diff --git a/runtime/runtime.cmake b/runtime/runtime.cmake
index daf56d97..c6d72644 100644
--- a/runtime/runtime.cmake
+++ b/runtime/runtime.cmake
@@ -43,6 +43,26 @@ if(NOT SDL2_INCLUDE_DIRS OR NOT SDL2_LIBRARIES)
     endif()
 endif()
 
+# PSX_STATIC_RUNTIME: produce a 100% self-contained MinGW exe.
+#
+# A default MinGW build dynamically imports three NON-system DLLs —
+# SDL2.dll, libgcc_s_seh-1.dll, libstdc++-6.dll — which must be shipped
+# next to the exe. On a user's machine that side-by-side scheme breaks
+# when a different-architecture copy of one of those DLLs is found earlier
+# on the DLL search path (System32, another app on PATH), producing the
+# 0xc000007b STATUS_INVALID_IMAGE_FORMAT crash on launch.
+#
+# Linking those runtimes (and SDL2) statically removes every non-system
+# import, so the exe runs from any folder with zero bundled DLLs and the
+# 0xc000007b failure mode becomes structurally impossible. Default ON for
+# MinGW Release/MinSizeRel (the configs used to cut releases); override
+# with -DPSX_STATIC_RUNTIME=OFF to force dynamic linking.
+if(MINGW AND (CMAKE_BUILD_TYPE STREQUAL "Release" OR CMAKE_BUILD_TYPE STREQUAL "MinSizeRel"))
+    option(PSX_STATIC_RUNTIME "Statically link SDL2 + libgcc/libstdc++ for a self-contained exe" ON)
+else()
+    option(PSX_STATIC_RUNTIME "Statically link SDL2 + libgcc/libstdc++ for a self-contained exe" OFF)
+endif()
+
 set(PSXRECOMP_RUNTIME_SOURCES
     ${PSXRECOMP_ROOT}/runtime/src/main.cpp
     ${PSXRECOMP_ROOT}/runtime/src/memory.c
@@ -151,7 +171,15 @@ function(psxrecomp_add_runtime_target target)
     if(SDL2_LIBRARY_DIRS)
         target_link_directories(${target} PRIVATE ${SDL2_LIBRARY_DIRS})
     endif()
-    target_link_libraries(${target} PRIVATE ${SDL2_LIBRARIES})
+    # For a self-contained MinGW build, link SDL2 statically via pkg-config's
+    # --static link line (libSDL2.a + the full Windows system-lib chain SDL2
+    # needs: winmm, imm32, ole32, oleaut32, version, setupapi, dinput8, ...).
+    # Otherwise link the SDL2 import lib (needs SDL2.dll at runtime).
+    if(PSX_STATIC_RUNTIME AND SDL2_STATIC_LDFLAGS)
+        target_link_libraries(${target} PRIVATE ${SDL2_STATIC_LDFLAGS})
+    else()
+        target_link_libraries(${target} PRIVATE ${SDL2_LIBRARIES})
+    endif()
 
     target_compile_definitions(${target} PRIVATE
         DEFAULT_DEBUG_PORT=${PSXRT_DEBUG_PORT}
@@ -188,6 +216,13 @@ function(psxrecomp_add_runtime_target target)
         target_link_options(${target} PRIVATE -Wl,--stack,67108864)
         # No console window in Release MinGW builds.
         target_link_options(${target} PRIVATE $<$<CONFIG:Release>:-mwindows>)
+        if(PSX_STATIC_RUNTIME)
+            # Fold the GCC / C++ / winpthread runtimes into the exe so it
+            # imports only Windows system DLLs (no libgcc_s_seh-1.dll /
+            # libstdc++-6.dll dependency). Pairs with the static SDL2 link
+            # above to make the exe fully self-contained.
+            target_link_options(${target} PRIVATE -static -static-libgcc -static-libstdc++)
+        endif()
     elseif(MSVC)
         target_compile_options(${target} PRIVATE /GS- /guard:cf-)
         target_link_options(${target} PRIVATE /STACK:67108864,67108864 /GUARD:NO)
diff --git a/tools/package_release.ps1 b/tools/package_release.ps1
index a1447525..0998afc2 100644
--- a/tools/package_release.ps1
+++ b/tools/package_release.ps1
@@ -30,13 +30,26 @@ if (Test-Path (Join-Path $Root "RELEASE_NOTES.md")) {
     Copy-Item (Join-Path $Root "RELEASE_NOTES.md") $Stage
 }
 
-foreach ($Dll in @("SDL2.dll", "libgcc_s_seh-1.dll", "libstdc++-6.dll")) {
-    $Source = Join-Path $MingwBin $Dll
-    if (!(Test-Path $Source)) {
-        throw "Required runtime DLL not found: $Source"
-    }
-    Copy-Item $Source $Stage
+# The Release build is statically linked (PSX_STATIC_RUNTIME defaults ON for
+# MinGW Release in runtime.cmake), so the exe imports ONLY Windows system DLLs
+# — no SDL2.dll / libgcc_s_seh-1.dll / libstdc++-6.dll to bundle. Shipping
+# those side-by-side was the cause of the 0xc000007b launch crash on user
+# machines that had a mismatched copy earlier on the DLL search path.
+#
+# Assert self-containment rather than trust it: fail packaging if the exe
+# imports any non-system DLL.
+$objdump = Join-Path $MingwBin "objdump.exe"
+$imports = & $objdump -p (Join-Path $Stage "PSXRecomp.exe") |
+    Select-String "DLL Name: (.+)" | ForEach-Object { $_.Matches[0].Groups[1].Value.Trim() }
+$systemDlls = @("kernel32.dll","user32.dll","gdi32.dll","shell32.dll","msvcrt.dll",
+                "advapi32.dll","ws2_32.dll","comdlg32.dll","dbghelp.dll","ole32.dll",
+                "oleaut32.dll","winmm.dll","imm32.dll","version.dll","setupapi.dll",
+                "dinput8.dll","rpcrt4.dll","hid.dll","cfgmgr32.dll")
+$nonSystem = $imports | Where-Object { $systemDlls -notcontains $_.ToLower() }
+if ($nonSystem) {
+    throw "Release exe is NOT self-contained — imports non-system DLL(s): $($nonSystem -join ', ')"
 }
+Write-Host "Verified self-contained: imports only system DLLs ($($imports.Count) total)"
 
 @"
 ; PSXRecomp input mapping. PSX buttons are active when any listed source is pressed.