by One of the most well-known handheld gaming systems ever is the Nintendo DS. Millions of units were sold after its initial introduction in 2004 before it was discontinued in 2013.
Even if many fascinating games are available, some of us still cling to the nostalgia of the original Nintendo DS games. Fortunately, Nintendo DS emulators exist so we can play all the most well-liked games on our PCs.
Many Nintendo DS emulators are available, but not all are created equal. We’ve done the work ahead of time to save you time and energy. This article lists some of the Best Nintendo DS emulators for Windows and Mac users.
Best Nintendo DS Emulators for Windows PC and Android
Here are a few emulators that will make it simple to use your Nintendo DS emulator for Windows 11 for any game.
1. DraStic DS Emulator
Exophase has created a wonderful emulator for only $5 and includes various gaming choices.
What exactly are all of these wonderful characteristics, then? Well, first of all, you have the option to play in either portrait or landscape mode, and you can improve the graphical quality if you so choose (completely optional).
With the option to fast-forward, the DraStic DS Emulator also supports virtually any external controller compatible with different Android smartphones. In addition, you’ll have access to a huge database of cheats, save your progress, and more.
2. RetroArch
RetroArch is a fantastic emulator that enables you to run many programs, including games and media players. It’s simple for everyone to use this emulator because it’s free and open-source.
It offers several distinctive characteristics and the usual ones you find appealing. Netplay, 4K upscaling, rewinding, shaders, next-frame reaction time, machine translation, and many other features are on the list.
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Mobile devices can also use this DS emulator for the PC. It is compatible with the most recent iterations of iOS, Android, Raspberry Pi, Windows, and Linux. In addition, this emulator is simple to use even if you have an older version because it supports them all.
3. MelonDS
MelonDS provides quick and accurate Nintendo DS emulation by using your system’s hardware resources.
Additionally, the MelonDS emulator’s 2D and 3D representations are nearly pixel-perfect. The developers of this NDS emulator are highly active regarding problem fixes, and it receives regular updates.
Another significant aspect of MelonDS is the player’s flexibility to save their progress anytime. MelonDS shows live frames per second when playing games. MelonDS currently supports Linux and Windows.
4. SuperNDS
One of the most recent additions to the increasing collection of Android Nintendo DS emulators is SuperNDS. It performs well on more recent Android devices, providing quick gaming, passable rendering, and generally bug-free graphics.
It supports the NDS, ZIP, 7z, and RAR file formats and other capabilities like save states. All Android versions up to and including 5.0 Lollipop are supported by SuperNDS. However, it requires sufficient RAM to function.
Games can crash on older devices with less RAM, requiring you to restart the emulator and manually free up RAM. However, this emulator enables fantastic gameplay at full speed with good visuals on more recent machines with plenty of RAM.
5. No$GBA
Anyone using an outdated computer or wanting to play DS games on a laptop with limited processing power should use No$GBA as their emulator of choice.
Compatibility for cheat codes, joystick support, and a save state option are a few of No$GBA’s standout features. Commercial GameBoy Advance ROMs can also be run on No$GBA in addition to DS ROMs. Sadly, No$GBA doesn’t support multiplayer games.
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No$GBA can be installed on Windows 10, Windows XP, and MS-DOS computers. Overall, No$GBA is among the greatest DS emulators available.
6. EmuBox
EmuBox is one of the newest players on the NDS emulator market and is an all-in-one emulator that runs Nintendo DS game ROMs on Android. Players can snap screenshots whenever they wish, and it supports up to 20 save places for each ROM.
Additionally, it allows external controllers like Bluetooth gamepads and fast forwards. EmuBox’s ability to run on other platforms and the NDS, is one of its strongest features. Instead, it supports various gaming consoles, such as the NES, GBA, GBC, and PSX.
One of the earliest Android multi-console emulators, it uses Google’s material design philosophy to provide the user with the most aesthetically beautiful and straightforward emulators.
7. Nds4droid
Nds4droid is the following-best emulator for Nintendo DS ROMs on the list. Despite being a free DS emulator, Nds4droid provides incredibly strong performance and aesthetically stunning graphics quality.
In Nds4droid, you can save your progress similarly to the DraStic DS Emulator. Nds4droid’s frameskip feature is helpful for older or more affordable Android smartphones.
It is important to remember that Nds4droid is an outdated NDS ROM emulator and hasn’t seen any updates. Nds4droid is an open-source emulator that does not contain in-app purchases or adverts.
8. OpenEmu
Another front-end program for other console emulators is called OpenEmu. Regarding supported consoles and emulation choices, this PC emulator isn’t all that different from RetroArch.
However, OpenEmu stands out from all the other emulators because of its incredibly simple user interface. The user interface will make you think of iTunes if you use a Mac. For instance, the emulator sorts game by platform and display their box art.
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The lack of numerous graphical options could annoy some users. Additionally, I didn’t notice a way to raise internal resolution during my testing. The Nintendo emulator has everything else, including settings for screen layout, save states, support for cheat codes, etc.
9. Free DS Emulator
Numerous NDS games are supported with Free DS Emulator on Android, providing quick gameplay and passable graphics. It has store game states, load game states, programmable buttons, cheat codes, and more. It supports.nds,.zip, and a plethora of other file types.
Additionally, it is compatible with external controllers, such as the Nintendo Switch Joy-Cons. Free DS Emulator works on most smartphones running Android 4.2 Jelly Bean and higher, despite being initially developed for Android 6.0 Marshmallow.
Most of the most recent Android devices are now compatible, thanks to an upgrade from last year. You need to download this emulator if you want to turn your old phone into a dedicated Nintendo DS game system.
10. DeSmuME
You can also think of DeSmuME, another well-known Nintendo DS emulator, as a great replacement for MelonDS. DeSmuME enables players to play exclusive DS games with maximum visuals, much like MelonDS does.
Depending on their system setups, users of DeSmuMe can alter the graphics and emulator settings. You can choose between high graphics quality and subpar performance or low graphics quality and perfect performance.
Currently, DeSmuMe is accessible on Windows and macOS. The DeSmuME DS emulator can be risky to download from a third-party or unreliable website. Thus we suggest our readers use the links in this article.
