/vr/ - Retro Games

>>8226020
>Is it bad
Why would it be?

Why do you do this? This board used to be slow and comfy, and now it gets shat up with useless garbage threads.

>>8226020
As long as you purchase from a reputable vendor i think its totally fine. don't buy it off some guy used, don't buy it off some guy on craigslist who says he installd it, don't pay some dickhead on ebay who's selling new ones of the ones teh actual vendor makes.

>>8226024
>>8226046
Usually there's a stigma around buying pre-modded stuff and even though it's more expensive, doing some rough math for everything I need to mod an original gameboy, a modded one is only $20-30 dollars more than if I were to do it myself, which I'd pay since I don't trust myself that much in DIY. Although one site I have looked at that does sell pre-modded gba is god of gaming, which look pretty legit so that's why I was asking
>>8226026
I honestly have no idea what you're talking about. It's also not like this thread is going to be alive forever anyways

Why do zoomers love destroying old hardware so much? They don't even use them once they "mod" them. They just like endlessly shoving chinky components in them and posting photos of them on social media.

>>8226059
>I honestly have no idea what you're talking about.
Yes you do.

>>8226059
I truly don't think anybody actually cares other than maybe a few /v/ autists. I bought a backlit DMG gameboy at a convention a few years back and I don't regret it, I don't have much experience with soldering and I got to try the completed product first (as well as supporting someone local) so why would I?

>>8226020
I don't see the point. Just get one of the dime-a-dozen chink handhelds, GBA emulation is basically cycle perfect at this point. You don't need to mod real hardware.

>>8226069
Sorry anon for killing /vr/ with my single thread. If only I knew what would happen before posting and now because of my mistake, the board will be deleted. I guess we'll have nowhere else to go but reddit
>>8226068
I'm planning on using it to play sonic advance, minish cap, metroid, pokemon, and kirby because I prefer to play older games on the hardware they were made on
unless they have some cool mods on PC that make it worth replaying emulated

>>8226089
Never think getting a Chinese handheld is the best option. There's always something wrong with them, even if it's just a little thing like a bad d-pad it can make the entire thing useless. Would be better to just load the roms onto a hacked 3DS.

Backlit GBA plus flashcart is objectively the best you can get, preferably one of the flashcarts with the switch that can boot the system into GB/GBC mode. It's also the most expensive option but you get what you pay for.

>>8226090
The majority sort of GBA mods you're thinking of are just going to be ROM hacks that probably work on real hardware.

Whilst you can of course always play on your original cartridges, most people get flashcarts for their modded GBAs so they can run everything they want, including ROM hacks and homebrew.

ROM hacks aren't necessarily just silly original changes either, they can be minor fixes, translations, QoL improvements etc.

>>8226120
>The majority sort of GBA mods you're thinking of are just going to be ROM hacks that probably work on real hardware.
Careful, there's a surprisingly large amount of ROM hacks that were built to work in emulators but are unplayable on real hardware due to small differences in how it works versus the emulator. Most do work, just be prepared.

>>8226090
>unless they have some cool mods on PC that make it worth replaying emulated
Romhacking has come a huge long way since ZSNES. Roms working on real hardware is the standard and when they don't, it's brought up as an issue to actually fix about it.

>>8226090
>single thread
It's not a single thread though. You have done this continuously for years. Nobody here is as anonymous as they think they are.

>>8226138
If they're developed in recent years they're more likely to work on real hardware at least.

Like the other anon says ROM hacking has progressed significantly since the days of ZSNES, that actually went out of its way to do things that would be impossible on real hardware.

Actually there's this one guy Redhotsonic that does YouTube videos about Sonic ROM hacks and whether or not they work on real hardware.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8_f7y3fYLKM

It's no secret that ROM hackers are reliant on the accuracy of whatever emulator they use, which is why it's important to have emulators that do strive for accuracy.

>>8226090
>I prefer to play older games on the hardware they were made on
What's the point in playing on original hardware if you're going to put a modern screen in it? You might as well play it on an emu handheld.

>>8226141
based schizo

>>8226090
>I prefer to play older games on the hardware they were made on

the vast majority of GBA mods sold out there have no "original hardware" past the PCB. The cases are repros and the buttons are cheap shit from china. But hey, it looks all shiny when you post it on instagram look >>8226020

>>8226141
why do you come into perfectly on-topic threads and derail them with your tantrums? all you're doing is bumping threads you don't like. you have done this continuously for years.

>>8226198
Look how clearly mad this anon got over OP just doing something on his own.

>>8226120
>>8226138
I guess to be more specific, I was talking about older 3d games because 2d/pixel games are great even to this day. Although the problem is I have no idea where to get rom hacks from anyways, so there's that
>>8226174
With emu handhelds, they are cheaper, but they come at the cost of the build quality and the buttons just don't feel as good
>>8226198
Yeah if you get cheap parts from aliexpress or amazon, they're shit. That's why you get parts from reputable websites that specialize in modding, they tend to have much better quality

I'm fine with mods that don't mutilate the console.
I hate a lot of those gbc screen mods that require you to cut up the case, but I'm fine with the drop in screen mod.
It does annoy me when people don't go the extra mile for the special edition screen glass when they do it to a special edition case.

>>8226198
This is the type of person who buys Analogue products.
Take note, everyone.

>>8226224
Oh you mean like playing games with heavy 3D or scaling/rotation/mode 7 effects, using mGBA's hi-res rendering mode?
Yeah that would be a good way to play those kinds of games specificaly, they look really nice like that.

For ROM hacks though, a majority can be found on romhacking.net anyway, and some sites are dedicated to specific games such as Metroid Construction for anything Metroid.
There's been a surge of Zero Missions hacks as of recently, I played Metroid Scrolls Six and it was a pretty enjoyable hack altogether.

>>8226068
>destroying
Those old LCD panels aren't worth squat. If people wanna improve their displays then I think it's cool. Personally I emulate. Either option is better than having to sit near a lamp.

I prefer a backlit screen, but there really is something to be said for how relaxing it can be to play some Game Boy outside in direct sunlight.

>>8226020
Yes, for a fraction of the price you can get an RG351p which has objectively better inputs and a 2x integer scale with optional shaders.

>>8226224
>That's why you get parts from reputable websites that specialize in modding, they tend to have much better quality

Anyone who's done some console modding will tell you it is impossible to get buttons and d-pads as good as Nintendo's. A few may say "heh whatever it's almost as good" out of cope.

>>8226116
>Backlit GBA plus flashcart is objectively the best you can get, preferably one of the flashcarts with the switch that can boot the system into GB/GBC mode. It's also the most expensive option but you get what you pay for.
I had no idea they had these. That’s actually really cool. I’ve been thinking of putting an ips and rechargeable battery in my gba but using two flash carts seemed annoying and I refuse to emulate.

>>8227979
Eneloops should work just as good for a rechargeable battery

>>8226116
>preferably one of the flashcarts with the switch that can boot the system into GB/GBC mode
What?

>>8226046
Shut up with your reputable vendor shit. Is this vultar who says you need an engineering background to install a mod? The ips mod is so simply anybody could appropiately do it. There's just soldering 3 wires to a pad. You elitist niggers are cringe and gay. Also redesigning an open-sourced pcb isn't much of an engineering feat you fag.

>>8226198
I've figured a good way around this got an endgoal gba I want to buy. Rit-dyed or spray painted glacier gba deep purple. Dye all buttons + membrane black. And the new funnyplaying dsi screen kit (which is very similar to ags-101) sounds like an ultimate gameboy to me.

>>8227969
This.

I asked in a previous thread, but is there anywhere a guy can go to get a GBA for cheap?
I don't even care if it's broken (the screen anyway, unless GBA are easy to fix?), I just want a more ergonomic controller for my GBP, but all I can find are Junk consoles from Japan selling for 90 AUD thanks to COVID and forced-DHL, or working ones locally in Australia for 110 AUD.

>>8228487
Honestly, Ebay tends to be the best bet on cheap ones. Other that that, I don't know of a lot of other options in Australia for cheap gbas. You could try and see if there's any retro stores nearby and visiting them if you're up for that

>>8227969
Bits piece of cardboard under GBAs dpad fixes the mushy mess that it is

>>8228786
“But a” not bits ffs

>>8226116
>preferably one of the flashcarts with the switch that can boot the system into GB/GBC mode.
bro, that doesn't exist.

>>8228487
just pay up anon.
you aren't gonna get a better deal unless someone close to you sell it to you or get lucky on a flea market/garage sale.

>>8226020
depends on what you consider bad.
left to right. ags-001, ags-101, ips.
I personally prefer how the colors look in the gb micro screen, but I can enjoy my ips's too.
my preferred way to play these days has been with my ips modded regular gba. I'm having a blast going through dracula's castle on aria of sorrow.

Anyone know where to get decent replacement faceplates for the micro?

>>8228487
>I asked in a previous thread, but is there anywhere a guy can go to get a GBA for cheap?
a timemachine going back to 2019

>>8229329
retro game repair shop has them.

>>8226020
How ergonomic is the gba? I have two sp models but I never had the original.

>>8229458
Thanks

>>8229493
very.
I was in the same position as you for years and never found my sp uncomfortable.
but the og gba ergonomics are great and my preferred way to play now.

>>8229458
>railgun anime faceplate
lmao what

>>8226020
Depends, i got one for $50 because it had a "defective" screen, but so far i haven't noticed anything wrong with it, probably just went down in price because the v2 screen supposedly looks better and has adjustable brightness.

>>8229081
>IPS loses screen door effect
Trash.

Does anyone else like buying junk handhelds for cheap and then fixing/modding them?

>>8228507
Yeah eBay is awful.
A pair of two nonworking GBAs without the back covers popped up for 110 AUD on my bus ride home, and I was umming-and-uuhing about buying them because GST and shipping from the US (where the seller was) would make it 150 AUD, but anyway by the time I got home 30 minutes later to order them they'd been sniped.

>>8229456
>>8229052
>>8230824
Is that why there's none to buy? People are buying them all up to fix/mod?
God damn it. All I need is like, an SP with the top ripped off, I was wondering why it was so hard when there should be millions of the things out there.

>>8231080
>Is that why there's none to buy? People are buying them all up to fix/mod?
Some mainstream (for tech repair) channels popped up and rose to fame doing gameboy repairs. It’s ruined the market.

>>8231113
Ah so youtubers ruining everything again. That explains a lot. Hell people have probably got macros and scripts set up to buy them automatically when listed below a certain threshold then.

Which means I'll have to get lucky, or hit up garage sales.
God damn. Thanks for at least putting this into perspective, because I was getting a little frustrated looking so hard for something that should just be kinda lying around. Can't even imagine who's buying all these repaired and riced up units either.

>>8230309
yes, the native resolution of the screen makes games look better, but there is a DS screen mod that has this

>>8226020
I assembled gba sp/ips and I love it and use it as intended on trips. Just check the list to make sure your getting a good one, a lot of dodgy sellers like to sell the old version of a screen when a new fixed one comes out. You pay a bit extra for them to find a system and assembly but they gotta get paid too.
I did buy a screen for my gb pocket and then later I find out you can get one with an osd, there should be a way to update these cables. One issue is a screen that looked incredible last year can look a bit average if a new way better one comes out.

https://gameboy.github.io/wiki/backlightmods

>>8226174
what else is there psp or something like that, its the wrong screen size.

>>8226198
There are cheaper cases made with more brittle plastic but there are better ones that are pretty much identical to the original but in different colours.

The only place you would play an unmodded dmg is at home under a light which I do sometimes. I play my modded one during my break at work.

>>8231113
100million, where'd they all go, maybe exaggerated sales. Just buy a broken one then.

>>8231779
>Just buy a broken one then
Cheapest one on eBay for me costs 55 USD, and it's a piece of shit that would need repairs, cleaning, a new screen and battery contacts, plus a replacement back cover.

>>8226020
not really but you might be getting an ips kit thats like 3 generations old and worse than what you could buy yourself

>>8228487
from japan via a proxy service such a buyee

>>8226020
mod one yourself its fun

>>8227140
Actually, before the release of the sp, and even afterwards, color palettes were chosen to display properly on that unlit lcd, so if you want the real experience, especially for earlier GBA titles, than you need that trash screen. That’s why most GBA games have garish color palettes.

>>8231835
>custom anime girl panels
Lmfao wow, this is sad.

>ruining original hardware instead of just dropping a couple bucks on a Chinese handheld
Absolutely soulless and devastating

>>8232145
this. I don't even give a shit about collecting, but what's the point in getting original hardware if you alter it? I thought enjoying the original "as intended" experience was why people buy old crap.

>>8231850
I know, anon can't even see his many wives while he plays his games

>>8232192
>I thought enjoying the original "as intended" experience was why people buy old crap.
not anymore.
people that buy old crap to actually use it "upgrade" them because the old non-backlit screen is hard to stomach nowdays.
but there is also people that buy them to get green arrows on leddit.

the same can be said of RGB mods and CRT fags.

>>8232192
It's an original product with a slight upgrade, what's wrong with it...I'm sure you customise things every day without realising it

>>8232192
Some of us aren't very autistic and only want the game itself to run without emulation. Caring little for the physical aspects.

>>8232226
>the same can be said of RGB mods and CRT fags.
Not sure why you’re limping everyone in with crt owners. Some people just want to play without emulating on devices designed to take analog signals.

>>8232386
but why? game boy emulation is perfect.

>>8232458
it wasn't my intention.
I was aiming specifically at RGB mods paired with PVMemes.
the image may be a lot cleaner, but hardly the screen that was intended to be used.
it's the same as IPS modded gameboy's, way better screen technology but not the original screen.

>>8232523
some people is brainwashed to believe that emulation is evil or inaccurate, so they go and mod consoles because "og hardware master race!" or "muh accuracy!", but proceed to use IPS or PVMemes which are completely the opposite of og hardware or accurate to how those systems were intended to look like.

>>8232571
>pull up github or gitlab of any notable gameboy advance enulator
>Check issues
Report back chief, for I have shown that it is not logically true that emulation is accurate. Commence your coping elsewhere.

>>8231835
repulsive

>>8232571
holy esl, no wonder you need to emulate you ape.

Why the hell are there shills trying to advertise their shitty chinese handhelds? This is a thread about gameboys, not your $10 dollar garbage that probably breaks just by touching it. Go make your own thread if you want to talk about that crap

>>8232910
yes, look at my emulation machines.

>>8231835
Very cool bro. Bought and modded a GBA earlier in the year and it's amazing. Backlit, comfortable to use and runs on good old AA batteries. Adore it and use it daily, same as I have done with my other GBA since 01 or 02 when I got my first GBA.

>>8233165
>runs on good old AA batteries. Adore
kek how quick do you burn through them? i put a liion in mine because i didn't wanna have to be buying batteries, dont have them in my house at all anymore other than in tv remotes

>>8233236
not him, but I use rechargeable li-ion AA.
I have several pairs, so when a pair runs out I got another ready and can share them with the other gameboy's.

>>8233249
oh never thought of using those how long do they last roughly? pick some up at some point

>>8233254
dunno, but seem to last as long as alkaline AA.
the downside is that the led doesn't dim, so I have to guess how much charge is remaining.

>>8231797
oh wow a broken gbc costs a little over 50. I have a blue one packed away missing the battery case but works with no issue. just gotta find it.

Co worker bought a modded GBA with IPS from AliExpress like 3 years ago and it still works great despite him playing it rather frequently

I was just informed that this exists.
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005002869568097.html
it looks pretty cool.
I myself have a dsi and dstwo and the screen is great for gba. same size of og screen, no pixel scaling and visible screen door effect.
I'll grab it when I can and fish for a gba motherboard.

>>8232206
it's one of the most autistic things i've ever seen and i've been on the internet for 20 years
i'm getting extreme fremdschämen from it, it's truly pathetic.

>>8233236
I get around ten hours or so on AC Delco AA batteries. I'm a big proponent of electronics using disposable batteries, so it was a no brainer for me to mod the best version of the GBA instead of sticking with the two SPs I also have.

>>8234127
thats the screen I have in >>8231835
viewing angles are quite bad if that bothers you but it looks great straight on so i dont think its a problem. your screen will probably have flicker you gotta adjust the potentiometer thats under the sticker on the back. This video shows how to cut the shell properly: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=demhO6IgWKk

Check the guide on funnyplayings site too as you might need to remove a capacitor
https://funnyplaying.com/blogs/gameboy-advance-news/easy-tutorial-for-gba-ita-tft-kit

>>8234356
>I'm a big proponent of electronics using disposable batteries
kek why?

>>8226020
Why not buy a DS lite instead?

Just do it yourself. I'd never soldered anything in my life until this, it's a breeze unless you are a ham fisted ape

>>8234709
I didn't even know what soldering was last week, I'll probably just pay for one

>>8234709
HOLY SHIT TELL ME WHERE YOU BOUGHT THE SHELL/BUTTONS.

>>8234787
nows the time to learn anon grab apincecil they are cheap and work well https://pine64.com/product/pinecil-smart-mini-portable-soldering-iron/

Why are 3DS consoles going for cheaper than a GBA these days?

>>8235047
Same reason a sega saturn is going for more than an xbox360

>>8235128
Well, no, this is more like a PS2 selling for more than a PS4.

>>8234608
>viewing angles
I always wondered why it's even a point.
it's a fucking handheld that you hold straight on your face!
but how about flickering objects? does the f-zero map looks good? or does image retention happens like with every ips kit?

>>8235650
>I always wondered why it's even a point.
yeah i dont really get it either
>but how about flickering objects? does the f-zero map looks good? or does image retention happens like with every ips kit?
I dont know ive only played pokemon and I dont think it has any flickering objects

I just got this gameboy and were they always this small? I probably remember them being bigger cause i haven't had one since I was 10.

>>8236585
Whoops, forgot pic

>>8228462
This. No need to put this shit on a pedestal. It's fucking simple and it's not difficult to source parts for form or function and is as challenging as putting a model kit together: Don't rush it, and take your time.

>>8236591
Open it up and look at the board.

>>8235128
a Japanese Saturn? they've always been relatively inexpensive.