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From download to first game

Let’s get you set up.

You need the right image, a spare microSD card, a card reader, a display, a wired controller and the correct power supply for your board.

First, match the image to the board.

Use the download finder. Pi 5 uses a newer experimental image, not the old Pi 4/Buster file. An experimental label means setup can fail and support is not promised.

  1. 01

    Download the right image

    Choose your exact board. Keep the version and checksum so you can identify this installation later.

  2. 02

    Write it to a spare microSD card

    In Raspberry Pi Imager, choose the downloaded file with “Use custom.” Select your card carefully: writing erases it.

  3. 03

    Connect, then power on

    Insert the card, connect HDMI, a wired controller and the correct power supply. A keyboard is useful for setup. Allow the first boot to finish.

  4. 04

    Set up your controller

    Follow EmulationStation’s button prompts. Learn the hotkey combination before launching a game. Controller help

  5. 05

    Add games you have the right to use

    Transfer files into the matching system folders and restart EmulationStation. Transfer guide. We do not provide commercial ROM collections.

Before the first game

Confirm the controller hotkey, sound and clean shutdown. If the image prompts for an account, follow its instructions. Older RetroPie images may use documented default credentials; change them before enabling remote access. Do not assume Raspberry Pi Imager customizations are honored by every third-party image.

RetroPie.us does not provide copyrighted commercial game ROMs. Follow applicable law and use software you are legally entitled to use. Firmware and BIOS files may have separate requirements.

How do I check the download?

Each download panel tells you which file its hash covers. Legacy .img.gz hashes here cover the compressed download. Weekly-feed hashes cover the extracted .img file.

shasum -a 256 your-downloaded-file.img.gz

On Windows, use PowerShell’s Get-FileHash with -Algorithm SHA256. Compare the whole value. Do not compare the compressed file to an extracted-image hash.

What if it does not boot?

Recheck the exact board/image match, verified write and power supply. Try a known-good spare card and a simple HDMI setup. Keep your original card intact. Boot troubleshooting

How do I stop safely?

Use EmulationStation’s shutdown menu and wait for storage activity to stop before disconnecting power. Back up saves before OS changes. Backup reference

Based on upstream first-installation guidance and Raspberry Pi’s getting-started documentation. General setup sequence; not a physical test of the Pi 5 weekly build.