List of recommended ROM hacks

This page lists ROM hacks that are recommended for the enhancement or improvement of several games. As this page only links to downloads of ROM hack patches and not unpatched or pre-patched ROMs, users must first have their ROM backup of the game to be patched saved to their computer. Once this is done, the file can be patched with the Floating IPS application if using Windows or Linux, or MultiPatch if using MacOS. To use Floating IPS, begin by launching the application and selecting Apply Patch. After selecting your matching IPS and ROM files, the application will apply the modifications to the ROM file and finish with a The file was successfully patched! message. The game can then be put into the folder of its respective console on the FunKey S. Note that while ROM hack patches are entirely legal and may be freely distributed (as they must be applied to the associated game's ROM file to serve their purpose), the distribution of pre-patched ROMs, as with regular unpatched ROMs, is considered to be piracy.

List criteria
For a ROM hack to be listed on this page, it must:


 * Be applicable to a ROM supplied by the user, rather than a pre-patched ROM.
 * Include one or more substantial improvements (not just additions) if listed in the improvement hacks section. As the definition of an improvement can often be subjective, ROM hacks listed in this section should generally only include quality of life improvements that do not alter core gameplay.
 * Apply to all content within a game if listed in the desaturation hacks section.
 * Include a complete and accurate English translation if listed in the translation hacks section.
 * Modify the story and/or world of a game substantially if listed in the complete hacks section.

Reimplementation hacks
This section lists game patches that restore game functionality originally implemented via unemulated system or game add-on hardware. Games that require the patch to be fully-compatible with the FunKey S are highlighted in green. As the patches for Boktai 2 and Boktai 3 implement button combinations that interfere with FunKey S system shortcuts, they also require adapted controls to be fully-compatible. Should your backup of either of the first two Boktai games not be the retail North American versions, patch files for other variants of those games are available here. Should the WarioWare: Twisted! patch not function properly with your backup of the game, ensure that your game's CRC32 checksum value matches the one listed here. Lastly, while the patches for the Game Boy Color games below make the respective games believe they are being emulated on a Game Boy Advance to enable additional features, as they are still Game Boy Color games, they should be placed into the Game Boy Color folder of the FunKey S.

Improvement hacks
This section lists game patches that modify a game to improve a certain aspect of it. For games with multiple patch variants, select the patch that you prefer, as they are otherwise equivalent. The following are notes for several of the games listed below:


 * The Breath of Fire and Breath of Fire II improvement patches are compatible with the North American desaturation patches for those games listed below.
 * As Faceball 2000 is incompatible with the default Game Boy emulator, the ROM hack for it is as well. Of the two variants of this hack, both run slower than normal in the third-party mGBA emulator, while the GDMA variant has moderate graphical glitches in the Gambatte emulator.
 * The patches for Final Fantasy VI Advance are compatible with their regional counterpart desaturation patches listed below. As noted on the wiki's compatibility issue list, however, the North American version of the game cannot be saved via any method with the default Game Boy Advance emulator of the FunKey S. It is therefore recommended that either that version be played in one of the alternative third-party emulators or that the European version of the game be played instead.
 * As the IPS patch format is incompatible with games with file sizes above 16 megabytes, such as Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade and Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones, the BPS patch format had to be used instead. Both Floating IPS and MultiPatch are compatible with this patch file format as well.
 * Should you wish to use more than one of the listed patches with The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX, apply them in the order listed.

Desaturation hacks
This section lists Game Boy Advance game patches that adjust color palettes to accommodate devices that display Game Boy Advance games in a backlit manner, such as the FunKey S. As initial Game Boy Advance games were developed with the original, non-backlit Game Boy Advance in mind, many of them had their colors oversaturated to improve visibility. With visibility not an issue for the backlit Game Boy Advance SP, game palettes were now brighter than intended, a difference particularly noticeable when comparing games ported from prior systems, such as Super Mario World: Super Mario Advance 2.

The following are notes for several of the games listed below:
 * The Breath of Fire and Breath of Fire II desaturation patches are compatible with the North American improvement patches for those games listed above.
 * For Final Fantasy VI Advance:
 * An additional patch can be subsequently applied to change the color of the title screen lightning bolt from purple to yellow to match the game's SNES (rather than Super Famicom) color palette.
 * As the IPS patch format is incompatible with games with file sizes above 16 megabytes, such as the European release of Final Fantasy VI Advance, the BPS patch format had to be used instead. Both Floating IPS and MultiPatch are compatible with this patch file format as well.
 * Also note that the game's desaturation patches are compatible with their regional counterpart improvement patches listed above.
 * As noted on the wiki's compatibility issue list, the North American version of the game cannot be saved via any method with the default Game Boy Advance emulator of the FunKey S. It is therefore recommended that either that version be played in one of the alternative third-party emulators or that the European version of the game be played instead.
 * The desaturation patch for the North American version of Super Street Fighter II Turbo Revival was modified to include the changes made by a compatible bug fix patch. The Japanese version of the patch remains unmodified as the bug fix patch is not available for that version of the game.

Translation hacks
This section lists game patches that translate games without English translations into English for improved gameplay accessibility. As this section is only intended to include the most notable of translation patches, users searching for ones not listed here should check the romhacking.net translation index. As many games on this list are for the SNES, a column listing whether or not each patch is intended for use with a headered ROM has been included. Should your game backup have or not have a header when the opposite is required, this online patching tool can be used instead of Floating IPS or MultiPatch to both fix the header issue and apply the patch.

The following are notes for several of the games listed below:
 * While Breath of Fire II is unusual in that its translation replaces an existing English translation, this is due to that translation having been below the standard of most Japanese to English game localizations.
 * While an English translation of Donkey Kong Land III exists for the game's release on the Game Boy, the patch listed below translates the Japan-exclusive Game Boy Color version.
 * Should you wish to add running functionality to Final Fantasy II, apply this patch after the translation patch.
 * While Final Fantasy VI had an English translation in the form of Final Fantasy III, the patch listed below attempts to translate the game in a manner more faithful to its original Japanese script.
 * Should you wish to add unit ordering functionality to Fire Emblem: Thracia 776, apply this patch after the translation patch.
 * If the FastROM patch for Mickey & Donald: Magical Quest 3 is also used, apply it before the game's translation patch.
 * As the IPS patch format is incompatible with games with file sizes above 16 megabytes, such as Mother 3, the BPS patch format had to be used instead. Both Floating IPS and MultiPatch are compatible with this patch file format as well.

Speedup hacks
This section lists game patches that reduce or eliminate slowdown in games, resulting in a more consistent frame rate. If the English translation patch for Mickey & Donald: Magical Quest 3 is also used, it must be applied after the FastROM patch.

SRAM hacks
This section lists game patches that implement in-game saving into games without the feature to allow for the transfer of save data from the FunKey S to a wider variety of third-party emulators. Due to the patched-in nature of these in-game save implementations, however, methods of saving and loading, as listed below, are often unconventional, and may have varying compatibility between emulators. To avoid overwriting save data in case pre-existing save data is accidentally not loaded by the user, several of the autosave implementations do not begin to save gameplay progress until a game's second level. Games highlighted in yellow use SRAM to save high scores, rather than gameplay progress, while games highlighted in orange are for the Master System, whose emulation on the FunKey S currently does not support battery-based saving.

The following are notes for several of the games listed below:
 * The SRAM patches for Alleyway, Doom, and Metroid also include several quality of life improvements, as listed above.
 * The SRAM patch for Tetris is incompatible with the Tetris improvement patch listed above.

Merger hacks
This section lists game patches that merge similar games into one as a means of organizing one's game library. The following are notes for several of the games listed below:


 * F-Zero Final merges the three circuits of F-Zero with the one circuit of BS F-Zero Grand Prix 2 and allows the use of vehicles from either game in any circuit. Up and Down are used to select a circuit, while L and R are used to switch between the two sets of vehicles.
 * To access Mario Bros. in Super Mario All-Stars NES, use the A + Up button combination while Super Mario Bros. is selected.

Complete hacks
This section lists game patches that modify a game to an extent that essentially turns it into an entirely new game.