BGB
What it is
BGB is a free GameBoy emulator and debugger for playing games and examining emulation. It supports Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Super Game Boy systems, with gamepad control, high-quality sound and graphics, smooth VSync animation, low latency, rewind, and save states. ROMs can load from ZIP and GZIP files. The debugger analyzes emulation, helps create or modify ROMs, and supports GameGenie and GameShark cheats, including searching and saving. BGB emulates the Game Boy Camera from an image file, test pattern, or webcam. TCP/IP linking connects BGB instances, and Super Game Boy multiplayer supports up to four gamepads, although linking does not work with every game and needs very low latency. The maker provides 32-bit and 64-bit versions for Windows and says BGB runs through Wine on Linux and macOS. Version 1.6.6 is dated 2025-07-20. AVI recordings omit sound; audio is saved separately to WAV. The manual provides no warranty.
For and against
For
- Emulates three Game Boy systems
- Debugger supports ROM analysis and cheat creation
- Save states include quick keys and previews
- Game Boy Camera emulation
- TCP/IP linking and multiplayer support
Against
- Game linking does not work with all games
- Linking requires very low latency
- AVI recordings contain no sound
- Program has no warranty
The verdict
BGB combines accurate Game Boy emulation with debugging, cheats, camera support, and linking. Its free distribution and Windows/Wine availability make it useful for both play and technical inspection, with linking and recording limitations to consider.
Who it suits
BGB suits players and developers who want Game Boy emulation, debugging, cheat tools, camera emulation, or linked play. It supports Windows directly and Linux or macOS through Wine.
On the record
- Accuracy
- The maker describes its emulation as hardware-accurate and says it is based on research with test ROMs.bgb.bircd.org · read 2 Oct 2026
- Camera emulation
- BGB emulates the Game Boy Camera using an image file, built-in test pattern, or webcam.bgb.bircd.org · read 1 Oct 2026
- Cheats
- It supports GameGenie and GameShark cheats, cheat loading and saving, cheat searching, and creation of new cheat codes.bgb.bircd.org · read 1 Oct 2026
- Compatibility
- The maker says BGB runs on Windows and Wine and provides 32-bit and 64-bit versions.bgb.bircd.org · read 2 Oct 2026
- Current release
- The current release is BGB 1.6.6, dated 2025-07-20 in the version history.bgb.bircd.org · read 1 Oct 2026
- Current version
- The homepage lists version 1.6.6, dated 2025-07-20 in its version history.bgb.bircd.org · read 2 Oct 2026
- Debugger
- The debugger includes a disassembler, assembler, breakpoints, watchpoints, tracing, and tools for viewing memory and registers.bgb.bircd.org · read 2 Oct 2026
- Debug performance
- Enabling break-on settings or breakpoints activates debug mode and makes BGB run about twice as slowly because of extra checks.bgb.bircd.org · read 1 Oct 2026
- Disclaimer
- The manual says the program has no warranty and is used at the user's own risk.bgb.bircd.org · read 2 Oct 2026
- Emulated systems
- It emulates Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Super Game Boy.bgb.bircd.org · read 2 Oct 2026
- File formats
- BGB can load ROMs from ZIP and GZIP files.bgb.bircd.org · read 1 Oct 2026
- Game link
- It supports TCP/IP game linking between BGB instances.bgb.bircd.org · read 1 Oct 2026
- Game-link limitation
- Game link requires a modern PC around 1–2 GHz and less than 1 ms lag, and it does not work with all games.bgb.bircd.org · read 1 Oct 2026
- Gameplay
- Features include gamepad support, high quality sound and graphics, smooth VSync animation, low latency, rewind, and save states.bgb.bircd.org · read 2 Oct 2026
- Gameplay features
- The emulator includes gamepad support, high-quality sound and graphics, smooth VSync animation, low latency, and rewind.bgb.bircd.org · read 1 Oct 2026
- Multiplayer
- Super Game Boy multiplayer supports up to four gamepads, and the feature list includes TCP/IP game link support.bgb.bircd.org · read 2 Oct 2026
- Older hardware
- The maker says it currently still works on Windows 95b and Pentium 1 PCs.bgb.bircd.org · read 2 Oct 2026
- Product type
- BGB is a GameBoy emulator and debugger.bgb.bircd.org · read 1 Oct 2026
