RetroAchievements In RetroArch
What are RetroAchievements? retroachievements.org is a service that provides a trophy/achievement unlocking mechanism similar to modern consoles, for retro games.
Warning
The service is not maintained by RetroArch or the Libretro team.
Warning
In order to get better compatibility with the RetroAchievements feature it's recommended to always use the latest version of RetroArch and the cores.
How to setup achievements
Register an account on retroachievements.org (don't forget to confirm your account creation with the email they send to you).
Open Retroarch and go to Settings->Achievements.
Enable the functionality and fill in your retroachievements credentials.
Note
The hardcore mode prevents you from using emulation features like savestates, slow motion, and cheats, BUT it gives you double points.
Check your connection to the service You need an active internet connection.
In this example, we are using the game Chrono Trigger (USA) with the Snes9x core.
Launch the game and trigger the Quick Menu.
Go to Achievements and you should see a list of the unlockable trophies for this game.
Check your progress On the retroachievements website, you can login and access your account page.
You should be able to check your progress in the games and see which trophies you unlocked.
Trophies unlocked in hardcore mode are marked with a special color.
You can also check the progress of your friends and add comments on their trophies.
Cores Compatibility Arcade (various manufacturers)
Arcade
Core
Supported
Notes
FinalBurn Neo ✔
AES bios is required for many Neo Geo achievements. AES Asia (neo-epo.bin) is generally English.
MAME ✕
Support is not likely to ever be possible. The same is true for all MAME variants.
Apple
Apple II
Core
Supported
Notes
AppleWin ✔
Libretro core is still fairly new, but should be fully supported. Please report any issues.
Arduboy
Core
Supported
Notes
Aduros ✔
RetroArch 1.10.2 or higher required
Atari
2600
7800
Jaguar
Core
Supported
Notes
Virtual Jaguar ✔
Due to vast core issues, support of this system is extremely limited.
Lynx
Bandai
Wonderswan / Wonderswan Color
Coleco
ColecoVision
GCE
Vectrex
Core
Supported
Notes
vecx ✔
Magnavox
Odyssey 2
Core
Supported
Notes
o2em ✔
Mattel
Intellivision
Core
Supported
Notes
FreeIntV ✔
Controls involve an on-screen overlay that may not be easy to use for all games.
Microsoft
MSX / MSX2
Core
Supported
Notes
blueMSX ✔
fMSX ✔
Some games may require mapper adjustment in core options to run.
FinalBurn Neo ✔
Requires games in msx subdirectory, exact archives just like arcade. Not all games may be linked for this core. MSX2 is not supported.
NEC
PC Engine - TurboGrafx-16 / PC Engine CD - TurboGrafx-CD
Core
Supported
Notes
Beetle PCE FAST ✔
Highest speed. Does not support SuperGrafx games.
Beetle SuperGrafx ✔
High speed. Supports SuperGrafx games.
Beetle PCE ✔
High accuracy, lower speed. Supports SuperGrafx games.
FinalBurn Neo ✔
Requires games in pce, tg16, or sgx subdirectories, exact archives just like arcade. Not all games may be linked for this core. CD is not supported.
PC-FX
PC-8000 / PC-8800
Core
Supported
Notes
QUASI88 ✔
Some games may be unsupported in Retroarch due to missing options. Sets generally expect the MkIISR bios.
Nintendo
Nintendo DS
Core
Supported
Notes
MelonDS ✔
External BIOS recommended, but no longer required. RetroArch 1.9.14 nightly or newer required for hashing to work. DSi mode currently is not supported for achievements.
DeSmuME ✔
External BIOS recommended, needs to be enabled in core options
DeSmuME 2015 ✔
Game Boy / Game Boy Color
Game Boy Advance
Core
Supported
Notes
mGBA ✔
VBA-M ✔
VBA Next ✔
gpSP ✔
Very high speed, but has not been thoroughly tested with achievements. A few games will fail to start or crash frequently. Please prefer other cores when device performance allows.
Beetle GBA ✔
Experimental core, should not be used without good reason.
Meteor ✕
NES
Nintendo 64
Core
Supported
Notes
Mupen64Plus-Next ✔
Preferred core. Supports greater graphic customization and upscaling.
ParaLLEl N64 ✔
Supports 64DD games. Can play -some- hacks reliant on low accuracy via alternate plugins.
Pokemon Mini
SNES
Virtual Boy
Sega
Dreamcast/Naomi
Core
Supported
Notes
Flycast ✔
RetroArch 1.10.1 or higher required.
Master System / MegaDrive - Genesis
32X / 32X CD
Core
Supported
Notes
Picodrive ✔
Emulation quality can be dodgy.
Game Gear
SG-1000
Sega CD - Mega-CD
Saturn
Core
Supported
Notes
Beetle Saturn ✔
High accuracy, but low speed
Yabause ✔
Higher speed
Kronos ✔
High speed, supports graphic enhancements, but requires a GPU that supports at least OpenGL 4.2
YabaSanshiro ✕
SNK
Neo Geo Pocket / Neo Geo Pocket Color
Core
Supported
Notes
Beetle NeoPop ✔
RACE ✔
FinalBurn Neo ✔
Requires games in ngp subdirectory, exact archives just like arcade. Not all games may be linked for this core.
Sony
PlayStation
Core
Supported
Notes
Beetle PSX HW ✔
Identical to Beetle PSX, with extra hardware features. High accuracy.
Beetle PSX ✔
Identical to Beetle PSX HW in software mode.
SwanStation ✔
Fork of DuckStation. Fairly high accuracy, extremely high speed.
PCSX ReARMed ✔
Lower accuracy than Beetle PSX (HW), higher speed.
PlayStation Portable
Core
Supported
Notes
PPSSPP ✔
RetroArch 1.9.9 or higher required
The 3DO Company (various manufacturers)
3DO
Core
Supported
Notes
Opera ✔
WASM-4
Core
Supported
Notes
WASM-4 ✔
RetroArch 1.10.2 or higher required
Watara
Supervision
Core
Supported
Notes
Potator ✔
RetroArch 1.9.2 or higher required
Misc
Last update:
2024-04-19
