Video game console emulator

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Video game console emulator" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (February 2015) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

A video game console emulator is a type of emulator that allows a computing device^{[fn 1]} to emulate a video game console's hardware and play its games on the emulating platform. More often than not, emulators carry additional features that surpass limitations of the original hardware, such as broader controller compatibility, timescale control (such as fast-forwarding and rewinding), easier access to memory modifications (like GameShark),^[1] and unlocking of gameplay features.^{[citation needed]} Emulators are also a useful tool in the development process of homebrew demos and the creation of new games for older, discontinued, or rare consoles.^{[citation needed]}

The code and data of a game are typically supplied to the emulator by means of a ROM file (a copy of game cartridge data) or an ISO image (a copy of optical media).^{[citation needed]} While emulation software itself are legal,^[2][3] emulating games is only so when legitimately purchasing the game physically and ripping the contents. Freely downloading or uploading game ROMs across various internet sites is considered to be a form of piracy,^[4] and users may be sued for copyright infringement.^[5][6]

Cite error: There are <ref group=fn> tags on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=fn}} template (see the help page).