GSE
GSE is a free emulator for Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance, designed primarily for speedrunning.
What GSE is
GSE is a free emulator for Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance, designed primarily for speedrunning. It uses the Gambatte core for the first two systems and Mesen’s GBA core for Advance. GSE runs at approximately 59.7275 FPS and uses clock synchronization for consistent frame pacing and low input lag. An optional Low Latency Mode can reduce input lag, though frame pacing may be less consistent. The emulator keeps input logs for runs as an additional source for verification and provides 100 savestate slots in 10 sets. It supports ROMs compressed as 7z, rar, tar, gz, or zip, plus broad controller support through SDL3, including GameCube USB Adapter and Switch controllers. Discord Rich Presence is available but disabled by default. GSE runs on Android, Windows, macOS, and Linux, subject to minimum operating system and library requirements. Bootrom or BIOS files are required. Speedrunning-focused omissions include cheat-code support. The project uses the Mozilla Public License 2.0, which provides covered software as-is without warranty.
Good
- Input logs provide an additional source for run verification.
- 100 savestate slots are arranged in 10 sets.
- Supports 7z, rar, tar, gz, and zip ROMs.
- SDL3 controller support includes GameCube USB Adapter and Switch controllers.
Watch out
- Bootrom or BIOS files are required.
- Cheat-code support is omitted.
- Low Latency Mode may make frame pacing less consistent.
Who it suits
GSE suits speedrunners who want Game Boy, Game Boy Color, or Game Boy Advance emulation with input logs and savestates. It is also a fit for players on Android, Windows, macOS, or Linux who can provide the required bootrom or BIOS files.
Verdict
GSE focuses on speedrunning, with input logs, savestates, and timing features for three Game Boy systems. Its requirements and omission of cheat codes may not suit players seeking a general-purpose emulator.
The facts
Each one read from GSE's own pages, with the date it was checked.
What it does
- Boot requirements
- Bootrom or BIOS files are required to use GSE.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Cheat support
- Features that are not useful for speedrunning are omitted, including cheat-code support.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Console accuracy
- The emulator provides battleground-tested Game Boy and Game Boy Color emulation and console-accurate Game Boy Advance emulation for speedrunning.checked 1 Oct 2026
- Controller support
- Controller support is provided through SDL3, including the official GameCube USB Adapter and Switch controllers.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Discord integration
- Discord Rich Presence is available as a configurable option and is off by default.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Emulation cores
- GSE uses Gambatte for Game Boy and Game Boy Color emulation and Mesen's core for Game Boy Advance emulation.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Feature limitation
- Features not useful for speedrunning runs or practice, such as cheat-code support, are not included.checked 1 Oct 2026
- Input limits
- GSE prohibits binding different game inputs to the same host input and prohibits Left+Right and Up+Down combinations.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Input logs
- Input logs are stored for all runs and provide run verifiers with a secondary source of proof.checked 1 Oct 2026
- Input verification
- GSE stores input logs for runs as a secondary source of proof for run verification.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Latency mode
- An optional Low Latency Mode provides lower input latency at the potential cost of less consistent frame pacing.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Latest release
- GSE v0.6 replaces the GBA emulation core with Mesen's core and offers downloads for multiple operating systems and CPU architectures.checked 1 Oct 2026
- License
- The repository's original GSE code is licensed under the Mozilla Public License 2.0.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Low latency
- An optional Low Latency Mode provides lower input lag at the potential cost of less consistent frame pacing.checked 1 Oct 2026
- Operating systems
- The documented requirements are Windows 7 SP1 or later, macOS 10.15 or later, Linux with glibc 2.31 or libstdc++ 3.4.28 or later, and Android 5.0 or later.checked 1 Oct 2026
- Purpose
- GSE is a Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance emulator written in C# for speedrunners.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Release downloads
- The v0.6 release provides download options for multiple operating systems and CPU architectures, with GSE-win-x64.zip recommended for most Windows x64 users.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Requirements
- Bootrom or BIOS files are required for usage.checked 1 Oct 2026
- ROM formats
- The emulator supports 7z, rar, tar, gz, and zip compressed ROMs.checked 1 Oct 2026
- Savestates
- GSE provides 100 savestate slots organized as 10 sets of 10 slots.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Speedrunning timing
- The emulator runs at approximately 59.7275 FPS and provides clock synchronization for consistent frame pacing and low input lag.checked 2 Oct 2026
- System requirements
- Supported systems are Windows 7 SP1 or newer, macOS 10.15 or newer, Linux with specified glibc and libstdc++ versions, and Android 5.0 or newer.checked 2 Oct 2026
- Timing
- GSE runs at approximately 59.7275 FPS and uses clock synchronization for consistent frame pacing and low input lag.checked 1 Oct 2026
- Warranty
- The MPL-2.0 license states that covered software is provided as-is without warranty.checked 2 Oct 2026
Alternatives to GSE
- 1
Provenance
Free planOpen sourceiOSmacOS8.2From $39.99 a year - 2
SkyEmu
Free planOpen sourceAndroidiOSWebLinux8.0Free plan - 3
RetroArch
Free planAndroidiOSWebLinux7.7Free plan - 4
ares
Free planOpen sourceLinuxmacOSSelf-hostedWindows7.5Free plan - 5
OpenEmu
Free planOpen sourcemacOS7.3Free plan - 6
RustBoyAdvance-NG
Free planAndroidWebLinuxmacOS7.1Free plan