I replaced my Android launcher with a game emulation hub

EmulationStation is one of the best emulation interfaces in years, and with the recent Android port update of ES-DE interfaceI wanted to see how far I could push him. It offers a great user interface for emulation, but can it do more? Can it replace my main launcher on Android?

After testing it for a few days on the REDMAGIC 10 Pro, the answer is yes, it is possible. However, there are some important caveats to consider before equipping your daily driver Android smartphone with a retro console interface.

If you are not familiar with ES-DE Frontend, it is a paid application that brings all your emulators and games in a unified user interface. It’s a port of EmulationStation, which has long been a mainstay on PC, Linux, and other devices. Due to permission requirements, it is not available on the Play Store, but it costs around $5 on Patreon, Samsung Galaxy Store, Or Huawei App Gallery.

Above all, he does not imitate anything. You will still need to configure RetroArch and any standalone emulators you want to use separately. For me, this is always the most time-consuming process, but getting it right is essential for the best experience. Once your emulators are correctly configured, the application can launch all your emulated games from a single menu.

Fortunately, setting up ES-DE is simple. I grabbed the APK from the link sent to me after paying on Patreon, and the on-screen instructions walked me through the basics. Once finished, I imported all my ROMs, grabbed the box art, and chose some interesting themes.

This last point is important because there are so many themes to choose from. They all give the experience a different vibe and they’re all very different from any Android launcher I’ve used.

It takes a while for each theme to download, but you can switch between them whenever you want. You can also customize each of them by increasing the font size, changing the list layout to grids, etc.

However, there is one important thing missing after this initial setup, and that is anything other than emulators. I wanted ES-DE to replace my home screen, which means I also need a way to access all my Android apps. There is currently no way to do this natively within the app (although the developer has indicated that this may be added in version 3.2.0), but there are a few tools that fill this gap.

First, I downloaded some XML files from this GitHub page. Once added to the “custom_systems” folder in the ES-DE directory, they add several new platforms to the launcher. These include console hacks, Switch/WiiU, and most importantly, Android apps and games.

After that I downloaded an app called ES Launcher. This allows you to select which apps and games you want to display in ES-DE. You can add your calculator, but for me it’s about adding the most popular Android games like Infinity Nikki. Don’t judge me.

The only thing left at this point was to change my launcher in the settings, and bam, my phone was now a true retro gaming console, loaded with modern Android games and apps. The phone launches directly into ES-DE Frontend when I turn it on, but I can still access the notification menu and settings by swiping down.

At first it was great. It worked just like my Linux-based TrimUI Smart Pro gaming handheld, but with much more power and versatility. However, the flaws became evident after just a few hours of use.

While the ES-DE is great for gaming, it’s just not up to the task for other everyday uses. My biggest complaint is the lack of touch controls, which is a real pain when the phone isn’t connected to a controller. I always disable the controller overlay when using ES-DE on Android-based gaming handhelds, so being forced to use it was a real pain.

Additionally, I had to manually scroll through all my gaming systems to access apps. To check my emails or open WhatsApp was a chore. Saving them as favorites was helpful because it created a new type of home screen with my most used apps. Still, I had to use the onscreen controls to open them and there are no widgets to offer information at a glance.

The other big drawback is that ES-DE only works in landscape. It supports square aspect ratios, found on many retro gaming handhelds, but nothing vertical. This means that when I launched most native Android apps, I had to turn off my device. Phones (and Android, really) are clearly not designed to be used in landscape mode all the time, so it’s quite uncomfortable.

Fortunately, a simple workaround resolved my complaints, namely Tasker. By setting up an automation to switch my launcher to ES-DE every time a controller is connected, I can skip a step when it’s time to play. It’s the best of both worlds, although it’s not much faster than just opening the ES-DE application when I need it.

But in the end, it’s incredible how far this Android port of EmulationStation has come. While I don’t recommend using ES-DE Frontend as your primary launcher, regardless of your dedication to retro gaming, it’s an absolute must for Android-based gaming handhelds like the Retroid Pocket series or Ayaneo Pocket Evo.

And who knows? Maybe after a few updates it will be ready for the main stage. Anything that offers an alternative to the same-looking Android skins is more than welcome in my book.