February 12, 2026 Guide

R36S Save States Guide: Save, Load & Backup Your Game Progress

Save states are one of the most powerful features of retro emulation — pause and save your progress at any point, not just at designated save points. This guide covers everything: hotkeys, slot management, file locations, and how to back up your saves.

Save States vs In-Game Saves

Before diving in, it is worth understanding the two different types of saves available on the R36S:

RetroArch Save States

Save states are a snapshot of the entire emulator state at a moment in time — CPU registers, RAM contents, graphics state, audio buffers. Loading a save state instantly restores everything to that exact moment, regardless of where you were in the game.

In-Game Saves (SRAM / Battery Saves)

Many games include their own save system that writes to battery-backed RAM in the original cartridge. RetroArch emulates this by saving SRAM contents to a .srm file on the SD card.

💡 Pro Tip

For important long games like Pokémon or Final Fantasy, use both save types. Use in-game saves regularly as your primary backup, and use save states as quick checkpoints before difficult sections. This gives you redundancy if a save state becomes corrupted.

Creating and Loading Save States

Default Hotkeys on R36S

RetroArch uses hotkey combinations for save state actions. The default hotkey button on R36S is SELECT. Hold SELECT and press the secondary button:

Action ArkOS Default Rocknix Default
Save State SELECT + R1 SELECT + R1
Load State SELECT + L1 SELECT + L1
Next Save Slot SELECT + R2 SELECT + R2
Previous Save Slot SELECT + L2 SELECT + L2
Open Quick Menu SELECT + START SELECT + START

To save to a specific slot: first change the slot with SELECT + R2/L2, then save with SELECT + R1.

Using the Quick Menu

For more control over save states, use the RetroArch Quick Menu:

  1. Press SELECT + START to open the Quick Menu
  2. Navigate to "Save State" to create a save in the current slot
  3. Navigate to "Load State" to restore the current slot
  4. Navigate to "Save Slot" to change which slot you're working with
  5. Use "Undo Save State" if you accidentally overwrote a save

⚠️ Important

Pressing "Load State" immediately restores to the save state and CANNOT be undone unless you use "Undo Load State" immediately after. If you accidentally load an old save state, open the Quick Menu right away and select "Undo Load State" to return to your previous position.

Save File Locations on SD Card

Understanding where your saves are stored lets you back them up properly. Plug your SD card into a computer to access these folders.

ArkOS File Locations

Rocknix File Locations

Each save state slot is a separate file with a number suffix:

Backing Up Your Saves

SD cards can fail. Backing up your save files regularly protects hundreds of hours of game progress.

Manual Backup (Recommended for All Users)

  1. Power off the R36S fully (do not just put it to sleep)
  2. Remove the SD card and insert it into your computer
  3. Copy the entire saves/ and savestates/ folders to your computer
  4. Store the backup in a cloud service (Google Drive, Dropbox) or external drive
  5. Repeat weekly or after completing significant sections of a game

Using SSH for Wireless Backup

If you have a USB Wi-Fi adapter connected to the R36S, you can back up saves wirelessly via SSH without removing the SD card:

  1. Connect a USB Wi-Fi adapter to the R36S
  2. Enable Wi-Fi in the firmware's network settings
  3. Note the R36S's IP address from the network settings
  4. On your computer, use an SCP client (WinSCP on Windows, or scp on macOS/Linux)
  5. Connect to the R36S using the IP address, username ark or root, and the device's password
  6. Navigate to the saves directory and download your files

💡 Pro Tip

The .srm files (SRAM saves) are the most critical to back up — these are your actual in-game save files. Save states are useful checkpoints but are larger and less portable. At minimum, back up all .srm files in your saves folder regularly.

Transferring Saves Between SD Cards

When upgrading to a new SD card or reinstalling firmware, you can transfer all your save files.

Same Firmware, New SD Card

  1. Back up saves from the old SD card (copy saves/ and savestates/ to your computer)
  2. Flash the new SD card with your firmware of choice
  3. Copy your ROMs to the new card
  4. Copy the saved saves/ and savestates/ folders back to the same location on the new card
  5. Saves are linked by filename — as long as your ROM filenames are identical, saves will be recognized automatically

Switching Between ArkOS and Rocknix

Save files can be transferred between firmware versions, but the folder paths differ. You need to manually move files to the correct location:

The files themselves (.srm, .state) are identical and interchangeable — only the folder path changes between firmware versions.

✅ Key Takeaway

Save states let you save anywhere, but SRAM files (.srm) are your real long-term saves. Keep backups of both on your computer. When the time comes to switch SD cards or firmware, your game progress is fully portable — just copy the saves folder to the same relative location on the new setup.

📚 Related Guides

⚙️ Advanced RetroArch Config

Master hotkeys, core overrides, shaders, and advanced RetroArch settings

Read Guide →

🎮 How to Add Games

Step-by-step guide to adding ROMs and organizing your game library on R36S

Read Guide →

💾 SD Card Setup Guide

Format, partition, and configure SD cards for ArkOS and Rocknix firmware

Read Guide →

🔧 Firmware Guide

Install ArkOS, Rocknix, or JELOS for the best R36S experience

Read Guide →

🎯 GBA Settings Guide

Best GBA emulator core, display shaders, audio settings, and save state tips

Read Guide →

🖥️ Screen Settings Guide

Best display configuration and shaders for every retro system on R36S

Read Guide →
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