Box86 lets you run x86 Linux programs (such as games) on non-x86 Linux systems, like ARM (the host system needs to be 32bit little-endian). Because box86 uses the native versions of some “system” libraries, like libc, libm, SDL, and OpenGL, it’s easy to integrate and use with most applications, and performance can be surprisingly high in some cases. Many games already work without much tweaking, for example: WorldOfGoo, Airline Tycoon Deluxe, and FTL. Many of the GameMaker Linux games also run fine. (There’s a long list, among them are Undertale, A Risk of Rain, or Cook Serve Delicious.) Box64 is the 64bits version of Box86. It is used to run x86_64 binaries on ARM64 (i.e. aarch64) Linux. There are some YouTube channels where you can see box86 and box64 in action: MicroLinux, PILabs, and The Byteman at least.
Features
- There are a few environment variables to control the behaviour of Box64
- Box64's Dynarec uses a mechanism with Memory Protection and a SegFault signal handler to handle JIT code
- GTK libraries are now wrapped on box64, bu only gtk2, not gtk3 (contrary to box86)
- Wine64 is supported on box64
- Box64 wraps Vulkan libraries
- Box64 lets you run x86_64 Linux programs