What should I do to emulate Sonic 3 & Knuckles?

[FishandChips]

I want to play Sonic 3 & Knuckles but my DS screen is just too small to see anything. I want to know what emulator I should use and where to get the rom.

 

[Micro]

You can get the game on steam for like a buck or two.

 

[FishandChips]

You can get the game on steam for like a buck or two.

I don't have steam though. But I might do that.

 

[Zwip-Zwap Zapony]

I want to play Sonic 3 & Knuckles but my DS screen is just too small to see anything. I want to know what emulator I should use [...]

While not exactly "emulation" per se, I'd suggest Sonic 3 A.I.R. (Angel Island Revisited). It's a fan-made widescreen "port/remaster", featuring many enhancements both possible and impossible on the Sega Genesis/Mega Drive.

[...] I want to know [...] where to get the rom.

From Steam at https://store.steampowered.com/app/71162/Sonic_3__Knuckles/.
Unless you have the means of dumping a USA Genesis copy of Sonic 3 & Knuckles yourself, this is the easiest (if not only) legal way, and the one officially recommended for getting Sonic 3 A.I.R. to work.

 

[Almulescent]

use fusion emulator, thats what i used for S3K

 

[Morphized]

I'd definitely say find a ROM and use Sonic 3 AIR with it. SEGA sells the ROM on Steam for 2 bucks.

 

[clairebun]

Sonic 3 AIR is the definitive way to play S3&K IMO.

 

[TehPuertoRicanSpartan]

never played S3&K. sonic is ugly in this game.

 

[Just Silus!]

You have three choices.

1. Download/Buy Sonic 3&K Rom and play Sonic 3 A.I.R
2. Download "KegaFusion" emulator, download/buy Sonic3&K Rom and play it from there.
3. give up

No one cares about third one, so... two choices.

 

[I'll Begin]

I want to know […] where to get the rom.

Just so you know, this is technically piracy and against the Forum Rules. That's why nobody's giving you a straight answer. ROM websites are unfortunately something you'll have to find for yourself.

As for the emulator, Kega Fusion is a good one that runs fast on most machines and definitely runs Sonic perfectly fine. I've also rather warmed up to RetroArch (not an emulator but an emulation frontend) for being able to customise the visual experience to my liking, but it's definitely not as user friendly as it wishes it was.

I do recommend buying it on Steam though if that's an option for you. The built in emulator isn't perfect but totally usable (though there's a fanmade tool to convert it for use in other emulators, flashcarts, etc.), and additionally the excellent Sonic 3 A.I.R. will automatically pull the game data from your Steam copy.