So, I recently acquired a Barcode Boy, a couple of games (Battle Space and Monster Maker) and a couple of cards that go with each game. My goal is to document and preserve this thing (via emulation) before it's forgotten by history. I have the hardware, but apparently I'm heading into a bit of trouble already. The Barcode Boy lights up and it seems fine (makes a high-pitched whine, but I assume that might be normal). The unit has a serial port for the 1st generation of Game Boys (clunky gray "bricks" aka DMGs) but I don't own one yet, so I used the Universal Link Cable (MGB-010) which is supposed to connect a DMG port with a GBC or GBA port. My process is:
1) Connect Barcode Boy and GBC via Universal Link Cable
2) Turn on Barcode Boy and GBC
3) Play either Battle Space or Monster Maker
4) Once past title screen, games perpetually ask me to turn on Barcode Boy (" バーコード ボーイの でんげんを いれなおしてください")
So, a couple of possibilities:
1) Barcode Boy is broken. Hopefully not, the seller said it was in working order, but perhaps they only checked if the light came on. Perhaps it was damaged during transit (all the way from Hokkaido) but it was double-boxed with no visible damage anywhere.
2) Universal Link Cable is broken. It works with GBC-to-GBC games just fine, tested it today. However, I have never used the DMG-to-GBC end of the cable... It's an old thing that came with the Game Boy Printer, and again, I don't yet have an original DMG to test that out.
3) For some reason, the Barcode Boy only works with the DMG and nothing else? Would this even be possible? Perhaps its serial port was only designed to handle the original DMG, and for whatever reason, adapters simply won't work. I'm not a hardware person, so I don't even know if that sounds crazy or not. The included cable is very short, however, like less than 4in or ~10cm, maybe it was designed with that in mind?
4) I'm doing it wrong. I dunno, I read the manual, and although my Japanese is basic, the instructions basically amount to "plug it in, turn it on".
Just wondering if anyone has any knowledge that might help me get this working with my games. I have a DMG on order sometime in the next 2 weeks, so I'll know for certain if it's something weird that only works with the DMG. So far, it's failed to work with my MGB, GBC, and AGBs. Ideally, I'd like to exhaust all possible options before I have to throw down more money to get another one (they're not cheap or easy to find).
I really want to see this thing properly emulated and documented. So far all I have is how the Game Boy detects a Barcode Boy and a few hunches. Nuclear option is full disassembly of Battle Space and studying the barcodes I have, but even if proper emulation is achieved like that, it's still missing hardware verification. Thanks for any and all responses!
1) Connect Barcode Boy and GBC via Universal Link Cable
2) Turn on Barcode Boy and GBC
3) Play either Battle Space or Monster Maker
4) Once past title screen, games perpetually ask me to turn on Barcode Boy (" バーコード ボーイの でんげんを いれなおしてください")
So, a couple of possibilities:
1) Barcode Boy is broken. Hopefully not, the seller said it was in working order, but perhaps they only checked if the light came on. Perhaps it was damaged during transit (all the way from Hokkaido) but it was double-boxed with no visible damage anywhere.
2) Universal Link Cable is broken. It works with GBC-to-GBC games just fine, tested it today. However, I have never used the DMG-to-GBC end of the cable... It's an old thing that came with the Game Boy Printer, and again, I don't yet have an original DMG to test that out.
3) For some reason, the Barcode Boy only works with the DMG and nothing else? Would this even be possible? Perhaps its serial port was only designed to handle the original DMG, and for whatever reason, adapters simply won't work. I'm not a hardware person, so I don't even know if that sounds crazy or not. The included cable is very short, however, like less than 4in or ~10cm, maybe it was designed with that in mind?
4) I'm doing it wrong. I dunno, I read the manual, and although my Japanese is basic, the instructions basically amount to "plug it in, turn it on".
Just wondering if anyone has any knowledge that might help me get this working with my games. I have a DMG on order sometime in the next 2 weeks, so I'll know for certain if it's something weird that only works with the DMG. So far, it's failed to work with my MGB, GBC, and AGBs. Ideally, I'd like to exhaust all possible options before I have to throw down more money to get another one (they're not cheap or easy to find).
I really want to see this thing properly emulated and documented. So far all I have is how the Game Boy detects a Barcode Boy and a few hunches. Nuclear option is full disassembly of Battle Space and studying the barcodes I have, but even if proper emulation is achieved like that, it's still missing hardware verification. Thanks for any and all responses!