NES Emulator for Android: Getting your hands on the legendary NES titles on your very own Android smartphone would double-tap the experience of Retrogaming. For the 1990’s kids, Nintendo video games consoles were like the only favorite “PlayStation” of that time.
Since the system isn’t into work anymore, still reliving those nostalgic childhood days is feasible with the help of several NES Emulators available for Android. These are the software technically capable of mirroring or emulating the hardware performance and software environments of the classic gaming consoles.
But with the abundance of the emulators floating around the internet, there is a chance you may fall prey to the applications nothing less than ad baits. Therefore, for your convenience here I have sorted out the 7 Best NES Emulators for Android that will allow you to play the classic Nintendo all-time hits.
Best NES Emulators for Android
1. Nostalgia.NES
Price: Free/$4.99
Happened to be a paid Android emulator on the list for its premium version, Nostalgia.NES will not leave you in regret and have all reasons to worth the price tag. It is based on the very famous FCEUX emulator and comes with its goodness. The cool and user-friendly interface comprises of the highly customizable virtual controller that enables you to set the position and size of the buttons to match your needs.
It has all the basic functions such as Zapper (light gun) emulation, turbo buttons, rewinding, save and load states, and many more. Supporting WiFi controller mode, it lets you turn your Android smartphone into a wireless gamepad that allows several devices to be connected and enables you to play favorite multiplayer NES games.
2. Retro8
Price: $14.35
It is one of the newest and most expensive SNES emulators on the list which boasts the fastest emulation and best game compatibility. Retro 8 has a user-friendly interface that comes with visual effect shaders such as CRT simulator, high-quality 2x/3x, and more. Additionally, with the help of advanced layout edition, you can make several best suitable changes to the on-screen controls.
It also supports cloud syncing for the various devices, Bluetooth controller, turbo mode, touch screen gun, and many more other features. Furthermore, if you love surprising your game mates with cheat codes, you’d certainly going to adore this Android emulator for the specific reason. Retro8 also provides excellent support for WiFi and Bluetooth controllers, but you may find it a bit laggy sometimes with some certain ROMs since some bugs are yet to be discovered.
3. John NESS
Price: Free/Up to $4.49
John NESS is a dual emulator for both NES and SNES gaming consoles. It is optimized for Android 6.0 and newer versions, so make sure your device should meet the requirement. The emulator comes with high-quality rendering, virtual on-screen keypad, turbo buttons, customizable layout & keys, and more. John NESS supports Bluetooth/ MOGA controller and also if you’d like to, you can use make use of Dropbox syncing with the help of John DataSync plugin.
And covering all general functions, it consists of “save and load states with preview,” hardware controller support, popular cheat codes and fast forward/ slow down features.
NOTE: This emulator doesn’t work without your own games files.
4. EmuBox
Price: Free (with ads)
EmuBox, as per publishers description, is the fastest retro emulator. It’s an all-in-one Android emulator that supports NES, NDS, PSX, SNES, GBA, and GBC video game consoles. EmuBox can even run your old game ROMs with no lag whatsoever. It’s the first multi-emulator with material design and other common features including, fast forward support, save and load states, and several setting for optimizing the performance of the emulator.
EmuBox even allows you to make use of external controllers for playing games. However, it doesn’t come with any game ROMs; thus, it requires you to bring your own ROMs to the party to get the emulator up and running.
5. RetroArch
Price: Free
RetroArch is a powerful multi-console emulator that comes with a plethora of unique features. It’s basically an open-source project that is built on a robust development interface called Libretro. The emulator supports built-in input remapping, save states, use of cheat codes and more.
Being a multi-versatile program, it works in a certain way that essentially needs modular programs known as “cores.” In order to make it work by downloading the modular program, you need to navigate to “Online Updater” and click on “Core Updater.”
It has an easy to use user-friendly interface that is likely to serve flawless experience to its users. Moreover, you can easily scan files/directories to add them to the game system collection. Download the app, and you will notice RetroArch have a lot more to explore.
6. NES.emu
Price: $3.09
NES.emu is an FCEUX 2.2.3-svn based advanced open-source NES/Famicom emulator. It comes with configurable on-screen multi-touch controls that let you make tweaks depending on your needs. The emulator uses FCEU-compatible cheat files that can also be edited if needed.
Coming to the menu system, you may find a bit old appearing user interface, with comprising the basic stuff including, gun support, VS UniSystem support, on-screen controls, and more. It provides HID Bluetooth/USB gamepad and keyboard support to the input devices compatible working with the OS. Lastly, same as the 2p NES emulator, it doesn’t come with its ROMs included, the users must supply it.
7. 2P NES Emulator
Price: Free
It’s an NES/Famicom emulator which is technically a re-release of Multiness that let you play popular retro titles on Android. It offers both single and multiplayer mode; former mode could be played being offline, and the latter one needs a LAN network to get started.
Make sure that you have a stable internet connection since the gameplay quality dependent on it solely. 2P NES emulator supports so many of features including, both hardware and virtual controllers, save and load game state, text and voice chat on multiplayer mode and more. While playing multiplayer if you experience any lag issues, try placing the devices as close as possible.
NOTE: The app doesn’t include any games, therefore to make it work, you need to download NES ROM’s to your device.
- Download 2P NES Emulator
We hope, by now you have found yourself a best NES emulator for your Android device. Also, don’t forget to share your experiences with certain emulator in the comment box below.
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