Skip to content
Retrogaming

How Emulation Actually Works

The techniques behind running old software on new hardware — interpretation vs. dynamic recompilation, why cycle accuracy is hard, what ROM dumping and preservation actually involve, and the legal reality behind BIOS files.

9 posts, in order

  1. 1HistoryThe History of Emulation: Preserving Gaming's Hardware Before It's GoneHow MAME, DOSBox, libretro, reverse engineering, hardware research, and archival practice turned emulation into a preservation discipline.
  2. 2Deep DiveEmulation vs. Virtualization: Two Different Ways to Run Foreign SoftwareA practical boundary between emulation and hardware-assisted virtualization, including CPU execution, devices, memory, timing, and hybrid systems.
  3. 3Deep DiveHow CPU Emulation Works: Interpretation vs. Dynamic RecompilationA technical comparison of CPU interpreters and dynamic recompilers, including dispatch cost, translation blocks, timing, exceptions, and cache invalidation.
  4. 4Deep DiveCycle-Accurate Emulation and Why It's So Hard to Get RightWhy cycle-accurate emulation requires synchronized clocks, bus behavior, interrupts, video timing, hardware tests, and careful performance trade-offs.
  5. 5Deep DiveROM Dumping and Preservation: From Cartridge to FileHow cartridge dumpers read ROM, mapper banks, save memory, and metadata—and how repeated reads, hashes, provenance, and safe handling establish confidence.
  6. 6Deep DiveBIOS Files, Copyright, and the Law: The Real Rules Behind EmulationWhy emulator code, firmware, game images, dumping, distribution, and anti-circumvention are separate legal questions requiring local analysis.
  7. 7How-ToHow to Set Up RetroArch and Install Libretro CoresInstall RetroArch and trusted Libretro cores, configure writable data paths, verify firmware and controllers, and prove a clean game launch.
  8. 8Deep DiveHow Save States Work: Serializing an Entire Virtual Machine to DiskHow emulators serialize CPU, memory, devices, clocks, and pending events—and why completeness, determinism, versioning, and validation matter.
  9. 9FixFixing a Black Screen or a Game That Won't Launch in an EmulatorIsolate emulator black screens with verified content, lawful firmware, verbose logs, core requirements, clean overrides, and safe renderer tests.