ArchLinux Retroarch guide

Published: Feb 19, 2019
Reading time: 2 min
Tags: Emulation, Games, Linux, Media, Snippets, Software

Installation

The latest retroarch can be installed on ArchLinux simply with the following command:

pacman -S retroarch

No need to install any other packages, the online updater (below) can take care of everything.

Launch retroarch to generate all your directories and config files. Exit by pressing the Esc key, and make the alterations below.

Configuration Changes

Edit $HOME/.config/retroarch/retroarch.cfg with your text editor of choice. Below are the values I’ve altered.

assets_directory = "~/.config/retroarch/assets"
libretro_directory = "~/.config/retroarch/cores"
libretro_info_path = "~/.config/retroarch/cores"
menu_show_core_updater = "true"
rgui_browser_directory = "~/media/games"
savefile_directory = "~/media/games/.saves"
savestate_directory = "~/media/games/.saves"
system_directory = "~/media/games/.firmware"
systemfiles_in_content_dir = "false"
video_fullscreen = "true"

Save the file and move on to the next step.

Assets

Now assets can be saved to a writeable directory, so start retroarch again and update the following:

Cores

Lastly, you want to select the cores you want to use, I have the following (usually best-in-slot) cores installed:

Updates