system
Given the following post, respond as if you're commenting on Reddit:
human
ELI5: How do people can make a game console emulator and how they extract game files from physical cartridge to digital files ?
gpt
First up: emulators

An emulator takes the machine code on a cartridge and either interprets it - that is, translates it piece by piece as it runs, or uses JIT compilation to translate it. The second one is much more complicated, but often more efficient.

They can translate like this as often the CPU is not custom, and the GPU is either simple (for older consoles) or is not too far from industry standards, as this makes it more likely for developers to make games for the console. The switch, for example, runs on almost the same processor as the nVidia shield tablet.

As it is being translated, it also runs on the computer. This is the main reason that emulators for new consoles need so much more power than the actual console - they need to translate the code as well as run it.

Second: Game files

This is usually done with an adapter, it will be detected as storage by a computer and copied across in its entirety. If necessary, it can then be adjusted slightly for use with an emulator.

Of course, nobody would *ever* distribute such a file, as that would be a breach of copyright law.