Just downloaded a couple of GBA games, can't play them

I just downloaded Pokemon Ruby and Fire Red for the Visual Boy Advance and neither one shows up when I open it up I do not see the files despite being next to the folder I keep my GBA emulator.

Is it because they have rar at the end of their file name or is there something else I need to do?

 

Thanks. That should make things easier. So to get the extractor I need to get spam from a company I'm not interested in or pay 30 bucks. All for the hobby, right?

 

You can also use 7-zip, its free and won't bother you with those spams.

http://www.7-zip.org/

Optionally you can crack winrar to stop the spamming.

 

I will go with 7-zip for now

 

You don't actually have to pay for WinRar ever. Buying the application only disables those pop ups. Also those pop ups are really not that annoying once you get used to them, just close the pop up immediately once it opens.

Another advantage of WinRar over 7-zip is that WinRar is continually developed and updated whereas 7-zip hasn't had any major updates, well none that I am aware of that is.

Also these two applications are not just used for downloading ROMs. A lot of other programs & Computer games often depend on zip archives to deliver downloads. If you are into Computer games modding or at least downloading custom content for your computer games, then chances are you will also encounter .rar and other zip archive formats as well

 

Some how I think you got the wrong site :-X

O well just in case - http://www.rarlab.com/download.htm

WinRAR x86 (32 bit) 5.11
or
WinRAR x64 (64 bit) 5.11

You can keep on using after trial xd

 

Just downloaded the rarlab but I keep getting this message when I extract it:

! C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Games\gameboy\0907 - Pokemon - Ruby Version (U) (v1.0).rar: Cannot create C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Games\gameboy\0907 - Pokemon - Ruby Version (U) (v1.0)\Pokemon - Ruby Version (USA).gba
The system cannot find the path specified.
! C:\ProgramData\Microsoft\Windows\Start Menu\Programs\Games\gameboy\0907 - Pokemon - Ruby Version (U) (v1.0).rar: No files to extract

 

Get and use 7zip, is more user friendlier than winrar, not to mention less problemy(why you think winrar has so many updates). ive been using it for 12 years WITH ZERO PROBLEMS.

 

WinRar has newer file compression methods added in the first quarter of the year that 7-zip may or may not recognize, therefore extraction of files using these newer methods may not work properly under 7-zip. One of these being a newer (I think it's newer as I haven't seen it before) format of the .rar extension called RAR5.

 

You might be right, BUT

A.this site files can be extracted with 7zip, like most sites you find on the internet.
B.7zip is considered a beginners application, meaning most people who are not familar with it can easily learn to use it.
C.Anyone who ask questions like this, most likely have no clue how these programs work like you and i do, so dont you think its a good idea for them to use the easier program of the bunch?

 

That is if you only ever stay on here. As I said being into PC game modding &/or Custom content usage, you will most definitely encounter .rar files more frequently than .7z files, and chances are these mods might be using the newer compression methods used by the newer version of WinRar.

Not entirely true, WinRar is also fairly "beginner friendly" too, it just has an annoying method of advertising itself upon the user. Fun fact, whenever a newer update gets released and you install it, the days counter gets reset back to 45 days but of course updates tend to be released months apart so it kinda defeats the point. Bottom line, just ignoring the pop up is still the better option. And it only ever appears when you look inside an archive by double left clicking on one as opposed to extracting the contents by right clicking then selecting the appropriate extraction method of your choice. Or when you manually run WinRar.

Again not entirely true. As I said above both programs use the right click then select the extraction method you prefer path so both are indeed easy to use. One only has a simple annoyance than the other, at least it gets updated every now & then.

 

Seriously, ive been using romulation since 2005, and yet to come across a file i could NOT extract with 7zip. In fact the most common compressed file type ive come across in my visit over 100ish sites is in fact zip, not 7zip, regular zip. @Azolev Enhar Sohac when it came to which is easier question arguement, did you visit winrar forum and read the help topic section.

 

i said "using" i didnt register till last year only to get the big file size games that over 100mb. Besides im not arguing 7zip is better, just easier to use. Alot of people have problems using winrar, but people should be aware there are multiple extracting programs and should have to option of trying any of them to find which they like better.

 

Just pirate winrar. It's one of the easiest programs to find precracked.

 

You could always buy it. It's not that expensive.