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The Game Boy Player is an extension for the GameCube that allows one to play Game Boy Advance games, as well as classic Game Boy and Game Boy Color games, on a TV screen. Like the Super Game Boy, the Game Boy Player includes the original hardware of the system whose games it is designed to play. Either a GameCube controller or a Game Boy Advance connected with the correct Link Cable can be used as the controller. The Game Boy Player comes with a boot disc which is required to run the Player hardware. The Player also supports hotswapping of cartridges, though the cartridges have to be deinitialized before they can be removed.
Some GBA games have an added rumble function when the GameCube controller is used. Game Boy Advance Video cartridges do not run on the Game Boy Player due to fears that the video could be recorded on a VCR and distributed illegally. Also, while WarioWare: Twisted!, Yoshi Topsy-Turvy, and games in the Boktai series do run, the games' special cartridge features are too impractical to use with the Player. With the first two games, the GameCube itself has to be held and moved around to use the tilt sensor in the cartridge, and with Boktai games, the GameCube has to be adjusted so that UV light, uncommon inside buildings, falls on the cartridge's sensor. Game Boy Color games with rumble support also run in the Player, but the rumble signals are not sent to the GameCube controller, as no programming exists in either the Game Boy Player or the original game to do this.
A competing unofficial product, called the Advance Game Port, was released by Datel, makers of Action Replay devices. Unlike the Game Boy Player, Datel's device used emulation, meaning that games had a chance of not running as accurately as on the Player. Game Boy Advance Video could be played without restriction on Advance Game Port.
In all countries, the Game Boy Player was released in black, however, in Japan, special colors were made for Game Boy Player, such as platinum and orange.
Controls[]
Using the GameCube controller with the Game Boy Player uses the following keys.
| GameCube controller | Game Boy Advance Control A | Game Boy Advance Control B |
|---|---|---|
| A | A | A |
| B | B | B |
| X | Select | R |
| Y | Select | L |
| L | L | Select |
| R | R | Select |
| Z | None | None |
| Start | Start | Start |
| Control Stick | Control Pad | Control Pad |
| Control Pad | Control Pad | Control Pad |
| C Stick | not used | Control Pad |
Pressing the Z Button opens the Game Boy Player menu. There, you can change from one of 20 frames, adjust the screen size, switch between controller layouts, edit the screen filter, activate a timer, and change the Game Boy Advance Game Pak.