Super Game Boy
This article needs additional citations for verification. (December 2009) |
Developer | Nintendo |
---|---|
Manufacturer |
|
Type | Adapter cartridge |
Generation | Fourth |
Release date | June 1994 |
Media | Game Boy Game Pak |
Successor | Game Boy Player |
The Super Game Boy[a] is a peripheral that allows Game Boy cartridges to be played on a Super Nintendo Entertainment System console. Released in June 1994, it retailed for US$59.99 (equivalent to $123.32 in 2023) in the United States[1] and £49.99 (equivalent to £125.59 in 2023) in the United Kingdom.[2] In South Korea, it is called the Super Mini Comboy[b] and was distributed by Hyundai Electronics.[3] A revised model, the Super Game Boy 2, was released in Japan in January 1998.
Functionality
The Super Game Boy is compatible with the same cartridges as the original Game Boy: original
It is also possible for Super Game Boy games to make use of the Super NES hardware for extra effects, as demonstrated in
The Game Boy version of Space Invaders allowed players to access a Super NES version of the game as well as a colored version of the Game Boy game. The Super NES version is copied into and run from the console's internal 256KiB work RAM.
Some black Game Boy Color cartridge games also have Super Game Boy enhancements, although there is not any logo indicating this on the cartridge or on the front of the box as there are for original Game Boy releases. Several GBC titles do have a small Super Game Boy compatibility icon located on the back of their packaging, such as for Dragon Warrior Monsters 2: Cobi's Journey.[7]
Hardware
Because the Super NES cannot emulate the Game Boy hardware at full speed, the Super Game Boy actually consists of the same hardware as the original handheld; inside the cartridge is a separate CPU that processes the games while the Super NES only provided means for user-input, output of graphics to the screen, and the additional coloring.
The original Super Game Boy is known to play the game program and its audio 2.4% faster than other Game Boy hardware. This is due to the use of the Super NES's clock speed divided by 5, which ends up being 4.295 MHz instead of 4.194 MHz.[8]
Super Game Boy 2
The Super Game Boy 2 was released only in Japan in January 1998. Additions included a link port to allow a user to access two-player mode via the link cable, the green game link
The system menu is accessed by pressing the L and R buttons at the same time; the menu has five options to choose from:
- Color Palette: Choose from one of 32 pre-made color palettes, the Super Game Boy enhanced palette(s) (if available), or a user-created palette (if available). A few Super Game Boy games will not allow the palette to be changed. Internally, the Super Game Boy includes special palettes for several games that came out before the release of the Super Game Boy; for example, Alleyway, Yoshi's Cookie, Kirby's Pinball Land, Metroid II: Return of Samus, and Solar Striker have 1 of the 32 default colors by default.
- Border: Choose from one of 9 pre-made borders, the Super Game Boy enhanced border(s) (if available), or a user-created border (if created).
- Button Setting: Switches between two controller mappings. A few Super Game Boy games will not allow the controller setting to be changed.
- Custom Color: Create a custom color palette and get a password to retrieve it later. If palette changes are disabled within the game, this option will also be unavailable.
- Graffiti: Create a custom border by using several painting tools. If plugged into the second controller port, the Super NES Mouse could be used for this feature.[9]
Some games disable the use of changing colors, so the unavailable options are blacked out.
Predecessors and successors
The Super Game Boy is the successor to Intelligent Systems' Wide Boy (which connected to the Famicom or NES). One difference between the Wide Boy and the Super Game Boy is that the former did not use any part of the Famicom/NES other than the video memory. Even the controller (a single Famicom controller) is hardwired directly into the Wide Boy. The Wide Boy would continue running even if the reset button is held down on the Famicom/NES. The Game Boy had twice as many tiles as could fit in the Famicom/NES's video memory, so the Wide Boy had to refresh the Famicom/NES's video memory halfway down the screen.
Camerica had a Game Boy to NES adaptor developed by Biederman Design Labs, which appeared similar to the Super Game Boy.
The Super Game Boy was followed by the Transfer Pak for the Nintendo 64, which allowed one to play the six (seven in Japan) Game Boy and Game Boy Color Pokémon titles in Pokémon Stadium and Pokémon Stadium 2 in a Super Game Boy-like fashion, complete with the Super Game Boy enhanced borders and palettes. The games were played via the use of a software emulator on the Nintendo 64. However, the main role of the Transfer Pak was to transfer data from Game Boy Color to Nintendo 64 games, not to play games.
The
The GB Hunter is one of two Nintendo 64 items released by EMS Production Ltd., the other being the
On the GameCube, the Game Boy Player was released in 2003, which could play Game Boy, Game Boy Color, and Game Boy Advance games. It allowed these games to be played on a full television screen. The GBP attaches to the bottom of the console and a boot disc must be running in the GameCube disc drive in order to boot it, although the disc can be removed afterwards. The Game Boy Player functions just like a Game Boy Advance, letterboxing the games' display on a standard television set. Some GBA games were programmed with consideration for the Player, including activating the vibration feature in GameCube controllers and special color palettes which accounted for a TV's brightness and resolution. However, the Game Boy Player will not activate Super Game Boy options on a Super Game Boy enhanced cartridge. Also, when playing a Game Boy or Game Boy Color game on the Game Boy Player, a black border will appear between the main border and the gameplay area; this is a carry-over from the Game Boy Advance.
Peripherals
In Japan, Hori released a special Super Game Boy controller called the SGB Commander. The controller, aside from the 4 Game Boy buttons (A, B, Start and Select), also has 4 Super Game Boy specific buttons which can enable the user to mute the sound, reduce the speed of the game, change the colors and modify the display window. An additional switch is provided to alternate between Super Game Boy mode and regular Super Famicom Mode.[13]
Guide
In 1994, shortly after the Super Game Boy release, Nintendo sent the
See also
- Game Boy Player
- Transfer Pak
- List of Super Game Boy games — a list of Game Boy and Game Boy Color games which make use of the enhancements the Super Game Boy has to offer.
Notes
References
- ^ "GamePro Labs" (PDF). GamePro. No. 69. IDG. June 1994. p. 172.
- ^ "Nintendo Super Game Boy Super NES - Computing History". www.computinghistory.org.uk. Retrieved 2017-07-28.
- ^ "Hyundai Super Comboy : The Master List (in English)". Scanlines16.com. Retrieved 23 April 2022.
- Nintendo Life. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
- ^ "Super Game Boy Borders". The Video Game Museum. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
- ^ "Buyers Beware" (PDF). GamePro. No. 75. IDG. December 1994. p. 264.
- ^ "Dragon Warrior Monsters 2: Cobi's Journey (US) Box Shot for Game Boy Color". GameFAQs. 2001-09-15. Retrieved 2010-10-19.
- ^ "Super Game Boy timing - SDA Knowledge Base". Speeddemosarchive.com. 2009-12-05. Retrieved 2010-10-19.
- ^ "Let's Get Technical" (PDF). GamePro. No. 76. IDG. January 1995. p. 14.
- ^ "Wide Boy 64". 2005-01-26. Archived from the original on 2005-01-26. Retrieved 2010-10-19.
- ^ "NESWORLD.COM - GB HUNTER".
- ^ "Improvised Review: POWERFLASH Play Gameboy Games on N64". YouTube. Archived from the original on 2019-07-11.
- ^ Satoshi Matrix (October 23, 2012), The Controller Chronicles - SGB Commander Review [Super GameBoy Commander], YouTube, archived from the original on 2021-12-12, retrieved 2019-11-20
- OL 27245112M.