Launchers

Zaparoo Core includes launcher definitions for MiSTer's standard systems. During a media database update, it scans the expected game folders for supported files and associates each game with the matching MiSTer core. Games launch via MGL files generated by Zaparoo, following the official folder structure set by Downloader.

Zaparoo also indexes .mgl files placed directly in your games folders. Drop a custom MGL shortcut into a games folder and it gets picked up by the media database, so it shows up in browse and search and can be launched by title like any other game.

MiSTer unstable nightly cores using the standard <core>_unstable_YYYYMMDD_<hash>.rbf filename can provide a system's launcher when the regular core is not installed. If several matching nightlies exist, Core uses the newest dated filename. A regular core with the exact expected name still takes priority.

After adding or replacing an RBF file, select Settings > Advanced > Reload Core in the terminal UI or run -reload to force a filesystem rescan. Then update the media database if the system or its games still need to be indexed.

ZIP archives

On MiSTer, Zaparoo treats ZIP archives like folders. It can index, browse, and launch supported files inside an archive through the normal launcher for that file type. This applies across MiSTer launchers and does not require .zip to appear as a direct media extension in the tables below.

For example, Zaparoo can browse a ZIP containing a supported SNES ROM as a folder and launch the ROM inside through the SNES launcher. This behavior is specific to MiSTer. On other platforms, Zaparoo cannot browse or launch a file inside a ZIP archive, although an individual launcher may support the ZIP file itself as media.

Supported Systems

Console Systems

System ID	Folders	Extensions
3DO	3DO	.iso, .cue, .chd
AdventureVision	AVision	.bin
Arcadia	Arcadia	.bin
AmigaCD32	AmigaCD32	.cue, .chd, .iso
Astrocade	Astrocade	.bin
Atari2600	ATARI7800, Atari2600	.a26, .bin
Atari5200	ATARI5200	.car, .a52, .bin, .rom
Atari7800	ATARI7800	.a78, .bin
AtariLynx	AtariLynx	.lnx
CasioPV1000	Casio_PV-1000	.bin
CDI	CD-i	.cue, .chd
ChannelF	ChannelF	.rom, .bin
ColecoVision	Coleco	.col, .bin, .rom
CreatiVision	CreatiVision	.rom, .bin, .bas
FDS	NES, FDS	.fds
Gamate	Gamate	.bin
Gameboy	GAMEBOY	.gb
GameboyColor	GAMEBOY, GBC	.gbc
Gameboy2P	GAMEBOY2P	.gb, .gbc
GameGear	SMS, GameGear	.gg
GameGear2P	GameGear2P	.gg
GameNWatch	GameNWatch	.bin
GBA	GBA	.gba
GBA2P	GBA2P	.gba
Genesis	MegaDrive, Genesis	.gen, .bin, .md
Intellivision	Intellivision	.rom, .int, .bin
Jaguar	Jaguar	.jag, .j64, .rom, .bin
JaguarCD	Jaguar	.cdi
MasterSystem	SMS	.sms
MegaCD	MegaCD	.cue, .chd
MegaDuck	GAMEBOY, MegaDuck	.bin
NeoGeo	NEOGEO	.neo, .zip (folders)
NeoGeoMVS	NEOGEO	.neo, .zip (folders)
NeoGeoCD	NeoGeo-CD, NEOGEO	.cue, .chd
NeoGeoPocket	NGP	.ngp
NeoGeoPocketColor	NGPC	.ngc
NES	NES	.nes
NESMusic	NES	.nsf
Nintendo64	N64	.n64, .z64
Odyssey2	ODYSSEY2	.bin
PocketChallengeV2	WonderSwan, PocketChallengeV2	.pc2
PokemonMini	PokemonMini	.min
PSX	PSX	.cue, .chd, .exe
Saturn	Saturn	.cue, .chd
Sega32X	S32X	.32x
SG1000	SG1000, Coleco, SMS	.sg
SNES	SNES	.sfc, .smc, .bin, .bs
SNESMusic	SNES	.spc
SuperGameboy	SGB	.sgb, .gb, .gbc
SuperGrafx	TGFX16	.sgx
SuperVision	SuperVision	.bin, .sv
TurboGrafx16	TGFX16	.pce, .bin
TurboGrafx16CD	TGFX16-CD	.cue, .chd
VC4000	VC4000	.bin
Vectrex	VECTREX	.vec, .bin, .rom
VirtualBoy	VirtualBoy	.vb
WonderSwan	WonderSwan	.ws
WonderSwanColor	WonderSwan, WonderSwanColor	.wsc

Computer Systems

System ID	Folders	Extensions
AcornAtom	AcornAtom	.vhd
AcornElectron	AcornElectron	.vhd
AliceMC10	AliceMC10	.c10
Amiga	Amiga	.adf
Amstrad	Amstrad	.dsk, .cdt, .sna
AmstradPCW	Amstrad PCW	.dsk
Apogee	APOGEE	.rka, .rkr, .gam
AppleI	Apple-I	.txt
AppleII	Apple-II	.dsk, .do, .po, .nib, .hdv
AppleIIGS	Apple-IIgs	.hdv, .po, .2mg, .woz, .dsk, .do, .nib
AppleLisa	LISA	.img, .vhd
Aquarius	AQUARIUS	.bin, .caq
Atari800	ATARI800	.atr, .xex, .xfd, .atx, .car, .rom, .bin
BBCMicro	BBCMicro	.ssd, .dsd, .vhd
BK0011M	BK0011M	.bin, .dsk, .vhd
C16	C16	.d64, .g64, .prg, .tap, .bin
C64	C64	.d64, .g64, .t64, .d81, .prg, .crt, .reu, .tap
CasioPV2000	Casio_PV-2000	.bin
CoCo2	CoCo2	.dsk, .cas, .ccc, .rom
DOS	AO486, /media/fat/_DOS Games	.mgl, .vhd, .img, .ima, .vfd, .iso, .cue, .chd
EDSAC	EDSAC	.tap
Galaksija	Galaksija	.tap
Interact	Interact	.cin, .k7
Jupiter	Jupiter	.ace
Laser	Laser	.vz
Lynx48	Lynx48	.tap
MacPlus	MACPLUS	.dsk, .img, .vhd
MSX	MSX	.vhd
MSX1	MSX1	.dsk, .rom
MultiComp	MultiComp	.img
Orao	ORAO	.tap
Oric	Oric	.dsk
PCXT	PCXT	.img, .vhd, .ima, .vfd
PDP1	PDP1	.bin, .rim, .pdp
PET2001	PET2001	.prg, .tap
PMD85	PMD85	.rmm
QL	QL	.mdv, .win
RX78	RX78	.bin
SAMCoupe	SAMCOUPE	.dsk, .mgt, .img
SordM5	Sord M5	.bin, .rom, .cas
Specialist	SPMX	.rks, .odi
SVI328	SVI328	.cas, .bin, .rom
TatungEinstein	TatungEinstein	.dsk
TI994A	TI-99_4A	.bin, .m99
TomyTutor	TomyTutor	.bin, .cas
TRS80	TRS-80	.dsk, .jvi, .cmd, .cas
TSConf	TSConf	.vhd
UK101	UK101	.txt, .bas, .lod
Vector06C	VECTOR06	.rom, .com, .c00, .edd, .fdd
VIC20	VIC20	.d64, .g64, .prg, .tap, .crt
X68000	X68000	.d88, .hdf, .mgl
ZX81	ZX81	.p, .0
ZXSpectrum	Spectrum	.tap, .csw, .tzx, .sna, .z80, .trd, .img, .dsk, .mgt, .vhd
ZXNext	ZXNext	.vhd, .tzx, .csw

Arcade Systems

System ID	Folders	Extensions
Arcade	_Arcade	.mra
CPS1	_Arcade	.mra
CPS2	_Arcade	.mra
CPS3	_Arcade	.mra
IremM72	_Arcade	.mra
IremM92	_Arcade	.mra
JalecoMegaSystem1	_Arcade	.mra
NamcoSystem1	_Arcade	.mra
PGM	_Arcade	.mra
SegaSTV	_Arcade	.mra
SegaSystem16	_Arcade	.mra
SegaSystem18	_Arcade	.mra
TaitoF2	_Arcade	.mra

Hardware classification

Every MiSTer .mra file remains indexed under the general Arcade system. When MiSTer's Arcade Database identifies the underlying hardware, Core also indexes the same game under a more specific system such as CPS1, PGM, SegaSTV, or TaitoF2. Unclassified games remain available through Arcade as before.

You can browse, search, or launch a random game from one hardware family:

**launch.random:CPS1

Core searches the requested hardware system first. It only falls back to the general Arcade system when that specific system has no matching results. Run a media database update after upgrading to add the new classifications.

Neo Geo games are also indexed as both NeoGeo and NeoGeoMVS. The MVS launcher uses its own MiSTer set name while keeping the normal NEOGEO games folder, giving MVS entries an independent MiSTer configuration.

Other Systems

System ID	Folders	Extensions
Arduboy	Arduboy	.hex, .bin
Audio	MegaVGMDrive	.vgm
Chip8	Chip8	.ch8
Groovy	Groovy	.gmc
OpenBOR	OpenBOR	.pak
Pico8	PICO-8	.p8, .p8.png
ScummVM	ScummVM	(special)
Video	Video, Movies, TV	.mp4, .mkv, .avi, .mov, .webm

Special Features

Other Cores

MiSTer's _Other folder holds standalone FPGA cores that run without a ROM file, like Chess, Flappy Bird, and Game of Life. Zaparoo exposes the supported ones as virtual systems (launchables) and indexes them when their core is installed, so they show up in browse and search and can be written to a token like any other game.

Supported cores: Chess, Donut, Epoch Galaxy II, Flappy Bird, Game of Life, GBMidi, GenMidi, MiSTer Quake, Slug Cross, Sonic Mania, Tamagotchi, and Tomy Scramble.

Core also exposes two installed MGL shortcuts as launchables. /media/fat/Load GB-GBC Cartridge.mgl appears as the Load GB/GBC Cartridge console system, while /media/fat/_Custom Cores/PapriumMD.mgl appears as Paprium media under Genesis. Each entry is only indexed when its MGL file exists.

Add your own Other core

Use a custom virtual-system launcher to expose another installed core:

[[launchers.custom]]
id = "MisterOtherMyCore"
kind = "virtual_system"
backend = "mister_core"
name = "My Core"
category = "Other"
load_path = "_Other/MyCore"

load_path is relative to /media/fat, uses forward slashes, and omits the .rbf extension and any date or hash suffix. Valid categories are Other, Console, Computer, Handheld, and Arcade.

A new entry receives a stable identity based on its id. To rename, recategorize, or change the path of a built-in Other core without losing its existing App settings or artwork, use its built-in ID in a custom entry. For example, override MisterOtherFlappyBird while keeping that ID unchanged.

Only cores you have installed are indexed. Restart Core or reload it, then update the media database after adding or changing an _Other core entry.

The 3S-ARM port of Street Fighter III: 3rd Strike also ships as an _Other core, but Zaparoo exposes it as virtual media under the Arcade system instead of as an Other core entry.

Companion-installed media cores

Core detects RBF files installed under /media/fat/_Custom Cores/Cores as well as standard MiSTer core directories and launches media with these companion cores:

• PICO-8 loads .p8 and .p8.png carts from /media/fat/games/PICO-8.
• OpenBOR loads .pak files from /media/fat/games/OpenBOR. The default launcher uses OpenBOR_4086 when installed and falls back to OpenBOR_7533. Add ?launcher=OpenBOR7533 to force the 7533 core.
• MegaVGMDrive loads .vgm files from /media/fat/games/MegaVGMDrive through the VGM_MD_MiSTer core.

Restart Core or reload it after installing one of these cores, then update the media database.

ao486

If a .vhd file is launched via Zaparoo and is in its own folder with an .iso or .chd file, that disc image will be automatically mounted alongside the hard drive.

AmigaVision (Amiga)

AmigaVision games and demos on the Amiga core are indexed under virtual Games and Demos folders, matching how they appear in AmigaVision itself. After a media database update they show up in browse and search, and can be launched or written to a token like any other game.

For example, to launch Beneath a Steel Sky:

Amiga/Games/Beneath a Steel Sky (OCS)[en]

Or a demo, using its name from the demos.txt listing:

Amiga/Demos/<demo name>

The game and demo names come from the games.txt and demos.txt listing files that AmigaVision generates in the Amiga/listings folder on your SD card. The older Amiga/listings/games.txt/<name> path still works for existing tokens.

Current AmigaVision listing issue

The current AmigaVision release can generate games.txt and demos.txt with internal IDs instead of the names Zaparoo expects. Games may briefly show Workbench and return to the AmigaVision menu instead of launching.

Follow AmigaVision issue #432 for the upstream fix. Its workaround comment provides replacement listing files. Those files restore launching for most entries but may not contain every game from the latest AmigaVision release.

Game & Watch

Two cores are supported:

Folder	Extensions	Core
GameNWatch	.bin	GnW
Game and Watch	.gnw	GameAndWatch

NeoGeo

NeoGeo supports launching .zip files, ROM-set folders, and symlinked ROM-set folders directly with Zaparoo. These can sit at the top level of the NeoGeo games folder or inside subfolders, as supported by the MiSTer core itself.

Keep a valid romsets.xml in each NeoGeo root so Zaparoo can match folder and ZIP names to their display names. If no valid definition file is found, Core falls back to basic ZIP-content filtering and records the affected roots in debug logs.

For example, a .zip file:

NeoGeo/mslug.zip

Or a folder:

NeoGeo/mslug2

ScummVM

ScummVM support uses the bbond007 script. Install the script, add your games to the ScummVM folder, and update the media database. Games are automatically detected from the ScummVM configuration file.

Video Playback

Video playback uses nextfvp, a framebuffer video player. To set up video playback:

1. Download fvp-mister_arm-15ea265.zip
2. Extract the fvp binary to /media/fat/linux/
3. Create a Video folder in your games directory (e.g., /media/fat/games/Video/)
4. Add your video files to the Video folder
5. Update the media database

Supported formats: MP4, MKV, AVI, MOV, WEBM

Console launcher rendering

MiSTer's video and ScummVM launchers render through an internal framebuffer. By default, GenericVideo uses one-third of the current output dimensions and ScummVM uses a 640x480 RGB16 framebuffer.

Override either launcher with render_scale or render_resolution:

[[launchers.default]]
launcher = "GenericVideo"
render_scale = 50

[[launchers.default]]
launcher = "ScummVM"
render_resolution = "800x600"

MiSTer supports render_scale values of 25, 33, 50, and 100. render_resolution accepts positive WIDTHxHEIGHT dimensions. Do not set both for the same launcher. These options change the internal framebuffer only; they do not change the physical display output mode.

Alternate Launchers

Some alternate or unofficial versions of cores are supported and can be used by explicitly setting a launcher in the ZapScript on a token. Zaparoo assumes they're installed in either the default location from Update All or in the appropriate menu folder.

To use them, add the following to the end of the file path or launch command: ?launcher=<launcher ID>. For example: N64/some/game.n64?launcher=80MHzNintendo64

MiSTer launch commands also support set_name and set_name_same_dir advanced arguments. These map to MiSTer's MGL <setname> tag and same_dir attribute. Use set_name_same_dir=1 when you want a separate config name while keeping the normal games folder. Without set_name_same_dir=1, MiSTer also uses the set name as the games folder.

NES/Mega Man 2.nes?set_name=RA_NES&set_name_same_dir=1

To set an alternate core as the default for all tokens of a launcher (instead of per-token), use the load_path field in config.toml:

[[launchers.default]]
launcher = "Nintendo64"
load_path = "_LLAPI/N64_LLAPI"

load_path is an MGL-form RBF path relative to /media/fat, without extension. A config reload is sufficient after changing this — no service restart required.

RetroAchievements

RetroAchievements cores from Odelot's MiSTer FPGA RetroAchievements Cores are supported when installed in _RA_Cores/Cores.

These launchers automatically use a dedicated RA_* set name so RetroAchievements cores keep independent MiSTer configuration. Core selects the appropriate same_dir behavior for each launcher, including systems that share another system's RBF. Games continue loading from their normal system folders; you do not need to move them into RA_* folders.

To use a RetroAchievements core by default for one system in Zaparoo Frontend:

1. Highlight the system.
2. Open Options.
3. Select Change launcher.
4. Select the installed RetroAchievements launcher.

Frontend saves the selection as that system's default launcher. Select Default from the same menu to remove the override. Only launchers currently available from Core appear in the list.

All built-in RetroAchievements launchers belong to the stable RetroAchievements launcher group. To prefer installed RetroAchievements cores across every supported system and fall back to regular launchers when one is unavailable:

config.toml

[launchers]
preference = ["RetroAchievements"]

Explicit token launchers, per-game overrides, and system defaults still take priority over this preference.

Launcher ID	System
RAAtari2600	Atari 2600
RAAtari7800	Atari 7800
RAFDS	Famicom Disk System
RAGameboy	Game Boy
RAGameboyColor	Game Boy Color
RAGameGear	Game Gear
RAGBA	Game Boy Advance
RAMegaDrive	Genesis/Mega Drive
RAMegaCD	Mega CD
RASMS	Master System
RANeoGeo	Neo Geo
RANeoGeoCD	Neo Geo CD
RANES	NES
RANintendo64	Nintendo 64
RAPSX	PlayStation
RAS32X	Sega 32X
RASaturn	Saturn
RASNES	SNES
RASuperGameboy	Super Game Boy
RATurboGrafx16	TurboGrafx-16
RATurboGrafx16CD	TurboGrafx-16 CD

DB9

DB9 cores are alternate MiSTer cores for DB9 controller adapters. Install them in the matching _Console core locations, then select them with ?launcher=<launcher ID> or a default launcher override.

Launcher ID	System
DB9AdventureVision	Adventure Vision
DB9Astrocade	Astrocade
DB9Atari5200	Atari 5200
DB9Atari7800	Atari 7800
DB9AtariLynx	Atari Lynx
DB9CasioPV1000	Casio PV-1000
DB9CDI	CD-i
DB9ColecoVision	ColecoVision
DB9CreatiVision	CreatiVision
DB9Gameboy	Game Boy
DB9Gameboy2P	Game Boy 2P
DB9GameNWatch	Game & Watch
DB9GBA	Game Boy Advance
DB9GBAAccuracy	Game Boy Advance (accuracy)
DB9GBA2P	Game Boy Advance 2P
DB9MegaDrive	Mega Drive
DB9Genesis	Genesis
DB9SMS	Master System
DB9MegaCD	Mega CD
DB9NeoGeo	Neo Geo
DB9NeoGeo24MHz	Neo Geo (24 MHz)
DB9NES	NES
DB9Odyssey2	Odyssey 2
DB9PSX	PlayStation
DB9DualRAMPSX	PlayStation (DualRAM)
DB9Sega32X	Sega 32X
DB9SuperGameboy	Super Game Boy
DB9Saturn	Saturn
DB9DualRAMSaturn	Saturn (DualRAM)
DB9SNES	SNES
DB9TurboGrafx16	TurboGrafx-16
DB9Vectrex	Vectrex

LLAPI

Bliss-Box LLAPI cores. Alternate Arcade cores can be referenced directly with their .mra files.

Launcher ID	System
LLAPIAtari2600	Atari 2600
LLAPIAtari7800	Atari 7800
LLAPIGameboy	Game Boy
LLAPIGBA	Game Boy Advance
LLAPIMegaDrive	Genesis/Mega Drive
LLAPISMS	Master System
LLAPIMegaCD	Mega CD
LLAPINeoGeo	Neo Geo
LLAPINES	NES
LLAPINintendo64	Nintendo 64
LLAPI80MHzNintendo64	Nintendo 64 (80MHz)
LLAPIPSX	PlayStation
LLAPIS32X	Sega 32X
LLAPISuperGameboy	Super Game Boy
LLAPISaturn	Saturn
LLAPISNES	SNES
LLAPITurboGrafx16	TurboGrafx-16
LLAPISuperGrafx	SuperGrafx

PWM

24-bit video PWM cores.

Launcher ID	System
PWMNintendo64	Nintendo 64
PWM80MHzNintendo64	Nintendo 64 (80MHz)
PWMPSX	PlayStation
PWM2XPSX	PlayStation (2X CPU)
PWMSaturn	Saturn

Overclock

Robert Piep's experimental overclock cores.

Launcher ID	System
80MHzNintendo64	Nintendo 64
2XPSX	PlayStation

DualRAM

Dual-SDRAM cores from TheJesusFish/Dual-Ram-Console-Cores.

Launcher ID	System
DualRAM3DO	3DO
DualRAMJaguar	Jaguar
DualRAMPSX	PlayStation
DualRAMSaturn	Saturn

Sinden Lightgun

Sinden Lightgun cores.

Info

Zaparoo looks for Sinden cores in Light Gun/<Core>-Sinden.rbf first, then the legacy _Sinden/<Core>_Sinden.rbf path. If both paths exist, Zaparoo uses the Light Gun version.

Launcher ID	System
SindenGenesis	Genesis
SindenMegaDrive	Mega Drive
SindenSMS	Master System
SindenMegaCD	Mega CD
SindenNES	NES
SindenPSX	PlayStation
SindenSNES	SNES