Originally of Nintendo, the Gameboy Advance and Color are two very popular gaming consoles with a range of different game support on them. However, just like any other console, these two also are quite high-priced which makes gamers tend towards emulators for Android or PC. The Gameboy advance and color (GBA & GBC) emulator are two pieces of emulator that let you play these games on your Android and PC. Although this is common knowledge you might already have, here we have listed down the list of 7 best GBA & GBC emulator for Android and PC that will get the game going in no time! So, keep on reading if you find out which is the best Gameboy emulator for you.
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What games can you play on GBA & GBC Emulator?
Most of the Gameboy emulators come with basic features and thus the experience can be comparable to the console. The GBA emulator lets you play the games of the Gameboy Advance console while the GBC emulator is for the Gameboy Color console. A GBA and GBC emulator lets you play almost all the Gameboy Color and Advance games. In fact, you can even play the original Gameboy Advance Games on the GBC emulator with some minor, negotiable glitches.
7 Best GBA & GBC Emulator
ClassicBoy Gold
The ClassicBoy is a popular emulator for running Gameboy Advance and Gameboy Color games on Android. Since this is an all-in-one emulator, most gamers prefer this as it acts as both a GBA and a GBC emulator. Apart from these two, you can even run many other consoles on it including PlayStation, Sega Genesis, NES, etc. This is a very decent option for users wanting a free or a paid emulator for a nominal fee of around $5.99. The app has no major performance issues and supports all games of the consoles – Gameboy, Gameboy Color, Gameboy Advanced.
Furthermore, this emulator has provisions for save states, load states, fast forward, as well as cheat code support. You also get a hardware controller support feature in it. To get started, you can also try the free version which lacks a few premium features but shall be fine to get a glimpse of the app. The only con which may be disturbing is the lack of frequent updates but overall, there are almost no performance issues.
EmuBox
The EmuBox app is one of the best free Gameboy emulators for Android and PC. Not only for Gameboy consoles, but it also supports many other consoles as it is a one-in-all emulator. Its functions are almost similar to that of the ClassicBoy except this is fully free of cost. This also supports consoles like Nintendo DS, PlayStation, SNES, etc.
It offers all the basic features, including cheat code support, screenshot, save state and load state features, and fast forward support. There is also hardware controller support. You might see a few ads as it is a free app, but overall, this is quite an amazing emulator that doesn’t drain your Android or PC. Moreover, the app is also free of any in-app purchases.
GBA.emu
The GBA.emu is particularly pertaining to the Game Boy Advance console and allows only GBA games on Android and PC. However, it is loaded with all major features a gamer looks for in an emulator. The GBA.emu supports quick saves, BIOS emulation, cheat codes, hardware controller support among its notable features.
The performance of this emulator cannot be put into question as it is quite light on your device’s capabilities. Reportedly, there were no signs of stopping, slowing or draining of storage while using it. Thus, it gives a comparable experience with the most popular apps. Another advantageous feature of this app is that it supports cross-platform sessions in its PC version.
However, a big disadvantage is it doesn’t have a free version even for testing it. The fee is $4.99 and you will have to try it out within the refund period if you want to check if it’s satisfactory for your needs.
GBC.emu
This one is also from the same developer as the GBA.emu and is one of the best Game Boy Color and Game Boy emulators available on Android. The biggest advantage of this over the last app is that it supports both Game Boy and Game Boy Color systems. Reportedly, most gamers claim the app is quite sophisticated with a satisfactory compatibility rate and supports most games.
There are also no incidences of performance issues on most devices. It also has provisions for cheat codes, cross-platform support (PC version), and support for hardware controllers. This is an open-source app that is ideal for frequent updates.
However, the only con is that it doesn’t have a free version to check its performance. The fee for this app is, however, lower than GBA.emu and is around $2.99. Hence, if you really want to try this out, you have to do so within the refund time period or pay the fee.
Nostalgia.GBC
This is not a common emulator for GBC but should be because of its unique features not available in most other popular apps for GBC. For example, unlike other apps, both the free and paid versions come with the same features and even the premium ones. Both the versions offer turbo buttons, high compatibility, on-screen controls, and hardware keyboards. Except for the ad-free experience of the paid version, the features are pretty much the same on the free version as well. Moreover, the app has high game compatibility and allows most GBC games smoothly without any performance issues.
To list down some other unique features not available in most other emulators, this has a game rewind feature that is super cool to replay the moment from a few seconds ago. This is a popular choice among many platform gamers. For all these superior features, it deserves to be on this list of best Game Boy Color and Game Boy emulator. Lastly, if it’s any help, no ads play on the free version when the game is going on.
RetroArch
One of the most popular game emulators on any platform, the RetroArch is essentially a multi-core emulator. It contains multiple cores and each core is basically a whole video game console. So, you can play whichever core you want by separately downloading them as per your convenience. Interestingly, you can play all the three consoles on RetroArch – Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advanced. Just a single app allows you access to all the games on these three consoles. In addition, the RetroArch also has “cores” of many other popular consoles including PS2.
It might not be as sophisticated as the Gameboy-only emulator but retroArch has a high game compatibility rate. Also, to major gamer’s rescue, this is totally free, open-source, and it runs without any ad. The only downside is that you’ll need to learn how to use it. However, it might seem a bit complicated at first as it has multiple cores and high functionality. Once you get used to it, you won’t think of switching to any other emulator. The RetroArch has almost all basic features like cheat code support, hardware controller support, and so on. Hence, this is not only the best Gameboy emulator for Android and PC (yes – both platforms!), it is also ideal for a ton of other consoles.
Pizza Boy GBA
The Pizza Boy GBA is a comparatively new app in the world of the best Game Boy emulators. As the name suggests, it strictly pertains to only Game Boy Advance console. The most noteworthy feature is a whopping 60FPS gameplay with no ad play at all. Moreover, it also has options for fast forward, slow motion, hardware controller support, save states, and much more – all in the free app.
So, if you want to switch over to a completely unique app with versatile functions not commonly seen, this Game Boy emulator for Android should be your first consideration. The only con is that it has a few bugs but all of those are quite negligible and least likely to interrupt your gaming session.
FAQs
Can you play GBA games on the GBC emulator?
No. A GBA emulator will only allow you to play GBA games while a GBC emulator is strictly for GBC games. However, you can choose an all-in-one emulator with different “cores” so that you can download the GBC and GBA apps as per your need.
Which is the best GBA and GBC emulator for Android?
There are many options available today with versatile functions. The RetroArch is a popular option supporting both GBA and GBC and tops the best’s list. But if you want something very unique with different functions not offered by common emulators, Pizza Buy GBA is the one for you.
Conclusion
Gameboy is among the top cravings of all gamers throughout the world. Originally a part of Nintendo, there are mainly three kinds of consoles: Gameboy Advanced, Gameboy Color, and Gameboy which houses loads of nail-biting games. However, owing to their expensive price, these consoles are only within the reach of a few. Not to worry because today, there are several Gameboy emulator available for Android and PC to give the same experience. After thorough research, we have listed the top 7 Gameboy advance and color (GBA & GBC) emulators you can blindly rely on.