6 best game emulator apps for Android phones and tablets
Old consoles are getting harder and harder to get hold of. So if you want to keep playing your old games, an emulator on your phone or PC is the best option. Here are the top six emulator apps for GameBoy (Advance), PlayStation 1, Nintendo DS, SEGA Genesis, and many more consoles.
Contents
About emulator apps
Contrary to what some gamers think, game emulators are not illegal. They are just an alternative means to play your own games. What is illegal is downloading ROMs, or digitized versions of games. So you are supposed to use ROMs from the old games you own. So you can compare an emulator with an MP3 player that you use to play your own songs – or in this case games.
The fact is that it is becoming increasingly difficult to find working copies of old game consoles. For example, the moment your old SEGA Genesis breathes its last breath, you can dig deep into your pockets to buy a new one. Using an emulator is much cheaper and in some cases they manage to improve the graphics of classic games over the original.
1. GameBoy (Advance): John GBAC
John GBAC is the most complete emulator for GameBoy, GameBoy Color and GameBoy Advance. Games look visually appealing and you can also play certain games at an accelerated rate. That’s ideal for those oldest Pokémon games, for example, where there was no button to run.
You can also adjust the touch control completely to your liking and physical controllers are also supported. John GBAC has been around for a long time and the app is very stable. The app also appears to get updates very regularly unlike many other GameBoy emulators.
- Stars in the Play Store: 4.1
John G.B.A.C
John G.B.A.C
John GBAC is the most complete emulator for GameBoy, GameBoy Color and GameBoy Advance. Games look visually appealing and you can also speed up certain games.
2. PlayStation 1: ePSXe for Android
The first PlayStation was a huge success for Sony and many games are still fresh in gamers’ memories. The quality of many PlayStation emulators can fluctuate widely, but ePSXe for Android is compatible with most games.
The app supports a split-screen view and customizable touch buttons, physical controllers. In this app it is easy to save your progress in games and pick up where you left off afterwards. In addition, ePSXe for Android also has features that improve the graphics of old PS1 games. If you have an Android TV at home, you can find a modified version of this app in the Play Store.
- Stars in the Play Store: 4.4
ePSXe for Android
ePSXe for Android
The first PlayStation was a huge success for Sony and many games are still fresh in gamers’ memories. The quality of many PlayStation emulators ..
3. SEGA Genesis and Mega Drive: MD.emu
The SEGA Genesis was a major challenger to Nintendo and PlayStation in the late 1980s and early 1990s. MD.emu can play games from both the Genesis and Mega Drive consoles, and it includes the basic features you expect from an emulator.
For the real one that hard fans it is also interesting to know that the more exotic controllers are also supported. Think of the gun controllers for the games Menacer and Justifier. MD.emu’s code has been made open-source.
- Stars in the Play Store: 4.1
MD emu
MD emu
The SEGA Genesis was a major challenger to Nintendo and PlayStation in the late 1980s. MD.emu can play games from the Genesis and Mega Drive Consoles. For the real & ..
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4. Nintendo DS: DraStic DS Emulator
DraStic is the best Nintendo DS emulators as it performs stably for just about all the games you play on it. You set the buttons as desired, graphics are improved in the app. You can even increase the resolution of games. There is also a handy integration with cloud services and you can enter cheat codes in DraStic DS Emulator. This app has not received any updates for a long time, but thankfully it is now being updated again.
- Stars in the Play Store: 4.5
Dramatic DS Emulator
Dramatic DS Emulator
DraStic is the best Nintendo DS emulators as it performs stably for just about all the games you play on it. You set the buttons as desired, graphics are ..
5. PSP and PS Vita: PPSSPP – PSP emulator
You can play your PlayStation Portable (PSP) and PS Vita handheld games through the PPSSPP emulator. The app is immensely popular with over 100 million downloads on the Google Play Store. That’s simply because PPSSPP is incredibly stable, and many of the app’s competitors use PPSSPP’s open-source code.
Because the PSP and PS Vita are slightly more powerful, the performance of some games does depend on the chipset and working memory of your phone.
- Stars in the Play Store: 4.4
PPSSPP – PSP emulator
PPSSPP – PSP emulator
You can play your PlayStation Portable (PSP) and PS Vita handheld games through the PPSSPP emulator. The app is immensely popular with over 100 million downloads in ..
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6. Other Systems: RetroArch
There are so many consoles and handhelds that it’s impossible to name an emulator for every system. The developers of RetroArch bundle numerous emulators into their app. You can install it as a kind of add-on.
RetroArch not only supports emulators for the above platforms, but also includes: the Nintendo Wii, (S)NES, GameCube, Commodore 64, Atari consoles and the Saturn. the only downside is that performance can sometimes vary so it’s sometimes a matter of testing before you’re sure a game will work properly.
- Stars in the Play Store: 4.0
RetroArch
RetroArch
There are so many consoles and handhelds that it’s impossible to name an emulator for every system. The developers of RetroArch are trying to make numerous emulators ..
Which of the above emulators have you already tested? Maybe you have experience with other apps that you can recommend? Or maybe you don’t like emulation at all, but maybe you’re waiting for re-releases of old games? Let us know in the comments.
