Batocera vs Lakka
Batocera
batocera.orgLakka
lakka.tvSide by side
| Figure | Batocera | Lakka |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | Free | Free |
| Free plan | Yes | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Windows | — | Yes |
| macOS | — | Yes |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| Self-hosted | Yes | Yes |
| Plans published | 1 | 1 |
| Spec score · Sega Genesis Emulators | 8.0 (#8) | 8.5 (#4) |
| Spec score · Emulation Frontends | 7.9 (#10) | 8.6 (#5) |
| Purpose | Batocera Linux is a free, open-source retro-gaming distribution that can turn a computer or nano computer into a gaming console. | Lakka is a lightweight Linux distribution that transforms a small computer into a retrogaming console. |
| Support | The project points users to its wiki and Discord for documentation and community support. | Users can get help through the documentation, FAQ, forums, IRC, Discord, and the GitHub bug tracker. |
| Supported hardware | Download builds are listed for desktop PCs, laptops, Intel-based Apple computers, handheld PCs, Raspberry Pi, Odroid boards, and other devices. | Officially supported computers include 32-bit and 64-bit PCs, Raspberry Pi 0 through 3, Cubieboard, Banana Pi, Cubox-i, Hummingboard, UDOO Quad, Odroid, and WeTek Play. |
| Updates | The documentation says major Batocera releases arrive semi-regularly with bug fixes, new features or systems, and performance upgrades. | The whole operating system can be updated or downgraded with a single download. |
Plans
In their own words
Batocera
Batocera Linux is a free, open-source Linux distribution that turns compatible computers and small devices into retro-gaming consoles. It can run from a USB stick or SD card without changing the computer, or be installed permanently. Download builds are listed for desktop PCs, laptops, Intel-based Apple computers, handheld PCs, Raspberry Pi, Odroid boards, and other devices. Batocera supports many consoles, platforms, emulators, and related applications through a front end based on a modified EmulationStation. Its content downloader provides freely distributed ROMs, bezels, music themes, and other enhancements, with packages handled by pacman. Documentation covers Netplay for supported games and integrations including Kodi, RetroAchievements, The Bezel Project, Syncthing, NAS storage, and a web server. Installation requires at least 16 GB of storage; 32 GB is recommended. Batocera focuses on retro gaming and will not implement emulators for current-generation consoles.
Lakka
Lakka is a lightweight Linux distribution that turns a small computer into a retrogaming console. It is built on LibreELEC and RetroArch, with RetroArch serving as its graphical interface and providing unified emulator configuration and joypad autoconfiguration. Listed features include automatic controller recognition, rewinding, netplay, and shaders. Official builds target Raspberry Pi, Allwinner, iMX6, Amlogic, and 32-bit and 64-bit PC systems. Installation uses USB images specific to the target hardware, and installation instructions cover GNU/Linux, Windows, and MacOS. The PC version is intended for dedicated hardware and does not support virtualization, dual boot, or CD and DVD installation. Users must supply their own ROMs; documentation also covers BIOS files. Netplay requires both players to use the same ROM, and cores without savestate support cannot use it. Lakka is community-driven and open source, and the listed price is free; required hardware is not included. The project says it remains under heavy development, so bugs, missing features, or unsupported hardware may occur.