GameImage - AppImage Game Packer

• GameImage - AppImage Game Packer
  • Supported applications for packaging
  • Showcase
  • Graphical User Interface (GUI)
  • Build Dependencies
  • Install
  • Usage (Command Line)
  • Configuration
    • Global
      • Additional search paths (besides rom)
    • Wine Specific
      • Launch Command
      • Select type of packaging
      • Select Wine Distribution
    • Emulator Specific
      • Configure the emulator bundled inside the appimage
      • Make the AppImage use the global configuration directory
      • Test the emulator inside the appimage
  • Examples
  • Tutorial on how to show icons for generated AppImages

Game emulation is on the rise, with years of contribution from the community and now with Valve's portable handheld, the steam deck. The fragmentation with several platform emulators is daunting, especially since it requires repetitive configuration for the first time or if the config files go missing. GameImage is a tool to pack a runner (such as an emulator), a game, and it's configs in a single appimage package.

Advantages:

• Simplicity:
  • No need to install an emulator or wine to run your games, they are downloaded as appimages and packaged with the game.
  • Each game config/saves are in the same folder as the appimage by default (it can be changed to use global ~/.config). Which simplifies backups.
• Usability: get your game running with a double click on a fresh linux install, no dependencies required.
• Storage: Smaller file sizes than loose files, since appimage uses squashfs.

Also watch it on youtube, thanks Not Aidan.

Supported applications for packaging

Showcase

Files displayed on the thunar file manager.

Graphical User Interface (GUI)

Build Dependencies

Required packages to build:

For arch-based systems:

sudo pacman -S p7zip

For debian-based systems:

sudo add-apt-repository universe
sudo apt update
sudo apt install p7zip-full p7zip-rar

For Fedora:

sudo dnf install p7zip
sudo dnf install glibc.i686

For Vanilla OS:

sudo abroot exec apt install p7zip-full p7zip-rar libc6-i386

Install

Download the appimage in the releases page.

Usage (Command Line)

Gameimage requires a directory set-up with the required files for the target platform, ./gameimage.AppImage displays the following example:

-- Usage:
  main.sh --platform="target-platform" --name="game name" --dir=src-directory
  - "platform": [retroarch,pcsx2,rpcs3,yuzu,wine]
  - "name": The name of the game.
  - "dir": The directory with the bios, rom, etc. May be absolute or relative.
  The source directory must have this structure (files can have any name):
    src-directory
    ├─rom
    │ ├─rom-disc-1.[bin,cue,wbfs,...]
    │ ├─rom-disc-2.[bin,cue,wbfs,...]
    │ ├─...
    │ └─rom-disc-n.[bin,cue,wbfs,...]
    ├─core # for retroarch
    │ └─core.so
    ├─bios # for retroarch (psone), pcsx2, rpcs3
    │ └─bios.[bin,PUP]
    └─icon
      └─icon.[png,svg,jpg]
-- Usage:
  main.sh --version # Prints version and exits

Configuration

Consider an AppImage named my-cool-game.AppImage for the examples below.

Global

Additional search paths (besides rom)

export GIMG_DIR_ROM_EXTRA="/path/to/dir1 /path/to/dir2"

If the path has spaces:

export GIMG_DIR_ROM_EXTRA="\"/path/to my/dir 1\" \"/path/to my/dir 2\""

Wine Specific

Launch Command

It is possible to set the default launch command with --gameimage-cmd, this is saved in .my-cool-game.AppImage/config.yml. Avaliable aliases are:

• {wine}: Path to wine binary included inside the appimage
• {exec}: Basename of the default executable
• {here}: Directory from which the appimage is launched.
• {appd}: AppImage AppDir.

Examples:

 # Default command, sets wine to launch main application executable
./my-cool-game.AppImage --gameimage-cmd='{wine} {exec}'
 # Use wine to run other executable in the current working directory
./my-cool-game.AppImage --gameimage-cmd='{wine} {here}/other-exec.exe'
 # Run winetricks, included in the wine appimage
./my-cool-game.AppImage --gameimage-cmd='{appd}/usr/bin/winetricks'
 # Use FSR (gamescope must be installed separately)
./my-cool-game.AppImage --gameimage-cmd='gamescope -U {wine} {exec}'

Select type of packaging

The GIMG_PKG_TYPE option defines the packaging method, options are:

1. unionfs: Inside the appimage, writeable with unionfs. [default, recommended]
2. readonly: Inside the appimage, read-only.
3. prefix: Outside the AppImage (in a hidden folder called .my-game.AppImage.config).

[1] Packs everything inside the appimage, the game can write to its own directory with unionfs.

[2] Packs everything inside the appimage, read-only (might not work for some games).

[3] The software is moved to .my-game.AppImage.config, the appimage acts as a launcher.

Example:

export GIMG_PKG_TYPE=prefix

Select Wine Distribution

Default distribution is wine-ge. Available are:

• staging
• caffe
• vaniglia
• soda

To change it, export the variable before running the appimage, e.g:

export GIMG_WINE_DIST=soda

Emulator Specific

Configure the emulator bundled inside the appimage

my-cool-game.AppImage --config

Change the global settings, and it will only apply to the game in the .AppImage.

In the case of wine if you pass any parameters, they'll be executed as wine args...

Make the AppImage use the global configuration directory

Include an extra . in the extension to use ~/.config:

From my-cool-game.AppImage to my-cool-game..AppImage

Test the emulator inside the appimage

You can also pass any arguments to the emulator directly:

my-cool-game.AppImage -L "/path/to/my/core.so" "my-other-cool-rom"

Examples

my-game-dir
├── bios
│   └── bios.PUP
├── icon
│   └── my-game-cover.png
└── rom
    ├── PS3_DISC.SFB
    └── PS3_GAME

gameimage.AppImage --platform=rpcs3 --name="My cool game" --dir=./my-game-dir

my-game-dir
├── bios
│   └── my-ripped-bios.bin
├── icon
│   └── my-game-cover.jpg
└── rom
    └── my-game.iso

./gameimage.AppImage --platform=pcsx2 --name="My cool game" --dir=./my-game-dir

my-game-dir
├── bios
│   └── my-ripped-bios.bin
├── core
│   └── swanstation_libretro.so
├── icon
│   └── my-game-cover.png
└── rom
    ├── my-game-disc-1.bin
    ├── my-game-disc-1.cue
    ├── my-game-disc-2.bin
    ├── my-game-disc-2.cue
    ├── my-game-disc-3.bin
    ├── my-game-disc-3.cue
    ├── my-game-disc-4.bin
    └── my-game-disc-4.cue

./gameimage.AppImage --platform=retroarch --name="My cool game" --dir=./my-game-dir

my-game-dir
├── bios
│   └── my-firmware.[zip,7z]
├── keys
│   └── my-keys.[zip,7z]
├── icon
│   └── my-game-cover.png
├── rom
│   └── my-game.nsp
└── update # This folder is optional
    ├── my-dlc-1.nsp
    ├── my-dlc-2.nsp
    └── my-update.nsp

./gameimage.AppImage --platform=yuzu --name="My cool game" --dir=./my-game-dir

my-game-dir
├── icon
│   └── my-game-cover.png
└── rom
    ├── my-game-installer-1.bin
    ├── my-game-installer-2.bin
    ├── my-game-installer-3.bin
    └── my-game-installer.exe

./gameimage.AppImage --platform=wine --name="My cool game" --dir=./my-game-dir

Tutorial on how to show icons for generated AppImages

The following methods use thunar, other supported file managers are listed here. Note that the appimage must be set as executable for the thumbnail generation.

curl https://gitlab.com/formigoni/gameimage/-/raw/master/thumbnailer/install.sh | bash

Disclaimer: This project does not endorse piracy, buy your games and console to use this software.