Someday the last NES or SEGA or Playstation will stop working but thanks to digital game preservation we will be able to enjoy these games for generations. This has taken various forms in the past, most notably the Wii’s Virtual Console, followed up by the 3DS and WiiU’s Virtual Console, as well as re-releases in various compilations and collections.
This is by far the easiest way to enjoy classic titles but comes with its own caveats. One, it depends on publishers to put their classic games on the service or as part of a collection disc or digital download. Two, eventually these services shut down (as the virtual console has on all three consoles) and if your console stops working you can no longer obtain them. Three, you have to repurchase games you may already own to have them available on more modern platforms.
So if you want to take charge and make sure your games are preserved and playable for generations to come? Emulation is your answer. Emulation doesn’t have to be something where you need a computer science degree to configure emulator settings and have to go to shady sites to download games and risk possibly getting a virus or even a copyright violation from your ISP. Don’t go looking on those shady ROM sites! (Or do, It’s not like I will ever know) Instead dump your personal copies in your game collection and make your backups yourself using software or hardware solutions. It’s actually legal and much more secure this way.
“Stop right there, criminal scum!” - Nintendo probably
You can get started with your own PC. Almost any PC these days can emulate up to the PS2/Gamecube era. Now choose your emulators. You can either download individual emulators for each system or you can download RetroArch. RetroArch is a program that can load almost any type of classic game and launch the appropriate emulator (known as cores in RetroArch) all from a single customizable interface. RetroArch can even be installed directly through Steam. By default it uses the XMB interface used by the PS3 but its look can be customized however you want. Of course an emulator, much like the consoles they are emulating, are useless without games. You’ll need a backup file of the game you want to play. Depending on the system, this could be a .NES, a .GB, an .ISO, .BIN/.CUE file or one of the various other file types. Typically these are called ROMs and for simplicity I will refer to them as such.
Playstation is the easiest platform to start with. PS1 and PS2 games are the easiest to backup. They can be dumped directly from your PC using Media Preservation Frontend. You can use the Duckstation (PS1) and PCSX2 (PS2) standalone emulators or RetroArch cores to play these games.
Cartridge based systems like the SNES, Genesis, or Gameboy; up to the N64 and Gameboy Advance can be backed up with a device like the Retrode 2 or Sanni Cart Reader.
The Retrode connects to your PC using a USB cable and can be used to copy the ROM and/or the save data (on supported systems) from your cartridges and can even be used to upload your save from your emulator back onto the physical cartridge. Take care, however, as uploading incorrectly formatted saves could destroy the save data on the cartridge and leave you starting the game from the very beginning. The Retrode 2 can dump games from the SNES and Genesis and, via adapters, can also read Gameboy and N64 games as well.
The Sanni Cart Reader is an open source platform made with off the shelf components but has to be assembled manually. There are preassembled versions available on Etsy or Ebay but they are a bit more pricey than the Retrode. On the other hand the Sanni can also dump many more systems the Retrode can’t including NES, Master System, WonderSwan, and TurboGrafix-16 carts. The Sanni is its own self contained device that dumps ROMs to a microSD card. Either way you won’t be disappointed. I like the Retrode for its simplicity, but do wish that I had the Sanni for its extra compatibility.
The systems from here on out are going to require homebrew to dump games. The easiest way to dump GameCube and Wii games is to use CleanRip installed on a homebrewed Wii. Follow this link for a guide on installing homebrew on a Wii. These games can be played on the Dolphin emulator or RetroArch core.
Nintendo DS games and 3DS games can be dumped using “godmode9” on a hacked 3DS. Don’t be intimidated by the words custom firmware or hacked. It’s really a quite simple process as outlined in this guide. DeSmuME (DS) and Citra (3DS) standalone emulators are my recommendation for these consoles, but they have RetroArch cores as well. Some users report the performance isn’t quite as good with RetroArch on these emulators as they are on the standalone versions which is the reason for my preference.
WiiU games can be dumped using homebrew such as Dumpling or Disc2App and WUP Installer GX2. Check out this tutorial on how to install custom firmware on the WiiU. WiiU requires a bit more beef than the other systems but can be played on PC using the Cemu emulator.
Finally other systems such as the Switch, original Xbox, Xbox 360, PS3, PS4 and Xbox One can be dumped but they require systems with older firmware (such as the Switch v1) or require hardware mods (jtag on the Xbox 360). It’s definitely possible but it’s not somewhere that I have gone because I don’t have these systems nor do i have a computer that can emulate these most of these systems.
So now that you know what it takes to dump your games to ROMs and how to play them; the big question is what’s the payoff? Why should you go to the effort of dumping them? Well, number one is that ROMs are portable. You can store them on your computer or copy them to cloud storage such as Google Drive, Dropbox, or OneDrive and then play them on any device that has access to the cloud. You can copy them to external hard drives or flash carts and play them on the original hardware without having to swap out cartridges or discs. Or you can create an all-in-one emulation station to play all your favorite games on a single system instead of having to get behind the TV and swap video and power cables any time you want to play a new system. (Fun Fact: the WiiU can play games from every Nintendo system except for 3DS and Switch)
Copy your ROMs to your favorite cloud storage and access your games and saves on any device.
When you make your own ROM dumps, you can patch your games with ROM hacks and play new levels or have brand new experiences with your favorite classic games. You can play Pokemon on your phone. (Flagship Android phones can even emulate all the way up to the PS2 and Gamecube!). With a Raspberry Pi you can install RetroPi which uses the frontend EmulationStation to make your own mini-console like the SNES or Playstation Classic. Or you can use an Android TV box like the Nvidia Shield TV to enjoy cloud games, android games, streaming tv services, and emulators all from the same interface. One of my favorite features of this setup is RetroArch’s integration with RetroAchievements.org. A website that has added modern style achievements to our favorite classic games and ROM hacks giving trophy hunters a brand new way to experience their favorite classics.
Visit Retroachievements.org and start trophy hunting today!
Hopefully this post inspires you to start dabbling in creating backups of your own game collection. Whether you enjoy your games on original hardware, your PC, the Steam Deck, or your cell phone, having a digital copy of your physical collection puts you in control of your game library and gives you the ability to maximize the enjoyment you get from gaming.