Amiga and Commodore 64 come back to life thanks to these emulators for Windows

Commodore and Amiga were the first home computers of those who were children in the 80s and 90s. Today they are collector's items, but their legacy lives on.

Launch Amiga and Commodore 64 games and applications on your Windows PC. This is what the people in charge of Cloanto have achieved, a company dedicated to software for these platforms and who have decided to create their own emulators.

As they point out, both the Amiga and Commodore 64  went on sale in 1985. And since then, they were the personal computers of many enthusiasts who still remember them fondly. Some still have their machine, more or less preserved. Others have found second-hand copies at surprising prices.

And those who do not have access to these discontinued computers can be content with the emulators that exist today. However, if you want the full experience, you will achieve it thanks to the emulators that Cloanto offers.

A complete package of emulator and ROMs

The name of these emulators are Amiga Forever and  C64 Forever. Their managers have launched them simultaneously and you can choose which one you prefer or keep both.

In both cases, you will find an easy-to-use emulator that integrates a catalog of classic games and applications that you can comfortably run with the integrated player. That is, it integrates emulators and ROMs. All legal and without the usual legal hassles with ROMs.

In addition, you can choose between several versions. Both the Amiga Forever and C64 Forever come in three different flavors. C64 Forever has a free first version. Includes the installer for Windows and a selection of programs and games. If you want more, the full version includes more than 5,000 applications and games. And the third version is like the complete downloadable version but in a physical disk version.

If you choose  Amiga Forever, you can choose between three versions. Two downloadable and one in the physical version with 3 DVDs. All three are paid and include more or less content. On the comparison page, you will see the differences.

Both emulators' software replicates the original Amiga and  Commodore 64 hardware. Chips, RAM, virtual memory, ports, and various protocols ... Everything you need to run applications and games as on the original machine but without the physical inconveniences of then. In addition, you can use virtual keyboards or take advantage of current controls to play the included games. The C64 emulator, for example, also emulates older 8-bit systems.

Amiga and Commodore 64 for your new PC

Another peculiarity of these emulators is that they can be integrated if we install both. They also include curious options such as posting on  Discord, Facebook, or  Twitter what you are doing with your virtual Friend or C64.

And although in principle, it is only compatible with Windows, the emulators can be run on Linux using Wine or PlayOnLinux. macOS users will have to wait for a compatible installer to be available.

Whether you're an Amiga or Commodore 64 enthusiast or just want to browse and see what the first home computers looked like, with the  Amiga Forever and  C64 Forever you can travel back in time and recall old glories of 8-bit software.

Note: The image at the top of this article is owned by Les Chatfield (Flickr).