Pushing consoles and computers to their respective limits by “hacking” with the available hardware can be a lot of fun. NTDev, a well-known developer and YouTuber, knows this well when it makes Windows 11 workable with only 176MB of RAM. Yet, it is even more fascinating to reason with particularly dated devices which, despite their age, can still amaze the public. Recently, for example, there has been talk on the Internet of a different approach tooverclocking del Game Boy: after 35 years, the CPU can be pushed even further to its limits!
Game Boy overclocked to 5.35 MHz, what an achievement!
As evidenced by Nicole Express, user nensondubois recently released a hack ROM per World Heroes 2 Jet on Super Game Boy. For the uninitiated, the Super Game Boy is a cartridge that bridges the gap between the GB and the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (NES), allowing the SNES to play cartridges for the GB. Thus, the Super Game Boy uses the same hardware as the GB to emulate the game on the Super NES.
Why is this accessory needed? Quite simply, inside you will find the tools you need in order to carry the Sharp LR35902 processor custom – based on Intel 8080 and Zilog Z80 chips – beyond its base clock speed of 4.19 MHz.
Just think that with normal use of the Super Game Boy you get a slight overclock, as it operates at 4.295 MHz. The hack conceived by nensondubois, on the other hand, enables a “Turbo mode” which allows the device to operate at 5.35 MHz, showing graphical glitches and much faster audio. This is a natural consequence of overclocking, as it supercharges the system far beyond its capabilities.
Nicole Express confirms that this change is only possible on SNES side with Super Game Boy, and not through the portable console’s BIOS, and that Nintendo has adopted a specific system to prevent the “geeks” of the time from modifying the register to obtain greater power. Now, however, the secret has been discovered and who knows how the owners of the original hardware will enjoy themselves.