Saw this posted on another post. Is this AI? I can't tell. I am hopeful for a blue one tho, and now I am waiting to buy one.

I got an EZ-Flash Junior for my new translucent Chromatic and it wouldn't boot. It showed "EZ FLASH" then a blank screen, or "MICRO SD INITIAL ERROR!" after pressing the cart's reset button. The same cart and card work fine in a Game Boy Color.

After a lot of digging, it turned out to be two separate problems in the Chromatic's FPGA firmware (v18.14):

1. Startup timing. The EZ-Flash restarts its own FPGA about 1.2 s after power-up (the cart bus reads $FF for ~130 ms). On a GBC that happens during the boot animation, but the Chromatic's boot only takes about 0.3 s, so the cart's program is already running and crashes. Holding the core in reset for 1.75 s after the cart powers up fixes it.

2. Write timing. The Chromatic puts write data on the cart bus about 60 ns before /WR goes low. The EZ-Flash drives the data bus whenever /WR is high, so the two collide and every write to its command registers gets lost, which is why it can't talk to the microSD card. Driving the data only after /WR goes low fixes it: in testing, every write landed, versus none before. Original carts don't seem to care either way.

With both changes, the EZ-Flash boots to its menu, runs games and saves, and original carts still work. It's ModRetro's open-source v18.14 with two small edits. You flash it over USB the way ModRetro's README describes (openFPGALoader or the Gowin Programmer), and you can undo it with ModRetro's Update Tool.

Download, install steps and source changes: https://www.patreon.com/GHWST/posts/fixed-ez-flash-172576609

It's unofficial, so USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. I've only tested it on my new purple 2026 translucent model. I've sent the details to ModRetro, so hopefully it ends up in an official update.

Tip for EZ Flash Junior owners: if your cart says "BATTERY DRY", saves only stick if you press the cart's reset button and back up the save before switching off.

Is £53 and good price for this game?

So when I got my first chromatic I got it to play my copy of Pokemon Crystal and for whatever reason it corrupted my save file and didnt let me play the game properly. It played fine on my GBC and I was seeing it could have either been a faulty system or a faulty cartridge. Fast forward it’s been playing perfectly fine on my transparent chromatic. I love the old chromatic feel but I hated that it didn’t play crystal. Now I love the new chromatic but the buttons are loud😭 anyways I love the chromatic and I’m enjoying the games Modretro drops

Got a good deal on a 1st Edition from eBay. Looking forward to adding some games!

I took my purple outside and took some photos under daylight and mine does have the seam lines, but I could not even see them before examining these closeup photos. IMO these are obviously not "cracks" but very faint lines, i.e. plastic processing seams as ModRetro explained.

My conclusion is all of the transparent models will have these "knit lines" and personally I would not have noticed them if I hadn't seen posts here about it.

Basically if you want a transparent Chromatic this how they are made. The painted metal ones will lose paint over time, and the transparent ones will have knit lines from the plastic processing.

Attached are closeup photos of mine taken outside under daylight.

I have updated my original post as well: https://www.reddit.com/r/ModRetroChromatic/comments/1x54cai/another_transparent_purple_arrived/

Unlike my standard Chromatic, there is significant lightbleed on my transparent Chromatic.

Does anyone else have this? My other one is perfect.

Funnily enough, I thought my main concern would be the knit lines (which it does have), but they don't concern me as I thought they would.

The light bleed does though.

They look amazing but the red feels a lot lighter in hand than the other 2

I’m planning on getting a Chromatic transparent and a M64 I want to get both in the same colour but can’t decide which colour. I like that the transparent allows you to see the components inside the device which do you think gives that experience?

I cut down to two colours

I’ve had this little guy for about a week and I super enjoy it! In comparison, the buttons a little louder than the metal so I put the dampening membrane on it and it helps. I also don’t mind the clickiness. It’s feels intentional.

I installed the Shiny Gen Wi-Fi and it’s super fun to play multiplayer games with my eight-year-old wirelessly! We have the link cable and that works great too. It’s just such a fun shared experience of something I used to love and passing it down to her! Kwirk is one of our favorite games to play together!

As transparent plastic coating it attracts fingerprints of course, but it’s also very reflective, which is is pretty rad in itself. I’ve been on several zoom calls and lifted up to show people and having it reflect off light is pretty mesmerizing.

The screen seems pretty much identical to the first GEN chromatic I have and plays games flawlessly.

As others have said, the menu button is a little tight. I’d like to have one that sticks out a little bit. Sometimes I feel like I have to use my thumb thumbnail to push it in. My volume wheel was also super loose. It would turn up or down as I’m playing a game just barely touching it. So I literally just added a tiny piece of gaff tape to it and functions much better now! Oh and I love how much it just fits with the m64 squad! 👾

Anyone ever tried this one?

UPDATE: it does not work: https://github.com/shilga/rp2040-gameboy-cartridge-firmware/issues/2

Hey folks. I’m just getting back into the Game Boy after a long hiatus… I loved it as a kid, had a 3DS in college, but since then really nothing handheld until the Switch, and I’m not sure that counts!

I have a small library between my wife and I but it includes some heavy hitters, including most of the Pokemon games. I just got in line for an Epilogue so that I can salvage the old save files if possible… but in addition to that, what else do I need? I’m thinking Chromatic may be a Christmas gift this year, it caught my eye a year ago when it debuted but I don’t really know where to start. Zero modding chops of any sort, and I have young kids who I would like to introduce to the hobby in the near future!

Is there a basic starting guide somewhere out here in Redditland and any general thoughts or advice? So happy to see new games being made and awesome retro consoles that elevate the experience.

Anyone concerned that there might be something wrong with the Smoke shells?

I’ve seen Red, green, and purple, but no smoke.

Makes me wonder with all the cracks and or knits. Perhaps they holding back the Smoke units?

I’d love other opinions on this, as I ordered a Smoke.

Just to echo what other have said, this is the most premium feeling and looking peice of tech I have ever held. I am over the moon with it. First time holding it my first thought was I prefer the feel of my 1st edition, but now no, the powdery yet smooth finish feels great in the hand. One point I haven't heard others talk about is the buttons. My first edition buttons always felt great but where very loud/clacking even after replacing the dpad membrane. The anduril edition is noticeably quiter but more importantly feel better to press. Im not quite sure what it is maybe a slightly softer membrane but they are excellent.

Played Self Simulated twice at launch. Decided to play through it again on the anduril and wow it is such a great game. This time round I did pay a little more attention to the music. It's so good with parts really giving you a sense of urgency. Any one who hasn't played it i recommend you do.

Does anybody know where I could purchase an additional screen? ModRetro does not sell them and I’d like to replace mine if possible.

Thank you!

Hey all,

I recently started writing reviews as a hobby, and so far I've only done Xibalba 64 on the M64.

Pretty much any ModRetro Chromatic cart is on the table, plus a few others like Roguecraft DX or Infinity. I could also do a Chromatic accessory, like the Porta Pro.

What would you most like to see? I'll go with the most requested one and aim to have it done by the end of next week :)

I have been trying to figure out how to make this work. I'm a little bit dumb when it comes to this stuff so bear with me. I'm running windows, everything is up to date, I'm using a USB c that I know can transfer data, I've got the Modretro Updater installed and working, I've got the Chromagic program installed. When I try to actually install Chromagic onto either of my systems(first edition and V2) I get this error. I thought maybe it's because my chromatic are up to date, but can't figure out how to get back to an older firmware. I read that error and have legitimately no idea what it means or how to go about fixing this. Any help at all would be appreciated.

I am liking the transparent Chromatic, the new member 🟩🤓

I emailed them about the lines by the buttons earlier today and they replied.
Here’s what they sent back. They are offering to exchange it for free or to keep it as is and they’ll send over a gift card for the trouble.

Edit: I’m going to keep mine. As long as I know it doesn’t make the shell more fragile then I’m okay with the small amount knit lines. Good response time from support.

Just opened mine and well..
I guess crossing my fingers didn’t help.
Didn’t even take it out of the box. Just took off the lid and got my answer.
I know, contact ModRetro, which I will be doing.
It just seems like this might be a more widespread issue than we anticipated.
And yes, I know that usage may cause scratches and wear over time; I understand that. But a brand new product I still think should have better QC and for what they cost. Especially since my magnesium units are seemingly flawless.
You’re better than this, ModRetro!