NeoCD/SDL vs NeoRAGEx

NeoCD/SDL is a port of the NeoCD NeoGeo CD emulator to the SDL library. It can run many original NeoGeo CD games and is listed for Windows, Linux, BeOS, and Dreamcast; the project also lists ports for Xbox and PlayStation 2. Each of two players can use a keyboard or a separate joystick. Keyboard shortcuts control fullscreen display, video effects, frameskip, sound, screenshots, and quitting. To run the emulator, users need an uncompressed 512kb system ROM named neocd.bin. The documentation says users are not entitled to a copy of the copyrighted BIOS unless they own an original NeoGeo CD console. The emulator and its source code are free, but selling is not allowed, and the emulator cannot be provided on the same physical medium as NeoGeo game software. Source code and technical knowledge may be reused only for non-commercial purposes. Downloads include source and binary files. Windows builds require MinGW, MSYS, SDL development libraries, and NASM; Linux builds require SDL source and NASM. The program is distributed without warranty.

NeoRAGEx 5.4e is a free Neo·Geo emulator for playing arcade games on Windows 10 and 11. Its portable edition can run without installation from a USB drive. Display options include CRT effects such as scanlines, curvature, bloom, and vignette, as well as pixel sharp mode. Fullscreen supports integer scaling and 4:3 or widescreen aspect ratios. Xbox, PlayStation, arcade stick, and generic controllers are supported, with automatic detection and button remapping. Save states, rewind, and screenshots are included. The listed minimum requirements are 64-bit Windows 10 or 11, a dual-core 2.0 GHz CPU, 2 GB RAM, and a DirectX 9-or-newer compatible GPU. NeoRAGEx does not include games or BIOS; it requires a neogeo.zip BIOS file and users’ own ROM files. The download page publishes SHA-256 and MD5 checksums for the installer, and the site links to setup, configuration, and troubleshooting guides. The project describes itself as independent and unaffiliated with or backed by SNK.