How To Play Games On Yuzu

Quickstart Guide

Downloading and Installing yuzu
Hardware Requirements
yuzu Quickstart Guide
Prerequisites
Preparing the microSD card
Booting into RCM
Booting into Hekate
Mounting the microSD card to your computer in Hekate
Dumping Prod.keys and Title.keys
Backing up Switch NAND (Optional but Recommended)
Dumping System Update Firmware
Dumping Cartridge Games
Dumping Installed Titles (eShop)
Dumping Save Files (Optional)
Rebooting the Switch Back to its Original State
Running yuzu

Downloading and Installing yuzu

Hardware Requirements

CPU:

Any x86_64 CPU with support for the FMA instruction set. 6 threads or more are recommended.

Minimum: Intel Core i5-4430 / AMD Ryzen 3 1200
Recommended: Intel Core i5-10400 / AMD Ryzen 5 3600

Dedicated graphics:

OpenGL 4.6 or Vulkan 1.1 compatible hardware and drivers are mandatory. Half-float support and 4GB of VRAM are recommended.

Minimum for Linux: NVIDIA GeForce GT 1030 2GB / AMD Radeon R7 240 2GB
Minimum for Windows: NVIDIA GeForce GT 1030 2GB / AMD Radeon RX 550 2GB
Recommended: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 4GB / AMD Radeon RX Vega 56 8GB

Integrated graphics:

Integrated graphics will produce very low performance. A dedicated GPU will produce better results on all scenarios. This is only for listing iGPU support.

Minimum for Linux: Intel HD 5300 / AMD Radeon R5 Graphics
Minimum for Windows: Intel HD Graphics 520 / AMD Radeon Vega 3
Recommended: Intel UHD Graphics 750 / AMD Radeon Vega 7

RAM:

Since an integrated GPU uses system RAM as its video memory (VRAM), our memory requirement in this configuration is higher.

Minimum with dedicated graphics: 8GB
Minimum with integrated graphics: 12GB
Recommended: 16GB

Notes:

Windows users are recommended to run Windows 10 1803 or newer to get the best performance.
Our recommended specifications don't guarantee perfect performance in most games, but rather strive to provide a cost effective recommendation while still considering performance.
Most games are playable on older Nvidia GPUs from the Fermi family (400 series) or later, but at least Pascal (1000 series) is strongly recommended.
CPUs lacking the FMA instruction set will produce very poor results. Intel Core gen 3 series or older, AMD phenom II or older and all Pentium/Celeron/Atom CPUs will not produce optimal results.
Mobile CPUs will not reach the same performance as their desktop counterparts due to thermal, power, and technical limitations.
Old GCN 1.0 and GCN 2.0 Radeon GPUs on Linux require manually forcing the amdgpu kernel module.
GPUs must support OpenGL 4.6 & OpenGL Compatibility profile, or Vulkan 1.1 (or higher).
To find out if your GPU meets these requirements, visit https://opengl.gpuinfo.org or https://vulkan.gpuinfo.org/ and check your GPU details.

Sample Image:

GPUInfo

yuzu Quickstart Guide

To start playing commercial games, yuzu needs a couple of system files and folders from your switch in order to play them properly. To check if your Switch is hackable, visit https://damota.me/ssnc/checker and test your Switch's serial number.

NOTE:

If your Switch is patched, you will be unable to complete the following steps.
The 2019 Switch revision (Mariko/Red Box/HAC-001(-01)) and the Switch Lite are both patched and you will not be able to complete the following steps.

This guide will help you copy all your system files, games, updates, and DLC from your switch to your computer and organize them in a format yuzu understands. This process should take about 60 to 90 minutes.

IMPORTANT:
Make sure to place your Nintendo Switch into Airplane Mode before starting this guide.
System Settings -> Airplane Mode -> Airplane Mode "ON"

Prerequisites

A Nintendo Switch vulnerable to the fusée gelée RCM exploit – Visit https://damota.me/ssnc/checker and test your Switch's serial number
An SD card with at least 30 GB of free space (an almost empty 32GB card will work)
A USB-C to USB-A or USB-C to USB-C Cable to connect your Switch to your computer
TegraRcmGUI – Download TegraRcmGUI_v2.6_Installer.msi
Hekate – Download hekate_ctcaer_X.X.X_Nyx_X.X.X.zip
Atmosphere – Download both atmosphere-X.X.X-master-XXXXXXXX+hbl-X.X.X+hbmenu-X.X.X.zip and fusee.bin
Lockpick_RCM – Download Lockpick_RCM.bin
nxdumptool – Download nxdumptool.nro
nxDumpMerger – Download nxDumpMerger_Windows.zip
TegraExplorer – Download TegraExplorer.bin
microSD Card Reader – If your computer has one built-in, you can use that
RCM Jig <– We highly recommend one like this, but you could use any of the methods outlined here

%YUZU_DIR% is the home directory for yuzu on your computer:

            - For Windows, this is '%APPDATA%\yuzu' or 'C:\Users\{username}\AppData\Roaming\yuzu' - For Linux, this is '~/.local/share/yuzu'

Preparing the microSD Card

We will now prepare the microSD card.
- 1a. Extract the contents inside the atmosphere-X.X.X-master-XXXXXXXX+hbl-X.X.X+hbmenu-X.X.X.zip and hekate_ctcaer_X.X.X_Nyx_X.X.X.zip files into the root of your microSD card. Just drag and drop the contents, do not create any new folders.
- 1b. Rename the hekate_ctcaer_X.X.X.bin file to reboot_payload.bin and move it into the atmosphere folder. Replace the file when prompted.
- 1c. Place the fusee.bin, Lockpick_RCM.bin and TegraExplorer.bin files into the payloads folder, which is inside the bootloader folder in your microSD card.
- 1d. Create a folder named nxdumptool within the switch folder of your SD card and place the nxdumptool.nro file inside it.
- 1e. Once done, eject the microSD card and insert it into your Nintendo Switch.

Your SD card should look like this.

Booting into RCM

We will now boot your Nintendo Switch into RCM mode
- 2a. Run the TegraRcmGUI installer you downloaded from the prerequisites, and after installation, start the program.
- 2b. In the Settings tab, click on Install Driver which will install the drivers necessary for your computer to interface with your Nintendo Switch.
- 2c. After the drivers have been installed, plug your Nintendo Switch into your computer.
- 2d. Power off your Switch while it is still connected to your computer.
- 2e. Insert your RCM jig into the right joy-con slot, make sure it is seated securely at the base, and then press VOL+ and Power buttons at the same time. Nothing should happen on your Switch; if the switch starts to turn on normally, go back to the beginning of step 2d and try again.
- 2f. If you see the Nintendo Switch icon in the lower left corner flash green and state RCM O.K., your switch has successfully entered RCM mode.

Booting into Hekate

We will now boot your Nintendo Switch (already in RCM mode) into Hekate, a custom bootloader.
- 3a. Extract the hekate_ctcaer_X.X.X.bin file from the hekate_ctcaer_X.X.X_Nyx_X.X.X.zip file you downloaded from the prerequisites to any accessible directory on your computer.
- 3b. Run TegraRcmGUI. In the Payload tab of TegraRcmGUI, click on the folder icon and navigate to the hekate_ctcaer_X.X.X.bin file you extracted earlier.
- 3c. Click on Inject Payload and your Switch will boot into the Hekate menu.

Mounting the microSD card to your computer in Hekate

NOTE: These steps will be used in other sections below. Do not follow this section yet if you are booted into Hekate for the first time. Skip to the next section for now.

We will now mount the microSD card as a drive from your Switch to your computer in Hekate, via USB.
- 4a. In the Hekate Home menu, tap on the Tools tab to show the Tools menu.
- 4b. Tap on USB Tools.
- 4c. Tap on SD Card. Your SD card should now be mounted as a drive to your computer.
To unmount the SD card: Safely eject the drive from your computer and tap on Close from your Switch's screen.
We will now return to the Hekate Home menu.
- 5a. Tap on Close again to return to the Tools menu.
- 5b. Tap on the Home tab to return to the Hekate Home menu.

Dumping Prod.keys and Title.keys

We will now dump your prod.keys and title.keys for decryption of your game files.
- 6a. Boot your Nintendo Switch into RCM mode (steps 2c. to 2f.) and make sure it is connected to your computer.
- 6b. Boot into Hekate (steps 3b. to 3c.)
- 6c. When it has successfully booted into the Hekate menu, tap on Payloads. This will show a list of payloads.
- 6d. Tap on Lockpick_RCM.bin in the list of payloads.
- 6e. After Lockpick_RCM has successfully booted, press the power button to select Dump from SysNAND.
- 6f. Wait for it to finish deriving the keys.
- 6g. After Lockpick_RCM has finished deriving the keys, please make note of the location of the key files. Default is: sd:/switch/prod.keys and sd:/switch/title.keys.
- 6h. Press any button to return to the menu, then navigate with the VOL+/VOL- buttons to highlight and select Reboot to hekate by pressing the power button. You should now be booted back into Hekate.
- 6i. Mount the SD card to your computer in Hekate (steps 4a. to 4c.)
- 6j. Navigate to your SD card drive and copy both prod.keys and title.keys to the %YUZU_DIR%/keys directory.
- 6k. Once you're done copying, safely eject the SD card drive in your computer and return to the Hekate Home menu. (steps 5a. to 5b.)

Backing up Switch NAND (Optional but Recommended)

We will now boot Hekate to dump your switch's NAND. This step is optional, but highly recommended to ensure you have a backup of your Switch's data in its internal storage.
- 7a. Boot your Nintendo Switch into RCM mode (steps 2c. to 2f.) and make sure it is connected to your computer.
- 7b. Boot into Hekate (steps 3b. to 3c.)
- 7c. When it has successfully booted into the Hekate Home menu, tap on the Tools tab and select Backup eMMC.
- 7d. Underneath the Full section, tap on eMMC BOOT0 & BOOT1. This may take a few seconds to load. After it is finished filling the progress bar it should say Finished and verified!. Beneath Filepath: you will see the location of the dump.
- 7e. Tap on Close and select eMMC RAW GPP. This should take some time as the Switch's rawnand.bin is quite large. If the progress bar appears to go backwards at some points or turn green, do not worry as this is Hekate verifying the data. This should take between 15-45 minutes depending on the quality/speed of your SD card and the default verification setting. Please keep note of the location the output file is placed.
- 7f. Tap on Close two times to return to the Tools menu.
- 7g. Mount the SD card to your computer in Hekate (steps 4b. to 4c.)
- 7h. Navigate to your SD card drive and copy the backup folder to your computer.
- 7i. Once you're done copying, safely eject the SD card drive in your computer and return to the Hekate Home menu. (steps 5a. to 5b.)

Dumping System Update Firmware

Some games such as Mario Kart 8 Deluxe require the use of files found inside the Nintendo Switch System Update Firmware to be playable. In this step, we will now dump the firmware files from your Switch for use in yuzu.
- 8a. Boot your Nintendo Switch into RCM mode (steps 2c. to 2f.) and make sure it is connected to your computer.
- 8b. Boot into Hekate (steps 3b. to 3c.)
- 8c. When it has successfully booted into the Hekate Home menu, tap on Payloads. This will show a list of payloads.
- 8d. Tap on TegraExplorer.bin in the list of payloads.
- 8e. After TegraExplorer has successfully booted, navigate through the menu using the VOL+/VOL- buttons to highlight and select the FirmwareDump.te option by pressing the POWER button.
- 8f. Select the Dump sysmmc option
- 8g. Once the dumping process is finished, the .nca files will be located in your SD card at sd:/tegraexplorer/Firmware/<firmware version>.
- 8h. Press any button to return to the main menu.
- 8i. Select the Reboot to bootloader/update.bin option. You should now be booted back into Hekate.
- 8j. Mount the SD card to your computer in Hekate (steps 4a. to 4c.)
- 8k. Navigate to your SD card drive and copy the contents in the firmware folder (step 8f.) to %YUZU_DIR%/nand/system/Contents/registered. Alternatively, you can write %appdata%\yuzu\nand\system\Contents\registered in the address bar of a file explorer. The registered folder should be full of .nca files.
- 8l. Once you're done copying, safely eject the SD card drive in your computer and return to the Hekate Home menu. (steps 5a. to 5b.)

Dumping Cartridge Games

We will now dump the Cartridge Image (XCI) file from your game cartridge(s), to use in yuzu. Insert the game cartridge of your choice.
- 9a. Boot your Nintendo Switch into RCM mode (steps 2c. to 2f.) and make sure it is connected to your computer.
- 9b. Boot into Hekate (steps 3b. to 3c.)
- 9c. When it has successfully booted into the Hekate Home menu, tap on Payloads. This will show a list of payloads.
- 9d. Tap on fusee.bin in the list of payloads.
- 9e. Your Switch will launch into Custom Firmware Mode (CFW), and once your Switch has booted into the HOME Menu, press and hold the R button on your controller and launch a game. This will launch the Homebrew Menu in title override mode.
- 9f. Either use the touchscreen or navigate using your controller, and select nxdumptool.
- 9g. Select the Dump gamecard content option.
- 9h. Select the Cartridge Image (XCI) dump option.
- 9i. Once the cartridge image has been dumped, press any button to return to the previous menu and then press + to return to the Homebrew Menu.
- 9j. Select Reboot to Payload and then press - on your controller to return to the Hekate Home menu.
- 9k. Mount the SD card to your computer in Hekate (steps 4a. to 4c.)
- 9l. Navigate to your SD card drive. XCI dumps are located under sd:/switch/nxdumptool/XCI.
- 9m. If your XCIs are dumped in parts with .xc0, .xc1, .xc2, etc extensions, use the nxDumpMerger tool you have downloaded in the prerequisites to assist in merging these parts into a complete XCI. If they were dumped as complete XCI files with the .xci extension, you can proceed to copy these to a game directory of your choice.
- 9n. Extract the contents of nxDumpMerger_Windows.zip into a new folder and start the program.
- 9o. Select the button with the triple dots ... next to the Input field. This will open a file selector.
- 9p. Find and select one of the parts and click Open.
- 9q. Next, select the button with the triple dots ... next to the Output field. This will open a folder selector.
- 9r. Select a folder where you would like your games stored in your computer and then click Select Folder. (NOTE: Do not select a folder inside the SD card or you will quickly run out of space and experience slow transfer speeds in the merging process.)
- 9s. After completing these steps, the parts are ready to be merged. Select Merge Dump and the program will merge the parts into a complete XCI located in the Output folder. Repeat these steps for all other games dumped as parts.
- 9t. Once you're done merging, safely eject the SD card drive in your computer and return to the Hekate Home menu. (steps 5a. to 5b.)

Dumping Installed Titles (eShop)

We will now dump the Nintendo Submission Package (NSP) file from your installed eShop game(s), to use in yuzu.
- 10a. Boot your Nintendo Switch into RCM mode (steps 2c. to 2f.) and make sure it is connected to your computer.
- 10b. Boot into Hekate (steps 3b. to 3c.)
- 10c. When it has successfully booted into the Hekate menu, tap on Payloads. This will show a list of payloads.
- 10d. Tap on fusee.bin in the list of payloads.
- 10e. Your Switch will launch into Custom Firmware Mode (CFW), and once your Switch has booted into the home menu, press and hold the R button on your controller and launch a game. This will launch the Homebrew Menu in title override mode.
- 10f. Either use the touchscreen or navigate using your controller, and select nxdumptool.
- 10g. Select the Dump installed SD Card / eMMC Content option.
- 10h. Select the game you want to dump.
- 10i. Select the Nintendo Submission Package (NSP) dump option.
- 10j. If your game contains an update or DLC, you will see multiple dumping options such as Dump base application NSP, Dump installed update NSP or/and Dump installed DLC NSP in the next screen. Select Dump base application NSP to dump the base game.
- 10k. Select the Start NSP dump process option and wait for the dumping process to finish.
- 10l. Press the B button to return to the previous menu(s) and repeat the previous steps to dump the base, updates and DLC of all your games.
- 10m. Once all your games are dumped, press any button to return to the previous menu and then press + to return to the Homebrew Menu.
- 10n. Select Reboot to Payload and then press - on your controller to return to the Hekate Home menu.
- 10o. Mount the SD card to your computer in Hekate (steps 4a. to 4c.)
- 10p. Navigate to your SD card drive. NSP dumps are located under sd:/switch/nxdumptool/NSP.
- 10q. If your NSPs are dumped as folders with 00, 01, 02, etc parts within them, use the nxDumpMerger tool you have downloaded in the prerequisites to assist in merging these parts into a complete NSP. If they were dumped as files, you can proceed to copy these to a game directory of your choice.
- 10r. Extract the contents of nxDumpMerger into a new folder and start the program. (Skip the extraction if you already followed step 9n.)
- 10s. Select the button with the triple dots ... next to the Input field. This will open a file selector.
- 10t. Find a NSP that is dumped as a folder with parts. Select one of the parts within the folder and click Open.
- 10u. Next, select the button with the triple dots ... next to the Output field. This will open a folder selector.
- 10v. Select a folder where you would like your games stored in your computer and then click Select Folder. (NOTE: Do not select a folder inside the SD card or you will quickly run out of space and experience slow transfer speeds in the merging process.)
- 10w. After completing these steps, the parts are ready to be merged. Select Merge Dump and the program will merge the parts into a complete NSP located in the Output folder. Repeat these steps for all folder NSPs.
- 10x. Once you're done merging, safely eject the SD card drive in your computer and return to the Hekate Home menu. (steps 5a. to 5b.)

Dumping Save Files (Optional)

We will now dump the games' save files from your switch to use in yuzu.
- 11a. Download JKSV.nro
- 11b. Boot your Nintendo Switch into RCM mode (steps 2c. to 2f.) and make sure it is connected to your computer.
- 11c. Boot into Hekate (steps 3b. to 3c.)
- 11d. Mount the SD card to your computer in Hekate (steps 4a. to 4c.)
- 11e. Navigate to your SD card drive and place the JKSV.nro file inside the switch folder.
- 11f. Once you're done, safely eject the SD card drive in your computer and return to the Hekate Home menu. (steps 5a. to 5b.)
- 11g. Tap on Payloads. This will show a list of payloads.
- 11h. Tap on fusee.bin in the list of payloads.
- 11i. Your Switch will launch into Custom Firmware Mode (CFW), and once your Switch has booted into the home menu, press and hold the R button on your controller and launch a game. This will launch the Homebrew Menu in title override mode.
- 11j. Either use the touchscreen or navigate using your controller, and choose JKSV.
- 11k. Move up or down to select a source to dump save data for a single game. (Most save files are stored under the user account of choice. Some save data are located under Device, such as Animal Crossing: New Horizons.)
- 11l. For dumping all save data at once from selected source: Press X and then select the Dump All for <source name> option.
- 11m. For dumping save data of a single game: Press A and then select the game of choice, then press A again and select the New option.
- 11n. JKSV will being up the keyboard to set a name for your save data folder. By default, it generates a name containing the source name (user account, Device, etc.) alongside the date and time of when it was dumped, else you can name it to whatever you want. Once you're done, press + to dismiss the keyboard.
- 11o. Once you're done dumping, press + to close JKSV.
- 11p. Select Reboot to Payload and then press - on your controller to return to the Hekate menu.
- 11q. Mount the SD card to your computer in Hekate (steps 4a. to 4c.)
- 11r. Navigate to your SD card drive. Your save files will be located in sd:/JKSV/<name of the game>/<folder name from step 11n>/.
- 11s. Follow the instructions in the How do I add a Save to my Game section of our FAQ.
- 11t. Once you're done transferring your save files, safely eject the SD card drive in your computer and return to the Hekate Home menu. (steps 5a. to 5b.)

Rebooting the Switch Back to its Original State

If you're done following the sections you needed for yuzu, we will now reboot the Switch back to its original state.
- 12a. From the Hekate Home Menu, tap on Reboot.
- 12b. Tap on OFW.
- 12c. Your Switch will now reboot into the original firmware.

Running yuzu

We will now run yuzu to verify that your dumped keys and games are being read correctly.
- 9a. Run either the yuzu or yuzu Early Access shortcuts that were created by the yuzu installer tool.
- 9b. in yuzu, click on + Add New Game Directory in the browser, and navigate to the folder where you placed your XCI or NSP files.

If you need any help during this process or get a strange error during or while using yuzu, feel free to ask for help on the yuzu discord! Happy Emulating!