I shouln't...but i really want to! (GBA related)

My last post was about finding my GBA Micro again and continuing with Zelda Minish cap. The Micro's battery was empty so I had to find the charge cable first...and after I did I also found my DS. Also an empty battery...so recharged it through some very cool but hacky way! using a mostly barebones wireless charging receiver with the wires barley making contact in the charging port! It was horrible...but worked! I don't think it's a permanent "mod" though since wireless charging generated A LOT of heat. At least I could play again! :D

So I have played Zelda a couple of hours on the DS now...tried it on the Micro but that screen is TINY! And I am probably to old for it or something....my eyes don't like squeaking at that little screen for to long anymore! I have magnifier glasses that are meant for hobby stuff and soldering, but it also helps making those screens seem just a little bigger! While I don't normally like to use guides or walkthroughs I did use them a few times to get further in the game...since I forgot most of the things I was able to do and how the objects I had worked. Also collected a few new ones...got through the droplet dungeon...walked through a haunted forrest to talk to a dead king's ghost...and now I am lost at what to do next! Hahahah

In the mean time I also got my "box of handhelds" from storage...without the chargers ofcourse! Whoops! It has my 6 3DS'es...2-3 DSi's AND my 3 GBA SP's! The original from 2004 NES edition (not a 101 screen) that looks like new, a transparent green one (cheap case from china but feels good enough) that's also not a 101 screen, and lastly a tribal grey one WITH a 101 screen that I did not even remember I had! Hahaha :rofl2:

For those that do not know...the original GBA has no backlight screen. Then the SP came out that had the rechargeable battery and front light screen. It was an improvement but the light was really dim. Then at some point the AGS-101 came out that had a MUCH improved brightness and contrast screen. For this reason these models are more expensive at the moment...although from what I have seen an IPS screen also looks interesting! During the GBA's active lifetime I never really knew about it....or did not care I guess since I got the DS and DS Lite and just 4-5 GBA games anyway!

For me the DS Lite screen is the one I like best in combination with a much nicer grip on the DS Lite. It's what I use most to play my GBA games now. I only got the GBA Micro to complete my collection and I REALLY wanted it. Not sure how much I paid for the AGS-101 model...but it might have been cheaper since the case is scratched like it was dragged across the highway by a car for a week! Screen is perfectly fine though! :D

But now I need to look at where I put all the charge cables....or order new USB ones. Most likely they are in my storage box which I have to go to anyway. Then I would play the AGS -101 for a while to see how it compared to the DS Lite screen. What I have also ordered and should come in tomorow is a HDMI adapter for the GameCube so I can play with the GameBoy Player on TV as well!

Having all these gameboy's around again also brought back the urge to try port my homebrew game to the GBA again! And I really shouln't....but I really want to! :D Mostly also because I have bought the EZ Flash Omega and Everdrive Mini especially for my homebrew game! And I have seen there is a programming demo for the Everdrive that shows how to access the SD card....meaning I can at least port the installer portion of my game to run on the GBA+Everdrive! It will need WAY more to actually run the game since graphics and sprites are to big for the tiny GBA screen! I have plans on creating a "mockup" spriteset for the GBA...it will look like sh*t but playable I guess! Hahaha

To actually "port" the game and it's real graphics to the GBA I need to find a super accurate sprite scaling algorithm that doesn't mess up the details too much! Maybe a good question to ask ChatGPT since I wanted to try it out for something. :D i just need an algorithm that understands pixelart and reduce 32x32 pixel sprites to 16x16 or even 8x8 and keep the colors and details close enough to not exceed the palette limit. Easy right? :P:D All methods so far that I tried either looked like sh*t, used more colors than the original or both!

Sorry for the mess of thoughts above....I am oke now! Maybe! :rofl2:
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Archerite
AutumnWolf said:
Interesting, but please buy some chargers for your consoles...
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Hahaha, ofcourse I do have the chargers for each of them but they are.....somewhere...and not in the same box the consoles were in.

But for some reason I bought an SP charge dock once and that one was in the box. Modded it with USB-C and now all three SP's are charged up! In addition I ordered a 'one for all' usb cable on amazon just in case.

I have now played on the AGS-101 screen a bit. I sorta like it but I don't like the more clicky buttons om the SP actually. Guess I got used tot the DS Lite too much or something.

I did also ordered a new shell for the AGS-101 as it's not looking so well on the outside as it should. I went with transparent blue...hopefully it's a decent quality.
 
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KleinesSinchen
20 years ago -- yes, the 3DS isn't that old yet -- I would have preferred the standard size model over the XL due to being more pocket friendly and more appropriate concerning DPI rating. Nowadays... the XL model is easier for me.

Neither have GBA Micro nor AGS-101. *Sigh* Things have become to expensive since the pandemic. Anything missing in the collection will stay missing.
===========

Fully unrelated off-topic and out of nowhere I remembered something. Look what I got (and didn't even want it):

Cobra11_a.jpg Cobra11_b.jpg
This cheap thing was intended to be part of my unsystematic ProtectDISC experiments and turned out to be... not a ProtectDISC at all. Turned out the game is infected with "Solidshield" instead. Needs a Tagés dumper to create a working image.
 
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Archerite
KleinesSinchen said:
20 years ago -- yes, the 3DS isn't that old yet -- I would have preferred the standard size model over the XL due to being more pocket friendly and more appropriate concerning DPI rating. Nowadays... the XL model is easier for me.

Neither have GBA Micro nor AGS-101. *Sigh* Things have become to expensive since the pandemic. Anything missing in the collection will stay missing.
Click to expand...
It's truly sad that retro gaming has become so expensive! maybe you are talking about something different....but I really meant the old DS Lite from 2005-ish which had the GBA slot. ;) I remember buying it on a Monday or Tuesday....and the next friday I was there again to pickup the "Phat DS" so I could play mario kart DS with two players...even if the other person did not have a DS.

My favorite local webshop I mentioned before has A LOT of GBA consoles at the moment! (see here) Some are crazy expensive because of complete in box condition. But there are a few cheaper options....including a Micro for 116,- euro. There is currently no AGS-101 available that I can see and I don't remember what I paid for it...have to look through my e-mails to find out.

I did see they have one nintendo console I don't have in the collection yet: GameBoy Color for arround 50-70 euro's. Different colors and conditions determine the price. I mean...I don't really need one as every GBA also plays GBC games and the only ones I have are Zelda oracle of Ages/Seasons. But for the completeness factor and since I do have nearly every other console already....I am really thinking about it.

KleinesSinchen said:
Fully unrelated off-topic and out of nowhere I remembered something. Look what I got (and didn't even want it):

Cobra11_a.jpg Cobra11_b.jpg
This cheap thing was intended to be part of my unsystematic ProtectDISC experiments and turned out to be... not a ProtectDISC at all. Turned out the game is infected with "Solidshield" instead. Needs a Tagés dumper to create a working image.
Click to expand...
I Don't mind, it might be offtopic on this blog post....but it is relevant to 2 or three before where I mentioned watching Cobra 11 to improve my German learning! :D Really Cool! I did found out there were a few games based on the series, but most from the video's I found they were not that interesting "to me" because they were in English or nothing like the actual series and characters. Don't remember.

My German listening skills are really improving (I think) since I can hear the difference between High German and Austrian German quite well. It's a fun dialect but feels to me a bit harder. To compare with english I feel it's like a mix of Irish and light scotisch vs american. It's nearly the same but does sound different enough with their own words sometimes...like Servus! ;)

I found the complete Komisaris Rex on youtube! No idea how "legal" it is but it has English subtitles...unfortunately for me. But I try not to look and them and focus on the spoken word more than reading the English translation. It's really old...but still fun to watch and learn from. Way better than a borring text book or something.
 
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KleinesSinchen
Archerite said:
but I really meant the old DS Lite from 2005-ish which had the GBA slot. *****
Click to expand...
Of course. I just compared it to the 3DS because 400x240 on the small model is becoming more and more tedious for my eyes (DS Lite with 256*192 is fine in that size and the DSi XL, despite having nice quality LCD panels is fairly big).

Archerite said:
I did see they have one nintendo console I don't have in the collection yet: GameBoy Color for arround 50-70 euro's. Different colors and conditions determine the price. I mean...I don't really need one as every GBA also plays GBC games and the only ones I have are Zelda oracle of Ages/Seasons. But for the completeness factor and since I do have nearly every other console already....I am really thinking about it.
Click to expand...
Most of my stuff is from flea markets end of the 1990s, beginning 2000s. SNES games with packaging for about 1€ to 5€. Consoles for 5€, controllers in masses for pennies. People just wanted to get rid of "old, outdated junk".
I payed the full price of 169.00DM (86.40€) for a brand new "Conker's Bad Fur Day" for N64 in 2001. And I was ashamed for having payed a fortune for a special cartridge with 64MB ROM chip produced in low quantity. This week I searched it on eBay and almost fell from my chair.
*Tightly closes office cupboard with games*

Archerite said:
I mentioned watching Cobra 11 to improve my German learning!
Click to expand...
Just learned enough English at school for getting started with English Cartoon Network (freely available on analog Astra satellite back then). Rest of my English came from watching cartoons (and later other content). Unsystematic, but very efficient.
The only thing I can add, is that I have a different taste in what I want to see. Cobra 11. Kommissar Rex. Brrrr. Definitely not my kind of TV series.
But that doesn't matter – if YOU like it and it works for your goal.
 
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Archerite
KleinesSinchen said:
Of course. I just compared it to the 3DS because 400x240 on the small model is becoming more and more tedious for my eyes (DS Lite with 256*192 is fine in that size and the DSi XL, despite having nice quality LCD panels is fairly big).
Click to expand...
ok :) I agree the small screen on the original 3DS is quite small...but I have to admit I never really played any considerable amount of time on it. I only got one (or two) for completion of the 6 models a few years ago. I was planning on giving each of the consoles a fresh recharge so I'll check it out.

I originally bought a 3DS XL too back in 2014 and that is the one I used the most. And a few years ago bought a new 2DS XL from a game store in my city. And then got the remaining models second hand...but I did not actually play them much since I was using them to test BatteryCheck on. Hahahah

I do also have a DSi XL and the screen is considerably bigger...unfortunately it has no GBA slot anymore! I know about GBA Runner and I have used it...but it's not easy to keep the save game in sync with the original cart. :rofl2:
KleinesSinchen said:
Most of my stuff is from flea markets end of the 1990s, beginning 2000s. SNES games with packaging for about 1€ to 5€. Consoles for 5€, controllers in masses for pennies. People just wanted to get rid of "old, outdated junk".
I payed the full price of 169.00DM (86.40€) for a brand new "Conker's Bad Fur Day" for N64 in 2001. And I was ashamed for having payed a fortune for a special cartridge with 64MB ROM chip produced in low quantity. This week I searched it on eBay and almost fell from my chair.
*Tightly closes office cupboard with games*
Click to expand...
Yeah, those prices are nowhere to be found anymore...unless someone does not understand the current market value of these "old games". I have always held on to my consoles except my NES...but thats another story. (still have the case...but dumped the insides so I could make a PC out of it!!! Yep..I am stupid I know!)
Your saying you have Conckers Bad Fur day in a near mint condition Complete In Box state? Damn! Yep...better but that thing behind glass and setup the laser alarms to protect it! :P :rofl2: I have the game too...but just the loose cart! It's an awesome game and I never regretted getting it at a relatively high price of around 50-60 euro's second hand. But at the current market prices I would NEVER pay that much for it though...it's really a shame this great game got so expensive nobody can play it! (legally)

That being said I did sell a CD-I game for 450 euro's a year ago :D
KleinesSinchen said:
Just learned enough English at school for getting started with English Cartoon Network (freely available on analog Astra satellite back then). Rest of my English came from watching cartoons (and later other content). Unsystematic, but very efficient.
The only thing I can add, is that I have a different taste in what I want to see. Cobra 11. Kommissar Rex. Brrrr. Definitely not my kind of TV series.
But that doesn't matter – if YOU like it and it works for your goal.
Click to expand...
Hahaha, I learned English nearly the same way by watching cartoon network! These days everything here is in dutch during the day and only arround 22:00 it switches to english. At least that's how it was 10-15 years ago. Being a Star Trek fan I also re-watch it A LOT and when ever the BBC was broadcating it I would watch it without the subtitles. Later got it on DVD and disabled the subtitles...and now on Netflix I do the same.

I think the biggest factor in why I like Cobra 11 and Kommisar Rex so much is because I watched it with my Dad and Brother when I was younger. My dad still watches those police/crime series like NCIS in all flavours and such....and when it's on re-run also Kommisar Rex and Cobra 11. I also like how they always destroy at least 20 cars in each episode. And how they need to safe each other from the bad guys and such. But ofcourse...not every one likes the same kind of shows and that's fine. :D
I also don't like dogs in most cases, more a cat person, but a german shepard does kind of look cool. that is most likely since Rex is a german shepard! hahaha

So far it did help me in my understanding more of the German language. Especially some of the more day to day stuff. In duolingo I still did not learn the word "Handy" but I have known it for many years because of these two series! There are many more small words and ways how they speak that helped me. I am also pretty sure that 75% of the German I already new and kind of understood before learning it came from there....the other 25% I guess from the similarities with Dutch and English.

As a whole I still don't think I could do any groceries shopping in full perfect German. Simply because I don't know all the words yet. But I do get A LOT from the context of a sentence and situation when the words are spoken. So maybe I might manage enough ;)

I got a long way to go to be fluent in German at the same level as I am in English. And I am sure even my English isn't always perfect. ;) I am now at level 12 out of 140 in Duolingo and have been at it for 75 days now. Doing a couple lessons each day but not as much as when I started. While I have also tried other languages like French, Spanish, Chinese, Japanese and even Klingon......German is by far the easiest. :D

Also when I hear a new German word or saying I try to look it up. One fun example is when the cops in Cobra 11 were about to jump over a train in a car one of them said "Spinst du oder was?". I heard the words perfectly but never heard it before. Now I now it means "Are you crazy?". But given the situation I kind of got the meaning of it already. :rofl2:
 
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KleinesSinchen
Archerite said:
Your saying you have Conckers Bad Fur day in a near mint condition Complete In Box state?
Click to expand...
Not what they consider to be mint nowadays. Mint as in "never used, only touched with gloves and no signs of usage… grade A+ and sealed". I was a teenager and got this game to play it – not to put it into a glass display with a sign saying "Don't touch!"
Treated my stuff good though.
Conker.jpg
It is not the only thing with box/manual having become expensive. Legend of Zelda II – Adventure of Link. Zelda Orcale of Seasons/Ages. Terranigma, Secret of Mana, Illusion of Time. Castlevania III – Draculas Curse. Castlevania Order of Ecclesia…
…and so on…
In no case I payed much. Mostly used stuff dirt cheap.

Archerite said:
"Spinst du oder was?"
Click to expand...
Spinnen – almost the same in English spinning (yarn) – in figurative sense leads to interesting etymology (not that I'm any good at this, so without warranty for correctness)
Poor people, mostly women had to work very hard – forced labor – spinning yarn in huge groups, almost like slaves. And people from lower class shouldn't be taken seriously. "Uneducated, idiotic women blathering nonsense"
The casual usage of "spinnen", even between friends, doesn't carry any of those sad roots and the word is used in everyday life.
 

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