Best MESS Alternatives & Competitors in 2025

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

Key RetroArch features:

Versatility Cross-Platform Support High Customizability Rich Feature Set

RetriX is an emulator front end for UWP, on all the hardware platforms it supports: it serves the...

Key RetriX features:

User Interface Multi-System Emulation Regular Updates Open-Source

Powerful, fast, and budget-friendly game server hosting for Minecraft, Rust and more.

Key craftlands.host features:

Instant Setup Mod & Plugin Support Full FTP Access

Try for free paid Free Trial €2.0 / Monthly (2GB of ram)

Mesen is a NES/Famicom emulator and NSF player.

Key Mesen features:

High Accuracy Feature-rich Open Source Cross-platform Support

Open Source

Bottlenose is a high quality front-end companion app for video game emulators!

Key Bottlenose features:

Unified Interface Ease of Use Multiple Emulator Support Game Library Management

Snes9x is a portable, Super Nintendo Entertainment System (SNES) emulator.

Key Snes9x features:

Wide Compatibility High Game Compatibility Save State Feature Low System Requirements

Open Source

RetroX is an Android application that will help you organize and play your own Retro Games with the...

Key RetroX features:

Wide Game Library User-Friendly Interface Cloud Storage Regular Updates

bsnes is a Super Nintendo (SNES) emulator focused on performance, features, and ease of use.

Key BSNES features:

Accuracy Compatibility Feature-Rich Cross-Platform Support

ZSNES is a Super Nintendo Entertainment System emulator.

Key ZSNES features:

High Compatibility Low System Requirements Easy to Use Rewind Function

Open Source

Kega Fusion is an emulator for the Sega Genesis / Megadrive, Master System, Game Gear, 32x...

Key Kega Fusion features:

High Compatibility Accuracy User-Friendly Interface Multiple Platform Support

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

Key LaunchBox features:

User-Friendly Interface Wide Emulator Support Customizability Big Box Mode

FCEUX is a Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), Famicom, and Famicom Disk System (FDS) emulator.

Key FCEUX features:

Versatile Emulator Extensive Debugging Tools TAS Support Cross-Platform Compatibility

BlueStacks is a website designed to format mobile apps to be compatible to desktop computers, opening up mobile gaming to laptops and other computers. Read more about BlueStacks.

Key BlueStacks features:

Wide Compatibility User-Friendly Interface Performance Enhancements Regular Updates

Eclipse is a multi-platform emulator of Game Boy Advance and Nintendo DS games.

Key Eclipse emu features:

Cross-Platform Compatibility Multiple Console Support User-Friendly Interface No Download Required