Neo Geo Pocket emulators

Neo Geo Pocket (Color)

Neo Geo Pocket
Developer	SNK
Type	Handheld game console
Generation	Fifth generation
Release date	1998 (Neo Geo Pocket) 1999 (Neo Geo Pocket Color)
Discontinued	1999 (Neo Geo Pocket) 2001 (Neo Geo Pocket Color)
Successor	Neo Geo Pocket Color
Emulated	✓

The Neo Geo Pocket (NGP) and Neo Geo Pocket Color (NGPC) are fifth-generation handheld game consoles produced by SNK Corporation in 1998 and 1999 respectively. The NGPC was retailed for $69.95 ($138 in 2026). The NGP was only released in Japan, due to its low popularity, however the NGPC was released worldwide. It was the last handheld console produced by SNK.

Emulators

Before editing, review the Getting involved and Recommended pages. See system requirements page for performance demand of the emulators.
See tables for hardware variants, enhancements, hardware features and peripherals.
For more details such as licensing, programming language, emulation method, visit each emulator’s dedicated page.

Name	Platform(s)	Latest version	NGP	NGPC	Netplay	RetroAchievements	libretro	License	Active	Recommended
PC / x86
ares		git Artifacts v148	✓	✓	✗	roadmap	✗	ISC (Permissive)	✓	✓
Mednafen mednafen_ngp_libretro		1.32.1 libretro core	✓	✓	✓	~	✓	GPLv2 (Copyleft)	✓	✓
MAME		0.289	✓	✓	✗	✗	✓	GPLv2 BSD-3-Clause	✓	✓
FinalBurn Neo		libretro core nightly stable	✓	✓	✗	~	✓	Non-commercial	✓	~
BizHawk (mednafen 1.29.0)		Dev builds 2.11.1	✓	✓	✗	✓	✗	MIT GPL	✓	~
higan (火眼)		v110	✓	✓	✗	✗	✓	GPLv3 (Copyleft)	✗	✗
Pantheon		16.458	?	?	?	?	?	Proprietary	✓	?
NeoPop-SDL		0.2a	✓	✓	✗	✗	✗	GPLv2 (Copyleft)	✗	✗
NeoPop		1.06b	✓	✓	✗	✗	✗	GPLv2 (Copyleft)	✗	✗
NeoGPC		1.1	✗	✓	✗	✗	✗	GPLv3 (Copyleft)	✗	✗
vdmgr		0.2.7	✓	✓	✗	✗	✗	Proprietary	✓	✗
Mobile / ARM
mednafen_ngp_libretro		libretro core	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	GPLv2 (Copyleft)	✓	✓
ares		git Artifacts v148	✓	✓	?	?	?	ISC (Permissive)	✓	✓
FinalBurn Neo		libretro core	✓	✓	✗	~	✓	Non-commercial	✓	~
NGP.emu		1.5.85 git	✓	✓	✗	✗	✗	GPLv3 (Copyleft)	✓	~
WonderDroid Ultra		5.3git	✓	✓	✗	✗	✗	GPLv2 (Copyleft)	✓	~
Provenance		3.3.0 git	?	?	?	?	?	?	✓	?
Console
mednafen_ngp_libretro		libretro core UWP libretro core	✓	✓	✓	✓	✓	GPLv2 (Copyleft)	✓	✓
FinalBurn Neo		libretro core	✓	✓	✗	~	✓	Non-commercial	✓	~
RACE! PSP		libretro core 2.16 git	✓	✓	?	~	✓	GPLv2 (Copyleft)	✗	~
NGPDS		0.5.8	✓	✓	✗	✗	✗	?	✓	✓
NeoPop PSP		0.71.15 git	✓	✓	✗	✗	✗	GPLv2 (Copyleft)	✗	✗
Neopop-SDL		git	✓	✓	✗	✗	✗	GPLv2 (Copyleft)	✗	~
NeoPop-SDL 3DS		git 0.4	✓	✓	✗	✗	✗	GPLv2 (Copyleft)	✗	~
NeoPop Vita		git 0.71.15	✓	✓	✗	✗	✗	GPLv2 (Copyleft)	✗	~
DC NeoPop		1.0	✓	✓	✗	✗	✗	Proprietary	✗	✗
NeoPop/PS2		Release	✓	✓	✗	✗	✗	Proprietary	✗	✗

Comparisons

ares

Neo Geo Pocket core is most accurate out of any other emulator for Neo Geo Pocket.

Hardware features and peripherals

Name		ares	Mednafen	MAME	FinalBurn Neo	Bizhawk
Hardware features
Peripherals	SNK Link Cable	✗	✗	✗	✗	✗
	SNK Musen Unit	✗	✗	✗	✗	✗
	Setsuzoku Cable	✗	✗	✗	✗	✗
Misc.

SNK Link Cable

Connects Neo Geo Pocket units for multiplayer functionality in compatible games. The official emulator in NeoGeo Pocket Color Selection compilations supports it.

SNK Musen Unit

Connects Neo Geo Pocket units wirelessly for multiplayer functionality to play compatible games. It supports connecting up to either 8/64 consoles (information available online is inconsistent, some sites say 8, some say 64). Correspondingly, you need 8/64 game cartridges of the same game and 8/64 Musen Units. It connects consoles by radiowaves within 10/100m (another discrepancy in information available) distance and supports connecting on-the-fly without relaunching. Only 5 (? once again, information on some of these games is inconsistent) games supported this accessory: Neo 21, Dive Alert (only the Japanese version, the Western is restricted to the Link Cable), Neo Baccarat, Party Mail and SNK vs Capcom Card Fighters Clash and SNK vs Capcom Card Fighters Clash 2.

Note: According to information available online, all these games still only support 2 players. Which means that connecting 8/64 units was probably supported on the hardware side, but it seems no games took advantage of this and never coded in support for this many players at the software level.

Setsuzoku Cable

Connects NGPC unit to Dreamcast unit via its serial port for data transfer and possible unlocking bonus in-game content on both sides. While mistakenly oft-thought to be a Japan-only accessory, some small stock of American cables actually had been released right before SNK went bankrupt, making the US version extremely rare to encounter in the wild. Its photos can be found here.

References

• NGPC Games list