dolphin

Dolphin is a GameCube / Wii emulator, allowing you to play games for these two platforms on PC with improvements.

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pcsx2

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rpcs3

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PlayStation 3 emulator and debugger

Quick Overview

Dolphin is an open-source emulator for Nintendo GameCube and Wii games. It allows users to play these console games on PC with enhanced graphics and features. Dolphin is known for its high compatibility and performance.

Pros

High compatibility with a large library of GameCube and Wii games
Supports enhanced graphics, including higher resolutions and texture filtering
Active development with frequent updates and improvements
Cross-platform support (Windows, macOS, Linux, Android)

Cons

Requires a relatively powerful computer for optimal performance
Some games may have minor graphical glitches or compatibility issues
Legal gray area regarding the use of game ROMs
Can be complex to set up and configure for beginners

Getting Started

Download Dolphin from the official website: https://dolphin-emu.org/
Install Dolphin on your system
Obtain legal copies of GameCube or Wii games (ROMs)
Open Dolphin and configure your controls
Click "Open" and select your game file to start playing

Note: Ensure you have a legal right to the game ROMs you use with Dolphin. The emulator itself is legal, but downloading ROMs without owning the original game may not be.

Competitor Comparisons

pcsx2

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PCSX2 - The Playstation 2 Emulator

Pros of PCSX2

Supports a wider range of PlayStation 2 games
Generally better compatibility with PS2 hardware quirks
More advanced graphics plugins and rendering options

Cons of PCSX2

Slower emulation speed, especially on lower-end hardware
More complex setup process and configuration options
Less frequent updates and slower development cycle

Code Comparison

PCSX2 (C++):

void GSState::Flush(u32 frame)
{
    // ... (omitted for brevity)
    m_dev->Flush(m_context->FRAME.Block(), m_context->FRAME.PSM, m_context->ZBUF.Block(), m_context->ZBUF.PSM, m_vt.m_primclass);
    // ... (omitted for brevity)
}

Dolphin (C++):

void VideoCommon::Flush()
{
    // ... (omitted for brevity)
    g_vertex_manager->Flush();
    FramebufferManager::GetInstance()->Flush();
    // ... (omitted for brevity)
}

Both emulators use C++ and have similar flush mechanisms, but PCSX2's code tends to be more complex due to the intricacies of PS2 hardware emulation. Dolphin's code is generally more streamlined and optimized for performance.

rpcs3

17,242

PlayStation 3 emulator and debugger

Pros of RPCS3

More advanced graphics rendering, supporting modern APIs like Vulkan
Broader game compatibility, including many exclusive PS3 titles
Active development with frequent updates and improvements

Cons of RPCS3

Higher system requirements due to complex PS3 architecture emulation
Less stable performance across different hardware configurations
Longer development time to reach full compatibility

Code Comparison

RPCS3 (C++):

void RSXThread::init(u32 ioAddress, u32 ioSize, u32 ctrlAddress, u32 localAddress)
{
    m_ctrl = vm::_ptr<CellGcmControl>(ctrlAddress);
    m_ioAddress = ioAddress;
    m_ioSize = ioSize;
    m_localAddress = localAddress;
}

Dolphin (C++):

void VideoBackendBase::InitializeShared()
{
  VertexLoaderManager::Init();
  g_shader_cache = std::make_unique<VideoCommon::ShaderCache>();
  g_vertex_manager = std::make_unique<VideoCommon::VertexManagerBase>();
  g_perf_query = std::make_unique<PerfQueryBase>();
}

Both projects use C++ and focus on hardware emulation, but RPCS3's code tends to be more complex due to the intricacies of PS3 architecture, while Dolphin's code is more straightforward, reflecting the simpler GameCube/Wii systems.

Cemu

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Cemu - Wii U emulator

Pros of Cemu

Higher accuracy for Wii U emulation
Better performance optimization for modern hardware
More active development and frequent updates

Cons of Cemu

Limited platform support (Windows-only)
Smaller game compatibility list
Less extensive documentation and community resources

Code Comparison

Dolphin (C++):

void DSP::Step()
{
  const u64 cycles = m_dsp_core.DSPCore_RunCycles(100);
  m_cycles += cycles;
}

Cemu (C++):

void DSPCore::executeOP()
{
  u32 opcode = m_instructionCache[m_pc];
  (this->*m_opTable[opcode])();
  m_pc++;
}

Both emulators use C++ for their core emulation logic. Dolphin's code appears to focus on cycle-accurate emulation, while Cemu's code seems to implement a more straightforward instruction execution approach. Dolphin's broader platform support is reflected in its codebase, whereas Cemu's Windows-centric development allows for more targeted optimizations.

Dolphin has a larger and more diverse contributor base, resulting in a more extensive codebase with support for multiple platforms. Cemu, being more focused on Wii U emulation, has a more streamlined codebase but lacks the cross-platform flexibility of Dolphin.

xenia

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Xbox 360 Emulator Research Project

Pros of Xenia

Focuses on Xbox 360 emulation, providing a specialized experience for that platform
Supports a wider range of Xbox 360 games compared to Dolphin's limited Xbox 360 support
Utilizes modern graphics APIs like Vulkan and Direct3D 12 for improved performance

Cons of Xenia

Less mature project with fewer contributors and a smaller community compared to Dolphin
Limited platform support, primarily focusing on Windows, while Dolphin supports multiple operating systems
Fewer features and compatibility options compared to Dolphin's extensive customization capabilities

Code Comparison

Xenia (C++):

void GraphicsSystem::Initialize() {
  // Initialize graphics subsystem
  graphics_context_ = GraphicsContext::Create(provider_);
  if (!graphics_context_) {
    XELOGE("Unable to initialize graphics context");
    return;
  }
}

Dolphin (C++):

bool VideoBackendBase::Initialize(const WindowSystemInfo& wsi)
{
  if (!InitializeShared())
    return false;

  if (!CreateBackendInternal(wsi))
    return false;

  return true;
}

Both projects use C++ for their core implementation, but Xenia's codebase tends to be more focused on Xbox 360-specific features, while Dolphin's code is more generalized to support multiple console platforms.

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README

Dolphin - A GameCube and Wii Emulator

Dolphin is an emulator for running GameCube and Wii games on Windows, Linux, macOS, and recent Android devices. It's licensed under the terms of the GNU General Public License, version 2 or later (GPLv2+).

Please read the FAQ before using Dolphin.

System Requirements

Desktop

OS
- Windows (10 1903 or higher).
- Linux.
- macOS (11.0 Big Sur or higher).
- Unix-like systems other than Linux are not officially supported but might work.
Processor
- A CPU with SSE2 support.
- A modern CPU (3 GHz and Dual Core, not older than 2008) is highly recommended.
Graphics
- A reasonably modern graphics card (Direct3D 11.1 / OpenGL 3.3).
- A graphics card that supports Direct3D 11.1 / OpenGL 4.4 is recommended.

Android

OS
- Android (5.0 Lollipop or higher).
Processor
- A processor with support for 64-bit applications (either ARMv8 or x86-64).
Graphics
- A graphics processor that supports OpenGL ES 3.0 or higher. Performance varies heavily with driver quality.
- A graphics processor that supports standard desktop OpenGL features is recommended for best performance.

Dolphin can only be installed on devices that satisfy the above requirements. Attempting to install on an unsupported device will fail and display an error message.

Building for Windows

Use the solution file Source/dolphin-emu.sln to build Dolphin on Windows. Dolphin targets the latest MSVC shipped with Visual Studio or Build Tools. Other compilers might be able to build Dolphin on Windows but have not been tested and are not recommended to be used. Git and latest Windows SDK must be installed when building.

Make sure to pull submodules before building:

git submodule update --init --recursive

The "Release" solution configuration includes performance optimizations for the best user experience but complicates debugging Dolphin. The "Debug" solution configuration is significantly slower, more verbose and less permissive but makes debugging Dolphin easier.

Building for Linux and macOS

Dolphin requires CMake for systems other than Windows. You need a recent version of GCC or Clang with decent c++20 support. CMake will inform you if your compiler is too old. Many libraries are bundled with Dolphin and used if they're not installed on your system. CMake will inform you if a bundled library is used or if you need to install any missing packages yourself. You may refer to the wiki for more information.

Make sure to pull submodules before building:

git submodule update --init --recursive

macOS Build Steps:

A binary supporting a single architecture can be built using the following steps:

mkdir build
cd build
cmake ..
make -j $(sysctl -n hw.logicalcpu)

An application bundle will be created in ./Binaries.

A script is also provided to build universal binaries supporting both x64 and ARM in the same application bundle using the following steps:

mkdir build
cd build
python ../BuildMacOSUniversalBinary.py
Universal binaries will be available in the universal folder

Doing this is more complex as it requires installation of library dependencies for both x64 and ARM (or universal library equivalents) and may require specifying additional arguments to point to relevant library locations. Execute BuildMacOSUniversalBinary.py --help for more details.

Linux Global Build Steps:

To install to your system.

mkdir build
cd build
cmake ..
make -j $(nproc)
sudo make install

Linux Local Build Steps:

Useful for development as root access is not required.

mkdir Build
cd Build
cmake .. -DLINUX_LOCAL_DEV=true
make -j $(nproc)
ln -s ../../Data/Sys Binaries/

Linux Portable Build Steps:

Can be stored on external storage and used on different Linux systems. Or useful for having multiple distinct Dolphin setups for testing/development/TAS.

mkdir Build
cd Build
cmake .. -DLINUX_LOCAL_DEV=true
make -j $(nproc)
cp -r ../Data/Sys/ Binaries/
touch Binaries/portable.txt

Building for Android

These instructions assume familiarity with Android development. If you do not have an Android dev environment set up, see AndroidSetup.md.

Make sure to pull submodules before building:

git submodule update --init --recursive

If using Android Studio, import the Gradle project located in ./Source/Android.

Android apps are compiled using a build system called Gradle. Dolphin's native component, however, is compiled using CMake. The Gradle script will attempt to run a CMake build automatically while building the Java code.

Uninstalling

On Windows, simply remove the extracted directory, unless it was installed with the NSIS installer, in which case you can uninstall Dolphin like any other Windows application.

Linux users can run cat install_manifest.txt | xargs -d '\n' rm as root from the build directory to uninstall Dolphin from their system.

macOS users can simply delete Dolphin.app to uninstall it.

Additionally, you'll want to remove the global user directory if you don't plan on reinstalling Dolphin.

Command Line Usage

Usage: Dolphin.exe [options]... [FILE]...

Options:
  --version             show program's version number and exit
  -h, --help            show this help message and exit
  -u USER, --user=USER  User folder path
  -m MOVIE, --movie=MOVIE
                        Play a movie file
  -e <file>, --exec=<file>
                        Load the specified file
  -n <16-character ASCII title ID>, --nand_title=<16-character ASCII title ID>
                        Launch a NAND title
  -C <System>.<Section>.<Key>=<Value>, --config=<System>.<Section>.<Key>=<Value>
                        Set a configuration option
  -s <file>, --save_state=<file>
                        Load the initial save state
  -d, --debugger        Show the debugger pane and additional View menu options
  -l, --logger          Open the logger
  -b, --batch           Run Dolphin without the user interface (Requires
                        --exec or --nand-title)
  -c, --confirm         Set Confirm on Stop
  -v VIDEO_BACKEND, --video_backend=VIDEO_BACKEND
                        Specify a video backend
  -a AUDIO_EMULATION, --audio_emulation=AUDIO_EMULATION
                        Choose audio emulation from [HLE|LLE]

Available DSP emulation engines are HLE (High Level Emulation) and LLE (Low Level Emulation). HLE is faster but less accurate whereas LLE is slower but close to perfect. Note that LLE has two submodes (Interpreter and Recompiler) but they cannot be selected from the command line.

Available video backends are "D3D" and "D3D12" (they are only available on Windows), "OGL", and "Vulkan". There's also "Null", which will not render anything, and "Software Renderer", which uses the CPU for rendering and is intended for debugging purposes only.

DolphinTool Usage

usage: dolphin-tool COMMAND -h

commands supported: [convert, verify, header, extract]

Usage: convert [options]... [FILE]...

Options:
  -h, --help            show this help message and exit
  -u USER, --user=USER  User folder path, required for temporary processing
                        files.Will be automatically created if this option is
                        not set.
  -i FILE, --input=FILE
                        Path to disc image FILE.
  -o FILE, --output=FILE
                        Path to the destination FILE.
  -f FORMAT, --format=FORMAT
                        Container format to use. Default is RVZ. [iso|gcz|wia|rvz]
  -s, --scrub           Scrub junk data as part of conversion.
  -b BLOCK_SIZE, --block_size=BLOCK_SIZE
                        Block size for GCZ/WIA/RVZ formats, as an integer.
                        Suggested value for RVZ: 131072 (128 KiB)
  -c COMPRESSION, --compression=COMPRESSION
                        Compression method to use when converting to WIA/RVZ.
                        Suggested value for RVZ: zstd [none|zstd|bzip|lzma|lzma2]
  -l COMPRESSION_LEVEL, --compression_level=COMPRESSION_LEVEL
                        Level of compression for the selected method. Ignored
                        if 'none'. Suggested value for zstd: 5

Usage: verify [options]...

Options:
  -h, --help            show this help message and exit
  -u USER, --user=USER  User folder path, required for temporary processing
                        files.Will be automatically created if this option is
                        not set.
  -i FILE, --input=FILE
                        Path to disc image FILE.
  -a ALGORITHM, --algorithm=ALGORITHM
                        Optional. Compute and print the digest using the
                        selected algorithm, then exit. [crc32|md5|sha1|rchash]

Usage: header [options]...

Options:
  -h, --help            show this help message and exit
  -i FILE, --input=FILE
                        Path to disc image FILE.
  -b, --block_size      Optional. Print the block size of GCZ/WIA/RVZ formats,
then exit.
  -c, --compression     Optional. Print the compression method of GCZ/WIA/RVZ
                        formats, then exit.
  -l, --compression_level
                        Optional. Print the level of compression for WIA/RVZ
                        formats, then exit.

Usage: extract [options]...

Options:
  -h, --help            show this help message and exit
  -i FILE, --input=FILE
                        Path to disc image FILE.
  -o FOLDER, --output=FOLDER
                        Path to the destination FOLDER.
  -p PARTITION, --partition=PARTITION
                        Which specific partition you want to extract.
  -s SINGLE, --single=SINGLE
                        Which specific file/directory you want to extract.
  -l, --list            List all files in volume/partition. Will print the
                        directory/file specified with --single if defined.
  -q, --quiet           Mute all messages except for errors.
  -g, --gameonly        Only extracts the DATA partition.

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