One of the most popular Game Boy Advance emulators is called VisualBoyAdvance.A new version of VBA was released in 2009.The VBA-M program is designed for Windows, and all you have to do is download it.You need to install RetroArch if you're using Mac OS X or Linux.
Step 1: You can download VBA-M from sourceforge.net.
The original VBA has not been in active development.VBA-M includes features not found in the original VBA.Wait for your download to start when you click the green "Download" button on the SourceForge page.
Step 2: 7-Zip can be downloaded from 7-ZIP.org.
You can open the 7z file that you downloaded for VBA-M with this archive program.Pick the "32-bit x86" version if you aren't sure.After you download the installer, follow the instructions to install 7-Zip.
Step 3: The files are in VBA-M.
Double-click the 7z file you downloaded in Step 1 to install 7-Zip.It will open in 7-Zip.Click the button at the top of the window to extract it.
Step 4: There is a directory for your emulator.
The folder that you downloaded the file in will be the one that the emulator extracts from.The program doesn't require installation, so you may want to move it to a more permanent location on your hard drive.C:EmulatorsVBA-M, or whatever other location you'd like.It will be easier to find your files if you put VBA-M in a dedicated folder.Go to any location on your computer and click on the "New" button.Once you've created a new folder for VBA-M, drag the file from where you want it to go into it.There is one file for VBA-M.
Step 5: Get some files.
There are files for Game Boy Advance games.It is against the law to download rom files for games that you don't own.One of the most popular sites for GBA games is emuparadise.me, where you can find a link to the popular rom sections.To browse games, use the letter links at the top of the page, or enter a game into the search field.Click the "Download Links" link at the top of the ROM's details page, then click the download link that the page scrolls to.Next to "Trouble with our captcha?", click the "Click here" link.Underneath the captcha.This will allow you to go straight to the download.The game link is in the "Direct Download" section.This will start the download of the game.
Step 6: In your VBA-M folder, put your rom files in a sub-directory.
Things will be easier if you keep all of your downloaded files in one place.You can create a folder called "ROMs" in your VBA-M folder.C:VBA-MROMs.Place all of the downloaded ZIP files in this folder.ZIP format is where Game Boy Advance ROMs are usually downloaded.They don't need to be extract to load.
Step 7: VBA-M can be started.
You can double-click the file to move it to its own folder.The VBA-M program will start immediately without needing to be installed like most programs.There is a menu at the top of the window.
Step 8: You can point VBA-M to your folder.
You can tell VBA-M where your ROM files are located by clicking the "Options" menu and selecting "Directories..."Click "OK" to open the rom folder you created in Step 6.
Step 9: Test out VBA-M with a game.
You're ready to load your first game when you specify your rom folder.Click the "File" menu to open it.You can see a list of the ROMs in your folder.You can launch the game by selecting it.
Step 10: Try using the default controls.
You can use the keyboard controls below to start playing.
Step 11: You can change your controls.
You can change the controls if you don't like them.Click the Options menu and select "Input", then click the field for the button you want to change, and press the new button.
Step 12: RetroArch can be downloaded.
There is no stable version of VBA for Mac or Linux, but the multi-emulator RetroArch includes the ability to load a stable VBA core to play Game Boy Advance games.Mac users can download the "RetroArch.dmg" file from buildbot.libretro.com/stable/1.3.6/apple/osx/x86_64/.You can open the terminal and type in the name of the repository.
Step 13: You can download some files.
You will need files to play games in RetroArch.The emulator reads roms to play the game.It is illegal to download roms for games you don't own.There are a lot of different locations where you can download roms.Go to emuparadise.me and open the "GBA ROMs" section.The main page has a Quick Links section.You can find the game you want to download here.Specific games can be searched for.The game's page has a download link.This will go down the page.There is a link displayed.Click the "Click here" link underneath the captcha to get around it.There is a link in the "Direct Download" section.This will allow you to download the file in a ZIP format.
Step 14: It is possible to put all of your GBA roms into their own folder.
It will be easier to load your ROM files in RetroArch if you place them into a single dedicated folder.You'll get an easy-to-navigate list for your emulated system when RetroArch loads roms from a single folder.You can create a folder in your User directory.You don't have to unpack the files to use them in RetroArch.
Step 15: The RetroArch application needs to be installed.
Depending on whether you're using OS X or Linux, the process is different.The RetroArch application can be dragged to the Applications folder icon.Go to the Terminal and type apt-get update.After running that command, you can type apt-get install retroarch.This will download and install RetroArch, which may take a while to complete.
Step 16: Run RetroArch.
When you add RetroArch to your Applications folder, double-click it to start it.After a while, the RetroArch settings menu will load.You can quickly find RetroArch by using the Linux dashboard.
Step 17: You should change your default controls.
You might want to change the controller settings before the game starts.You can assign which button is assigned to which input in RetroArch.X will select and Z will go back with the default control scheme.To input, return to the settings menu."User 1 Bind All" is the choice.Follow the instructions to enter the keys or buttons you want to use.
Step 18: Go to the "+" column.
This will allow you to create a column dedicated to your games.
Step 19: Go to your ROMs directory by selecting "Scan Directory"
Select " Scan This Directory>" when you're in the roms directory.This will add your games from that directory.
Step 20: Go to the new "Game Boy Advance" category to find your game.
You'll see a list of your games in the new "Game Boy Advance" category once you've scanned your ROMs folder.
Step 21: "Run" and " Game Boy Advance (VBA-M)" are what you should choose.
The game can be loaded using the VBA-M emulator.If VBA-M isn't giving you good performance, you can try the other emulators.