Frame rate
In one sentence
The original Game Boy draws about 59.7 frames every second. That number comes from the LCD, not from a setting in the game. There is no 30 fps mode and no 120 fps mode.
The detail
Each frame is one trip down the 144 visible lines, plus the lines spent in the border while the game is allowed to change memory. Game code that wants to move a sprite once per picture waits for that border. Code that takes longer than the frame drops the next picture, and the game looks like it stuttered.
A PC monitor at 60 Hz is close and not the same. An emulator may present frames at the monitor's rate. The ROM still advances on the Game Boy's clock. Chasing a higher frame rate in the prompt does not add frames the LCD never drew.
Music and gameplay share that clock. A song that ticks once per frame is ticking at 59.7, which is why Game Boy tempos feel a hair off a studio metronome.
Worth keeping
- The LCD runs at about 59.7 frames per second
- You cannot ask the hardware for 30 or 120
- A stutter is a frame that took too long, not a different mode
Questions
Can my game be 60 fps?
It already runs at the LCD's 59.7. There is no faster setting.
Why does it hitch when a lot is on screen?
The work for that frame did not finish before the next one started.
Does the browser change the speed?
It presents the frames. The ROM still steps on the Game Boy clock.
Related
Game Boy is a trademark of Nintendo. Retroable is independent and is not affiliated with Nintendo.