Troubleshooting

Most problems come down to one of the items below. If yours isn't here, send feedback from inside the app — it attaches the app and OS versions for you.

Adding games

“No playable ROMs found in this archive.”

The archive unpacked but contained nothing Parlor plays. Check the extensions inside: .gb, .gbc, .gba, .nds. 3DS files must be imported loose, not from inside an archive. Password-protected archives aren't supported.

“File too large.”

Each system has a size cap that matches its largest real cartridge. A file well beyond it is usually a bad dump or the wrong file type.

“Skipped … already in the library.”

Parlor identifies games by their contents, not their filename. The same cartridge image under a different name is still a duplicate.

A 3DS game says it needs decryption keys

Parlor plays decrypted 3DS dumps only. Re-dump or decrypt the title with your own hardware and import the decrypted file.

The game shows a generated tile instead of box art. The catalog didn't recognize the file's hash, code or title — common with ROM hacks, translations, homebrew and bad dumps. The game still plays. Rename it from Details if the header title is wrong.

Playing

No sound. Check the Mute pill in the HUD (it's per session) and the Ring/Silent switch on iPhone. If the Bluetooth headphones you were wearing just disconnected, sound moves to the speaker after a moment.

It feels slow or stutters. Turn on Settings → Performance overlay. The game and display rates should both read close to 59.7 fps with no underruns. If they don't:

Close other apps that use the GPU (screen recorders, video calls) and try again.
On an older device, switch Screen filter to Sharp; the CRT and LCD filters cost a little more.
AirPlay adds around 100 ms of delay. That's fine for RPGs and puzzles and less good for action games; an HDMI adapter is far lower latency.

Touch controls disappeared. A controller or hardware keyboard is connected — that hides them by design. Tap the Show controls pill to bring them back while it's connected.

I can't leave full screen on the Mac with Escape. While a game has the keyboard, Escape belongs to the game (it opens the pause menu). Use the full-screen HUD pill or the green traffic-light button.

Controllers

Parlor doesn't see my controller. Pair it in Settings → Bluetooth (System Settings → Bluetooth on a Mac) first; Parlor can't pair for you. Then open Settings → Connect a controller — the header turns green when a pad is attached, and Listen for controllers in pairing mode nudges the system to look again.

The buttons are wrong. Open the keymap (the green controller pill in the HUD, or the controller guide) and press buttons — the matching chips light up. Remap buttons lets you reassign any of them; Reset restores defaults. See Controllers.

On Apple TV it says “Connect a controller to play.” The Siri Remote can browse the library and open the pause menu but can't play a game. Pair any Bluetooth gamepad in Settings → Remotes and Devices.

Saves and sync

iCloud says “Off” or “not signed in.” Sign in to iCloud in system Settings and make sure iCloud Drive is enabled for Parlor. A build installed without iCloud entitlements (some developer builds) shows “iCloud is not available in this build”.

My save from another device isn't here. Sync runs when the app is in the foreground with a network connection. Open Parlor on the source device, wait for the status row to read Up to date, then open it on the destination. Game files never sync — only saves, states and library metadata — so the game must be present on both devices.

A slot called “Recovery” appeared. Two devices wrote the same save while offline, and one had to lose. The loser is kept as the recovery slot rather than discarded. Load it from the pause menu if it's the one you wanted. Details in iCloud sync.

I deleted a game and want its save back. Saves are keyed to the cartridge, not the file. Import the same game again and its save and states are still there.

Apple TV

Games show a cloud badge and won't start. tvOS cleared Parlor's storage. Saves and states are already restored from iCloud; the game file needs to come back from an iPhone or iPad. Select the game and follow the on-screen steps. See Apple TV.

“No Apple TVs found.” Both devices must be on the same Wi-Fi network, and the Apple TV must be sitting on its Add from iPhone or iPad screen. iOS may also ask permission for Parlor to find devices on the local network — allow it.

Still stuck?

Use Settings → Send feedback (or the quiet Send feedback link at the bottom of the pause menu, which also notes which console you're playing). See Feedback and support.