GameYob

	GameYob
General
Author(s)	Normmat
Type	Emulator
Version	0.4
Licence	Mixed
Links
	Download
	Website
	Source

GameYob is an open-source Gameboy and Gameboy Color emulator, developed by me (Drenn), for the Nintendo DS. It has plenty of features that makes it a very complete application, like save states, mappable buttons, fast forwarding, rumble pak support and much more.

GameYob does not run Gameboy Advance games and never will - see here or here for GBA emulators.

Basic list of features:

Gameboy, Gameboy Color, Super Gameboy emulation
Supports Gameboy Color Bios ("boot rom") for custom palettes
Auto SRAM saving
Save States
Cheat Codes
Remappable controls
Custom borders
Scale to fill the screen
Gameboy Printer emulation
GBS music playback

Known Issues (v0.5.2)

- Having "autosaving" enabled (as it is by default) can cause lag in some games. You may want to disable this feature; if you do, you will need to exit out of the game before exiting GameYob itself, or you will lose your progress. - When running as a CIA on a New 3DS, the "touch" input gets spammed automatically. Adjust the "Key Config" settings to disable touch input. - The screen sometimes goes black after opening the menu or loading from a suspend state. Toggle the menu to fix it.

Frequently Asked Questions

How's the compatibility? What about Shantae?

The vast majority of Gameboy and Gameboy Color games run at fullspeed, including fan-favorite Shantae, and beta versions of Resident Evil. Sound is also pretty good, with support for Pikachus's cry or Warlocked voiced effects, for example.

How can I report a bug?

The preferred method to report bugs is to open an issue on github.

How do I save?

Whenever you save in-game, the save file (or SRAM) must be copied to the SD card. There are a few ways to do this:

Method A) After saving in-game, press the X button (by default) to copy the SRAM to your SD. The "Exit" option also does this before exiting.
Method B) Enable autosaving. The SRAM on the SD card will be updated automatically, but this can cause lag in some games which use SRAM as extra memory.

It's highly recommended to at least try autosaving, for a more seamless experience. It's enabled by default as of v0.5.

NOTE: There is a bug in the Robopon games which requires you to use save states.

Are lameboy's save states compatible with gameyob?

Hard saves (like .sav files) can be used between gameyob, lameboy, and most GB/GBC emulators. Save-states, on the other hand, are unique to each one of them, and could be used on other emulators if they shared the method of creating and loading saves. Lameboy save states are unusable on other emulators because it's source is closed and never was released to anyone.

How do I set the default rom directory?

Fill in the “rompath” option in gameyob.ini to the directory of your choosing. For example,

Code: rompath=/roms/gb/

Can I use the 3DS/DS fullscreen?

Yes, GameYob supports scaling and filtering. Go to the [Display] tab of options and you can select scaling options such as "Aspect" and "Full", and enable or disable the scaling filter.

Because I "cheated" by using both rendering engines to perform scaling, the bottom screen is always off when scaling is enabled.

Can I use cheats?

Gameshark and Game Genie codes are supported. In the [Settings] tab you can find the option "Manage Cheats". Gameyob supports BGB .CHT files, so you need to have them in your SD in order to access the option. They must be named identically to the rom, with the extension ".cht".

Here's some places where you can start to look:

Gameboy Cheat Files Gameboy Color Cheat Files How to Manually Create GameYob Cheat Files

Can I use Cable Link features?

Gameyob can use the ds's local wireless (sometimes called "nifi") for multiplayer functions. This feature is experimental, and only seems to work reliably with Tetris and Dr. Mario. Further improvements can be made, but they may be difficult to implement. Simply enable the "Wireless Link" option on both DS's to use link cable features.

What does "GBC Bios" mean?

If you have the corresponding "gbc_bios.bin" file in your ROM directory (you can find it on google), you can turn this option on to get colorized Gameboy games like you you would have if you were playing them on GBC hardware. The file's location can also be specified in “gameyob.ini”. A prime example is Metroid II: Return of Samus, which gets individual palettes for Samus, enemies and items instead of being monochromatic.

You can also pick different palettes by pressing the directional pad and the AB buttons while the boot up "GAME BOY" logo is flashing.

This is 100% optional and it has no affect on performance or emulation accuracy.

How do I use Custom Borders? You need to have scaling off, and "Custom Borders" on. Then press "Select Border" in the menu to load the border. Press "Save Settings" for GameYob to auto-load the border next time. If you want to make your own border, be sure to save it as a 256x192, uncompressed, 15bpp bitmap image.

What does "Detect GBA" mean?

Certain games can detect if they're being played on a GBA: they use lighter palettes which are easier to see on a GBA, the Zelda Oracle games have a special "Advanced" shop, Shantae has features like a unique NPC in Bandit Town, a new dance and more. This option toggles that.

What does "Sound Timing Fix" mean?

This option makes sound emulation more accurate, while potentially using more power. Most notably it fixes Pikachu in Pokemon Yellow / Pinball, but it also makes many subtle improvements to other sound effects. Results are optimal when scaling is disabled, but this is not a requirement. It's recommended to leave this option on.

If you experience slowdown when this option is enabled, be sure to disable the “Wait for Vblank” option in the debug settings.

Is it Sudokuhax compatible?

Yes, you can use the DSi's enhanced capabilities for full-speed in even the most intense games, and some crazy fast-forwarding. An installable CIA is also provided for hacked 3DS's.