Recalbox 10.1 is now available to everyone in stable version, after several weeks of testing and play with our Patrons. On the menu: the arrival of Recalbox Challenges, a redesigned ergonomics, efforts focused on 3D arcade and Guncon 2 optimization, and several hardware novelties. Enough to keep your upcoming retrogaming evenings busy.

Recalbox Challenges

The One Credit Challenge, our biweekly arcade rendezvous, is changing scale and name: say hello to Recalbox Challenges. No more manual tracking via Discord: the challenge is now built directly into Recalbox with a brand new virtual system: Recalbox Challenges.

Every two weeks, a new game awaits you in this new virtual system. Set your best score on the game in question with a single credit; the player ranking can be viewed directly in-game or on the Recalbox Challenges virtual system in real time, and you'll even receive live notifications when someone beats you or when your ranking changes.

Your session is recorded automatically, so you can watch replays of other players and send them a GG. No cheating possible: instant saves, rewinds and pauses are disabled for the duration of the game, and all shortcuts are locked except the one to quit. If, after a failed attempt, you restart the game with a continue, the score is automatically invalidated, since the goal is to achieve the best score with a single credit.

A free Patreon account is enough to identify yourself and take part. Of course, the Challenges Discord channel remains active for chatting with other players and following the challenge's activity throughout the year.

Get connected!

Once your free Patreon account is created (or paid tier if you're a Patron), simply scan the QR code available in the "Link my Patron Account" menu in the advanced settings.

This is a new feature for both Patrons and Patrons-Free (so, for everyone), and this QR code will now let you connect your Recalbox to your Patreon account with a single scan. For optimal comfort, make sure you're logged into Patreon on your smartphone beforehand, so the account is detected immediately.

A new Logo view

In every system, you can now switch to the Logo View, which displays official game logos instead of the classic text list. The result is clean and immersive. Scraping is required to take advantage of this, and several logo types are available to best match the theme you're using.

A built-in manual and map reader

From the Start menu, positioned on a game, you can now access its manual, its maps where available, as well as tips & tricks. Everything is accessible via the Recalbox menu or via the media folder of your roms, where your scraped files are stored. Scraping the relevant system is still required to enjoy this feature.

Redesigned controller configuration and new virtual keyboards

The controller configuration interface has been completely overhauled: clearer, faster and more intuitive. You choose your controller or arcade stick from a dedicated menu, then you're guided step by step with the controller displayed on screen — a real plus, especially for arcade sticks.

On the virtual keyboard side, two new models make their appearance: a full keyboard and a "mobile" keyboard, alongside the classic wheel that already existed.

We've also added virtual systems by genre (fighting, racing, platform...), handy for rediscovering your romsets from a new angle, as well as virtual systems dedicated to spinners and trackballs, making it easy to find all games compatible with these specific peripherals.

Naomi 2, Model 3 and ST-V: 3D arcade hits 60 fps on Pi 5

This summer was all about optimization at Recalbox, and 3D arcade was the biggest beneficiary. With the arrival of the Recalbox JVS, the 3D arcade scene came back into the spotlight: on demanding titles like Scud Race or Daytona USA 2 on Model 3, the Raspberry Pi 5 could until now hit its limits, with slowdowns on the longest races.

That's now a thing of the past: 99% of Naomi 2 and Model 3 titles now run at 60 fps on Raspberry Pi 5, whether it's 18 Wheeler: American Pro Trucker, Virtua Fighter 4, Beach Spikers and Initial D on Naomi/Naomi 2, or Daytona USA 2, Sega Rally 2, The Lost World: Jurassic Park and Scud Race on Model 3. As for the ST-V, it now benefits from a new core, with noticeably improved rendering and smoothness.

Installing to disk directly from the Recalbox menu

A new installer now lets you, from the Recalbox menu — via the Install To line — install Recalbox on any drive connected to your machine, whether internally or via USB, a real simplification for those who want a clean installation without complicated manipulation.

GunCon 2: improved precision and compatibility

In terms of optimization, after the Raspberry Pi 5 2GB, then the Naomi 2 and the Model 3, the team also focused on the GunCon 2, the plug-and-play gun for Recalbox since the release of the RGB Dual 2, which lets you play Time Crisis, House of the Dead, Duck Hunt or Confidential Mission, among others. The experience remained generally good, but some issues could occur: shots not detected, approximate calibration, or screen brightness needing to be increased for certain games, especially on Dreamcast.

A calibration screen has now been added at every game launch, allowing you to test and validate your setup for optimal precision, which now reaches 99%. The GunCon 2 needs to detect a flash on screen to work; since many games don't emit one by default, a flash has been added to all games that lacked one.

Another novelty: compatibility now extends to 31 kHz CRT monitors, in addition to the already-supported 15 kHz CRTs. The GunCon 2 also remains compatible with the Recalbox RGB JAMMA 2 and the Recalbox JVS, both equipped with the necessary ports to accommodate it and handle it automatically.

Recalbox JVS

The Recalbox JVS was at the heart of many optimizations in this version: it's largely thanks to it that the team was able to deeply rework the Naomi 2, the Model 3 and the GunCon 2. The Recalbox JVS now benefits from native Recalbox support as well as its dedicated firmware, allowing you to control your cabinet even with the Pi 5 turned off. With full support for various JVS cabinets — joysticks, guncabs, wheels — the new Recalbox hardware is fully ready to equip your JVS cabinets.

Four new systems

We took the opportunity of this new version to add four new systems:

Epoch Cassette Vision
Philips P2000t
Vircon32
Exelvision EXL00

The full release notes for this 10.1 are available here.

Thank you

This 10.1 version is the result of several weeks of intensive testing carried out by our beta-testers and our Patrons connected on the patron-alpha update channel and the patron channel, who allowed us to fine-tune all these new features in direct contact with the development team before their rollout today for the whole community. A huge thank you to them, as well as to everyone who supports the project every day.

For any feedback, bugs to report, or simply to chat with the community, we invite you to join us on Discord.

Thank you all for your continued support, it's thanks to you that all of this is possible. The Recalbox team.

Do you appreciate the work of the Recalbox team? Support the project by becoming a Patron!