How to Add Games to R36S: Complete ROM Setup Tutorial

What You Need Before Starting

Before copying any games to your R36S, make sure you have the following ready:

• A microSD card reader — most computers don't have a built-in reader; a USB adapter costs under $5
• ROM files for the systems you want to play
• BIOS files for systems that require them (PS1, Sega CD, etc.)
• Custom firmware installed — ArkOS or Rocknix is strongly recommended over stock firmware. See the firmware guide for installation instructions.

Understanding the Two SD Card Partitions

After flashing custom firmware, your SD card has two partitions:

• System partition (ext4): Contains the Linux OS and firmware files. This partition is not visible on Windows by default. Do not modify it.
• ROMS partition (exFAT or FAT32): This is the partition you'll use to add games. It appears as a normal drive when you plug the SD card into your computer.

When you open the ROMS partition, you'll see a series of subfolders — one for each supported gaming system. Your job is to copy ROM files into the correct subfolder for each system.

Step-by-Step: Adding Games

Step 1 — Power Off and Remove the SD Card

1. Hold the power button on your R36S until the device powers off completely
2. Use your fingernail or a SIM card ejector tool to remove the microSD card from the slot on the back of the device
3. Do not remove the card while the device is on — this can corrupt your save files

Step 2 — Insert the SD Card into Your Computer

1. Place the microSD card into your card reader
2. Insert the card reader into a USB port on your computer
3. On Windows, the ROMS partition will appear as a new drive in File Explorer (e.g., drive E: or F:)
4. On macOS, it will appear on the Desktop or in Finder under Locations

Step 3 — Navigate to the Correct ROM Folder

Open the ROMS partition and find the folder for your game's system. The folder names vary slightly between firmware versions:

Step 4 — Copy ROM Files to the Correct Folder

Simply copy and paste (or drag and drop) your ROM files into the appropriate system folder. For most systems, you can copy the files directly — no extraction needed if they are in ZIP format, as RetroArch can read zipped ROMs for most systems.

File format notes by system:

• GBA: .gba files work best; .zip is supported
• SNES: .sfc or .smc files; .zip supported
• NES: .nes files; .zip supported
• PS1: .chd (recommended), .pbp, or .bin/.cue pairs — see the PS1 optimization guide for format details
• N64: .z64 (big-endian, recommended), .n64, or .v64 formats
• PSP: .iso or .cso files — these cannot be zipped

Step 5 — Add BIOS Files

Copy any required BIOS files to the bios folder on the ROMS partition. BIOS files must have exact filenames — even a single character difference will cause them to not be recognized.

Required BIOS files for common systems:

Step 6 — Safely Eject and Reinsert

1. On Windows: right-click the ROMS drive letter in File Explorer and select "Eject"
2. On macOS: click the eject icon next to the drive in Finder, or drag it to the Trash
3. Wait for the activity light on the card reader to stop blinking before physically removing the card
4. Reinsert the microSD card into your R36S
5. Power on the device

Step 7 — Refresh the Game List

After powering on the R36S, your new games may not appear immediately. The firmware needs to scan the SD card and rebuild its game list:

On ArkOS:

1. Press Start to open the main menu
2. Navigate to "Game Settings" → "Update Gamelists"
3. Wait for the scan to complete (a few seconds to a minute depending on collection size)

On Rocknix:

1. Press Start to open the main menu
2. Go to "Game Collection Settings" → "Scrape Now" or simply restart the device
3. The game list will refresh on the next boot

Adding Game Artwork (Optional)

The R36S firmware can display box art and screenshots alongside your game list, making browsing much more enjoyable. This process is called "scraping."

Using the Built-in Scraper

Both ArkOS and Rocknix include a built-in scraper that automatically downloads artwork:

1. Make sure your R36S is connected to Wi-Fi (if your model has Wi-Fi, or use a USB Wi-Fi adapter)
2. Press Start → "Scraper"
3. Select the scraping source (ScreenScraper is the most comprehensive)
4. Choose which systems to scrape
5. Select what media types to download (box art, screenshots, video snaps)
6. Start the scrape and wait — large libraries can take 30+ minutes

Manual Artwork

You can also add artwork manually by placing image files in the correct location. Each system folder contains a subfolder called images where box art files are stored as JPG or PNG files named to match the ROM filename.

Supported File Formats by System

Not all file formats work for every system. This reference table covers the most common systems and their supported ROM formats on R36S:

Troubleshooting: Games Not Showing Up

If your games don't appear after following these steps, work through this checklist:

Check the Folder Name

The folder name must match exactly what the firmware expects. A folder named "GBA" (uppercase) might not work if the firmware expects "gba" (lowercase) on a case-sensitive Linux system. Rename the folder to match.

Check the File Extension

Verify the ROM file has a supported extension. Some ROMs downloaded from the internet may have an extra extension (e.g., "game.sfc.zip" instead of "game.zip" containing a .sfc file). Extract zip archives if the inner file format is unusual.

Refresh the Game List

After copying new games, always trigger a game list update from the firmware menu. Without this, the firmware doesn't know new files have been added.