RE: EEPROM64KBytes
Yes that's it. It works for me with that , and I'm up to the second cave.
Try resetting the cart or restarting no$GBA, and make sure you have that choice set all the time, don't change it.
I back up the saves now and then to another folder just in case too.
Sometimes the intro movie freezes up when you click in too, but if you set it to 100% speed it usually takes me from 1-15 times to get it going. Clunky but it's a fun game!