An Atari Jaguar and Jaguar CD emulator packaged as a libretro core, so it runs in RetroArch and other libretro frontends. It emulates the 68000, GPU, DSP and Object Processor, plus the CD drive controller, link port, Memory Track and GameDrive. It continues the original Virtual Jaguar project (see Credits).
Website, downloads, compatibility and enhancement write-ups: jaguar.provenance-emu.com.
- RetroArch: Online Updater > Core Downloader > Atari - Jaguar (Virtual Jaguar).
- Releases: tagged builds are on GitHub Releases. Put the file in RetroArch's
coresfolder. - Nightly: the rolling
nightlyprerelease is rebuilt on every push todevelop. It is gated on compiling, not on the test suite.
Release builds cover Linux (x86_64, aarch64, i686, and Raspberry Pi 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5, each with its own CPU-tuned build, plus 64-bit builds for the Pi 3, 4 and 5), macOS (Apple Silicon, Intel), Windows (x64, x86), Android (arm64-v8a, armeabi-v7a, x86_64, x86), iOS (arm64), tvOS (arm64), WebAssembly (Emscripten), PS Vita and Nintendo Switch. The matrix is in release.yml. Other platforms get the core through the libretro buildbot.
None required. The Jaguar boot ROMs and CD BIOSes are embedded, and cartridges boot through a high-level BIOS by default. Optional external boot ROM and CD BIOS overrides, and exactly how they are found and checked, are in docs/bios.md.
| Type | Extensions | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Cartridge | j64, jag, rom, abs, cof, bin, prg |
Headerless raw homebrew is detected conservatively. Soft patching is covered in docs/rom-patches.md. |
| Jaguar CD | cue (with bin), cdi, chd |
.iso is not supported. CHD needs session metadata from a recent chdman; see docs/jagcd-chd.md. Each release attaches a suitable chdman as jagcd-tools-*.zip. |
The core can also start with no content and take a disc through RetroArch's disk control. Cartridge EEPROM/SRAM and the CD Memory Track are saved as <game>.srm in RetroArch's saves folder; save states go in states. Exception: a no-content session exposes the Memory Track as save RAM from the start (#810), but with no content the frontend has nothing to name the .srm after, so it is not per-game and is not named after the disc you insert. Load the disc as content for per-game saves.
- Jaguar CD: boots through a high-level CD BIOS (default) or the real CD BIOS on emulated BUTCH hardware; audio CDs and the Virtual Light Machine work. Memory Track saves are emulated. Load-time tuning:
docs/cd-read-speed.md. - Enhancements, all core options: true-color Gouraud shading, 2x internal resolution, widescreen, per-title defaults, and texture dump/replacement for HD packs. Overview and A/B images on the website; texture packs in
docs/texture-dump.md. - Speed: an accurate SIMD blitter (SSE2/NEON), idle-loop fast-forward for the GPU and DSP (on by default), and M68K and RISC clock-scale options. Which options help and which cancel each other:
docs/settings-and-performance-guide.md. - Save states, run-ahead, rewind, cheats, RetroAchievements: supported. The state format reads every version back to the first release, though a CD state is refused on a different disc (
docs/savestate-compat.md). - Controllers: joypad, Pro Controller, Team Tap, ST/Amiga mouse, Tempest rotary, analog and driving controllers, 6D stick and light gun, with per-axis tuning. See
docs/input-devices-user-guide.md. - Link play: JagLink/CatBox serial over TCP or RetroArch netplay, and the Voice Modem (
docs/netlink-user-guide.md,docs/voice-modem.md). - Jaguar GameDrive: detection and bank switching for GD-locked homebrew (
docs/jgd-interface-notes.md). - Debugging: a crash watchdog that writes the failure signature to the frontend log, and an optional GDB/LLDB stub (
docs/gdb-stub-guide.md).
Every option is documented in the core options menu and in the libretro docs, which can lag the newest release.
Nearly every cartridge and disc image in the maintainer's test corpus reaches game code, but some games are still broken, freeze, or run at the wrong speed. The website's compatibility page is the player-facing summary.
The committed boot matrices are headless regression gates, not completion certificates: docs/cart-boot-matrix.md and docs/cd-boot-matrix.md. The cartridge matrix runs only the Fast blitter, so it misses freezes that appear at default settings (#800). A reaching-game-code row does not mean a game is playable. Known problems are tracked in the v3.7.1 milestone, docs/cd-known-issues.md and docs/cart-issue-triage.md. libretro also keeps a community compatibility list.
If a game works or fails for you, tell us in Discussions and attach the frontend log.
make -j$(getconf _NPROCESSORS_ONLN) # build for the host platform
make -j$(getconf _NPROCESSORS_ONLN) DEBUG=1 # -O0 -g
make platform=ios-arm64 # cross-compile
make test # test suite (builds with TEST_EXPORTS=1)The result is virtualjaguar_libretro.{so,dylib,dll} in the repository root. The source is strict C89/GNU89 because the libretro buildbot uses MSVC; run bash scripts/c89-lint.sh before pushing. Platforms, cross-compiles and test details are in docs/agent/build.md and docs/agent/testing.md. Other docs: source layout, profiling, release process.
- Pull requests target
develop, notmaster. Branching, lint gates and commit style are in CONTRIBUTING.md. - Bugs: Issues; questions and compatibility reports: Discussions.
- Security reports: SECURITY.md. Do not file these as public issues.
- Release history:
docs/RELEASE_NOTES_v3.7.0.mdand the earlierdocs/RELEASE_NOTES_*.md.
- Original Virtual Jaguar by David Raingeard (Potato Emulation).
- SDL/Linux/Win32 port by Niels Wagenaar and Carwin Jones (SDLEMU).
- Cleanups, the Qt GUI and upstream maintenance by James Hammons (Shamus). The upstream repository was
shamusworld.gotdns.org/git/virtualjaguar; a GitHub mirror exists. - libretro port by libretro/RetroArch contributors; current maintainer Joseph Mattiello (@JoeMatt). Many Jaguar CD fixes in v3.7.0 are by Adrien Beudin (@beudbeud). Full list: contributors.
Licensed under the GNU General Public License v3.0.