Ninrates

Dolphin is an emulator for running GameCube and Wii games on Windows, Linux, macOS, and recent Android devices. It's licensed under the terms of the GNU General Public License, version 2 or later (GPLv2+).

The Nintendo Gamecube is the successor to the hugely successful Nintendo 64. The console would be a platform that improved the graphics of 3D games overall – a concept that became the norm just one system generation ago. In this guide, we show you how you can play these games on your computer using the Dolphin emulator.

How To Add A Gamecube Game To Dolphin On Mac Os

The first thing we need is the Dolphin emulator. For that, we can go to the Dolphin emulator website and download it from the downloads page. We note that this emulator is available across many platforms, but the main platform is Windows as the other stable ports seem to be a version or two behind the latest version.

Once downloaded, run the executable to install the emulator. After this, find a convenient place on your hard drive for all your Gamecube needs and create a folder for it. Once you create a folder, go into this folder. I personally chose to create a shortcut to the executable for the emulator, but this is optional. Next, create a folder that will house all of the CD images of the games you have.

Now, open the emulator.

The first thing we need to do is configure our Gamecube controls. For that, we can simply click on the GCPad on the toolbar. You’ll get a screen like this:

To change a key, simply click on a button and type in the button that you want for that particular button on your virtual controller. When done, type in the name of this particular configuration under profile and click Save. Some games will be easier to play with a different configuration and you may need to create multiple profiles meant for different kinds of games. When you are done, click on the “OK” button.

The next thing we need to do is point the emulator to your ISO folder. For that, simply click on the “File” drop-down menu and click on “Browse for ISOs…”

From there, just browse to your ISO directory and choose that directory by clicking on it and pressing “OK”. If you do not see ISOs appearing, click on the “Refresh” button to refresh the list. If the ISOs still do not appear, make sure the ISOs are not in their own directories. It seems that, by default, Dolphin does not read sub-directories.

From there, you can either double-click on a game in your emulator to start it or click on a game and press the play button in the tool bar to start it. This will open a separate window for the game itself. You can use controls from the first emulation screen to affect the game. When you are done playing, you can use the stop button on the first screen.

To save a state, use Shift+[F1 – F8] (each F key between 1 and 8 is it’s own save slot). To load a state, just hit F1-F8 to load a respective save state. This option can be accessed in “Emulation” and the two options on the button of the menu, but only when a game is actually running.

Like almost every other emulator out there, emulation isn’t going to be perfect for every single game. To find out which game is fully compatible or not, check out the official compatibility list on the Dolphin website.

That’s it!

Happy gaming!

Note: This emulator can also emulate Wii games, but this guide simply covers the Gamecube part of this emulator. If you want, you can check out our Wii guide which uses this very emulator! Much of the information is similar to what you see here, but worth checking out anyway.

I was one of those guys that bought the Wii off of eBay shortly after its release at a scalper's ransom. For months my roommates and I would drink beer, talk trash, and play Wii Sports bowling for hours on end. Of course the Wii never got many quality games but the console was worth the price alone for all the fun we had with Wii Sports.

A decade later my Wii doesn't work very well; the discs are scratched and the Wii usually spits out any disk I put into it, which is a shame because my four year old is just getting into gaming. After a bit of research I've found that Dolphin, the emulator I found to play Gamecube games, can also emulate Wii games. It took a few hours of experimentation but I finally figured out how to play Wii games on my Mac. Let's have a look!

Step 1: Get Dolphin

The Dolphin app is an emulator for both Gamecube and Wii. Download and install Dolphin emulator and you should see this screen when you open the app:

Step 2 (Optional): Get the Wiimote Dependencies

This step is only required if you want to use real wiimotes to play wii games on your Mac. Many gamers have mentioned that the Xbox controller is an excellent alternative.

Start by opening System Preferences > Bluetooth and ensuring Bluetooth is turned on. Despite being a bluetooth device, the wiimote does require a bit of extra software to work as desired:

• foodhid: OSX IOKit driver for implementing virtual HID devices (joypads, keyboards, etc.)
• WJoy: Nintendo Wiimote driver for Mac OS X. Unfortunately the current version of the original repository has an immediately disconnecting defect so use this forked version which contains fixes so your Wiimote can stay connected.

How To Add A Gamecube Game To Dolphin On Mac Computer

The WJoy utility may not be needed to play games with Dolphin but it's a very useful app for using a Wiimote for any purpose on Mac. WJoy displays in the menu bar and allows you to open or close Wiimote discoverability. Click the 'Begin Discovery' menu item, then grab your Wiimote and hold the red pairing button near the Wiimote's batteries; WJoy will quickly discover and pair your Wiimote!

Step 3: Configure the Wiimote or Other Remote within Dolphin

How To Add A Gamecube Game To Dolphin On Mac Catalina

Dolphin does not initially detect your Wiimote so you'll need to manually configure your Wiimote (or Xbox controller) within the Options > Controller Settings menu. Find the 'Wiimotes' heading and choose either 'Emulated Remote' (for a controller other than Wiimote) or 'Real Wiimote' if you have a Wiimote.

Notice that you can use up to four real Wiimotes (it works!). You'll also want to turn on the 'Continuous Scanning' option under the 'Real Wiimote' heading.

After initial setup, Dolphin will remember any configuration you've created. Once Dolphin recognizes your Wiimote, the Wiimote will rumble and make the typical Wiimote chime.

Step 4: Load an ISO and Play!

Click Dolphin's 'Open' icon and choose an Wii game ISO file. The game will start and you're ready to play!

How To Add A Gamecube Game To Dolphin On Mac Emulator

My 2017 13' MacBook Pro plays Wii Sports flawlessly, even without the Wii sensor bar. The swinging and other Wiimote motions are just as responsive as my old Wiimote. Kudos to the developers of Dolphin and the Wiimote drivers for making all of this Magic happen!