How GB Operator identifies fake cartridges
I recently found out that Epilogue released Retrace, an iOS and Android app that works with the GB Operator.
You can now connect the GB Operator to a phone, check whether a cartridge is genuine, and see what it is worth. It even shows separate values for loose and boxed copies.
At least, that is how it is supposed to work in theory.
In practice, the first problem was that the included cable would not do the job. The GB Operator comes with a USB-A to USB-C cable, while connecting it to a phone requires USB-C to USB-C.
I found a cable, but the app still could not see the device. At first I assumed the cable was the problem. It came from an old vape of mine, so I suspected it might be charge-only.
After trying several cables, I realized the problem went a little deeper. A quick search revealed that the GB Operator itself also had to be updated using a computer.
And of course that process could not possibly go smoothly.
During the update, the device got stuck on “Configuring — this may take up to a minute,” while the LED started cycling through every color imaginable. Nothing was happening, but unplugging a device while the screen is effectively screaming “DO NOT UNPLUG THE DEVICE” felt a little risky.
Eventually, after closing the program and reconnecting the GB Operator, it came back to life. The app recognized it, the firmware had apparently updated from 7.0.0 to 10.0.10, and the System version went from the mysterious 0.0.0 to 2.0.0.
With that out of the way, I could finally start testing cartridges.
The genuine copies of The Lost Vikings, Pokémon Sapphire, Donkey Kong, and Super Mario Land caused no problems. Retrace identified the games correctly and marked the cartridges as official.
There was never much doubt about those, so I started giving the app harder cases.
A blatantly fake Pocket Densha 2 was declared official with 98% confidence — despite the gray shell saying Game Boy Color on the side and the glorious word GAME where Nintendo GAME BOY should be at the top.
A licensed Chinese/Hong Kong 4-in-1 cartridge released by Mani long before iQue existed was not recognized at all.
The genuine iQue Chaoji Maliou 2 cartridge, better known as Super Mario Advance 2, was even more entertaining. On the first attempt Retrace marked it as unknown; on the second, it decided the cartridge was official with 95% confidence.
The developer still showed up as Unknown Developer, though, and the game itself as Unreleased. Apparently the Retrace developers have not read my articles about Nintendo's history in China.
Retrace correctly identified the EverDrive X5 as an EverDrive.
The EZ-Flash Omega Definitive Edition, on the other hand, was somehow identified as Anguna: Warriors of Virtue. The flash cartridge was in its normal mode, and Anguna was not even stored on it.
Then it turned out that the regular EZ-Flash Omega and EZ-Flash Air are also identified as Anguna. Retrace is about 97% confident every time.
At that point it no longer looks like a coincidence. Apparently the EZ-Flash lineup shares some boot code or image that Retrace mistakes for Anguna.
The experiment was interesting, but also rather bizarre.
It was fun to play with, but the app clearly offers no guarantee whatsoever. So before buying a cartridge, you still have to work out for yourself whether it is genuine or fake.