Software Alternatives & Reviews

Retropie VS EmulationStation

Compare Retropie VS EmulationStation and see what are their differences

Retropie logo Retropie

RetroPie allows you to turn your Raspberry Pi or PC into a retro-gaming machine.

EmulationStation logo EmulationStation

a graphical emulator front-end
  • Retropie Landing page
    Landing page //
    2021-10-06
  • EmulationStation Landing page
    Landing page //
    2018-10-20

Retropie videos

Review: RetroPie - Raspberry Pi 3

More videos:

  • Review - What Retropie Can Do
  • Review - RetroGamingBox | Raspberry Pi 3 | Retropie | Quick Review

EmulationStation videos

Playing Classic Games with EmulationStation & RetroArch

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to Retropie and EmulationStation)
Gaming
52 52%
48% 48
Emulators
40 40%
60% 60
Gaming Tools
42 42%
58% 58
Video
100 100%
0% 0

User comments

Share your experience with using Retropie and EmulationStation. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
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Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, Retropie should be more popular than EmulationStation. It has been mentiond 86 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

Retropie mentions (86)

  • Super Mario 64 on the Web
    I agree! I picked up [RetroPie](https://retropie.org.uk/) again during the pandemic. I'm sure many did the same haha. That's when I learned [N64 emulation is difficult](https://retropie.org.uk/docs/Optimization-for-Nintendo-64/). Well done. - Source: Hacker News / 4 months ago
  • Plug and play retro home console suggestion?
    I would have thought a well set-up Raspberry pie running RetroPie in a nice case (e.g. https://thepihut.com/products/superpi-4-case-for-raspberry-pi-4) and a couple of decent controllers would be the best thing. Source: 5 months ago
  • My First Raspberry Pi Project: Portable Retro Game Console
    This website has step by step instructions on how to set up a RetroPie. It is really easy. Source: 10 months ago
  • Gpu in emulator pc
    The most I am familiar with emulators of that era is retro pi https://retropie.org.uk/. Source: 11 months ago
  • RetroPie.org safe
    Https://retropie.org.uk/ is the official site. Source: 11 months ago
View more

EmulationStation mentions (13)

  • Anyone using a launcher?
    In my opinion the ideal situation would be a backend that any developer could build a frontend to that would suit their approach. For example there are many Retroarch frontends like Highscore, EmulationStation, etc. These all suit the needs for what some person may want. Source: about 1 year ago
  • SteamDeck Windows 11 Guide - Installed Win 11 on the SteamDeck and don't know what to do next? This is for you.
    Replacement for the epic EmuDeck. It utilises EmulationStation. Source: over 1 year ago
  • Is there a user interface that will load all roms from NES up through GameCube?
    I use EmulationStation on a lot of devices. It would cover what you're looking for. Other frontends I like are RetroArch and Daijisho. Source: over 1 year ago
  • Gifting an old pc to my handicapped grandson.
    If you want to piece meal and customize it RetroArch and Emulation Station is the way to go. Also have a robust wiki. Source: over 1 year ago
  • First ever “setup” im very poor
    Helpful link https://emulationstation.org/. Source: over 1 year ago
View more

What are some alternatives?

When comparing Retropie and EmulationStation, you can also consider the following products

Batocera.linux - Batocera.linux is an open-source and completely free retro-gaming distribution that can be copied to a USB stick or an SD card with the aim of turning any computer/nano computer into a gaming console during a game or permanently.

RetroArch - RetroArch is a frontend for emulators, game engines and media players.

LaunchBox - LaunchBox is a portable, box-art-based games database and launcher for DOSBox, emulators, arcade cabinets, and PC Games. Download it free!

RetroBat - RETROBAT RetroBat is a software distribution designed for emulation and to be the easiest way to enjoy your game collection on your Windows computer.

Playnite - Source code generated using layoutit.com

Lakka - Lakka is the official Linux distribution of RetroArch and the libretro ecosystem.