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Turn your Chromecast into a retro gaming console

It is no secret that we are experiencing a retro revival, either due to collecting, or because those of us who are beginning to have an age like to go back to playing those games of yesteryear. To later discover that they either evoke past sensations or discover that they are not that bad either and realize how bad nostalgia is. Well, there is a chance play retro games on a Chromecast with Android TV and we will explain how to do it.

We have to start from the fact that devices like Google’s Chromecast turn our television into a SmartTV, which basically means transforming it into another computer that can run applications. Of course, not the same as in a Windows environment, but we can’t forget that this allows us to run emulators from old systems. So you will not need to spend additional money to enjoy these classics if you have one of these two devices.

What do I have to do to play retro games on my Chromecast?

Next, we are going to tell you the steps you have to follow to be able to turn your Chromecast into a retro gaming machine and be able to play your classic 8 and 16-bit computers and consoles, however, we must start from the fact that we will have to make some adjustments in the system configuration.

First of all, activate the ability to use applications outside of Google Play

The first of all is that we have to start from the fact that emulators are on a gray line between what is legal and what is not legal, so Google takes care not to include us in its store, but allow us to install any APK outside of Google Playbut for this we must carry out a series of previous steps to activate developer mode on the device:

  1. Go to the device settings menu of your Chromecast.
    1. Select settings
    2. Device preferences.
    3. Scroll down until you reach Compilation.
    4. Press OK on your Chromecast remote 7 times until you manage to activate developer mode, the system should confirm it.
  2. Now you have a new option that is the developer options, enter it and make sure USB debugging mode is enabledalso from there you can activate and deactivate Bluetooth, which will be ideal for using a wireless controller and playing games.
  3. The third step is to go to the Apps menu within Settings.
    1. Select security and restrictions.
    2. What you have to do is enable the permissions to run apps from unknown sources. This will be what will allow you to load the APKs of the emulators you want to play with.

With this we can already install the emulator, however, we are missing something very important and that is the fact of being able to load the applications and games themselves.

Second, connect your Chromecast to PC

Our Chromecast has a USB port, which is designed to connect to our television, however, we will find that this is only for charging and we will not be able to transmit files. This means that we must use an application that allows us to transmit information through the WiFi network of our home, to which the Chromecast is also connected. For this we will need to have access from said network to the files inside our Chromecast to be able to copy the emulators and ROMS.

Solid Explorer Connectivity

To do this we recommend the use of a simple application called Solid Explorer on your Chromecast together with Solid Explorer FTP. Once you have them installed you just have to follow the following steps

  1. Open Solid Explorer and select the icon with the three lines.
  2. Scroll down with the Chromecast controller until you find the FTP Server option.
  3. From the advantage that will come out you will see the IP address of the Chromecast in the local network, write it down on a piece of paper or in a place where you can access it before.
  4. Hit the Start button to enable FTP access on your Chromecast.

Third step, connect your PC to Chromecast

If you want you can assign a username or a password so that no one else can access remotely knowing the IP you can do it. Now all you have to do is do it on the PC, for this you have to follow the following steps:

  1. Open My Computer/This PC from Windows, Windows Explorer, or the desktop icon.
  2. Right click on a blank area and select “Add Network Location”
  3. Go to following in the windows that appear and in the box where you have to place the address write: ftp:// and without leaving a space after the IP that you have connected before.
  4. After that, it will connect you to the Chromecast, if you have assigned a username and password, it will ask you. You now have everything you need to stream your files.

Fourth step, install the emulators.

Now you will only have to navigate with Solid Explorer from the Chromecast to the folder where you have copied the APK of the emulators. Once you have done it, you can enjoy your retro games on your Chromecast. As for the controls, you can use any gamepad with Bluetooth connectivity and Xinput support. Once this is done, you can now relax on the sofa and enjoy your favorite games of yesteryear.

As a last note, everything that we have explained to you It will work for any device with integrated Android TV And not just with Google’s Chromecast.

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