RetroArch

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Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Local Multi-Player Play with friends in the same physical space using split-screen or multiple screens
2-Players Play with one other player, either online or locally, in a cooperative or competitive game mode
Multi-Player Compete or cooperate with other players online
Co-Op Team up with friends to complete levels or missions together
Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo
PvP Player versus Player - Fight against other players in real-time, often in arena-style combat
Split Screen Play with multiple players on the same screen, often with divided or shared screen real estate

Reviews

68%

Audience ScoreBased on 6,796 reviews

optimization23 positive mentions

stability78 negative mentions

Wide variety of emulators and cores available, allowing users to play games from multiple systems in one app.
No ads and completely free, making it accessible for all users.
Once set up, it runs games smoothly and provides a nostalgic gaming experience.

User interface is complicated and not user-friendly, making it difficult for beginners to navigate and set up.
Frequent crashes and issues with loading games, particularly with certain cores like PSP and N64.
Settings often do not save properly, leading to frustration when users have to reconfigure their preferences each time.

stability
84 mentions
6 % positive mentions
1 % neutral mentions
93 % negative mentions
The stability of the emulator is widely criticized, with users reporting frequent crashes, freezes, and various bugs that hinder gameplay and navigation. Many find the setup process complicated and time-consuming, often requiring extensive troubleshooting to resolve issues. While some users appreciate the emulator's potential and features, the overall experience is marred by its instability and inconsistent performance across different devices and game cores.
- “Some other emulators might be better at one specific system, but this app adequately emulates most popular classic video games with few or no glitches.”
- “No ads, no in-app purchases, Gran Turismo 2 runs great, what more could you want!”
- “This app stays true to how I believe emulators should be handled and it runs great.”
- “I've found it's been a bit buggy since this and the previous update, random crashes while playing or even scanning a folder.”
- “It's a buggy, complicated mess with tons of potential.”
- “This is by far the most complicated, unfriendly, buggy and poorly designed emulator I've used.”
optimization
79 mentions
29 % positive mentions
46 % neutral mentions
25 % negative mentions
Overall, the optimization of the emulator is a mixed bag, with many users reporting performance issues, particularly with certain cores like the Nintendo DS and PSP, which often require high-end devices for satisfactory gameplay. While some users appreciate the multi-console support and customization options, they also note that the setup process can be tedious and the interface is not user-friendly. Frequent crashes and audio sync problems further detract from the experience, indicating that significant optimization is still needed for a smoother performance across a wider range of devices.
- “Great multi-core emulator, optimized and updated often for multiple operating systems.”
- “Great performance on my GPD XD, replaced a handful of individual emulators quite handily.”
- “Very impressive performance in all of the emulators.”
- “Performance is fine (if not great) for older consoles, but newer platforms are infinitely better served by stand-alone emulators.”
- “The app is alright, the cores work, but the interface is not very user friendly, and it takes too much time to set it up, and when you set it up, you might see less performance than another app of the same system that's being emulated.”
- “Bad performance compared to any other emulator and keeps crashing; I don't recommend it for mobile phones.”
monetization
64 mentions
66 % positive mentions
3 % neutral mentions
31 % negative mentions
The monetization model of the app is highly praised, as it is completely free and devoid of any advertisements or in-app purchases. Users appreciate the absence of ads, which enhances the overall experience, making it a standout choice among emulators. The open-source nature further adds to its appeal, allowing for extensive customization without the typical monetization pitfalls found in other apps.
- “It's free (and open source), it has no ads or in-app purchases, and it has just about every retro emulator you need all in one place.”
- “No ads, no in-app purchases, Gran Turismo 2 runs great, what more could you want!”
- “Free, no ads, unifying different emulators into one app, great developers (updates via play and answer questions), in-depth customization - this app has so many reasons why it is the best emulator app out of all the others, give it a shot and find out why.”
- “Yet other free emulators that are full of ads somehow work better.”
- “Hands down the best thing you can download on this godforsaken app store that is filled with copies upon copies of other good games, games that shove ads down your throat on every minuscule action and pay-to-win garbage which makes it impossible to find a playable and enjoyable game when searching for a way to pass time, they simply drown out anything good because of the sheer amount of them.”
- “Would not download this unless you want malware on your phone, immediately started getting ads popping up when not using the app, not worth the risk.”
graphics
41 mentions
32 % positive mentions
56 % neutral mentions
12 % negative mentions
The graphics of the emulator receive mixed reviews, with some users praising the quality and customization options, while others report issues such as glitches, low resolution, and unplayable frame rates on certain games. Many appreciate the retro aesthetic and the ability to use shaders for improved visuals, but there are frequent calls for enhancements and fixes to graphical performance and controls. Overall, while some find the graphics satisfactory, others highlight significant room for improvement.
- “The graphics are nice, the quality is good, and the sound is pretty good from what I can see.”
- “Love all of the available cores and graphics filters, very awesome.”
- “The sounds come out pretty good and the graphics are amazing.”
- “The audio is bad, the graphics suck, and the game crashes easily.”
- “Lag and slow, bad graphics.”
- “When I run this emulator on my phone, its graphics were black and the entire screen was blank.”
story
24 mentions
25 % positive mentions
63 % neutral mentions
13 % negative mentions
The reviews highlight a strong appreciation for the game "Cave Story," with many users praising its flawless performance on the emulator. However, there are concerns regarding the stability of other games and issues with saving progress, particularly with the nxengine. Overall, while the emulator is well-received for its versatility and user options, it faces criticism for compatibility problems with certain titles.
- “The best all-round emulator comes easy with everything and I didn't expect Cave Story; it works flawlessly. Very nice job, guys.”
- “However, as of now, this is the only way to play Cave Story, so it has that going for it.”
- “I only use it to play Cave Story, and it does an awesome job at it.”
- “Game like Cave Story don't work.”
- “I see that NXEngine support was removed, so I can't get Cave Story to run.”
- “Does the job just fine, but some things like NXEngine don't fully work; for example, when I save in Cave Story (NXEngine), the save disappears after exiting and reentering.”
gameplay
17 mentions
24 % positive mentions
59 % neutral mentions
18 % negative mentions
Gameplay experiences with the emulator are mixed, with users reporting significant lag, audio issues, and crashes when navigating menus. While some appreciate the controls and the faithful recreation of original gameplay, many find the interface unfriendly and the lack of local co-op options disappointing. Overall, performance heavily depends on device specifications, and users recommend it primarily for those with higher-end devices.
- “I don't normally rate let alone review stuff, but RetroArch by far deserves it. I found this emulator on my computer and thought if I could move my gameplay beyond my computer, and I could. RetroArch for Android was great.”
- “Emulator is very good, 5 stars! The controls I played with an Xbox One S controller were amazing. Best gameplay, everything was so good.”
- “Made huge leaps in the interface, and gameplay is faithful to the original.”
- “Then the GUI is unfriendly, the slow motion doesn't work, and overlays are not customizable... but most importantly I feel the biggest feature missing is a local network co-op gameplay (using Wi-Fi or Bluetooth).”
- “All the ROMs were slow and the audio delayed. I'm not sure if it's my device, but I've tried every setting that should've fixed it, but it was always the same distorted audio and slow gameplay. I would recommend this to people who have a good device, but my experience was tedious and slightly frustrating.”
- “After fiddling around with the app (doesn't have any apparent instructions, you have to just figure it out), it loaded my NDS game with choppy music and the gameplay was laggy.”
music
9 mentions
22 % positive mentions
44 % neutral mentions
33 % negative mentions
The music quality in the app is generally criticized for being choppy and distorted, particularly with certain games like Final Fantasy VI and Pokémon titles, leading to a frustrating experience for users. While some games run smoothly, others suffer from significant lag and sound issues, detracting from the overall enjoyment. Users also noted a lack of clear instructions, making it difficult to troubleshoot these audio problems effectively.
- “It's even better than the 'classic boy (emulator)' I can play SSB64 without the frame rate being a total a-hole plus I can turn off the game sounds and listen to music and it doesn't mess up!”
- “Entire media suite so you can watch movies, listen to music and browse your.”
- “After fiddling around with the app (doesn't have any apparent instructions, you have to just figure it out) it loaded my NDS game with choppy music and the gameplay was laggy.”
- “PSX works at 60 fps and has barely any problems, but now it's garbage; it runs at like 20 fps and the music/sounds are very distorted.”
- “After playing around with the settings a bit, it runs Pokémon Sapphire and Super Metroid quite well, but Final Fantasy VI and DS games are laggy with crackling music.”
humor
8 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The humor in the reviews stems from the absurdity of the app's complexity, with users finding the overwhelming number of buttons both amusing and frustrating. Comments about the confusing setup and the app's marketing as a "multi versatile program" add to the comedic tone, while the technical issues, such as games failing to load and displaying funny error messages, contribute to a lighthearted take on the overall experience.
- “The amount of buttons on screen (due to the number of systems it must account for) is both hilarious and annoying.”
- “(12,000+ games on my gaming phone) it's funny reading the comments of people saying it's hard to set up or the UI is confusing.”
- “"Multi versatile program" is funny marketing.”
grinding
8 mentions
0 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
100 % negative mentions
Users find the grinding aspect of the game tedious and confusing, often citing difficulties with setup and navigation. Many express frustration over slow performance and audio issues, suggesting that while the concept is promising, the execution is hampered by a lack of user-friendly design and a cumbersome process. Overall, the experience is marked by a sense of unnecessary complexity that detracts from enjoyment.
- “To the layman, it's confusing and unnecessarily tedious.”
- “There's no learning curve, just a bunch of simple stuff made tedious by the fact that you're emulating more than one device from a singular piece of software.”
- “If anyone actually cares about my stupid opinion though... it's an incredible concept, and the performance is pretty good, it's just so tedious to set up and navigate.”
emotional
4 mentions
100 % positive mentions
0 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
The emotional aspect of the reviews highlights frustration with technical issues, such as accidental touchpad activation and the inability to restore settings, leading to a sense of dissatisfaction and disappointment with the overall user experience. Users express a desire for a more reliable and cohesive system before expanding functionality to other consoles.
replayability
2 mentions
50 % positive mentions
50 % neutral mentions
0 % negative mentions
Users find the replayability aspect to be hindered by the lack of user-friendly cheats, which may limit the enjoyment for less experienced players. There is also a desire for improved performance on mid-spec systems to enhance the overall replay experience.