PulseArc OS is a controller-first Linux gaming system built independently from PlayFusion, Kazeta, Kazeta+, and Batocera. The name is a working project name and can be changed before the first branded release.
The project launches games directly from internal storage, USB drives, SD
cards, CDs, and DVDs. It does not use KZI containers. A loose ROM normally
needs no metadata file. A portable Windows game can include one small
pulsearc.toml file when it needs an explicit executable or compatibility
settings.
- Newer Arch Linux base, pinned per release for repeatable builds.
- Internal emulators and Windows compatibility tools.
- Native OpenGL and Vulkan support.
- DirectX 8-11 through DXVK, DirectX 12 through VKD3D-Proton, and WineD3D as an OpenGL fallback.
- Controller-first interface with keyboard and mouse support where needed.
- Read-only removable media and profile-isolated saves.
- Direct loose-ROM, multi-ROM, optical-disc, and Windows-folder launching.
- Safe Xorg/OpenGL fallback for older Intel graphics; Gamescope is never a mandatory boot dependency.
- Transactional updates with rollback instead of in-place script mutation.
- User-supplied BIOS and keys; copyrighted firmware is never bundled.
- Xbox-style controller defaults with per-system and per-game overrides.
- Native boot animation before the controller menu.
- Profile-aware save backup/restore manager and opt-in cheat manager.
- Automatic cover metadata queue with offline caching and manual overrides.
- SSH/SFTP in development images for first-hardware diagnostics.
- FAT32, exFAT, NTFS, ext4, Btrfs, XFS, F2FS, ISO9660, and UDF media.
src/pulsearc/- media detection and launch-planning core.tests/- host-runnable unit tests.archiso/- ArchISO profile and root filesystem overlay.config/- emulator and Windows runner policy.docs/- architecture, media format, and development roadmap.examples/- portable game examples.scripts/- build and validation entry points.
The detector uses only Python's standard library:
python -m unittest discover -s tests -vThe ISO must be built on an Arch Linux build host or VM with archiso
installed. Runtime bundles are downloaded only from the locked official URLs
in config/runtime-lock.json and must match their recorded SHA-256 values:
sudo pacman -Syu --needed archiso
sudo ./scripts/build-iso.shArchISO's mkarchiso assembles the package list, root filesystem overlay,
kernel, initramfs, and bootable installer image. A public release is not made
until the ISO boots in a VM, installs to a blank virtual disk, boots that disk,
indexes test media, and launches at least one native emulator plus each Windows
renderer path available to the virtual hardware. Do not build a release ISO
against an unpinned rolling mirror; the release process uses a dated Arch Linux
Archive snapshot.
The first public beta includes the frontend, direct-media scanner, runtime registry, graphics fallback policy, offline SSD recovery installer, save and cheat inventories, cover queue, and locked internal runtimes. It is intended for testing on spare hardware. Back up important disks before installing and report hardware-specific issues through the repository issue tracker.