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Quick Start Guide

This guide will walk you through the initial setup of Ryujinx and help you load your first game.
Before proceeding, make sure you have installed Ryujinx and your system meets the minimum requirements.

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First Launch Setup

1

Launch Ryujinx

Start Ryujinx for the first time:
  • Windows: Double-click Ryujinx.exe
  • macOS: Open Ryujinx.app from Applications
  • Linux: Run ./Ryujinx from the installation directory
On first launch, Ryujinx will automatically create necessary configuration folders and files.
2

Install Nintendo Switch Firmware (Required)

Ryujinx requires Nintendo Switch firmware files to function properly.
You must legally obtain firmware files from your own Nintendo Switch console. Ryujinx does not provide these files.
To install firmware:
  1. Click Tools > Install Firmware in the menu bar
  2. Select Install from File
  3. Browse to your firmware .zip file
  4. Click Open and wait for installation to complete
Firmware files are typically in a format like Firmware 18.0.0.zip. The version number should match or exceed the version required by your games.
3

Install Production Keys (Required)

Production keys are required to decrypt game files.
You must legally obtain prod.keys from your own Nintendo Switch console. Ryujinx does not provide these keys.
To install keys:
  1. Click File > Open Ryujinx Folder
  2. Navigate to the system subfolder
  3. Place your prod.keys file in this folder
  4. Restart Ryujinx
The file structure should look like:
Ryujinx/
└── system/
    └── prod.keys
4

Set Game Directory

Tell Ryujinx where your games are located:
  1. Click Options > Settings (or Ryujinx > Preferences on macOS)
  2. Go to the UI tab
  3. Under Game Directories, click Add
  4. Browse to the folder containing your game files
  5. Click Select Folder
  6. Click Save
You can add multiple game directories. Ryujinx will scan all of them for compatible games.

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Loading Your First Game

1

Verify Game Appears in Library

After setting your game directory, Ryujinx will automatically scan for games.Compatible game formats:
  • .nsp - Nintendo Submission Package
  • .xci - NX Card Image
  • .nca - Nintendo Content Archive
  • .nro - Homebrew applications
Games should appear in the main window with their title, icon, and metadata.
If games don’t appear, try clicking File > Refresh or verify that your game files are in a supported format.
2

Launch a Game

To start playing:
  1. Double-click the game in the library, or
  2. Right-click the game and select Start, or
  3. Select the game and press Enter
The game window will open and begin loading.
First Launch Performance: The first time you launch a game, you may experience shader compilation stutters and longer load times. This is normal and will improve significantly on subsequent launches, especially with PPTC (Profiled Persistent Translation Cache) enabled.
3

Configure Controls (Optional)

Before or during gameplay, you may want to configure your input device:
  1. Click Options > Settings
  2. Go to the Input tab
  3. Select your Player 1 device from the dropdown
  4. Click Configure to map buttons
Default keyboard controls:
  • WASD or Arrow Keys: Left stick
  • IJKL: Right stick
  • Q/E: L/R triggers
  • Z/C: ZL/ZR
  • Enter: Plus (+)
  • Backspace: Minus (-)
  • Space: A button
  • Tab: B button
You can customize all of these in the Input settings.

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Essential Settings for Best Performance

Optimize Ryujinx for your first gaming session:
1

Enable PPTC (Recommended)

PPTC significantly reduces load times after the first few launches.
  1. Click Options > Settings
  2. Go to the System tab
  3. Ensure Enable Profiled Persistent Translation Cache is checked
  4. Click Save
How PPTC works: You must launch a game at least twice to the title screen before performance improvements activate on the third launch. After that, improvements are permanent.
2

Select Graphics Backend

Choose the best graphics API for your system:
  1. Options > Settings > Graphics
  2. Select Graphics Backend:
    • Vulkan: Best performance on most systems (recommended)
    • OpenGL: Good compatibility, slightly lower performance
    • Metal: macOS only (via MoltenVK)
  3. Click Save and restart Ryujinx
Try Vulkan first. If you experience issues, switch to OpenGL.
3

Adjust Memory Manager Mode

For best performance:
  1. Options > Settings > System
  2. Memory Manager Mode: Set to Host unchecked (default)
Host unchecked is the fastest option and works well on most systems. Only change this if you experience crashes or stability issues.
4

Configure Graphics Enhancements (Optional)

Enhance visual quality on powerful systems:
  1. Options > Settings > Graphics
  2. Adjust these settings based on your GPU:
Resolution Scale:
  • 1x: Native Switch resolution (720p/1080p)
  • 2x-4x: Higher resolutions for sharper image
Other Enhancements:
  • Aspect Ratio: Change from 16:9 to other ratios
  • Anti-Aliasing: Smooth jagged edges (FXAA, SMAA)
  • Scaling Filter: Use FSR for better upscaling
  • Anisotropic Filtering: Improve texture quality (Auto/2x-16x)
Higher settings require more powerful hardware. Start conservative and increase gradually while monitoring performance.

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Managing Game Data

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Installing Updates and DLC

1

Right-Click Game in Library

Select the game you want to manage
2

Choose Management Option

  • Manage Title Updates: Install game updates (.nsp files)
  • Manage DLC: Install downloadable content (.nsp files)
3

Add Content

  1. Click Add in the dialog
  2. Browse to your update or DLC .nsp file
  3. Click Open
  4. The content will be installed and activated automatically

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Installing Mods

Ryujinx supports various mod types:
1

Open Mods Folder

  1. Right-click the game in the library
  2. Select Open Mods Directory
This opens the game-specific mods folder.
2

Install Mods

Place mod files in this folder:
  • RomFS mods: Extract to romfs/ subfolder
  • ExeFS mods: Extract to exefs/ subfolder
  • Cheats: Place .txt cheat files in cheats/ subfolder
Example structure:
mods/
├── romfs/
│   └── [mod files]
├── exefs/
│   └── [patch files]
└── cheats/
    └── [cheat files]
3

Enable Mods

Mods are automatically loaded when you launch the game. Some games may require you to enable specific mods through in-game options.

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In-Game Controls

While a game is running, use these shortcuts:

F11

Toggle fullscreen mode

F8

Take screenshot (saved to screenshots folder)

Pause/Break

Pause emulation

F4

Toggle between docked/handheld mode

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Troubleshooting Common Issues

Solutions:
  • Click File > Refresh to rescan directories
  • Verify game file format is supported (.nsp, .xci, .nca, .nro)
  • Check that the game directory is correctly added in Options > Settings > UI
  • Ensure the file isn’t corrupted
Solutions:
  • Verify firmware version matches or exceeds game requirements
  • Check that prod.keys is correctly installed
  • Try different Memory Manager mode (System settings)
  • Check logs in File > Open Logs Folder for error details
  • Ensure you have at least 8GB RAM available
Solutions:
  • Launch the game 2-3 times to build PPTC cache
  • Switch to Vulkan graphics backend
  • Lower resolution scale to 1x or 2x
  • Disable graphics enhancements
  • Close background applications
  • Ensure Memory Manager Mode is set to “Host unchecked”
  • Check your system meets minimum requirements
This is normal behavior:
  • Games compile shaders during gameplay on first run
  • Stuttering decreases significantly after playing for a while
  • Enable disk shader caching (on by default) to persist compiled shaders
  • Subsequent playthroughs will be much smoother
Solutions:
  • Verify controller is connected and recognized by your OS
  • Go to Options > Settings > Input and configure Player 1
  • Click Configure and test button mappings
  • For Joy-Cons, ensure they’re properly paired via Bluetooth
  • Try switching between different controller types in the dropdown

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Viewing Logs

If you encounter issues, logs are essential for troubleshooting:
  1. Click File > Open Logs Folder
  2. Log files are named chronologically
  3. Open the most recent log with a text editor
  4. Look for errors or warnings (typically marked with [ERROR] or [WARN])
When reporting bugs, always include the relevant log file. This helps developers diagnose the issue.

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Next Steps

Now that you’re up and running:

Configuration

Deep dive into all settings and optimizations

Graphics Settings

Learn about resolution scaling, filters, and enhancements

DLC & Mods

Install DLC and apply game modifications

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