Emulation Knowledge Base

The most comprehensive emulator setup guides for arcade cabinets—built by professional cabinet builders

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Showing 21 of 21 emulators
RetroArch logo

RetroArch

Multi-System

The ultimate multi-system emulation frontend for arcade cabinets — runs 100+ cores covering MAME, SNES, PlayStation, N64, Sega, and more. Covers core setup, CRT shaders, overlays, RetroAchievements, input mapping, and full kiosk mode configuration.

MAME logo

MAME

Arcade

Standalone MAME — the definitive arcade preservation emulator. Covers mame.exe setup, mame.ini hierarchy, full 32K+ ROM set management, CRT Emudriver, hardware encoder boards (I-PAC, J-PAC), attract mode, and the complete mame.ini template for arcade cabinet builds.

MAME via RetroArch logo

MAME via RetroArch

Arcade

MAME through RetroArch's libretro core system — covers core selection (2003-Plus, 2010, 2016, current), ROM set matching, RetroPad controller mapping, CRT shaders (Geom, Royale, Mega Bezel), overlays, RetroAchievements, and kiosk mode for arcade cabinet builds.

FinalBurn Neo logo

FinalBurn Neo

Arcade (CPS1/2/3, Neo Geo, Capcom, SNK)

The go-to emulator for fighting game cabinets — Street Fighter II, King of Fighters, Metal Slug, Mortal Kombat, and 5,000+ CPS1/2/3, Neo Geo, and Capcom arcade titles. Covers ROM sets, input mapping, CRT shaders, and LaunchBox integration.

Daphne / Hypseus Singe logo

Daphne / Hypseus Singe

Laserdisc Arcade

The definitive Laserdisc arcade emulator — Dragon's Lair, Space Ace, Cliff Hanger, and 98%+ of the Laserdisc arcade library. Covers the two-component architecture (ROM + video), framefile protocol, command-line launch, Singe 2.0 fan games, and LaunchBox integration.

Project64 / Gopher64 logo

Project64 / Gopher64

Nintendo 64

The two best Nintendo 64 emulators for PC — covers plugin selection (GLideN64), N64 controller mapping for arcade sticks, performance tuning, and LaunchBox integration for GoldenEye, Mario 64, Zelda, and Mario Kart 64 cabinet builds.

DuckStation logo

DuckStation

PlayStation 1

The fastest and most accurate PlayStation 1 emulator available. Run Crash Bandicoot, Tekken 3, Metal Gear Solid, Final Fantasy VII, and the full PS1 library. Covers BIOS setup, hardware renderer (Vulkan/OpenGL), PGXP geometry correction, texture filtering, per-game overrides, and LaunchBox integration for arcade cabinet builds.

Dolphin logo

Dolphin

GameCube / Wii

The gold standard for GameCube and Wii emulation. Run Super Smash Bros. Melee, Mario Kart Wii, Zelda: Twilight Princess, and 1,000+ titles at 4K with widescreen patches. Covers Vulkan rendering, Wii Remote mapping for arcade controls, netplay, shader presets, and LaunchBox integration for cabinet builds.

PPSSPP logo

PPSSPP

PlayStation Portable

The definitive PlayStation Portable emulator. Run God of War: Chains of Olympus, Tekken 6, Street Fighter Alpha 3 MAX, and 2,000+ PSP titles. Covers Vulkan rendering, texture replacement, per-game overrides, analog stick mapping for arcade controls, and LaunchBox integration for cabinet builds.

PCSX2 logo

PCSX2

PlayStation 2

The definitive PS2 emulator. Master BIOS setup, per-game overrides, the Double Input bug fix, and kiosk automation for arcade cabinet builds.

Citra / Lime3DS logo

Citra / Lime3DS

Nintendo 3DS

Nintendo 3DS emulation — Lime3DS is the actively maintained Citra successor. Run Pokémon X/Y, Fire Emblem Fates, Monster Hunter 4, and 1,000+ 3DS titles. Covers Vulkan support, HD texture packs, dual-screen layout management, and LaunchBox integration for cabinet builds.

RPCS3 logo

RPCS3

PlayStation 3

The world's first functional PS3 emulator. Run Tekken 6, Street Fighter IV, God of War III, and 70%+ of the PS3 library with Cell architecture tuning, shader cache management, and per-game custom configurations.

Cemu logo

Cemu

Nintendo Wii U

Run Breath of the Wild at 60fps, Mario Kart 8, Splatoon, and 700+ Wii U titles. Covers mlc01 setup, Vulkan, FPS++ graphic packs, shader caches, SDL2 input, and Pretendo Network.

Flycast logo

Flycast

Dreamcast / NAOMI / Atomiswave

The definitive Sega 6th-generation emulator. Covers Dreamcast, NAOMI, NAOMI 2, Atomiswave, and System SP. Run Crazy Taxi, Marvel vs. Capcom 2, Virtua Fighter 4, and hundreds of arcade classics with Vulkan rendering, widescreen cheats, and DCnet online play.

TeknoParrot logo

TeknoParrot

Modern PC Arcade (Lindbergh, RingEdge, Taito Type X, Namco ES3)

The definitive compatibility layer for modern PC-based arcade hardware. Run House of the Dead 4, Time Crisis 5, After Burner Climax, Street Fighter IV, and 150+ titles from Sega Lindbergh, RingEdge, Taito Type X, and Namco ES3. Deeply integrated with Arcade Assistant.

Xenia logo

Xenia

Xbox 360

The leading Xbox 360 research emulator. Run Halo 3, Fable II, Gears of War, Red Dead Redemption, and 2,000+ titles. Covers Xenia Canary vs Master, AVX CPU requirements, D3D12 configuration, resolution scaling, game patches, and advanced troubleshooting.

Supermodel logo

Supermodel

Sega Model 3

The only high-accuracy emulator for the Sega Model 3 arcade hardware. Run Virtua Fighter 3, Daytona USA 2, Scud Race, Star Wars Trilogy, and more. Covers command-line setup, force feedback, light gun configuration, LaunchBox integration, and game-specific tuning.

Sega Model 2 Emulator logo

Sega Model 2 Emulator

Sega Model 2

The definitive emulator for Sega Model 2 arcade hardware by Nebula. Run Daytona USA, Virtua Fighter 2, Sega Rally Championship, Virtua Cop, and more. Covers Emulator.ini configuration, force feedback wheels, light gun setup, LaunchBox integration, and game-specific tuning.

Redream logo

Redream

Sega Dreamcast

The premier standalone Sega Dreamcast emulator. Redream's monolithic design and sane defaults make it the easiest Dreamcast emulator to configure. Covers renderer selection (Vulkan vs OpenGL), VMU management, widescreen hacks, 4K upscaling, and LaunchBox integration for arcade cabinet builds.

ScummVM logo

ScummVM

Classic PC Adventure Games

The definitive engine re-implementation for classic LucasArts and Sierra adventure games. Run Monkey Island, Day of the Tentacle, Sam & Max, Full Throttle, Grim Fandango, and 400+ more on your arcade cabinet. Covers joystick-to-mouse mapping, CRT shaders, LaunchBox integration, and per-game configuration.

OpenBOR logo

OpenBOR

Beat-em-up Game Engine

The open-source beat-em-up game engine that runs fan-made PAK modules based on classic arcade brawler franchises. Run TMNT: Rescue-Palooza!, Streets of Rage remakes, Final Fight mods, and hundreds more. Covers PAK version management, engine-PAK coupling, joystick input, LaunchBox wrapper scripts, and migration protocols.

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Frequently Asked Questions

⚠️ Legal Notice

These guides provide configuration and setup instructions for emulation software. We do not provide, link to, or endorse ROM or BIOS file downloads. You must legally own the games you emulate.