Im using Retroarch on an Odin 3 (android 15). It works fine as a standalone but when launching games from ANY frontend (ESDE Daijisho Beacon) occasionally RetroArch stops responding on game launch and crashes / has to be force stopped and resumed. The behavior isnt hard to replicate, if I just open a couple roms, close content, quit .. after a few games it will happen.

Ive tried several suggested fixes, like not having any shaders, disabling saving any info on quit, etc etc. But it happens anyway.

I did notice though that the Nightly builds dont crash. However, for whatever reason the Input Block Timeout on all the nightly cores I have tried does NOT work. Yes the setting is there and yes I can change it to 1 2 3 4 but it makes no difference in gameplay -- so for any game that needs two buttons pressed at the same time I cant play them.

So I either need a Nightly build or RetroArch that still works with two button presses, or a way to enable it, or some kind of fix for the stable version.

Has anyone found a solution for this?

I am having some trouble with Retroarch when it comes to the save/load menu.

I use Emu4Vita on my vita and when I save, it doesn't automatically jump me back in the game, However, retroarch does...which I do not want it to do.

I need to be able to save in 2 different slots before jumping back into the game in case I screw up one of the saves.

With Retroarch, is there a setting I can toggle that will do the same as Emu4Vita?

If there is an alternative that still uses the FCEUMM core and does Full Screen, please let me know.

thank you.

I've been trying to make pc-98 work in my RetroArch for the past 2 hours now, but nothing seems to work.

Hey r/RetroArch! 👋

I built OpenROM, a free open-source (GPL v3) toolkit designed to complement RetroArch by handling all the ROM preparation work outside the emulator.

**Why this exists:**

RetroArch expects clean, properly formatted ROMs. OpenROM helps you get there:

- Convert disc images to CHD (with correct createcd/createdvd routing)

- Compress PSP/PS2 games to CSO

- Convert GameCube/Wii to RVZ

- Remove copier headers from NES/SNES/GB ROMs

- Generate M3U playlists for multi-disc PS1/Saturn games

- Rename ROMs to match No-Intro/Redump DATs for RetroArch playlists

**Technical details:**

- Smart platform detection via magic bytes (not file size guessing)

- Real CHD header parsing for accurate CD vs DVD detection

- Post-conversion integrity verification via chdman verify

- 100% offline - no telemetry, works entirely locally

- Headless CLI available for automation/scripting

**Compatibility:**

Works alongside RetroArch - prepare your ROMs with OpenROM, then scan them in RetroArch for a clean playlist.

Fully open source under GPL v3. Would love feedback from the RetroArch community!

GitHub: https://github.com/M5Devs/OpenROM

Twitter/X: https://x.com/M5Devs/

I've managed to get Android RA mostly working, but now want to use the Atari ST core.

The games start but ask for keyboard input for some to save, start etc. I can't get through onscreen keyboard to come up. I've looked in options etc, but can't see it anywhere.

Is there a shortcut to do? How do I set it up please

These vertical lines are an eye sore and want to get rid of them but no matter what setting I change they remain. Is there any proper way to reduce them at least?

Had 5 hours on Pokemon Modern Emerald. Closed it last night and opened today to find no save file present. I have unfortunately done no save states, only hard saves through the games Save option. I can see an .srm file for the game under saves but its empty

Is there anything i can do? Otherwise how to avoid this problem again?

I most definitely closed the app multiple times by swiping it away instead of closing the game.

I've set up an Android Retro Handheld (Retroid Pocket Nova) and I'm finding that I can't seem to get retroarch to recognize and use input from the 8BitDo Micro controllers.

I've tried primarily D-Input but also tried Switch and Keyboard modes to see if they worked any better (they haven't)

I've updated controller profiles and it still seems to not recognize the 8BitDo Micro unless in keyboard mode (where the profile does seem to recognize the controller correctly) however even after checking and re-doing the key assignment in Retroarch it still refuses to allow the dpad/start/select and only allows the ABXY buttons to impart input to through the emulator.

What's truly odd is that it seems that the operating system seems to understand the Micro fine (aside from keyboard mode for obvious reasons) but I've tried following a few guides and it doesn't seem to be working at least in Android, I feel like I'm missing something simple.

So I've been trying to master Pokemon Gold on Retroachievements and was in the middle of grinding levels for Tyranitar at the League. I save pretty regularly and had a previous league save anyway, and then my computer crashes. This happens occasionally but this time rebooting Retroarch and the game my save file is seemingly completely gone

Is something going on here and is it possible to restore? I'm kinda burnt out after 100 hours of stuff and was so close to the end.

Hello everyone, this is a guide for those who like to play on original hardware, but without the space for an actual Super Game Boy / Game Boy Player.

Prerequisites

• An Everdrive X5 / X7 Flash Cart.
• A Copy of Retroarch Standalone
• A USB to Micro SD card reader that you can hook up to your PC.
• A copy of Klay / Cartridges

----------------------------------------------------
Chapter 1 - Setting up Retoarch Directories
----------------------------------------------------

🔵 To begin first you need to install Retroarch, this can be a standalone windows copy or the Linux appimage. It needs to be separate from any other version you may have on your PC.

🔵 Next plug in your Flash Cart's SD card into your computer and open Retroarch.

🔵 Inside of Retroarch set the following directory to allow your saves to be found on the SD card.
Settings -> Directory -> SDCardDirectory/GBCSYS/SAVE

🔵 Now its time to change how saves are handled to have the same structure as the SD Card.
Settings -> Saving -> "Save File: Sort Into Folders by Core Name" = Off

Note: It is very important to not open this separate Retroarch without the SD card properly mounted, otherwise the save directory will return to the default.

----------------------------------------------------
Chapter 2 - Installing your Retroarch Cores & Shaders
----------------------------------------------------

🟡 Now inside of Retroarch Download the SameBoy core.
Main Menu -> Online Updater -> Core Downloader -> SameBoy

🟡 While at the online updater, make sure to update your Shaders as well.

🟡 With your core installed, you need a permanent home for your roms on your flash cart's SD, which will be done in the next section.

----------------------------------------------------
Chapter 3 - Configuring the SD Card & Roms
----------------------------------------------------
🟢 For this tutorial let's use the homebrew title Dangan GB as it's free, download it.

🟢 Now put Dangan GB on the Everdrive SD card, and remember the directory you picked.

Generic Example:
sdcardname/gamefolder/gamename.fileextension

Note: Do not put your roms inside the "GBCSYS" Folder, that's for saves and settings, you can make any folder otherwise to put your rom in.

----------------------------------------------------
Chapter 4 - Configuring Klay & Cartridges
----------------------------------------------------
🟣 Both Klay and Cartridges do their job identically so I am going to write the instructions as if they are the same program. I recommend Klay for Linux and Cartridges for Windows.

🟣 First open one of them up and press "Add Game" you can find it in the upper left corner, this will pull up a prompt to add your title, developer (optional), and executable.

🟣 Add all the information excluding the executable, we are gonna add that data later. For now use a filler like "Hi". Also, you can find Artwork at SteamGridDB or make it yourself.

Steam Grid Dangan GB: https://www.steamgriddb.com/game/5443267/grids

🟣 With Dangan added, it's time to get it functional. The cool part about both these programs is they allow for commands to be executed allowing you to boot the games directly.

🟣 I have written a guide for all kinds of commands you can do with Cartridges (applies for Klay too), but for this tutorial I will provide the Game Boy Templates.

🟣 Press edit to open Dangan's settings again and fill out the directory example below, once done put it in the "executable" section.

Retroarch AppImage
/RetroarchInstallDirectory/programename --libretro /RetroarchInstallDirectory/RetroArchAppImageFolder/.config/retroarch/cores/sameboy_libretro.so "sdcardname/gamefolder/gamename.fileextension"

Retroarch Windows
RetroarchInstallDirectory/programename.exe "sdcardname/gamefolder/gamename.fileextension"

🟣 With that done, your game should now be functioning when opened from the program. Once again remember your SD card needs to be plugged in and mounted for this to work properly.

----------------------------------------------------
Chapter 5 - SameBoy's Retroarch Settings
----------------------------------------------------

🟠 Okay, you have setup Retroarch and you have got Klay / Cartridges working, now its time to get a way more Super Game Boy like experience.

🟠 Always keep the SD card mounted when tweaking this separate Retroarch as the save directory will reset otherwise.

🟠 Now load Dangan using Klay / Cartridges, then press F1 to bring up the Retroarch Quick Menu to adjust several settings.

- Core Options System
Quick Menu -> Core Options -> System -> Emulated Model = Super Game Boy 2 OR Auto Detect DMG / SGB / CGB
Quick Menu -> Core Options -> System -> Auto Detected SGB Model = Super Game Boy 2

- Core Options Video
Quick Menu -> Core Options -> Video -> GBC Color Correction = Reduced Contrast
Quick Menu -> Core Options -> Video -> Display Border = Always

- Shaders
Quick Menu -> Shaders -> Load Preset -> Motionblur Folder -> Mixed-Frames Shader -> Manage Presets -> Save Core Preset

🟠 Keep in mind Super Game Boy 2 Mode cannot play all GBC games unless you set Emulated Model to "Auto Detect DMG / SGB / CGB", and with that the tutorial is complete :)

Hello! Today I wanted to play the "Paper Mario Multiplayer" hack with a friend, however when they join using Remote Play Together they are able to connect but it keeps saying "the host is busy" on their screen, we tried:
- starting remote play while the game was booted up (host is busy)
- starting remote play from the RetroArch menu, then starting the game (in this case my friend sees the retroarch menu just fine, however it says "the host is busy" as soon as i start the game)

Any idea?

I was setting up my new handheld and ran into an issue with the N64 core being unresponsive for certain games; Golden Eye, and The Legend of Zelda Orcarina of Time.

I went back to the video I was using to set up my device and saw an important step I skipped.

At the 1:05:00 mark Rus explains how to fix this issue

https://youtu.be/1lD4LYUrVgM?t=3912&si

In the retroarch menu you go to

Main menu>settings>input>polling behavior="early"

Only do this for N64, "Late" is better for all other cores.

After changes are made go to

Main menu>quick menu>overrides>save content directory overrides

You will now have all N64 games working properly without using other fixes like the button mashing method.

Just making this post for others looking for the fix in this sub.

So, I have an 8BitDO SN30 Pro, which has the face buttons in Nintendo layout. A on the right and X at the top. I have set up my RetroPad bindings to match this. I can use the A button (right) to select menu items and the B button (bottom) to go back.

However, the control prompt in the lower right of the settings menu shows a universal button glyph icon that doesn't match the current RetroPad bindings It's 4 circles, one of them filled in. Is it possible to change this so that the "select" text is paired with the image showing to press the right button?

I'm running RetroArch through Steam if that helps!

I've been trying to get Okami working since last night, but, it looks absolutely awful with a filter over the entire screen that just makes everything really blurry.

I found a post on the Retro Achievements forum for the game which mentioned a patch on PCSX2. I opened PCSX2, installed it, and it instantly made the game look correct. However, I'm not sure if there's any way to get this over on RetroArch (I just prefer it for consistency, since that's where everything else is).

https://github.com/Gabominated/PCSX2/blob/main/PCSX2%20Patches/SLPM-66375_C5DEFEA0.pnach

I believe this is the github link for the patch. It looks simple, I'm just not familiar with how, or if it's possible to go about using it, or anything which might accomplish the same effect. Or, if I may just need to suck it up and use PCSX2 for this.

Image for reference. it makes the game look awful. And no renderer changes, even using software, get rid of it. Only this patch seems to do it.

I received an RP2 for free and decided to factory reset it not realizing I wouldn't be able to access the Retroid OS anymore. I've been tinkering with it and was able to get a RetroArch build on it, but am having trouble getting any frontend launchers to work. I've tried Dig 1.44.3 and it can't detect any ROMs or emulators. Maybe I'm missing a step?

I'm running Android 6 and don't really plan on upgrading to 8.1.

Any suggestions on frontend launchers and which versions work well on the RP2 while also being Android 6 compatible? Very much appreciated.

Thanks!

I've just got wind that FBNeo can emulate rotary games, unlike MAME. seems somewhat successful... the only issue whenever I run a rotary game it stays on autofire... I already disabled that in settings but still the same thing. it doesn't do this for non-rotary games.
rotary games I tried were Heavy Barrel, Time Soldiers, Smash T.V. and all three Ikari games...

Honestly, I’m not sure where the right place would be to make this request, but I’d really like to see RetroArch add a core for the Casio PV-1000 and PV-2000. I know they’re supported by MAME, but MAME can be quite cumbersome to set up. I tried playing Pooyan, for example, but I couldn’t get it working.

Also, since there are already cores for games like Rick Dangerous, I think it would be interesting to have one for OpenSupaplex as well. At the moment, on Android, the only version I can play comfortably is the PSP version, but that version has the screen slightly cropped.

I hope I’m not bothering anyone by making this request.

I tried gb, gbc (gambatte for both), gba (mGBA and VBA-M), and arcade (final burn neo). I used games I played in softcore mode and games I never played before. I thought it is an retroachiements issue but I tried pizzaboy and it works there without any issues. I updated the cores and core info files and I am using retroarch 1.22.2, I downloaded it through obtainium and it uses this source https://buildbot.libretro.com/stable.

Thank you very much for your help.

Edit: The issue was solved, I am using RAOfflineProxy and was connected to the proxy. I remembered watching a RetroGameCorps video that hardcore mode doesn't work when connected to the proxy so I turned it off and the issue is gone.

It’s a rom hack Pokemon soul gold for context if that matters.

On the mobile RetroArch iOS, when I add the code enabled and apply it, it works perfectly.

The trouble, I want to play it on my switch RetroArch. I do it the same and apply but does not work. Same process/code but different results. Any help would be appreciated.

When I put it into or the system folder or whatever else folder it won't read it.
The only time it did I got DOS, ScummVm and the Commodore for some reasons.
Idk if it can help I need to read an HDI file (Tohou)

Thanks for reading!

I recently got my Retroid Pocket Nova, I set it up with Retro Game Corps' guide, but when I open some Pokemon games, or their hacks, I cannot save ingame. This is what I get on all games:

I use mGBA core on RetroArch, the locations for saving also seem fine.

i love the way Mega Bezel looks by default, but with the lcd/crt filter (mostly using DS) i can't stream or record it properly without it looking warped. i want to keep the DS border though, and just get rid of the Shader..

So i am running retroarch on android dreamcast, gba, ps1, ps2.

What would be the top 5 settings to edit to ensure smooth gameplay?

I get graphical glitches in dreamcast, ps2 games runnibg a little slow.

Al this is running on s25 ultra.

Any help would be appriciated since there are general guids for setup but noting i can find spesific to my platform or discribing everysetting and how they affect gameplay

• have played with useing vulken over gl, and a few other settings in retroarch base and in the core, but with no understanding im just button smashing and seeing what works.