There are billions of games in the world right now that can run on your phone. But nothing can fulfill the nostalgia of your old favorite games. They had a completely different feel to them. From Gameboy and PlayStation to Arcade games, there are a lot of incredible and iconic games. Some of them now have mobile and pc releases, but most of them only run on older consoles. Nowadays, it is very perplexing to enjoy those moments of excitement.
But, you can use emulators to play those old games on your Android device. That should give a taste of the adventure.
Let’s check out some of the best emulators for Android.
Best Emulators for Android
10. Citra Emulator
Link: Google Play
Citra Emulator is one of the youngest emulators on this list. It is dedicated to the Nintendo 3DS and its games. It might sound weird to emulate a two-screen handheld device. But Citra Emulator does it beautifully. They keep the control buttons transparent. That way, you can use the controls without sacrificing any screen space.
It features the most basics that can be expected, such as external controllers, saving and loading state, and other features like these. Additionally, you can scale the resolution, enhance the graphics. It also supports the native features of 3DS, such as a camera, motion control, microphone, etc. You get these features for free.
Premium users also get additional features, including a dark theme, some cosmetic features, texture filtering, etc. It is the only 3DS choice for your phone right now. And it supports most of the games of 3DS. The developers are working tirelessly to improve the whole experience.
Citra Emulator is licensed by GNU GPL v2. That means it’s open source.
9. DraStic DS Emulator
Link: Google Play
DraStic DS Emulator is one of the best emulators for Nintendo DS gaming. It supports standard features like saving and loading states, external hardware controls.
You can enhance the gaming experience by increasing resolution by two times their original resolution. This works best on high-end devices. You can customize the control settings to suit your preference. The size and placement of the DS screens are adjustable. It is also a cheat code-compliant emulator. You can synchronize your saved states using Google Drive. It lets you save and resume at will.
It is a very stable emulator for its kind. Game ROMs work mostly fine. Unfortunately, there is no free version for it. You can test it from the inside out during the refund period.
8. Dolphin Emulator
Link: Google Play
The Dolphin emulator has been going back and forth for a while. But the developers have promised that this time, it will stick around for a while. It was the first emulator that supports internet connection alongside external controller support.
You can experience the greatness of Dreamcast. Dreamcast was the first console to offer internet connection alongside mouse and keyboard support. Dolphin lets you relive the experiences of Dreamcast. Recent technological advancements give you a smoother native experience.
It is somewhat decent for the GameCube and Wii consoles. It is still under active development. So, you may face some bugs along the way.
It provides the basics such as save and load states. However, it is free now, at the time of this writing. But the developers may change this as the emulator gets more stable and more improvements.
7. ClassicBoy Gold
Link: Google Play
ClassicBoy Gold is the successor to the legendary ClassicBoy. It supports consoles similar to the ClassicBoy. It currently supports Nintendo 64, PlayStation 1, NES, Sega Genesis, a few of the Game Boy systems, all kinds of arcade games, Nintendo GBA, Sega CD, Sega Saturn, Game Gear, etc.
It lets you use your device sensors, gestures alongside the gamepad. When you switch to gesture control, the right side of the screen is used for action mapping. And the left side of the screen is for directions. Each gesture can be mapped to a specific game button. And eight gestures can be detected on each side of the screen.
It also supports the standard basic features such as hardware controllers, saving and loading states, various video and audio options.
You can get the premium version too. That will give you access to auto-loading, gestures, plugins, and other features. The developer of this emulator is still sorting out and fixing the early bugs. Since it is still a young emulator, it is facing those early issues. But eventually, it should work out perfectly fine.
6. ePSXe
Link: Google Play
ePSXe is one of the most popular PlayStation emulators. It emphasizes simplicity. It works most of the time, flawlessly. High compatibility, accurate sound, and good speed give it a boost. Just load your ROM, and you’re all set. It features good customization of the virtual keyboard and supports split-screen for 2-player mode. Additionally, it has external hardware support, saving and loading states, and other basic features. If you don’t want to tweak the settings, you should use this emulator. It has no free demo. But it costs only $3.75.
5. John NESS and John GBAC
Link: Google Play
John has a couple of great emulator apps. He has seven apps on Google Store under John emulators. Those include NES, SNES, Game Boy Advance, and Color. They are incredibly stable with decent ROM support. It also has basic features, including fast forward mode and cheat codes. All of the emulators have free versions and pro versions that cost $4.99 each.
4. EmuBox
Link: Google Play
EmuBox is kind of similar to ClassicBoy. It is an all-in-one emulator. But it has a different set of systems that it supports. It supports Game Boy Advance and Color, NES, Nintendo DS, SNES, PSX, etc. It has a Material Design which has an easy to use experience. It has features that include saving and loading state, fast forward function, external hardware support, etc. You can tweak the settings a bit and get performance. It is entirely for now. But it has ads, though. It would’ve been better to have a way to remove the ads by buying a premium version.
3. FPse
Link: Google Play
FPse is the second most popular PlayStation emulator in this list. It focuses mostly on deep customization. You get a ton of plugins and settings. The sound quality and compatibility are more than enough. It uses OpenGL for graphics. So, the pictures are outstanding. It lets you save your game anytime you want.
It also supports device buttons, touchscreen, and G-sensor. How awesome is that!
You can change its settings to suit your needs. If you’re into tinkering with stuff, you should grad this one. It is comparatively cheap. There is no free version, but the price is worth it. So, if you want to test it out, you should do it during the refund period.
2. RetroArch
Link: Google Play
RetroArch is one of the most peculiar emulators out there. If you are looking to try out several games of the old days, RetroArch is for you. It provides you with its one-stop-shop for entertainment. This built-in collection has everything you need.
It can emulate several different consoles. It is an emulator by itself. You can download cores that can run inside the app. Each of these cores is a different console. It is open-source. It is an engine that uses other open-source emulators.
It can be a bit difficult to get used to. This is best for those who want to emulate several consoles in a single app. You can choose from PlayStation, SNES, NES, Sega Genesis, N64, etc.
1. M64Plus FZ Emulator
Link: Google Play
N64Plus FZ is one of the few options for the Nintendo 64 console. Many emulators tried for Nintendo 64. But most of them failed or faded away. M64Plus FZ has excellent compatibility.
You can relive the good old days of GoldenEye 007, Hexen 64, Super Mario 64. You may have to tweak a bit to find the right plugins for the games. But it’s all worth it in the end.
It supports various video plugins to improve compatibility. It is based on Mupen. Mupen is an open-source project.
Conclusion
That concludes our list of the Best Emulators for Android. You will find many options out there. But it all comes down to your personal preference. Now you know which emulator might suit you best. Have fun gaming!