As MAME is also available as Libretro core, you could also use RetroArch as frontend.Ī lot of arcade games were coin-operated, so when you start a game you might wonder: 'how do I insert a coin?' The answer can be found in the input configuration, but let me spoil it for you: keys '5' to '8' on your keyboard insert coins for players 1-4 and keys '1' to '4' are the start-buttons for those players. If you do not like this menu, there are a few other options: the MAMEUI port (which, as the name suggests, adds a Windows user-interface to MAME) or frontends. As of version 0.162 MAME absorbed its sister-project MESS (Multi Emulator Super System) which means it is also capable of playing games for classic game consoles.Īlthough MAME is a 'command-line' application, as of version 0.171, you will get a simple 'DOS-like' menu when you open it where you can do the usual things of selecting games and changing the configuration. The intent of this emulator is preservation the ability to play games is considered a 'side-effect.' MAME supports thousands of classic arcade games, although not all of them are playable. MAME is an acronym for Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator.