The proliferation of many different kinds of emulation handhelds in recent years might have absolutely nothing to do with the fact that no major hardware manufacturer has a dedicated handheld on the market. Or, the fact that Nintendo (and other companies) has no cheap, utilitarian handheld on the market could be the main factor in why companies like Retroid, Anbernic, and Powkiddy are releasing iteration afer iteration of devices that have a primary function of using emulators to play, often pirated, ROMs from the former company’s back catalogues. I know that this is a site for emulation, but sometimes I think that I would rather have one of the big video game publishers release a dedicated handheld that has a steady flow of new games than have a market flooded with poor-quality devices that can only play old games.
With emulation, there is also the possibility of homebrew which makes things a bit more appealing. However, what some of us enjoy doing, is putting together customized machines from aftermarket parts to recreate old experiences (and play the classics rather than a new game that might not be up to standard). These machines look and feel new, yet in design, are the same consoles that released between thirty and fifteen years ago. There is a growing market of engineers that are creating screen kits, battery kits, special lihgting and buttons, and much more. ExtremeRate provides many of the shells for these modding needs. If you have never heard of them before, they make new and beautiful shells for the Game Boy Color, Game Boy Advance, Game Boy Advance SP and for many more consoles and controllers. Read on for a discussion of some of the best looking ExtremeRate shells.
The rebirth of the Glacier GBA
The first shell that we will discuss is the namesake of the GBA that I had as a child. The original glacier transparent GBA was heavily marketed and had a blueish hue to it. The Extremerate version has more of a black hue but is still reminiscent of the version from 2002. I’ve paired it with some black buttons that I had laying around and this build looks great with a Hispeedido IPS screen. All extremerate shells are designed to fit non-laminated IPS screens, but they can also accomodate regular non-backlit GBA screens if need be.
In the nicely packaged, ExtremeRate branded box comes two screwdrivers, the shell including all external and internal parts, screws, screen frame, lens, and stickers. There’s also clear buttons and rubbers that I didn’t use as I used other black buttons. The shell is beautifully clean and scratch free. Once you put your old motherboard in the shell it is like have a brand new system. Its important that the shoulder buttons are installed level, as they should be. You then get a nice flush press with a click at the end. They might not be analogue triggers, but they’re just as satisfying to press. Once my build was complete I ran through a few classic GBA games with my GBA Everdrive. There was a slight pressur point on the screen which makes the display look washed out in one corner. But, that’s just a minor error. With practice of re-shelling, I should be knowing the internals well enough to know what is putting pressure on the screen and how to avoid it.
The NES GBA reimagined
Back in the day, around 2004, there was a special NES GBA SP. This console released with the line of NES ports to GBA, and was the coolest handheld on the market at the time of release (but the PSP would soon change things). Ironically, I also owned th n mj ce NES editionn GBA SP. ExtremeRate have recreated the style, but on a regular GBA rather than a GBA SP. The console has red and grey buttons and art that mixes the actual NES console and the NES controller. It’s a great looking machine.
The buttons feel nice to press, and the shouulder triggers were installed nicely.The kit came well packaged, in an almost identical way to the glacier GBA. This one had extra red buttons so, this build, unlike the former, uses buttons from ExtremeRate. I can confirm they feel great. The button plastic pads were also included. As I started testing the console I noticed that my Castlvenia Harmony of Disonence reproduction ROM hack cart had major difficulties getting in to the console. The cart got well and truly stuck and I had to use pliers to pull it out (it was really wedged in). It was so bad that I was sure that the cart was bloated or something. Most of my other carts fit including all GB sized game cartridges. It seems some GBA carts get stuck. Maybe with use, over time, the game boy will accept carts a bit more easily.
This obviously put a downer on my modding experience. However, I’m sure that the problem will ease over time. I’m suspicious that it is because I screwed in the metal board guard the wrong way around, and they were a milimetre or two protruding into the area where the cartridge goes in. With these kits you also assemble the battery spring. Its useful if you have another to reference whike you set this up. Its easy but you have to knows the trick. Hopefully, the spring will keep the battery there with no problem. Copy how it is orientated in another GBA. The shell has the same high quality feel as the glacier GBA, and is also great looking.
Conclusion
The games that we grew up with are not all amazing titles, however nostalgia is powerful. Conversely, some of the work that homebrew developers are doing is great, and it’s keeping these old systems alive. Yet, the classics still form the core libraries of the SNES, MegaDrive, GBA, and GBC (the systems where homebrew is blossoming). For GBA, re-shelling these devices is something many of us do often and ExtremeRate understands this and have provided some great quality shells. The ones I’ve written about today recreate some of the classc GBA systems of the past. If you can, pair it with an IPS screen and probably a battery mod. It’s a shame that with the NES shell, the carts have such a tight fit. It may be from my own assembling incompetence that this has happened, or it could be that the material that was used causes this problem often. Or, it could be that my repro GBA cart has an issue with it. However, that is just a minor problem. Overall, these shells are great and you shouldn’t hesitate in trying them out if you like the look of them.
BongoBongo123 is an avid Zelda fan who also likes the odd game of Smash. His interests in gaming are broad but he loves a good Metroidvania or action RPGs.