MAME 0.78 represents the end of an era. After this version, the MAME team began heavily pushing "merged" and "split" ROMset formats to save hard drive space. However, 0.78 is predominantly an "unmerged" set. This means every game ROMset contains all the files it needs to run independently. You can download Street Fighter II and run it immediately without needing a separate parent ROM or BIOS files. For casual users, this simplicity is a godsend.
The single most important reason for the 0.78 set’s longevity is the Raspberry Pi. Early builds of RetroPie, Recalbox, and Lakka—the most popular retro gaming operating systems for the Pi—were optimized for MAME 0.78. The reason? Emulation speed. MAME 0.78 runs on far less processing power than modern versions. On a Raspberry Pi 3 or Zero, 0.78 delivers full-speed, playable arcade classics where modern MAME would stutter and crash. mame 078 romset
Many collectors keep a "rollback" 0.78 set alongside their modern MAME set. They use modern MAME (0.250+) for accuracy and new games, but keep the 0.78 set for quick, no-fuss play on low-powered devices or for games that were "broken" in later updates due to more accurate (but less forgiving) emulation. MAME 0