Nintengo is a free NES emulator written in Go. It runs .nes files, including files contained in ZIP archives, and supports NTSC and PAL regions. Desktop build instructions cover Mac OS X, Linux, and Windows; a WebAssembly version can run in a browser using a local web server. Building for WebAssembly requires Go 1.11 or higher. Nintengo stores battery-backed saves as .sav files and save states as .nst files. It supports two-player netplay through its listen and connect options. Users can capture JPEG screenshots, record GIF video, and record WAV audio. Listed controls include keyboard input, pausing, stepping, resetting, state saving and loading, and fast-forward options. Debugging options include CPU instruction decoding, CPU and memory profiling, and an HTTP service address. Supported mappers listed by the project include NROM, MMC1, UNROM, CNROM, MMC3, ANROM, and MMC2. Audio is still a work in progress, though all channels work in some capacity. The project is published under the GPL-2.0 license.
Who it is for
Nintengo may suit people looking for a free NES emulator on desktop or in a browser, as well as users who want save states, netplay, or debugging options.
What is good
- Runs .nes files directly or inside ZIP archives.
- Supports NTSC and PAL regions.
- Includes two-player netplay.
- Can capture screenshots and record GIF or WAV files.
- Offers save files and save states.
What to know first
- WebAssembly builds require Go 1.11 or higher.
- Audio support is still a work in progress.
- Browser use requires a local web server.
Verdict
Nintengo covers NES playback, saving, netplay, capture, and debugging across desktop builds and a WebAssembly option. Its audio support remains unfinished, and browser use requires a local web server.
Compared on NES emulators
- Free plan
- Yes
- Supported platforms
- macOS, Linux, Windows, WebAssembly/browser
- Save states
- Yes
- Netplay
- Yes
