The SNES Game Genie conundrum

[jperryss]

Hi all,
Several months back I noticed that my Game Genie did not work properly in my SNES mini. Only codes #1 and #5 (first and last) worked. I did some searching here on DPF and determined that this was an effect of the design of the SNES mini (possibly intentional on Nintendo's part, as we all know how much they hated the GG). Many people have noted this incompatibility between the GG and the SNES mini. Fair enough.

Fast forward several months. I know own a second SNES, this one is a model 1, unmodified and minty fresh (it even still has the warning sticker about powering off the console before popping out a cartridge ). I try out several games (including Actraiser 2, Contra III, and several other non-FX games) and once again only codes #1 and #5 work (I confirmed this by switching the order of the codes around).

I then try the reboot trick (enter 0000-0000, hit Start, then Reset and see if the codes changed). Supposedly this would tell me if my GG has a bad slot. I try this a few times and confirm that codes 2, 3, and 4 are consistently modified after the reset. Yes, the same three codes that do not end up working for everyone are definitely being 'corrupted' on bootup.

Apparently there are different revisions of the model 1 SNES, and different revisions of the GG. My SNES is a model 1 but I don't know much beyond that (if the numbers on the SNES console can identify how 'old' it is, I can post mine here in the thread). My GG adds the dash in the code after I enter the first four characters, which, according to what I've read here, makes it a 'later' revision of GG.

At this point I believe that the reset trick means nothing as far as whether or not the GG (or SNES for that matter) has a bad/damaged/failed port, due to the fact that it's always the same three codes that do not work for people. Too coincidental. I also believe that trying the reset trick above will tell you right off the bat if your GG and SNES will play nice, or if you'll have the first/last problem, like I and many others have had. And obviously, those three codes aren't working because they're getting corrupted once you boot into the game. But is it the GG or the SNES that's to blame? I 'knew' it was the SNES when I had problems on the SNES mini, but since I'm seeing similar problems with the SNES1, I now have my doubts.

Honestly, this isn't a real 'problem' for me, I rarely use the GG. I'm mainly trying to get to the bottom of the mystery. If there's a solid conclusion that's been reached regarding the different revs of SNES and GG, I couldn't find it.

Please post here if your experiences reflect or contradict mine. Maybe we can break this down by console and GG revisions. And maybe, just maybe, this will help other people down the road.

Thanks!