Whether you’re looking to play your favorite retro game on your Android phone, tablet, or computer, it’s a great opportunity to enter the world of emulation. But did you know that thanks to Linux and the Play Store, you can actually use your Chromebook to emulate games?
For years, the best Chromebooks weren’t the best options for those who wanted to play games. But as hardware continues to improve, so too does the trend to support gaming features on ChromeOS. Besides being able to download the best Android games from the Play Store, Google also offers the ability to play Steam games on certain Chromebooks.
1. so.emu
NES.Emu can look like a pretty bare-bones app after installation. But that’s really true for many of the best emulators. Unlike many other options on this list, you’ll have to pay a few bucks, but it’s well worth the investment.In addition to supporting NES emulation, NES.Emu also supports NES emulation, though , which is not often seen.
If you own a ChromeOS tablet such as the Lenovo Duet 3 or HP Chromebook x11, you can configure on-screen touch controls. But many of the best controllers for Chromebooks are also supported, including Bluetooth or USB options like the 8Bitdo SN30 Pro.
2. Drastic DS Emulator
DraStic DS is one emulator that has been around for years and was so good when it was released that it still sticks. This is still going on. Thanks to the Play Store, you can download DraStic directly to your Chromebook. You may need to play around with different layouts and configuration options to make it look nice. But once it’s running, you can boot into your favorite DS ROM and start playing.
Another great advantage of DraStic (and many of the other best emulators) is the ability to save progress. Basically, you can create a “save state” to exit the game and return to it quickly when you have time. DraStic also includes support for a variety of USB and Bluetooth controllers, and even has options to enhance your games’ graphics and look great on your Chromebook.
3. Dolphin Emulator
As you can see from this summary alone, there are many different ways to emulate games from so many different retro consoles. But once you start moving to the N64, Gamecube and Wii, your options become a little less. We’ll get to picking the best N64 emulators a bit later, but Dolphin Emulator rounds out the top three overall.
Not only can Dolphin emulate your favorite GameCube and Wii games, but your apps are available everywhere. Regularly updated for all major platforms, you can download a version from the Play Store or install it as a Linux app. After installing Dolphin, get ready to play around with the settings and find the game you want to play first.
4. Pizza Boy GBC / GBA
The problem with some older emulators on the Play Store is that they are not fully optimized. Performance needs to be manually tweaked for the best possible experience. But with the Pizza Boy GBA and GBC, it doesn’t matter. These emulators promise 60fps playback “even on older hardware” and are his two mainstays of the device for Gameboy emulation.
Other features include state saving and restoring support, full layout and interface customization, and controller support. But Pizza Boy goes a step further with its support for ‘shaders’, and with the right shader files you can make your classic game look even better.
5. M64Plus FZ / FZ Pro
The Nintendo 64 was one of the most difficult consoles to emulate. Then came the M64Plus FZ and everything changed forever. This emulator is one of the best in the industry and he is actually available in two different versions. The standard version includes almost all the same features, but if you choose the M64Plus FZ Pro you can also use Netplay his server for multiplayer games.
Please note that not all N64 ROMs can be played as some N64 ROMs are too complex to work properly. But the app is constantly being updated with new features and support for more games, so if you run into any issues, you don’t have to wait long.
6.PPSSPP
If you’re looking for the best open source PSP emulator, look no further than PPSSPP. In addition to being able to play many of the greatest PSP games of all time, PPSSPP offers upscaling so you can enjoy these classic games in HD resolution. Games look much better than if you tried to use an older, unsupported emulator.
PPSSPP also provides the ability to transfer saved states directly from the PSP so you can pick up where you left off. As expected, the emulator supports many of the best USB and Bluetooth controllers, along with the ability to customize on-screen controls. Or you can just use your Chromebook’s mouse and keyboard and not worry about pairing controllers or remapping buttons.
7. Eclipse
What if you have a Chromebook that is locked down by your school or company and you can’t install anything on it? How do you get yourself hooked on your next trip? Eclipse is here to solve this problem because it’s the best emulator for Chromebooks that works right in your browser.
That is correct. You don’t need to install anything to get Eclipse up and running. Go to the website, make all necessary settings, then load the ROM file. Eclipse supports NES, SNES, GameBoy, GameBoy Color, GameBoy Advance, Sega Master System, and Game Gear. Oh, and the best part is that this also works with Chrome on the best Android phones and tablets.
8. Retro Arch
There are quite a few emulators on the Play Store that you can also download and install as Linux apps on your Chromebook. But if there’s one emulator you can recognize, it’s probably RetroArch. It is one of the most reliable options and offers an all-in-one approach. RetroArch relies on different “cores” to provide emulations for the different ROMs and games you’re trying to play.
There are apps you can download to your Chromebook from the Play Store, but RetroArch has another trick. A new web client is now available that lets you switch between different emulators and play directly from your Chrome browser. This is another great example of the fact that RetroArch is still in active development and he will be one of the best emulators for years to come.
9. Aether SX2
When it comes to complex consoles to emulate, the PS2 has been the most frustrating console to find a suitable emulator for. At the end of 2021, AetherSX2 came out of nowhere and, quite frankly, gave users an experience they never thought would actually happen. One of the reasons PS2 emulation is so difficult is that the game and platform itself are much more powerful and complex than gamers and developers expected.
Unfortunately, there’s a good reason the AetherSX2 isn’t high on this list. This is due to the fact that AetherSX2 is no longer in active development following regular “complaints, demands, and death threats” since its release. However, as an act of goodwill, you can still download the last official release of this PS2 emulator from his AetherSX2 archive.
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For many of us, playing games on the NES is a nostalgic memory that helped spark our love of gaming all at once.this is partly why NES.emu It’s at the top of our list because you can play almost all of your favorite classic games on the platform right from your Chromebook.
It’s no secret that some of the best games we’ve ever seen have been released on the Nintendo DS and 3DS. Drastic DS It continues to be considered the best emulator for these games and works fine on many of the best Chromebooks.
Rounding out our top three best emulators for Chromebooks is a one-size-fits-all approach. DolphinInstead of focusing solely on a single platform or console, Lemuroid allows you to emulate games from many of the best consoles released over the years.
