My Emerald Version has begun to conk out

[Bittersweet]

I bought Emerald Version as soon as it came out here (Australia) in mid-2005. It was the first game I ever completed the regional Pokedex in, which (at the time) I was really happy about. I've still got that game saved on it. (This now seems a little minor compared to my much nicer accomplishment of completing the National Dex in Diamond...no cheating or hacking. Yeah, that's right.:banana: .)
Only now it's started to freeze when characters are talking sometimes and the sound becomes distorted into a fuzz and electrical beeping. The only solution there is to turn it off. Sometimes the sound stops but I can keep playing and I get a couple of musical notes every now and then.
Also, my DS is having some trouble picking up the game at all. It sometimes says "No GBA Catridge in slot".
Are these early onset signs that the game's about to die? It's only four years old. What is the expected lifespan of GBA Pokemon games? I generally take care of the catridges.

I REALLY don't want to lose my saved game 'cause its the first Dex I finished...

 

[Pidgeot]

The same thing is happening with my LeafGreen version. I've had that for about four years, and it's starting to die.

 

[Haruka_Rules!]

From what I read it sounds like dirty contacts in the game and/or the DS. No matter how well you take care of the cartridges and the system, they will soon get dirty from just normal use over time. Dirty contacts can cause all sorts of game issues like random freezing. Follow the steps to properly clean the game.

Steps
1. Get rubbing alcohol and cotton swabs.
2. Dip the cotton head part of the swab in rubbing alcohol, and then clean the contacts of the game with the head until it turns into a dark color.
3. Once the cotton head turns dark, throw it away and use another swab. Repeat step 2. Keep repeating step 2 until the last cotton head remains white after cleaning the contacts.
4. Let the game dry for about half an hour BEFORE inserting the game in a system.

I use these steps to clean my games and they work as good as new.

You may want to use a special cleaning kit to clean the contacts in your system as the steps above only works with game carts.

Hope this helps.

 

[Bittersweet]

Thanks Hakura Rules. I'll try that. Now I just need to find swabs and rubbing alcohol...

 

[Madrak]

Actually, it's safer to use plain old cold tap water. Alcohol can do some damage to the circuit board in the cart if you're not careful. I mean, if it's caustic enough to remove label glue from a computer case, it's gotta be harsh on those connectors.

But otherwise, I use the same process. Especially the dry cycle.

 

[SharKing]

Wow, my Emerald's a much more fortunate game. I've had it for a little over four years, and it even survived an accidental trip to the washer!

 

[Rellik]

Eck...I got both my Emerald and LeafGreen games used, so I have no idea how old either is. Guess when they start to conk out, I'll have a general idea, huh?

 

[Moltres111]

Meh, i've had my Emerald for many, many years now. I took a LOONG, LOONG break from Pokemon though (maybe like 2 years) so it's still working perfectly.

Hopefully it won't mess up before I get my Cyndaquil safely over to my coming Platinum. :s