe, and Comic Zone. Today we can enjoy these classics with some enhanced graphics on emulators like:

  • Retroarch
  • Kega Fusion
  • OpenEmu
  • Gens

The best Sega Genesis emulator I would advise you to use is the Kega Fusion. It is available for Windows, Linux, and Mac. This is the most accurate and reliable Genesis emulator. It is straightforward to use and set up. This emulator impresses you by being able to run your games at 60 frames, and you have some filter options to add to your games to improve image quality.

Super Nintendo

The next console is the Genesis’ rival, the Super Nintendo. It was released in 1991. This was an amazing console and I did own one but I spent more of my free time with the Genesis games. However, the SNES had some really good Classic games like Donkey Kong Country, Chrono Trigger, Super Metroid and Super Mario World.

There are several emulator options to emulate this console:

  • BSNES
  • retroarch
  • snes9x
  • ZSNES
  • OpenEMU

The best SNES emulator I would recommend is SNES9x. Again this is just an easy-to-use and absolutely solid-performing software. The emulator is simple to set up and comes with some nice features like multiple filter options to choose from to enhance your games’ image quality. This is always the best feature to have, in my opinion, when it comes to criteria for Classic emulators. SNES9x is available for Windows and Mac.

Sega Saturn

This console was released in 1995. To be honest, I never owned an original hardware and, of course, never got to experience any games released for this console until I learned about them through emulators. I can’t say this system has any classic and immortal games but there are some really great titles I have completed, like Panzer Dragoon and The Knights. If you are a big fan of this system and want to relive it, great, there are a couple of good emulators to aid that. The list includes:

  • Mednafen
  • Yabause
  • retroarch
  • Bizhawk
  • Kronos

And for the first time so far on this list, I would advise you to use retroArch. The core retroArch uses for Saturn is called Beetle core. Basically, it is a fork of Mednafen so I won’t recommend that emulator since it will cost you a bit of time. With using a standalone emulator like Mednafen, you will need bios to run it. But with Retroarch you won’t need a bios and you will still have an almost perfect Saturn emulation experience.

PlayStation

PlayStation was the beginning of a legend, you have to agree with me on this. To this day, Sony’s line of PlayStation consoles is still leading the race for the most popular game consoles of all time.

The PlayStation (or PSX as it was also called) was originally released in 1994. This was the very first official PlayStation console and they really made a name for themselves in gaming. The PS1 also brought us new icons like Crash Bandicoot, and Spyro as well as amazing games like Metal Gear Solid and Silent Hill. Now, we have several emulators that will let you easily play these PS1 games on PC and Mobile. The current list is:

Out of these options, the emulator I would recommend is DuckStation. It is available for Windows and Mac. This emulator has a nice-looking interface. It allows you to upload your whole PS1 ROM list to display right in the user interface. It also enables you to upload game cover art. Not only does DuckStation have a nice interface, but it also has many great features for a better emulation experience, like enhanced widescreen support and the ability to run your games at 60 frames.

The only downside is it requires a bios file to function. If you don’t already have a PS1 BIOS file, we have a post here to help you download it for free.

Nintendo 64

Well, the Nintendo 64 is considered the most hated console ever.

The Nintendo 64 was released in 1996 and although I am not a big fan of this console, that doesn’t mean I didn’t like the console back in the day. I used to play a lot of Pokemon Stadium, GoldenEye, and Mario 64. The games on the Nintendo 64 were still amazing. Now we can easily replay our favorite Nintendo 64 games thanks to emulators. We have a list of reliable N64 emulators here:

  • OpenEmu
  • RetroArch
  • Mupen64
  • Project64
  • 1964

For me, Project 64 is the best emulator for Nintendo 64.

This emulator is only available for Windows. Project 64 stands out from the rest because it brings you every feature you need to enjoy N64 games in the best way. It’s very easy to set up and plugins are configured by default. This is the most accurate 64 emulator when playing your games as if they were running on the actual console. And finally, I always have to mention this, it has options available to enhance image quality on big screens.

Dreamcast

The Dreamcast was the last console released by Sega. It was sold globally in 1999. The Dreamcast is seen as SEGA’s final hurrah before they exited the console market but its sales were not positive. With only about 9 million units sold worldwide, the Dreamcast was a failure. However, we reminisce about the days sitting together enjoying Jet Set Radio, getting absorbed in the awesome adventures of Sonic Adventure on the Dreamcast. Luckily if you want to replay these games on PC and Mobile, we have emulators available, including:

  • Redream
  • RetroArch
  • Flycast
  • Reicast
  • Demul
  • NullDC

The emulator I would recommend is Redream. It is available for Windows, Mac, and Linux. I have tried many emulators, but Redream hands down, has the nicest user interface I have ever seen. Aside from the nice interface, the app has extremely easy navigation and when you upload your games, you get nice cover art displayed for each game. Even better, if you are using a Bluetooth controller, your controller is set up for you already and no bios are needed. The only downside to Redream is you have to pay for advanced options. Specifically, to be able to upscale your game’s resolution, you have to pay $6. But trust me, it’s worth it.

PlayStation 2

For me, the PlayStation 2 is the greatest video game console ever made. Sony released it in 2000. Not many people know the PlayStation 2 became the highest-selling game console ever with over 150 million units. The game collection on the PS2 was just amazing. Hundreds of titles worthy of being in a Hall of fame for best games ever. For the topic of PS2 emulation on PC and Mobile, we find there are only 2 best options available which are:

PCSX2 takes the win for being the best PS2 emulator. For a long time this emulator was great at perfect compatibility. Additionally, it has a great interface and options available. You will get the best PS2 gaming experience.

Nintendo GameCube and Nintendo Wii

These two consoles don’t have many options for emulators. In fact, we only have one viable option to use which is Dolphin. The app is available for both and it really is all we need. Dolphin has done very well with Gamecube. It allows smooth gameplay, Wi-Fi support, 60htz, and higher resolution. These options are also available with Wii emulation. The experience is even better when you have the additional option to connect actual Wii controllers via a device sold on Amazon called the Dolphin Bar. With this accessory, you can connect and play games with original Wii controllers. The experience is definitely amazing. Dolphin is available for Windows and Mac.

Xbox

We come to Microsoft’s first console, the XBOX. The original Xbox was released in 2001. Not many people knew about the XBOX until Halo was released. It deserves to be one of the greatest video games ever made. The Halo franchise has sold over 90 million copies worldwide. That is a dream number for any game developer. Back to the main topic, we have two good options for XBOX emulation which are

Actually, there are some other names but they are not good enough, or have not been updated for a very long time.

Both XEMU and CXBXR are great emulators but the one I would recommend is CXBXR. First off, both these emulators have equal compatibility but what I like more about CXBXR is the ease and flexibility to use. And most importantly CXBXR works on both Windows and Mac.

Xbox 360

Microsoft’s second console was the Xbox 360, released in 2005. It was a huge success and would have been even bigger if not for the deadly red ring of death errors. Despite having a critical flaw that could completely break the device, the Xbox 360 was Microsoft’s most successful console. It brought fierce and fair competition with Sony’s PS3. In fact the 360 was really amazing and to this day, some Xbox 360 games are still regarded as the best.

At this time, if you want to emulate this console, there is only one good enough emulator to use which is the Xenia emulator. It is only available for Windows systems. The good news is Xenia performs well with high compatibility and many options to enhance the gaming experience. However, to get the very best experience, you will need a powerful PC.

PlayStation 3

The PlayStation 3, A.K.A PS3, was the console that created the most exciting competition ever with the Xbox 360.

The PS3 was released in 2006. The first thing I remember about it was the outrageous price of this system. Can you believe that, at the time, it cost $600 for a console with only 60 GB of storage? Many even criticized Sony and saw this price as a joke. However, time proved everything. The PS3 sold over 90 million units worldwide. The PS3 exclusive game collection was unmatched with legendary franchises like God of War, The Last of Us, LittleBigPlanet, Gran Turismo, and more. PS3 emulation was first introduced in 2012. At that time, PC specs were not powerful enough for us to smoothly play PS3 ROMs. However, now, everything is different. When it comes to good PS3 emulators, we only have one option, which is RPCS3. And that is all we need because this emulator is amazing.

It has a beautiful and modern interface, and tons of advanced customization options to enhance your gaming experience and optimize your ROMs on any PC configuration. The project’s homepage is continuously updated with new features and performance improvements of the emulator. The “Playable Games” list is gradually being filled with green. rpcs3 is available on PC Linux and Mac. You can check out everything about it in this post.

Wii U

The Wii U was the home video game console developed by Nintendo. It first launched in 2012 and was the successor to the Wii. The Wii U had a unique design with a main controller called the GamePad. Additionally, the device had a one-of-a-kind touchscreen display. It allowed you to play games either on the GamePad screen or the TV.

With the Wii U, players had a versatile device to play Nintendo exclusive games. The system could run traditional Nintendo games, including Mario, Zelda, and Pokémon, and third-party games from other developers. The Wii U also supported downloading games from the Nintendo eShop.

There are two emulators available to emulate the Wii U, which are Decaf and Cemu, I would advise you to use Cemu. To be honest, the comparison between these two emulators is unnecessary because Cemu is superior in every way.

The only downside to Cemu is it is currently Windows only.

Nintendo Switch

In 2017, the Nintendo Switch was introduced globally by Nintendo. It created a boom. Basically, the Nintendo Switch is a hybrid device. It combines a handheld gaming console and a home gaming system. The Switch has a unique design with a touchscreen and two detachable controllers called Joy-Cons. Players can attach the Joy-Cons to the unit to play on-screen or slide them onto the sides for TV play.

The success of the Nintendo Switch stems from its exclusive game lineup. From established franchises like Mario and Zelda, Nintendo released exclusive games with superior graphics and excellent gameplay.

I am sad to report that the Yuzu emulator has been discontinued. This was a really amazing emulator and would have been the one I recommended, but luckily we still have the RyuJinx emulator. It is a great Switch emulator and continues to receive new updates, too. RyuJinx is available for Windows, Mac, and Linux.

Nintendo Handhelds

Now let’s discuss some of Nintendo’s classic handheld devices. We have the Game Boy in 1989, the Game Boy Color in 1998, and Game Boy Advance in 2001. For all these platforms, we recommend you use retroArch. Although standalone emulators are available for each device, they are not worth splitting up like that. It would be best to use RetroArch with the available cores to run each handheld emulator. They work well, performing just as well as the standalone emulators. The performance is even better, actually.

For the Nintendo DS released in 2004, you can also play its ROMs on retroArch however we suggest a better option.

Currently, two better emulators provide you with more customization options: DesMuMe and melonDS. I would advise Melon DS as it has a higher compatibility list and near-perfect emulation in every game.

The last name on this list is the Nintendo 3DS, the greatest handheld gaming system ever developed by Nintendo. I am sad to say that like we lost the best Nintendo Switch emulator Yuzu, we have also lost the best 3DS emulator Citra. It was regarded as the best option to emulate the 3DS. Currently, there is a new 3DS emulator called Panda 3DS. We have used it for a while and found some issues but they are not too serious. Although Panda 3DS is not as good as Citra, the developers are still working to improve it.

Sony PlayStation Handhelds

We have the PSP released in 2005. The PSP (PlayStation Portable) was a handheld gaming console developed exclusively by Sony. The PSP delivered superior mobile gaming with high-quality graphics, vivid sound and a diverse game library. In addition to gaming, the PSP could also function as a multimedia player. It allowed you to watch movies, listen to music, and browse the web. Thanks to its sleek design and portability, the PSP became one of the most successful handheld gaming consoles in history and garnered popularity among players worldwide.

We have the emulator list for this platform which includes the following:

There is one clear winner here, and that is PPSSPP. It is an emulator with a simple and nice-looking interface. It allows you to upload cover art to your ROM collection. The best thing about PPSSPP is its deep customization ability. The app has some sensible settings available to improve game performance and optimize the control system. PPSSPP is available on Windows, Mac, and Mobile

Let’s talk about Sony’s final handheld gaming system, the PS Vita. The PS Vita (AKA PlayStation Vita) was a handheld game console released in 2011. The PS Vita provided powerful mobile gaming with high-quality graphics, an OLED touchscreen display and networking capabilities. It had backward compatibility to let you play classic PlayStation games as well as download many other titles from the PlayStation Store. The PS Vita also supported online play, content sharing and connectivity with other devices like the PlayStation 4.

Currently, we only have one emulator that can emulate this handheld which is Vita3K, available for Windows, Mac and Linux.

Personally, I have not used this emulator due to poor compatibility, but it is still in development, and I think it will undoubtedly improve in the future. If you want a temporarily good enough PS Vita emulator then Vita3K is your only choice.

Conclusion

This concludes our 2024 roundup of the best emulators for major consoles. We believe with the options we have laid out, you have a pick for yourself to enjoy game ROMs on your computer or mobile device. If you have any questions, please leave a comment below.

And if you’re wondering if there are any good working PS4 emulators, well, we do have one promising name, which is fps4. However, this emulator still has a long way to go before gaining acceptance from gamers