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guides:romm-basics

Using ROMM

ROMM is where you can browse and play retro games right in your browser โ€” no emulator setup required. This guide covers the basics.

Logging In

Go to romm.twilighttv.myddns.me and sign in with your ROMM account.

ROMM login screen Screenshot: the Login screen

ROMM uses a separate account from Jellyfin โ€” see Account & Access Help if you don't have one yet or need a password reset.

Supported Systems

TwilightTV's ROMM library covers systems up to the 5th generation of consoles โ€” think PS1, N64, Genesis, SNES, and earlier. If you're looking for something newer that isn't there, it's likely outside what the server supports right now.

The Home Screen

After logging in, you'll see your library organized by platform (NES, SNES, PS1, etc.). Each platform section shows the games available for it as cover art tiles.

ROMM home screen with platform library Screenshot: the Home screen showing platform sections and game tiles

Browsing & Searching

  • Click a platform to see every game available for that system
  • Use the search bar at the top to find a game by name across all platforms
  • Click a game's cover art to open its detail page โ€” this shows info like release date, genre, and description

Browsing a platform's game library Screenshot: a platform library grid, e.g. SNES titles

Playing a Game

  1. If the game has a green play arrow, it is playable in the browser!
  2. Click a game to open its detail page
  3. Click Play
  4. The game launches in an in-browser emulator โ€” no downloads or extra software needed

Launching a game in the browser emulator Screenshot: a game's detail page with the Play button, and/or the emulator running

Controls

  • Keyboard: default controls work out of the box, though they can feel clunky for action games
  • Controller: plug in a USB controller (or connect Bluetooth) before hitting Play โ€” most browsers will auto-detect it once a button is pressed

Default Controls for Romm

Screenshot: These are the default controls for ROMM (GBA in this case.)

Save States

The in-browser emulator supports save states, so you don't need to rely on the game's own save system:

  • Use the emulator's on-screen menu (usually a small toolbar or press a hotkey) to save state (floppy icon) or load state (folder icon for manual load or the arrow icon for quick load)
  • Save states are tied to your account, so they'll be there next time you log in โ€” even on a different device
  • You are the only ones able to see your uploads, this includes ROMs, but this may be fixed soon. Unless you are an admin, then everyone can see your ROMS, but not your save files or save states.

Save state menu in the emulator Screenshot: the emulator's save/load state menu

Downloading a Game

If you'd rather play on a real emulator or handheld instead of in-browser, most games have a Download button on their detail page right next to the play button (if the game has one) to grab the ROM file directly.

You will need to provide the emulator yourself, but the BIOS files can be stored on ROMM. (Under the system, for example: PS2, there is a BIOS tab, you can drop a BIOS there and it acts like cloud storage.)

Favorites

Click the heart/star icon on a game to add it to your Favorites, making it easier to find again without digging through the full platform library.

Tips

  • Struggling with input lag in-browser? Try a wired controller instead of Bluetooth, and close other tabs/apps hogging bandwidth. Worst case, you may have to download it and play locally.
  • Can't find a specific game? It might just not be in the library yet โ€” ask an admin on Discord if you'd like it added or add it yourself under your username in the top right.
  • Be sure to ask an admin to scan for ROMS after you add them or else they won't show until after 3am. Gumby: I tried to change this, but it does not gibe me the option to do so easily, I will figure it out soon though.
  • Save states are per-game, so you can have different progress points saved without overwriting each other.

Still stuck? Reach out to an admin on The Twilight Zone's Discord.

guides/romm-basics.txt ยท Last modified: by gumby