RetroArch¶

Description¶

RetroArch is a frontend for emulators, game engines, and media players powered by the Libretro framework. It supports multiple UI styles including XMB and Ozone, and provides a unified interface for retro gaming across platforms.

Overview¶

Designed for retro gaming enthusiasts, this role installs RetroArch along with its core assets and themes on Arch Linux systems. It ensures all UI styles are ready and provides a consistent emulator frontend interface.

Cosmos¶

The diagram places RetroArch in the Infinito.Nexus cosmos: the components it deploys (capabilities), the central services it consumes (dependencies), and its outward reach (federation and bridged external networks).

flowchart LR
    subgraph role [desk-retroarch 💻]
        svc_retroarch["retroarch"]
    end

Solid 1:1 edges are fixed relationships; dashed 0..1 edges are conditional (enabled only in matching deployments); red 0..0 edges are turned off in this role. Node markers show the role’s deploy modes (💻 host, 🐳 compose, 🐝 swarm); ❌ marks a service that is explicitly turned off, and ⚙️ an Ansible role dependency declared in meta/main.yml.

Purpose¶

The purpose of this role is to automate the deployment of a full-featured RetroArch environment, reducing manual setup and improving reproducibility across gaming setups.

Features¶

Installs RetroArch: Including the main RetroArch package and theme assets.
UI Assets Support: Both XMB and Ozone menu styles supported out of the box.

Quick Setup¶

Development¶

Clone, set up the workstation, and deploy RetroArch onto the local stack:

git clone https://github.com/infinito-nexus/core.git
cd core
make onboard
make compose-deploy mode=reinstall apps=desk-retroarch full_cycle=false

Production¶

Install RetroArch directly onto the target machine: clone the repository, install the OS prerequisites and the repository toolchain, then deploy against localhost over a local connection (no SSH, no container):

git clone https://github.com/infinito-nexus/core.git
cd core
bash scripts/install/package.sh
make install
source scripts/meta/env/load.sh

APP=desk-retroarch
DOMAIN=<your-domain>
TLS_MODE=self_signed
SSH_PUBLIC_KEY="<your-ssh-public-key>"
INVENTORY=inventories/production
infinito administration inventory provision "$INVENTORY" \
  --inventory-file "$INVENTORY/devices.yml" \
  --host localhost \
  --include "$APP" \
  --vars "{\"TLS_MODE\": \"$TLS_MODE\", \"DOMAIN_PRIMARY\": \"$DOMAIN\", \"users\": {\"administrator\": {\"authorized_keys\": [\"$SSH_PUBLIC_KEY\"]}}}"
infinito administration deploy dedicated "$INVENTORY/devices.yml" \
  --password-file "$INVENTORY/.password" \
  --diff -vv

Further Resources¶

Credits¶

Implemented by Kevin Veen-Birkenbach. Part of the Infinito.Nexus Project and maintained by Kevin Veen-Birkenbach. Licensed under the Infinito.Nexus Community License (Non-Commercial).