Preview
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_/ __|_______/____|____ \/ /_______/ / __/_.
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<-/-rS!-------\________/--------------------\________/-----+
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_/ / / \ _ \ ________|____ \ | The Console
/ /\ / / / / /_/ / / / | Scene Charts!
/______/\ /\________/____\ / /__________/ |
\_/ \__/__________|<-------------+
Gameboy Advance Console World Charts for July 1 - July 31, 2001
Issue Number 2, Released August 1st, 2001
- Staff! - Dropcom & ennay
Featuring Guest Commentary by: Zigor
.- Introduction ------------------------------------------------------------.
Hello and welcome to the second edition of the GBA Console World charts!
We've gotten generally positive comments regarding our our previous issue
so I guess that's a good sign.
The scene is quite young at the moment, and mistakes (dupes, bad dumps)
will happen. On the other hand, you can argue that these things have all
happened before and people should know better.
Generally, it's been a decent month for releases, but most of the
interesting developments came from the hardware front. A newer / smaller
/ more stable revision of the Flash Advance (64 & 128 megabit) was released.
It's quite a shame how this company can unload their first generation carts
with so many bugs. Not even the first generation SNES copiers were this
bad.
Our guest commentator is none other than Zigor / Eurasia. I've known Zigor
for a really long time now, and you might remember him from the many GBC
charts. I think Zigor holds the title for being the person who comments on
the most number of charts. :)
Enough jibber jabber, let the charts BEGIN!
- ennay
RULES & POINTS
--------------
-1 Point - DUPE: Released a game, but only after another group already beat
you? -1 point then.
DUPE TRAINER: A Late Trainer with the same or less options.
BROKEN: If you release a game/trainer/crack that doesn't work,
-1 time!
+0 Points - BETA: Beta releases are cool to check out, but they are not
the real deal. No points are given or taken for these.
TERRITORY DUPE: If a game is released in Europe first and
contains English, then a following USA release is considered
a territory dupe. If a game is released in the USA first,
and it releases later in Europe with no additional languages,
it is also considered a territory dupe. Games that have
additional game features/levels/etc. added are void from
territory dupe rules. Only Roms that contain differences
when file compared fit into the territory dupe category,
if a Rom is the exact same in 2 territories, it fits into
the -1 dupe category. Territory dupes receive 0 points.
FIX: A non-protection related fix for a released game gets 0
points.
+1 Point - TRAINER: Any selectable trainer including a menu receives
1 point.
MULTI: A European Multi Language release of a previously
available US title.
FOREIGN: A German/French/Spanish/Etc. release of a
previously available English title.
TOOL: A tool for the PC that is useful for Gameboy
Advance purposes gets 1 point.
EEPROM FIX: A fix for games containing EEPROM saves, to
allow the game to run without EEPROM saving on the
current GBA copiers. These get 1 point for now, they
will get 0 once flash-carts featuring EEPROM saving
become more mainstream.
+2 Points - AVERAGE JAPANESE: An average Japanese game. Most RPGS,
Mahjong titles, Slot games, Sims, Adventures, etc. will be
put into this category. These receive 2 points.
FOREIGN WORLD FIRST: If a German/French/Spanish/Etc. game
is out before the English version, it gets 2 points.
CRACK: A crack for a protected/non-working game gets you 2
points.
+3 Points - ENGLISH WORLD FIRST: The first release of a game in English.
This is generally the first release of the game available,
either in Europe or the USA. These receive 3 points.
QUALITY JAPANESE: A quality Japanese title that is either
highly awaited or playable will receive 3 points. Generally
games from major companies due out for release later
in English will fit into this category. Most action games,
fighting games, etc. will also fall under this category.
TRANSLATION: Translating a non-English game to English =
3 points. The points reflect the major amount of work this
requires!
+4 Points - MAJOR: Usually the best/most-anticipated game of the month.
.- Charts for the Month of July 2001 --------------------------------------.
ßßßÛ ßßßÛ ßßßÛ ßßßÛ ßßßÛ ßßßÛ ßßßÛ
ÛÛ Û ÛÛ Û ÛÛ Û ÛÛ Û ÛÛ Û ÛÛ Û ÛÛ Û
ÛÛÜÛ ÛÛÜß ÛÛÜÜ ÛÛÜ ÛÛ Û ÛÛ ÛÛÜ
ÛÛ Û ÛÛ Û ÜÜ Û ÛÛ Ü Û Û ÛÛ Û ÛÛ Ü
ÛÛ Û ÛÛ Û ÛÛ Û ÛÛ Û Û Û ÛÛ Û ÛÛ Û
Û Û Û Û Û Û Û Û Û Û Û Û Û
Û Û Û Û Û Û Û
Û ÜÛ ÜÛ ÜÛ Û ÜÛ ÜÛ
.-------------------------------------------- Absence ----------------------
Date Game Name / Company Info Pts N o t e s
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 22 Tweety And The Magic Gems - Kemco FRA/32 +1 WORKING
--
Total Points - 01
Comments:
Dropcom:
Absence brings us the proper dump of Tweety And The Magic Gems French.
The dump released by Lost earlier in the month was a bad dump, it froze
after the intro.
ennay:
A French release for the rom collectors out there. I don't have much
else to comment on these guys, but I'm sure people who life in France and
the French speaking Canadians will appreciate this one.
Zigor:
I think this release has been covered enough, its now working and one
for the collectors or French guys, bonjour tous les Francais lecteurs!
________ _________/______
____ / __/ ____\_ / / _____
| // |__/ _____// /_/\ |
`----\________/_______|-rtx\_____/____\----'-------- Capital ---------------
Date Game Name / Company Info Pts N o t e s
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 1 Iridion 3D +3 Trainer - Majesco USA/IPS +1
July 5 Rayman Advance +4 Trainer - Ubisoft EUR/IPS -1 BROKEN
Rayman Advance +4 Trainer - Ubisoft EUR/IPS +1 FIXED
--
Total Points - 01
Comments:
Dropcom:
Capital shows the scene once again that they can produce quality trainers,
on any platform. They brought us 2 nice trainers for the GBA this month.
It was too bad Rayman was broken, but Capital fixed their mistake
promptly and mistakes do happen to everyone.
ennay:
Two trainers from the only REAL GBA trainer group this month. Seems like
these guys got busy during the first week of the month, and then totally
slowed down. I guess they have other projects to do? I'm wondering if
we'll see any competition for these guys in August.
Zigor:
After their impressive Castlevania trainer from last month, Capital
continue to bring out quality goods. Its a shame they lost a point
with the bad trainer for Rayman but respect is due and I look forward
to their next releases.
___/\____/\_________ /\ ________
\__ ___/ __/\__ /__/ \__\ _ /poyZ
__ _/ / | __/ / / _/ \_ _/ _/_ __
\\_\\ _____| _____/_____\__/\__/__\ \ //_//
.----\/----|/----------------------\ /------ Cezar ------------------------
Date Game Name / Company \/ Info Pts N o t e s
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 2 Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2 - Activision FRA/64 +1 FOREIGN
--
Total Points - 01
Comments:
Dropcom:
Cezar brings us 1 foreign dump this month. Nothing much to comment on.
ennay:
Yet another one for the rom collectors and French speaking population out
there.
Zigor:
A drop of 3 points from last month, but their French release of Tony Hawks 2
ensures Cezar a place in the July charts, nice work guys!
MTX!____.--._)\____ .-. ____/(___:.___
.--/ _ | | \___ \/ _ \/ ___/___]/ _ \--.
| / __| l | _/ \___ \ / \ |
`-\____ \_____|_\_ \__|__/ ____/___\ |__/-'
.------\(---------\(-----)/---------`-'----- Eurasia -----------------------
Date Game Name / Company Info Pts N o t e s
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 3 Breath of Fire - Capcom JPN/32 +2
Yugioh Duel Monsters 5 Expert I - Konami JPN/64 +2
July 11 Super Street Fighter II X Rev. - Capcom JPN/64 +3
Mahjong Detective - Hudson Soft JPN/32 +2
July 12 EX Monopoly - Takara JPN/32 +2
Our Breeding Series: My Beetle - MTO Inc JPN/32 +2
July 13 GetBackers: Jigoku no Sukuramu. - Konami JPN/32 +2
July 17 Klonoa: Empire of Dreams - Namco JPN/32 +3
Mario Kart Advance - Nintendo JPN/32 +3
July 26 JGTO Official Golf Master - Konami JPN/64 +2
Mugen Kikou Zero Tours - Media Rings JPN/32 +2
Mobile Pro Baseball - Konami JPN/64 +2
Muscular Ranking - Konami JPN/64 +2
Suta Komi (Star Communicator) - Konami JPN/64 +2
July 28 Ougon No Taiyo (Golden Sun) - Nintendo JPN/64 +2
--
Total Points - 33
Comments:
Dropcom:
Eurasia dominates the charts once again in release output. They also
brought out my 2 most awaited games of the month in Street Fighter
and Mario Kart. It is just too bad that the majority of games that
go to Japan are unplayable for the average GBA scener. Eurasia's
only releases this month came from Japan, and the good majority of
them are useless to the English speaking world. The exceptions
to that statement got 3 points.
ennay:
Now this is impressive. Eurasia manages to bring the great majority
of Japanese releases for the month of July. Not only that, but they've
managed to release most of these titles a few days ahead of retail. I'm
sure 'legit/mainstream' gaming web sites have used Eurasia's releases
for screenshots (Shame on them). The best games always come from Japan,
and Mario Kart, Klonoa, Super SF2x are no exception.
Zigor:
Very cool, even if I do say so! Eurasia brings the scene 79% of Julys
non-dupe releases. My game of the month has to be Mario Kart Advance, it
brings back fond memories of playing Mario Kart on the SNES, and the GBA
version provides even more fun. Super Street Fighter 2X is probably the
first handheld version of SF I've played that has captured the true essence
of the arcade game in portable form, although having to use A,B and L,R
buttons to play is a bit frustrating at times! Namco's Klonoa is another
notable release. Look out for more Eurasia releases next month!
__ ._____. __
\/ __________ _| |_______ .________. \/
__\ _ /_\ __ /_| |__
(( \| |/ ))
\________ _____________________________/
.-------/____)----------------------------------- Gameboy Lamers -----------
Date Game Name / Company Info Pts N o t e s
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 18 Jurassic Park III EEP -> SRAM - Konami USA/IPS +1 EEPROM FIX
--
Total Points - 01
Comments:
Dropcom:
GBL brings us the proper Jurassic Park III Save Fix. The one by Jurai was
non-working, and it was released for a non-working Rom. It is now
blatantly obvious that Jurai just patches the same bytes on a Rom and
does not know how these patches work, nor do they test them. They are
truly one of the lamest "groups" in the GBA scene as of today.
ennay:
A nice little patch to allow games to be saved on the Flash Advance.
Zigor: A nice patch but could this be the last time they get points?
since there are now utils that will do this automatically.
_______ -poyZ!
__ ___\______________\ __/ __
/_/\ _\ \_ _ / _ \ /_/\
.---\_\/-/______/___/___/_________\-\_\/---.
.--`------------------/-----------------------'-- Independent --------------
Date Game Name / Company Info Pts N o t e s
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 14 Hot Potato Save Fix - BAM Entertainment USA/IPS +1 EEPROM FIX
July 28 EEPROM Patcher v0.5 - Independent DOS/TOOL +1 TOOL
--
Total Points - 02
Comments:
Dropcom:
More stuff for the end-user to play EEPROM games. Surely not a bad thing.
ennay:
More save fixes and some EEPROM patcher for the GBA. I haven't tried either
of them but I'm sure they're working.
Zigor:
Poor design of the gba flashlinker card causes another much needed fix!
::::__::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
: /^ \ /\_____/\______/\_________ :
: / /___/_ \ \ #\TM
:/ / \ / \ \__/_ \____/ :
:\ / / /____ \ \ :
: \ / / / / \ :
°°°\______/\_____/\________/\_____/ :
::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
.----------------------------------------------- Lost ----------------------
Date Game Name / Company Info Pts N o t e s
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 11 Tweety And The Magic Gems - Kemco FRA/32 -1 BROKEN
GT Advance - MTO Inc. EUR/64 -1 DUPE
--
Total Points - -2
Comments:
Dropcom:
Yuck. Why can't groups check their stuff properly before releasing it?
These are 2 mistakes that could have been easily avoided.
ennay:
Not a good start for this new group to emerge into the scene. Lost's .fr
version of Tweety And the Magic Gems was broken, and the European version
of GT Advance had ZERO differences when compared with to the US release.
Shame on you guys, even a certain PS2 wannabe development website can
'fc /b' this quite easily.
Zigor:
Oops! These guys are surely Lost in the GBA scene! Maybe they should
go back to hq and rethink their plans..
._ - M O D E 7 - ______ _________
| /\__ ____________ __\ | _ ____\__ /
/ \/ _/ _ \ .|___\_ \/ //
// \ / \ / // | |/ _____/____/ .
____|\/|___\______/\_______\_______/-rtx! _| Mode 7
-----------------------
Date Game Name / Company Info Pts N o t e s
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 11 Pac-Man Collection - Namco USA/64 +3
July 18 Jurassic Park III: DNA Factor - Konami USA/32 -1 BROKEN
July 19 Jurassic Park III: DNA Factor - Konami USA/64 +3
--
Total Points - 05
Comments:
Dropcom:
Mode 7 brings us the only 2 English originals for the month of July.
Too bad both of the games suck.
ennay:
Mode7 manages to score the only two US titles for the month of July. PacMan
collection was pretty interesting to check out. The first release of
Jurassic Park III only had the first 32Mbit dumped. But this was fixed
later on.
Zigor:
Nice work M7 for bringing the USA titles fast. I don't know how it happened
but the first release of JP3 was short, anyway they fixed it and thats
what matters. As for the games themselves, yes they do suck! I guess
Konami are relying on the JP3 movie to generate interest for their game,
and Namco are still pimping their little yellow hoe.
()()==================D~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
pARAcOX - wE sUXX cOX
.----------------------------------------------- Paracox -------------------
Date Game Name / Company Info Pts N o t e s
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 26 Lego Racers 2 - The Lego Group EUR/64 +0 ALPHA
--
Total Points - 00
Comments:
Dropcom:
Paracox brings us 1 alpha release. It is interesting to see groups like this
one popping up so early in the scene. They are more entertaining than the
average Mode7/Eurasia release.
ennay:
Paracox's first entry into the GBA scene. Personally, I always love to
check out betas, and this one is no exception. Although there are no
points given, I surely appreciate this release and I'm sure there are
others who would agree.
Zigor:
Interesting group name, I wonder if we will see them again?
Anyway, it was quite a good release and definitely worth checking out.
_______
_____ \____ \
/____/ / / /
/ __/
/___|
.---------------------------------------------------- -P -------------------
Date Game Name / Company Info Pts N o t e s
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 24 Pinobee: Wings of Adventure - Activision EUR/64 -1 DUPE
July 27 SeXXXy - Independent JPN/32 +0 HOMEMADE
--
Total Points - -1
Comments:
Dropcom:
-P brings us 1 dupe and 1 homemade rom.. Not exactly impressive.
ennay:
The European release of Pinobee had ZERO differences when compared to the
previously dumped USA version. Next time, please check your dump before
you actually release it. As for that SeXXXy game, not too sure why we
chose to list this release as it belongs in the public domain sections of
websites.
Zigor:
"Hey, nobody put out Pinobee, I'll rent it and release it", those
were probably the thoughts of an overly excited kid, as he rushed
to the rental store. Unfortunately, haste or inexperience caused
an embarrassing dupe and a homemade porno won't make up for it!
____________________ _________
\____ \ /\ _.\_| / _ /
/ / /_/\_/ \/ / / : /__. \/
/ __/_/ :\ / / \ '/ / . \
/___| \_____\ /__\___\/_______/
.----------------------------------------- Perversion ----------------------
Date Game Name / Company Info Pts N o t e s
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 17 Space Hexcite X - Jordan JPN/64 +2
Mario Kart Advance - Nintendo JPN/32 -1 DUPE
Doraemon Midori No Wakusei - Epoch JPN/32 +2
--
Total Points - 03
Comments:
Dropcom:
Perversion managed to bring us 2 Japanese originals that were released
back in April but never dumped. Good job.
ennay:
Perversion manages to bring you two Japanese titles this month. Eurasia
beat them on Mario Kart, but it also shows that these guys might be able
Eurasia a little bit of a challenge in the future. Is it just me, or does
it seem like these guys are only out there to sell GBA copiers?
Zigor:
Gone but not forgotten, Hexcite and Doraemon are reunited for the archives.
As for Mario Kart Adv, it was over 10 minutes after the Eurasia release
that perversion were trying to spread their release, a bit late I think!!
_______ _______.___________
__ .____\_ \____\_ \ _ / _
|. |. / // | //. |___/ .|
|:. || \ \_ _____/|| _/ .::|
`-- l_____|\_____/____|-rtx!l_____| ------'-- Rapid Fire -------------------
Date Game Name / Company Info Pts N o t e s
.---------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 11 Final Fight One Save Patch - Capcom JPN/IPS +1 EEPROM FIX
--
Total Points - 01
Comments:
Dropcom:
Just another EEPROM Fix from Rapid Fire.
ennay:
A nice save patch for one of the best ports out there.
Zigor:
RPF provide a much needed fix for Final Fight One.
/\_ -poyZ!
___ ___/ / ___ ______/\________
___/ _/-+---/\_ _ \__\_ \_/ _ _/ _ \_ _/
\ \_ | / / / / / / / | _/ _/ |
/_______|____/_____/ ___/______|__\ \___|
.-----------------/__/--------------\ /-------------- Subport -------------
Date Game Name / Company \/ Info Pts N o t e s
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
July 26 GBA-INFO v0.7 - Subport WIN/TOOL +1
--
Total Points - 01
Comments:
Dropcom:
This is a great tool released by one of the best scene websites out there.
ennay:
A much needed tool for suppliers out there who wish to make sure their dump
is 100% Subport is also an excellent GBA website which I definitely
recommend for anyone who is following this scene.
Zigor:
Interesting tool, very useful for calculating CRC's on the move.
Don't forget to check out Subport Advance.
.- Group Totals & Summary -------------------------------------------------.
Rank Group Points All Time Points
1. Eurasia 33 74
2. Mode7 05 33
3. Perversion 03 03
4. Independent 02 08
5.a Absence 01 01
5.b Capital 01 32
5.c Cezar 01 05
5.d Gameboy Lamers 01 01
5.e Rapid Fire 01 16
5.f Subport 01 01
6. Paracox 00 00
7. -P -1 -1
8. Lost -2 -2
For the second time in a row, EURASIA is the top group. Good work!
.- Conclusion -------------------------------------------------------------.
It was a pretty slow month for the Gameboy Advance. We did see 3 very
nice Japanese releases in Klonoa, Mario Kart, and Street Fighter.
They are completely playable and great releases. This month marked a
very busy month for Japan, after several months of drought. The English
side of the scene has been very boring. American and European developers
need a couple months to get their titles out the door I guess. We can
expect things to pickup in the US and Europe in September. There were
several bad releases this month, but that is nothing out of the ordinary
this early in the scene. Every group makes mistakes. As long as they fix
them promptly and not be lame about it, it is all just a part of the
daily happenings in the scene.
Next month we can expect the American versions of Klonoa and Mario Kart.
Other than those releases, the month does not look to be too exciting.
Hopefully things will stay on schedule and we can expect some very busy
months from September - December. I hope that with the flood of new
games throughout these months, we can see action from groups other than
Mode 7 & Eurasia.
- Dropcom
.- Greetings & What We're Playing Currently -------------------------------.
Dropcom - Currently Playing:
- Max Payne / PC - Me and a PC game? Ugh. This one really rocks though.
- Time Splitters / PS2 - Still the best Deathmatch on any platform for me.
- Klonoa 2 / PS2 - A really nice sequel to a sleeper hit on the PS1.
- Bomberman Tournament / GBA - Can't get enough of the Battle Mode.
Greets to : Pocketheaven and Subport. I used them as the building blocks
of the chart. I am really happy that we can have websites in
the GBA scene that actually assist end-users and members of
release groups. It is the complete opposite on the PS2, where
websites try their best to piss off groups, and provide
cryptic and/or incorrect information for end-users while
thinking that they are helping them.
ennay - Currently Playing:
- Kuru Kuru Kururin / GBA - I blame this addiction on WayneKerr's (PUNK)
recommendation from last month's charts. :)
- Soldier of Fortune / DC - Checking out Echelon's great rip of a game I
I would otherwise ignore. (FPS? eeew)
- SSFIIx Revival / GBA - The Street Fighter that I grew up with! I feel
old now.
Greets to : Everyone who sent me a message regarding the first issue of
GBA Console World. It's really great to see some positive
feedback. See you in the next month's issue.
Zigor - Currently Playing:
- Mario Kart Advance / GBA - See my earlier comments, this game is fun,
especially in multiplayer mode.
- Super Street Fighter 2X / GBA - Just like the arcade, it rocks!
- Other consoles gathering dust at the moment, GBA rules!!
Greets to : Subport, Pocketheaven, everyone who is active in the GBA scene,
and of course, to all the channel flooders that beg for roms!
.--------------------------------------------------------------------------.