i recently picked up some secondhand copies of breath of fire and golden sun and i belatedly learned that the bof had a dead batt. quick save is fine (somehow) but a proper save is just not possible. your batt fix vids are the only ones that do not look half-assed. hopefully i will be able to get my bof batt up to snuff soon!
Hey, I have some fake Pokemon GBA games, that have no battery in it. When I started Pokemon Ruby, it said "The game can be played" (Which should say "The internal battery has run dry. The game can still be played. However, clock based events blablabla") Also I had a premade savefile called "TEST". I deleted all sava data via the shortcut and started my own game. I then saved right when I could, restarted the GBA and my own save was gone, but the "TEST" save still existed strangely. Now I soldered a battery onto the board, and I am really convinced I did this part good enough for the battery to work in the game. I then started the game again and it still said the strange message "The game can be played". I deleted the save data again, started my own save and saved. After rebooting the device, the save is still there and working (although the system makes a short "cracking" sound, while saving the game, idk if that's normal) The clock itself in the game doesn't seem to work, but I can save the game and play now. So my questions are: 1. Is this what we're trying to achieve ? Being able to save your game, but the clock events (berries, clock on the wall, etc.) wont work ? 2. If the answer to question 1 is a yes, then, is it possible to "activate" the real clock ? Or are bootlegs just not capable of doing so 3. Is the strange message, which I never saw in an legitimate cartridge in that form, a sign of a modded Pokemon-ROM ? I thought, may be they wanted to hide the fact that it can't save because of the battery. They just modded the text in the game to be just "The game can be played", instead of "dead battery blabla", because they weren't able to remove the message in the first place !? Thank you in advance. I am trying to get a working bootleg rom, to install a pokemon romhack on it. If this will work, it would be awesome. Bennvenns adapter is coming soon ^^
This 'mod' heavily relies on the bootleg game cart actually using the battery contacts in a way that actually powers the Sram. In my experience, most of the bootleg carts I've seen for GBA dont bother having any at all, and save the games to some other type of flash storage. the ROM on the cart is then patched to ignore the battery related functions, and thus the custom message that doesn't say the battery has run dry. So in short, Adding a battery won't help if the PCB isn't manufactured to actually use one. Additionally, you'll need to flash an un-altered ROM of the game to the cart before it will be able to detect the battery even if the cart can detect it.
I've seen these bootleg games around and wondered if they were functioning properly. After all, I know the Gen 3 pokemon games can still save after the battery runs dry, so I wasn't sure if they even saved properly or not, not to mention Fire Red/Leaf Green didn't use batteries. Or is this just to add a battery to a game after you write over the bootleg's data?
Can something like this be done with GBC fakes? I was recently gifted a fake copy of Pokemon crystal by a non retro savy family member. I'd like to find an interesting use for it as I have an authentic cart for the game already
the original pokemon ruby, emerald, etc have baterries not for saving but for the time events, because these bootlegs do not have batteries i'd imagine these events won't happen but by adding this battery, would they happen now?
Hey Kyle! I just want to ask you a question! Why do you install the battery exactly? The few I’ve bought before didn’t need a battery to save. Is it for the clock based events? If anyone knows the answer please let me know. Thank you!
Hi! Bootlegs don't have a clock chip or xtal, and the battery is to power the SRAM. The reason these carts don't ship with a battery is because these Pokemon ROMs are patched to save to an empty part of the same flash chip that the game is on. The battery is more-so for when you flash unpatched games to the cart. Check out my Joey Gen3 video for more details on flashing bootlegs. Cheers! 🙂
My pokemon cartridge has a SEC KOREA chip, and it saves even without the battery, however, when I reach the end of the game, the save disappears, could this be due to lack of storage space on the memory chip? Can adding a battery solve this problem?
While mine seems to save without any problems the in game clock doesn't work unless I'm actually playing it?? Sooooo in short words...does installing a battery allow me to access the time based events like growing a berry, Eevee day and night evolution or even the shop at top of department store??? If so I'm definitely doing it!! Many thanks!!!
I have a question. I bought some reproduction carts of all the GBA Pokémon games a while back, and while they save just fine, they don't have a working real time clock. For Fire Red and Leaf Green, this isn't really an issue, since those games don't seem to use an RTC anyways, but this is a major problem for Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald, since many in-game events rely on the RTC. Does the trick you show in the video fix that issue, or do I just have to suck it up and shell out hundreds of dollars for official cartridges?
super late reply but no it doesnt fix that, ive done this myself and all it does is prevent the 'dry battery' message. No rtc circuitry inside the bootleg so no clock unfortunately :(
So, I bought both metroid games for gba Bootlegs of course - didn't knew that Both have the same issue, they shortly freeze while saving and after a while, they freeze permanently while saving. Could I fix this problem, when following these steps?
Friend, I need urgent help please... I've been to several forums... So... I have a parallel cartridge of Pokémon Red (GB). and I have a ROM burner... I changed the game on the cartridge and... it doesn't save the game... these parallel cartridges don't have a battery... the game is saved on the chip itself. .. but when I change the rom it doesn't save... what could it be please help me
Hi, I have a Wario Land 4 bootleg cart and I change the battery, but it drains quicky. It only lasts 24 hours. I replace the battery twice. Do you known what It can be? Thanks
Does doing this, and flashing a rom on the cartridge, allow it to trade through a ds? I have a reproduction, but see no point in adding the battery if I can't trade up from gen 3 to 4
I got one of these pokemon ruby reproductions. Installed a battery properly, flashed some games. with and without Patches for SRAM save. So far nothing saves to SRAM. All games work but I get corrupted save file messages when I restart the gameboy Advance. Any idea what could be wrong?
Do u know of any cartridge that comes with RTC? I mean, Ruby Sapphire and Emerald have an internal real time clock RTC and thats why they need a battery so i want to know if those fake cartridges come with that clock or not
I have a reproduction copy of Wario Land 4 and it should save after finishing a level but it doesn’t it only saves when quitting the game any idea why that might be
Did they never make bootlegs using flash memory, the memory type like on most original carts on GBA? Because that one would save without needing the battery like the real ones (ignoring the clock part). They always are SRAM save modded ROMs?
For some protective reason, Pokemon Gen 4 Games are only designed to accept original Gen 3 GBA carts (for when you transfer via Pal Park). Repro/bootleg carts don't work.
there are bootlegs that can support save files without having the cartridge battery right? So what is the point of installing the battery to the bootleg if it already saves the game?
Does adding a save battery allow for RTC features, like berries or the day/night cycle, to work in these carts? If not, could you **hypothetically** flash an original ROM onto the cart so that RTC features will work?
Aliexpress might be a better source for repro games, you can grab a pokemon repro for like 2.50 - 3 shipped, these are usually flashable with a joey, and most of mine have pads for batteries, it also might be worth getting some cheap kapton tape for insulating the contacts since electrical tape tends to leave residue behind.
Just a quick question about my gba cartridges. So I have multiple real gba Pokemon games that I recently replaced the batteries for, but the new shell I installed them in doesn't have a screw. The cartridge is slightly loose but all I have to do is hold it together when I insert it into my gba. Is it okay to do this or will it damage the game?
Delta-38 In my opinion, I think it should be ok, as long as the PCB is held in place within the shell when inserted in the slot. Replacement screws that are the right size for these shells are next to impossible to find, but I'll probably post a video of some sort if/when I ever find a half-decent supply. Thanks for the question!
Somebody knows if this can make games like Repro Silver/Gold/Crystal be finished as intended? Those 3 cant be properly finished because after you beat Lance instead of appearing in front of your home, it just resets to wherever your last save was. (Even if in the credits the ¨SAVING - PLEASE DONT TURN OFF¨ Message appears) Any idea would be great, have finished all those 3 repros but can't continue with the game. (Stuck before Lance even after i defeated him, because that's where my last save was)
these fakes apparently use some memory hackery to make the save data store in the rom chip by storing some of the flash code in ram and writing the save to rom they may not even have the sram
Unfortunately both of my bootleg cart are the one that's missing the battery contacts like the one shown on 2:24. What are the extra steps required? Are you going to do a video on how to install a battery on those...or is it better for me to just buy a ruby repro?
voltazkai For now, buy a few Ruby repros I think. Would you be willing to send me one of your carts for me to use in a future video? There has been some interest from a few people on the more difficult cart. Just let me know!
@@KyleAwsm I need to know this as well, i planned on making myself like 20 of these, but on test 1 i find i can't save? Open up all 20 of my Rubys and see zero of them are able to add batteries. I can't afford more rubys and i need to know how to modify the board. This is a MUST DO video! :)
@@deadcricket7823 Got it - I think it's decided then! 🙂 Lots of people have been asking about this in the past few days. I'll throw something together for y'all! 😎
Is there any major differences between the GBA and the original Gameboy cartridges or will this pretty much work for them too? Does this change your game data that's already saved? (Side question: How does it save without a battery if that's what saves it?)
They do, but the save data is stored on the same flash chip as the game ROM itself - It can only do that by way of a specially patched game ROM file. These tutorials are meant to show how you can make the cartridges work with conventional ROM's. 🙂 Thanks for watching!
Please answer! If I already played in a bootleg GBA cart, and then y put the battery, my game file gets deleted? I have a Pokémon Emerald bootleg game and I don't want to lose it :'(
@Christian please watch my 40-minute BennVenn Joey tutorial video on making custom cartridges. In it, I explain how these bootlegs store their save info and how save types work. Bootlegs and the genuine GBA Pokemon game cartridges are different than most other games with batteries.
Also, in the meantime I'll see what I can dig up to help you. I have some tips on how to do it. It just requires a lot of finesse and a delicate touch....
@@KyleAwsm Thanks! I'd definitely appreciate you pointing me in the right direction of the tips. I'm very interested to see the video too so I'll make sure to keep an eye out for it!
I got Final Fantasy Adventure and had to flash it to English but the battery had a little plastic boot you could just insert it in. It only saves for a while though because after a while it would be dead. I have to use it on my Retron 5 now to have a save and can't play portable. I am getting the new Gba Everdrive mini. So I can play portable again on my GBA SP.
Javier SP It really depends on the cart PCB. There are maaaaany different styles of these bootleg carts. Do you have a particular one that you have questions about?
I installed a battery in my pokemon ruby cart lastnight it saved and I was able to start a new game and play. This morning I played a little and now it won't save :(
Does doing this make it to were you can trade between gen3 and gen4? Does anyone know or have tried to see if this is possible? It would be nice to see a video.
I suggest you use kapton instead of electrical tape, because electrical tape will disintegrate in a sticky mess after many years making battery replacement a hassle.
I'm trying to do this to a GBC Pokemon crystal version cart. It does have FRAM save already but the RTC doesn't work. It already has a spot for a battery but the trace to the positive runs to an unpopulated SMD pad. I already know what goes there because it's labeled. My problem is I know nothing about this cart as I literally just got it today. I can't find anyone that has attempted this beside KyleAwsm. So I have no idea if adding these components and battery will make it work or just fry something.
It sounds like you bought either a Chinese bootleg Pokemon Crystal cart, or a used genuine cart that someone used for parts before you got to it. I've already tried some things on some bootleg Crystal carts and they're pretty stubborn. Some are even unflashable. If you're looking for a cheap way to play Pokemon Crystal or a ROM hack of it on genuine hardware, AND with operational RTC, check out the BennVenn MBC3000 flash cartridge on our store: highscoretech.myshopify.com/products/bennvenn-mbc3000-rtc-reflashable-gameboy-cartridge-v4 Also, for a few extra dollars, we can flash a compatible ROM that you provide. Hope this helps, and thanks for watching! 🙂👍🏻
@KyleAwsm Yup its 100% a china bootleg. I thought the gba cart he was working on in this video was too. I actually already have a couple MBC3000's and I have the Joey Jr too. I just like tinkering and I got this china cart for free. Started playing it and decided I wanted the RTC to work. I want you guys to make a GBC cart that has a tilt sensor and rumble and supports all the special carts like the Ez Flash definitive edition.
@@KyleAwsm So I'm about to order 3 more MBC3K v4's and wanted to know if you have a discount code for BennVenn's Shop. Also I'm in USA so shipping is not so great.
Hi, since there is no RTC module on these bootlegs, it only restores saving, and for newly flashed games. The games these carts ship with are patched to save data elsewhere and without a battery.
@@KyleAwsm I bought a preowned bootleg on the 2nd hand shop, with Ruby/Sapphire together. I tried to replace the battery and they now save the game, but always with the corrupted previous message. But there isn't really a way to restore or add the RTC module?
Yeah you can always get the battery 2Pcs CR1620 Battery 2 Soldering Pins 3V Coin Cell For Motherboard Calculator 13 from China for 3.01 cent and the tabbed has small pins that goes through the pcb and it fits perfectly you might have to bend the tabs because the pins are still close together but I have done this one for minish cap and it works great plus It comes with 2 batteries so the other one is going on my bootleg copy of legend of Zelda link to the past
So I have a bootleg cartridge. Its called "super Mario advance 4" but it also says "super Mario Bros 3" on the cartridge. The game has the option to play either "mario bros" or "super Mario Bros 3" the cartridge does have a save battery, but I don't think it's properly installed. every time I power on the game, I'm greeted with it telling me all the save data has been corrupted. It then loads up the choice of game. super Mario Bros, works absolutely fine, and despite the fact that it told me all the data was corrupted, saves my high score! Super Mario Bros 3 however, will take you through the opening scene, and then allows you to access the map. where the screen jiggles up and down infinitely, without any of the controls doing anything. is this some programming error? somthing I can fix? If anybody reading this has any idea, any help is appreciated. thanks in 'advance' 😅
recently bought Fire Emblem and Fire Emblem the Sacred Stones on ebay (it was advertised as being a legitimate cart) and neither of them would save so i'll have to try this out
Just a minor FYI, when you're soldering you're way better off heating the pads first and then touching the solder to them rather than putting cold solder on the pads and touching the iron to both at the same time. That's why your joints are just balls and the solder doesn't seem to be flowing that well.
Try running a continuity check between either of the pads to the cart slot finger/pin furthest to the right, which is ground (GND). If you get a beep, that one is your negative battery pad. Just keep in mind that this still may not work for you even with a battery installed correctly, due to other potential PCB differences.
Do you know a way to add a save battery to this type of cart? imgur.com/a/itbYBed It looks like this ROM tries to generate the save file itself for the emulator, so it overwrites whatever .sav file you give it. The save data is there but it isn't a standard save file so it appears to have its own file system. It spreads the save out over different areas as the flash used in these carts are good for around 1000 writes before failure so by spreading it over a huge area, it increases it to perhaps a million writes. So it appears the easiest method would be to just add a battery but it seems I don't have a firm enough grasp on how to do it myself. So if anybody could point me in the right direction, I would appreciate it. Here are the rom files to the game in case somebody wants to try taking a crack at extracting and adding a custom save file back onto this rom type. The save is somehow encoded into the rom since when flashing the game to another bootleg it shows the same save that was on the original dump. I was hoping to find a way to get a custom save back onto the rom itself and flash it back or add a battery to the cart itself and store the save on it. 1st Link: www.mediafire.com/file/wsilscah63ptez2/XYSeries.GBA/file?fbclid=IwAR0ws8fTCtlDzS9rRtJVJYIzSAHH1jeWmPbMy9KCSkSbfw7OASnddfnPtk0 2nd Link: www.mediafire.com/file/0c3fz793z0aehfg/XySeries2.GBA/file?fbclid=IwAR0JCAA7d0ukQLScnvHYKZqcZ_XK9f7k-ElsdgUkBInsHH_eI5-EUgVmF7U (2nd link has another caught pokemon to show difference in HxD analysis)
Hey man, quick question for you. When you use a bootleg GBA game, does it draw too much power from the gba that causes the GBA to shut down? I've looked online to find out but I haven't found anything useful. Thanks, Danny T
Exeat Unfortunately for these carts, they do not have an RTC module on them, so no. But some on-cart emulator ROMs do. I have a video coming out about this topic soon. 🙂 Thanks for watching!
Cool.... my 32 year old brothers birthday is coming up.... i will get him the whole pokemonz set i think.. and have some fun modding them.. There is 4 games right?
My cart comes with bridges that are labeled “N” and “Y” and from what I read, it means if a battery is present. What do you think? I am going to be attempting this with a 5 dollar cart from eBay. I have everything except the battery and flux but they are on the way
Most of the 1616 batteries I bought from eBay / Amazon only held my save for a month at best so I recommend buying a known good brand battery and taping the battery to the contacts ... It's not as pretty but I've done this to my Pokemon gold cart in 2012 I believe and it still works fantastic and my save file is still on it
PixCub Thanks for watching and for your note. I know people dispute my recommendation of getting batteries on Amazon, but I've had very good experiences with them. However, I ONLY follow the ratings for the seller, never the price. If there's a choice between a 3-star rated listing and a 5-star one, even if the latter is a few bucks more I still pick it (given other factors too). And regarding the taping of the battery, to each their own I guess. But that is not at all what I recommend, hence my guide. You could likely damage the cart if the contacts slip somehow. Tape only works reliably for so long anyways. And these bootlegs (if you watched the video) don't have the same space or raised soldering points inside. I advise against taping batteries. Just putting this out there is case anyone comes along and reads this. TAPE = BAD! Thanks again for watching. 🙂
i recently picked up some secondhand copies of breath of fire and golden sun and i belatedly learned that the bof had a dead batt. quick save is fine (somehow) but a proper save is just not possible. your batt fix vids are the only ones that do not look half-assed. hopefully i will be able to get my bof batt up to snuff soon!
Hey,
I have some fake Pokemon GBA games, that have no battery in it.
When I started Pokemon Ruby, it said "The game can be played"
(Which should say "The internal battery has run dry. The game can still be played. However, clock based events blablabla")
Also I had a premade savefile called "TEST". I deleted all sava data via the shortcut and started my own game. I then saved right when I could, restarted the GBA and my own save was gone, but the "TEST" save still existed strangely.
Now I soldered a battery onto the board, and I am really convinced I did this part good enough for the battery to work in the game.
I then started the game again and it still said the strange message "The game can be played". I deleted the save data again, started my own save and saved. After rebooting the device, the save is still there and working (although the system makes a short "cracking" sound, while saving the game, idk if that's normal)
The clock itself in the game doesn't seem to work, but I can save the game and play now.
So my questions are:
1. Is this what we're trying to achieve ? Being able to save your game, but the clock events (berries, clock on the wall, etc.) wont work ?
2. If the answer to question 1 is a yes, then, is it possible to "activate" the real clock ? Or are bootlegs just not capable of doing so
3. Is the strange message, which I never saw in an legitimate cartridge in that form, a sign of a modded Pokemon-ROM ? I thought, may be they wanted to hide the fact that it can't save because of the battery. They just modded the text in the game to be just "The game can be played", instead of "dead battery blabla", because they weren't able to remove the message in the first place !?
Thank you in advance.
I am trying to get a working bootleg rom, to install a pokemon romhack on it. If this will work, it would be awesome. Bennvenns adapter is coming soon ^^
This 'mod' heavily relies on the bootleg game cart actually using the battery contacts in a way that actually powers the Sram. In my experience, most of the bootleg carts I've seen for GBA dont bother having any at all, and save the games to some other type of flash storage. the ROM on the cart is then patched to ignore the battery related functions, and thus the custom message that doesn't say the battery has run dry.
So in short, Adding a battery won't help if the PCB isn't manufactured to actually use one. Additionally, you'll need to flash an un-altered ROM of the game to the cart before it will be able to detect the battery even if the cart can detect it.
I have a copy of Emerald without any battery for over a year and time events still working Just fine
@@ChubacaSlayerhow though?
Dude just put the battery there but didnt test it out. Bravo 👏👏👏
I dont get it. why should we add, batteries to the fake gameboy games? They dont lose any data without them, right?
Nice job on this video, really professional-looking. I had no idea this was possible!
So if i do this will i be able to technically turn a bootleg into genuine by being able to restore a real sav file?
I've seen these bootleg games around and wondered if they were functioning properly. After all, I know the Gen 3 pokemon games can still save after the battery runs dry, so I wasn't sure if they even saved properly or not, not to mention Fire Red/Leaf Green didn't use batteries. Or is this just to add a battery to a game after you write over the bootleg's data?
Does it work as its own after installing the battery?
or do you HAVE to reprogram it?/
Acturally the battery on the 3rd gen Pokemon games is only used to track the real time clock
Yup, I've been meaning to release a follow-up video to correct this. 👍🏻
Yes it is finally here
Can something like this be done with GBC fakes? I was recently gifted a fake copy of Pokemon crystal by a non retro savy family member. I'd like to find an interesting use for it as I have an authentic cart for the game already
the original pokemon ruby, emerald, etc have baterries not for saving but for the time events, because these bootlegs do not have batteries i'd imagine these events won't happen but by adding this battery, would they happen now?
Hey Kyle, think you could do one for GBC? Many thanks
Hey Kyle! I just want to ask you a question!
Why do you install the battery exactly? The few I’ve bought before didn’t need a battery to save. Is it for the clock based events?
If anyone knows the answer please let me know. Thank you!
Hi! Bootlegs don't have a clock chip or xtal, and the battery is to power the SRAM. The reason these carts don't ship with a battery is because these Pokemon ROMs are patched to save to an empty part of the same flash chip that the game is on. The battery is more-so for when you flash unpatched games to the cart. Check out my Joey Gen3 video for more details on flashing bootlegs. Cheers! 🙂
@@KyleAwsm does adding the battery make the save format be where I can transfer gen 3 pokemon to the gen 4 ds games?
Did you find out if that worked?
Will this enable real time clock?
My pokemon cartridge has a SEC KOREA chip, and it saves even without the battery, however, when I reach the end of the game, the save disappears, could this be due to lack of storage space on the memory chip? Can adding a battery solve this problem?
While mine seems to save without any problems the in game clock doesn't work unless I'm actually playing it?? Sooooo in short words...does installing a battery allow me to access the time based events like growing a berry, Eevee day and night evolution or even the shop at top of department store??? If so I'm definitely doing it!!
Many thanks!!!
Love this vídeos because i learn a lot from them. N i love to do this little jobs on games
I have a question. I bought some reproduction carts of all the GBA Pokémon games a while back, and while they save just fine, they don't have a working real time clock. For Fire Red and Leaf Green, this isn't really an issue, since those games don't seem to use an RTC anyways, but this is a major problem for Ruby, Sapphire, and Emerald, since many in-game events rely on the RTC. Does the trick you show in the video fix that issue, or do I just have to suck it up and shell out hundreds of dollars for official cartridges?
super late reply but no it doesnt fix that, ive done this myself and all it does is prevent the 'dry battery' message. No rtc circuitry inside the bootleg so no clock unfortunately :(
So, I bought both metroid games for gba
Bootlegs of course - didn't knew that
Both have the same issue, they shortly freeze while saving and after a while, they freeze permanently while saving.
Could I fix this problem, when following these steps?
Friend, I need urgent help please... I've been to several forums...
So... I have a parallel cartridge of Pokémon Red (GB). and I have a ROM burner... I changed the game on the cartridge and... it doesn't save the game... these parallel cartridges don't have a battery... the game is saved on the chip itself. .. but when I change the rom it doesn't save... what could it be please help me
Did you fix it?
Hi, I have a Wario Land 4 bootleg cart and I change the battery, but it drains quicky. It only lasts 24 hours. I replace the battery twice. Do you known what It can be? Thanks
Does doing this, and flashing a rom on the cartridge, allow it to trade through a ds? I have a reproduction, but see no point in adding the battery if I can't trade up from gen 3 to 4
I got one of these pokemon ruby reproductions. Installed a battery properly, flashed some games. with and without Patches for SRAM save. So far nothing saves to SRAM. All games work but I get corrupted save file messages when I restart the gameboy Advance. Any idea what could be wrong?
Great video, very informative
Killa Mods Thanks, man! 😎
correct me if i'm wrong but i thought leaf green and fire red did not use batteries to save ? if that's the case would this even work for those ?
How can be this done in a pokemon crystal fake, I mean not original, it didn’t came with battery installed
Do u know of any cartridge that comes with RTC? I mean, Ruby Sapphire and Emerald have an internal real time clock RTC and thats why they need a battery so i want to know if those fake cartridges come with that clock or not
With this tutorial is possible add every rom in the bootlegs? And especially, then they will works with Pal Park/Pokémon BOX?
I have a reproduction copy of Wario Land 4 and it should save after finishing a level but it doesn’t it only saves when quitting the game any idea why that might be
Did they never make bootlegs using flash memory, the memory type like on most original carts on GBA? Because that one would save without needing the battery like the real ones (ignoring the clock part). They always are SRAM save modded ROMs?
I have a knock off Ruby cart with no battery and it has no problems saving and loading, so they 100% exist now if they didn't 5 years ago
I already gave up when i saw the soldering iron and the flux
For some protective reason, Pokemon Gen 4 Games are only designed to accept original Gen 3 GBA carts (for when you transfer via Pal Park).
Repro/bootleg carts don't work.
there are bootlegs that can support save files without having the cartridge battery right? So what is the point of installing the battery to the bootleg if it already saves the game?
If I added a battery to a fake FireRed cartridge I have, would I then be able to back up my save and restore it to a legitimate cartridge?
Does adding a save battery allow for RTC features, like berries or the day/night cycle, to work in these carts?
If not, could you **hypothetically** flash an original ROM onto the cart so that RTC features will work?
yes to the second question
But does it actually work? You could flash the original ROM but these boards are still missing the RTC module and timing crystal, no?
Can you also do the same with the game boy games and game boy color as well ?
Some legit games use these too, such as Boktai and Boktai 2. They are primarily to keep the in-game clock running.
Do you know if those pokemon gold/silver copies can be fixed so the clock actually works?
Aliexpress might be a better source for repro games, you can grab a pokemon repro for like 2.50 - 3 shipped, these are usually flashable with a joey, and most of mine have pads for batteries, it also might be worth getting some cheap kapton tape for insulating the contacts since electrical tape tends to leave residue behind.
i own a final fantasy down of sarrow fake ,can i do this and how many years can work , i hear tha fake cartridges drain in few time the batteries
Just a quick question about my gba cartridges. So I have multiple real gba Pokemon games that I recently replaced the batteries for, but the new shell I installed them in doesn't have a screw. The cartridge is slightly loose but all I have to do is hold it together when I insert it into my gba. Is it okay to do this or will it damage the game?
Delta-38 In my opinion, I think it should be ok, as long as the PCB is held in place within the shell when inserted in the slot. Replacement screws that are the right size for these shells are next to impossible to find, but I'll probably post a video of some sort if/when I ever find a half-decent supply. Thanks for the question!
It's possible to find a gba cartridge that enable using Pal Park on Pokémon?
Somebody knows if this can make games like Repro Silver/Gold/Crystal be finished as intended? Those 3 cant be properly finished because after you beat Lance instead of appearing in front of your home, it just resets to wherever your last save was. (Even if in the credits the ¨SAVING - PLEASE DONT TURN OFF¨ Message appears)
Any idea would be great, have finished all those 3 repros but can't continue with the game. (Stuck before Lance even after i defeated him, because that's where my last save was)
How would you go about adding a save battery to a gb/gbc bootleg?
Hi?. Can i see what happen to the game. after u installed the battery?. Thank you
It will allow gba pokemon games to trade with diamond and perl?
these fakes apparently use some memory hackery to make the save data store in the rom chip by storing some of the flash code in ram and writing the save to rom
they may not even have the sram
Could this mean that i can migrate my pokemon from bootleg cartridge to pokemon ds games?
Unfortunately both of my bootleg cart are the one that's missing the battery contacts like the one shown on 2:24. What are the extra steps required? Are you going to do a video on how to install a battery on those...or is it better for me to just buy a ruby repro?
voltazkai For now, buy a few Ruby repros I think. Would you be willing to send me one of your carts for me to use in a future video? There has been some interest from a few people on the more difficult cart. Just let me know!
@@KyleAwsm Sure I can do that. What's the best way to get in touch with you to arrange this?
@@KyleAwsm I need to know this as well, i planned on making myself like 20 of these, but on test 1 i find i can't save? Open up all 20 of my Rubys and see zero of them are able to add batteries. I can't afford more rubys and i need to know how to modify the board. This is a MUST DO video! :)
@@voltazkai Can you find my email address on my "About" page and drop me a line? We can discuss business that way. :) Thanks a bunch!
@@deadcricket7823 Got it - I think it's decided then! 🙂 Lots of people have been asking about this in the past few days. I'll throw something together for y'all! 😎
Well, this was straightforward and informal.
Bunny Blanc "Informal"...?
@@KyleAwsm yes, very understandable.
@@KyleAwsm My best guess is that Bunny Blanc meant "informational", not "informal"...
Is there any major differences between the GBA and the original Gameboy cartridges or will this pretty much work for them too?
Does this change your game data that's already saved? (Side question: How does it save without a battery if that's what saves it?)
This is for reprogramming your own game onto a repro cart
Can I transfer bootleg gen 3 pokemon to gen 4 via Pal park if I add the battery. Please help!
So do the bootleg carts just not have the capability to save? I have a really weird one with a battery gap but no battery but it still saves
They do, but the save data is stored on the same flash chip as the game ROM itself - It can only do that by way of a specially patched game ROM file. These tutorials are meant to show how you can make the cartridges work with conventional ROM's. 🙂 Thanks for watching!
I have cartmod rubis but not like you... Can u help me for battery? Pls
Any idea if the bootleg cartridges can migrate to gen3 after the battery install??
I'm wondering the same
@@belairmp3130se puede?
Please answer!
If I already played in a bootleg GBA cart, and then y put the battery, my game file gets deleted?
I have a Pokémon Emerald bootleg game and I don't want to lose it :'(
They will stay, saves in Emerald don't need battery
@Christian please watch my 40-minute BennVenn Joey tutorial video on making custom cartridges. In it, I explain how these bootlegs store their save info and how save types work. Bootlegs and the genuine GBA Pokemon game cartridges are different than most other games with batteries.
Also watch this one as well: ua-cam.com/video/1piXd3ffwug/v-deo.html
@@KyleAwsm Thanks!!
How do you put batteries in the carts of the ones that are "significantly harder"? I have a few and still wanted to try but can find no guide.
Deadshot There's been enough interest that I think I am going to put a video together on it. Care to wait a few weeks while I sort one out?
Also, in the meantime I'll see what I can dig up to help you. I have some tips on how to do it. It just requires a lot of finesse and a delicate touch....
@@KyleAwsm Thanks! I'd definitely appreciate you pointing me in the right direction of the tips. I'm very interested to see the video too so I'll make sure to keep an eye out for it!
So GBA games only use CR1616 battery, including the bootleg ones?
They use every 3V battery
I got Final Fantasy Adventure and had to flash it to English but the battery had a little plastic boot you could just insert it in. It only saves for a while though because after a while it would be dead. I have to use it on my Retron 5 now to have a save and can't play portable. I am getting the new Gba Everdrive mini. So I can play portable again on my GBA SP.
How would this work for an original game boy game?
So if I added a battery to my repro could it play with other games via link cable?
Is the inside of bootleg Game Boy / Game Boy Color games pretty much the same thereby the same process applies?
Javier SP It really depends on the cart PCB. There are maaaaany different styles of these bootleg carts. Do you have a particular one that you have questions about?
I installed a battery in my pokemon ruby cart lastnight it saved and I was able to start a new game and play. This morning I played a little and now it won't save :(
Okay it's working now. Just took out the cart and reinserted it seems to be working now.
If only Chinese producers put more effort on this repros... although probably it would cost more if they add batteries.
Does doing this make it to were you can trade between gen3 and gen4? Does anyone know or have tried to see if this is possible? It would be nice to see a video.
Did you find the answer? I have been wondering this as well
I suggest you use kapton instead of electrical tape, because electrical tape will disintegrate in a sticky mess after many years making battery replacement a hassle.
I'm trying to do this to a GBC Pokemon crystal version cart. It does have FRAM save already but the RTC doesn't work. It already has a spot for a battery but the trace to the positive runs to an unpopulated SMD pad. I already know what goes there because it's labeled. My problem is I know nothing about this cart as I literally just got it today. I can't find anyone that has attempted this beside KyleAwsm. So I have no idea if adding these components and battery will make it work or just fry something.
It sounds like you bought either a Chinese bootleg Pokemon Crystal cart, or a used genuine cart that someone used for parts before you got to it. I've already tried some things on some bootleg Crystal carts and they're pretty stubborn. Some are even unflashable.
If you're looking for a cheap way to play Pokemon Crystal or a ROM hack of it on genuine hardware, AND with operational RTC, check out the BennVenn MBC3000 flash cartridge on our store:
highscoretech.myshopify.com/products/bennvenn-mbc3000-rtc-reflashable-gameboy-cartridge-v4
Also, for a few extra dollars, we can flash a compatible ROM that you provide. Hope this helps, and thanks for watching! 🙂👍🏻
@KyleAwsm Yup its 100% a china bootleg. I thought the gba cart he was working on in this video was too. I actually already have a couple MBC3000's and I have the Joey Jr too. I just like tinkering and I got this china cart for free. Started playing it and decided I wanted the RTC to work. I want you guys to make a GBC cart that has a tilt sensor and rumble and supports all the special carts like the Ez Flash definitive edition.
@@KyleAwsm So I'm about to order 3 more MBC3K v4's and wanted to know if you have a discount code for BennVenn's Shop. Also I'm in USA so shipping is not so great.
Hello. Doing this restores also the RTC or only the saving?
Hi, since there is no RTC module on these bootlegs, it only restores saving, and for newly flashed games. The games these carts ship with are patched to save data elsewhere and without a battery.
@@KyleAwsm I bought a preowned bootleg on the 2nd hand shop, with Ruby/Sapphire together. I tried to replace the battery and they now save the game, but always with the corrupted previous message.
But there isn't really a way to restore or add the RTC module?
Yeah you can always get the battery 2Pcs CR1620 Battery 2 Soldering Pins 3V Coin Cell For Motherboard Calculator 13 from China for 3.01 cent and the tabbed has small pins that goes through the pcb and it fits perfectly you might have to bend the tabs because the pins are still close together but I have done this one for minish cap and it works great plus It comes with 2 batteries so the other one is going on my bootleg copy of legend of Zelda link to the past
Yeah and it is small enough to fit under the top shell of the cartridge and it is made for calculators
I have a original sapphire gba game with a dead battery. It saves just fine, the battery is only needed for the clock!
Can you make a save battery tutorial for the 4400 bootleg PCB Cart PLEASE!
So by doing this I would be able to dump custom save files to my fake Emerald cart?
Emerald doesn't need batteries for saves
How long does the battery last on a bootleg cart?
So I have a bootleg cartridge. Its called "super Mario advance 4" but it also says "super Mario Bros 3" on the cartridge. The game has the option to play either "mario bros" or "super Mario Bros 3" the cartridge does have a save battery, but I don't think it's properly installed. every time I power on the game, I'm greeted with it telling me all the save data has been corrupted. It then loads up the choice of game. super Mario Bros, works absolutely fine, and despite the fact that it told me all the data was corrupted, saves my high score! Super Mario Bros 3 however, will take you through the opening scene, and then allows you to access the map. where the screen jiggles up and down infinitely, without any of the controls doing anything. is this some programming error? somthing I can fix? If anybody reading this has any idea, any help is appreciated. thanks in 'advance' 😅
recently bought Fire Emblem and Fire Emblem the Sacred Stones on ebay (it was advertised as being a legitimate cart) and neither of them would save so i'll have to try this out
Keep in mind that these batteries do run out, I've had original games losing their saves because of this.
Does this work with bootleg GB/GBC carts?
Reason why I would do this is so when I and if I make my own game to make it where you can save the game
I did this exact tutorial and my game still will not save after i restart the game. Any reasons why?
Did you follow the steps to flash a new SRAM compatible game ROM to the cart in my full Joey tutorial?
ua-cam.com/video/-paDzGnXM28/v-deo.html
How much memory do these reproduction carts have?
Could you do more of these videos?
The bootleg can can still save without the battery!👍
Yes, but only if the game ROM file is specifically patched to do so, like the ones that come on the bootleg carts. Thanks for watching!
KyleAwsm,Ok thank you👍
KyleAwsm,you hearted my comment and I got happy so I liked the video and subscribed,thank u!!👍
Thanks man! I love GTA 4 and play it all the time - Big fan of yours too. 😎👍🏻 Let's go bowling sometime, cousin!
KyleAwsm 😂😂 sure!!
i hope one day you will have a tutorial on bootleg cartridges that have a code of AGB-E05-02H or ABG-E05-03H
Wait so can you essentially make these bootlegs save past the elite four and have a functioning rtc?
Delta-38 Unfortunately, these bootleg carts don't have an RTC chip on them, so that's a no. 😕
@@KyleAwsm would they work with pal park?
@@marbleq9586 No. btw if this is the same person that hasn’t paid their rent. Hope you’re doing well out there. I ran into a marble Q on OfferUp.
Can they save without the battery
Just a minor FYI, when you're soldering you're way better off heating the pads first and then touching the solder to them rather than putting cold solder on the pads and touching the iron to both at the same time. That's why your joints are just balls and the solder doesn't seem to be flowing that well.
This looks great, too bad the design in mine while they have the points they're not labeled + or - so it worries me I might mess it up.
Any ideas?
Try running a continuity check between either of the pads to the cart slot finger/pin furthest to the right, which is ground (GND). If you get a beep, that one is your negative battery pad. Just keep in mind that this still may not work for you even with a battery installed correctly, due to other potential PCB differences.
@@KyleAwsm Thanks for the heads up, I have a video of the PBC variation shown in my recent video.
ua-cam.com/video/VBlbzikfcXw/v-deo.html
@@KyleAwsm My multimeter doesn't beep but it did give me continuity, the bottom contact is the negative and the top one is the positive.
bro it works in emerald?
99% sometimes fries some of these chips. Use light amounts
Do you know a way to add a save battery to this type of cart? imgur.com/a/itbYBed It looks like this ROM tries to generate the save file itself for the emulator, so it overwrites whatever .sav file you give it. The save data is there but it isn't a standard save file so it appears to have its own file system. It spreads the save out over different areas as the flash used in these carts are good for around 1000 writes before failure so by spreading it over a huge area, it increases it to perhaps a million writes. So it appears the easiest method would be to just add a battery but it seems I don't have a firm enough grasp on how to do it myself. So if anybody could point me in the right direction, I would appreciate it.
Here are the rom files to the game in case somebody wants to try taking a crack at extracting and adding a custom save file back onto this rom type. The save is somehow encoded into the rom since when flashing the game to another bootleg it shows the same save that was on the original dump. I was hoping to find a way to get a custom save back onto the rom itself and flash it back or add a battery to the cart itself and store the save on it.
1st Link: www.mediafire.com/file/wsilscah63ptez2/XYSeries.GBA/file?fbclid=IwAR0ws8fTCtlDzS9rRtJVJYIzSAHH1jeWmPbMy9KCSkSbfw7OASnddfnPtk0
2nd Link: www.mediafire.com/file/0c3fz793z0aehfg/XySeries2.GBA/file?fbclid=IwAR0JCAA7d0ukQLScnvHYKZqcZ_XK9f7k-ElsdgUkBInsHH_eI5-EUgVmF7U (2nd link has another caught pokemon to show difference in HxD analysis)
Hey man, quick question for you. When you use a bootleg GBA game, does it draw too much power from the gba that causes the GBA to shut down? I've looked online to find out but I haven't found anything useful.
Thanks,
Danny T
should probably use 90% alcohol dont you think?
Create video do you know if you can also use the battery as a real time clock
Exeat Unfortunately for these carts, they do not have an RTC module on them, so no. But some on-cart emulator ROMs do. I have a video coming out about this topic soon. 🙂 Thanks for watching!
Cool.... my 32 year old brothers birthday is coming up.... i will get him the whole pokemonz set i think.. and have some fun modding them..
There is 4 games right?
5 games
My cart comes with bridges that are labeled “N” and “Y” and from what I read, it means if a battery is present. What do you think? I am going to be attempting this with a 5 dollar cart from eBay. I have everything except the battery and flux but they are on the way
Anyone got a clue how to do this on the 02 variation
please tutorial how to make multiROM cart
the istructions are dumb, it totals just buying 2 original pokemon games
Most of the 1616 batteries I bought from eBay / Amazon only held my save for a month at best so I recommend buying a known good brand battery and taping the battery to the contacts ... It's not as pretty but I've done this to my Pokemon gold cart in 2012 I believe and it still works fantastic and my save file is still on it
PixCub Thanks for watching and for your note. I know people dispute my recommendation of getting batteries on Amazon, but I've had very good experiences with them. However, I ONLY follow the ratings for the seller, never the price. If there's a choice between a 3-star rated listing and a 5-star one, even if the latter is a few bucks more I still pick it (given other factors too). And regarding the taping of the battery, to each their own I guess. But that is not at all what I recommend, hence my guide. You could likely damage the cart if the contacts slip somehow. Tape only works reliably for so long anyways. And these bootlegs (if you watched the video) don't have the same space or raised soldering points inside. I advise against taping batteries. Just putting this out there is case anyone comes along and reads this. TAPE = BAD! Thanks again for watching. 🙂
@@KyleAwsm yes I was mentioning this method for normal cartridges not Gba carts as they are really limited in space
i wish this was possible in my country!