Hacking Pokemon games, Flash carts, & DS Questions

[GerbilSwimmingPool]

I'm looking into playing multiple Pokemon games and a lot of longer session with a Flashcart. I'm kind of worried about the savedata and crashes while using a flashcart. Are crashes even a thing? Things I am looking for soft resetting, RTC, and replacing savedata. It looks like EZ Flash Omega would fit this bill very well, but I'm not sure about soft resetting. I will be playing this on a DS Phat or DS Lite.


Update: I went ahead and bought the Ez Flash Omega carts with SanDisk C10 A1 Micro SDHC. I have played over two hundred on these carts and they work great except for about two to four freezes/crashes. I'm not sure how to correct this or if it's possible. But I would recommend these carts.

 

[Flame]

I'm looking into playing multiple Pokemon games and a lot of longer session with a Flashcart. I'm kind of worried about the savedata and crashes while using a flashcart. Are crashes even a thing? Things I am looking for soft resetting, RTC, and replacing savedata. It looks like EZ Flash Omega would fit this bill very well, but I'm not sure about soft resetting. I will be playing this on a DS Phat or DS Lite.

In my experience games dont crash on the DS flashcarts.

EZ Flash Omega is another story. i like you played a fair bit of Pokemon Fire Red. saved closed. came back later. the save wasnt saved. You have to wait 5 seconds before you save then close.

if you can buy an everdrive gba.

 

[GerbilSwimmingPool]

Which flashcarts do you own? I was also looking at the everdrive. The faster loading of the roms and the faster saves definitely looks appealing. I'm considering on getting a few flashcarts for shiny hunting. ha! Have you done any soft resetting on your FireRed copy?

Also, in the words of a great philosopher. "Bite my shiny metal ass." When it comes to saving on a Omega cart and not waiting the whole five seconds. :/

 

[Flame]

Which flashcarts do you own? I was also looking at the everdrive. The faster loading of the roms and the faster saves definitely looks appealing. I'm considering on getting a few flashcarts for shiny hunting. ha! Have you done any soft resetting on your FireRed copy?

Also, in the words of a great philosopher. "Bite my shiny metal ass." When it comes to saving on a Omega cart and not waiting the whole five seconds. :/

i own loads of flashcarts.

• supercard ds two
  
• supecard dsonei
  
• acekard i
• DSTT
• gateway DS flashcart

• gba omega
  
• everdrive gba

• everdrive gb

I do like a shiny. but ive never did shiny hunting. so i dont really know anything about that. but saying that. you know best FireRed flashcart is a legit FireRed cart.

 

[GerbilSwimmingPool]

lols! I can't argue with you there. The best experience will always come from the legit cartridge. Thanks for the information, man.

 

[FAST6191]

The best experience will always come from the legit cartridge.

Often harder to do cheats, savestates, ROM hacks, save duplication, slowdown (fast forward is an emulator thing but might still count in this), bug fixes and beyond with a legit cart, not to mention the issues with them having battery issues.

As for the matter at hand. Every flash cart maker and emulator author, and those that offer support in either endeavour (possibly also cheating and ROM hacking) soon learns to despise pokemon. It is usually among the more annoying games on any given system (GBA, large saves, one of the few things to have real time clock, several anti cheat and anti hack measures, DS had the whole pokewalker thing and much the same as before and on and on).

 

[GerbilSwimmingPool]

Often harder to do cheats, savestates, ROM hacks, save duplication, slowdown (fast forward is an emulator thing but might still count in this), bug fixes and beyond with a legit cart, not to mention the issues with them having battery issues.

As for the matter at hand. Every flash cart maker and emulator author, and those that offer support in either endeavour (possibly also cheating and ROM hacking) soon learns to despise pokemon. It is usually among the more annoying games on any given system (GBA, large saves, one of the few things to have real time clock, several anti cheat and anti hack measures, DS had the whole pokewalker thing and much the same as before and on and on).

I have spent many hours working and playing on the carts and the actually games. The legit games finally shipped and arrived at my place. I'm having a small issue though. The carts are locking up very infrequently. Is there any way to prevent this? To stop freezing hundred percent? I have Ez Flash Omega and SanDisk Micro SDHC C10 A1. I'm wondering if it's the SD cards, but I think they are high enough quality for this.

 

[FAST6191]

For GBA games then SD card speed as long as it is not an ancient 32 meg thing they used to ship in phones just to say you had one should not matter -- the GBA needed fast memory so GBA flash carts in turn had to match it, if they used slow NAND memory like you get on SD cards it would have gone nowhere (they all then have RAM and NOR sections to get up to the required speed, which they copy to when you select the game).

Crashes then are usually contact issues between the flash cart and your device. Be it the pins in the now possibly 20 year old hardware, or at least 10 year old hardware ( https://www.gamespot.com/articles/ds-lite-being-discontinued/1100-6309939/ ), the cart itself maybe being dirty (the omega is newer than many but might have come that way from the factory/sat in a damp warehouse) or possibly manufacture issues with the cart itself that might also make it tricker than stock (if it is a bit thinner or the pins that little bit different it might fail where another might not).
Usual thing is then cleaning the pins (can be easier said than done), cleaning the cart pins (easier but still not great) and maybe putting a bit of paper or thin non conductive shim behind the cart to give those pins that little bit more contact.

 

[GerbilSwimmingPool]

For GBA games then SD card speed as long as it is not an ancient 32 meg thing they used to ship in phones just to say you had one should not matter -- the GBA needed fast memory so GBA flash carts in turn had to match it, if they used slow NAND memory like you get on SD cards it would have gone nowhere (they all then have RAM and NOR sections to get up to the required speed, which they copy to when you select the game).

Crashes then are usually contact issues between the flash cart and your device. Be it the pins in the now possibly 20 year old hardware, or at least 10 year old hardware ( https://www.gamespot.com/articles/ds-lite-being-discontinued/1100-6309939/ ), the cart itself maybe being dirty (the omega is newer than many but might have come that way from the factory/sat in a damp warehouse) or possibly manufacture issues with the cart itself that might also make it tricker than stock (if it is a bit thinner or the pins that little bit different it might fail where another might not).
Usual thing is then cleaning the pins (can be easier said than done), cleaning the cart pins (easier but still not great) and maybe putting a bit of paper or thin non conductive shim behind the cart to give those pins that little bit more contact.

Excuse the late reply, but I wanted to make sure I tested the carts and the legit cartridges thoroughly before replying. Some of my micro SD cards are brand new, but I can't say for sure for all of them. I will look into that later on. Regarding cleaning, Isopropyl alcohol should be enough? I should clarify that I am experiencing one freeze about every hundred to hundred and fifty hours, but I am not sure if it's the same cart or not. That is a long time before freezes. But that's still not normal behavior, right?

 

[FAST6191]

IPA is fine for many things and will do something, especially if combined with a mechanical cleaning (cart in and out a bunch of times and some like using a pencil rubber/eraser for the cart).
I like actual contact cleaner if I can though, though don't get the automotive stuff and get electrical stuff -- automotive is designed to do things like cut through engine grime and nice green dust from being outside/in the weather and it is not always kind to plastic shells on consoles. IPA does nicely for getting off flux and things from the factory or a bit of dust if followed by a cotton bud or something but a few decades of rattling around in a bag/pocket and picking up dust, grime and possibly experiencing some oxidation... I will want more potent than a basic solvent like IPA.

 

[GerbilSwimmingPool]

IPA is fine for many things and will do something, especially if combined with a mechanical cleaning (cart in and out a bunch of times and some like using a pencil rubber/eraser for the cart).
I like actual contact cleaner if I can though, though don't get the automotive stuff and get electrical stuff -- automotive is designed to do things like cut through engine grime and nice green dust from being outside/in the weather and it is not always kind to plastic shells on consoles. IPA does nicely for getting off flux and things from the factory or a bit of dust if followed by a cotton bud or something but a few decades of rattling around in a bag/pocket and picking up dust, grime and possibly experiencing some oxidation... I will want more potent than a basic solvent like IPA.

Thanks for the help and advice, man!