I’ve never really understood RetroArch. I understand the appeal of offering an all-in-one emulation experience that’s friendly with controllers. But every time I try to use it I just end up getting confused or frustrated and going back to using the individual emulators.
@@YOUTURKEY-t3e I'm sure. I'd honestly be more willing to give it another shot if EmuDeck wasn't ported to Windows recently. I want to try that one next since it just adds emulator games to Steam.
Uso RetroArch há anos, nuca tive problemas ou dificuldade. Aprendi usar, configurar então é praticamente fácil. Aprendi cuustomizar shaders, playlists, uso ele no PC, na tv Crt e ele é incrível. Mas pelo vídeo dá uma má impressão de que tudo nele é difícil e bagunçado.
Annoyingly enough Retroarch is also the most easiest for Multiplatform Emulation and Netplay since on a case by case basis a lot of programs lean heavily towards "Windows Only".
Retroarch is seamless and easy until it isn't. There is a big learning curve when you start wanting to customize (get layouts and overlays working across multiple systems as an example). It's really good for handheld Linux systems abd stuff like that but itjust doesn't have the functionality that standalones have. Dolphin has GBA to GC emulation, Drastic has GBA to DS support, Project 64 can emulate the Transfer Pak, mGBA can emulate the e-reader, etc. If you want a UI that is controller friendly or want your games to be organized just use a front end like LaunchBox. It's best to just learn how to utilize both options, but i think the scale tips in favor of standalone
With mobile devices, it’s pretty bad to use retroarch really. Desktop it’s ok but using emulation station with stand alone emulators which give better performance and more settings.
Main thing I use retro arch for is to have neat libraries, saved settings that are easy to make specific for emulator, game etc. and tons of graphical output options and such. Yes I loose features but once you have new thing you have to tweak, once tweaked it stays tweaked until you tweak it again. It is also best thing you can use on modded consoles like PS3 or Switch, which is main birth point for retroarch, it actually was a PS3 aiming project at first hence the XMB UI too.
Yeah pretty much. I was annoyed by Retro Arch... Until I got into it. Now its the emulator I perfer. So yeah definitely a learning curve you have to get past.
@@Left4Cake Same experience here. I didn't like RA at first, but I kept hearing how good it was. I had to remind myself that I had trouble getting started with the emulators I was already using on Linux(which limited options). I figured, if I could learn my way around command-line MAME and Mednafen, I could figure out RA and I did. It did a lot of things better than every other emulator I had used. It didn't take long until I preferred it too and haven't looked back.
RetroArch really should just have a "simple" mode that trims out all the fat, cuz right off the bat it's already pretty compatible and doesn't need that much configuring other than a controller
At least XMB UI mode, though all of them IIRC give you option to hide, essentially remove menu elements, so you can customize that. There is also "Kiosk mode" you can enable that locks the thing down to "simple mode" basically that needs a passcode or manual config edit to get out of, mainly for child proof, or say, public lounge arcade machine etc setups.
I haven't seen anyone mention this yet but RetroArch also has a Desktop menu featuring traditional keyboard and mouse input via a familiar windows like environment. I don't use it at all though because I'm very familiar with the regular menus.
Its a shame that a lot of young people today don't know what a filesystem is since they grew up using phones. It's so limiting. Companies have been trying for years to eliminate users managing their own files and it's sad that this is how they achieved it. Don't store you own data trust us! What's the worst that can happen?!
as an IT, I've been working in schools recently and found that ChromeOS is used even in computer labs, mindblowing to me. You would think that computer literacy would become more common with time, but it seems like the opposite is the case, due to the simplicity of managing ChromeOS from an administrator's perspective, the cheap price and relative durability of Chromebooks, and the lacking tech literacy of school admins and teachers.
the irony of retroarch is that people pick it because they want an easy all-in-one solution, only to end up with an insanely complex piece of software that you can tinker with and look up settings and have people explain everything to you for years and still don't understand what half the settings _actually_ do.
I hate how in retroarch I have to go trough a quintillion menus for the simplest of stuff but game-breaking settings are the first things available, the quest to simplify emulators (which if you have two neurons it is already simple I have been emulating since I was 7 in 2005)has led us to a piece of software that has useless functions for the emualtor you pick,bloated to hell and back and a community so devoted to the trash interface and its "simple usage", its INSANE how they forgot that retroarch and their sleazy "devs" almost killed Duckstations development last year. this is why i just stopped wasting time with retroarch and picked my emulators and learned them well, this way I know what I'm doing and why I am doing it with absolute clarity and knowing nothing I do in one will ruin the rest. -Nintendo:I know all their ins and outs and I can run anything I want with full control of their simple dedicated options NES/SNES/GB/GBC=MESEN N64(I Dont play it but if I ever wanted I have it)=RMG GC/WII=Dolphin GBA=mGBA NDS=i tend to pivot between melon and desmume -Sony:Same as nintendo PSX=DuckStation PS2=PCSX2 PS3=RPCS3
I actually can explain likely every setting in retroarch but it would be a lot of text. It is not hard to understand but it has a lot. I as user of it, recommend absolutely skinning down useless features and menu options down to relevant.
Dual booting and Windows automatic startup repair will mess with the bootloader far more often than going in there from Linux with no clues. That's why a USB live stick to repair systemd-boot or grub is always handy. Menu visibility in Retroarch could be about setting a config file for a custom kiosk mode and leaving the device always on for children while restraining their access to specific settings. Like what any other frontend do. Or maybe it's just there for people who complain there are too many menu options and that you could remove them at the same time... I guess there are some UI battle that can't be won... XD
Thing is, removing the bootloader requires a sudo password prompt and EXPLICIT confirmation that you may be irreparably damaging your system. Retroarch just lets anyone do it if they have unsupervised access to your computer for > 3 minutes and don't know what they're doing/want to troll you.
Yeah Retroarch is kind of a mess. I mostly use it for 2D stuff with shaders and stick to stand alone emulators for the more advanced 3D systems where I can just crank up the resolution.
Arcade emulation is also slightly nicer on retroarch thanks to easier ... easier, not easy as apple pie individual setups per game, but what you say is what I do too. Though I still play actual PS2 more than emulate it, but PS1, hell yeah. though I retroarch that.
I still use Retroarch to this day. But your rant on how confusing and unclear problems can be struck a chord with me lmfao. I spent ages tweaking and altering it to fit my computer and such. Now I'm just used to it, and I understand all it's weird quirks.
Best thing about retroarch is its literally available at every platform ever exist. Literally has support for windows,mac,ios,android,linux,free bsd, ps2 ,xbox even more niche and obscure OS like haiku like wtf its crazy.
I just wanted to say before my comment gets buried that your videos have helped me a ton when it comes to what i like in retro gaming. Without your videos i wouldve never been into things like crt shaders which has greatly improved my gaming experience. Thank you for putting as much effort as you do into these videos
I know that some purist Will not like My take but i recently discovered the shader LCD grid v2. And i think that retro pixel games look great with it. It's on the "Handled" folder in case You want to try it
I felt like I was the only one who thought RetroArch was overly complicated. I tried setting it up multiple times on my PC and on my Xbox Series X in Dev mode and it was a huge pain in the butt. I finally do have RetroArch set up on my Xbox because as of now it's basically the only way to play N64, Saturn and pre-SNES, but what I wouldn't give to get Ares instead on the console. This video was cathartic to watch for me.
Heck I made like a fifteen bible long comment defending retroarch against some stuff said in this video but initial shock against retroarch is absolutely a damn learning curve you could use as unusual psychological torture in right setting. Put your friend into a saw trap and give him ten minutes to setup retroarch for the first time in their life and you have a dead friend for sure. Still, once it is setup, or your emulator, or your game specific tweaks, they usually stick and hopefully stay that way until you have to wipe them because retroarch loosened itself on the floor again. But for me, retroarch is thing I have on a Switch, on a 3DS (standalones on 3DS are better though, RA is good only for things without standalone on 3DS), Vita and PS3, and also PC because I already committed to it like a two way abusive relationship.
I had to write down my own instructions to understand how tf controller mapping worked on retroarch because its not as simple as pick a button and press.
Retroarch has this issue that I have with a lot of open source apps. It's that (God forbid) you complain about the UI being over cluttered and that it maybe needs a lil bit of tweaking here and there on github for example. Either the community is gonna call you a normie or the developer is going to have an ego trip and dissappear completely.
"Emulators vs Emulator Frontend"? I feel like the video title would've been better "Standalone Emulators vs Retroarch." Capcom Arcade Stadiums were such a good deal, plagued with weird/missing standard emulation options, and, final nail in the coffin, extremely shifty Russian DRM patched into them after release. The latter one was such a dealbreaker that I uninstalled all my Capcom games on Steam and refuse to even look at any more of their titles, old or new.
@@ArpeggioPegasusWhile most individuals who worked on RA weren’t involved. There was one dev who worked on it in particular who was extremely… colorful… Squarepusher has made multiple homophobic posts using the f-slur and even directly tweeting at the BSnes and other emulator devs (one of which being the dev who took their life) and while it’s entirely possible that SquarePusher wasn’t responsible, it isn’t fair to entirely discount it considering the dude likes to start flame-wars for fun and criticize and belittle emulator devs (you know, the people doing 99.9% of the work for RetroArch lmao)
Retroarch is a better option for devices were these standalone emulators aren't an option, like Chromebooks or a hacked NES Classic. Getting Retroarch onto a device opens up so many emulation options to that device. But yes, I'm literally saying it's the better option when there's no other option lmao. Even on Android, there's different mobile specific standalone emulators that make things a lot smoother, like Pizza Boy for GB/C or GBA with mobile friendly menus and freely repositionable touch screen buttons, and skins to make your phone look like a Gameboy. Or Drastic is honestly the best DS emulator I've *EVER* used. It runs perfectly and lets you freely resize and reposition the screens where ever you want with easy access to a swap screens button with game specific layouts
Sometimes I feel like going through my PC and doing a digital cleaning, but I do get a teeny bit overwhelmed when I see everything all at once. I guess I’ll follow an art rule and only organize one type of thing at a time. Like where my emu apps actually go, like do I want to store shortcuts in a folder, and what would I do with the games?? More folders? Sure, sounds cool. Thanks Mr. RUclips Guy, I have a goal to accomplish today!
Honestly, as it stands now, RetroArch is not made for beginners. It made for people who have been entrenched in the emulation scene and know what type of experience they want. It's very similar to Arch Linux, in a way, where everything conceivable option or feature is available and you can build it however you want. I first started using RA in the late 2010's after being sick and tired of having to update an emulator every time I wanted to play a game. Combined with all the different standalone emulators (without auto updaters like modern PSCX2 & Dolphin), it was a chore. The only standalone emulators I use now are PSCX2 and Dolphin, especially if some feature isn't available in RA.
As a weird Linux guy, I ended up just writing a script that creates .desktop files to launch games in Retroarch (because I'm a shader whore). It basically went something like, _if this directory is called NES, create a desktop file for each file inside that tells Retroarch's NES core to load this ROM_ After that, I configured Retroarch to close when I closed my game. So I technically use Retroarch, but I spent something like six hours learning intermediate BASH scripting to not have to use that garbage UI ever again.
@@BoxedWater123 Preference, mostly. I'm not a fan of fullscreen frontends like EmulationStation and Launchbox. And they're just weird in windowed mode.
LOL you're realizing what I realized over 10 years ago Retroarch is complicated. 2 years ago I decided to learn it and since I did I've since mastered it and it is not nearly as complicated as it used to be and it is my go to emulator hub for 8-16 bit games. For 32-128 bit I prefer stand alone emulators because they usually get higher faps.
The closest thing to emulation I've used when it comes to retro gaming is using upgraded/softmodded consoles. It feels like a satisfying balance between convenience and authenticity
I get being overwhelmed by the number of options and settings, but its one of the reasons I use it. It makes it easier to play on a crt or any other kind screen and setting up specific controllers to each core a breeze. It would be a nightmare if it didnt have all that. It already is with some standalone emulators that dont give you all those options
My gripes with RA: - Too bloated. It has an entire (somewhat hidden) Qt desktop UI, aside from the UI you get. It doubles the size of the emulator and no one ever uses it. You gotta compile it yourself with no Qt GUI if you don't want it. - Crashes, it has no error handling. - When it crashes, you lose your SRAM, yep, saves gone, this is by default, you can setup a timer to write SRAM to disk every 10 seconds or so. Also your configurations changes are gone too. - Too many crashes. - Menus upon menus, I can navigate them but cmon - Quick Settings, this is the biggest beginner trap ever, it holds the emulator core settings. - Two different input menus, one in the main menu to map your controllers then one in quick settings to map your mapped controllers to the console mappings. The only reason I like it that you can set it up once and use it for every system, set your shaders up and controller, play any game. Like FB Neo is annoying to setup controllers and visuals.
RetroArch should have been designed with cores running in a separate process, so that an emulator crashing wouldn't bring retroarch with it. The SRAM thing is also really dumb, I lost hours of progress due to it.
The most important thing of RetroArch are the high quality overlays. That basically makes RA a must for correct 2D Gaming. The shaders on HDR Oled TVs are just mindblowing!
I'm still so mad that most of the best scanlines options are retroarch only... But really Retroarch is usually the best way to play arcade emulators, because of how easy it is to setup. YES THE RETROARCH PROCESS IS EASIER FOR ARCADE EMULATORS
I agree with how complicated and convoluted RetroArch can be. Standalone emulators are not "couch friendly" so I installed Batocera Linux. It has awesome cover art, and it's basically a huge frontend for RetroArch. It can boot from a USB stick so you can take it anywhere. Most often it can automatically configure your controllers for you, leaving out all the hassle work. It also typically uses the best settings available for any given emulator, but you can change it very easily (even with a controller, no mouse/keyboard required) in their menu system. I have also found that controllers respond better using Batocera vs. Windows. Probably something to do with Linux being more lean and mean.
My biggest issue with Retroarch is how some new versions of emulators or the whole emulator being exclusive to RetroArch, such as Mupen64Plus, as far as i know there isn't a standalone PC Release, also the RetroAchievements aren't featured in most of the emulators outside of RetroArch
When I used Retroarch with EmuDeck for a few weeks, it was so complicated I never there was a difference between the Retroarch controls and the Emulator’s controls so I reset my controls so often. Some of the filters and shaders were neat to play with Kirby 64, but no thanks I’ll rather play using the standalone Mupen64Plus-Next launcher or ares. Also based Hydro Station music pick.
I only use RetroArch for some Consoles like: N64, SNES / NES, Dreamcast... But here is what I don't like using on RetroArch: PS2 > PCSX2, PS1 > DuckStation
Mesen and Mesen-S (older versions that are separate exe's) and Parallel Launcher satisfy my needs. I try to stay away from Retroarch because it's so tedious and complicated.
You're absolutely right about retroarch, but I love it on my switch. There's switch homebrew that lets you use other bluetooth controllers (such as PS4) on switch, so syncing new controllers is seamless. Still a pain in the ass to set up retroarch itself, but when it's done, I have one organized list of every system until the dreamcast (dreamcast runs surprisingly well). Especially nice for playing with friends. I'll still use DuckStation for PS1 on switch though.
I have been using Retrobat for my emulation setup and I could not be happier with it. It uses emulationstation as a frontend but without all of the hassle to set it up, and it has some absolute sick theming capabilities, like making the frontend look like the PS5's UI for example. Further, Retrobat allows you to easily download the standalone emulators that you require right within the frontend. You can also then set all of the necessary settings within Retrobat in a user friendly manner, which will then be injected into the standalone emulator (or Retroarch) at run time. Lastly, Retrobat makes it easy to set bezels and shaders for your games without you having to dig into Retroarch menus. All and all, Retrobat is a emulation frontend program I highly recommend and I think it will solve a lot of the pet peeves that you had with both Retroarch and standalone emulators.
amen - so well put! it's like the power of RetroArch is best in the domain of system integrators like RetroBat & Batocera Linux to decide what to expose what makes the most sense (without taking the power of fiddling under the hood when needed)
Only a mixture of the two will cover all bases. Sometimes standalone is better, but other times it is better with the cores in RA. Whatever works is what I'm interested in.
Sadly this is true. I avoid RA when I can but for some systems the best emulator by far is stuck as a RA core. I wish there was a better up-to-date standalone for Genesis, for example
Why even let Steam run in the background while emulating in the first place? The first thing I always do is set off Steams Autostart. It will never interfere.
For me, I’ve always preferred using Mesen and Mesen-S for my NES and SNES emulation, but since Sour merged them into the Mesen2 emulator, I’m even happier. It even has PC-Engine support as well as GB and GBC.
9:03 this doesnt suprise me with my one interaction on discord with them. They were extremely rude and condescending while also answer questions in the most convoluted way possible
Also with RetroArch vs the standalone Emulator the emulation cores that represents the emulators can be behind in terms of development vs the the actual standalone emulator as well which is another negative thing against RetroArch. Also some of the standalone emulators already have individual game settings just like RetroArch such as DuckStation, Dolphin and PCX2 to name a few.
not going to argue that the retroarch ozone UI isnt flawed but this video feels very loaded- considering that its designed to be cross-platform having the options to tailor it to the huge range of hardware it runs on seems plenty warranted
hating on RA has been the cool thing in retro and emulation circles for a while. It's like people don't understand the concept of tradeoffs. They don't understand what RA brought to the table that other emulators didn't and they'd rather have a Windows style UI than useful features that actually affect playability (not just performance)
Absolutely this. I use Retroarch on PC but I have the setup because I like the concept, and had to get used to it on PS3, Switch, Vita and Wii U. I made much longer more rambling comment about these complaints, especially mentioning keyboard and mouse repeatedly like people's switch or xbox runs linux or something. There is also lot of skill issue complaints because for me, mouse works fully in ozone menu on PC. It also works with the switch touchscreen. Forgot did they get Vita's implemented yet but last try I had was nope.
@@guillermo9171 Dealing with emulation since the early 00's made me love everything that RA brings to the table. Its hard not to no use it BECAUSE of all the options
@@guillermo9171what does it bring to the table? i've been emulating for over a decade and every RA experience has been miserable. it's terribly designed, on every platform i've used it on. it over-complicates a simple experience because it claims to do everything, so it ends up sucking at it all. in the time it takes to set up "cores" i can install a standalone emulator and have my game loaded.
@@guillermo9171 I disliked the project at the start pre pandemic because I didn't know how to use it. Same w/ MPV & then I figured out how to use it & there is a lot of cool features I wish that were other emulators. If the features I need aren't on RA, I use something else. I don't know why people complaining so much, you have options. Options are always good.
This video is a little bit too focused on PC in my opinion, repeating how keyboard and mouse and stuff is superior, but retroarch is multiplatform project aimed especially towards consoles and console like setups, where you do not have keyboard and mouse. The balancing act of powerful enthusiast options in a menu that you can use with your controller is introducing bloated menus, that you can cut off in options to what you personally need. Also, XMB GUI is partially usable with mouse, and my 2 minute test on steam with Ozone UI show that is FULLY mouse supported. Maybe you had option for mouse navigation turned off? The GUI is based off Switch and made mainly for such device that might have both touchscreens and controllers, since it liberally steals from nintendo switch. Confusing labeling and having to learn a whole new language with the GUI of retroarch I agree with, but it is also best thing I can use on my switch, PSVita, PS3 and PC and cross pollinate my game lists and saves around rather easily between devices. This video to me misses the point of retroarch and then complains about the point of retroarch. It is also weird to complain about too many menu options and then complain about the power to do something about it. It is possible because you can do it. Kiosk mode is there to make it not possible if you do not want someone else to fuck it up. I cannot evangelize much about nicely setup retroarch on many systems, but I like the playlist and graphical approach to retro games it brings, and the main system I use it on, Switch, as other modded consoles, it absolutely best option for many target systems. I agree it could be less clunky and devs could be less of arse about it, aside many other silly small bugs that tend to linger for way too many updates . But it is a specific thing for specific type of device, setup or taste, and understanding that even if you are not the target would minimize useless complaints. Retroarch has it's set of strengths, that you do not care about and are not target for, and weaknesses that you stress slightly too strongly. But I have been a self trained retroarch user. Pointing out retroarch UI ligma is like pointing out terminal ligma to long time Linux user. Way too used to it and even grown a tastebud for some things. I myself, on PC, like that I setup retroarch and emulators I use once and they stay that way, and it is relatively easy to do game or emulator specific tweaks and save them. Different shader, background, audio processing whatever per game, emulator or folder you can tweak and save it specifically for X and hopefully never touch it again. Or become a retroarch tweaker addict that indeed is a fate worse than death or actual substance abuse, don't ask I am recovering.
Finally someone called out their bullshit, The reason why duckstation is no longer open source is because of retroarch staff treating other emu developers like crap. That's why I vowed to never use retroarch, and use the original emulators. Literally the FTX of game emulation
@@Koffiato That's my assessment as well. Weird definitely fits here. To be clear, RA could be crappy to devs too. It's not mutually exclusive. But back when that whole Dusckstation controversy was going on, the dev made some odd claims about Duckstation being only partly open source which made no sense whatsoever(which parts?). It undermined any legitimate points he may have had. That's why when he recently changed the license, he made a point to say he understands the licenses, and that's because he must have heard from a lot of people that he didn't. Maybe he has learned since then.
9:11 Near's own life was taken because of the constant bullying of their gender identity and some other things. This had nothing to do with Retroarch from what I recall.
Can you get more info on what relation Retroarch has to do with Near's death? As far as I could find in 15 minutes of searching, the harassment was from KF users and I found nothing pertaining to Retroarch other than an announcement? And uh, that's kind of a really big responsibility to put on someone, so I'd like some evidence? Like, a bit more digging around and there's plenty of proof of TwinApex being abusive to all sorts of people, but I haven't seen anything tying them to Near yet. This video did prompt me to do enough of my own searching that I no longer intend to develop using the libretro core and has me considering dropping RetroArch altogether, but the haste of blaming Retroarch for Near's death with seemingly no sources cited that corroborate that kinda make me think I shouldn't have too much trust in the video content.
Thank you for making this comment (should be pinned TBH). I remember seeing the situation with Near go down as an emulation fan and I never saw Libretro/Retroarch mentioned as playing a part in Near’s death. As you said, it was KF. I like this guy’s videos, but misinformation like this (unintentional or not) NEEDS to be addressed when it’s about a sensitive topic. It’s irresponsible otherwise.
Nothing. Just misinformation from a youtuber who hates a particular program and tries to reach for anything he can. Near's death had to do with the admin of a different site.
I use Retroarch due to its ease of use with my Bluetooth gamepads and for allowing me to emulate multiple consoles in one app. Also, it’s not technically required to use 0:53, but it is by far the easiest strategy.
“The more power at your disposal, the less it is about the games.” So true, I’ve probably booted up Retroarch more times to change settings than to run games lol.
My first experience with Retroarch on PC was pretty bad. After downloading and extracting to the folder, I tried to play an OoT randomizer seed I had made and found that Retroarch was picking up my analog stick movement backwards in the game. So moving up would move me down, and moving left would move me right for instance. I tried everything I could to fix the problem, and the only thing I managed to do was mess up the controls in the menu too. I ended up deleting the Retroarch folder and re-extracting it, and ended up encountering the same issue with the controls being messed up in the game AND the menu still. I never did figure out what was causing the issue because the controller worked in everything else, so it had to be Retroarch. Somehow the borked settings persisted through a deletion. I thought perhaps there was a folder in appdata or something that it saved settings to, but at the time "Everything" found nothing when searching for it. That would only leave the registry left. It would be pretty strange for it to save settings to the registry though. In comparison, every standalone emulator I have used has required little to no configuration to work. To be fair, I did end up using Retroarch again some time later and it worked fine at the time. Same controller, so I guess the version I downloaded previously must have had a bug with controllers or something. But even then, I prefer if I can avoid Retroarch. Standalone emulattors typically work with little to no configuration required and you only need to do it once typically. Whereas I found that every time I need to use Retroarrch, I have to reset one or more settings for it to work properly. And often times it forgets per-game and per-core settings too which defeats the purpose imo.
This was pretty much my RetroArch experience, set up games and emulator cores fine, but as soon as I started playing some PS One games I had to play a game of ring around the rosy with an Xbox controller’s inputs being completely fucked in a base installation until the config just became more and more broken as I kept adjusting binds and then finally I said fuck this shit, and uninstalled the whole thing. Retroarch’s design feels like it’s actively trolling the user sometimes with its wackjob obtuse bullshit that just works on a standalone emulator.
I have NEVER used retroarch It's too complicated for it's own good It's way easier to just download the emulator from the console you want and play the game already
I think retroarch is nice at times. There are some situations like with some standalone emulators like MAME's confusing presentation for just playing arcade games or the Sega Saturn's way of just always having some kind of issue with emulation. Retroarch kinda just works out of the box with little to no issue. Also since it's meant for low powered systems like mobile makes it sort of worth it. That being said for higher gen consoles your best bet is always standalone emulators.
Thank you for this video! I've never understood the appeal of Retroarch and it's nice to see someone with a similar viewpoint. Keep up the good content!
Tried retro arch because everyone said it was so easy. 2 hours later i downloaded dolphin and was able to play it exactly how I wanted l. I’m never using retro arch again
@@robomix9744 you don't need most of these settings though, you'll probably just spend like 30 minutes configuring it when you first install and then you'll almost never touch the settings menu
@@ultraaziz6307 I actually do, I need them to get no input delay and a stable framerate on my 60hz TV monitor, and no emulator offers that same level of customization.
the devs clearly didnt have any IT skills because the ui is the least intuitive thing for people not used to emulation. it also slows down newer games compared to stand alone emulators.
I love using Retroarch for everything up to PS2. However it did require a lot of setup and would not recommend if you just wanna play a game. If you want a nicely curated library Retroarch does the job for me. I guess I am just a big nerd because I like and understand all the options even if the UI isn't perfect.
Aye, same. Would not claim it is not a learning curve but I supported less willing friends through it who like simplicity and shaders of set up Retroarch. Especially if you say, slap a arcade stick on your desk where your keyboard used to be and do not even want to access your mouse and keyboard.
I love RA aside from the outdated cores, so I did find this video pretty harsh. I think anyone truly interested in emulation would be able to figure it out, it's just a learning process like anything technical is. It's a cakewalk compared to trying to learn how a game engine like Unity works from scratch. Also maybe this is a hot take, but emulation should be an underground thing for enthusiasts anyway. I couldn't really care less if Joe Normie the casual console gamer who doesn't even know what a refresh rate is can't figure out something as basic as emulation settings and integer scale. If they truly cared, they would be happy to educate themselves or learn by trial and error like the rest of us.
@@HJHawley7677 Learning how to tinker with a program and understanding its features is an important part of the enjoyment of emulation in my opinion. Let me give you an example. Your comment uses proper grammar, right? That's because you took the time to learn it. Maybe sometimes you made mistakes when you first learned how to write. But in the end, you figured it out because you cared about being able to communicate properly through text. I think you know where I'm going, so I'll respect your intelligence and let you figure it out.
@@TiwillI see where you’re trying to go, I’m saying it’s condescending and silly. Bad UI ≠ better options for tinkering. PCSX2 has loads of options that are fun to tinker with and they’re fun to mess with, AND they’re intuitive to use. Anyway, your original point seemed to imply that people who struggle to wrestle with bad UI don’t “deserve” to enjoy retro games and if you don’t see why that’s a snobby position I don’t see much of a point trying to convince you.
@@HJHawley7677 It could be subjective, but I don't find RA's UI to be "bad". Standalone emus tend to have better controller configuration screens, but RA automatically configures your controller when you first plug it in, so most people shouldn't have to touch anything. Basically, after you pick a core and import your games, you're good to go. That's no different from standalone emus. So why is it a problem that it has a lot of settings? If they seem too complex, don't touch 'em. Even if you can't figure it out, there should be tutorials on the internet to help you out, and this video could have been one. Instead of complaining, he could have shared what he learned. I'm not trying to say people don't "deserve" emulation, but if someone expects a one-button plug & play experience because they just want free games, they're not in it for the right reasons.
I completely agree. I consider myself pretty tech savvy but learning to use Retroarch properly was a whole task of its own while I never had an issue with setting up individual emulators. Just trying to set the controls and video options for a core can be a hassle and a half as there are way to many save settings functions that counteract each other. I've had to reinstall retroarch more than once on handheld systems without touch screens as one wrong setting can remove your ability to navigate the menus and edit the buttons. It's much easier imo on a per emulator basis even if is less cohesive.
It's like you made a good guide to the use of retro arc. I share the perspective that I was lost when I first got it, but your reaction was very short tempered.
@@TheRealBlazingDiamond Do not believe this man’s lies! He frequently comes into my levels, adds cardboard genetailia, and calls it an improvement! I do not know where he comes from - I think he lives in my walls
Yeah they're way too many settings and menus and other things in retroarch that make it too confusing. All I wanted to do is change the button layout on a specific emulator while keeping the menus themselves using the same button layout so A goes forward and B goes back.
the biggest and only advantage i personaly see in retro arch is steam play together. being able to play splitscreen ps2 games online with a homie, only having him install retroarch in steam is crazy good
It's like shopping on Amazon expecting one place that has it all. But sometimes you're getting lost in unneccassary options and start looking in a different shop to get what you need - an keep it. The Retroarch menu and the whole configuration thing brought me to using using stand alone emulators again.
I think RetroArch covers from the basic to advanced user no doubt. Like any other software tool, you need to spend at least 10 - 20 minutes on a tutorial video of how to use it. PC is not a friendly environment, you want something simple, get a console like a sega genesis and you're good to go, multicard(FlashCard) are very affordable per say, and you just need to insert your game and go for it. Most of the people who choose the path of emulation want to experience something they don't actually own, it would be naive to say otherwise. The price to get it need to be paid. So emulation configuration is the price... After 10 minutes using RetroArch most of the people I know can figure out the tool, it is not Rock Science...
I will say I am glad that EMUVR uses RetroArch as its very simple to interface with the multiple consoles and for the entire system library backups sources i found have been a Godsend. Especially after the 3DS and Xbox 360 eshops both being closed
It's a great frontend for emulators and it's really cool using it like it's own game console. The GUI needs a big overhaul though. Core options can't be accessed unless in a game, never ending scrolling option lists, linear up and down menus, no option search, quick menu is separate from the normal menu for some reason, way too many options and categories, and way too easy to break.
The thing that's necessary to keep in mind with Retroarch is that it's not for casuals who simply want to load a game 20 seconds after getting it installed. And I was once one of those people so I don't mean it with condescension. It's a powerful piece of software, and that requires some learning. Imagine thinking you can do anything good with Photoshop without knowing anything about it. When I started emulating, I did use standalone emulators. I also switched to Linux around that time, so my options were a bit more limited. Using Windows at that point was not a consideration as I was determined to move on. I switched because of Windows 8, so I know a thing or two about despising a UI. For me, Retroarch has been amazing. It is easily one of the very best pieces of software I have ever used. It solved some issues I was having with the standalone emulators, though MAME was probably the best one at the time. I was using command-line MAME and Mednafen then, so I figured if I could use those, I could use Retroarch. I approached learning it as a project, much like approached learning Linux, computer networking, file sharing, media server stuff, etc. The experience was similar to learning MAME. I didn't like either at first, but then things made sense over time and got easier fairly quickly. Now I love it and can fly through the menus so the UI doesn't bother me. In fact, I prefer using the ugly rgui menu because I am especially fast in that one, so it's nice to have so many options like that. The options are there for a reason and I've ended up needing or liking more options than I anticipated. But options are good, whether within RA, or to use something instead of it, especially if it handles HDR and all that stuff better, because the most important thing is a setup that works well. I assume standalones are better than they used to be as well so if they work, than that's a good option. But trying RA was a really good decision for my purposes and it is what I recommend to people, though I acknowledge the learning curve but also tell people I think it's worth it to learn.
Its for if you want a central hub for your emulators instead of popping in and out of various apps I prefer the latter option but I can see why someone would prefer RA
Yeah, thanks for affirming the vibes I got from Retroarch. I couldn't put a finger on why I don't like that despite initially planning to play emulators on my steam deck. The menu was overwhelming and had everything I didn't need (I was only interested in PS1 and GBA emulators) and getting asked questions about things I didn't need on initial start was too much. I didn't quite understand it, I thought it's just a consolidated project of various devs working together - I didn't know was just leeching off the research of others. Now I know.
Retroarch is fantastic, plus with retroachievements built in you don't have to manually log anything I literally bought a mini pc just to use as an emulatoon machine with retroarch
I’ve never really understood RetroArch. I understand the appeal of offering an all-in-one emulation experience that’s friendly with controllers. But every time I try to use it I just end up getting confused or frustrated and going back to using the individual emulators.
I'm using RetroArch right now it has its ups and downs but when you get the hang of it it Is really handy to use.
@@YOUTURKEY-t3e I'm sure. I'd honestly be more willing to give it another shot if EmuDeck wasn't ported to Windows recently. I want to try that one next since it just adds emulator games to Steam.
Uso RetroArch há anos, nuca tive problemas ou dificuldade.
Aprendi usar, configurar então é praticamente fácil.
Aprendi cuustomizar shaders, playlists, uso ele no PC, na tv Crt e ele é incrível.
Mas pelo vídeo dá uma má impressão de que tudo nele é difícil e bagunçado.
Low latency for the simpler systems and actually good crt shaders.
Annoyingly enough Retroarch is also the most easiest for Multiplatform Emulation and Netplay since on a case by case basis a lot of programs lean heavily towards "Windows Only".
Retroarch is seamless and easy until it isn't. There is a big learning curve when you start wanting to customize (get layouts and overlays working across multiple systems as an example). It's really good for handheld Linux systems abd stuff like that but itjust doesn't have the functionality that standalones have. Dolphin has GBA to GC emulation, Drastic has GBA to DS support, Project 64 can emulate the Transfer Pak, mGBA can emulate the e-reader, etc. If you want a UI that is controller friendly or want your games to be organized just use a front end like LaunchBox. It's best to just learn how to utilize both options, but i think the scale tips in favor of standalone
With mobile devices, it’s pretty bad to use retroarch really. Desktop it’s ok but using emulation station with stand alone emulators which give better performance and more settings.
Main thing I use retro arch for is to have neat libraries, saved settings that are easy to make specific for emulator, game etc. and tons of graphical output options and such. Yes I loose features but once you have new thing you have to tweak, once tweaked it stays tweaked until you tweak it again. It is also best thing you can use on modded consoles like PS3 or Switch, which is main birth point for retroarch, it actually was a PS3 aiming project at first hence the XMB UI too.
Yeah pretty much. I was annoyed by Retro Arch... Until I got into it. Now its the emulator I perfer. So yeah definitely a learning curve you have to get past.
@@Left4Cake Same experience here. I didn't like RA at first, but I kept hearing how good it was. I had to remind myself that I had trouble getting started with the emulators I was already using on Linux(which limited options). I figured, if I could learn my way around command-line MAME and Mednafen, I could figure out RA and I did. It did a lot of things better than every other emulator I had used. It didn't take long until I preferred it too and haven't looked back.
It's unnecessarily complicated and unwieldy.
RetroArch really should just have a "simple" mode that trims out all the fat, cuz right off the bat it's already pretty compatible and doesn't need that much configuring other than a controller
At least XMB UI mode, though all of them IIRC give you option to hide, essentially remove menu elements, so you can customize that. There is also "Kiosk mode" you can enable that locks the thing down to "simple mode" basically that needs a passcode or manual config edit to get out of, mainly for child proof, or say, public lounge arcade machine etc setups.
Basically that's ludo - made by the same people, pre-picked pre-installed cores, barely any settings, super simple ui
I haven't seen anyone mention this yet but RetroArch also has a Desktop menu featuring traditional keyboard and mouse input via a familiar windows like environment.
I don't use it at all though because I'm very familiar with the regular menus.
Enable Kiosk mode. That'll hide all the fat.
Its a shame that a lot of young people today don't know what a filesystem is since they grew up using phones. It's so limiting. Companies have been trying for years to eliminate users managing their own files and it's sad that this is how they achieved it. Don't store you own data trust us! What's the worst that can happen?!
Digital literacy among kids & young adults has got to be at an all time low
@@HJHawley7677 unfortunately true
as an IT, I've been working in schools recently and found that ChromeOS is used even in computer labs, mindblowing to me. You would think that computer literacy would become more common with time, but it seems like the opposite is the case, due to the simplicity of managing ChromeOS from an administrator's perspective, the cheap price and relative durability of Chromebooks, and the lacking tech literacy of school admins and teachers.
I've seen kids who can't even read a non-digital clock, it's over
My original comment here was deleted... I can't even remember what I said either...
Organizing my emulators and roms in well named and placed folders>>>>>retroarch
congratulations you have more braincells than the average retroarch user
yep yep
You know you can do both right?
@@irregulargamer1352 But I don't want.
@@manzanito3652>”I dislike retroarch because it doesn’t support X”
>you can still do X with retroarch
>”t-that doesn’t count”
the irony of retroarch is that people pick it because they want an easy all-in-one solution, only to end up with an insanely complex piece of software that you can tinker with and look up settings and have people explain everything to you for years and still don't understand what half the settings _actually_ do.
I hate how in retroarch I have to go trough a quintillion menus for the simplest of stuff but game-breaking settings are the first things available, the quest to simplify emulators (which if you have two neurons it is already simple I have been emulating since I was 7 in 2005)has led us to a piece of software that has useless functions for the emualtor you pick,bloated to hell and back and a community so devoted to the trash interface and its "simple usage", its INSANE how they forgot that retroarch and their sleazy "devs" almost killed Duckstations development last year.
this is why i just stopped wasting time with retroarch and picked my emulators and learned them well, this way I know what I'm doing and why I am doing it with absolute clarity and knowing nothing I do in one will ruin the rest.
-Nintendo:I know all their ins and outs and I can run anything I want with full control of their simple dedicated options
NES/SNES/GB/GBC=MESEN
N64(I Dont play it but if I ever wanted I have it)=RMG
GC/WII=Dolphin
GBA=mGBA
NDS=i tend to pivot between melon and desmume
-Sony:Same as nintendo
PSX=DuckStation
PS2=PCSX2
PS3=RPCS3
I actually can explain likely every setting in retroarch but it would be a lot of text. It is not hard to understand but it has a lot. I as user of it, recommend absolutely skinning down useless features and menu options down to relevant.
@@TheManudo00 The day standalone emulators have the same shader options as RA and switchres I will drop it completely. Until then...
YEP. this software sucks.
why do you need an all in one? you're not *using* more than one at a time.
U are just dumb bro, is not that complex. Is easy. U are just afraid cuz the many options lol
19:00 "why is this even possible?" For the same reason that I can delete the bootloader on Linux.
Dual booting and Windows automatic startup repair will mess with the bootloader far more often than going in there from Linux with no clues. That's why a USB live stick to repair systemd-boot or grub is always handy.
Menu visibility in Retroarch could be about setting a config file for a custom kiosk mode and leaving the device always on for children while restraining their access to specific settings. Like what any other frontend do. Or maybe it's just there for people who complain there are too many menu options and that you could remove them at the same time... I guess there are some UI battle that can't be won... XD
so true
Thing is, removing the bootloader requires a sudo password prompt and EXPLICIT confirmation that you may be irreparably damaging your system. Retroarch just lets anyone do it if they have unsupervised access to your computer for > 3 minutes and don't know what they're doing/want to troll you.
windows lets you delete system32
(but still doesn't let you access microsoft store-downloaded apps lol)
On an arcade cab that only loads one game via Retroarch you don't want people exiting the game and having to reboot the cab.
Yeah Retroarch is kind of a mess. I mostly use it for 2D stuff with shaders and stick to stand alone emulators for the more advanced 3D systems where I can just crank up the resolution.
Arcade emulation is also slightly nicer on retroarch thanks to easier ... easier, not easy as apple pie individual setups per game, but what you say is what I do too. Though I still play actual PS2 more than emulate it, but PS1, hell yeah. though I retroarch that.
Everything up to Dreamcast, I use retroarch. Everything else is standalone
I still use Retroarch to this day. But your rant on how confusing and unclear problems can be struck a chord with me lmfao. I spent ages tweaking and altering it to fit my computer and such. Now I'm just used to it, and I understand all it's weird quirks.
Same i watched many videos to learn it i love but ps2, n64 and up i use stand alone emulators better quality
Retroarch is probably for people who like tinkering with configuration and stuff (like me)
I need a full edit of Pirates of the Caribbean now
Best thing about retroarch is its literally available at every platform ever exist. Literally has support for windows,mac,ios,android,linux,free bsd, ps2 ,xbox even more niche and obscure OS like haiku like wtf its crazy.
Retroarch is on BSD? it must be very buried in their website
Its fantastic unless you wanna play PS2 games on iOS with it (but i have the Play! emulator to make up for it"
Literally.
doenst matter if the support is worthless
I just wanted to say before my comment gets buried that your videos have helped me a ton when it comes to what i like in retro gaming. Without your videos i wouldve never been into things like crt shaders which has greatly improved my gaming experience. Thank you for putting as much effort as you do into these videos
Good job your comment is on the top of the pile
I know that some purist Will not like My take but i recently discovered the shader LCD grid v2. And i think that retro pixel games look great with it. It's on the "Handled" folder in case You want to try it
I felt like I was the only one who thought RetroArch was overly complicated. I tried setting it up multiple times on my PC and on my Xbox Series X in Dev mode and it was a huge pain in the butt. I finally do have RetroArch set up on my Xbox because as of now it's basically the only way to play N64, Saturn and pre-SNES, but what I wouldn't give to get Ares instead on the console. This video was cathartic to watch for me.
Heck I made like a fifteen bible long comment defending retroarch against some stuff said in this video but initial shock against retroarch is absolutely a damn learning curve you could use as unusual psychological torture in right setting. Put your friend into a saw trap and give him ten minutes to setup retroarch for the first time in their life and you have a dead friend for sure. Still, once it is setup, or your emulator, or your game specific tweaks, they usually stick and hopefully stay that way until you have to wipe them because retroarch loosened itself on the floor again. But for me, retroarch is thing I have on a Switch, on a 3DS (standalones on 3DS are better though, RA is good only for things without standalone on 3DS), Vita and PS3, and also PC because I already committed to it like a two way abusive relationship.
It's poorly designed to the point of it seeming like a parody
I had to write down my own instructions to understand how tf controller mapping worked on retroarch because its not as simple as pick a button and press.
I really don't like the ui in Retroarch either. I much prefer the standard drop down menus to access setting in standalone emulators
Retroarch has this issue that I have with a lot of open source apps. It's that (God forbid) you complain about the UI being over cluttered and that it maybe needs a lil bit of tweaking here and there on github for example. Either the community is gonna call you a normie or the developer is going to have an ego trip and dissappear completely.
"Emulators vs Emulator Frontend"? I feel like the video title would've been better "Standalone Emulators vs Retroarch."
Capcom Arcade Stadiums were such a good deal, plagued with weird/missing standard emulation options, and, final nail in the coffin, extremely shifty Russian DRM patched into them after release. The latter one was such a dealbreaker that I uninstalled all my Capcom games on Steam and refuse to even look at any more of their titles, old or new.
It’s not piracy if they don’t sell em anymore
Preach it
@ ok
Nah man, you can't just say lives have been taken over RetroArch and not explain. WTF dude?
It's a huge mistake on this guy's part, Near's death has nothing to do with RetroArch.
@@ArpeggioPegasusWhile most individuals who worked on RA weren’t involved. There was one dev who worked on it in particular who was extremely… colorful… Squarepusher has made multiple homophobic posts using the f-slur and even directly tweeting at the BSnes and other emulator devs (one of which being the dev who took their life) and while it’s entirely possible that SquarePusher wasn’t responsible, it isn’t fair to entirely discount it considering the dude likes to start flame-wars for fun and criticize and belittle emulator devs (you know, the people doing 99.9% of the work for RetroArch lmao)
There’s nothing quite like the euphoria of finally being able to emulate a game after hours of googling, downloading, failed attempts, and tutorials.
Retroarch is a better option for devices were these standalone emulators aren't an option, like Chromebooks or a hacked NES Classic. Getting Retroarch onto a device opens up so many emulation options to that device. But yes, I'm literally saying it's the better option when there's no other option lmao. Even on Android, there's different mobile specific standalone emulators that make things a lot smoother, like Pizza Boy for GB/C or GBA with mobile friendly menus and freely repositionable touch screen buttons, and skins to make your phone look like a Gameboy. Or Drastic is honestly the best DS emulator I've *EVER* used. It runs perfectly and lets you freely resize and reposition the screens where ever you want with easy access to a swap screens button with game specific layouts
There's plenty of emulation for Chromebooks, including PSP.
Sometimes I feel like going through my PC and doing a digital cleaning, but I do get a teeny bit overwhelmed when I see everything all at once. I guess I’ll follow an art rule and only organize one type of thing at a time. Like where my emu apps actually go, like do I want to store shortcuts in a folder, and what would I do with the games?? More folders? Sure, sounds cool. Thanks Mr. RUclips Guy, I have a goal to accomplish today!
Honestly, as it stands now, RetroArch is not made for beginners. It made for people who have been entrenched in the emulation scene and know what type of experience they want. It's very similar to Arch Linux, in a way, where everything conceivable option or feature is available and you can build it however you want.
I first started using RA in the late 2010's after being sick and tired of having to update an emulator every time I wanted to play a game. Combined with all the different standalone emulators (without auto updaters like modern PSCX2 & Dolphin), it was a chore. The only standalone emulators I use now are PSCX2 and Dolphin, especially if some feature isn't available in RA.
Arch makes it abundantly clear that it's NOT for the faint of heart, RA positions itself as beginner-friendly
@@notme8232 They never did. Please share your source where they mention "beginner friendly" lmao
@@IAMNOTRANA I'm not OP and I don't think RA itself does, but a lot of people that use it sure do.
As a weird Linux guy, I ended up just writing a script that creates .desktop files to launch games in Retroarch (because I'm a shader whore). It basically went something like, _if this directory is called NES, create a desktop file for each file inside that tells Retroarch's NES core to load this ROM_
After that, I configured Retroarch to close when I closed my game. So I technically use Retroarch, but I spent something like six hours learning intermediate BASH scripting to not have to use that garbage UI ever again.
Why not just use a frontend?
@@BoxedWater123 Preference, mostly. I'm not a fan of fullscreen frontends like EmulationStation and Launchbox. And they're just weird in windowed mode.
@@dsouth7754 there is a non fullscreen frontend on Linux called GameHub, it might be what you're looking for
That's really cool
Good thing Emulationstation were invented as front end for emulators
0:53 Bro took a page from Nerrel’s book.
Smart
I still have nightmares about that Star Wars video...
DUDE I WAS THINKING THE SAME THING! As soon as that bit came up I was like "Damn, didn't realize I was watching Nerrel all of a sudden".
@@jimmyjohnson501 I know what you’re talking about… 🤢 🤮
LOL you're realizing what I realized over 10 years ago Retroarch is complicated. 2 years ago I decided to learn it and since I did I've since mastered it and it is not nearly as complicated as it used to be and it is my go to emulator hub for 8-16 bit games. For 32-128 bit I prefer stand alone emulators because they usually get higher faps.
Higher WHAT????
AYYOO
Higher... Ayo? 🤨📸
Why are y’all focusing on the funny typo when this man claims to have emulated a 128-bit system
That feels much more noteworthy
The closest thing to emulation I've used when it comes to retro gaming is using upgraded/softmodded consoles. It feels like a satisfying balance between convenience and authenticity
The Toad section earned you a like already. You made my day in around a minute or less!
I get being overwhelmed by the number of options and settings, but its one of the reasons I use it. It makes it easier to play on a crt or any other kind screen and setting up specific controllers to each core a breeze. It would be a nightmare if it didnt have all that. It already is with some standalone emulators that dont give you all those options
Das what I'm sayin!!!
Right.... I can never see a downside to having more settings.. So many ways to get the program to fit your needs
My gripes with RA:
- Too bloated. It has an entire (somewhat hidden) Qt desktop UI, aside from the UI you get. It doubles the size of the emulator and no one ever uses it. You gotta compile it yourself with no Qt GUI if you don't want it.
- Crashes, it has no error handling.
- When it crashes, you lose your SRAM, yep, saves gone, this is by default, you can setup a timer to write SRAM to disk every 10 seconds or so. Also your configurations changes are gone too.
- Too many crashes.
- Menus upon menus, I can navigate them but cmon
- Quick Settings, this is the biggest beginner trap ever, it holds the emulator core settings.
- Two different input menus, one in the main menu to map your controllers then one in quick settings to map your mapped controllers to the console mappings.
The only reason I like it that you can set it up once and use it for every system, set your shaders up and controller, play any game.
Like FB Neo is annoying to setup controllers and visuals.
You can build w/o QT, How?
RetroArch should have been designed with cores running in a separate process, so that an emulator crashing wouldn't bring retroarch with it. The SRAM thing is also really dumb, I lost hours of progress due to it.
The most important thing of RetroArch are the high quality overlays.
That basically makes RA a must for correct 2D Gaming.
The shaders on HDR Oled TVs are just mindblowing!
Yeah bro the quick menu thing. Drove me up the wall for a while.
retroarch setup, once you understood the main caveats once - is a breeze. And then i have per-game settings, global hotkeys for savestates and so on
I'm still so mad that most of the best scanlines options are retroarch only...
But really Retroarch is usually the best way to play arcade emulators, because of how easy it is to setup. YES THE RETROARCH PROCESS IS EASIER FOR ARCADE EMULATORS
first video when you search "emulators" Well done man. Great video.
I agree with how complicated and convoluted RetroArch can be. Standalone emulators are not "couch friendly" so I installed Batocera Linux. It has awesome cover art, and it's basically a huge frontend for RetroArch. It can boot from a USB stick so you can take it anywhere. Most often it can automatically configure your controllers for you, leaving out all the hassle work. It also typically uses the best settings available for any given emulator, but you can change it very easily (even with a controller, no mouse/keyboard required) in their menu system. I have also found that controllers respond better using Batocera vs. Windows. Probably something to do with Linux being more lean and mean.
My biggest issue with Retroarch is how some new versions of emulators or the whole emulator being exclusive to RetroArch, such as Mupen64Plus, as far as i know there isn't a standalone PC Release, also the RetroAchievements aren't featured in most of the emulators outside of RetroArch
I have a really old pc so sometimes i have to make personalized settings for every individual game. Doing that in retro arch is basically a job
Great video. Good points.
I use my RetroArch for 2D games only because CRT shaders of course. Standalone emulation for everything else.
When I used Retroarch with EmuDeck for a few weeks, it was so complicated I never there was a difference between the Retroarch controls and the Emulator’s controls so I reset my controls so often. Some of the filters and shaders were neat to play with Kirby 64, but no thanks I’ll rather play using the standalone Mupen64Plus-Next launcher or ares.
Also based Hydro Station music pick.
I only use RetroArch for some Consoles like: N64, SNES / NES, Dreamcast...
But here is what I don't like using on RetroArch: PS2 > PCSX2, PS1 > DuckStation
Mesen and Mesen-S (older versions that are separate exe's) and Parallel Launcher satisfy my needs. I try to stay away from Retroarch because it's so tedious and complicated.
I use SwanStation on Retroarch as well as PPSSPP
Same.
@@ALegitPooperVideos Careful, you'll make the Duckstation creator sell his work to Sony
That pirates bit wouldn't be out of place in a nerrel video.
You're absolutely right about retroarch, but I love it on my switch. There's switch homebrew that lets you use other bluetooth controllers (such as PS4) on switch, so syncing new controllers is seamless. Still a pain in the ass to set up retroarch itself, but when it's done, I have one organized list of every system until the dreamcast (dreamcast runs surprisingly well). Especially nice for playing with friends. I'll still use DuckStation for PS1 on switch though.
I have been using Retrobat for my emulation setup and I could not be happier with it. It uses emulationstation as a frontend but without all of the hassle to set it up, and it has some absolute sick theming capabilities, like making the frontend look like the PS5's UI for example.
Further, Retrobat allows you to easily download the standalone emulators that you require right within the frontend. You can also then set all of the necessary settings within Retrobat in a user friendly manner, which will then be injected into the standalone emulator (or Retroarch) at run time.
Lastly, Retrobat makes it easy to set bezels and shaders for your games without you having to dig into Retroarch menus.
All and all, Retrobat is a emulation frontend program I highly recommend and I think it will solve a lot of the pet peeves that you had with both Retroarch and standalone emulators.
amen - so well put!
it's like the power of RetroArch is best in the domain of system integrators like RetroBat & Batocera Linux to decide what to expose what makes the most sense (without taking the power of fiddling under the hood when needed)
Only a mixture of the two will cover all bases. Sometimes standalone is better, but other times it is better with the cores in RA. Whatever works is what I'm interested in.
Sadly this is true. I avoid RA when I can but for some systems the best emulator by far is stuck as a RA core. I wish there was a better up-to-date standalone for Genesis, for example
Dolphin and citra standalone burn my pc to the ground
RA’s core is the only way I can experience them
Thank you for your uploads bro
Why even let Steam run in the background while emulating in the first place? The first thing I always do is set off Steams Autostart. It will never interfere.
Yeh, if you don't want Steam on then you can leave it.
But if you do, then just open the app the moment the PC starts.
For me, I’ve always preferred using Mesen and Mesen-S for my NES and SNES emulation, but since Sour merged them into the Mesen2 emulator, I’m even happier. It even has PC-Engine support as well as GB and GBC.
9:03 this doesnt suprise me with my one interaction on discord with them. They were extremely rude and condescending while also answer questions in the most convoluted way possible
Had it coming. They have a good page on Kiwifarms if you'd like to know more.
Also with RetroArch vs the standalone Emulator the emulation cores that represents the emulators can be behind in terms of development vs the the actual standalone emulator as well which is another negative thing against RetroArch. Also some of the standalone emulators already have individual game settings just like RetroArch such as DuckStation, Dolphin and PCX2 to name a few.
9:10 Holy shit, I thought this was KiwiFarm's doing, but RetroArch!? Damn.
not going to argue that the retroarch ozone UI isnt flawed but this video feels very loaded- considering that its designed to be cross-platform having the options to tailor it to the huge range of hardware it runs on seems plenty warranted
hating on RA has been the cool thing in retro and emulation circles for a while. It's like people don't understand the concept of tradeoffs. They don't understand what RA brought to the table that other emulators didn't and they'd rather have a Windows style UI than useful features that actually affect playability (not just performance)
Absolutely this. I use Retroarch on PC but I have the setup because I like the concept, and had to get used to it on PS3, Switch, Vita and Wii U. I made much longer more rambling comment about these complaints, especially mentioning keyboard and mouse repeatedly like people's switch or xbox runs linux or something.
There is also lot of skill issue complaints because for me, mouse works fully in ozone menu on PC. It also works with the switch touchscreen. Forgot did they get Vita's implemented yet but last try I had was nope.
@@guillermo9171 Dealing with emulation since the early 00's made me love everything that RA brings to the table. Its hard not to no use it BECAUSE of all the options
@@guillermo9171what does it bring to the table? i've been emulating for over a decade and every RA experience has been miserable.
it's terribly designed, on every platform i've used it on. it over-complicates a simple experience because it claims to do everything, so it ends up sucking at it all. in the time it takes to set up "cores" i can install a standalone emulator and have my game loaded.
@@guillermo9171 I disliked the project at the start pre pandemic because I didn't know how to use it. Same w/ MPV & then I figured out how to use it & there is a lot of cool features I wish that were other emulators. If the features I need aren't on RA, I use something else. I don't know why people complaining so much, you have options. Options are always good.
This video is a little bit too focused on PC in my opinion, repeating how keyboard and mouse and stuff is superior, but retroarch is multiplatform project aimed especially towards consoles and console like setups, where you do not have keyboard and mouse. The balancing act of powerful enthusiast options in a menu that you can use with your controller is introducing bloated menus, that you can cut off in options to what you personally need. Also, XMB GUI is partially usable with mouse, and my 2 minute test on steam with Ozone UI show that is FULLY mouse supported. Maybe you had option for mouse navigation turned off? The GUI is based off Switch and made mainly for such device that might have both touchscreens and controllers, since it liberally steals from nintendo switch.
Confusing labeling and having to learn a whole new language with the GUI of retroarch I agree with, but it is also best thing I can use on my switch, PSVita, PS3 and PC and cross pollinate my game lists and saves around rather easily between devices. This video to me misses the point of retroarch and then complains about the point of retroarch. It is also weird to complain about too many menu options and then complain about the power to do something about it. It is possible because you can do it. Kiosk mode is there to make it not possible if you do not want someone else to fuck it up.
I cannot evangelize much about nicely setup retroarch on many systems, but I like the playlist and graphical approach to retro games it brings, and the main system I use it on, Switch, as other modded consoles, it absolutely best option for many target systems. I agree it could be less clunky and devs could be less of arse about it, aside many other silly small bugs that tend to linger for way too many updates . But it is a specific thing for specific type of device, setup or taste, and understanding that even if you are not the target would minimize useless complaints.
Retroarch has it's set of strengths, that you do not care about and are not target for, and weaknesses that you stress slightly too strongly. But I have been a self trained retroarch user. Pointing out retroarch UI ligma is like pointing out terminal ligma to long time Linux user. Way too used to it and even grown a tastebud for some things. I myself, on PC, like that I setup retroarch and emulators I use once and they stay that way, and it is relatively easy to do game or emulator specific tweaks and save them. Different shader, background, audio processing whatever per game, emulator or folder you can tweak and save it specifically for X and hopefully never touch it again. Or become a retroarch tweaker addict that indeed is a fate worse than death or actual substance abuse, don't ask I am recovering.
The only time I EVER use retroarch at this point is to emulate arcade games on console and for very, very specific games on console.
Finally someone called out their bullshit, The reason why duckstation is no longer open source is because of retroarch staff treating other emu developers like crap. That's why I vowed to never use retroarch, and use the original emulators. Literally the FTX of game emulation
Duckstation is still Open Sourced...
Nah I think duckstation’s dev just sucks at being a good person
@scottcaramel nah it's retroarch being shitty because he's not the only developer who has had a problem with them
Duckstation v Swanstation was a long time ago. It's just that DS dev is very.., weird. He's also the same guy who created and abandoned AetherSX.
@@Koffiato That's my assessment as well. Weird definitely fits here. To be clear, RA could be crappy to devs too. It's not mutually exclusive. But back when that whole Dusckstation controversy was going on, the dev made some odd claims about Duckstation being only partly open source which made no sense whatsoever(which parts?). It undermined any legitimate points he may have had. That's why when he recently changed the license, he made a point to say he understands the licenses, and that's because he must have heard from a lot of people that he didn't. Maybe he has learned since then.
Despite the long video length I feel like this video still saved me a ton of time from otherwise messing around with Retroarch.
9:11
Near's own life was taken because of the constant bullying of their gender identity and some other things. This had nothing to do with Retroarch from what I recall.
Thanks for saying this too, I left a comment on my own also stating this. Hopefully this reply brings attention as well.
Can you get more info on what relation Retroarch has to do with Near's death? As far as I could find in 15 minutes of searching, the harassment was from KF users and I found nothing pertaining to Retroarch other than an announcement? And uh, that's kind of a really big responsibility to put on someone, so I'd like some evidence?
Like, a bit more digging around and there's plenty of proof of TwinApex being abusive to all sorts of people, but I haven't seen anything tying them to Near yet.
This video did prompt me to do enough of my own searching that I no longer intend to develop using the libretro core and has me considering dropping RetroArch altogether, but the haste of blaming Retroarch for Near's death with seemingly no sources cited that corroborate that kinda make me think I shouldn't have too much trust in the video content.
Thank you for making this comment (should be pinned TBH). I remember seeing the situation with Near go down as an emulation fan and I never saw Libretro/Retroarch mentioned as playing a part in Near’s death. As you said, it was KF.
I like this guy’s videos, but misinformation like this (unintentional or not) NEEDS to be addressed when it’s about a sensitive topic. It’s irresponsible otherwise.
Nothing. Just misinformation from a youtuber who hates a particular program and tries to reach for anything he can. Near's death had to do with the admin of a different site.
Near faked his death.
I use Retroarch due to its ease of use with my Bluetooth gamepads and for allowing me to emulate multiple consoles in one app. Also, it’s not technically required to use 0:53, but it is by far the easiest strategy.
I still like retroarch, despite it's many flaws.
i deleted RetroArch because what even is the point of it when individual emulators are faster and easier to configurate
This video need to be on retroarch home page
only reason to use this Piece o' was for the shader packs, but those have been ported to reshade and thus can be applied to standalone emulators.
“The more power at your disposal, the less it is about the games.” So true, I’ve probably booted up Retroarch more times to change settings than to run games lol.
This is a really good video! I love your editing and strobe warnings.
My first experience with Retroarch on PC was pretty bad. After downloading and extracting to the folder, I tried to play an OoT randomizer seed I had made and found that Retroarch was picking up my analog stick movement backwards in the game. So moving up would move me down, and moving left would move me right for instance. I tried everything I could to fix the problem, and the only thing I managed to do was mess up the controls in the menu too. I ended up deleting the Retroarch folder and re-extracting it, and ended up encountering the same issue with the controls being messed up in the game AND the menu still. I never did figure out what was causing the issue because the controller worked in everything else, so it had to be Retroarch. Somehow the borked settings persisted through a deletion. I thought perhaps there was a folder in appdata or something that it saved settings to, but at the time "Everything" found nothing when searching for it. That would only leave the registry left. It would be pretty strange for it to save settings to the registry though.
In comparison, every standalone emulator I have used has required little to no configuration to work.
To be fair, I did end up using Retroarch again some time later and it worked fine at the time. Same controller, so I guess the version I downloaded previously must have had a bug with controllers or something. But even then, I prefer if I can avoid Retroarch. Standalone emulattors typically work with little to no configuration required and you only need to do it once typically. Whereas I found that every time I need to use Retroarrch, I have to reset one or more settings for it to work properly. And often times it forgets per-game and per-core settings too which defeats the purpose imo.
This was pretty much my RetroArch experience, set up games and emulator cores fine, but as soon as I started playing some PS One games I had to play a game of ring around the rosy with an Xbox controller’s inputs being completely fucked in a base installation until the config just became more and more broken as I kept adjusting binds and then finally I said fuck this shit, and uninstalled the whole thing. Retroarch’s design feels like it’s actively trolling the user sometimes with its wackjob obtuse bullshit that just works on a standalone emulator.
I hear Grasstown OST, I see Quote Pfp, I subscribe
Wow you actually uttered the word piracy...more than once even. Thank you for not being a whimpy baby gamer who cant even acknowledge reality.
The mouse calibration in RA will haunt me ever after my death.
I have NEVER used retroarch
It's too complicated for it's own good
It's way easier to just download the emulator from the console you want and play the game already
I think retroarch is nice at times. There are some situations like with some standalone emulators like MAME's confusing presentation for just playing arcade games or the Sega Saturn's way of just always having some kind of issue with emulation. Retroarch kinda just works out of the box with little to no issue. Also since it's meant for low powered systems like mobile makes it sort of worth it. That being said for higher gen consoles your best bet is always standalone emulators.
Thank you for this video! I've never understood the appeal of Retroarch and it's nice to see someone with a similar viewpoint. Keep up the good content!
Tried retro arch because everyone said it was so easy. 2 hours later i downloaded dolphin and was able to play it exactly how I wanted l. I’m never using retro arch again
I love how much of a chore it is to get HD texture packs working with N64 games in Retroarch compared to a regular emulator. It's just a mess.
I've never had a problem with retroarch, I use it on my phone and pc. Don't really see how people have trouble with it
Same here, I think it's just the overcomplicated menus
@@robomix9744 you don't need most of these settings though, you'll probably just spend like 30 minutes configuring it when you first install and then you'll almost never touch the settings menu
@@ultraaziz6307 I actually do, I need them to get no input delay and a stable framerate on my 60hz TV monitor, and no emulator offers that same level of customization.
Same
the devs clearly didnt have any IT skills because the ui is the least intuitive thing for people not used to emulation. it also slows down newer games compared to stand alone emulators.
RetroArch is working on switch without a need to change to android so Im cool with that
that's great
I love using Retroarch for everything up to PS2. However it did require a lot of setup and would not recommend if you just wanna play a game. If you want a nicely curated library Retroarch does the job for me. I guess I am just a big nerd because I like and understand all the options even if the UI isn't perfect.
Aye, same. Would not claim it is not a learning curve but I supported less willing friends through it who like simplicity and shaders of set up Retroarch. Especially if you say, slap a arcade stick on your desk where your keyboard used to be and do not even want to access your mouse and keyboard.
I love your content man, always exited when a new video drops.
I love RA aside from the outdated cores, so I did find this video pretty harsh. I think anyone truly interested in emulation would be able to figure it out, it's just a learning process like anything technical is. It's a cakewalk compared to trying to learn how a game engine like Unity works from scratch. Also maybe this is a hot take, but emulation should be an underground thing for enthusiasts anyway. I couldn't really care less if Joe Normie the casual console gamer who doesn't even know what a refresh rate is can't figure out something as basic as emulation settings and integer scale. If they truly cared, they would be happy to educate themselves or learn by trial and error like the rest of us.
The problem is people want a plug & play type deal & that's fair. RA ain't that & that's cool. PS1 & Down there are multiple standalone options!
Baffling take. You don’t care that the UI is worse than it should be because you don’t want others to enjoy a hobby of yours? Why the gatekeeping lol
@@HJHawley7677 Learning how to tinker with a program and understanding its features is an important part of the enjoyment of emulation in my opinion.
Let me give you an example. Your comment uses proper grammar, right? That's because you took the time to learn it. Maybe sometimes you made mistakes when you first learned how to write. But in the end, you figured it out because you cared about being able to communicate properly through text.
I think you know where I'm going, so I'll respect your intelligence and let you figure it out.
@@TiwillI see where you’re trying to go, I’m saying it’s condescending and silly. Bad UI ≠ better options for tinkering. PCSX2 has loads of options that are fun to tinker with and they’re fun to mess with, AND they’re intuitive to use.
Anyway, your original point seemed to imply that people who struggle to wrestle with bad UI don’t “deserve” to enjoy retro games and if you don’t see why that’s a snobby position I don’t see much of a point trying to convince you.
@@HJHawley7677 It could be subjective, but I don't find RA's UI to be "bad". Standalone emus tend to have better controller configuration screens, but RA automatically configures your controller when you first plug it in, so most people shouldn't have to touch anything.
Basically, after you pick a core and import your games, you're good to go. That's no different from standalone emus. So why is it a problem that it has a lot of settings? If they seem too complex, don't touch 'em.
Even if you can't figure it out, there should be tutorials on the internet to help you out, and this video could have been one. Instead of complaining, he could have shared what he learned.
I'm not trying to say people don't "deserve" emulation, but if someone expects a one-button plug & play experience because they just want free games, they're not in it for the right reasons.
I just don't get Retroarch, I never get it to work, it's so confusing. I can set up individual emulators without issue
I completely agree. I consider myself pretty tech savvy but learning to use Retroarch properly was a whole task of its own while I never had an issue with setting up individual emulators.
Just trying to set the controls and video options for a core can be a hassle and a half as there are way to many save settings functions that counteract each other.
I've had to reinstall retroarch more than once on handheld systems without touch screens as one wrong setting can remove your ability to navigate the menus and edit the buttons.
It's much easier imo on a per emulator basis even if is less cohesive.
You deserve more credit for the Pirates of the Caribbean edits lmao 😂
It's like you made a good guide to the use of retro arc. I share the perspective that I was lost when I first got it, but your reaction was very short tempered.
The way you organize your ROMs and emulators frustrates me to no end lol
Oh hey, I meet you again, Dstomp frequenter!
@@TheRealBlazingDiamond Well I'm more than just a frequenter, I collaborate on a lot of his projects haha
@@polar-star64 ahhh, that explains a few things lol
In any case, good to see you again!
@@TheRealBlazingDiamond Do not believe this man’s lies! He frequently comes into my levels, adds cardboard genetailia, and calls it an improvement!
I do not know where he comes from - I think he lives in my walls
@@Dstomp ngl, wasn't expecting you to show up lol
3:24 I agree. I find it weird when all these channels install RetroArch, but I imagine it's for the audience/ease of use
Yeah they're way too many settings and menus and other things in retroarch that make it too confusing. All I wanted to do is change the button layout on a specific emulator while keeping the menus themselves using the same button layout so A goes forward and B goes back.
the biggest and only advantage i personaly see in retro arch is steam play together. being able to play splitscreen ps2 games online with a homie, only having him install retroarch in steam is crazy good
It's like shopping on Amazon expecting one place that has it all. But sometimes you're getting lost in unneccassary options and start looking in a different shop to get what you need - an keep it.
The Retroarch menu and the whole configuration thing brought me to using using stand alone emulators again.
I think RetroArch covers from the basic to advanced user no doubt. Like any other software tool, you need to spend at least 10 - 20 minutes on a tutorial video of how to use it. PC is not a friendly environment, you want something simple, get a console like a sega genesis and you're good to go, multicard(FlashCard) are very affordable per say, and you just need to insert your game and go for it. Most of the people who choose the path of emulation want to experience something they don't actually own, it would be naive to say otherwise. The price to get it need to be paid. So emulation configuration is the price... After 10 minutes using RetroArch most of the people I know can figure out the tool, it is not Rock Science...
Great video dude
I will say I am glad that EMUVR uses RetroArch as its very simple to interface with the multiple consoles and for the entire system library backups sources i found have been a Godsend. Especially after the 3DS and Xbox 360 eshops both being closed
It's a great frontend for emulators and it's really cool using it like it's own game console. The GUI needs a big overhaul though. Core options can't be accessed unless in a game, never ending scrolling option lists, linear up and down menus, no option search, quick menu is separate from the normal menu for some reason, way too many options and categories, and way too easy to break.
The thing that's necessary to keep in mind with Retroarch is that it's not for casuals who simply want to load a game 20 seconds after getting it installed. And I was once one of those people so I don't mean it with condescension. It's a powerful piece of software, and that requires some learning. Imagine thinking you can do anything good with Photoshop without knowing anything about it. When I started emulating, I did use standalone emulators. I also switched to Linux around that time, so my options were a bit more limited. Using Windows at that point was not a consideration as I was determined to move on. I switched because of Windows 8, so I know a thing or two about despising a UI.
For me, Retroarch has been amazing. It is easily one of the very best pieces of software I have ever used. It solved some issues I was having with the standalone emulators, though MAME was probably the best one at the time. I was using command-line MAME and Mednafen then, so I figured if I could use those, I could use Retroarch. I approached learning it as a project, much like approached learning Linux, computer networking, file sharing, media server stuff, etc. The experience was similar to learning MAME. I didn't like either at first, but then things made sense over time and got easier fairly quickly. Now I love it and can fly through the menus so the UI doesn't bother me. In fact, I prefer using the ugly rgui menu because I am especially fast in that one, so it's nice to have so many options like that. The options are there for a reason and I've ended up needing or liking more options than I anticipated. But options are good, whether within RA, or to use something instead of it, especially if it handles HDR and all that stuff better, because the most important thing is a setup that works well. I assume standalones are better than they used to be as well so if they work, than that's a good option. But trying RA was a really good decision for my purposes and it is what I recommend to people, though I acknowledge the learning curve but also tell people I think it's worth it to learn.
I don't see why anyone would use retroarch when standalone emulators offer such a better experience.
Its for if you want a central hub for your emulators instead of popping in and out of various apps
I prefer the latter option but I can see why someone would prefer RA
Retroarch is an abomination, cursed from the beginning with that UI.
Very good video an interesting opinion!
The Best Thing about RetroArch for me is that it introduced me to the Wonderfull, Stressfull, Amazing and Painful World of RetroAchievements
Yeah, thanks for affirming the vibes I got from Retroarch. I couldn't put a finger on why I don't like that despite initially planning to play emulators on my steam deck. The menu was overwhelming and had everything I didn't need (I was only interested in PS1 and GBA emulators) and getting asked questions about things I didn't need on initial start was too much.
I didn't quite understand it, I thought it's just a consolidated project of various devs working together - I didn't know was just leeching off the research of others. Now I know.
Retroarch is fantastic, plus with retroachievements built in you don't have to manually log anything
I literally bought a mini pc just to use as an emulatoon machine with retroarch
I struggled to even load cheats on retroarch