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V.Dream

📖 Description

Note

V.Dream is a long-term project, and it will keep evolving over time. In the future, it aims to emulate the entire V.Smile family.

V.Dream is a V.Smile emulator developed by Néo Foderé de Frutos under the FODSOFT™ brand and written in C, C#, and XAML. The V.Dream's V.Smile core is based on V.Frown, an emulator originally developed by Ian (Schnert0) and other contributors.

With V.Dream, you can play and relive the games from your childhood or discover them for the first time, develop your own software with instructions for the emulated hardware, among other features. It should be noted that neither FODSOFT™ nor V.Dream provide ROMs or any other means that facilitate piracy; the only thing FODSOFT™ offers is software that simulates the hardware of that era so the games can run on modern devices.

💾 Downloads

🌐 from resources.fodsoft.com

Are you looking for older versions?

🧭 Other download options

Installation and Setup guide

Important

🧩 First, download and install the .NET Desktop Runtime 8.0 or later from the Microsoft website if you don’t already have it.

  1. Download and install the vdream_installer.exe file.
  • 1.1. Run it and select an installation folder, or use the default one. (If you select a folder that requires elevated write permissions, you will need to run V.Dream as an administrator whenever you want to use it).
  1. Or download and extract the vdream_portable_{architecture}.7z file and run vdream.exe.

  2. Open V.Dream and press the center button to select a folder, or go to System -> Select folder.

  3. Or go to System -> Run cartridge to launch a game directly.

Tip

If V.Dream does not recognize a ROM as valid and you are sure it is valid and not corrupted, try signing the ROM with my script scripts/INSERT_SIGN.PS1. This script inserts the VTech signature into an empty space in the ROM so that the emulator can detect it. To use the script, follow the instructions in the README file inside the scripts/ folder in the project's GitHub.

  1. Now you can play, but some games require an official BIOS file. To import it, go to Settings -> Paths -> BIOS -> Select BIOS, or try to launch a game that requires a BIOS file and press Import BIOS.

  2. If you want a smoother output image, change the setting from Settings -> Graphics -> Image mode -> Smoothing (Linear).

  3. You can switch the game menu mode between a vertical list view and a customizable cover view from View -> Covers and View -> List.

🕹️ Game Controls

Caution

On French (AZERTY keyboard) the mapping is different, please check it here.

Keyboard V.Smile
[W], [↑] ⬆️ Move up
[A], [←] ⬅️ Move left
[S], [↓] ⬇️ Move down
[D], [→] ➡️ Move right
[Space] ✔️ ENTER / OK
[Z] 🔴 Red
[X] 🟡 Yellow
[C] 🔵 Blue
[V] 🟢 Green
[E] ❔ Help
[Q] ❌ Exit
[Enter] 🔤 ABC

⌨️ Emulation shortcuts

Keyboard Action
[F] Full screen
[Esc] Stop emulation
[P] Pause / Resume
[R] Restart
[,] Save state
[.] Load state

📸 Screenshots

🖼️ Gameplay GIFs

7z files compatibility

Starting with V.Dream v1.4, you’ll be able to play and store your games in the 7z format.

This is made possible thanks to SevenZipExtractor, a NuGet package developed by Alexander Selishchev (adoconnection) and other contributors.

Important

I took care of updating the 7z.dll files (x64) and (x86) bundled with the SevenZipExtractor package to version 25.01 to fix the CVEs present in the version it originally included 😉.

This package allows .NET applications to work with 7z archives. As a result, you can save a lot more space when storing your entire V.Smile library. I’ve also made this change with the future in mind, for when V.Dream becomes compatible with V.Smile Baby and V.Flash / V.Smile Pro.

To compress your games into 7z, make sure you have 7‑Zip installed.

🗂️ V.Dream folder structure

File Description
\saves Folder with your game savestates.
\covers Folder with your game covers.
vdream.exe The main executable of the emulator.
vdream_core.exe The emulation core executable based on V.Frown.
bios.bin A copy of the BIOS file you have imported.
vdream.config Configuration file for user preferences.
vdream_core.config Configuration file for internal emulation parameters.

📦 Files created by the installer

File Description
V.Dream.lnk The V.Dream shortcut that points to vdream.exe.
unins000.exe The V.Dream uninstaller.
unins000.dat Data file used by the uninstaller to track installed files.

🌍 Supported languages

  • English - ✅ 100% (Completed)

  • Spanish - ✅ 100% (Completed)

  • French - ✅ 100% (Completed)

📒 Planned features

Note

I can't promise 100% that I'll be able to deliver everything, but my priority for the project is to add the following features:

  • 🔊 Improved audio

  • 💿 Compatibility with V.Flash / V.Smile Pro

  • 👶 Compatibility with V.Smile Baby

  • 🐧 Linux port

  • 🤖 Android port

  • ⚙️ More configurable settings


V.Dream is an independent project of FODSOFT™ and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or in any way connected to VTech® or any of its subsidiaries or affiliates. This software is created solely as a tribute to a classic educational console experience and is intended for preservation and educational purposes.

V.Smile® and all related trademarks are property of VTech®.

V.DREAM DOES NOT ACCEPT DONATIONS.

© 2026 FODSOFT™. Néo Foderé de Frutos. All rights reserved.