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On the original Game Boy (DMG) or the color version (CGB) is the Serial Data pin ever used by a retail game?

It is a middle pin on the link port.

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    @Frank where would it be on topic? Electrical engineering?
    – Alexander M
    Sep 22, 2015 at 0:20
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    @Frank also, how is this a game recommendation? It's asking for a verifiable list of games. Verifiable.
    – Alexander M
    Sep 22, 2015 at 0:22
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    @Frank & AlexanderM - I'd reckon this is still on-topic as per game specific hardware and utilities, however Alex, you may get a more in-depth answer on the use of the pin elsewhere. That isn't to say that you won't get an answer here, but for once I'm stumped on exactly how one would check this easily. You'd have to hack together a rig that tests for current along the line as you work your way through the games with link cable functionality. It'd be an exhaustive process but not impossible.
    – Robotnik ♦
    Sep 22, 2015 at 1:03
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    @Robotnik This meets our criteria for a game recommendation quite easily. What games use the serial data pin is asking for a list of games that meet a set of criteria. Recommendation if ever I saw one.
    – Frank
    Sep 22, 2015 at 1:09
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    Perhaps this could be reworded to "what was the serial used for". A good answer would provide games that used it for example
    – user106385
    Sep 22, 2015 at 7:01

1 Answer 1

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The Game Link Cable

The most obvious candidate for this are games that use the Game Link Cable. Individually checking all of them would be an imposing task, but luckily we don't have to. A schematic drawing of the wiring of the 8-bit Game Link Cable shows us this:

Plug 1         Plug 2  
 SI ______  ______SI  
 SO ______><______SO  
 GND_____________GND  
 SC _____________ SC

There is no wiring for the SD pin. From this we can conclude that no games using the standard Game Link Cable will make use of this pin. This also rules out the Gameboy Printer and the four player connector as both connect using a standard cable.

Other Candidates

This leaves us with more specialised hardware that connects using the Game Link port but does not use the Game Link Cable. Apart from the unreleased Work Boy there are only two options:

Game Boy Mobile Phone connector

Released in Japan only for use with some Pokémon games.

Gameboy Mobile Phone connector

Singer Izek 1500

An Game Boy-enabled embroidering machine. It has a built-in custom link cable and a custom game cartridge. The Game Boy is used to select different patterns and options.

Singer Izek 1500

Sadly I don't have access to either piece of hardware and thus can't tell what pins they use.

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    I really hope that sowing machine is off-topic. Why is there a GBC sowing machine!?
    – Alexander M
    Mar 9, 2016 at 16:34
  • @AlexanderM Don't knock that Singer. To GameBoy collectors, that thing is the "Holy Grail". Sure, we may not be budding seamstresses (or seam-masters?) but it's one of the hardest licensed products to find as a complete set.
    – RLH
    Jan 23, 2017 at 18:38

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