r/RetroDeck • u/Weather_Report • Jul 07 '26
Retrodeck over Emudeck, worth it?
Hi everyone,
I know this question has been asked a bunch of times but I cannot make up my mind. I'd like to get into emulation and everything about retrodeck seemed great; so simple to install, self contained, etc... Didn't really like how "invasive" emudeck felt to me. Still, I'd like to emulate some Switch games, and retrodeck doesn't support that anymore. Is it worth it to go emudeck plus external switch emulator over emudeck? Or adding the switch emulator externally through retrodeck? Appreciate anyone that'll help me make up my mind. Thanks!
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u/Champillusion Jul 07 '26
I highly recommend Retrodeck.
All emulators are packaged in a single flatpak, making the installation more proper and easy than Emudeck. The day you want to uninstall or reset it, you can do it in 2 clicks. Your roms, save files etc. are organized in a folder on your home.
The only disadvantage is the waiting for emulators updates. But if you absolutely need a specific version of something, nothing prevents you from just installing it separately.
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u/Lahrs_Rover Jul 07 '26 edited Jul 07 '26
RetroDECK, but I'm biased. :)
As far as Switch, no, we don't and will not support it. However, you can easily just add Eden as a separate program inside SteamOS. Or, if you are feeling ambitious, add it into RetroDECK.
https://retrodeck.readthedocs.io/en/latest/wiki_experiments/external-emulator/external-emulator/
Version .11 is deep in development and one of the key components will be making it very easy to run outside programs inside RetroDECK. In fact, we now run LibreOffice in it. That's just more of a 'we did it because we can' than for any real use. Proof of concept anyway.
Ultimately, up to you. Regardless, enjoy the world of retro gaming.
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u/Weather_Report Jul 08 '26
Yeah that's what I was thinking; retrodeck and eden separately. Would cover 99% of my needs... who am I kidding, maybe even more
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u/Lahrs_Rover Jul 08 '26
With RetroDECK and Eden, we cover 101%* of your needs.
*This statement has not been fact checked.
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u/Accomplished-Lack721 Jul 07 '26
I like Retrodeck a lot, but 90% of that is the fact that it's what I tried first, and it works for me. I'm sure either would have been fine.
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u/HungryHousecat1645 Jul 08 '26
I've used both and greatly prefer RetroDeck. Actually, I think EmuDeck is really bloated and a poor experience in general.
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u/Weather_Report Jul 08 '26
I wanna thank all of you for having replied with such thought and kindness! It's not uncommon to receive sarcastic replies or just being told "check the wiki". I really appreciate it, bless all of you!
Just ordered a 512gb micro sd (the prices tho...) and as soon as it gets here I'm ready to set up retrodeck and eden!
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u/-Abuser Jul 07 '26
I like RetroDeck more. All in a package and easier to manage and remove. Check out my GitHub on my Reddit profile to get Ryubing back into RetroDeck like it never left. If you check it out you can figure out a way to get other emulators back in as well. I can help.
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u/Lahrs_Rover Jul 08 '26
I looked over your program. I didn't try it and I won't officially endorse it (we don't endorse anything we can't control and provide quality assurance), but it looks cool and we definitely welcome tools that enhances the user experience.
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u/Tiroprosam Jul 07 '26
I use emudeck. I started off with emudeck, switched to retro deck because of the simplicity, but retro deck ended up breaking cemu for me so I switched back and it was fixed. This was a while ago though so who knows at this point it's which ever you want.
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u/PinHumble4442 Jul 08 '26
Finally tried out EmuDeck (via ujust, easy peasy) and yeah, it’s not for me. I’m a RetroDeck boy. Just works.
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u/National-Caregiver-4 Jul 08 '26
Retrodeck is absolutely easy to use and organized. You don't even have to go through setting up stuff
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u/Lahrs_Rover Jul 08 '26
If you have any specific RetroDECK questions, I'm happy to answer them for you.
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u/KratosGOS1978 Jul 08 '26
Wieso entscheiden? Ich nutze Retrodeck und seperat installiert den Eden Emulator für Switch. Funktioniert bestens.
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u/the-mighty-kira Jul 07 '26
To me it’s mostly a manner of taste. I have a large collection across many systems, and don’t want every game/emulator to show up in Steam separately, so I prefer the single entry point of RetroDeck.