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GameLord supports multiple gaming systems through libretro cores, with automatic core downloading and multi-system ROM detection.

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System overview

GameLord currently supports 11 gaming systems spanning 8-bit to 128-bit generations, plus arcade:
  • Nintendo: NES, SNES, Game Boy/Color, Game Boy Advance, Nintendo 64, Nintendo DS
  • Sega: Genesis/Mega Drive, Saturn
  • Sony: PlayStation, PlayStation Portable
  • Arcade: MAME-compatible
All cores are downloaded automatically from the libretro buildbot when you first launch a game for a system.

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Nintendo systems

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Nintendo Entertainment System (NES)

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System ID
string
nes
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Display Type
string
CRT (4:3 aspect ratio, NTSC/PAL)
File formats: .nes, .fds, .unf, .unif Available cores:
  • fceumm (recommended) - Fast, accurate, broad compatibility
  • nestopia - High accuracy, cycle-perfect
  • mesen - Advanced features, debugging tools (note: currently has loading issues in native mode)
Special features:
  • Famicom Disk System support (.fds)
  • NSF music playback
  • Zapper light gun support (future)

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Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES)

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System ID
string
snes
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Display Type
string
CRT (4:3 aspect ratio, NTSC/PAL)
File formats: .sfc, .smc, .swc, .fig Available cores:
  • snes9x (recommended) - Fast, highly compatible
  • bsnes - Cycle-accurate, highest compatibility
  • bsnes-mercury - Balanced accuracy and speed
Special features:
  • Super FX chip support (Star Fox, Yoshi’s Island)
  • SA-1 enhancement support
  • DSP coprocessor games

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Game Boy / Game Boy Color

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System ID
string
gb
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Display Type
string
LCD (GB: monochrome green, GBC: color TFT)
File formats: .gb, .gbc, .sgb Available cores:
  • gambatte (recommended) - Accurate, low overhead
  • sameboy - Excellent accuracy, debugging features
  • mgba - Also handles GBC (via unified core)
Special features:
  • Super Game Boy border support (.sgb)
  • Game Boy Color enhancements
  • Link cable emulation (future)

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Game Boy Advance

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System ID
string
gba
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Display Type
string
LCD (reflective TFT, 3:2 aspect ratio)
File formats: .gba, .agb Available cores:
  • mgba (recommended) - Fast, accurate, active development
  • vba-m - Older, broader compatibility
Special features:
  • GBA BIOS not required (HLE)
  • Native resolution: 240×160
  • Recommended shader: LCD GBA or LCD GBA + Motion Blur
The LCD GBA shader applies the authentic GBA color correction matrix, fixing the washed-out colors that GBA games have without it.

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Nintendo 64

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System ID
string
n64
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Display Type
string
CRT (4:3 aspect ratio)
File formats: .n64, .z64, .v64 Available cores:
  • mupen64plus-next (recommended) - Modern, active development
  • parallel-n64 - Vulkan-based, high accuracy
Special features:
  • Expansion Pak support
  • Controller Pak saves
  • High-resolution rendering (future)
N64 emulation is demanding. Some games may require higher-end hardware for full-speed emulation.

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Nintendo DS

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System ID
string
nds
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Display Type
string
LCD (dual screens, 4:3 per screen)
File formats: .nds, .dsi, .ids Available cores:
  • desmume (recommended) - Mature, compatible
  • melonDS - Active development, improving accuracy
Special features:
  • Dual-screen rendering
  • Touchscreen support (future)
  • Wi-Fi emulation (future)

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Sega systems

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Sega Genesis / Mega Drive

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System ID
string
genesis
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Display Type
string
CRT (4:3 aspect ratio, NTSC/PAL)
File formats: .md, .smd, .gen, .bin Available cores:
  • genesis-plus-gx (recommended) - Highly accurate, fast
  • picodrive - Lightweight, ARM-optimized
Special features:
  • Sega CD support (future)
  • 32X support
  • Region switching (NTSC/PAL)

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Sega Saturn

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System ID
string
saturn
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Display Type
string
CRT (4:3 aspect ratio)
File formats: .cue, .chd, .ccd, .mdf Available cores:
  • mednafen_saturn (Beetle Saturn, recommended) - High accuracy
  • yabause - Broader compatibility, less accurate
BIOS requirements:
Saturn emulation requires BIOS files in <userData>/BIOS/:
  • sega_101.bin (Japan BIOS)
  • mpr-17933.bin (US/EU BIOS)
Place these files in the BIOS directory before launching Saturn games.
Special features:
  • CHD (compressed) disc support
  • Multi-disc games
  • High-resolution 3D rendering
Saturn emulation is CPU-intensive due to the system’s complex dual-CPU architecture. Expect higher resource usage than other 32-bit systems.

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Sony systems

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PlayStation (PS1)

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System ID
string
psx
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Display Type
string
CRT (4:3 aspect ratio)
File formats: .cue, .bin, .iso, .chd, .pbp Available cores:
  • pcsx_rearmed (recommended) - Fast, ARM-optimized
  • beetle-psx - High accuracy, enhanced rendering
Special features:
  • CHD compressed disc format
  • Multi-disc games
  • Memory card management
  • Enhanced resolution rendering (future)
Use .chd format for disc-based games to save space. CHD provides lossless compression and single-file convenience.

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PlayStation Portable (PSP)

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System ID
string
psp
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Display Type
string
LCD (16:9 widescreen, 480×272)
File formats: .iso, .cso, .pbp Available cores:
  • ppsspp (recommended) - Active development, excellent compatibility
Special features:
  • CSO compressed ISO format
  • High-resolution rendering (internal upscaling)
  • Save state support
  • Recommended shader: LCD PSP
PSP emulation is GPU-intensive. Enable the FPS counter to verify performance on your hardware.

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Arcade

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MAME / FinalBurn Neo

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System ID
string
arcade
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Display Type
string
CRT (various aspect ratios, game-dependent)
File formats: .zip, .7z Available cores:
  • mame (recommended) - Comprehensive MAME romset support
  • fbalpha / fbneo - FinalBurn Neo, focused on accuracy
Special notes:
Arcade ROMs must remain in .zip format. Do NOT extract them - MAME cores expect zipped files.
Romset compatibility:
  • MAME romsets are version-specific
  • Ensure your ROMs match the core’s MAME version
  • Use a romset manager (ClrMamePro) to verify/fix romsets

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Core management

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Automatic core downloads

GameLord downloads cores on-demand:
1

First launch

When you launch a game from a new system, GameLord checks if a core is installed.
2

Download prompt

If no core exists, GameLord automatically downloads the recommended core from the libretro buildbot.
3

Core installation

The core is saved to <userData>/cores/<coreName>.dylib (macOS) or .dll (Windows).
4

Game launches

Once the core is downloaded, the game launches normally.

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Core storage

Cores are stored in:
  • macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/GameLord/cores/
  • Windows: %APPDATA%/GameLord/cores/
  • Linux: ~/.config/GameLord/cores/
You can also use cores from a RetroArch installation - GameLord checks RetroArch’s core directory as a fallback.

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Multiple cores per system

Some systems have multiple core options:
  • NES: fceumm, nestopia, mesen
  • SNES: snes9x, bsnes, bsnes-mercury
  • GB/GBC: gambatte, sameboy, mgba
  • GBA: mgba, vba-m
  • N64: mupen64plus-next, parallel-n64
  • Genesis: genesis-plus-gx, picodrive
  • Saturn: mednafen_saturn, yabause
  • PS1: pcsx_rearmed, beetle-psx
Core selection per-game is planned for a future release. Currently, GameLord uses the first available core for each system.

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System-specific tips

  • Shader: CRT Aperture or CRT Geom
  • Core: fceumm (fast, accurate)
  • Aspect ratio: 4:3 (native is 256×240, displayed as 4:3 on CRT)
  • Fast: snes9x (recommended for most users)
  • Accurate: bsnes (cycle-perfect, higher CPU usage)
  • Balanced: bsnes-mercury
  • Original GBA screen has washed-out colors
  • Use LCD GBA shader to apply color correction matrix
  • Without the shader, games look too dark/desaturated
  1. Locate Saturn BIOS files (sega_101.bin, mpr-17933.bin)
  2. Copy to <userData>/BIOS/
  3. GameLord creates this folder automatically on first launch
  4. Without BIOS, Saturn games will not load
  • CHD is a lossless compressed disc format
  • Converts multi-file .cue+.bin into a single .chd
  • Use chdman tool to convert: chdman createcd -i game.cue -o game.chd
  • Saves ~40-60% disk space
  • MAME cores expect specific romset versions
  • Check the core’s MAME version (e.g., MAME 0.229)
  • Use matching romset (e.g., “MAME 0.229 Non-Merged Set”)
  • Mismatched romsets cause “missing files” errors

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Future system support

GameLord’s architecture is system-agnostic. Adding new systems is straightforward (system definition + core mapping). Planned additions include:
  • PS2 (PCSX2 core)
  • GameCube / Wii (Dolphin core)
  • Dreamcast (Flycast core)
  • 3DO (Opera core)
  • TurboGrafx-16 (Beetle PCE core)
  • Neo Geo (FBNeo core)
  • Atari 2600 (Stella core)
  • Atari 7800 (ProSystem core)
  • Atari Lynx (Handy core)
  • WonderSwan (Beetle WonderSwan core)
  • Virtual Boy (Beetle VB core)
System additions depend on libretro core availability for ARM64 macOS. See #116 for progress.

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Troubleshooting

  • Verify ROM file format is supported for the system
  • Check that the required core is downloaded (<userData>/cores/)
  • For Saturn, ensure BIOS files are in <userData>/BIOS/
  • Check console logs for core loading errors (Help > Toggle Developer Tools)
  • Check internet connection
  • Verify libretro buildbot is accessible (https://buildbot.libretro.com)
  • Try manually downloading the core and placing it in <userData>/cores/
  • Check firewall settings (may block downloads)
  • Some file extensions overlap (e.g., .bin for Genesis and PS1)
  • Use folder-based detection: place ROMs in system-named folders
  • Alternatively, specify the system when scanning

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