The best Android emulators for gaming

Mobile games such as PUBG, Call of Duty Mobile, Among Us and Genshin Impact have become quite popular, in some cases directly competing with the popularity of desktop games.

However, not everyone has equipment powerful enough to play these heavy games. Some people want to experience the game on a larger screen. Whatever the reason, you can enjoy mobile games right on your PC with Android emulators.

Some requirements to run Android emulator on the system

Before you begin, you should know about the system requirements for installing the Android emulator. These minimum requirements will help your computer run Android emulators.

1. Operating System: Windows 7 / Windows 8 / Windows 8.1 / Windows 10
2. Processor: Any dual-core Intel or AMD processor.
3. Memory: 2GB RAM
4. Capacity: Hard drive with 8GB or more free space
5. Video: OpenGL 2.0

To play some games with high graphics requirements like PUBG Mobile or Genshin Impact, you need a powerful PC. Here are some of the requirements for these types of computers.

1. Operating System: Windows 10
2. Processor: Any multi-core Intel or AMD processor that supports Intel VT-x or AMD-V virtual technology
3. Memory: 8GB RAM
4. Capacity: Hard drive with 16GB free space or more
5. Video: OpenGL 4.5 or higher

1. MEmu

MEmu is one of the most powerful emulators on this list, this is the best choice for those who want to play Android games on PC. MEmu has achieved 100 million downloads from more than 200 countries.

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According to Geekbench 4, MEmu has a higher score than any other Android emulator. This means it will give you the best graphic gaming experience. You can even download games and apps from outside the Play Store by dragging and dropping APK files.

2. NoxPlayer

NoxPlayer is another popular Android emulator, with over 150 million users from about 150 countries. It is available in both Windows and macOS versions, making it the best choice for Mac users as well.

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This emulator is optimized to provide a stable and smooth experience while gaming, even playing heavy games. NoxPlayer also supports memorize keyboard along with text recording. NoxPlayer runs Android 7 Nougat. Other features include optional root access, app installation via APK file and limited CPU and memory usage.

3. BlueStacks

BlueStacks is the oldest emulator on this list. It has been around for 10 years and now has more than 400 million users worldwide.

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The tool is available in Windows and macOS versions, making it a very good choice for Mac users as well. It has support for keyboard memos with pre-set adjustment system for some popular titles. While playing a game, you can capture screen capture and record gameplay.

Since BlueStacks is a Samsung partner, the app will be pre-installed in the Samsung Galaxy Store. You can download and install more than 1 million apps and games from this store. Another cool feature of BlueStacks is that it can translate any app or game into your language.

4. LDPlayer

LDPlayer, released in 2016, is one of the latest Android emulators. However, in just a short time, LDPlayer has reached 100 million downloads from 200 countries.

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Just like the other Android emulators on the list, LDPlayer has support, text recording and optional root access. This emulator is optimized for graphics of some heavy games, providing high FPS when gaming.

5. GameLoop

GameLoop is a popular gaming emulator developed by Tencent. With over 500 million downloads, the company claims to be the most downloaded Android emulator.

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If you play games developed by Tencent like PUBG Mobile and Call of Duty Mobile, GameLoop is the best emulator for you. It is optimized for around 200 titles, including games from a few other developers.

GameLoop doesn't come pre-installed on the Google Play Store, but you can install it manually.

6. MuMu Player

MuMu Player is one of the least-known emulators on this list. NetEase is the company that developed this emulator. Just like GameLoop, MuMu Player doesn't have many titles in the store but luckily it comes pre-installed on the Google Play Store.

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7. Phoenix OS

Phoenix OS is not just an emulator, it's a complete Android-based operating system. Thanks to this advantage, Phoenix OS offers a much better Android experience than other emulators.

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As a lightweight operating system, you can install it on some low-end PCs. Although it is still usable normally, it is not recommended to use it as the primary operating system as some bugs still persist.

However, you can run this operating system in parallel with the main operating system on your machine. Just leave some free space on the machine's hard drive. Also Phoenix OS can be installed on an external USB drive.

Samuel Daniel

Update 25 January 2021