Nearcade vs Skraper
Nearcade
github.comSkraper
skraper.netSide by side
| Figure | Nearcade | Skraper |
|---|---|---|
| Price from | — | Free |
| Free plan | — | Yes |
| Free trial | — | — |
| Open source | — | — |
| Web | Yes | — |
| Windows | Yes | Yes |
| macOS | Yes | — |
| Linux | Yes | Yes |
| API | Yes | — |
| Self-hosted | Yes | — |
| Plans published | 0 | 1 |
| Spec score · ROM Management Software | 7.9 (#8) | 7.2 (#24) |
| Linux requirements | Linux hosting requires PipeWire and the uinput kernel module; the app does not work with PulseAudio. | The site says Linux use requires the latest mono-complete package and recommends keeping WINE up to date. |
| Purpose | Nearcade is an open-source, self-hosted platform for playing local co-op games over the internet with friends. | Skraper adds game metadata and media to retro-gaming software, including artwork, screenshots, flyers, 3D boxes, and verified text information. |
| Support | The repository links setup guides, host usage instructions, API and setup documentation, and VPS server setup instructions. | For issues, the site directs users to the ScreenScraper forum or Discord. |
| Windows requirements | Windows gamepad support requires manually installing the ViGEmBus driver. | Skraper is a .NET application and may require .NET Framework 4.8.1 on Windows. |
Plans
In their own words
Nearcade
Nearcade is a free, open-source, self-hosted platform for playing local co-op games over the internet with friends. A host runs the game, while viewers join from a desktop or mobile web browser without installing a client. Streaming uses WebCodecs or WebRTC and peer-to-peer connections. Hosts can allow gamepad input, raw keyboard and mouse, or keyboard and mouse mapped to a virtual gamepad; mobile viewers get touch controls and a virtual joystick. Sessions can use private Cloudflare or Zrok tunnels, or appear in the public Nearcade Arcade lobby. Public Arcade sessions are limited to 80 minutes and require a verified tunneling provider. A host needs Node.js 18 or newer and Python 3. Linux also requires PipeWire and the uinput module, while Windows gamepad support requires ViGEmBus. Linux is listed as production-stable; Windows and macOS are experimental, and macOS lacks gamepad support. The project is published under GPL-3.0 and provides setup, usage, API, and VPS server documentation.
Skraper
Skraper is a free, non-commercial, non-profit application that adds metadata and media to retro-gaming software. It uses the community-fed ScreenScraper.fr database for artwork, screenshots, flyers, 3D boxes, and verified text information. The site advertises support for more than 200 systems and hundreds of thousands of media items and records. Skraper can provide EmulationStation metadata through Recalbox and RetroPie and fill LaunchBox game lists and images. Listed capabilities include game maps, manuals, Pad-2-Keyboard, Tips & Tricks, archive side-file filtering, and file renaming. A local cache, optimization, and multithreading reduce bandwidth use and increase speed. XML mixes can combine remote and local resources with positioning, resizing, rotation, color filters, and text or image layers. Windows may require .NET Framework 4.8.1. Linux requires the latest mono-complete package, with WINE kept up to date recommended. There is no native macOS build. ScreenScraper.fr anonymously records ROM or game names and checksums, which may be validated and added to its database.