The Best Nintendo DS Emulators for All Games
- The Nintendo DS, released in 2004, featured a unique foldable design with dual screens, including a touch screen with a stylus, and became one of the best-selling consoles of all time.
- Emulation allows software to mimic the hardware of other devices, making it possible to play classic Nintendo DS games on modern devices, although obtaining games legally is important.
- The best Nintendo DS emulators in 2024 include DeSmuME for desktops, DraStic for Android, Delta for iOS, and melonDS for its Wi-Fi multiplayer support, with RetroArch providing an all-in-one solution.
1. DeSmuME
Platforms: Windows, Mac, iPhone, Android
If you don’t mind the unusual name, DeSmuME might be the best DS emulator available. It is, by definition, the closest to perfection an emulator can achieve, as it can play nearly every DS game from start to finish without any issues. It’s also very easy to use and well-optimized, performing wonderfully on older PCs. DeSmuME is compatible with Windows, macOS, and Linux systems.
Aside from its near perfection, DeSmuME also has features to enhance your DS gaming experience, including graphics upscaling, speed hacks, save slots, a cheat code manager, screen recording, and screenshot capabilities. It’s open-source too. The only downside of DeSmuME would be its lack of Wi-Fi/multiplayer capabilities, which can be a drawback since some games require it to function.
2. DraStic DS Emulator
Platforms: Android
Our Android friends have nothing to worry about as we haven’t forgotten them. The DraStic DS Emulator is the best DS emulator available on the Google Play Store. Although it was a paid app upon its release over a decade ago, the developers, Exophase, made it a free app after Nintendo’s lawsuit against the developers of Yuzu, a Switch emulator.
DraStic is the best DS emulator as it is compatible with most Android phones and supports most DS games. It plays them effortlessly, even on five-year-old budget Android phones. Additionally, it offers many features like graphic filters, speed hacks, the ability to enter cheat codes, built-in cheats for popular games, and more.
3. Delta
Platforms: iPhone, iPad
Following the EU‘s decision to allow emulators on Apple‘s App Store, iPhone and, especially, iPad owners no longer have to resort to jailbreaking to install emulators on their devices. Recently, Delta, familiar to veteran jailbreakers, made its way onto the App Store. To run Delta, you’ll need to have at least iOS 14 on your device. Other than that, the emulation is not very resource-intensive, so it should be a breeze.
For those who don’t know, Delta is a well-known GBA emulator and, upon its official release on the App Store, has included support for Nintendo 64, Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES), and several other retro consoles. It is fully open-source and has a user-friendly interface, save state support, speed hacks, controller support, and more.
Unfortunately, online multiplayer is not supported, although local multiplayer on the same device is available.
4. melonDS
Platforms: Windows, Linux, macOS, Android (unofficial)
melonDS is a fairly recent project compared to the other emulators on this list. While it may lack the features found in DeSmuME and might not be as well-optimized, it’s still a solid emulator. Moreover, it supports Wi-Fi multiplayer. Yes, that’s right; melonDS might be the only emulator on this list to support online multiplayer.
melonDS is completely open-source and supports a wide variety of platforms: Windows, Linux, macOS, and even an unofficial Android port. Aside from Wi-Fi multiplayer, melonDS also supports multiple save states, speed hacks, cheats, and more. It may not offer the same level of performance as DeSmuME, but since it has Wi-Fi multiplayer, it’s definitely worth checking out.
5. RetroArch
Platforms: Everything (no joke)
RetroArch may be the most well-known emulator on this list, as it is one of the most widely recognized emulators available. The best part is that RetroArch itself isn’t even an emulator; it uses cores or engines from other emulators to provide an all-in-one emulator solution. Therefore, you may encounter several different cores for the same console. It is fully open-source too.
At any rate, RetroArch is a universal emulator available across all major platforms: Windows, Linux, macOS, iOS, Android. For the DS, it uses DeSmuME’s core, ensuring no problems in terms of performance. It also features speed hacks, cheats, save states, and controller support. The only downside is that RetroArch is quite user-unfriendly, and its interface leaves much to be desired.
Thanks to DS emulators, it’s safe to say that the legacy of the DS lives on and continues to be enjoyed by future generations. Now, excuse us as we fire up New Super Mario Bros on DeSmuME to relive the good old days.
