{ "markdown": "# Gearcoleco\n\n[![GitHub Workflow Status](https://img.shields.io/github/actions/workflow/status/drhelius/Gearcoleco/gearcoleco.yml)](https://github.com/drhelius/Gearcoleco/actions/workflows/gearcoleco.yml)\n[![GitHub Releases)](https://img.shields.io/github/v/tag/drhelius/Gearcoleco?label=version)](https://github.com/drhelius/Gearcoleco/releases)\n[![commits)](https://img.shields.io/github/commit-activity/t/drhelius/Gearcoleco)](https://github.com/drhelius/Gearcoleco/commits/main)\n[![GitHub contributors](https://img.shields.io/github/contributors/drhelius/Gearcoleco)](https://github.com/drhelius/Gearcoleco/graphs/contributors)\n[![GitHub Sponsors](https://img.shields.io/github/sponsors/drhelius)](https://github.com/sponsors/drhelius)\n[![License](https://img.shields.io/github/license/drhelius/Gearcoleco)](https://github.com/drhelius/Gearcoleco/blob/main/LICENSE)\n[![Twitter Follow](https://img.shields.io/twitter/follow/drhelius)](https://x.com/drhelius)\n\nGearcoleco is a very accurate, cross-platform ColecoVision emulator written in C++ that runs on Windows, macOS, Linux, BSD and RetroArch, with an embedded MCP server for AI debugging and development.\n\nThis is an open source project with its ongoing development made possible thanks to the support by these awesome [backers](backers.md). If you find it useful, please consider [sponsoring](https://github.com/sponsors/drhelius).\n\nDon't hesitate to report bugs or ask for new features by [opening an issue](https://github.com/drhelius/Gearcoleco/issues).\n\n\n\n## Downloads\n\n\n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n \n
PlatformArchitectureDownload Link
WindowsDesktop x64Gearcoleco-1.6.13-desktop-windows-x64.zip
Desktop ARM64Gearcoleco-1.6.13-desktop-windows-arm64.zip
macOSHomebrewbrew install --cask drhelius/geardome/gearcoleco
Desktop Apple SiliconGearcoleco-1.6.13-desktop-macos-arm64.zip
Desktop IntelGearcoleco-1.6.13-desktop-macos-intel.zip
LinuxUbuntu PPAdrhelius/ppa-geardome
Fedora RPMdrhelius/rpm-geardome
Desktop Ubuntu 24.04 x64Gearcoleco-1.6.13-desktop-ubuntu24.04-x64.zip
Desktop Ubuntu 22.04 x64Gearcoleco-1.6.13-desktop-ubuntu22.04-x64.zip
Desktop Ubuntu 24.04 ARM64Gearcoleco-1.6.13-desktop-ubuntu24.04-arm64.zip
MCPBAll platformsMCP Readme
RetroArchAll platformsLibretro core documentation
Dev BuildsAll platformsGitHub Actions
\n\n**Notes:**\n- **Windows**: May need [Visual C++ Redistributable](https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=746572) and [OpenGL Compatibility Pack](https://apps.microsoft.com/detail/9nqpsl29bfff)\n- **Homebrew**: If Homebrew asks you to trust the third-party tap, run `brew trust --tap drhelius/geardome`\n- **Linux**: May need `libsdl3`\n\n## Features\n\n- Very accurate Z80 core, TMS9918A VDP, SN76489 PSG and AY-3-8910 SGM emulation.\n- Support for ColecoVision Super Game Module (SGM) and MegaCart ROMs.\n- Optional F18A v1.9 emulation.\n- Support for Super Action Controller (SAC), Wheel Controller and Roller Controller.\n- Save states with preview and rewind support.\n- Run-ahead support to reduce input latency.\n- Compressed ROM support (ZIP).\n- VGM recorder.\n- Supported platforms (standalone): Windows, Linux, BSD and macOS.\n- Supported platforms (libretro): Windows, Linux, macOS, Raspberry Pi, Android, iOS, tvOS, webOS, PlayStation Vita, PlayStation 3, Nintendo 3DS, Nintendo GameCube, Nintendo Wii, Nintendo WiiU, Nintendo Switch, Emscripten, Classic Mini systems (NES, SNES, C64, ...), OpenDingux, RetroFW and QNX.\n- Full debugger with just-in-time disassembler, CPU breakpoints, memory access breakpoints, code navigation (goto address, JP JR and CALL double clicking), debug symbols, automatic labels, memory editor, trace logger, IO inspector and VRAM viewer including registers, tiles, sprites and backgrounds.\n- MCP server for AI-assisted debugging with GitHub Copilot, Claude, Codex and similar, exposing tools for execution control, memory inspection, hardware status, rewind and more.\n- Windows, Linux and macOS *Portable Mode*.\n- [Programmable Shader Chain](platforms/shared/desktop/shaders/README.md).\n- ROM loading from the command line by adding the ROM path as an argument.\n- ROM loading using drag & drop.\n- Support for modern game controllers through [gamecontrollerdb.txt](https://github.com/mdqinc/SDL_GameControllerDB) file located in the same directory as the application binary.\n\n## Tips\n\n### Basic Usage\n- **BIOS**: Gearcoleco needs a BIOS to run. It is possible to load any BIOS but the original one with md5 `2c66f5911e5b42b8ebe113403548eee7` is recommended.\n- **Spinners**: When using any kind of spinner it is useful to capture the mouse by pressing `F12`. It is also recommended to disable spinners for software that don't use them.\n- **Rewind**: Hold the configured rewind hotkey (`Backspace` by default) or a mapped gamepad shortcut to step backwards through recent gameplay.\n- **Overscan**: For a precise representation of the original image, select **Overscan** `Top+Bottom` and **Aspect Ratio** `Standard (4:3 DAR)` in the **Video** menu.\n- **Mouse Cursor**: Automatically hides when hovering over the main output window or when Main Menu is disabled.\n- **Portable Mode**: Run with `--portable`, or create an empty file named `portable.ini` in the same directory as the application binary. On macOS, place the file next to the `.app` bundle.\n\n### Debugging Features\n- **Docking Windows**: In debug mode, you can dock windows together by pressing SHIFT and dragging a window onto another.\n- **Multi-viewport**: In Windows or macOS, you can enable \"multi-viewport\" in the debug menu. You must restart the emulator for the change to take effect. Once enabled, you can drag debugger windows outside the main window.\n- **Single Instance**: You can enable \"Single Instance\" in the `Emulator` menu. When enabled, opening a ROM while another instance is running will send the ROM to the running instance instead of starting a new one.\n- **Debug Symbols**: The emulator automatically tries to load a symbol file when loading a ROM (.sym, .noi). For example, for `path_to_rom_file.rom` it tries to load `path_to_rom_file.sym`. You can also load a symbol file using the GUI or the CLI. It supports SDCC/NoICE (.noi), wla-dx and vasm/generic file formats.\n- **Rewind Scrubbing**: In debug mode, pause emulation and open the Rewind window to scrub through captured snapshots.\n\n### Command Line Usage\n```\ngearcoleco [options] [rom_file] [symbol_file]\n\nArguments:\n [rom_file] ROM file: accepts ROMs (.col, .cv, .rom, .bin) or ZIP (.zip)\n [symbol_file] Optional symbol file for debugging\n\nOptions:\n -f, --fullscreen Start in fullscreen mode\n -w, --windowed Start in windowed mode with menu visible\n --mcp-stdio Auto-start MCP server with stdio transport\n --mcp-http Auto-start MCP server with HTTP transport\n --mcp-router Enable compact MCP tool routing\n --mcp-http-address A HTTP bind address (default: 127.0.0.1)\n --mcp-http-port N HTTP port for MCP server (default: 7777)\n --headless Run without GUI (requires --mcp-stdio or --mcp-http)\n --portable Store configuration and user data beside the application\n -v, --version Display version information\n -h, --help Display this help message\n```\n\n### MCP Server\n\nGearcoleco includes a [Model Context Protocol](https://modelcontextprotocol.io/introduction) (MCP) server that enables AI-assisted debugging through AI agents like GitHub Copilot, Claude, Codex and similar. The server provides tools for execution control, memory inspection, breakpoints, disassembly, hardware status, and more. STDIO and HTTP transports are supported, with STDIO preferred.\n\nFor complete setup instructions and tool documentation, see [MCP_README.md](MCP_README.md).\n\n### Agent Skills\n\nGearcoleco provides [Agent Skills](https://agentskills.io/) that teach AI assistants how to effectively use the emulator for specific tasks:\n\n- **[gearcoleco-debugging](skills/gearcoleco-debugging/SKILL.md)** — Game debugging, code tracing, breakpoint management, hardware inspection, and reverse engineering.\n- **[gearcoleco-romhacking](skills/gearcoleco-romhacking/SKILL.md)** — Cheat creation, memory searching, ROM data modification, text translation, and game patching.\n\nInstall with `npx skills add drhelius/gearcoleco`. See the [skills README](skills/README.md) for details.\n\n## Build Instructions\n\n### Windows\n\n- Install Microsoft Visual Studio Community 2026 or later.\n- Download the latest SDL3 VC development libraries from [SDL3 Releases](https://github.com/libsdl-org/SDL/releases) (the file named `SDL3-devel-x.y.z-VC.zip`).\n- Extract the archive and rename the resulting folder (e.g. `SDL3-x.y.z`) to `SDL3`.\n- Place the `SDL3` folder inside `platforms/windows/dependencies/` so that the include path is `platforms/windows/dependencies/SDL3/include/SDL3/`.\n- Open the Gearcoleco Visual Studio solution `platforms/windows/Gearcoleco.sln` and build.\n\n### macOS\n\n- Install Xcode and run `xcode-select --install` in the terminal for the compiler to be available on the command line.\n- Run these commands to generate a Mac *app* bundle:\n\n``` shell\nbrew install sdl3\ncd platforms/macos\nmake dist\n```\n\n### Linux\n\n- Ubuntu / Debian / Raspberry Pi (Raspbian):\n\nIf you are using Ubuntu 25.04 or later, you can install SDL3 directly. Use the following commands to build:\n\n``` shell\nsudo apt install build-essential libsdl3-dev\ncd platforms/linux\nmake\n```\n\nFor older Ubuntu versions (22.04, 24.04), you need to build SDL3 from source first. Use the following commands to build both SDL3 and Gearcoleco:\n\n``` shell\nsudo apt install build-essential cmake git curl jq pkg-config \\\n libx11-dev libxext-dev libxrandr-dev libxcursor-dev libxfixes-dev \\\n libxi-dev libxss-dev libxkbcommon-dev libwayland-dev libdecor-0-dev \\\n libdrm-dev libgbm-dev libgl1-mesa-dev libegl1-mesa-dev libdbus-1-dev libudev-dev libxtst-dev\nSDL3_TAG=$(curl -s https://api.github.com/repos/libsdl-org/SDL/releases/latest | jq -r '.tag_name')\ngit clone --depth 1 --branch \"$SDL3_TAG\" https://github.com/libsdl-org/SDL.git /tmp/SDL3\ncmake -S /tmp/SDL3 -B /tmp/SDL3/build -DCMAKE_INSTALL_PREFIX=/usr -DSDL_TESTS=OFF -DSDL_EXAMPLES=OFF\ncmake --build /tmp/SDL3/build -j$(nproc)\nsudo cmake --install /tmp/SDL3/build\ncd platforms/linux\nmake\n```\n\n- Fedora:\n\n``` shell\nsudo dnf install @development-tools gcc-c++ SDL3-devel\ncd platforms/linux\nmake\n```\n\n- Arch Linux:\n\n``` shell\nsudo pacman -S base-devel sdl3\ncd platforms/linux\nmake\n```\n\n### BSD\n\n- FreeBSD:\n\n``` shell\nsu root -c \"pkg install -y git gmake pkgconf sdl3\"\ncd platforms/bsd\nUSE_CLANG=1 gmake\n```\n\n- NetBSD:\n\n``` shell\nsu root -c \"pkgin install gmake pkgconf SDL3\"\ncd platforms/bsd\ngmake\n```\n\n- OpenBSD\n\n``` shell\ndoas pkg_add gmake sdl3\ncd platforms/bsd\nLDFLAGS=-L/usr/X11R6/lib/ USE_CLANG=1 gmake\n```\n\n### Libretro\n\n- Ubuntu / Debian / Raspberry Pi (Raspbian):\n\n``` shell\nsudo apt install build-essential\ncd platforms/libretro\nmake\n```\n\n- Fedora:\n\n``` shell\nsudo dnf install @development-tools gcc-c++\ncd platforms/libretro\nmake\n```\n\n## Screenshots\n\n\"Screen\"Screen\n\"Screen\"Screen\n\"Screen\"Screen\n\"Screen\"Screen\n\n## Contributors\n\nThank you to all the people who have already contributed to Gearcoleco!\n\n[![Contributors](https://contrib.rocks/image?repo=drhelius/gearcoleco)](https://github.com/drhelius/gearcoleco/graphs/contributors)\n\n## License\n\nGearcoleco is licensed under the GNU General Public License v3.0 License, see [LICENSE](LICENSE) for more information.\n", "bytes": 14982, "sha": "b0be2b118487178c95973af74abb6b493316010b76666eeae990998efe10c793", "repo_slug": "drhelius/gearcoleco", "fonte": "repo", "truncated": false, "api": "https://agentalog.com/api/listings/mcp_io_github_drhelius_gearcoleco_0456174d/readme" }