DSperate

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About

DSperate is ranked #1 of 18 in Nintendo DS emulators on Inferse. It runs on Linux.

Compared on Nintendo DS emulators

Free plan: Yesgithub.com
Supported platforms: Linux on AArch64 and ARMhfgithub.com
Save states: Yesgithub.com
Local multiplayer: Yesgithub.com
Nintendo DSi support: Yesgithub.com
Cheat support: Yesgithub.com
Screen layout options: vertical, horizontal, single, picture-in-picture, dominant vertical, dominant horizontalgithub.com

Facts

Purpose: DSperate is a Nintendo DS and DSi emulator designed to reimplement DraStic-level performance with modern features.github.com · 28 Sept 2026
Target hardware: The project is built and measured on ARM handhelds, including the Anbernic RG DS with an RK3566 processor.github.com · 28 Sept 2026
CPU emulation: It supports ARM946E-S and ARM7TDMI interpreters and ARM-to-AArch64 and ARM-to-ARMv7 recompilers.github.com · 28 Sept 2026
Graphics: It includes complete 2D engines, a software 3D rasteriser, and optional Vulkan GPU 3D rendering.github.com · 28 Sept 2026
DSi support: Experimental DSi support includes DSiWare, NAND boot, an SD card folder, microphone, DSi Wi-Fi, PictoChat, and Download Play; DSP and DSi-enhanced cartridges in DSi mode are not supported.github.com · 28 Sept 2026
Wireless: Local wireless multiplayer and Download Play work over a LAN using melonDS's protocol, and internet access uses a user-mode TCP/IP stack.github.com · 28 Sept 2026
Save states: It provides ten save-state slots plus a hidden automatic slot, and DSi states also carry NAND and SD card changes.github.com · 28 Sept 2026
Achievements: RetroAchievements are supported in Casual mode only; Hardcore mode is not enabled.github.com · 28 Sept 2026
Input: Keyboard and controller remapping, controller hotkeys, stylus input, and touch or mouse input on the bottom screen are supported.github.com · 28 Sept 2026
ROM formats: The emulator loads .nds files and .zip files containing an .nds; zip64, 7z, and rar are unsupported.github.com · 28 Sept 2026
BIOS requirement: Games can run without BIOS or firmware dumps using built-in FreeBIOS and generated firmware; user dumps enable firmware boot and exact timing, and none are included.github.com · 28 Sept 2026
License and source: The project is public source code under GPLv3 and describes itself as a clean-room reimplementation with no DraStic code in the repository.github.com · 28 Sept 2026
Build requirements: Building the playable frontend requires CMake 3.16 or newer, Ninja, a C++17 compiler, and SDL2.github.com · 28 Sept 2026
Release platforms: The release page lists linux-aarch64 and linux-armhf tarballs, with static variants also available.github.com · 28 Sept 2026
Product: DSperate is a Nintendo DS and DSi emulator that aims to reimplement DraStic-level performance with modern features.github.com · 29 Sept 2026
Architecture: It reimplements DraStic techniques through clean-room work and includes no DraStic code.github.com · 29 Sept 2026
Emulation: It supports interpreted and recompiled ARM CPUs, DS graphics and sound, save states, cheats, and configurable screen layouts.github.com · 29 Sept 2026
Wireless: It supports local wireless play over a LAN using melonDS's protocol and internet access through an emulated access point.github.com · 29 Sept 2026
Achievements: RetroAchievements support is available in Casual mode; Hardcore mode is not supported.github.com · 29 Sept 2026
DSi support: Experimental DSi support includes DSiWare, NAND boot, SD card folder backing, microphone, DSi Wi-Fi, PictoChat, and Download Play.github.com · 29 Sept 2026
DSi limitation: The DSi DSP is not emulated, and DSi-enhanced cartridges run as DS games in DSi mode.github.com · 29 Sept 2026
ROM formats: It loads NDS games and ZIP archives containing supported game files; ZIP64, 7z, and RAR archives are unsupported.github.com · 29 Sept 2026
BIOS requirement: Games can run without BIOS or firmware dumps using built-in FreeBIOS and generated firmware; the project does not include real dumps.github.com · 29 Sept 2026
Platforms: The project documents Linux ARM64 and ARMHF release tarballs and cross-build targets for AArch64 and ARMv7.github.com · 29 Sept 2026
Build requirements: The playable frontend requires CMake 3.16 or later, Ninja, a C++17 compiler, and SDL2.github.com · 29 Sept 2026
License: DSperate is licensed under GPLv3.github.com · 29 Sept 2026
Security: The README describes a crashed guest memory safeguard that prevents the recompiler from running the host out of memory.github.com · 29 Sept 2026
Release: The latest listed release is DSperate v2.1.1, described as including a Wayland display fix, enhanced 3D anti-aliasing, and a rasteriser correction.github.com · 29 Sept 2026