Wireless multiplayer, games and apps for your ModRetro Chromatic.
Free.
Shiny Relay is a free add-on for the Chromatic. It carries the Game Boy link cable over Wi-Fi, and it puts games and apps on your Tetris cartridge over USB, with no flash cart.
Install it from Chrome or Edge on a computer, over USB. The stock firmware can be put back.
What you get
- Wireless multiplayer Trade, battle and play 2-player link-cable games with no cable. Two Chromatics nearby with no router, or a friend anywhere over the internet. You need: a Chromatic with Shiny Relay. For online play, Wi-Fi and a free Shiny Gen account. Install Shiny Relay
- Games and apps on the Tetris cartridge Put a game on your ModRetro Tetris cartridge from your browser, over USB. No flash cart. The page backs up your Tetris and its save first, and can put them back any time. You need: a Chromatic with Shiny Relay, a ModRetro Tetris cartridge, and Chrome or Edge on a computer. Open the cartridge page
- Tetris online: PARTY BATTLE PARTY BATTLE for ModRetro Tetris v1.4: no-lag 2-player and public battles. The cartridge page patches your own cartridge, and puts the original back when you ask. You need: a Chromatic with Shiny Relay and a ModRetro Tetris v1.4 cartridge. How the patch works
How wireless play works
- The Chromatic has Wi-Fi built in. Shiny Relay uses that chip to carry the link cable.
- The link port talks to Wi-Fi. When a game sends a byte over the link cable, the Chromatic sends it to the other player over your network, and brings their byte back.
- Unmodified games just work. The game thinks a cable is plugged in. Link play does not patch or change anything on the cartridge.
- It is a firmware install. Shiny Relay runs as custom firmware on the Chromatic's FPGA and its ESP32 Wi-Fi chip. You install it from your browser at install.shinyrelay.com. It backs up your Chromatic first. The stock firmware can be restored with your backup or with ModRetro's free updater.
Tested on real Chromatics
What we have run on real units. Honest list, nothing more.
- DoneLink test, both directions: 0 errors.
- DoneTetris DX 2-player matches over home Wi-Fi, from start to finish. The other player was a computer running the other side of the link.
- DonePokémon trades (Gold and Silver both ways, Yellow) complete on a real Chromatic over home Wi-Fi. The other player was a computer.
- DoneChromatic to Chromatic, nearby: Tetris Battle matches on two real units, with no router.
- DoneChromatic to Chromatic, over the internet: ModRetro Tetris with PARTY BATTLE on two real units, 2-player and public PARTY matches, with no lag. Garbage lines arrive on the other side.
- DoneGames and apps on the Tetris cartridge: written over USB on real units, from small games to the largest size, with saves. The internet apps run on a real Chromatic over Wi-Fi, and the original Tetris goes back on from its backup.
Ways to play
- Nearby, no routerTwo Chromatics talk to each other directly. Set LINK CABLE to NEARBY on both.
- Over the internetHost a room and share its code, through the Shiny Gen relay.
- With the Shiny Gen app or a browserHost a Shiny Gen game in the app, on shinygen.ai or in the web player, and invite your Chromatic.
Games on the Tetris cartridge
The cartridge page at install.shinyrelay.com/cart writes a game to your ModRetro Tetris cartridge over USB.
- Your Tetris can be backed up first. The page offers to save the cartridge's game and its save to your computer, and can put them back any time. You can skip it.
- Your files stay with you. The game file is your own file. It never leaves your computer.
- What fits: a game up to 1.94 MB, with a save up to 32 KB. One game on the cartridge at a time.
- Which games run: the cartridge behaves as an MBC5 cartridge, so most games work, but not all. There is no real-time clock and no special hardware such as rumble.
- How long: a write takes about 2 minutes for a small game and about 8 minutes for the largest. The backup before it takes about as long.
- Nothing permanent on the Chromatic. The cartridge tool loads for the session only. Switch the Chromatic off and on and it is as it was.
Free games and internet apps
Shiny Gen's Game Boy Color games are free to install on the cartridge. So are five small apps that use the Chromatic's Wi-Fi.
- Shiny Almanac: weather, a clock, a calendar and a world map to walk around.
- Daily Trace: a daily puzzle with a worldwide board.
- Shiny Canvas: one shared canvas that everyone paints on.
- Pick a Side: the poll of the day.
- Dispatch: ModRetro's posts.
Reading needs no account. Voting, painting and posting a score need the Chromatic paired to a Shiny Gen account. The games and apps also run in the web player and in the Shiny Gen app.
Games you make in Shiny Gen can go on your Chromatic too. Catalogue games are free. Exporting your own creations needs the paid export in Shiny Gen.
Get updates
An email when there is news about Shiny Relay: new firmware, fixes, games and apps. Optional.
We keep your address only to send these updates. Every email has a one-click unsubscribe. Privacy
Questions
What is Shiny Relay?
A free add-on for the ModRetro Chromatic, made by Shiny Gen. It carries the Game Boy link cable over Wi-Fi, puts games and apps on the ModRetro Tetris cartridge over USB, and adds link play patches for ModRetro Tetris v1.4.
Does it need a mod?
Yes, a firmware one. Shiny Relay is custom firmware for the Chromatic's FPGA and its ESP32 Wi-Fi chip, so it is an install, not a plug-in accessory. The stock firmware can be restored.
How do I install it?
Open install.shinyrelay.com in Chrome or Edge on a computer and plug in your Chromatic with a USB cable. The page backs up your Chromatic first, then installs Shiny Relay.
Can I go back to stock?
Yes. Restore the backup the installer made, or use ModRetro's free Chromatic Firmware Updater. Either one puts the stock firmware back.
Is it free?
Yes. Shiny Relay, the cartridge page, the Tetris patch and the Shiny Gen catalogue games and apps are free.
Do I need a flash cart?
No. The cartridge page writes a game to the ModRetro Tetris cartridge that came with your Chromatic, over the USB cable.
Will I lose Tetris or my save?
No. Before anything is written, the cartridge page copies the cartridge's game and its save to your computer. Keep those 2 files. The same page puts them back on the cartridge any time.
Which games work on the cartridge?
A game up to 1.94 MB with a save up to 32 KB. The cartridge behaves as an MBC5 cartridge, so most games work, but not all. Games that need a real-time clock or special hardware such as rumble will not work fully. One game is on the cartridge at a time.
Whose game files are these? Is it legal?
Use your own files: games you made, or copies of cartridges you own. The file you pick stays on your computer and is never uploaded. We host no games besides our own free ones.
Does the cartridge page change my Chromatic permanently?
No. The cartridge tool is loaded for the session only and nothing is installed. Switch the Chromatic off and on, and it is exactly as it was.
Which games work for wireless multiplayer?
Games that use the link cable. Turn-based ones work best, like trades and battles. Every byte crosses the network and back, so fast real-time link games can run slower than over a cable.
Does wireless play change my games or cartridges?
No. Link play runs games unmodified. The game talks to the link port as usual, and the Chromatic carries it over Wi-Fi. Only the cartridge page writes to a cartridge, and only when you ask it to.
What is the Tetris patch?
PARTY BATTLE for ModRetro Tetris v1.4: no-lag 2-player, nearby or online, plus PARTY, a public battle with up to 100 players. The cartridge page reads your Tetris from the cartridge, patches it in your browser and writes it back. Save the copy it makes: it puts the original back.
Do the internet apps need an account?
Not for reading. Voting, painting and posting a score need the Chromatic paired to a Shiny Gen account, which is free.
Does it work on other handhelds?
No. It uses the Wi-Fi chip inside the ModRetro Chromatic, so it is for the Chromatic only.
Who makes it?
Shiny Gen, the app for making GBC games with AI. Shiny Relay is not made by ModRetro or Nintendo.