RetroArch
Drop-in replacementFreeThe official Linux build, verified on Flathub. Same interface, same cores, same configuration files.
Your files: Configuration folder, save states and game files all copy across from Windows unchanged.
Does RetroArch run on Linux?
Verdict: Yes
Yes. Linux is one of RetroArch's officially listed platforms and the libretro team publish a verified Linux build on Flathub, so it is the same app you were already using.
RetroArch's platform list names Linux alongside Windows, macOS and a long tail of consoles and handhelds. The Flathub listing is marked verified, which means it comes from the libretro team rather than a stranger, and it updates with the rest of your apps.
Your setup moves across. Copy the RetroArch configuration folder and your game folders from the Windows machine and you keep your controller mappings, shaders and save states. Save states are tied to the emulator core version rather than the operating system, so most survive the move.
The awkward parts are the same on both systems. RetroArch is a shell that loads a separate add-on, called a core, for each console, and you download those individually. Some consoles need original start-up files copied from real hardware, which RetroArch does not supply and will not help you find. The menus are built for a controller and take an hour to feel natural.
Nothing about Linux makes any of that worse. If RetroArch already worked for you, it will keep working.
RetroArch on Linux, and alternatives
Dolphin Emulator
Different way of workingFreeIf GameCube and Wii were the reason you used RetroArch, the standalone Dolphin app is better at those two consoles.
Your files: Reads the same game files. Save states are not shared with RetroArch.
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