Since I got my Steam Deck, I've been wanting it to be a one-stop emulation shop, but I've also been waiting things out to let the emulation environment for it mature a bit. The first one-stop-shop...
Since I got my Steam Deck, I've been wanting it to be a one-stop emulation shop, but I've also been waiting things out to let the emulation environment for it mature a bit.
The first one-stop-shop on the scene was EmuDeck. It's a script that installs all the emulators and configures them -- almost like Ninite for gaming.
Slower out of the gate was RetroDECK, but it's one I've kept my eye on for a while now. Instead of installing emulators separately, it instead attempts to pull all the emulators under one roof in a single flatpak.
One thing I didn't like about EmuDeck was that it felt messy. It was just a setup script, so after that initial setup was done, individual emulators updated themselves and could sort of go their own way. You could read lots of horror stories of people online trying to "undo" changes made by EmuDeck and have it not go cleanly. I never tried it myself, but I did manually install some standalone emulators and even those were a bit much to keep up with. DuckStation and PCSX2 both broke for me after updates, for example.
RetroDECK tries to avoid this by having all of the emulators be in-house in their own flatpak. They only update when RetroDECK updates. Also, because they're all together, RetroDECK can act as a universal umbrella across all of them.
RetroDECK's special sauce is that it not only can configure controllers for each system for you, but that it also has its own layer above that of hotkeys that also work across emulators. For example, R4/L4 + R1 is RetroDECK's hotkey for creating a save state, and it works in every emulator. They also have a radial menu on the left thumbpad that pulls up commonly used functions (exiting the emulator, taking a screenshot, etc.) and it, too, works in every emulator.
I set up and tested twelve different consoles today (for the curious: NES, SNES, N64, GC, DS, PS1, PS2, PSP, GEN, SAT, DC, Xbox), and eleven just worked out of the box with no tweaking required (only one that didn't was the Xbox). I was beyond impressed.
It is still in beta and there are still some issues (some systems crash for me on exit so I have to force Steam to close them when that happens), but overall I'm thrilled with my setup. I've had dreams of holding the history of gaming in my hands, and it's finally happening. I can now start getting around to all of those great recommendations...
Hi neighbor! I as well started off using EmuDeck, and am facing the same problems as you have detailed. How complicated is it to switch from an established setup with EmuDeck / Emulation Station...
Hi neighbor! I as well started off using EmuDeck, and am facing the same problems as you have detailed. How complicated is it to switch from an established setup with EmuDeck / Emulation Station to the more inclusive RetroDeck approach? Is there a whole lot of uninstalling/reinstalling involved? Will it affect my already-imported PS2/etc games in steam?
I haven't personally done it myself, but I'm pretty sure you can keep your EmuDeck setup and try out RetroDECK with no issues. RetroDECK's FAQ supports this, and as the program is its own...
I haven't personally done it myself, but I'm pretty sure you can keep your EmuDeck setup and try out RetroDECK with no issues. RetroDECK's FAQ supports this, and as the program is its own containerized flatpak, everything in there should effectively be instanced from the other emulators you have installed. It might be worth giving it an install, copying over your BIOSes and ROMs to the right folders for RetroDECK, and seeing how it works before undoing your EmuDeck setup.
If it's important for you to have individual games in Steam instead of just launching the whole thing altogether, then EmuDeck is the better setup right now. That's not currently possible in RetroDECK, though that could change in the future.
What issues are you having? I have EmuDeck running flawlessly on my Steam Deck since I got it with hundreds of games across tons of systems, including Switch.
What issues are you having? I have EmuDeck running flawlessly on my Steam Deck since I got it with hundreds of games across tons of systems, including Switch.
None really, but as I get older I am increasingly a fan of simplification whenever possible. The less effort I have to put into ongoing maintenance, the better for me. I've already since installed...
None really, but as I get older I am increasingly a fan of simplification whenever possible. The less effort I have to put into ongoing maintenance, the better for me.
I've already since installed RetroDeck and so far I'm very happy. It works well alongside all the ones EmuDeck previously installed, and can even be directed to use the same ROM and BIOS paths.
I’m an old man (39 haha), but I do agree, EmuDeck can be a bit much for some folks. I work in robotics and automation and run Linux clusters so for me, the tinkering is something I super enjoy. 1...
I’m an old man (39 haha), but I do agree, EmuDeck can be a bit much for some folks. I work in robotics and automation and run Linux clusters so for me, the tinkering is something I super enjoy.
1 click things though absolutely have a place and are great to see on the market. I really enjoy the ability to have options.
I also couldn't be happier, I don't much play console games so I've never bothered with emulators but having just had a chat with someone about childhood games, this made me look up if I could...
I also couldn't be happier, I don't much play console games so I've never bothered with emulators but having just had a chat with someone about childhood games, this made me look up if I could play old C64 games on my deck... I won't have time to try this for a couple days but GOD I hope I'm not too old to figure this shit out because there are about a bazillion games I REALLY want to play again asap! Thank you for this post!
You’re welcome. I’m excited for you! If there’s anything you can’t figure out, post about it and I (or someone else) will help you out as best as I (or they) can.
You’re welcome. I’m excited for you!
If there’s anything you can’t figure out, post about it and I (or someone else) will help you out as best as I (or they) can.
Thanks for sharing! Definitely something I’m going to try out. I got a Deck about a month ago and I was super excited about how turnkey so many things looked. I’ve been a software developer for...
Thanks for sharing! Definitely something I’m going to try out.
I got a Deck about a month ago and I was super excited about how turnkey so many things looked. I’ve been a software developer for almost 20 years so super comfortable with Linux (Arch Linux btw) but the last thing I want to do with a handheld is get weird in a shell.
I don’t want to maintain a lot and I don’t want to learn the ins and outs of emulation for multiple platforms (BIOS files, etc.).
EmuDeck was nice. I was up and running with basic stuff quickly but soon after had to download this or configure that and…what am I doing. It’s a handheld gaming console. I just want to have fun and system/platform stuff is too close to work.
All said, massive props to anyone contributing to any of these projects. I am not, I’m a total leech. It is easy for me to be critical and I appreciate all the work from the emulation folks up to the folks creating scripts and bundles that make things easier.
I’ve been waiting for Retro deck to get to a more stable point. It’s great to see this project moving forward. I’m currently using EmuDeck since I didn’t feel like waiting but I do agree with the...
I’ve been waiting for Retro deck to get to a more stable point. It’s great to see this project moving forward. I’m currently using EmuDeck since I didn’t feel like waiting but I do agree with the solution feeling messy; specially for users not familiar with Linux.
I do want to point out that EmuDeck has made substantial progress from their early “script” days to a more polished installer. While it’s still a script under the hood, the installer is a lot more clear as to what each choice offers. I’d say their advantage is allowing for more granularity as some users prefer to add their favorite games to the Home Screen (i.e., launch prime hack without there need to open ES). The drawback is having to deal with tools like steam rom manager.
I’ve been using EmuDeck exclusively and haven’t spent too much time playing but can’t recall anything breaking for me. I’m not running modern consoles so that could be why.
Still, I do prefer the solution from this project and will certainly switch but I'll have to wait for an update or two. Maybe the Linux cemu build will be on par with the windows build by then unless that's already the case.
Since I got my Steam Deck, I've been wanting it to be a one-stop emulation shop, but I've also been waiting things out to let the emulation environment for it mature a bit.
The first one-stop-shop on the scene was EmuDeck. It's a script that installs all the emulators and configures them -- almost like Ninite for gaming.
Slower out of the gate was RetroDECK, but it's one I've kept my eye on for a while now. Instead of installing emulators separately, it instead attempts to pull all the emulators under one roof in a single flatpak.
One thing I didn't like about EmuDeck was that it felt messy. It was just a setup script, so after that initial setup was done, individual emulators updated themselves and could sort of go their own way. You could read lots of horror stories of people online trying to "undo" changes made by EmuDeck and have it not go cleanly. I never tried it myself, but I did manually install some standalone emulators and even those were a bit much to keep up with. DuckStation and PCSX2 both broke for me after updates, for example.
RetroDECK tries to avoid this by having all of the emulators be in-house in their own flatpak. They only update when RetroDECK updates. Also, because they're all together, RetroDECK can act as a universal umbrella across all of them.
The most recent update for RetroDECK made that project sound like it was finally ready for me to give it a go, and so I dove in.
And I couldn't be happier.
RetroDECK's special sauce is that it not only can configure controllers for each system for you, but that it also has its own layer above that of hotkeys that also work across emulators. For example, R4/L4 + R1 is RetroDECK's hotkey for creating a save state, and it works in every emulator. They also have a radial menu on the left thumbpad that pulls up commonly used functions (exiting the emulator, taking a screenshot, etc.) and it, too, works in every emulator.
I set up and tested twelve different consoles today (for the curious: NES, SNES, N64, GC, DS, PS1, PS2, PSP, GEN, SAT, DC, Xbox), and eleven just worked out of the box with no tweaking required (only one that didn't was the Xbox). I was beyond impressed.
It is still in beta and there are still some issues (some systems crash for me on exit so I have to force Steam to close them when that happens), but overall I'm thrilled with my setup. I've had dreams of holding the history of gaming in my hands, and it's finally happening. I can now start getting around to all of those great recommendations...
Hi neighbor! I as well started off using EmuDeck, and am facing the same problems as you have detailed. How complicated is it to switch from an established setup with EmuDeck / Emulation Station to the more inclusive RetroDeck approach? Is there a whole lot of uninstalling/reinstalling involved? Will it affect my already-imported PS2/etc games in steam?
I haven't personally done it myself, but I'm pretty sure you can keep your EmuDeck setup and try out RetroDECK with no issues. RetroDECK's FAQ supports this, and as the program is its own containerized flatpak, everything in there should effectively be instanced from the other emulators you have installed. It might be worth giving it an install, copying over your BIOSes and ROMs to the right folders for RetroDECK, and seeing how it works before undoing your EmuDeck setup.
If it's important for you to have individual games in Steam instead of just launching the whole thing altogether, then EmuDeck is the better setup right now. That's not currently possible in RetroDECK, though that could change in the future.
Thanks for the suggestions. I may try this out tonight.
What issues are you having? I have EmuDeck running flawlessly on my Steam Deck since I got it with hundreds of games across tons of systems, including Switch.
None really, but as I get older I am increasingly a fan of simplification whenever possible. The less effort I have to put into ongoing maintenance, the better for me.
I've already since installed RetroDeck and so far I'm very happy. It works well alongside all the ones EmuDeck previously installed, and can even be directed to use the same ROM and BIOS paths.
I’m an old man (39 haha), but I do agree, EmuDeck can be a bit much for some folks. I work in robotics and automation and run Linux clusters so for me, the tinkering is something I super enjoy.
1 click things though absolutely have a place and are great to see on the market. I really enjoy the ability to have options.
I also couldn't be happier, I don't much play console games so I've never bothered with emulators but having just had a chat with someone about childhood games, this made me look up if I could play old C64 games on my deck... I won't have time to try this for a couple days but GOD I hope I'm not too old to figure this shit out because there are about a bazillion games I REALLY want to play again asap! Thank you for this post!
You’re welcome. I’m excited for you!
If there’s anything you can’t figure out, post about it and I (or someone else) will help you out as best as I (or they) can.
Thanks for sharing! Definitely something I’m going to try out.
I got a Deck about a month ago and I was super excited about how turnkey so many things looked. I’ve been a software developer for almost 20 years so super comfortable with Linux (Arch Linux btw) but the last thing I want to do with a handheld is get weird in a shell.
I don’t want to maintain a lot and I don’t want to learn the ins and outs of emulation for multiple platforms (BIOS files, etc.).
EmuDeck was nice. I was up and running with basic stuff quickly but soon after had to download this or configure that and…what am I doing. It’s a handheld gaming console. I just want to have fun and system/platform stuff is too close to work.
All said, massive props to anyone contributing to any of these projects. I am not, I’m a total leech. It is easy for me to be critical and I appreciate all the work from the emulation folks up to the folks creating scripts and bundles that make things easier.
I’ve been waiting for Retro deck to get to a more stable point. It’s great to see this project moving forward. I’m currently using EmuDeck since I didn’t feel like waiting but I do agree with the solution feeling messy; specially for users not familiar with Linux.
I do want to point out that EmuDeck has made substantial progress from their early “script” days to a more polished installer. While it’s still a script under the hood, the installer is a lot more clear as to what each choice offers. I’d say their advantage is allowing for more granularity as some users prefer to add their favorite games to the Home Screen (i.e., launch prime hack without there need to open ES). The drawback is having to deal with tools like steam rom manager.
I’ve been using EmuDeck exclusively and haven’t spent too much time playing but can’t recall anything breaking for me. I’m not running modern consoles so that could be why.
Still, I do prefer the solution from this project and will certainly switch but I'll have to wait for an update or two. Maybe the Linux cemu build will be on par with the windows build by then unless that's already the case.