Atari800 vs Stella
Atari800
atari800.github.ioStella
stella-emu.github.ioSide by side
| Figure | Atari800 | Stella |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| Android | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 1 | 1 |
| Spec score · Atari Emulators | 8.1 (#4) | 7.3 (#14) |
| Controllers | It supports real joysticks and emulates paddles, light pens, light guns, mice, trackballs and other controllers. | Stella emulates Atari and other controllers using a computer keyboard, joystick, or mouse, and supports real Atari controllers through Stelladaptor and 2600-daptor devices. |
| Emulation | It supports cycle-exact 6502, NMI, POKEY, ANTIC and GTIA emulation. | Features include cycle-exact TIA video and sound emulation, stereo sound support, and dynamic sound resampling. |
| Purpose | Atari800 emulates Atari 8-bit computer systems and the Atari 5200 game console. | Stella is software that emulates the Atari 2600 VCS so users can play its games on a computer. |
Plans
In their own words
Atari800
Atari800 emulates Atari 8-bit computer systems and the Atari 5200 game console. It supports cycle-exact emulation of the 6502 processor and the NMI, POKEY, ANTIC and GTIA components. The emulator handles ATR, XFD, DCM, ATR.GZ and XFD.GZ disk images, with up to eight emulated drives. It can load Atari executable files and BASIC programs, emulate cassette tapes, and save files to the host computer through the H: device. Users can connect real joysticks or emulate paddles, light pens, light guns, mice and trackballs. Atari800 can save screen snapshots as PCX or PNG and write sound output to WAV files. It runs on Linux, Windows, macOS and Android; source and binary packages are available through GitHub releases, with Linux package instructions for Debian and Fedora. The project describes Atari800 as freely distributable, with source under GPL version 2. Its release notes describe NetSIO and FujiNet support for network SIO over UDP. Atari800 is written in C, and a BIOS is required.
Stella
Stella is free, open-source software for playing Atari 2600 VCS games on a computer. It runs on Windows, macOS, and Linux under the GNU General Public License. It supports A26, BIN, and ROM images, including files in ZIP archives, as well as Supercharger games. Atari and other controllers can be emulated with a keyboard, joystick, or mouse; real Atari controllers can be used through Stelladaptor and 2600-daptor devices. Emulation features include cycle-exact TIA video and sound, stereo support, and dynamic sound resampling. Stella provides save and load for system states, automatic timeline recording, and high-score saving. Display support covers NTSC, PAL, and SECAM, with customizable CRT-style filters and bezels. A debugger offers static analysis using the Distella disassembler and runtime analysis of code, graphics, and data. The project names homebrew developers among its intended users. General requirements include SDL 2.0.14 or later and 256 MB of RAM for emulation; stable downloads include Windows binaries, a macOS disk image, an Ubuntu 22.04 DEB package, and source code for all systems.