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ES-DE (EmulationStation Desktop Edition) - Frequently Asked Questions for Android
Is this the same application as the releases for Linux, macOS and Windows?
Yes it's the exact same application, with only some minor differences. This means that it behaves exactly as you're used to from those other platforms, and it means that you can transfer files between your Android device and any other devices where you have ES-DE installed. This for example includes your game ROMs, gamelists, scraped media and custom collections.
Is it available for free, and is it open source?
The Android release specifically is not free, it's a paid app available for purchase on the Amazon Appstore. And although approximately 99% of the app is open source there are some portions of the code that is closed source.
Why is ES-DE not available on the Google Play store?
That is a question for Google. They are have done everything in their power to obstruct the release of ES-DE including constantly rejecting the releases without supplying meaningful explanations why, refusing to respond to tickets and emails and in general being incredibly difficult to deal with. There's a chance that there will be a Play Store release in the future but there's also a chance that it never happens.
Can I set ES-DE as my launcher?
No ES-DE can't be set as your launcher. It's not a native Android application, it's written in C++ and essentially works as a game engine with a game loop that constantly runs. ES-DE really has more in common with a game than with a regular Android launcher application that is native to the operating system. You can however install a native launcher and use it with ES-DE, this makes for a nice game console experience. To achieve this the following app is recommended: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.k2.consolelauncher
Can I launch Android applications and games from inside ES-DE?
Not at the moment. Although there is an android system in ES-DE it's not in use at the moment, but this functionality is planned for a future release.
What game systems/platforms and emulators are supported by ES-DE?
See the Supported game systems section at the bottom of the Android documentation where there's a table listing all supported systems/platforms and emulators.