dasShiny vs DeSmuME

dasShiny is a free Nintendo DS emulator for Linux, macOS, and Windows. The maker describes it as highly experimental and aims it at people familiar with cartridge folders and recent BSNES versions. Its interface looks for a gamefolder.nds/manifest.xml file; a blank manifest directs it to a ROM in gamefolder.nds/rom, which can be up to 1 GB. Setup requires ARM7 and ARM9 BIOS files and firmware, and the maker advises backing up rewritable firmware. The emulator can load homebrew ROMs, but it does not implement DLDI support for FAT access, so software that depends on that access may not work. Games listed as known to run include Super Mario 64, Mario Kart DS, and Animal Crossing: Wild World, along with several demos. Pokémon Diamond/Pearl is reported to save but crash at the load menu. For 3D, the maker says a high-end Core 2, i5, or i7 is pretty much mandatory in the described context. Windows users are advised to choose XAudio2 over DirectSound.

DeSmuME is a free emulator that attempts to reproduce the Nintendo DS and Nintendo DS Lite handheld consoles. It runs on Windows, Linux, and macOS, and supports the D-pad, buttons, and touch screen, along with a Lid control for changing the emulated system's folded state. Graphics options include a software SoftRasterizer and an OpenGL-based renderer. Audio samples can use linear or cosine interpolation, or no interpolation; microphone input can come from hardware audio or software-generated samples. The Windows port can capture screenshots, AVI video, and WAV audio, as well as record TAS gameplay movies. Users can save and load game states, though the Windows manual warns that states may break between emulator versions. Cheat search and editing are available, and Action Replay codes are supported in post-0.9.2 development builds. Wi-Fi support is experimental and unsupported, and the project discourages end users from using it. The software is distributed under the GNU General Public License. DSi emulation is not supported.