Help with GBA link cable!

colin9102 · Age: 30 Joined: 24 May 2009 Posts: 18

I got a GameBoy Advance for my birthday so I could play the MBN games. My brother and I love them and we purchase opposing games. (As in, I buy MBN6 Falzar and he buys MBN6 Gregar) We wanted to battle and trade chips so my brother got a GBA as well even though he already has a DS. (Me? I'm a proud PSP owner) Afterwords we ordered a GBA Link cable off of eBay. However, it doesn't seem to be working for us. I'll give as much info as I can so hopefully someone will know what to do.

Both GBAs are used. Mine is from eBay, my brothers is from GameStop. Everything is in working order, even the link slots. How do i know? A wireless adapter came with my GBA and when I have it plugged in with my BN5 Colonel, the ability to choose Crossover battle on the start screen appears. I've tried this with both GBAs and both work.

The game link cable came all the way from Hong Kong so I would guess it's a Japanese one (Although that shouldn't make any difference) . The cable actually looks a little different then the one portrayed on the Nintendo support site. Nintendo shows a link cable with a box in the middle of it. Mine is just a pure wire with link connections on both sides. I looked on eBay today and noticed people were advertising cables like mine to be for GBA SP. Meanwhile other people are selling cables with the box in the middle for GBA. From the looks of the Nintendo support site, the box in the middle is supposed to just be used to connect more cables if you wanted to play a 3-4 player game. So I wouldn't think that should make any difference. Also, didn't the GBA SP just have a brighter screen and smaller size? Or did it also have hardware improvements where certain cables would be made only for the SP? Basically, is my perfectly smooth cable just for GBA SP or both? (If you need a picture, just ask and I'll get on it)

If the cable can work for the GBA, are there other ways connections might not work? When my brother and I tried to connect BN6, it just stayed on the screen saying that my friend wasn't ready. We made sure to choose the exact same battle choice and our cables were certainly connected. Could the connection slots be dusty? Could the cable be defective? The eBay seller didn't give much information on the cable, and it came in a small package all by itself, not in its original packaging. Did I perhaps get ripped and sold a fake or defective cable? It looks real, but maybe it isn't or it was a factory reject.

Anyway, I would really appreciate any help on this so I can know if there's something else I need to try or maybe I need to purchase another.

Oh by the way. The Nintendo support site said that some games might require you to do more than just connect the cable. Is there something else I have to do with BN6 and BN5 to connect them?

linkfreak131 · Posted: Mon Jan 11, 2010 9:49 pm Post subject:

Sometimes this happens with my cable. I have played via GBA cable with my cousin; him having BN6 Falzar, and me having BN6 Gregar. sometimes, the cables wouldn't connect. Now, the cable that I have, I bought a very long time ago that came with a set with a GBA light, screen protector, and the cable; so, basically, it was an off brand. If you're able to post pictures of it, then I can compare yours to mine.

One of the main issues I have always had with it was that I had to switch the slots between GBAs for some reason. I think it may have been because, on one end, there was a "big block shape", and on the other, there wasn't one. Somehow, that block made a difference on which GBA it was plugged into; no idea why. O_o I'm not sure if yours has though, though, but I know for some reason the official Nintendo ones didn't.

Try blowing into the cable on both ends, and also into the slots on the GBA's. No, it shouldn't matter if you're using a GBA or a GBASP; they're practically the same system, the only difference is the light and the placements of the components inside.
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megarush · Posted: Tue Jan 12, 2010 4:30 pm Post subject:

I also got an off brand cable and it is really picky
My switch has to be set on the good side AND my cables have to be put in straight, the moment the connectors are tilted sideway(even just a tiny bit) it breaks the communication

Now I dunno if your cable is transparent but if it is then check is any wire inside is broken because its possible that only one of the wire is broken. This could mean the wire works when tilted one way but doesn't work when tilted the other way
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colin9102 · Age: 30 Joined: 24 May 2009 Posts: 18

Hmmm, thanks for the help guys. I'm pretty much going on the side of it being defective. I'll try looking at the wire since the chord is transparent like Megarush suggested, but if for some reason that's not it or tilting it doesn't work, I'll just see if I can get a replacement from the seller.

Dark Roll · Posted: Wed Jan 13, 2010 4:44 pm Post subject:

ironically, the only badly working linkcable i bought was a nintendo brand. the blue dragon retractable game cable works beaufifully and the generic one i currently own works the best.
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