🚀 Universal CHD Support & Enhanced RetroAchievements!
💿 CHD Support for Everyone!
We've massively expanded CHD support to emulators that lack native CHD format support. Simple Launcher now grants these emulators full CHD capability by leveraging our built-in CHDMounter tool. When you launch a CHD, it automatically mounts as a virtual drive in the background, allowing these emulators to run your compressed library seamlessly!
Newly Supported Emulators:
| Emulator | CHD Support |
|---|---|
| RPCS3 | Working since version 5.2 |
| Xemu | Working since version 5.2 |
| Xenia | Working since version 5.2 |
| Cxbx-Reloaded | Working since version 5.2 |
| Mednafen | NEW - Working |
| PCSX-Redux | NEW - Working |
| 4DO | NEW - Working |
| Gens | NEW - Working |
| Blastem | NEW - Working |
| Yabause | NEW - Working |
| Mesen | NEW - Working |
| FinalBurn Neo | NEW - Working |
| FinalBurn Alpha | NEW - Working |
| Raine | NEW - Working |
| CD-i Emulator ¹ | NEW - Working |
| Tsugaru | NEW - Working |
¹ This emulator has official CHD support that doesn't work properly - Simple Launcher fixes that for you!
🏆 RetroAchievements: Welcome to the Wii & More!
Achievement hunters, rejoice! We've overhauled our RetroAchievements integration:
- Nintendo Wii Support: Full support for the Wii, which recently received official RetroAchievements support
- Expanded System Aliases: Better matching for NEC PC-FX, SNES MSU1, and many more systems
🎨 Your Launcher, Your Style
New customization options put you in control:
- New Themes: Beautiful Midnight (Deep Blue) theme and High Contrast mode for better accessibility
- Adaptive Mode: Automatically syncs with your Windows Light/Dark mode settings
- Filename Preferences: "Clean Up" filenames in Grid View (removing tags like
[!]or(USA)) or hide filenames entirely for a pure, box-art-focused look - Font Size Control: Customize filename and machine name font sizes in game buttons
- Separate Thumbnail Sizes: Independent zoom controls for system selection and game view
🛡️ Smarter & Safer
- Elevation Detection: Detects games requiring Administrator privileges and notifies you immediately
- Safety Mechanisms: Automatically kills lingering
CHDMounterandSimpleZipDriveprocesses when closing games or the launcher - no more "ghost" virtual drives! - Startup Validation: Detects if running from a temporary folder (like inside a ZIP) and prompts you to extract it first
📚 Documentation & Help Improvements
- Enhanced Parameters Guide: Enhanced
parameters.mdwith official emulator download links and comprehensive parameter documentation - Markdown-Based Help: Migrated help system from XML to Markdown format for better readability
🔧 Technical Improvements
- API-Based Scanning: Microsoft Store game detection now uses a dynamic API for lighter, more accurate results
- Secure Connections: All metadata and image downloads now use TLS 1.2/1.3
- Resilient Saving: Improved file lock handling during saves for
settings.xml,system.xml,favorites.dat, andplayhistory.datwith retry logic and exponential backoff - Enhanced Error Handling: Better exception handling throughout the app with specific error types and improved logging
- Play Time Tracking: Refactored play time storage from strings to seconds for better accuracy
- Better Accessibility: Added automation properties to images and access keys to menu items
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Prerequisites:
- Install Dokan from GitHub for on-the-fly file mounting.
- Ensure you have the .NET 10 Runtime installed.
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Full Changelog: release5.2.0...release5.3.0