Development Suggestions

[thingsiplay]

Suggestion: Automatic m3u-playlist creation when run with multiple games at once.

An option (preferrably through commandline option and/or a config setting) to automatically generate temporary .m3u files. The way how I imagine would work is when giving multiple ROM files over to RetroArch to run, then it will write a .m3u files with all the Rom paths/names in it. And instead play the .m3u file and maybe delete the file afterwards. On the commandline this could be an option like --m3u or explicitly named --m3u=FILE, when there is a more direct control needed without the file getting deleted automatically (for reuse).

Kind of similar in the idea of soft-patching .ips files. The idea is to run multiple disks as a single game. We can achieve this by manually writing a .m3u file already. I think this automation step would be nice to have.

[Hari-82]

Would be nice to have an option to disable the scan function in the file browser to avoid accidental scans.

By default the hotkey is a on a keyboard and Y button (left) on retropad.

[thingsiplay]

Suggestion: Import Playlist or Scan Playlist

We have the wonderful ability to easily create playlists. The problem is, we can’t easily share them in RetroArch, because of the file paths. At least with Roms known in the database (No-Intro set, Arcade sets and so on) this can still be automated using the RetroArch import Rom functionality on each Playlist entry.

The suggestion is to add a new import option called “Import Content” > “Scan Playlist”, which then goes over every game entry as if it was a directory and uses “Scan File” on it. It would then use the playlists original filename to determine to which playlist to add, instead putting it where it would go normally; meaning an imported Arcade game in example would not go to FBNeo or MAME, but to the imported playlist name.

[mike.shp]

Suggestion: In playlist settings, an option to replace the “, The” in the entry’s name that follows the no-intro format, with a human-friendly looking "The " in the beginning of the name, automatically. Just like we have an option to “remove () and []” right now, it seems to be a very simple string manipulation. Thank you.

[SkyHighGam3r]

@Hari-82

Would be nice to have the handling of options files ( .opt ) with an option similar to Simple Preset that we have in shaders saving.

Now when we save an option file for a game it will save all the parameters but, let’s say, we have a Core Options file saved the new game.opt would contain just the parameters that differ from the core.opt .

THIS^^ There are options I want to change universally, and there are options I only want to change per game. As soon as I create a single per-game file, I’m having to micro-manage it to keep it in-step with my primary core options settings, just to keep it respecting that ‘one’ setting I needed that ‘one’ game to have.

@GemaH

An option to delete save states via the UI would be nice.

This would be amazing, especially if it could give a quick indicator - like a green check or red x - to show if the corresponding game for a savestate and SRM file doesn’t exist anymore. So many redundant saves in my setup after a decade of using RetroArch, rebuilding, redownloading roms from different sets, updating naming schemes, swapping cores, etc etc.

I just had to throw points this way I love both these ideas so much.

[Bobbobbob]

I thought it would be cool if you added support for retroarch on roku devices

[Bobbobbob]

And why not amazon firestick as well the more support the better

[thingsiplay]

It is available on Amazon store and one of the comments said it works on Firestick: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09753XRVF in Spanish:

Sin duda es una gran opción para jugar tus juegos retro en tu dispositivo Fire Stick

Automated translation into English:

Without a doubt, it’s a great option to play your retro games on your Fire Stick device.

[md2mcb]

There could be an option inside settings > playlists for refreshing and cleaning all of your current playlists. Currently, if you add/remove/rename games from a bunch of them, you need to go and rmanually refresh each playlist.

[Ktr4ks]

Suggestion: “Save Runtime Log (Per Content Directory)”

Currently it’s only possible to sort runtime logs per core, or everything on a single folder (aggregated)

As someone who uses Retroarch on low-end portable devices, I often end up having to use multiple cores for a game, for one reason or another. However, doing this results on my playtime being split between two log files if I sort my runtime logs per core. The “aggregate” sorting option is also not a good solution, because games from different systems with the same name will conflict and share the same log file.

This option would also be very convenient if you use different cores on different devices and you wanted to sync runtime logs between devices. RetroArch already allows sorting of other data, like saves, per content directory, so it would be logical to extend this feature to runtime logs as well.

[alexandre310578]

Versão em Português Sugestão de integração de armazenamento em nuvem com Google Drive

Olá, equipe RetroArch!

Primeiramente, agradeço pelo excelente trabalho no desenvolvimento do RetroArch, que facilita o acesso e a configuração de jogos clássicos de maneira prática e intuitiva.

Gostaria de sugerir uma funcionalidade que acredito ser muito útil para a comunidade: a integração com armazenamento em nuvem, com destaque para o Google Drive. Essa funcionalidade permitiria que as ROMs fossem armazenadas na nuvem e carregadas diretamente pelo RetroArch, poupando espaço nos dispositivos e facilitando o acesso remoto aos jogos. Acredito que o Google Drive seria uma opção ideal pela sua popularidade e integração ampla em diversas plataformas, mas seria interessante considerar também a compatibilidade com serviços como Dropbox, OneDrive e iCloud, que são amplamente utilizados.

Acredito que essa funcionalidade traria praticidade e mais flexibilidade, além de economizar o armazenamento interno em dispositivos móveis e consoles com capacidade limitada.

Obrigado pela atenção e pela dedicação ao projeto, e espero que considerem essa sugestão!

English Version Cloud Storage Integration Suggestion with Google Drive

Hello, RetroArch team!

First, thank you for the excellent work on RetroArch, which makes accessing and configuring classic games practical and user-friendly.

I’d like to suggest a feature that I believe would be highly useful for the community: cloud storage integration, specifically with Google Drive. This feature would allow ROMs to be stored in the cloud and loaded directly through RetroArch, saving device space and facilitating remote access to games. I believe Google Drive would be an ideal option due to its popularity and extensive cross-platform integration, but it would also be helpful to consider compatibility with other widely used services such as Dropbox, OneDrive, and iCloud.

This functionality could offer more flexibility and convenience while also saving internal storage on mobile devices and consoles with limited capacity.

Thank you for your attention and dedication to the project, and I hope you’ll consider this suggestion!

[thingsiplay]

[x] Enable extended wildcard support for configs files

Evaluate asterisk * and question mark ? as wildcards to match file and directory names. In example config/SameBoy/*(SGB Enhanced)*.slangp" could match automatically all Game Boy Roms with that Super Game Boy enhancements in one configuration file.

Another use case is in example multiple directories with a single config file like config/SameBoy/gb_*.opt, instead gb_homebrew_itchio.opt, gb_mods, gb_nointro, gb_translations and so on, for each subdirectory. And this multiplied for gbc games, and the .slangp, .cfg and .opt files.

Off course my personal mess is just the extreme situation and not applicable for most people. But I think once this is implemented, it would be very useful for those who have a more complex setup.