Pizza Boy A

Overview

Pizza Boy A is an emulator for Android. An emulator is a program that imitates a game console, so that your phone or tablet can run games made for that console. Pizza Boy A imitates the Game Boy Advance (GBA), the Nintendo handheld released in 2001.

It is made by Pizza Emulators. Its official page lists skins you can customize, cheat support and original rumble feedback (the vibration some cartridges triggered). It is aimed at anyone who wants to play their own GBA games on an Android device, with touch controls or a controller.

It runs only GBA games. It does not run Game Boy or Game Boy Color games. The app states that it is not affiliated with Nintendo.

Key words explained

• Game file (often called a ROM): a copy of the data of a game cartridge, stored as a file on your device. GBA game files usually end in .gba, and are sometimes inside a .zip archive.

• In-game save: the save the game itself offers, like on the real console, through its own menus. On a real cartridge it was stored in a small memory chip. In an emulator it is stored in a file.

• Save state: a snapshot of the whole emulator at one exact moment. You can create it at any time and come back to it later, even in the middle of a fight. It is a feature of the emulator, not of the game.

• Cheats: codes that change the game, for example to give you more lives. They are optional.

• Skin: the picture drawn around the screen that looks like the console body, with its buttons.

• Rumble: a vibration effect that a few games used. The emulator can make your device or controller vibrate in the same way.

System requirements

The official page does not publish a minimum device. Google Play shows whether your own device is compatible: open the app's page from the Play Store on your device, and the Install button is available only if it is supported. The GBA is a modest console, so a recent phone should be enough.

What you need

• An Android phone or tablet, and the Google Play Store.

• Your own GBA games. Games must be dumped (copied) from cartridges that you own. This sheet does not explain where to find games, and the emulator does not include any.

• Optional: a Bluetooth or USB controller. Touch controls work, but physical buttons are usually more comfortable.

A BIOS is the small startup program built into a console. The official page does not say that the app needs one. If the app asks for one, follow what the app tells you, and use only a file dumped from your own console.

Installation

Pizza Boy A is available on Google Play in two listings: a standard one and a Pro one. The official page links the Pro listing. The two listings are separate apps; read each description in the Play Store to see what they offer.

1. Open the Play Store page of the app: Pizza Boy A or Pizza Boy A Pro.

2. Tap Install and wait for the download to finish.

3. Tap Open. The app should show its main screen. If the Install button is missing, your device is probably not supported.

Adding your games

The app keeps a library of your games. According to the privacy policy, it stores an index of your game files (names, paths and checksums) on your device, and it needs access to your files to load them.

1. Copy your game files into a folder on your device, for example a folder named GBA.

2. Open Pizza Boy A and follow its prompt to choose that folder. Android will ask you to allow access to files: accept, otherwise the app cannot read your games.

3. Your games should appear in the library. Tap one to start it.

If a game does not appear, check that it is in the chosen folder, that it is a GBA file, and that the app still has access to the folder in the Android settings.

Controls

A mapping is the link between a button of the console (A, B, L, R, Start, Select, directional pad) and a button of your device or controller.

• Touch controls: the on-screen buttons. The app stores layouts per game or per platform, so you can arrange them for your screen.

• Controller: connect a Bluetooth controller in the Android settings first, then look for the controls options in the app to assign buttons.

• Skins: change the look of the on-screen console.

The exact menu names can change between versions, so open the app's settings and look for the controls or layout sections.

Saves

• In-game saves and save states are stored locally on your device.

• Use both: an in-game save is the safest, a save state is convenient for quick stops.

• Optional Google Drive cloud saves exist: save states and save files go to the app's own folder in your Google Drive when you enable the feature.

• Uninstalling the app deletes its data. Back up first: the app can create backups, and the privacy policy says exported backup .zip files are not deleted when you uninstall.

Extras

• Cheats: codes you can enable per game.

• RetroAchievements: an optional online service that gives you goals in old games. The app can connect to it with your RetroAchievements account.

• Online multiplayer: offered through a server run by Pizza Emulators.

• Whether each extra is in the standard or in the Pro version is not stated on the official page; check the Play Store listings.

Common problems

• The app does not find any game: the folder is wrong or access was refused. Choose the folder again and accept the file access request.

• A game does not start: check the file is a GBA game, and not a Game Boy or Game Boy Color game, which this app does not run. Try the file again if it was inside an archive.

• The buttons cover the picture: edit the layout of the on-screen controls or change the skin.

• The controller does nothing: pair it in the Android settings first, then assign its buttons in the app.

• A save disappeared after uninstalling: the app data is deleted with the app. Create a backup or enable the Google Drive saves before you uninstall.

• Another problem: the app has a Send Log to Dev option, and you can write to [email protected] or use the community Discord linked below.

Going further

• Pizza Emulators, official site

• Privacy policy, which describes the data and features of the app

• Official Discord

• Lemuroid, another Android option.

• mGBA on a computer.