How can you play retro games in 2020? You can purchase an actual console from the 80s or 90s and pay $1000 on average and then try to find cartridges that are probably available only in museums, and they don’t want to sell them! A much better and far more straightforward method is to use apps on your smartphone. You can download an emulator, load a game, and start playing. Below are the best emulators you can find these days.
1. EmuBox
EmuBox is a versatile emulator and the one that can be the answer you are looking for so long. The emulation capabilities are massive. You can literally play any game you like. Anyway, the supported platforms are PSX, Nintendo DS, NES, Game Boy Advance, and SNES. For you, this simply means to open a game you like and start playing. It is that simple. Features supported are the ability to hook up an additional controller, use cheats, and save/load options.
Fast forward is available also. Additional settings allow the users to tweak the settings in the emulator itself and speed up the performance, add new options, and so much more. The emulator is probably the best option for modern smartphones with plenty of CPU and GPU powers.
2. DraStic DS Emulator
Here we have an emulator that deserves to be explained in detail. First and foremost, this is premium software meaning there is no free version or free trial. It is very affordable but not for free. The advantage of all this is the fact there are no ads of any kind. The stability is above the average, and almost all DS games will work perfectly. Just a few have some minor issues that are not extremely bad. Retro games have the ability to load the games, use save and load option, and also to enjoy additional controllers. Without it, the controls are on the screen, and that are identical to DS. There is no need to add that the emulator supports Nintendo DS games only.
3. Dolphin Emulator
Dolphin Emulator is an interesting choice and the one that will allow you to play GameCube and Wii game precisely as you like, on your smartphone. All you have to do is to download games, or better said ROMs and then load a game from the emulator. It will start immediately, and you can start playing it as long as you like. The emulator is still in development, so it isn’t perfect, but there are a lot of useful features. For example, you can use cheats, load and save games, and so much more. The best part, it is completely free, and it is going to stay like this. Most of the games for the aforementioned consoles are supported, and there are no complicated steps or processes here. Just load and play and repeat when needed.
4. ePSXe
ePSXe is another premium app on our list. The emulator is designed for Sony PlayStation, and it comes with various features, some of which are standard while others are a bit unique. It is extremely simple and commonly used by beginners. However, there are some features worthy of mentioning. It comes without i-app purchases, and it offers to save, load, adjust options, and so much better. Sadly, there is no free version of the app. What’s even more important is the ability to adjust the settings, use fast forward, and also use cheats.
You have standard on-screen controls on the device, and they can be customized according to your desire. Additionally, you can use a controller to play the games. It is simple to configure, and there are no major complications in this case scenario. Although premium apps only, you don’t have ads inside the application, and there are no subscriptions or anything similar.
The final word
Thanks to these emulators, retro gamers can play their favorite games on their Android smartphones. The process is the same for all emulators. Download them, load the ROM and play. Remember that each game is a separate ROM, and each one must be made for the console your emulator tries to emulate. All other features are straightforward, and there is no need to explain them.