GameCube and Wii games emulator Dolphin joined the Steam library on March 28. Users can now see its store page, notifying it’s in early access.
Users won’t be able to download it just yet, however. Although it’s in early access, players can only add the emulator to their wishlists.
It’s planned to become available around the second quarter of 2023. Players who’ve added the emulator to their list will be notified when it will become available.
Dolphin Emulator is compatible with the majority of titles on GameCube and Wii platforms. It allows fans to play those older games without paying for them and experience the nostalgia, with a few upgrades such as display quality and modern controller compatibility.
The emulator “does not come with games,” which means players will have to get those by their own means.
Still, the announcement stirred mixed reactions. While emulators are legal, most players use illegal ROMs to play games on them without paying for original copies. Some believe Steam is encouraging the illegal use of emulators and that’s unethical.
Other fans are thrilled with the idea of being able to download the Dolphin emulator, which will streamline the whole downloading and installing process. Some are also hoping to see game saves on the Cloud, which would allow them to play emulated games on several devices. It’s still unclear whether it’ll be implemented, however.
Dolphin is used to play countless games, including Super Smash Bros. Melee released on GameCube, which is still going strong today. It’s likely to be popular at launch on Steam, especially since it becomes harder to play older Nintendo games over time.
Earlier this week, Nintendo 3DS and Wii U eShops officially closed, leaving no way for players to buy games on those consoles outside emulators and ROM downloads.
“When we launch on Steam, we’ll have a feature article detailing the process and features of the Steam release,” the developer wrote. “We’re pleased to finally tell the world of our experiment. This has been the product of many months of work, and we look forward to getting it into users’ hands soon.”
