The GP32 is a unique gaming handheld that stores its programs on SMCs. As such, avid gamers who are skilled programmers rush to post all manner of demos, utilities, games etc. on the web the moment this device was released. One area that received much interest are emulators.
With GP32's powerful 32-bit processor, it is quite easy to port existing emulators over. Many like the MSX, NES, SMS, GG and others run very well on the GP32 in full speed and good sound. Even the Atari ST has been very well ported.
This writeup is not intended to be a comphrensive review of all emulators running on the GP32, but an introduction to many of my favorite emulators. The games refered to have all been tested for your benefit. I hope that all reading this article and have yet to run any of these freeware emulators on your GP32, will take them for a test-run. Believe me, you will be hooked!
1. The Atari 2600 VCS is the first home console to become popular and find its way into many homes. There are 2 emulators for the GP32 - GP2600 and VCS32; both in their first beta, but already with sound. It is a pity each require their own specific folder to put the ROMs, wasting duplicate storage space (but since the bin files are so small, it's really not such a big deal). Since Atarti 2600 ROMs are not copyrighted any more, it is a simple matter to search the web and download every single game that has been around for this console. With simple graphics, these games are rated more for its playablity and nostalgic value than graphics. I perfer the VCS32 by Fabrizio Zavagli, over the GP2600 emulator for its better menu GUI. My top 5 (don't flame me, just a personal choice) games are Berzerk, Video Pinball, Fishing Derby, Jungle Hunt and Phoenix. For some really nice graphics for such a blockly console, check out Battle Zone.
2. Worth mentioning are MSX computers which may be the system we all are using today, had it not been for a bright young lad named Bill Gates. Popular mainly in Japan, Rlyeh ported an excellent version to the GP32, fMSX32. Most ROMs played well with sound and all. My favorite MSX games are Galaxian (which is extremely playable), RallyX, Galaga, Mappy and Lode Runner. Although the graphics are better than the Atari 2600, these games are pale in comparision to the rest of the emulators listed below.
3. The InfoNES GP32 is a NES emulator by Anders Granlund, with its final version, Infones v0.3LQ. This is a very capable emulator that played practically every ROM I tested. A long-awaited definitive NES emulator, fNES32 by Rlyehs will be released soon, which supports zipped ROMs; saving much valuable storage space. IMHO the Nintendo Entertainment System (NES) is the first home console to come up with really nice, playable games. Even today, nothing beats NES' Battle City, Pinball, MiniPutt, Arkanoid or Mario Brothers 3.
4. When Sega came into the home console arena, Nintendo upped the ante with the Super Nintendo Entertainment System. It was downward compatible, and with a slot-in adapter, NES cartidges will work on this sucker. It was all the rage when it was released, with the Bust-A-Move cartridge playing as nicely as the Arcade version. The SNES9xGP is a most capable emulator, albeit a tat slow, but most playable. Once loaded, puzzle games like Shanghai and Cameltry plays perfectly, with sound, great graphics and all. With a good selection of SNES pinball games, SNES9xGP renders them all in a fine way. Besides the 3 games I have already mentioned, the SNES Bowling and Mahjong games are very good.
5. Nintendo was first off the gate with a handheld gaming device, GameBoy that is capable of using inter-changeable cartridges. By the sheer number of games available, it has maintained the lead to this day. There are a few GameBoy emulators for the GP32, the best is the colour GPVGB v 0.11 ported by Zardoz Jones from Marat's Z80 core and GFX engine. There are many excellent GameBoy ROMs, some of my favorite games are MarioLand, Head-on, Lock and Chase, Kirby Pinball and all the Game and Watch collections.
6. Sega wasn't going to let Nintendo corner the handheld gaming market, so upped the ante with the colour GameGear. It was bigger, bulkier and the worst thing about it was the short battery life. While it died a slow and painful death, it has released a number of much better than GameBoy cartidges. There are two GG/SMS (Sega Master System) emulators for the GP32. I started with GP32 v0.5, the SMSPlus port, worked so well on every ROM I tested, that I did not even download the other. Although I especially like their compilations - Arcade, Sports, Board etc, all their ROMs like Outrun, Xenon2, Alien/Devil Crush, Mickey Mouse runs smoothly and without a hitch. Highly recommended.
7. While Japanese gaming giants, Nintendo and Sega are battling it out on the handheld arena, NEC quietly and elegantly released what I call 'a complete home gaming system' with their marvelleous PC Engine console and handheld. It was the most pricely systems around (barring the Neo Geo System - my all-time favorite home console) with cartridges that can be used on both the console and the handheld. So strict were NEC's specifications, that many games were rewritten specially for the PC Engine. IMHO all of PC Engine's ROM are of an exceptionally high quality, so my list exceeds the usual 5: Volfied, Final Soldier, Pachisl (slot machines), Bomberman, Pinballs (Time Crush, Alien Crush, Devil Crush) and emulator games (Mega Collection and 5-in-1). There are currently 2 PCE emulators for the GP32, the one I recommend is GPEngine by T & N Geisler (above) but keep an eye on
PCEGP, a port of TGEmu by Charles McDonald - now in its second beta.
8. Commodore was one of the original first 'Big Four' PC players (Radio Shack, Apple and Atari are the other three) that didn't quite made it. Although they were miles ahead of everyone in their hardware and software, their highend marketing alienated them from the masses of enthusiasts. The C64 was Commodore's attempt to correct their marketting error by introducing their first colour computer at a surprisingly cheap price tag. Christian Bauer released a really nice Commodore C64 Emulator for the GP32 which he named FRODO. Though a church member loaned me a C64 when I was studying in USA, I have never got attached to it the way many C64 faithfuls have. Top 5 games I enjoyed are Autoban, Terra Cresta (running better on C64 than any other emulator), Battle Ship, Buggy Boy and Clowns. Apple ][ fans will enjoy a faithful reproduction of Night Mission Pinball and Bandits.
9. My all-time favorite gaming PC is the Atari ST. I owned 2 of 'em, one running in fantastic hi-res monochrome (it has the best port of Lode Runner; Super Ball kept me busy for many hours), collected every issue of ST Format magazine and purchased every Budgie game to go with this computer. Skeezix did a great job in porting CaSTaway to the GP32, updating it almost on a daily basis. It is thrilling to be able to run games like Impact, Flying Shark, Great Giana Sisters, Outrun and Super Street Fighter again.
10. Not an emulator in the truest sense of the word, Wolfenstein 3D and Spear of Destiny have been ported to the GP32 by Flavor. This excellent port brought back memories on how we would find all sorts of codes to beat the game and even a secret Pacman level. Now on the handheld, it plays better than the original. There are also ports of Descent,
Doom,
Elite - The New Kind,
Heretic and other stuff.
The above, as I have said is by no means a complete list of emulators now running on the GP32. There are other emulators for GP32 like
Commodore Plus 4,
Dragon 32/64, Java Virtual Machine,
Vectrex, WonderSwan,
ZX Spectrum etc. that I have not mentioned. Many others like MAME, Game Boy Advance, Neo Geo Pocket and Amiga are in various stages of work in progress. Even as I write this review, another new freeware emulator has been posted by Krousti - the Park-O-Rama, a SG1000 emulator for the GP32. This first release runs in full speed with sound!
Yes indeed, there is nothing quite like the GP32 as far as emulators are concern. On this single handheld device, with a 128mb SMC, you can play actual ROMs from Atari VCS to Wonder Swan. On top of this, you can read books, draw art, keep addresses, play movies, listen to MP3 music and more!
Check out these other articles on emulators by Henry Kong
All About Emulators for the PPC at the-gadgeteer website - http://www.the-gadgeteer.com/pocketpc-emulators-article.html
The Apple ][ Emulator the the PPC at Pocket Gamer website - http://www.pocketgamer.org/features/emulators/applece/
Liberty GameBoy Emulator for the Palm OS at the SPUG website -
http://www.spug.net/reviews/rliberty.htm
Emulators for PCs at Henry's own website -
http://web.singnet.com.sg/~henrynat/2compa.htm
