Accurate Nintendo DS Emulator to Play Games on PC

By Clinton Courier | December 1, 2021 |

Looking for a genuine Nintendo DS emulator to play iconic console games (Pokémon, Mario, Metroid Prime Hunters, Legends of Zelda, and more) on your PC? Well, your search for an accurate emulator ends here! To help you choose the best, this article brings to you the top 9 Nintendo DS emulators that will take your gaming experience to the next notch.

MelonDS

When it comes to exceptional accuracy, high performance, and superior resolution, you can never go wrong with MelonDS. It’s one of those few free emulators that are capable of rendering accurate gameplay of DS games. Apart from the extreme resolution, the emulator even supports Wi-Fi for playing any game of your choice.

DeSmuMe

Compatible with both Windows and iOS platforms, DeSmuMe is another top contender on the list. Like MelonDS, this emulator enables gamers to play original DS titles with incredible graphics. Moreover, DeSmuMe lets you customize the emulation and graphic settings according to your PC’s configuration. For example, you can go for premium quality graphics with average performance or usual graphics with impeccable performance.

RetroArch

As compared to other popular DS emulators, RetroArch is regarded as an all-in-one solution. The reason: gamers get to emulate games from every classic vintage console including SNES, NES, DS, 64, 3DS, and DSi as well. RetroArch features a wide range of functionalities such as net-play, shaders, run ahead, blind accessibility, machine translation, and more. You can download this NDS emulator on Windows, Linux, and macOS.

NO$GBS

Now, if you want to play DS games but don’t have a high-performing PC then NO$GBS is just the emulator for you. While the graphic options might be less, but with strategic customization, you will be able to replicate the magic of DS games on a computer in no time. Also, the emulator supports joystick, save state and cheat code too. The emulator is available only for MS-DOS PC, Windows XP, and Windows 10.

Citra

Similar to NO$GBS, Citra turns out to be an amazing emulator for playing NDS games on medium-performing devices. With Citra, you can customize the resolution of any game to 4K, which ultimately is a major perk for gamers. For checking the compatibility with NDS games, you can check the specifications when you download NDS emulators.

In terms of software, the emulator features options for screen layout, code assistance, and joystick support. You can also take advantage of the in-house screen recorder to stream your gameplay on social media channels.

NeonDS

NeonDS is another amazing Nintendo DS emulator that is compatible with almost every commercially successful ROM. As it uses just a few resources of the PC, you can operate it smoothly on low-powered and aging desktop systems. Another noteworthy element of the emulator is its compliance with OpenGL 2.0. This means, rendering of games is optimized as per OpenGL 2.0, and you have the opportunity to record your screen.

OpenEmu

OpenEmu is a one-of-a-kind emulator that comes with a simple and sophisticated UI (user interface). That’s right, an emulator without complex settings, customization options, or other fuss- it’s as simple and easy as it can be. For example, the emulator automatically arranges downloaded ROMs, and to play the game, you only have to open the emulator and click on the game that you want to play.

However, the absence of graphic settings might be disappointing for seasoned players. Apart from this, there is no option for boosting the resolution of the DS game. The options that are virtually equipped in the emulator are save states, screen design, and code support.

EmuBox

Similar to RetroArch, EmuBox provides the opportunity to emulate different Nintendo consoles on PC. This is because the emulator was coded using Google’s design language. Thanks to this, it can represent the visuals of every successful DS title in a flawless manner. While using the emulator, you can even capture screenshots of your gameplay, also at the topmost corner of the box, the emulator gives about 20 save slots too.

iDeas

Inspired by the famous N64 emulator, iDeas is a free program that can emulate several classic NDS ROMs. The UI of the emulator is just like the DS console, but the only concern is occasional glitches that might have an impact on your gaming experience. Some of the highlights of iDeas are touchscreen support and remapping of keys for effective customization. It should be on your list of download NDS emulators if you want to try out and experiment with old emulators to check out the early years of emulation.

Conclusion

If you are new to the world of emulators, you might be overwhelmed by the options around. But, sit back, relax and focus on what your key gaming requirements are- DS you want to emulate or games that you want to play and then finally download NDS emulators that meet your specific requirements.