RetroArch comes to Switch 2 through kaiHEN, with classic console emulators still in an early stage
On November 13, 2026, a RetroArch port for Switch 2 was published on GitHub, at version 0.2.2. RetroArch is a program that brings together emulators of classic consoles. According to the author, with kaiHEN it opens from the console’s homebrew menu. The package includes 22 emulators; the author says games were played and confirmed working on NES, Super Nintendo, Game Boy Advance, Mega Drive, Master System, 32X, PC Engine, PlayStation, Nintendo 64 and Dreamcast. Others only boot or have not been tested yet. This is an early-stage project, still without independent confirmation, and Switch2Unlock has not tested it.
NerdsMcGee/retroarch-s2 · GitHub
Context
kaiHEN uses the entry points that already exist, which, according to earlier news, only work on consoles on firmware 23.0.1 or earlier. Since November 12, as we already reported, an outdated Switch 2 connected to the internet does not open SmileBASIC or Civilization VII ([November 12 block](/en/news/nintendo-bloqueia-smilebasic-civ7-23-0-1/)). The kaiHEN warning is worth repeating: a malicious homebrew program can write to the internal memory and permanently brick the console, and there is no recommended safe method. See also the news on kaiHEN. Switch2Unlock does not provide games, keys or firmware, does not publish step-by-step guides and does not encourage installation.