Side by side

Mednafen vs pico-smsplus

Both stand on game gear emulators. Which one you can start free with, which one lets you read the code, and what each costs once you pay.

Mednafen

Free plan LinuxWindows

Mednafen combines support for multiple systems with save, rewind, and capture features. Note its command-line approach, disc-image requirements, and warnings about untrusted save states.

Visit Mednafen

pico-smsplus provides multi-system emulation with SD-card storage, saves, HDMI output, and broad controller support on listed microcontroller boards. Controller restrictions and possible performance problems on original RP2040 hardware are important limits.

Visit pico-smsplus

The facts

	Mednafen	pico-smsplus
Free plan	Yes	Yes
Open source	Not published	Not published
Runs on	Linux, Windows	Self-hosted
Lowest paid plan	Not published	Not published
Plans published	None	None
Maker	Not published	Not published
Website	mednafen.github.io	github.com
On game gear emulators	#26 of 31	#30 of 31

Mednafen: what it does well

Supports systems including NES, SNES, and PlayStation.
Offers save states and real-time rewinding.
Can record QuickTime movies and WAV sound.
Input mapping supports keyboards and joysticks.
Free and distributed under the GNU GPLv2.

What to know first

Command-line-driven rather than described as graphical.
Physical CD support was removed in version 0.9.38.
Network play requires an external dedicated server.
Untrusted save states may pose security risks.

pico-smsplus: what it does well

Supports three Sega console families
Provides HDMI or DVI output
Includes save states
Supports USB and selected NES controllers
USB mode manages the SD card

What to know first

Two USB controllers are not supported
Some games may run slowly or not at all
Requires compatible RP2040 or RP2350 hardware
Games must be loaded from an SD card

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