Open Source Emulators
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Browse free open source Emulators and projects below. Use the toggles on the left to filter open source Emulators by OS, license, language, programming language, and project status.
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NetherSX2 Classic
Continuation of NetherSX2 based on AetherSX2 3668
NetherSX2-classic is a companion and variant of NetherSX2 that targets a specific older base version of the AetherSX2 emulator (based on the 3668 branch), applying similar custom patches to provide a stable and performant PS2 emulation environment on Android devices. The project stitches in anti-tampering modifications, RetroAchievements notification fixes, and controller and GameDB updates while maintaining the legacy behavior of the classic build for compatibility with titles that might perform better on the older codebase. Because this classic branch starts from a slightly different upstream version than NetherSX2-patch, users often choose it for performance reasons on lower-power devices or for games with known regressions in newer builds. As with the patch variant, the repository includes configuration changes, fixes for widescreen and deinterlacing behavior, and updated game and controller support developed by the community. -
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GNS3
An advanced network simulator to design and configure virtual networks
Build, Design and Test your network in a risk-free virtual environment and access the largest networking community to help. Whether you are studying for your first networking exam or building out a state-wide telecommunications network, GNS3 offers an easy way to design and build networks of any size without the need for hardware. -
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PrimeOS, the ideal Android based OS for mobile games on PC/Laptop.
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VICE
Versatile Commodore Emulator
VICE is an emulator collection which emulates the C64, the C64-DTV, the C128, the VIC20, practically all PET models, the PLUS4 and the CBM-II (aka C610). It runs on Unix, MS-DOS, Win32, OS/2, Acorn RISC OS, BeOS, QNX 6.x, Amiga, GP2X or Mac OS X machines. -
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Null-modem emulator
The virtual serial port driver for Windows.
The Null-modem emulator (com0com) is a kernel-mode virtual serial port driver for Windows. You can create an unlimited number of virtual COM port pairs and use any pair to connect one COM port based application to another. The HUB for communications (hub4com) allows to receive data and signals from one COM or TCP port, modify and send it to a number of other COM or TCP ports and vice versa. -
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Winlator
Android application for running Windows applications with Wine
A software that enables users to run Windows applications on Android devices, providing an emulation layer that supports various Windows applications and games. -
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DeSmuME
DeSmuME is a Nintendo DS emulator
DeSmuME is the most seasoned open source Nintendo DS emulator. It sports tools designed for hackers, speedrunners, youtubers, and casual gamers. Homebrew programs are supported and can even be debugged through GDB. The Windows and OSX versions are both relatively feature rich, and there is a small universe of forks and mods that add even more features for casual gaming. DeSmuME is the origin of RetroArch and OpenEmu Nintendo DS support and is used by several mobile Nintendo DS emulators, with the notable exception of DraStic. DeSmuME's source code is now hosted at https://github.com/TASVideos/desmume/ win32 autobuilds @ https://ci.appveyor.com/project/zeromus/desmume/build/artifacts -
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shadPS4
PS4 emulator for Windows,Linux,MacOS
shadPS4 is an early PlayStation 4 emulator for Windows, Linux, and macOS written in C++. If you encounter problems or have doubts, do not hesitate to look at the Quickstart. To verify that a game works, you can look at shadPS4 Game Compatibility. To discuss shadPS4 development or suggest ideas, join the Discord server. To get the latest news, go to our X (twitter) or our website. -
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Citra
A Nintendo 3DS Emulator
Citra is an experimental open-source Nintendo 3DS emulator/debugger written in C++. It is written with portability in mind, with builds actively maintained for Windows, Linux and macOS. Citra emulates a subset of 3DS hardware and therefore is useful for running/debugging homebrew applications, and it is also able to run many commercial games! Some of these do not run at a playable state, but we are working every day to advance the project forward. (Playable here means compatibility of at least "Okay" on our game compatibility list.) Citra is licensed under the GPLv2 (or any later version). Refer to the license.txt file included. Please read the FAQ before getting started with the project. If you want to contribute please take a look at the Contributor's Guide and Developer Information. You should also contact any of the developers in the forum in order to know about the current state of the emulator because the TODO list isn't maintained anymore. -
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A portable and cycle-accurate NES/Famicom emulator written in C++
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The Free Unix Spectrum Emulator (Fuse): an emulator of the 1980s home computer and various clones for Unix, Mac OS X and Windows.
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Wine
Run Windows applications on Linux, BSD, Solaris, and Mac OS X
Wine is an Open Source implementation of the Windows API on top of X and Unix. Wine provides both a development toolkit for porting Windows sources to Unix and a program loader, allowing many unmodified Windows binaries to run on x86-based Unixes. -
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Bochs is a portable x86 PC emulation software package that emulates enough of the x86 CPU, related AT hardware, and BIOS to run Windows, Linux, *BSD, Minix, and other OS's, all on your workstation.
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NetherSX2
Continuation of NetherSX2 based on AetherSX2 4248
NetherSX2-patch is a community-driven continuation and enhancement of the NetherSX2 Android PlayStation 2 emulator, itself a modded fork of the open-source AetherSX2 project originally based on PCSX2. It focuses on providing a more complete and feature-rich experience by applying patches to the upstream emulator build and removing ad-related bloat, fixing notification issues, and exposing many internal settings so users have finer control over performance and compatibility on mobile devices. The project maintains an up-to-date GameDB (game compatibility database), improves controller support, and includes widescreen and no-interlace patches that make many games look and run better on modern screens. Developers also include additional fixes specific to AetherSX2 and NetherSX2 builds, along with tools to resign APKs to avoid Play Protect warnings, which makes installation smoother on Android hardware. -
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Limbo PC Emulator
PC Emulation for Android
2024-11-08 This project is abandoned. It's kept up for archival reasons, as part of a passion to keep software available. From the looks of things, the original developer has resumed work on it, we strongly suggest visiting the GitHub page for it --- Limbo PC Emulator is a QEMU-based emulator, enabling users to run various operating systems on their devices. Copyright (c)2012 Max Kastanas, reuploaded for archival once Google Code went offline. -
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Locale Emulator
Yet another system region and language simulator
Locale Emulator is a tool similar to AppLocale and NTLEA, providing a simulation function that can make an application recognize your OS as in a language other than the real one. It is quite useful when you are trying to play country-specific games. Locale Emulator is compatible with the following systems, both 32 and 64-bit, Windows 7 with Service Pack 1, Windows 8.1, and Windows 10. Locale Emulator supports 32-bit executables running on both 32-bit or 64-bit systems. For example, if you are using 64-bit WinRAR, you will not see the context menu on a RAR file unless you swapped 64-bit WinRAR with the 32-bit version. Clone the repo using Git, install Microsoft Visual Studio 2015 / 2017, open LocaleEmulator.sln, perform build action, clone and build the core libraries, and copy LoaderDll.dll and LocaleEmulator.dll from Locale-Emulator-Core to Locale-Emulator build folder. -
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D-Fend Reloaded
A graphical environment for DOSBox
D-Fend Reloaded is a graphical environment for DOSBox. D-Fend Reloaded is a successor of the discontinued D-Fend. Both environments look alike and D-Fend Reloaded contains all features of D-Fend. Even the D-Fend config files can be used. -
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box64
Linux Userspace x86_64 Emulator with a twist, targeted at ARM64 Linux
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. -
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PPSSPP
A cross-platform PSP emulator
PPSSPP is an open source, cross-platform PSP emulator which allows you to play your PSP games on Android, Windows, Mac or Linux. With PPSSPP you can play your PSP games on your PC in full HD resolution, or play on your tablet for a big-screen mobile gaming experience. PPSSPP enhances the gaming experience in more ways than one. It even upscales some textures that would otherwise be too blurry due to the fact that they were originally made for the small screen. Even on modern Android phones and tablets you can enjoy double the original resolution. Get a whole new and better PSP gaming experience with PPSSPP now! -
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GoldHEN - PS4 Homebrew Enabler
PS4 Homebrew Enabler
GoldHEN is a homebrew enabler and payload designed for PlayStation 4 systems that enables the execution of unsigned code, modifications, and custom applications by leveraging kernel-level access. It functions as an enhancement layer built on top of exploited firmware environments, allowing users to unlock additional capabilities beyond what is normally permitted by the console. The project provides a wide range of system-level features, including debugging tools, cheat engines, and plugin support, making it popular within the console modification community. It integrates closely with the PS4 operating system to provide seamless functionality while maintaining system stability. GoldHEN also supports features such as FTP access and file system browsing, enabling users to manage internal data and install custom content. Its modular design allows developers to extend its capabilities through plugins and updates. -
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Xenia Canary
Xbox 360 Emulator Research Project
Xenia Canary is an experimental fork of the Xenia Xbox 360 emulator that moves faster than the mainline project to trial bleeding-edge improvements. It focuses on game compatibility and performance by iterating quickly on GPU and CPU emulation paths, shader translation, and timing correctness. Canary builds are where risky optimizations, new backends, and rewrites land first so they can be tested by a wider community before stabilizing. The project emphasizes pragmatism: make more titles boot and run with fewer glitches, even if it means carrying experiments that later get refined or rolled back. It also prioritizes developer ergonomics with logging options, debug overlays, and issue templates that help narrow down regressions. While aimed at enthusiasts and testers, it remains a valuable way for end users to play otherwise inaccessible 360 titles on PC when the mainline is lagging behind those fixes. -
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ZSNES is a SNES/Super Famicom emulator for x86 computers. It runs on Windows, MS-DOS and Linux/FreeBSD and supports mode 7, sound, Super FX, and a lot more.
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RPCS3
PlayStation 3 emulator and debugger
RPCS3 is an open-source PlayStation 3 emulator and debugger, allowing users to run PS3 games and software on Windows, Linux, and macOS platforms. It aims to preserve the legacy of the PlayStation 3 by enabling gameplay and software testing beyond the original hardware's lifespan. The project has made significant progress in compatibility and performance, supporting a wide range of PS3 titles. -
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ipasim
iOS emulator for Windows
ipasim (IPA Simulator) is a Windows-based iOS simulator designed to run IPA files directly on Windows without an actual iOS device. It helps developers and testers run iOS apps in a simulated environment. -
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VirtualBox
Virtualization software for x86_64 hardware
VirtualBox is a powerful open-source full virtualization software that allows a user to run one or more “guest” operating systems simultaneously inside “virtual machines” on a single physical “host” machine. It supports a wide variety of host platforms (Linux, Windows, macOS, Solaris, etc.) and guest OSes, enabling, for example, running Linux on a Windows PC, running Windows Server on a Linux host, or even legacy OSes in a controlled environment. This flexibility makes VirtualBox ideal for developers, testers, sysadmins, or hobbyists who need different OS environments, want to test software across systems, or need isolation for development, sandboxing, or security experiments. VirtualBox offers both a user-friendly GUI as well as a command-line interface and headless mode, making it useful for desktop usage as well as server or automated environments.
