Amiga emulators for Windows
WinUAE Amiga emulator
WinUAE is the best Amiga emulator we have seen so far, for playing Amiga games on a Windows PC.
- Latest version 5.1.0 (8 December 2023)
- Works on Windows 10, Windows 11 (32/64 bits)
- Emulates Amiga 500(+)/600/1000/1200/2000/3000/4000, depends on the used ROM file
- Supports .adf, .adz, .dms, .fdi, ipf disk image files, .rom files
- Comments: WinUAE is a complete emulator. It requires some configuration, but you'll be served with a great Amiga experience.
- Project website https://www.winuae.net
Amiga Kickstart ROM
To get your emulated Amiga running, you will need a so called Kickstart ROM. This is a file with the .rom extension. The Kickstart ROM provides basic operating system functionality. There are several versions of the ROM available, but we will use V1.3 for the Amiga 500/1000/2000. These ROMs are copyrighted, so you won't find them on this website. However, there are three ways to get the Kickstart ROM(s):
- Copy them from your Amiga, instructions here
- Buy the Amiga Forever package from Cloanto
- Search google for "download kickstart rom amiga"
Install and configure WinUAE
Install WinUAE
- Download the WinUAE zip package or the installer
- Zip package: copy the contents of the WinUAE zip file to an empty folder of choice, for example d:\WinUAE\
- Installer: open the installer and install WinUAE to an empty folder of choice, for example d:\WinUAE\, default location is c:\Program Files (x86)\WinUAE\
Install the Kickstart ROM(s)
- Create a folder called "Roms" in your WinUAE folder, in this example you'll end up with d:\WinUAE\Roms\
- Download the Amiga Rom files from a location indicated above
- Copy them to the Roms folder, in this example you'll end up with d:\WinUAE\Roms\*.rom
- In this example we'll use the Kickstart v1.3 rev 34.5 rom for the Amiga 500/1000/2000
Start WinUAE and configure WinUAE, including controls
- Start WinUAE by double clicking the winuae.exe file in the d:\WinUAE folder
- Click on Paths in the Settings menu to check if the System ROMs folder is correct, in this example d:\WinUAE\Roms\.
- Click on Floppy disks in the Hardware menu to check if Floppy drive 0 is enabled
- Click on Game ports in the Host menu and set port 1 to Windows mouse and port 2 to a keyboard layout that you find most convenient
Play Amiga games with WinUAE on Windows 10 and Windows 11
So, what to do to play Amiga games such as International Karate Plus (IK+) with WinUAE?
- Create a folder called "Games" in your WinUAE folder, in this example d:\WinUAE\Games\
- Download an Amiga game disk, like International Karate Plus (IK+)
- Copy the downloaded zip file to the Games folder, in this example d:\WinUAE\Games\IK+.zip. You don't need to extract it, as long as the zip file contains 1 bootable disk image
- If the downloaded zip file contains more than 1 image, copy the contents of the zip file to your WinUAE games folder, in this example d:\WinUAE\Games\
- Start WinUAE if it's not already started
- Click on Quickstart in the Settings menu
- In the Emulated Hardware box, choose Model A500 and most common configuration
- In the Emulated Drives box, click on the Select image file button, select the IK+.zip file in the d:\WinUAE\Games\ folder and choose Open
- Click on the Start button in the right bottom corner to start the game, please note that loading takes some time
- To start a new game when playing one, press F12
- Click on Quickstart in the Settings menu
- In the Emulated Drives box, click on the Select image file button, select the IK+.zip file in the d:\WinUAE\Games\ folder and choose Open
- Click on the Reset button in the left bottom corner to reset your emulated Amiga and load the game
Playing games with multiple disk files
Some Amiga games came on more than one floppy disk, like Defender of the Crown or Shadow of the Beast. When you download these games, they'll consist of several files (1 file for each disk). So what to do with those?
- Start the game as described above (start with attaching disk 1 to floppy drive 0 (DF0))
- When the game asks for another disk, press F12 to enter the configuration window
- Click on Quickstart if this is not already selected
- At the Emulated drives part, click on the Select image file button
- Select the appropriate disk file, click on Open and after that on Ok
- When the emulator doesn't start loading automatically, follow the instructions presented by the game (usually it says to press the fire button, which by default is the 5 on the numeric keypad of your keyboard)
Amiga Workbench
To get the ultimate Amiga feeling, you might want to search for the Workbench disks. This is the desktop/file manager of the Amiga. However, as you already know, you do not need the Workbench to play Amiga games! This guide also does not explain how to use the Workbench. Then again; if you would like to use the Workbench, you probably already know how to use it. Workbench disk images can be found here or here. The images can be started the same way as games. To be able to install (parts of) the Workbench or other software, you'll also need to setup a virtual harddisk (Settings - Hardware - CD & Hard drives).