pfeMAME version 3.9 has been released today
Posted: Mon Oct 05, 2026 2:14 am
This is currently a Windows & Linux only release.
This is a big release with major speed and memory improvements, safer updates, new features and a long list of bug fixes. The highlights are below. Check out the changelog for the full details.
New features and improvements
• Much faster updates: the updater downloads in parallel and only fetches the files that have changed (often a few MB instead of 125 MB). It shows progress, has Cancel and Retry buttons, and checks every update against SourceForge's checksum.
• Settings stored safely: your settings and data now live in your user profile folder, so an update can't overwrite them. Create a portable.txt file to keep everything in the pfeMAME folder instead.
• Rewritten ROMs database build: memory use is down from over 700 MB to under 100 MB, the cache is down from 330 MB to about 5 MB, and the build runs in the background.
• Smarter search: field searches like cat:shooter, mfr:namco, year:1980-1985, rating:>=4 and is:fav, plus - to exclude a term.
• Play statistics: pfeMAME tracks play time per ROM and system, and adds new Recently Played and Most Played views.
• Software list browser: browse, check and play a system's software lists from one place.
• What's New in MAME: shows new, newly working and removed machines after you update MAME.
• Slot improvements: default sub-slots, clearer device names, and named slot presets you can save and load, which can also be copied as MAME command line options.
• Better backups: single time-stamped zip files, with an automatic restart after a restore.
• ROM support: folder-based ROM sets, CHD-only games and multiple ROM paths in mame.ini are now supported.
• Rustrum ZX: added to the alternate emulator defaults, and it's fully controllable from Tile View with a gamepad.
• Automated test suite added.
Key fixes
• Fixed a serious Linux / macOS updater bug that could delete favourites, ratings, settings and logins.
• Fixed the Set Defaults button in Alternate Emulators.
• ROMs with &, ^, | or % in their file names now launch.
• Fixed system INI files being lost after a crash.
• Fixed run counts being credited to the wrong ROM.
• Fixed problems with system program favourites and the watchlist.
• Fixed the view drop-down in non-English languages.
• You can now type a capital F in the search box (shortcuts moved to Ctrl+P, Ctrl+Shift+P and F11).
• Online searches now check website certificates and never send your logins to a redirected site.
• INI files are now saved safely so a crash can't leave a half-written file.
You can download this release from here (https://sourceforge.net/projects/pfemame/files/).
Please read the manual as it has everything you need. Please report bugs. You can email pfemame@gmail.com or use the features on the SourceForge site to create a ticket, leave a review, or chat.
pfeMAME is a front end for the Multiple Arcade Game Emulator (MAME) written in Python. It is cross platform (tested on Linux (Ubuntu), Windows, and MacOS). It also includes a graphical Tile View designed for MAME cabinets which allows control using joystick / gamepad. It supports favourite game flagging, MESS systems, Software Lists (for systems), per-rom input mapping, and launching of other emulation engines. It was written with a minimalist view in mind but also because there were some features that I wanted that other front ends just didn't provide.
This is a big release with major speed and memory improvements, safer updates, new features and a long list of bug fixes. The highlights are below. Check out the changelog for the full details.
New features and improvements
• Much faster updates: the updater downloads in parallel and only fetches the files that have changed (often a few MB instead of 125 MB). It shows progress, has Cancel and Retry buttons, and checks every update against SourceForge's checksum.
• Settings stored safely: your settings and data now live in your user profile folder, so an update can't overwrite them. Create a portable.txt file to keep everything in the pfeMAME folder instead.
• Rewritten ROMs database build: memory use is down from over 700 MB to under 100 MB, the cache is down from 330 MB to about 5 MB, and the build runs in the background.
• Smarter search: field searches like cat:shooter, mfr:namco, year:1980-1985, rating:>=4 and is:fav, plus - to exclude a term.
• Play statistics: pfeMAME tracks play time per ROM and system, and adds new Recently Played and Most Played views.
• Software list browser: browse, check and play a system's software lists from one place.
• What's New in MAME: shows new, newly working and removed machines after you update MAME.
• Slot improvements: default sub-slots, clearer device names, and named slot presets you can save and load, which can also be copied as MAME command line options.
• Better backups: single time-stamped zip files, with an automatic restart after a restore.
• ROM support: folder-based ROM sets, CHD-only games and multiple ROM paths in mame.ini are now supported.
• Rustrum ZX: added to the alternate emulator defaults, and it's fully controllable from Tile View with a gamepad.
• Automated test suite added.
Key fixes
• Fixed a serious Linux / macOS updater bug that could delete favourites, ratings, settings and logins.
• Fixed the Set Defaults button in Alternate Emulators.
• ROMs with &, ^, | or % in their file names now launch.
• Fixed system INI files being lost after a crash.
• Fixed run counts being credited to the wrong ROM.
• Fixed problems with system program favourites and the watchlist.
• Fixed the view drop-down in non-English languages.
• You can now type a capital F in the search box (shortcuts moved to Ctrl+P, Ctrl+Shift+P and F11).
• Online searches now check website certificates and never send your logins to a redirected site.
• INI files are now saved safely so a crash can't leave a half-written file.
You can download this release from here (https://sourceforge.net/projects/pfemame/files/).
Please read the manual as it has everything you need. Please report bugs. You can email pfemame@gmail.com or use the features on the SourceForge site to create a ticket, leave a review, or chat.
pfeMAME is a front end for the Multiple Arcade Game Emulator (MAME) written in Python. It is cross platform (tested on Linux (Ubuntu), Windows, and MacOS). It also includes a graphical Tile View designed for MAME cabinets which allows control using joystick / gamepad. It supports favourite game flagging, MESS systems, Software Lists (for systems), per-rom input mapping, and launching of other emulation engines. It was written with a minimalist view in mind but also because there were some features that I wanted that other front ends just didn't provide.