Neo Geo Pocket

Revision as of 21:23, 20 July 2026 by Gorilli09 (talk | contribs) (Removed redirect to Neo Geo Pocket emulators)
Neo Geo Pocket
Neo Geo Pocket
Manufacturer SNK
Type Handheld game console
Generation Fifth
Release date Neo Geo Pocket:
JP: October 28, 1998
Neo Geo Pocket Color:
JP: March 19, 1999
NA: August 6, 1999
EU: October 1, 1999
New Neo Geo Pocket Color:
JP: October 21, 1999
Discontinued NA/EU: June 13, 2000
JP: October 30, 2001
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 enhancements and hardware features & 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 Compatibility Recommended
PC / x86
ares         git Artifacts
v148
roadmap ISC (Permissive) 92.08%
93 out of 101 reported titles
Mednafen
mednafen_ngp_libretro
        1.32.1
libretro core
[note 1] ~[note 2] GPLv2 (Copyleft)
MAME         0.289 GPLv2
BSD-3-Clause
FinalBurn Neo       libretro core
nightly
stable
~[note 2] Non-commercial ~
BizHawk
(mednafen 1.29.0)
    Dev builds
2.11.1
MIT
GPL
~
higan (火眼)         v110 GPLv3 (Copyleft) [note 3]
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) 92.08%
93 out of 101 reported titles
FinalBurn Neo     libretro core ~[note 2] Non-commercial ~
NGP.emu   1.5.85
git
GPLv3 (Copyleft) ~
WonderDroid Ultra   5.5 git GPLv2 (Copyleft) ~
Provenance     3.3.0
git
? ? ? ? ? ? ?
Console
mednafen_ngp_libretro    
   
   
 
libretro core
UWP libretro core
GPLv2 (Copyleft)
FinalBurn Neo     libretro core ~[note 2] Non-commercial ~
RACE! PSP   libretro core
2.16
git
? ~[note 2] 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
  1. Possible with RetroArch version or standalone mednafen with NullDC-BEAR.
  2. 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Only with retroarch version.
  3. Superseded by ares.

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.

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.

Connects NGPC unit to Dreamcast unit via its controller 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 filed for bankruptcy, making the US version extremely rare to encounter in the wild. Its photos can be found here.

Notes

References