View source for Software:Yuzu (emulator)

{{Short description|Emulator of Nintendo Switch}}
{{Infobox software
| logo = Yuzu logo 2019.svg
| screenshot = Yuzu Emulator In Action (Space Game by vgmoose).png
| caption = Homebrew software running on Yuzu
| name = Yuzu
| developer = Team Yuzu
| released = {{Start date and age|2018|01|14}}
| website = {{URL|https://yuzu-emu.org/}}
| repo = {{URL|https://github.com/yuzu-emu/yuzu}}
| license = [[Software:GNU General Public License|GPL-3.0-or-later]]
| programming language = [[C++]]
| operating system = {{csl|[[Software:Windows|Windows]]|[[Software:Linux|Linux]]|[[Software:Android (operating system)|Android]]}}
| latest preview date = July 2nd
}}
'''Yuzu''' (sometimes stylized in lowercase) is a [[Free and open-source software|free and open-source]] emulator of the [[Engineering:Nintendo Switch|Nintendo Switch]], developed in [[C++]]. Yuzu was announced to be in development on January 14, 2018,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://hothardware.com/news/nintendo-switch-yuzu-emulator-announced-citra-3ds-developers|title=Nintendo Switch 'Yuzu' Emulator Announced By Citra 3DS Developers|last=Lilly|first=Paul|date=January 15, 2018|work=[[HotHardware]]|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191031025115/https://hothardware.com/news/nintendo-switch-yuzu-emulator-announced-citra-3ds-developers|archive-date=October 31, 2019|access-date=July 4, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.tomsguide.com/us/nintendo-switch-emulator-yuzu,news-26462.html|title=Nintendo Won't Be Happy About This Switch Emulator|last=Reisinger|first=Don|date=January 16, 2018|website=Tom's Guide|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190704140543/https://www.tomsguide.com/us/nintendo-switch-emulator-yuzu,news-26462.html|archive-date=July 4, 2019|access-date=July 4, 2019}}</ref> 10 months after the release of the Nintendo Switch.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.pcgamer.com/switch-emulator-announced-made-by-team-behind-citra-3ds-emulator/|title=Switch emulator announced, made by team behind Citra 3DS emulator|last=Horti|first=Samuel|date=2018-01-14|website=PC Gamer|url-status=live|archive-url=https://archive.today/20180114202728/http://www.pcgamer.com/switch-emulator-announced-made-by-team-behind-citra-3ds-emulator/|archive-date=2018-01-14|access-date=July 14, 2019}}</ref>

The emulator is made by the developers of the {{wipe|Nintendo 3DS}} emulator [[Software:Citra (emulator)|Citra]], with significant code shared between the projects. Originally, Yuzu only supported test programs and [[Software:Homebrew (video games)|homebrew]].

==Features==
Yuzu used a network service called Boxcat as a replacement for Nintendo's BCAT dynamic content network.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://yuzu-emu.org/help/feature/boxcat/|title=Boxcat|publisher=yuzu emulator team|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191015231945/https://yuzu-emu.org/help/feature/boxcat/|archive-date=October 15, 2019|access-date=October 15, 2019}}</ref> This feature was later removed due to being non-functional. The implementation will eventually be replaced with one that allows the use of local BCAT files dumped from a Nintendo Switch.<ref>{{cite web|title=Remove Boxcat BCAT backend by Morph1984 · Pull Request #7102 · yuzu-emu/yuzu|url=https://github.com/yuzu-emu/yuzu/pull/7102|access-date=2022-01-17|website=GitHub|language=en}}</ref>

Yuzu also offers a [[Engineering:Display resolution|resolution]] rescaling feature that simulates docked, undocked and beyond-native resolutions. After initially adding support for beyond-native resolution, the feature was removed again due to stability issues and inconsistent behaviour on different GPU vendors shortly after.<ref>{{cite web|title=Resolution Rescaler · yuzu|url=https://yuzu-emu.org/help/feature/resolution-rescaler/|access-date=2022-01-17|website=yuzu|language=en-us}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Implement Native Resolution Rescaling by FernandoS27 · Pull Request #2860 · yuzu-emu/yuzu|url=https://github.com/yuzu-emu/yuzu/pull/2860|access-date=2022-01-17|website=GitHub|language=en}}</ref> Two years after the removal, the feature was finally readded under the codename "Project A.R.T".<ref>{{cite web|title=Project A.R.T. Advanced Rendering Techniques by FernandoS27 · Pull Request #7219 · yuzu-emu/yuzu|url=https://github.com/yuzu-emu/yuzu/pull/7219|access-date=2022-01-17|website=GitHub|language=en}}</ref>

In December 2019, Yuzu added an experimental [[Software:Vulkan (API)|Vulkan]] renderer to its Early Access build and brought it over to its mainline builds.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://yuzu-emu.org/entry/yuzu-vulkan/|title=New Feature Release - Vulkan|last=CaptV0rt3x|date=December 3, 2019|publisher=yuzu emulator team|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191203191704/https://yuzu-emu.org/entry/yuzu-vulkan/|archive-date=December 3, 2019|access-date=December 3, 2019}}</ref> On May 9, 2020, the development team announced an update that included experimental [[Multi-core processor|multi-core]] CPU emulation<ref>{{cite web |title=New Feature Release - Prometheus · yuzu |url=https://yuzu-emu.org/entry/yuzu-prometheus/ |website=yuzu |access-date=17 May 2020 |language=en-us}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Palumbo |first1=Alessio |title=Yuzu, the Nintendo Switch Emulator, Can Now Take Advantage of Multicore CPUs |url=https://wccftech.com/yuzu-the-nintendo-switch-emulator-now-takes-advantage-of-multicore-cpus/ |website=Wccftech |access-date=17 May 2020 |date=9 May 2020}}</ref> codenamed ''Prometheus''.

In November 2020, Yuzu's developers added online functionality to the emulator but removed it shortly thereafter.<ref>{{cite web|last=Lilly|first=Paul|date=November 4, 2020|title=Popular Yuzu Nintendo Switch Emulator Adds Online Support, Quickly Backtracks|url=https://hothardware.com/news/yuzu-nintendo-switch-emulator-online-support-backtracks|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201104165451/https://hothardware.com/news/yuzu-nintendo-switch-emulator-online-support-backtracks|archive-date=November 4, 2020|access-date=November 10, 2020|website=[[HotHardware]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=Plunkett|first=Luke|date=November 3, 2020|title=Nintendo Switch Emulator Adds Online Support, Quickly Regrets It|url=https://kotaku.com/nintendo-switch-emulator-adds-online-support-quickly-r-1845565068|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201105043400/https://kotaku.com/nintendo-switch-emulator-adds-online-support-quickly-r-1845565068|archive-date=November 5, 2020|access-date=November 10, 2020|website=Kotaku}}</ref>

In June 2021, Fastmem support was added to early access builds of Yuzu.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://yuzu-emu.org/entry/yuzu-fastmem/|title=Fastmem Support|access-date=June 13, 2021}}</ref>

In July 2021, Yuzu concluded the "Project Hades", which aimed to rewrite the [[Shader|shader]] decompiler, bringing an improvement of the overall performance of the emulator.<ref>{{cite web|title=New Feature Release - Shader Decompiler Rewrite · yuzu|url=https://yuzu-emu.org/entry/yuzu-hades/|access-date=2021-12-13|website=yuzu|language=en-us}}</ref>

In a statement to ''PC Gamer'', the developers of Yuzu said that they were interested in potential optimizations to the emulator for use on the Steam Deck.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Fenlon |first=Wes |date=2021-07-26 |title=Emulator developers see tons of potential in the Steam Deck |language=en |work=PC Gamer |url=https://www.pcgamer.com/emulator-developers-see-tons-of-potential-in-the-steam-deck/ |access-date=2022-09-25}}</ref>

On May 30, 2023, an Android version was released.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Conway |first=Adam |date=2023-05-31 |title=Nintendo Switch emulator Yuzu officially comes to Android |url=https://www.xda-developers.com/yuzu-emulator-android-released/ |access-date=2023-05-31 |website=XDA Developers |language=en}}</ref>

==Reception==
In October 2018, ''Kotaku'' published an article noting that ''[[Software:Super Mario Odyssey|Super Mario Odyssey]]'' was playable. The author of the article expressed concern with the ability of Yuzu to emulate games that were available commercially at the time.<ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=https://www.kotaku.co.uk/2018/11/02/super-mario-odyssey-is-already-playable-in-an-emulator|title=Super Mario Odyssey is Already Playable in an Emulator|last=Plunkett|first=Luke|date=November 2, 2018|website=Kotaku|url-status=live|archive-url=https://archive.today/20190714183945/https://www.kotaku.co.uk/2018/11/02/super-mario-odyssey-is-already-playable-in-an-emulator|archive-date=July 14, 2019|access-date=July 14, 2019}}</ref>

''PC Gamer'' noted that the emulator was able to run ''Pokémon: Let's Go, Pikachu!'' and ''Let's Go, Eevee!'' shortly after the games' release, albeit with audio issues.<ref name=":1">{{cite web|url=https://www.pcgamer.com/watch-pokemon-lets-go-running-on-pc-thanks-to-yuzu-emulator/|title=Watch Pokémon: Let's Go running on PC thanks to Yuzu emulator|last=Horti|first=Samuel|date=November 24, 2018|website=PC Gamer|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190704133523/https://www.pcgamer.com/watch-pokemon-lets-go-running-on-pc-thanks-to-yuzu-emulator/|archive-date=July 4, 2019|access-date=July 4, 2019}}</ref>

In October 2019, Gizmodo published an article noting that Yuzu was able to emulate some games at a [[Frame rate|frame rate]] roughly on par with the actual console hardware.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://gizmodo.com/this-nintendo-switch-emulator-for-the-pc-might-finally-1838779028|title=This Nintendo Switch Emulator for the PC Might Finally Be as Good as the Actual Console|last=Liszewski|first=Andrew|date=October 4, 2019|website=Gizmodo|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191120031046/https://gizmodo.com/this-nintendo-switch-emulator-for-the-pc-might-finally-1838779028|archive-date=November 20, 2019|access-date=October 15, 2019}}</ref>

Since 2021, various outlets have reported that Yuzu can run on the Steam Deck, enabling play of Nintendo Switch games on the system.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Fenlon |first=Wes |date=2021-07-26 |title=Emulator developers see tons of potential in the Steam Deck |language=en |work=PC Gamer |url=https://www.pcgamer.com/emulator-developers-see-tons-of-potential-in-the-steam-deck/ |access-date=2022-09-24}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Reynolds |first=Ollie |date=2022-07-25 |title=Xenoblade Chronicles 3 Has Leaked And Is Fully Playable On The Steam Deck |url=https://www.nintendolife.com/news/2022/07/xenoblade-chronicles-3-has-leaked-and-is-fully-playable-on-the-steam-deck |access-date=2022-09-24 |website=Nintendo Life |language=en-GB}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=James |first=Dave |date=2022-03-08 |title=Steam Deck vs Nintendo Switch |language=en |work=PC Gamer |url=https://www.pcgamer.com/steam-deck-vs-nintendo-switch/ |access-date=2022-09-24}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Fenlon |first=Wes |date=2022-02-25 |title=The Steam Deck is already the emulation system of my dreams |language=en |work=PC Gamer |url=https://www.pcgamer.com/steam-deck-emulation-installation/ |access-date=2022-09-24}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Coyle |first=Anne-Marie |date=2022-03-03 |title=Nintendo really doesn't want you to use Switch emulators on Steam Deck |url=https://www.gamesradar.com/nintendo-really-doesnt-want-you-to-use-switch-emulators-on-steam-deck/ |access-date=2022-09-24 |website=GamesRadar |language=en}}</ref>

Following the publication of a story by ''Kotaku'' on October 9, 2021, which covered the ability of both Yuzu and Ryujinx (another Switch emulator) to play ''[[Software:Metroid Dread|Metroid Dread]]'',<ref name="kotaku-dread-archived-revision">{{Cite web |last=Zwiezen |first=Zack |date=2021-10-09 |title=Metroid Dread Is Already Running Great On Switch Emulators |url=https://kotaku.com/metroid-dread-is-already-running-great-on-switch-emulat-1847833403 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211009211511/https://kotaku.com/metroid-dread-is-already-running-great-on-switch-emulat-1847833403 |archive-date=9 October 2021 |access-date=2022-09-25 |website=Kotaku}}</ref> Nintendo contacted the site's editorial team requesting a revision of the article, which was seen as encouraging piracy of the title. ''Kotaku'' responded by updating the article to remove language that was interpreted as such, and apologized to readers for the error. However, in an editorial addendum, they maintained that they believed emulation to be an important part of [[Social:Video game preservation|video game preservation]] efforts and that their coverage of the emulators did not equate to an encouragement to pirate the game.<ref name="kotaku-dread-current-revision">{{Cite web |last=Zwiezen |first=Zack |date=2021-10-09 |title=Metroid Dread Is Already Running On Switch Emulators |url=https://kotaku.com/metroid-dread-is-already-running-great-on-switch-emulat-1847833403 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220829022225/https://kotaku.com/metroid-dread-is-already-running-great-on-switch-emulat-1847833403 |archive-date=2022-08-29 |access-date=2022-09-25 |website=Kotaku |language=en-us}}</ref>

After the publicization of Yuzu's ability to run on the Steam Deck, several YouTube videos providing guidance on how to do so were taken down. Though it was not known who had issued the takedowns, outlets reporting on the news believed that it was Nintendo, given their past history of issuing DMCA takedown notices against unofficial content creators.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Ishraq |first=Subhan |date=2022-03-03 |title=Steam Deck Nintendo emulation videos are disappearing from YouTube |language=en-gb |work=Eurogamer |url=https://www.eurogamer.net/steam-deck-nintendo-emulation-videos-are-disappearing-from-youtube |access-date=2022-09-25}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Galekovic |first=Filip |date=2022-03-03 |title=Nintendo Blocking Videos Showing How to Emulate Games on Steam Deck |url=https://gamerant.com/nintendo-blocking-videos-emulate-switch-games-steam-deck/ |access-date=2022-09-25 |website=Game Rant |language=en-US}}</ref>

On August 23, 2023, Denuvo Software Solutions GmbH announced that they had developed "Nintendo Switch Emulator Protection", a new [[Engineering:Digital rights management|digital rights management]] solution for Nintendo Switch titles which aims to allow developers to block play via emulators such as Yuzu.<ref name="denuvo-comicbook">{{Cite web |last=Dedmon |first=Tanner |date=2022-08-25 |title='Nintendo Switch Emulator Protection' Announced by Controversial Anti-Piracy Company |url=https://comicbook.com/gaming/news/nintendo-switch-emulator-denuvo/ |access-date=2022-09-25 |website=ComicBook.com |language=en}}</ref><ref name="shepard-fanbyte">{{Cite web |last=Shepard |first=Kenneth |date=2022-08-25 |title=Denuvo Launching Switch Emulator Protection at Behest of Publishing Partners |url=https://www.fanbyte.com/games/news/denuvo-launching-switch-emulator-protection-at-behest-of-publishing-partners/ |access-date=2022-09-25 |website=Fanbyte |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2023-08-23 |title=Denuvo security is now on Switch, including new tech to block PC Switch emulation |url=https://www.videogameschronicle.com/news/denuvo-security-is-now-on-switch-including-new-tech-to-block-pc-switch-emulation/ |access-date=2023-08-24 |website=VGC |language=en-GB}}</ref>

==See also==
* Emulators of Nintendo Switch
* Video game console emulator

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* [https://yuzu-emu.org/game/ Game compatibility list]
* [https://emulation.gametechwiki.com/index.php/Yuzu Yuzu] page on Emulation General Wiki

{{Nintendo emulators}}

[[Category:Linux emulation software]]
[[Category:Windows emulation software]]
[[Category:Free software programmed in C++]]

{{Sourceattribution|Yuzu (emulator)}}