RetroArch SNES Core Compatibility: What the Official Docs Cover

The libretro documentation includes an SNES core compatibility page that groups SNES emulation cores and, for some of them, gives compatibility claims or known game-specific issues. This article summarizes what that page states so you can use it as a starting reference when choosing a core or checking whether a reported issue is already documented.

What the documentation covers

The page is organized around specific SNES cores: bsnes 2014 Accuracy, bsnes-mercury Accuracy, bsnes 2014 Balanced, bsnes 2014 Performance, bsnes-mercury Performance, Snes9x 2005, Snes9x 2005 Plus, Snes9x 2010, Snes9x, higan Accuracy, and nSide Balanced. For the accuracy-oriented cores the docs make a full-compatibility statement; for the bsnes 2014 Balanced and bsnes 2014 Performance sections, the available source excerpt shows per-game issue tables rather than a blanket claim.

Cores the documentation describes as fully emulating all officially released SNES games

• The page states that the following cores fully emulate all SNES games that have ever been officially released:
• - bsnes 2014 Accuracy
• - bsnes-mercury Accuracy
• - higan Accuracy

Cores with documented game-specific issues

For several of the other cores, the page uses per-game tables that pair a game title with a described issue rather than making a blanket compatibility statement. The excerpt of the bsnes 2014 Balanced table shows A.S.P. Air Strike Patrol listed with black lines showing up during gameplay and the shadow below the aircraft missing, and the bsnes 2014 Performance table excerpt shows additional entries beyond that game.

• Example entries from the issue tables, as stated in the documentation:
• - bsnes 2014 Balanced — A.S.P. Air Strike Patrol: black lines show up during gameplay; the shadow below the aircraft is missing.
• - bsnes 2014 Performance — A.S.P. Air Strike Patrol: black lines show up during gameplay; the shadow below the aircraft is missing. Funaki Masakatsu Hybrid Wrestler – Tougi Denshou: corrupted graphics on the Pancrase logo screen. Mecarobot Golf: an issue affecting the ground rendering.

How to use the page

• 1. Open the SNES compatibility page in the libretro documentation set.
• 2. Find the section for the core you are considering or already using.
• 3. If the section states that the core fully emulates all officially released SNES games, treat that as the documentation's compatibility position for that core.
• 4. If the section contains a per-game table, scan for the game you are playing and read the described issue.
• 5. Where the section is not captured in the source excerpt you have, go back to the live page for the full text.

Limitations and scope

• - The page is a compatibility summary, not a setup tutorial; it does not walk through installation of cores or ROM placement.
• - Full-compatibility claims apply to officially released games, not to hacks, homebrew, or unreleased titles.
• - Issue descriptions are documentation notes; they are not reproduced here as confirmed behavior.
• - No independent testing was performed for this article.