2001 · GamePark · South Korea · handheld
GamePark GP32
An open Korean handheld the emulation scene loved more than the shops did.
A curiosity Trivial to run ▶ Watch on YouTube ↗
Image: Original uploader was Taras at en.wikipedia · CC BY-SA 3.0
A 2001 handheld from South Korea's GamePark, open to home-brew code in a way its rivals were not, which made it a darling of the emulation and demo scene. Its commercial library was tiny.
Most owners ran their own software and emulators on it; a few real games like Astonishia Story appeared alongside.
What it cost
only about 5% of a month’s pay in 2001 · about $266 today
| Launch retail price (~$150 USD / ₩180,000 KRW) |
$150 (2001)
South Korea’s pioneer open-source handheld with SmartMedia card storage and 32-bit ARM9. |
|---|---|
| Typical street price | — No verified mass-market street price recorded yet. |
| Units sold | ≈30,000 estimate Approximately 30,000 units produced. |
Why it mattered
The GP32 previewed the open, homebrew-friendly handheld that later devices, and today's emulation handhelds, would perfect — remembered for what its owners made, not what its makers sold.
Emulating it today
| Emulators | GeePee32, MAME |
|---|---|
| Setup effort | Trivial to run (0.5 on this site's scale) |
| Controls | A standard modern controller covers the ordinary controls, though unusual accessories may need custom mapping. |
| Runs on a handheld | Yes |
The emulator names above are starting points, not a promise that every title or accessory behaves identically. Computer platforms usually add model selection, disk handling and keyboard setup even when CPU emulation itself is mature.
Firmware
This system needs no firmware file. Install an emulator, open a game, and it runs.
How many files you need: none to go and find. No separate firmware file is needed for an ordinary setup.
Firmware details checked 2026-08. Emulator requirements change — see Libretro documentation for the current list.
Where the software is
Preservation catalogues describe verified dumps; they do not grant permission to download commercial software. A curated, correctly matched set is easier to use than an undifferentiated archive.
Copyright: Commercial software remains copyrighted unless its owner explicitly released or relicensed it. Homebrew, public-domain programs and current reissues should be treated separately from abandoned commercial titles.
This site names preservation projects and explains what they are. It does not link to ROM downloads.
Where to start
- Little Wizard 2002 platformer
- Blue Angelo 2002 action RPG
- Astonishia Story 2003 RPG
One of the few commercial titles on a machine that mostly ran homebrew and emulators.
The verdict
Of interest to the homebrew and emulation-history crowd; its commercial library is tiny.
As a games platform in its own right there is little here — its value is as an ancestor of the modern retro handheld.
- Worth it if
- Players curious about obscure handhelds and willing to learn how the original machine worked.
- Not for
- Anyone who wants a large, instantly accessible library and no model, firmware or control decisions.
Scored 2/5 for fun today and 3/5 for historical importance. Those two scores decide the label at the top — a machine can matter enormously and still be no fun.
Read more & watch
This page is 50% complete against the facts we try to record for every system. Gaps are shown as gaps.