RetroAchievements

RetroAchievements is a platform that adds achievements to retro games, similar to modern gaming platforms like Steam, Xbox, or PlayStation.

It allows players to earn achievements while playing their favorite retro games, providing an extra layer of challenge and replayability.

RetroAchievements is made of two main components:

• The website, which serves as a centralized hub for players to track their achievements, compare their progress with friends, and discover new games to play.
• The client, which is integrated into supported emulators and is responsible for detecting when achievements are earned and communicating with the website.

If you're interested in using RetroAchievements, be sure to check out their website and documentation.

How it works

Basically, the client constantly monitors the game's memory, looking for specific values that correspond to certain in-game events or milestones.

When it detects that a player has met the criteria for an achievement, it sends a request to the RetroAchievements server to unlock the achievement for that player.

If you're interested in the technical details of RetroAchievements, check their How RetroAchievement Works documentation page.