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GBA....The last mega handheld?

M

Musashi Wins!

FLAWLESS VICTOLY!
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I had a thought today that this might be the last software loaded handheld of it's type we ever see. With costs rising for handheld development, differing control options for the DS being implemented, etc. Some players will probably leave the market while others will need much larger budgets and popular ip's and licenses to draw upon. The GBA catered to every market and was able to do so because small studios could take risks on a cheap title or spend a short amount of time porting over a B title from an older system. I'm pretty sure a lot of companies have made a healthy profit through GBA licensing.

There's no doubt that the market was ready to for a greater technology, or new gimmick to arrive on handheld...I'm sure we'll see titles and gametypes we couldn't have imagined carrying around a couple years ago. But it's sad to see this system die in a way, as it offered so much, differently from the home consoles of today.

I may be wrong about all the slight economic insight here...but walking into an EBgames I was amazed at how many titles (decent titles too if you like 2D) were available. From the ones that get mentioned in every thread about the library, to ports a plenty and licensed garbage, to more obscure platformers and ports and sims that probably didn't even garner a review when they were released. You could walk out of there today with a sack of these games for the price of the new DS Star Wars title or NBA Street on PSP.

Ah well. I know there's some releases left. And Hot Shots is awesome.




But GBA is still cool.
 
I may have a DS and PSP ..... but I still have 5 GBA's that get their 4-sword, Crystal Chronicles, Mario Golf gangbangs on...

speaking of, the connectivity between AdvanceTours and ToadstoolTours is outstanding! I've never heard it given much praise, but being able to translate your character back'n'forth is amazing and so well integrated into both of them.

upcoming joys:

-Sigma Star Saga
-WarioWare Twisted
-Gunstar Super Heroes
 
sammy said:
speaking of, the connectivity between AdvanceTours and ToadstoolTours is outstanding! I've never heard it given much praise, but being able to translate your character back'n'forth is amazing and so well integrated into both of them.
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What exactly is the connectivity bonus out of it? I didn't really like MG:TT, but the GBA game was pretty good.
 
Well, yea they have a huge library. Honestly though it was starting too look alot like the PSoneish era of libraries, alot of good titles, but also a plethora of shovelware. Mark that up too being an easy and cheap system to make games for and a huge installed base. My worry is that it will be the passing of the last good bastion for 2D games.
 
Yeah, the GBA saw a flood of software, but how many of those titles were just throw-away crap?
 
tedtropy said:
Yeah, the GBA saw a flood of software, but how many of those titles were just throw-away crap?
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A lot. But there's a lot of decent games, that sort of B grade, fun to play sort of library. I don't know how much that counts for in the long haul, but it's nice that there are those sorts of options while the system is active (for the cheap ass gamer).

And I'm sure it is the last call of a 2D dominated system.
 
Musashi Wins! said:
And I'm sure it is the last call of a 2D dominated system.
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NooOoOooOoooOOOOOO!! ;_;

GBA still rules me so those other handhelds can eat it! Time to dig up some of that B-grade stuff!
 
Lindsay said:
NooOoOooOoooOOOOOO!! ;_;

GBA still rules me so those other handhelds can eat it! Time to dig up some of that B-grade stuff!
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Not to become their free marketer but...go to EBgames. Before GameStop ruins their pricing. I couldn't believe the games they had for 4-5 bucks used...Kaarnaj Rally, Sea Trader, Car Battler Joe, Mech Platoon...on and on and on. Cheap-o good stuff.
 
Training your character in the GBA mode on the golf courses on the GCN version. Raise stats for your RPG character and bring them to the GBA version, more or less just like the N64/GBC versions.

Kind of makes me wish Mario Kart had a similar idea going for it.

Also, I have never owned so many handheld titles ever since the GBA.

Over 70+ GBA titles
 
sammy said:
upcoming joys:

-Sigma Star Saga
-WarioWare Twisted
-Gunstar Super Heroes
Click to expand...
Don't forget Rebelstar: Tactical Command from the X-Com team. And of course Scurge: Hive from the boys at Orbital. Out of those five I plan on buying every one.

I remember when Nintendo used to have the consumer's pulse with easy-to-understand games that attracted an exceptionally wide audience. WarioWare Twisted may be the GBA's final testiment to that ideology. What a slick system.
 
Musashi Wins! said:
What exactly is the connectivity bonus out of it? I didn't really like MG:TT, but the GBA game was pretty good.
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being able to seemlessly take your character in and out of both games --- in every-single game-mode being able to update stats, and those stats saving for both games.

I didn't even expect it at first, but I plugged my GBA into TT, and boom, there was my character in 3d with all his stats ---- then when I was done, it saved my upgrades back into the GBA.

Camelot ---- you know what you need to do next (Goldensun linkage!)
 
evilromero said:
Don't forget Rebelstar: Tactical Command from the X-Com team. And of course Scurge: Hive from the boys at Orbital.
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!!!!!!

Hey, when does Orbital's 'Pirate Battle' come out?
 
damn straight Musashi!

highlights of the GBA:

1) Castlevania Aria of Sorrow.
2) Legend of Zelda: Minish Cap
3) Castlevania Ciricle of the Moon
4) Mario Kart Super Circuit
5) Advance Wars 2
6) Metroid: Zero Mission
7) Mario & Luigi SS
8) Golden Sun 2
9) Metroid Fusion
10) Wario Ware
 
I don't know that the GBA is the last mega handheld we'll ever see. I kinda doubt it, actually -- especially if the DS and PSP survive half as long as their creators desire.

I do think that the GBA represents the last hurrah of the sort of game that turned a lot of us into hardcore gamers. Games like Ninja Five-O, Racing Gears Advance, Zero Mission, Astro Boy. There's a whole design philosophy there that's been lost to the industry at large. There are still hold-outs here and there, but "modern classic" games like Ninja Gaiden are members of an increasingly small minority.

Oh, this isn't a "games are getting worse" rant. They're just getting different, after all. But the completion of the R-Type and Gradius series is worth thinking about. Gunstar Super Heroes provoked me to get out the Nomad and dive into gaming as it used to be, and it's getting me all misty-eyed ;P
 
There's still a handfull of worthwhile upcoming GBA games to look out for...

-Wario Ware Twisted! (Nintendo)
-Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones (Nintendo)

-Riviera: The Promised Land (Atlus)

-Gunstar Super Heroes (Sega)

-Sigma Star Saga (Namco)
-Rebelstar: Tactical Command (Namco)

-Boktai 3 (Konami)

-MegaMan Battle Network 5 (Capcom)
-MegaMan Zero 4 (Capcom)
-MegaMan Anniversary Collection (Capcom)

-Pirate Battle (Orbital Media)
-Juka and the Monophonic Menace (Orbital Media)
-Scurge: Hive (Orbital Media)

-Metal Slug One (SNK Playmore)

-Dragon Ball: The Red Ribbon Army Saga (Atari)

-Harvest Moon: More Friends of Mineral Town (Natsume)

-Dynasty Warriors Advance (KOEI)

...there's life in the little guy yet. Hopefully E3 brings some more announcements... I''m hoping for The Tower SP and Earthbound 2 myself. :)
 
The GBA has a handful of B-grade titles amidst a crapload of garbage.

2d savior or not, there's really no A/S titles for the system, aside from the Advance Wars series. Most others are generally "great for being a gameboy title", but not that great when you consider the entire realm of gaming.

Before someone jumps on me, there's nothing wrong with B-titles. I like a lot of flawed but fun GBA games like Megaman Zero, MMBN, Sonic Advance, etc. But you know, the GBA library really isn't as great as people make it out to be. And I play the GBA the most out of this "system generation."
 
Tsubaki said:
The GBA has a handful of B-grade titles amidst a crapload of garbage.

2d savior or not, there's really no A/S titles for the system, aside from the Advance Wars series. Most others are generally "great for being a gameboy title", but not that great when you consider the entire realm of gaming.
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Bullshit. You clearly haven't invested enough time in the GBA library. It fucking runs circles around the consoles in my opinion. And like we've been tirelessly repeating in OTHER threads after Twisted there is still Sigma, Scurge, Fire Emblem 2 and Rebelstar (Can't wait for that one).
 
Tsubaki said:
The GBA has a handful of B-grade titles amidst a crapload of garbage.

2d savior or not, there's really no A/S titles for the system, aside from the Advance Wars series. Most others are generally "great for being a gameboy title", but not that great when you consider the entire realm of gaming.

Before someone jumps on me, there's nothing wrong with B-titles. I like a lot of flawed but fun GBA games like Megaman Zero, MMBN, Sonic Advance, etc. But you know, the GBA library really isn't as great as people make it out to be. And I play the GBA out of this "system generation."
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I'd agree generally, but if Advance Wars is the gold standard then there's really no A/S games on any system this generation. They're above and beyond fantastic and almost infinitely replayable... the only thing on consoles I've found even comparable is 3rd Strike.

I would say there's other AAA GBA titles though. Stuff like Metroid Fusion, Yoshi's Island or Advance Guardian Heroes are easily a level above MegaMan Zero or Sonic Advance. Sonic Advance isn't really B grade even though.
 
Musashi Wins! said:
And I'm sure it is the last call of a 2D dominated system.
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You are right and this is why I could care less about the next gen of handhelds. I never really liked playing games on those tiny screens, but I put up with it on GBA for that 2D goodness you can't find anywhere else these days. :(
 
I've bought about as many GBA games in the past 3+ years of ownership as I did GBC in its 12+ year run.

I probably own about 30 GBA games, Sword of Mana stands as the ONLY GBA title ever worthy of being sent back to the store for severe crapitude. It earned that honor...

Still shamed that I haven't bought Ninja 5-0 and Advance Tour.
 
I'd disagree. I'd say the handheld market has a long ways to grow before it reaches its full potential. As new handhelds, such as the PSP, reach out to the older demographics we can potentially see a single handheld become more widespread than GBA (nothing will rival GB/GBC, but thats because no other system will have as long a reign). That larger userbase will make handheld games a higher priority for developers, so we will then see not only more titles, but more quality titles.
 
jarrod said:
I would say there's other AAA GBA titles though. Stuff like Metroid Fusion, Yoshi's Island or Advance Guardian Heroes are easily a level above MegaMan Zero or Sonic Advance. Sonic Advance isn't really B grade even though.
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I hate to argue specifics, but I don't count ports. (That and even though I played Yoshi's Island SNES almost all the way through, I never liked it.)

I also think Guardian Heroes is my most disliked Treasure title (that I've played/owned), so I haven't exactly been running to the store for AGH. I also don't believe the hype considering the mass spoogefest that Astro Boy GBA seems to induce. It's a merely adequate game, and if people pimp that as AAA quality, then gaming is doomed to start with.

I guess this is just personal opinion, but I enjoyed Sonic Advance over most games I've played in the last 5 years :| It was the first Sonic title I've played since Sonic the Hedgehog, but I thought it was perfectly balanced and getting all the chaos gems and Super Sonic was a blast. Still has some design flaws such as a blind moving platform jump in the first stage in order to find the secret stage entrance, but I just found it charming all the way through. SAdva2 wasn't that hot though ...

Anyway, my point is that a lot of people give a lot of praise to GBA games as if they really were something special. And the few times I ended up going against my inclinations to listen to the hype, I've been burned (*cough* CV:HoD*cough*). I have games that range from Tales of the World Narikiri Dungeon 2 to Densetsu no Starfi to Tactics Ogre: Knight of Lodis. They're just mediocre, if not downright bad.
 
Tsubaki said:
The GBA has a handful of B-grade titles amidst a crapload of garbage.

2d savior or not, there's really no A/S titles for the system, aside from the Advance Wars series. Most others are generally "great for being a gameboy title", but not that great when you consider the entire realm of gaming.

Before someone jumps on me, there's nothing wrong with B-titles. I like a lot of flawed but fun GBA games like Megaman Zero, MMBN, Sonic Advance, etc. But you know, the GBA library really isn't as great as people make it out to be. And I play the GBA out of this "system generation."
Click to expand...
I felt the exact same way until I...Y'know...Started playing the games. There are some fantastic GBA games out there. Sure there's a load of crap games but the gems that are there can easily go toe to toe with the big console games in terms of fun and time spent playing. Fire Emblem still owns my soul...
 
Damn, I still need to buy Ninja Five-O as well.

I really must say though that I have spent more time with my GBA than I did with any other handheld before it, and probably any handheld yet to come. Bought more games for it as well. There are a lot of mediocre titles for the system because development costs are so low but the list of good to excellent games is rather sizeable as well.
 
metroid fusion/zero mission, the mario rehashes, mario kart, fzero, advance wars, kuru kuru kururin, fire emblem, super puzzle fighter... all reasons why the gba is PURE gold. my favourite system of all.
 
Tsubaki said:
That and even though I played Yoshi's Island SNES almost all the way through, I never liked it.)

I guess this is just personal opinion, but I enjoyed Sonic Advance over most games I've played in the last 5 years
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Your opinion is strange.
 
anyone that doesn't like astro boy is retarded. or an asshole who doesn't like to play good games.


astro, advance wars, castlevania, metroid fusion, zero mission, all awesome ass game you have to play.


and gunster super heroes comes out soon.


i'm going to die.
 
I don't want to go crazy on you, but it's hard for me to understand tearing down AstroBoy in favor of Sonic Advance. But hey, the variety is there for everyone.

And just to be timely kids....2D never goes out of style, 3D almost always does. Good sprites = timeless. Slightly higher res 3D realism = meh. Thank you.

Buy Gradius Galaxies. Fookin' amazin handheld schmup.
 
Some folks just can't be convinced... they are sure that any game that DOESN'T feature flashy 3D graphics and THX approved Dolby sound just can't be worth their time.

If someone can't stand Advance Wars, Metroid Zero Mission, Castlevania (choose the one you want), Mario & Luigi, Bookworm, Car Battler Joe, Fire Emblem, Kirby & The Amazing Mirror, LoZ: The Minish Cap, Mario Golf, Mario Kart Super Circuit, Ninja Five-O, Tactics Ogre, Warioland 4, Wario Ware, or Wario Ware Twisted, is there really any hope for them, as far as gaming goes? If they can't find a few of those titles that appeal to them... something is seriously wrong.

Not to mention the string games, like Activision Anthology, Blackthorne, Boktai, Broken Sword, Game & Watch Gallery (fun in a weird way!), the Golden Sun games (which I still need to play), Iridion II, Konami Collector's Edition, Drome Racers (fun in a weird, quasi-classic way), Mario vs. Donkey Kong (not as good as the original GB game, sadly), Pac-Man Collection (portable version of the REAL Pac-Man Arrangement), Sabre Wulf, Sea Trader, or even Super Puzzle Fighter.

... and, of course, an upgraded portable Space Invaders that won't upgrade your BIOS.

(Side note: Mother 1 & 2 is listed in Nintendo's online listing of all GBA titles. It is the only title noted as "Announced for release in Japan". No other Japanese-only game is listed. That's slightly interesting.)
 
Musashi Wins! said:
I don't want to go crazy on you, but it's hard for me to understand tearing down AstroBoy in favor of Sonic Advance. But hey, the variety is there for everyone.
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No, I didn't bash AstroBoy.

People are misinterpreting that because I don't think it's the second coming of 2d, that I think it's bad. It's competent, but doesn't really exceed that. I stated this in another thread, but I'd rather play almost any NES Capcom platformer over it (ie Megaman 2, Bionic Commando, Duck Tales, etc). Sonic Advance is similar. I don't think it's the best platformer, but quite adequate and well made.

The difference between the games isn't the quality, but rather the perceptions surrounding them. But in the end, if you don't own a GBA and/or didn't get a chance to play them, you're really not missing much. That's what I'm talking about with regards to A quality.
 
I dunno Tsubaki... subjectivity only goes so far.

Sonic Advance is what I'd actually call a "C" game. Muted physics, slowed pace, crap level designs and overly cartoony visuals make it by a wide margin the worst 2D scrolling Sonic game ever imo. Sonic Advance 2 was actually a substantial improvement in the level designs and pacing I thought (makes sense as Sonic Team handled it interanlly rather than Dimps), but it still used the shitty SA1 engine. This game epitomizes "cash-in", it's an adequate game at best that gets by off a popular license. Equating gold like Metroid Fusion or AGH with this drek... well it certianly brings your standards into question.
 
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