Sanrio Timenet: Kako Hen and Mirai Hen

Sanrio Timenet: Kako Hen and Mirai Hen
Developers: Imagineer, TOSE Publisher: Imagineer Platforms: Game Boy, Super Game Boy, Game Boy Color Released in JP: November 27, 1998 This game has unused graphics. This game has unused items. This game has unused text. This game has a hidden sound test. This game has revisional differences. This game has a prerelease article This game has a notes page This game has a bugs page This game has a Data Crystal page

Yet another monster battling game, where Sanrio characters appear as trainers. Take a time twist with Hello Kitty, because, if you ain't time traveling with Hello Kitty, you ain't time traveling...

This game has a spiritual successor called Space-Net: Cosmo Red and Cosmo Blue without any Sanrio characters (but some returning original characters and monsters), created after the group of Imagineer who made the game later formed their own subsidiary called Timenet.

Sub-Page

Prerelease Info

Notes

Bugs

Unused Graphics

To do: Rip the rest of the sprites later, animate them, see if the NPC can be forced in game with a code. More but not in color

Sprites

• A monster NPC in Mirai-Hen grouped with the Youkai Kids NPCs, who may be based on the Youkai Kids character Shiranken (シランケン), who also normally doesn't appear. Its graphics begin at 28:4802 (offset 0xA0802) (both Mirai-Hen Rev 0 and Rev 1).

Facing down:

• A cyclops NPC in Mirai-Hen whose sprites appear with the Youkai Kids NPCs. Possibly based on the Youkai Kids character Hitotsume Uzou (一ツ目コウゾウ), who normally doesn't appear in game. Its graphics begin at 28:4982 (offset 0xA0982) (both Mirai-Hen Rev 0 and Rev 1).

Facing down:

To replicate these graphics (tested in Mira-Hen Rev 0, details might differ in Mirai-Hen Rev 1), go outside of the Dra-kun's room in the Haunted House, and use BGB access breakpoints to break at a write request to 8480. Next, enter Dra-kun's room. The program counter should break at 262A, with hl register value 4502 being the pointer to Dra-kun's sprite. Replace the hl register with either 4802 (to see the monster) or 4982 (to see the cyclops). There should be no issues because Dra-kun's room uses the same bank 0x28.

(Source: てつはと's blog, Torchickens (EvieMelody); replication method/video)

Lack of Type

A Chikotto (チコット) modified to be typeless (なし)

Although every usable monster and move has one of 14 types, internally the type with index number 0x00 is なし (no type). To see it, use the code 01003FD3 to replace the type of the first monster in the party.

Revision Differences

Like many other games (such as Tetris (Game Boy)), these games have a hidden Rev 1 revision. At present, the differences are poorly documented, but included at least one known bug fix. The games were also re-released for the Nintendo Power rewriting service on GB Memory cartridges on May 1, 2000. Technical details are unknown, though given the later date these might be Rev 1 versions.

Placeholder Development Data

Text

In the middle of the ROM at 0x1C6771 there are two text strings in ASCII encoding. Both are parts of internal signatures for Cart RAM initialization.

SANRIO TIMENET

SANRIO TIME NETMONSTER DATA AREA

(Source: Torchickens)

'Null' strings for ID 0x00:

8 characters:

--------

Lists which use this include monster names, monster descriptions in the Monster List, moves, item names, item descriptions and more.

5 characters:

-----

Appears in the ROM after various term names (details about this list are unknown).

14 characters:

--------------

This is used as a placeholder string for an 0xFF terminated entry in the Course Select screen for the Bike Race minigame, stored before the first course. Internally, the price of the course is supposed to be stored as part of the name, for example the entry for the first course is "そうげんコース５０ビット" (Grasslands Course 50 Bits). However, -------------- ignores this rule.

Banks

Each ROM bank from bank 01 through to bank 3F (63) begins with a marker byte; which is just the same value as the bank in hexadecimal (e.g. a 3F byte at the beginning of 3F:4000). However, this applies even for ROM banks which are never used, with the rest of the data as 00 bytes.

(Source: Torchickens)

Illusory Monsters

To do: Add more event details if applicable

There are four "illusory monsters" that were only available from various events or magazine applications, according to a page on the official Imagineer website. (The games were also packaged with a sheet to send off for Stardust.) These monsters include No. 155, Planesta (Japanese: プラネスタ), No. 156, Planetta, No. 157 Stardust (Japanese: スターダスト) and No. 158, Time Surfer (Japanese: タイムサーファー). Time Surfer is the monster seen before the title screen loads.

All four Monsters may be only added to the Monsters List using the secret button codes. It seems that these codes were never officially revealed to the public. At the title screen, hold Select then input one of the codes at a time:

• Up, Down, Left, Right, Down, Up, Right, Left, Left, Right, Down, Up, Right, Left, Up, Up for Stardust
• Up, Down, Left, Right, Down, Up, Right, Left, Left, Right, Down, Up, Right, Left, Up, Left for Planesta
• Up, Down, Left, Right, Down, Up, Right, Left, Left, Right, Down, Up, Right, Left, Up, Right for Planetta
• Down, Up, Right, Left, Up, Down, Left, Right, Right, Left, Up, Down, Left, Right, Down, Up for Time Surfer

To add more Monsters, save current game and restart the console, input another code then continue saved game.

However, they can't be fought during the game. To encounter one of the illusory monsters, use the GameShark codes 01xx50C5 and 01xx81C5, then enter a battle. All xx should be replaced with the monster's monster list number in hexadecimal (e.g. Planesta is 9B, Planetta is 9C, etc.)

• 

  Planesta

• 

  Planetta

• 

  Stardust

• 

  Time Surfer

Unused Items

To do: Add offsets to the text strings

• Water Bottle (0x8E):

The water bottle (すいとう) is an unused item occupying the travel items section. To force it there, use code 018E70D4. However, it's not clear how to use it without the message 「これを　いま　つかっても　やくにたたない　きがする…」 ("It seems useless to try this item now..."); a standard message for an item being unusable.

There is an NPC in the game who wishes he had one to be able to restore his health (「すいとうがあると　ライフを　かってに　かいふく　できるだって　ほしいよなー」). He may appear at the Port Town (みなとまち); the Past-World variation of Bay City (ベイシティ) under some unknown conditions.

There is also the following description text about it in the ROM; 「かいふくのみずが　むげんに　わきだす [line break]　ふしぎな　すいとう」 ("This recovery water can be gushed out infinitely. A mysterious water bottle").

• Kitty's Ribbon (0x90):

Kitty's Ribbon (キティのリボン) is another unused item occupying the miscellaneous items section. To force it there, use code 019070D4. It seems to give the same unusable message as the Water Bottle. Unlike the Water Bottle it seems that no NPC mentions it in game.

It has description text 「そうびすると　バトルで [line break] もらえる　わざポイントが　アップ！」("While equipped in battle, [line break] it can be used to raise move points!")

(Source: てつはと's blog)

Sound Test

The sound test

An item called the Portable MD (Japanese: ポータブルMD) is hidden in the game and using it enables a sound test, with names for every tune. In Kako-Hen, it is found in the Sea Ruins while in Mirai-Hen it is found in the Sea Temple. The player doesn't have to obtain this item so it is missable.

To force the Portable MD in the event items section, use the code 018D70D4. Alternatively, the Game Genie code 0A2-19F-E6E will start in a whited-out sound test. In order to view this, you will need to set the palettes with an emulator. Press Up or Down to select between music and sounds, and press A to play. Pressing B returns you to the main menu unless a song is already in progress, in which case it will stop the song instead.

(Source: nensondubois (Game Genie code))