See also this thread on the subject of the Virtual Boy appearing in both Seinfeld and Frasier:

http://www.planetvb.com/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?post_id=29980#forumpost29980

It was noted there that NBC teamed up with Blockbuster during the Must See 3-D Sweepstakes advertising campaign for the Virtual Boy, so the appearances of the Virtual Boy in NBC shows at that time were likely deliberate advertising attempts for the Virtual Boy.

It was also noted that these shows were on NBC at the time:

Friends
Mad About You
Hope and Gloria
Madmen of the People
The Single Guy
Caroline in the City

Nobody has confirmed whether the Virtual Boy made an appearance in any of the episodes of one of these programs, but it is very possible that it did. I was planning to check the Friends season of the year 1995 but never got around to it.

Lester Knight wrote:
I wish the footage showed what that first guy was playing. =)

What he was playing was certainly the precursor to Mario Clash, which looked very much like the very first Mario Bros. game, so the one even before Super Mario Bros. 1. One can see an image of that early version of Mario Clash here: http://www.planetvb.com/uploads/newbb/1643_512ad420c65ef.jpg

Thus, he wouldn’t have been playing a demo of the unreleased VB Mario Land, which is actually a good thing, or else I would be terribly jealous.

bigmak wrote:
… I can see possibly making 5-10 once a year if real fans (not just collectors or fly by night collectors) are interested…

Separating the wheat from the chaff might be a bit difficult there, unless “real fans” are simply determined based on their public activeness on Planet Virtual Boy.

The last I heard from the makers of the repro carts, there are no plans to release any more copies of those games. So yes, they were limited runs that have since sold out, and if you want one of them, then you’ll have to stay on the lookout for anyone selling their copy in the future, which usually means a tough bidding war, unfortunately.

Here is where you will find the available ROMs for games that were likely released after you got out of the loop:

The Permitted Release of the Bound High! Prototype:
http://www.planetvb.com/modules/games/?u001d

The Leak / Unauthorized Release of the Space Pinball Prototype:
http://www.planetvb.com/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?post_id=17180#forumpost17180

The Unauthorized Release of the Faceball Prototype; plus the hacked “finalized” version:
http://www.planetvb.com/modules/games/?u005d

The Released Hyper Fighting Demo:
http://www.planetvb.com/modules/games/?h082d

If you want to play these ROMs on your Virtual Boy system, there is no need to search long and hard for some reproduction carts that have been made for some of these, since you can enjoy all of them on a FlashBoy Plus. Thus, if you haven’t already done so, you can order one from Richard Hutchinson by following the instructions here:

http://www.planetvb.com/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?topic_id=4155&start=0

speedyink wrote:
I’m not sure what to make of this one

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Space-Invaders-Virtual-Collection-Watch-Nintendo-Virtual-Boy-Japan-NEW-/331609734163?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4d357afc13

It’s cool that the game is of brand new quality, and the watch looks like the VB space invaders, but the watch says 2004 on the back, so it can’t be to do with the game. Coincidence I guess? Either way, too much money.

Based on this article:

http://whiterabbitexpress.com/space-invaders-led-watch-by-taito-and-hulahoop-design-factory/

It looks like Taito wanted the watch to represent the original 1978 arcade game. Nevertheless, the red and black sure do make it look representative of the Virtual Boy version, which is pretty cool.

The article also shows that the watch cost less than 200 US Dollars when it came out in 2004, so yeah, I don’t think it has reached the value of the seller’s asking price yet. It would probably be a better idea to search Yahoo Auctions Japan for スペースインベーダー時計, if one wants to find the watch at a more reasonable price.

The games that I’ve been playing recently or will be playing again soon are all project-related. Thus, the last VB game I played was Virtual Fishing, and the main reason why I played it was to create the English translations for the game. The next game that I’ll be playing very soon again is Faceball, and that’s because I hope to release my 20th Anniversary Edition of the game sometime in September, so in just a little over a month from now. After that, I’ll be playing Mansion of Insmouse again, as part of the work on the All Hallow’s Eve version of the game that I hope to release on Halloween of this year.

tetris911 wrote:
Nice to see kotaku giving the Virtual boy some attention today!

Too bad the only attention given is basically, “It’s true that the Virtual Boy sucked, but at least it didn’t cause Nintendo to stop trying new things.”

Oh well…

Happy Birthday Virtual Boy!

Alejandro Martinez wrote:
Hello Everyone at Plant Virtual Boy!

I’m Hoping to enjoy the service this website has to offer. That also I hope to share my connections with other Virtual Boy owners and their experiences with the device it’s self! Is there anything I should know of about the website it’s self? Things I should try? Still new here, and wondering what I should check . up with. Thank you all for reading!

Well, it seems that first and foremost, you should know how to access all of the Virtual Boy ROMS for your viewing and playing pleasure. If you would like to do so with an emulator and you don’t already have one, then I recommend downloading the one named “My Emulator Doesn’t Need A Frickin’ Excellent Name,” also known simply as Mednafen, here:

Mednafen download:
http://www.planetvb.com/modules/tech/?sec=emus&eid=mednafen

To enjoy all of the games that have been made available by the fine programmers on this site, visit this page here:

Featured Homebrew Games
http://www.planetvb.com/modules/games/?hf

For each game you want to download, first click on the name of the game and then click on the downloads tab on the next screen to find the ROM. Also, note that the Featured Homebrew Games link I provided brings you to a screen that itself has several different tabs. If you truly want to see every ROM that this site has to offer, click on the “All” tab of that screen and then check to see if there are ROMs available in the downloads tab for each title you click on.

If you are looking for ROMs of the commercially released games, please understand that these do not become available to Planet Virtual Boy users until they have been a member of this site for about 6 months and have made at least 10 posts in the forums, in which case they can then find them by going to Games/Released Games, clicking on the title, and then finding the download in the downloads tab. Nevertheless, the website of emuparadise will get you those games right away, if you want to check them out.

On the other hand, this site has had quite the history of getting prototype games, or games that were never commercially released, made available for everyone to play by various means, and you should be able to access them right now in places that are not so prominent on the site, so here they are:

The Permitted Release of the Bound High! Prototype:
http://www.planetvb.com/modules/games/?u001d

The Leak / Unauthorized Release of the Space Pinball Prototype:
http://www.planetvb.com/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?post_id=17180#forumpost17180

The Unauthorized Release of the Faceball Prototype; plus the hacked “finalized” version:
http://www.planetvb.com/modules/games/?u005d

Most importantly, if you want to enjoy absolutely everything on your Virtual Boy system itself, then definitely order a FlashBoy Plus from Richard Hutchinson if you have not already done so:
http://www.planetvb.com/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?topic_id=4155&start=0

HP Lovethrash wrote:

I will definitely post pics when I open mine finally…the manual appears to be an actual booklet as far as I can see. The back of the box has the Nintendo seal, pictures, description, etc. that you would expect. Overall the box’s print quality isn’t as high as an original would be, but it’s still pretty convincing.

When you get around to making pics of the contents on the box and manual, etc., can you be sure to include scans of each page of the instruction booklet? I’m curious to see how much of what they made is a direct translation of the original Japanese contents and how much is simply their own take based on their knowledge of the game.

Attached are scans that I made of the original Japanese contents.

Attachments:

1. 

   chalvo-55-box-front.jpg
   

2. 

   chalvo-55-box-back.jpg
   

3. 

   chalvo-55-instruction-booklet-front-and-back-covers.jpg
   

4. 

   chalvo-55-instruction-booklet-pages-0-1.jpg
   

5. 

   chalvo-55-instruction-booklet-pages-2-3.jpg
   

6. 

   chalvo-55-instruction-booklet-pages-4-5.jpg
   

7. 

   chalvo-55-instruction-booklet-pages-6-7.jpg
   

8. 

   chalvo-55-instruction-booklet-pages-8-9.jpg
   

9. 

   chalvo-55-instruction-booklet-pages-10-11.jpg
   

10. 

    chalvo-55-instruction-booklet-pages-12-13.jpg
    

11. 

    chalvo-55-instruction-card.jpg
    

MineStorm wrote:

I was sent here from another VG Dev site. I’m curious if this can be used to rip the sound files from games and create a multitrack cart of all known VB sound files. Perhaps same for graphics library. Then we code it into a VB info cart with info on the games, BG’s, graphical assets, histories, etc.

Yes, that would make a great cart. If someone does the hacking, I’ll definitely build them.

If such a cart were made, it would make all of my wildest, giddy little schoolboy dreams come true…

Just to bicker a little about the ebay listing…

I don’t know much about the English reproduction version of Chalvo 55, but if I am going to buy an English reproduction version of a game, where the game itself is already mostly in English, then there had better be a very fancy box and instruction manual to go along with the game, whose English contents make the purchase worthwhile. With this listing, there is no telling what is on the back of the box, and the instruction “manual” looks simply like a sheet, and the description even says it’s a sheet, so is there even a guarantee that there are English instructions on the back?

This listing could have been created much better is all I’m saying…

speedyink wrote:
Huh, Don’t see these everyday.

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/Insmouse-no-Yakata-20-pack-Nintendo-Virtual-Boy-Japan-NEW-/331458963922?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4d2c7e69d2

Holy moly!

Gotta preserve those pics.

Attachments:

1. 

   mansion-of-insmouse-20-piece-box-set-1.jpg
   

2. 

   mansion-of-insmouse-20-piece-box-set-2.jpg
   

Vectrexer wrote:
I would like to thank everyone for their discussion points. I have enjoyed reading them even if the points have threadjacked the original purpose of this thread. You have given me a few ideas that in the end some of you may, or may not, agree with. In fact you might have a like and dislike feeling int he very same thought. So thank yourself ahead of time as I am doing now. Thank you! 😀

Obviously, it’s your copy of the game, so you get to handle the sale however you want, but I would like to suggest that you make it a “publicly known private auction.” Thus, publicly post a time limit that people have to send you their best offers for your copy of the game, but have them send their offers to you privately, so through PM or e-mail, etc. At the end of the time limit, contact the person who sent you the highest bid and offer to sell him the game for that amount. If he then backs out, offer it to the next highest bidder, etc. The winning bid amount, therefore, never has to be made public. To me, this would be the fairest way to handle the situation, as it gives everyone, who originally missed out, a chance to own the game, and the highest bid amount doesn’t have to be rubbed in the face of Mr. Anon.

Recently, an original Virtual Bowling cart with its original instruction booklet sold on Yahoo! Auctions Japan for 30,655 Japanese Yen = 224.42 Euros = 158.70 British Pounds = 325.41 Australian Dollars = 249.67 US Dollars.

http://page5.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/e158883940

Considering that a copy of Virtual Bowling with its instructions and original box still consistently sells online for the equivalent of 1,200.00 US Dollars on average, I must say that the lucky winner of this auction got a very good deal!

Attachments:

1. 

   virtual-bowling-cart-and-instructions-auction-1.jpg
   

2. 

   virtual-bowling-cart-and-instructions-auction-2.jpg
   

MineStorm wrote:
The only problem I have is that some where allowed to buy more than one copy. It’s obvious what they intended to do from the start. Plus, it denied others getting the game.

Under normal circumstances, I would agree with you there, but in the case of Hyper Fighting, I am under the impression that it is necessary for one to have at least 2 carts, if one ever wants to enjoy the 2-player option. Thus, it would make sense for a person who was part of the “in crowd” to buy 2 copies of the game once he heard that it would include 2-player support, just in case he wanted to play it with one or more of his friends, who aren’t otherwise Virtual Boy enthusiasts and who, therefore, would not have been included among the “in crowd.”

Also, since my name has been mentioned on this thread, I simply want to reiterate that my main concern with copies of Hyper Fighting being sold secretly was how it might affect Mr. Anon, since I basically forced him into a predicament where he could not freely make and sell the game he spent hundreds of hours on because I chose the game for him to make, which is a copyright protected game. If Mr. Anon is truly okay with his creation being sold and resold as such, then I myself have no problems with it.

[Benjamin Stevens]

vuefinder83 wrote:

I plugged in 4 official Nintendo USA ac adapters and they all fit. The ac adapters I used all say for use with Super NES and Virtual Boy. The sticker inside the Tap says (usa) next to the model number and has english text.

My Japan adapter taps all say (jpn) next to the model number and have Japanese text. So im quite positive that this is an official Nintendo USA adapter tap.

I tried plugging in a japan ac adapter into this tap and it did not fit.

Thanks for that. Based on the photo you provided, I certainly thought that it must be legit. Nevertheless, I just wanted to be sure. 🙂

I myself was not previously aware that a USA version of the demo tap existed. I have to assume that all of the USA retail taps have the four square-shaped depressions and, therefore, not the four rectangular depressions of the USA demo tap. Thus, I would only expect these USA demo taps with the rectangular depressions to have been included in the white system boxes along with the USA demo systems. I, like HoMenace, am also curious to know if the USA demo taps were originally packaged inside their own white boxes like the preproduction taps. This now makes me wonder if a USA version of the preproduction tap that I referenced earlier also exists. I certainly have never seen or heard of one.

Just how many AC Adapter tap variants might there be, just waiting to be added to the collections of Virtual Boy completists? 🙂

• This reply was modified 11 years ago by Benjamin Stevens.

Let me first start off with a couple of questions:

1. To be sure, when you say “USA Demo Unit,” you are referring to a Virtual Boy system that originally came in a white box, right? It should look like the one in the following link, but it should also have “VUE S RA / Virtual Boy W/O Software / For Interactive Display / Made in Japan” written on the front and certain other sides of the box:

http://www.planetvb.com/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?post_id=31069#forumpost31069

2. Also, if you take a USA Super Nintendo AC adapter, or otherwise any AC adapter that will work in a Nintendo or Super Nintendo that was commercially released in the United States, and you try to insert its end into the tap that you are referring to as a “USA Tap,” will it fit?

vuefinder83 wrote:

I work for the school department, and about two and a half years ago or so,there was a very old elementary school in the Riverside section of East Providence that was set for demolition. Myself and a few other guys were called to go there and help salvage any old furniture and desks that could be donated to other schools. Well, imagine my excitement when I walked into the old music room of the school and saw 3 TravelMaster case’s stacked on top of each other, yea I almost died…I opened up each case to take a peek inside and they were all filled with random speaker wires and stuff. I then asked my boss if i can keep the case’s, but he said there were still teachers that were supposed to return to the school to gather the rest of their stuff and said it wouldn’t be a good idea (agreed). Anyway, we didn’t finish the job that day so we all had to return to the school the very next day,but this time I brought my Blockbuster rental case with me for comparisons, and they were all the same cases,only the foam in the TravelMasters were completely ripped out of them. I left a note with my cell # taped to the case’s saying that i would buy them but I never received a call.

Wow… that’s incredible. Was there evidence that foam had originally been in the cases and was later ripped out, or could it be that the cases never had foam for the Virtual Boy inserted into them? I’m wondering now if, perhaps, those cases were originally intended to hold other things, and once Southern Case learned that one of the types of cases they had already been making would be a perfect size for the Virtual Boy system, they simply converted one of their existing cases into a Virtual Boy system carrying case.

Dreammary wrote:
… it doesn’t bother me to have it laying on my face…

Do you simply use the regular eyeshade when you do that, or do you add something softer to the Virtual Boy head unit before you let it rest on your face?

Whenever I have tried to lie down flat and let the head unit rest on my face, having nothing more on it than the original eyeshade, the head unit would usually dig into the top of my nose or else crush my whole nose, so I couldn’t last more than about an hour if I did that. I’d like to think that I don’t have that big of a nose, but I guess mine is probably larger than most people’s.