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Taiyou Legacy Collection

The three solar sensor games for the Game Boy Advance, rewritten to run natively on PC. Like the original games, they still use sunlight.

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Reading your sun

Drag the gauge, or press - and +, to change the sun level.

You need your own copy of the original games to play. Learn more →

Checked against the original, frame by frame

The port is written from each game's decompilation. Where the port and the original differ, the port is changed to match.

  • Enemies, bosses and the player are traced against the original running in an emulator, value by value, until they match on every frame.
  • Rooms run each game's own scripts, read from your game files.
  • Music and sound effects play through the games' own sound engine, from the original song data.
  • Screenshots are compared at the Game Boy Advance's own 240 by 160 pixels.
The port and the original game showing the same frame side by side
The port on the left, the original on the right, at the same frame.

What the port adds

Widescreen
Play at 3:2, 4:3 or 16:9 with three zoom levels, or turn on a GBA, GBA SP, PVM or TV screen filter.
Play every game in English
The third game, only ever released in Japan, can be played in English.
New content
New boss fights and additional weapons.
Haptic feedback
Controllers rumble, a wired DualSense gets HD haptics, and its light bar glows with the sun level.
Fast forward
Hold a button to skip through cutscenes at uncapped speed (the second game also has a quick save).
All versions
USA, European and Japanese versions can all be added, and each keeps its own saves.

Use the power of the sun

The original cartridges read real sunlight to charge the player's solar weapons. Most PCs don't have a sensor like that, so the port finds the sun other ways too.

Light sensor
If your device has an ambient light sensor, like many laptops and the Steam Deck, the port reads it just like the cartridge did.
Real sunlight
Without one, the sun gauge follows the real sunlight at your location, and the in-game rain follows your weather.
Manual level
Set the level yourself at any time, or hold a key to block the sunlight, just like covering the cartridge.

Bring your own game files

No game data comes with the collection. Graphics, text, scripts and music are all read from game files you provide.

  1. Have your game files ready

    You need a ROM file of each game you want to play, from your own copy.

  2. Add them

    Choose the game and version in the collection and give it the file. The collection checks it against the known good release before using it.

  3. Play

    The port unpacks what it needs once and remembers it for next time, with saves kept per version.

Questions

Is this an emulator?

No. The collection is a native Godot game that reimplements how each game works. It reads the art, text, music and room scripts from your game files, but none of the game is emulated.

Do I need a solar sensor?

No. Your device's own light sensor, the real sunlight where you are, or a level you set yourself all stand in for it. See Use the power of the sun.

Where do I get the games?

You provide your own game files. The collection doesn't include or download any game data, and you must provide your own unmodified copy of the original games.

Will it play like the original?

That's the goal. Timing, damage, enemy behaviour, menus and sound are all compared with the original games. Anything the port changes on purpose, like the extra screen sizes or fixed bugs, is optional or clearly marked.

Does it work with a controller?

Yes. Keyboard and controller controls can both be remapped, and a DualSense or DualShock 4 light bar glows with the sun level.