Basilisk II
Shares rank 14 of 20 emulators by recommenders
Recommended as a good way to run classic 68k Mac software, with people calling it the best option for later Macintosh systems alongside SheepShaver.
Recommended as a good way to run classic 68k Mac software, with people calling it the best option for later Macintosh systems alongside SheepShaver.
6 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 5
- criticize it
- 1
- approval share
- 83%
Recommended in 3 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: not recommended
- February 2026: not recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: recommended
- May 2026: not recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: not recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it doesn’t carry the badge
- 5 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, not met.
- 5 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 3 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, not met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Good for 68k Mac emulation
“Basilisk II is a very worthy emulator for Mac 68k emulation”
Comment from 30 Jun 2026 in “It's Linux, on a Sega Genesis” Best option for later Macintosh systems
“Basilisk II and SheepShaver are still the best option available for later Macintosh systems.”
Comment from 25 Apr 2026 in “1-Bit Hokusai's "The Great Wave"” Meets my needs
“Basilisk II / Sheepsaver meets my needs”
Comment from 22 Oct 2026 in “Jailbreaking the Switch 2” Ongoing ARM64 JIT development
“I have been spending the past few months adding an ARM64 JIT to Basilisk II”
Comment from 11 Apr 2026 in “Advanced Mac Substitute is an API-level reimplementation of 1980s-era Mac OS”
Other emulators people recommend
The four most recommended other emulators, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
See all 20 emulators, rankedWhat people said
4 of the 6 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“Basilisk II / Sheepsaver meets my needs”
“Basilisk II is a very worthy emulator for Mac 68k emulation”
“Basilisk II and SheepShaver are still the best option available for later Macintosh systems.”
“I have been spending the past few months adding an ARM64 JIT to Basilisk II”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.