Repository Analysis

RetroPie/RetroPie-Setup

Shell script to set up a Raspberry Pi/Odroid/PC with RetroArch emulator and various cores

23.9 Moderate AI signal View on GitHub

Analysis Overview

This report presents the forensic synthetic code analysis of RetroPie/RetroPie-Setup, a Shell project with 10,403 GitHub stars. SynthScan v2.0 examined 39,011 lines of code across 320 source files, recording 345 pattern matches distributed across 8 syntactic categories. The overall adjusted score of 23.9 places this repository in the Moderate AI signal band.

The scanner applied 160+ deterministic lexical heuristics, multi-line block detectors, abstract syntax tree depth profilers, and a cross-file Jaccard similarity matrix to construct a statistically normalised synthetic code estimate. All matches are individually weighted by severity coefficient and contextual multiplier before summation, and the resulting headline score is temporally discounted to account for the repository's development history relative to the commercial emergence of large language model coding tooling (November 2022 onward).

23.9
Adjusted Score
23.9
Raw Score
100%
Time Factor
2026-08-11
Last Push
10.4K
Stars
Shell
Language
39.0K
Lines of Code
320
Files
345
Pattern Hits
2026-08-13
Scan Date
0.00
HC Hit Rate

What These Metrics Mean

Adjusted Score
Primary synthetic code indicator. Raw score normalised per 1,000 lines of code and multiplied by the temporal discount factor. This is the definitive comparative metric — use it to rank repositories by AI authorship density.
Raw Score
The unmodified sum of all severity-weighted, context-multiplied pattern match scores before temporal discounting. Reflects the absolute signal strength independent of when the repository was last active.
Time Factor
The temporal discount multiplier (0–100%) applied to the raw score. Repositories last updated before ChatGPT's launch (Nov 2022) receive a 5% factor. Full signal is only assigned to repositories active in the post-adoption era (Jan 2024+).
Pattern Hits
Total count of individual pattern matches across all files and categories. A high hit count with a low score may indicate a very large codebase with isolated AI snippets; a low count with a high score indicates dense, concentrated AI signatures.
HC Hit Rate
High+Critical pattern hits per file, averaged across the repository. This orthogonal signal catches repositories where a few files are densely packed with high-severity AI tells — a strong indicator even when the normalised score appears moderate due to codebase size.
Lines of Code / Files
Total lines and files analysed. The scanner examines 94 file extensions. These denominators are used to normalise the score, enabling fair comparison between repositories of vastly different sizes.

Score History

Longitudinal tracking requires multiple scan runs. Once this repository is re-scanned after new commits land, this chart will visualise how the synthetic code signal evolves over time — enabling you to detect whether AI authorship is growing, stabilising, or being actively corrected by human engineers.

No multi-scan history yet — run the scanner again to build trend data.

Severity Breakdown

Classifies detected patterns by their diagnostic confidence and structural impact. CRITICAL patterns (coefficient 10) represent definitive synthetic signatures — hallucinated imports, explicit LLM attribution metadata — virtually never produced by human authors. HIGH (5) indicates strong structural tells such as cross-file repetition or cross-linguistic idioms. MEDIUM (2) covers recognisable conversational padding and AI-specific vocabulary. LOW (1) captures subtle indicators like tautological comments and generic boilerplate that require density to carry independent signal.

CRITICAL 0HIGH 0MEDIUM 292LOW 53

Directory Score Breakdown

This horizontal bar chart decomposes the repository's raw synthetic code score by top-level directory, allowing you to pinpoint precisely which modules or components carry the highest AI authorship density. Directories with disproportionately high scores relative to their size warrant targeted manual review: concentrated AI signatures often trace back to mass-generated configuration layers, auto-ported test suites, LLM-scaffolded boilerplate classes, or entire subsystems authored under heavy copilot assistance. Use this view to prioritise your human code-review effort.

Pattern Findings

The scanner identified 345 distinct pattern matches across 8 syntactic categories. Each entry below represents a discrete location in the source code where the engine recorded a statistically significant AI authorship indicator. Expand any category row to inspect the individual file paths, line numbers, code snippets, and the lexical context (CODE, COMMENT, or STRING) in which each match was detected.

Reading the findings table: The Severity column indicates the diagnostic confidence level (CRITICAL / HIGH / MEDIUM / LOW). The Context column identifies whether the match occurred inside executable code, an inline comment, or a string literal — comment-context matches receive a ×1.5 weight because LLMs systematically over-annotate. The ⚡ bolt icon marks clustered matches: three or more patterns within a 10-line window, each receiving an additional ×1.5 density multiplier as dense clusters constitute far stronger evidence of synthetic authorship than isolated hits.

Self-Referential Comments292 hits · 876 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
MEDIUMretropie_setup.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMretropie_packages.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/helpers.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/helpers.sh774## This function is deprecated and instead setBackend should be used.COMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/system.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/inifuncs.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/inifuncs.sh100## This function is useful for creating example configuration entries for usersCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/archivefuncs.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/packages.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/admin/setup.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/admin/builder.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/admin/stats.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/admin/image.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/admin/joy2key.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/admin/tools.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/admin/crosscomp.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/admin/wikidocs.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/admin/apidocs.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/admin/joy2key/joy2key.py3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/admin/joy2key/osk.py232 # Create the main view, overlaying the popup widget with the main viewCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/oricutron.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/mame.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/mame.sh122 # Create a BIOS directory, where people will be able to store their BIOS files, separate from ROMsCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/mame.sh125 # Create the configuration directory for the MAME ini filesCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/mame4all.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/scummvm-sdl1.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/fs-uae.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/dosbox-staging.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/redream.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/advmame-0.94.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/basilisk.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/yabasanshiro.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/xroar.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/gpsp.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/stratagus.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/pcsx-rearmed.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/atari800.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/dosbox.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/drastic.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/minivmac.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/fbzx.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/ppsspp-1.5.4.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/rpix86.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/dosbox-sdl2.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/daphne.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/hypseus.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/uae4all.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/hatari.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/gngeopi.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/vice.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/supermodel3.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/dgen.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/fuse.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/ppsspp.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/openmsx.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/advmame-1.4.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/xm7.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/sdltrs.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/capricerpi.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
MEDIUMscriptmodules/emulators/snes9x.sh3# This file is part of The RetroPie ProjectCOMMENT
232 more matches not shown…
Over-Commented Block37 hits · 37 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
LOWretropie_setup.sh1#!/usr/bin/env bashCOMMENT
LOWretropie_packages.sh1#!/usr/bin/env bashCOMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/helpers.sh1#!/bin/bashCOMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/helpers.sh721}COMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/helpers.sh781## @param delim ini file delimiter eg. ' = 'COMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/helpers.sh801## `get` or `set`. The function should return the value for get via `echo`COMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/helpers.sh821##COMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/helpers.sh1001## @fn ensureSystemretroconfig()COMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/helpers.sh1081 md_conf_root="$configdir"COMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/helpers.sh1321mode "$res"COMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/helpers.sh1461## @param id id of the module / commandCOMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/helpers.sh1521## @param cmd commandline to launchCOMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/helpers.sh1701## __NET_ERRMSG with an error message for use in packages / setup to display to the user if not.COMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/inifuncs.sh1#!/bin/bashCOMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/inifuncs.sh101## to manually enable later or if a configuration is to be disabled but leftCOMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/archivefuncs.sh1#!/bin/bashCOMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/admin/joy2key/joy2key.py1#!/usr/bin/python3COMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/emulators/hypseus/hypinput.ini1# Sample hypinput.iniCOMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/emulators/hypseus/hypinput.ini21# Defining 111 identifies second joystick(1) button 10COMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/emulators/hypseus/hypinput_gamepad.ini1# Sample hypinput.ini using SDL_GameControllerCOMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/emulators/hypseus/hypinput_gamepad.ini21# BUTTON_BCOMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/emulators/daphne/dapinput.ini1# Daphne cutom keyboard and joystick mappingCOMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/supplementary/bluetooth.sh1#!/usr/bin/env bashCOMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/supplementary/runcommand.sh1#!/usr/bin/env bashCOMMENT
LOW…s/supplementary/emulationstation/inputconfiguration.sh1#!/usr/bin/env bashCOMMENT
LOW…s/supplementary/emulationstation/inputconfiguration.sh21## `DEVICE_NAME` = name of the deviceCOMMENT
LOW…s/supplementary/emulationstation/inputconfiguration.sh41## NoneCOMMENT
LOW…supplementary/emulationstation/configscripts/daphne.sh21COMMENT
LOW…supplementary/emulationstation/configscripts/daphne.sh61_EOF_COMMENT
LOW…supplementary/emulationstation/configscripts/daphne.sh81COMMENT
LOW…upplementary/emulationstation/configscripts/openmsx.sh1#!/usr/bin/env bashCOMMENT
LOW…s/supplementary/emulationstation/configscripts/sdl2.sh1#!/usr/bin/env bashCOMMENT
LOW…s/supplementary/emulationstation/configscripts/sdl2.sh21# The script will produce a mapping string for a configured joystick in EmulationStation, then store the result in:COMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/supplementary/runcommand/runcommand.sh1#!/usr/bin/env bashCOMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/supplementary/runcommand/runcommand.sh21##COMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/supplementary/runcommand/runcommand.sh41## * VIDEO_MODE = "PAL/NTSC-RATIO": set mode to SD output with RATIO of 4:3 / 16:10 or 16:9COMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/supplementary/runcommand/runcommand.sh61## line switch to set the resolution.COMMENT
Redundant / Tautological Comments4 hits · 6 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
LOWscriptmodules/emulators/dosbox-staging.sh56 # Check if we have at least meson>=0.57, otherwise install it locally for the buildCOMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/supplementary/skyscraper.sh205 # Check if this a first time installCOMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/supplementary/audiosettings.sh24 # Check if the internal audio is enabledCOMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/supplementary/audiosettings.sh250 # Check if PulseAudio is running, otherwise 'pactl' will not workCOMMENT
AI Slop Vocabulary3 hits · 4 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
LOWscriptmodules/inifuncs.sh60 # if the stripped delimiter is empty - such as in the case of a space, just use the delimiter insteadCOMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/inifuncs.sh144 # if the stripped delimiter is empty - such as in the case of a space, just use the delimiter insteadCOMMENT
LOWscriptmodules/emulators/ppsspp.sh50 # remove the lines that trigger the ffmpeg build script functions - we will just use the variables from itCOMMENT
Excessive Try-Catch Wrapping3 hits · 3 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
LOWscriptmodules/admin/joy2key/joy2key_sdl.py274 except Exception as e:CODE
LOWscriptmodules/admin/joy2key/joy2key_sdl.py481 except Exception as e:CODE
LOWscriptmodules/admin/joy2key/joy2key_sdl.py511 except Exception as e:CODE
Deep Nesting3 hits · 3 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
LOWscriptmodules/admin/joy2key/joy2key_sdl.py189CODE
LOWscriptmodules/admin/joy2key/joy2key_sdl.py223CODE
LOWscriptmodules/admin/joy2key/joy2key_sdl.py312CODE
Slop Phrases2 hits · 2 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
LOWscriptmodules/supplementary/moonlight.sh14rp_module_help="ROM Extensions: .ml\n\nCopy your moonlight launch configurations to $romdir/steam\n\nDon't forget to firCODE
LOWscriptmodules/supplementary/skyscraper.sh672 printMsgs "dialog" "ROMs information gathered.\nDon't forget to use 'Generate Game list(s)' to aCODE
Unused Imports1 hit · 1 pts
SeverityFileLineSnippetContext
LOWscriptmodules/admin/joy2key/joy2key_sdl.py35CODE