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GB/GBC/GBA Collecting Thread

L

leroidys

Member
Worthintendo said:
So picked up this GBC treat off eBay the other week

Maybe the most I've spent on a GBC game not called Shantae ._.
Box is in great condition and can't wait to get into it.
Now to get the other GBC Dragon Quest games.
Click to expand...

Nice! I still need to get around to playing through my copy.
 
T

Teknoman

Member
So Legend of the River King has a GB Super Game Boy enhanced and GBC version. Can you still play the Black Cart GB version on Super Game Boy and get the border/whatever other enhancements?
 
S

sixteen-bit

Member
AFAIK the only way to get the GBC colorization AND the SGB enhancements/border is through emulators. There is a GB/GBC emulator for GBA that does that (gameyob I think?)
 
entremet

entremet

Member
I know this is mostly an original hardware thread, but Super Mario Advance 4 (SMB3) is out on the Wii U eShop today.

But here's the kicker, it has all the eReader levels unlocked! Including the Japanese only ones.
 
P

Pancakes R Us

Member
entremet said:
I know this is mostly an original hardware thread, but Super Mario Advance 4 (SMB3) is out on the Wii U eShop today.

But here's the kicker, it has all the eReader levels unlocked! Including the Japanese only ones.
Click to expand...
Oh wow. I've no interest on playing GBA games via Wii U, but if it has all of the e-Reader levels...! Is this for the US eShop?

I have a feeling the AB button placement on the gamepad/pro controller etc. will feel uncomfortable compared to original GBA/SP hardware because the slant of the buttons is different. UGH.

Are you able to use custom button combos on GBA games via Wii U, by any chance?
 
entremet

entremet

Member
Pancakes R Us said:
Oh wow. I've no interest on playing GBA games via Wii U, but if it has all of the e-Reader levels...! Is this for the US eShop?

I have a feeling the AB button placement on the gamepad/pro controller etc. will feel uncomfortable compared to original GBA/SP hardware because the slant of the buttons is different. UGH.

Are you able to use custom button combos on GBA games via Wii U, by any chance?
Click to expand...

It's on the US eshop. Just released today.

As TheMoon said you can map your controls.
 
T

Teknoman

Member
DeuceGamer said:
For someone starting to get into GBA the best way to tell fakes is to simply open the cart?
Click to expand...

Nope: ESRB font size or Label art / quality. If that fails, just look at the board at an angle. If you see circular indents across the very top in a uniform line, its real. If not? Fake.
 
L

leroidys

Member
Yeah, pretty much every fake I've ever found is identifiable by the label pretty easily if you know what to look for. Pixelation, overall quality, lack of shine, ESRB, etc.
 
D

DeuceGamer

Member
I've found a couple fakes, but they were pretty obvious. I'm more concerned with some of the better fakes. I'm collecting CiB mostly so that should help as well. The number of GBA fakes are concerning though.
 
D

dhonk

Member
So I just bought a Mega Memory Card and a Smartcard so I can backup my Gameboy Camera with photos going back to 98. I had a small bit of panic realizing hey what if the battery dies by then. (Its lasted this long, but I dunno.)

So Ive just got it plugged into my AGS 001 turned on and Im gonna leave it on wall power till I get all the stuff. In my mind maybe it would keep the save in ram for a short while even if the battery totally died if Im fast enough to slap it into the Mega Memory Card? I could just be having insane gameboy related paranoia haha.

Note: I have taken screencaps through Gameboy Player a few years back, so its not all lost. BUT then I wouldnt be able to print them on the Gameboy Printer! AHH
 
N

nickerous

Member
So, that super mario 3 with all the ereader levels? You can play it on the gba now. There is an ips patch on gbatemp. Should be up on romhacking.net soon. Didnt know if it was cool to link stuff here or not. It works too. I have been playing on my ez iv a good bit today.
 
P

PumpkinSpice

Banned
nickerous said:
So, that super mario 3 with all the ereader levels? You can play it on the gba now. There is an ips patch on gbatemp. Should be up on romhacking.net soon. Didnt know if it was cool to link stuff here or not. It works too. I have been playing on my ez iv a good bit today.
Click to expand...

You could always have just used a save file with the levels loaded in. I don't know why you'd need an ips patch for that.
 
S

sixteen-bit

Member
tumblr_o1fek22tGk1s3uawvo1_540.jpg


I didn't know they packed it sunglasses with some of these, lol.
 
M

Mega

Banned
I had a few questions about a recently purchased GBA with AGS-101 backlight mod. I'm disappointed in what I see but wondering if I should keep my expectations in check... or if this unit just isn't good and I should return it. Thanks for any input on this.

1. Is image rentention normal and acceptable? I stop very briefly in a sidescroller, start moving again, image is retained. Go to a pause screen for a short time, unpause, text and menu remain for even longer. I'm wondering if this is common for original GBA screens and the backlight is exposing what the screens are really like... or if it's actually a very worn out display.

2. The screen/backlight appears off-centered enough so that when I'm holding the GBA head-on in normal play, there is a very distracting, bright white vertical bar. This is not like some electronics such as imperfect IPS panels, some Kindles, or the Gameboy bivert mod where you can see diffuse spots of light emanating from a light source in the casing. This is the exposed light source itself within the display borders. Is this normal? It's jarring and looks like the screen assembly should be 1/8th of an inch to the left.
 
P

Peagles

Member
Mega said:
I had a few questions about a recently purchased GBA with AGS-101 backlight mod. I'm disappointed in what I see but wondering if I should keep my expectations in check... or if this unit just isn't good and I should return it. Thanks for any input on this.

1. Is image rentention normal and acceptable? I stop very briefly in a sidescroller, start moving again, image is retained. Go to a pause screen for a short time, unpause, text and menu remain for even longer. I'm wondering if this is common for original GBA screens and the backlight is exposing what the screens are really like... or if it's actually a very worn out display.

2. The screen/backlight appears off-centered enough so that when I'm holding the GBA head-on in normal play, there is a very distracting, bright white vertical bar. This is not like some electronics such as imperfect IPS panels, some Kindles, or the Gameboy bivert mod where you can see diffuse spots of light emanating from a light source in the casing. This is the exposed light source itself within the display borders. Is this normal? It's jarring and looks like the screen assembly should be 1/8th of an inch to the left.
Click to expand...

Just to check... Is it an AGB that's been modded by somebody? Or a regular AGS?

The screens naturally have a worse refresh rate, but that sounds much worse than it should be. Really you should only see a little ghosting.

If it's off centre, they didn't do a very good job putting it together.

Sounds like a bad mod job TBH. The screen could just be poor quality too though, in which case it can't be fixed. That or they didn't adjust the pots properly when installing it.
 
P

PumpkinSpice

Banned
The ghosting with the 101 screen is normal. I've mentioned this before, sometimes people are delusional and like to pretend it's not there but depending on the game it's pretty bad. I mean it's a cheap kids toy from 10 years ago ($80, cheaper than a 2DS even factoring inflation), so yeah expectations should be checked, but the non-backlit screen is preferable in good light.

For #2, can you post a photo?

Edit: For the ghosting thing, if the transition is very high contrast (like black->white from a menu back to gameplay) it can pretty easily look like a brief image retention.
 
M

Mega

Banned
It's an AGB, the original GBA, with the AGS-101 backlight. I always thought of ghosting/motion blur as what the PSP and DS have. I expect that on almost every non-CRT display. This is severe image retention like on an old plasma screen.

I don't have the unit on me but I took a couple of pics last night. I was trying to accurately capture the retention, not the bar of light... the camera angle is tilted and actually obscuring how bad the vertical bar looks from a neutral angle!

bmvSfaG.jpg
Click to expand...

dr8l77G.jpg
Click to expand...
 
P

PumpkinSpice

Banned
Mega said:
It's an AGB, the original GBA, with the AGS-101 backlight. I always thought of ghosting/motion blur as what the PSP and DS have. I expect that on almost every non-CRT display. This is severe image retention like on an old plasma screen.

I don't have the unit on me but I took a couple of pics last night. I was trying to accurately capture the retention, not the bar of light... the camera angle is tilted and actually obscuring how bad the vertical bar looks from a neutral angle!
Click to expand...

Yeah that's not normal at all. I think the ribbon cables/adapters inside your GBA are loose. I managed to make mine do something like that when I was cleaning the inside about a year ago but just tightening the connections fixed that. Either that or something's broken.

To be on the safe side returning it might be best.
 
P

Peagles

Member
Unfortunately because they're popular I see a lot of bad mod jobs. Send it back or get someone competent to take a look at it IMO.
 
M

Mega

Banned
Yeah, definitely some bad hack jobs out there and I would steer clear if it is obvious. Unfortunately, and intentionally or not, the photos of the GBA did not show the problems. The seller him/herself has a solid rep and has been completely cool about fully refunding me.

Thanks for the info and confirming this isn't normal.
 
N

NormalFish

Banned
I want the mother 2 GBA translation to be finished so bad.

Oh, also my micro has had an odd issue lately. It doesn't seem to want to keep the charging light on. I can't tell if it's because it's not charging or if it's the light itself. It also flickers when dying (haven't let it die yet so Idk if it would turn fully red if I let it continue).

Could someone basically tell me if the micro charging light will flicker on if it's fully charged and you plug it in? I think that would basically answer my question.
 
P

Peagles

Member
I originally did them to order but I hit a snag with the ribbon cables I was using. I wasn't doing the regular mod but a variation with a 4 brightness levels. I still have the equipment and consoles ready to go but for the last year I haven't been able to do work on them (I'm really close to graduating). I just found all the stuff when I moved house so I'll do another stocktake and see what I've got.
 
P

prateeko

Member
Peagles said:
I originally did them to order but I hit a snag with the ribbon cables I was using. I wasn't doing the regular mod but a variation with a 4 brightness levels. I still have the equipment and consoles ready to go but for the last year I haven't been able to do work on them (I'm really close to graduating). I just found all the stuff when I moved house so I'll do another stocktake and see what I've got.
Click to expand...
Okay, cool, I wasn't sure if I was still on the list or not ^_^
 
M

Mega

Banned
Peagles said:
I originally did them to order but I hit a snag with the ribbon cables I was using. I wasn't doing the regular mod but a variation with a 4 brightness levels. I still have the equipment and consoles ready to go but for the last year I haven't been able to do work on them (I'm really close to graduating). I just found all the stuff when I moved house so I'll do another stocktake and see what I've got.
Click to expand...

Brightness mod... I've seen only one of those months ago on ebay! Can I get on your wait list?
 
P

Peagles

Member
Yup I remember you prateeko, weren't you wanting to send some systems over to be modded/fixed? Either way you're still on the list.

Mega, what I'll do is I'll check my list again, stocktake all my parts, and reconfirm with those still waiting. If I have space I'll add you to the end. Hopefully I can get the ribbon cables functioning, they're a special type that allow you to scroll through 4 brightness levels with a button combination. Not cheap mind you, but I still play on mine almost every night in bed!

I've got some more space to work now too in our new place so once I submit my thesis in a few weeks I should be good to go. Never know with that old chestnut though lmao...
 
A

Agent Unknown

Member
Peagle's brightness mods are amazing and well worth the price, I absolutely love mine, it's the crown jewel of my portable collection.

Random time: Final Fantasy Tactics was recently released on Virtual Console but I think I'm going to get the cart as I have a craving for a non-first party GBA game to play on my 001 mod. I never played it back in the day (it would actually be my first FF game), seems like a complete boxed set can be had for not much more than $20, worth getting? I love the charming sprite work and the strategy gameplay looks fun (although I hear a lot of complaints about the "law" system).
 
M

Mega

Banned
Peagles said:
Mega, what I'll do is I'll check my list again, stocktake all my parts, and reconfirm with those still waiting. If I have space I'll add you to the end. Hopefully I can get the ribbon cables functioning, they're a special type that allow you to scroll through 4 brightness levels with a button combination. Not cheap mind you, but I still play on mine almost every night in bed!

I've got some more space to work now too in our new place so once I submit my thesis in a few weeks I should be good to go. Never know with that old chestnut though lmao...
Click to expand...

Thanks! What do you charge for one? Just curious, I'm already on board. You can say over PM if you prefer.
 
N

NormalFish

Banned
Solid SOAP said:
So, I own SMB3 for GBA right now. I'd like to have access to the eReader levels. Is there any way I can patch the cart to do so?
Click to expand...

There's a rom hack to do it, and there's a .sav file to do it. The former can be found on the frontpage of romhacking.net However, you're either going to have to flash it yourself or get a flashcart, as there isn't a way to simply "patch" a GBA cartridge as far as I know.
 
P

Peagles

Member
Mega said:
Thanks! What do you charge for one? Just curious, I'm already on board. You can say over PM if you prefer.
Click to expand...

I wanna say the best part $200 USD but to be honest I'm having trouble remembering exactly! At the time it was more than the regular mod because the custom ribbon cable is a big cost factor, but that might not seem so extreme now. Also I take forever because it's just a spare time thing for me but I won't ask for a cent until I've completed your system. I don't generally make a habit of modding for anyone but myself because I don't want to send out any substandard work but this is kind of an exception because I managed to get that ribbon cable when nobody else could.

Anyway I'll sort my schooling out over the next few weeks and will be in touch. If you don't hear from me by the end of February send me a PM to jog my memory.
 
entremet

entremet

Member
NormalFish said:
There's a rom hack to do it, and there's a .sav file to do it. The former can be found on the frontpage of romhacking.net However, you're either going to have to flash it yourself or get a flashcart, as there isn't a way to simply "patch" a GBA cartridge as far as I know.
Click to expand...

Isn't there a way to print out the e-Reader cards and it works with the regular e-Reader?

You will still need two GBAs, link cable, GBA cart and e-reader lol.
 
P

PumpkinSpice

Banned
I'm not sure how much it gets into piracy, so I'll only recommend doing this if say you own the ereader cards or bought the Virutal Console release and just want a way to play it on real hardware. It's kind of like pirating DLC or Amiibos IMO.

You don't need to modify a rom at all. I'm not sure where this idea came from.

All you need is a save file with the levels loaded in. The one restriction is that there's a limit on the number of levels loaded in at once, so if you wanted to have all of them on an original cartridge you'd need to swap out save files -- you can't do all 38 at once. You can then run that on a flash cart or even use say a DS Lite with a homebrew application to load the save onto a real cartridge.
 
S

Solid SOAP

Member
NormalFish said:
There's a rom hack to do it, and there's a .sav file to do it. The former can be found on the frontpage of romhacking.net However, you're either going to have to flash it yourself or get a flashcart, as there isn't a way to simply "patch" a GBA cartridge as far as I know.
Click to expand...
Ok gotcha! I thought so, but I don't really wanna throw down money for a flash cart tbh. I'm content with the game as is.

It's a nice little remaster. Nothing special but it does a few little things to modernize it and set it apart from the original.
 
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