A Beginner's Tour of the LaunchBox Desktop

Learn the main areas of the LaunchBox desktop and how to browse, search, filter, sort, edit, manage, and play games.

Written By launchbox

Last updated 6 days ago

LaunchBox for Windows is where you build, browse, and maintain your game library. This tour introduces the main areas of the desktop and the everyday actions you will use to find, edit, and play a game.

A simple way to read the window: choose how to browse on the left, choose a game in the main area, then use Game Details or the game's right-click menu.

🖥️ LaunchBox and Big Box

LaunchBox is the desktop interface used to import, edit, organize, and troubleshoot your library. Big Box is the full-screen, controller-focused interface included with a LaunchBox Premium license.

Use LaunchBox for initial setup and library maintenance. Both interfaces use the same library, so changes to games, platforms, playlists, and media in LaunchBox also appear in Big Box.

1. The navigation sidebar

The left sidebar controls which games appear in the main area. Use the selector at the top of the sidebar to choose what the sidebar lists. Common choices include:

  • Platform Categories: a tree that can contain platforms and playlists beneath broader headings

  • Platforms: systems such as Nintendo Entertainment System, Arcade, or Windows

  • Playlists: hand-picked or automatically populated collections of games

  • Other filters: fields such as Genre, Favorite, Installed, Progress, Source, Status, or Missing Media

Select a sidebar item to display its matching games. For example, choose Platforms, then select Arcade to see your Arcade games.

If a platform or playlist seems to be missing, check the selected sidebar type. In the Platform Categories view, you may also need to expand the category that contains it.

2. The main game area

The main area displays the games that match your current sidebar selection and search. LaunchBox can present the same library in image-based views or a list view; changing the view does not add, edit, or delete games.

Selecting and opening games

  • Click a game once to select it and load its details.

  • Double-click a game to start its launch flow.

  • Hold Ctrl while clicking to select individual games, or use Shift to select a range.

  • Right-click a selected game, or a group of selected games, to open the actions available for that selection.

When several games are selected, LaunchBox shows bulk actions where supported. For example, Ctrl+E opens the Bulk Edit Wizard instead of the single-game editor.

3. Game Details

When one game is selected, the Game Details area can show:

  • Its title, notes, release information, genres, and other metadata

  • Images, video, music, manuals, and other available media

  • Play, Install, or related actions when applicable

  • Additional versions, achievements, play statistics, badges, and other information when available

The exact contents and position of Game Details depend on your LaunchBox theme, selected view, window size, settings, and the information available for that game.

4. Search

Type in the search box above the sidebar to narrow the games in your current sidebar selection. For example, if Arcade is selected, the search returns matching Arcade games, not matching games from every platform.

To search more broadly, first select All in the sidebar, then enter part of a title. Press Ctrl+F to move the cursor to the search box. Clear the search text to restore the full current selection.

If LaunchBox appears to be missing games, clear the search box before changing game data or importing the games again.

5. Filters and sidebar types

The sidebar can filter your library by information such as platform, genre, favorite status, installed status, progress, source or storefront, and other game fields. The available values are based on the information in your library.

Choosing a filter changes what is displayed; it does not remove the games that do not match. For a reusable collection based on several rules, create an auto-populate playlist.

6. Arrange By

Use Arrange By above the main game area to order the visible games by a field such as Title, Release Date, Date Added, Play Count, or Rating. You can also reverse the direction of the current arrangement.

Arranging changes the display order only. It does not rewrite game titles or other metadata. If a library looks unexpectedly out of order, check Arrange By before editing any games.

7. The right-click menu

Right-clicking a game is one of the quickest ways to act on it. The available choices depend on the game and may include:

  • Play or Install, plus Play Version, Launch With, or additional applications when configured

  • Edit > Edit Metadata/Media, playlist actions, play-count actions, and Delete

  • Media actions for images, manuals, documents, music, and refreshing selected images

  • File Management actions such as opening the game or images folder and managing installations when supported

Some commands are elsewhere in the main menus. For example, downloading metadata and media is under Tools > Download, while showing games marked Hidden or Broken is controlled under View > Hide Games.

What Delete means

Outside a playlist, Edit > Delete removes the game entry from your LaunchBox library after confirmation. The prompt can also offer to delete associated LaunchBox media. If ROM deletion has been enabled in LaunchBox options, a separate prompt may offer to delete the game file itself.

When viewing a manual playlist, Delete first lets you remove the game from that playlist without removing it from your library. Automatically populated playlists are rule-based, so individual games cannot be removed from them this way.

Read every deletion prompt carefully. Removing a library entry, removing a game from a playlist, deleting associated media, and deleting the game file are separate actions.

8. Editing a game

Right-click one game and choose Edit > Edit Metadata/Media, or select it and press Ctrl+E, to open the Edit Game window. Its main sections are:

  • Metadata: title, platform, developer, publisher, genres, dates, notes, custom fields, sort title, alternate names, controller support, additional versions, additional apps, and game saves

  • Media: general media paths, images, videos, documents, links, and 3D model settings

  • Launching: application path and command-line settings, plus Emulation, DOSBox, ScummVM when enabled, root-folder, and startup/pause settings

Use Edit Game when an import matched the wrong title, a file moved, the wrong emulator was selected, or you want to customize that library entry. Choose OK to save your changes or Cancel to close without saving.

9. The Tools menu

The Tools menu contains library-wide setup and maintenance commands. Common paths include:

  • Tools > Import > ROM Files: import a single platform or multiple platforms

  • Tools > Manage: configure emulators, platforms, storefronts, controllers, plugins, and LaunchBox themes and media

  • Tools > Download: update metadata and media for the selected games, or all games when none are selected, and update other online content

  • Tools > Scan: look for storefront games, newly added ROMs, or removed ROMs

  • Tools > Clean Up Media: identify media files that are no longer associated with your library

  • Tools > File Management: back up or restore data and settings, consolidate ROMs, change ROM paths, or export selected ROM files

  • Tools > Options: change LaunchBox-wide behavior and appearance settings

A tutorial path beginning with Tools > refers to this menu in LaunchBox, not Big Box.

10. Progress and background work

Imports, metadata downloads, media downloads, image caching, and other tasks may display a working or download-progress panel. Wait for an important operation to finish before closing LaunchBox, especially when files are still being imported or downloaded.

You can often browse your library, and launch games that are already configured, while selected media continues downloading.

⭐ Five actions to practice

  1. Choose Platforms in the sidebar selector, then select a platform.

  2. Search for one of its games, then clear the search.

  3. Change Arrange By, then change it back to Title.

  4. Right-click a game and open Edit > Edit Metadata/Media, then choose Cancel.

  5. Double-click a configured game to launch it, then return to LaunchBox after closing the game.

Once these actions feel familiar, you are ready to organize larger collections, customize the desktop, and explore Big Box.

💡 If a game seems to be missing

Check these before assuming it was deleted:

  • Clear the search box.

  • Select All in the current sidebar type.

  • Choose the expected sidebar type, such as Platforms, Platform Categories, or Playlists.

  • Expand the expected category when using Platform Categories.

  • Open View > Hide Games and check whether games marked Hidden, Broken, or missing selected media types are being excluded.