GameBoy Advance Hardware
Reviewed by Psycho Penguin
When news first hit about Nintendo's upcoming
portable console released, I was stunned, yet excited
at the same time. Do you blame me? Nintendo has
always been known to release really solid portable
consoles, despite the fact they only ever released
one, then kept updating it over and over again. First
it was the mega phenomenon known as the Game Boy,
then they updated that by making a smaller version
called the Game Boy Pocket, then they added color
support and made the Game Boy Color.
Fans enjoyed the updates, but they were pining for
something new. The Game Boy Color had really solid
games, and the graphics were in color, which was
always a plus, especially to those who were still
playing the black and white Game Boys and Game Boy
Pockets, but they felt like they needed something
more. The rash of good games stopped flowing in for
the most part (Oh wow, more Pokemon games!) and the
graphics just looked outdated, especially when
compared to the Neo Geo Pocket Color.
Enter the Game Boy Advance. It is the most powerful
portable handheld ever, and pretty much destroyed any
chances of the Neo Geo Pocket Color ever becoming a
popular portable. This is simple an amazing handheld.
The games being released for it are classic, the
graphics and music are amazing, and most of all, it
is a relatively solid price, at just 89.99 the last
time I checked. It's just amazing how much bang you
can get for your buck with this handheld.
The games that have already been released for it are
classic, to say the least. Well, a lot of them are.
Advance Wars is a classic strategy game, in the rein
of a Shining Force or Panzer Dragoon game. It's truly
awesome. Castlevania: Circle of the Moon remains the
best portable game ever to me, and Super Mario
Advance is a popular update to Super Mario Brothers 2
and Mario Bros. I don't really consider it to be
good, but a lot of people did, so I guess it would be
worth checking out for you.
A lot of popular SNES and current generation games
also have been getting upgraded for the Game Boy
Advance. F-Zero, Mario Kart, Klonoa, and NFL Blitz
are just a few of the games that have already gotten
sequels for the Game Boy Advance. F-Zero: Maximum
Velocity is a fun game, Mario Kart: Super Circuit is
a fun update to the Super Nintendo classic, and
Klonoa is just a fun game no matter how you look at
it. About the only game I was disappointed with out
of the bunch was NFL Blitz 2002, but it's still the
best portable football game out there.
With all the new games being released for the
console, there is also a lot more being released,
that should keep fans of the handheld waiting in
anticipation. WWF: Road to Wrestlemania is coming out
soon, for all the wrestling fans out there. I played
the beta version of it, and it's not that great, but
it's WWF on the GBA! Super Mario Advance 2 is
basically a portable version of Super Mario World,
but there's nothing wrong with that idea to begin
with! Hopefully, Nintendo makes it better than Super
Mario Advance. Breath of Fire is coming out soon for
all the RPG fans, as is Dragon Warrior 4.
There are some nice features for the console. The
graphical and sound capabilities are amazing, as most
of the games look awesome, 16 bit like, and the sound
is in full stereo and really awesome. The cartridges
are a decent size, and are much smaller than the
games released for Game Boy Color. They're in the
shape of a Game Gear game. Another cool part about
this console is the fact it's backwards compatible,
so basically you can play any Game Boy or Game Boy
Color game on it. Also, there's no import block chip,
so you can play imports on it.
Overall, this is one of the greatest portables ever
released, if not the greatest, and it is well worth a
purchase. With a variety of games, backwards
compatibility, a nice size, and amazing graphical and
sound capabilities, this is such an awesome portable.
I really enjoyed it, especially with the variety of
the game library, and it is well worth a purchase.
The Bottom Line: It's going to be a classic, if it
can get some more classic games released soon, as the
upcoming game library, while being exciting, leaves a
lot to be desired. That's the only thing that keeps
this console from getting a higher score. It's well
worth a purchase, however, especially if you were
thinking about buying a Game Boy Color, as it's only
20 or 30 bucks more, anyways, and you can play Game
Boy Color games on it.
Upcoming Games Worth Getting
-Super Mario Advance 2
-Dragon Warrior 4
-Breath of Fire
-WWF: Road to Wrestlemania
-Spyro: Season of Ice
-Street Fighter Alpha 3
Games Out Right Now Worth Getting
-Mega Man: Battle Network
-Advance Wars
-Castlevania: Circle of the Moon
-Golden Sun
-Bomberman Tournament
-Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 2
-Fire Pro Wrestling
Avoid At All Costs, or Rentals at Best
-Super Mario Advance
-X-Men: Reign of Apocalypse
-Spider Man: Mysterio's Menace
Graphical Power - 9.8/10
Sound Capabilities - 9.6/10
Loading Speeds - 10/10
Current Game Library - 8.8/10
Upcoming Game Library - 7.3/10
Added Features - 10/10
Buy it? - Yes.
Overall - 8.9/10