Attract-Mode vs RetroHub

Attract-Mode is a graphical frontend for command-line emulators such as MAME, MESS, and Nestopia. It is intended for arcade cabinets and control by joystick, gamepad, or spin dial, and runs on Windows, OS X, and Linux, including Raspberry Pi and Odroid. Users can import game lists, generate lists from emulator directories, and set launch commands for individual games. The frontend can retrieve missing game details and artwork from TheGamesDB, Progetto-Snaps, and adb.arcadeitalia.net. Controls can be assigned to joystick, keyboard, or mouse inputs, including combinations. A built-in configuration menu has on-screen help, and settings are stored in text files. Layouts can be scripted in Squirrel and customized with themes, animations, and GLSL shaders. It supports media formats supported by FFmpeg and SWF files through gameswf. The feature list also names Steam support and plug-ins for extensions or integration with external programs. Attract-Mode is free and open source under the GNU General Public License v3. Pause functionality for returning to the frontend and resuming an emulator is listed only for Linux and Windows versions.

RetroHub is a free frontend for organizing, displaying, and launching a retro-game library on Windows, macOS, and Linux. A first-time setup wizard helps configure it, and users can import games and settings from supported frontends. The app supports more than 80 systems and more than 50 emulators, while allowing users to add settings for others; it does not include emulators. Game metadata and media can be customized, and the built-in ScreenScraper feature can identify games by file hash or filename and fetch related information and images. ScreenScraper applies hourly and daily API quotas, and scraped media for a large library may take more than 1 GB of disk space. Users can change themes, and theme development can shape the interface and add features. Inputs include keyboard, mouse, controller, and touch; keyboard and controller actions can be remapped. The interface adapts to screen size and aspect ratio and includes a screen-reader option. RetroAchievements is an optional integration. Source code is MIT-licensed, while official builds use GPLv3 due to bundled third-party libraries.