Why Use Playback?

Playback isn’t just another emulator — it’s a complete platform designed around your physical game cartridges. Here’s what makes it different.

Play your actual games

Traditional emulators require game files downloaded from the internet. Playback works directly with your physical cartridges through the Operator device.

Security

Pirated game files from the internet can contain malware. Malicious files can exploit emulator vulnerabilities to install unwanted software on your computer. Using your own cartridges avoids the risk — you’re running authentic game data from trusted hardware.

Automatic save protection

The Save Vault is always running in the background:

• 250 automatic backups per game, created as you play
• Timestamped saves so you can restore any point in time
• No configuration needed — just play and your saves are protected
• Cartridge battery dies? Restore your progress in seconds

Traditional emulators have save states, but they require manual management and aren’t stored in multiple backup copies.

Cartridge authenticity verification

Insert any cartridge and Playback immediately tells you if it’s:

• Official — Matches known official release, no counterfeit markers detected
• Unofficial — A reproduction or flashcart
• Unrecognized — Needs investigation

This helps you verify your collection by comparing cartridges against our database and checking for typical counterfeit markers. No other emulator can do this.

Seamless cartridge-to-computer workflow

Two-way save transfers

• Back up your cartridge save to your computer
• Continue in an emulator on another device
• Transfer that progress back to your cartridge
• Play on original hardware with your updated save

Autosave to Cartridge

Enable this feature and your physical cartridge stays up-to-date with every save:

• Put the cartridge in your Game Boy® — your latest progress is there
• Lend a game to a friend with your save intact
• The cartridge behaves exactly like playing on original hardware

Real cartridge features work

Because Playback reads from actual cartridges, hardware features work correctly:

Real-time clocks

Games with real-time clocks track actual time on the cartridge. Playback can use your cartridge’s RTC chip, preserving time-based events accurately. See RTC Games for details.

Game Boy Camera

• Take new photos through the camera sensor
• Download existing photos to your computer as PNG files
• Use it as a retro webcam for streaming

Special chips

SNES® enhancement chips (SuperFX, SA-1, DSP, etc.) are read directly from the cartridge. No need to find and configure separate chip files.

Quality-of-life features

Playback adds modern conveniences while respecting the original experience:

Powered by proven emulation

Playback uses industry-standard emulator cores:

• mGBA for Game Boy / Game Boy Color® / Game Boy Advance®
• bsnes for Super Nintendo

These are the same cores trusted by the retro gaming community, integrated into a polished experience.

Works offline

Playback works without an internet connection. Some features like RetroAchievements and Discord integration require online access, but you can play your games anywhere.

Cover art may not display for unrecognized games when offline, but gameplay is unaffected.

Cross-platform support

Playback runs on:

• Windows
• macOS® (Intel and Apple Silicon)
• Linux (x86_64 and ARM64)
• Steam Deck
• Raspberry Pi

Your Operator device works identically across all platforms.

The difference summarized