The GBA should be available everywhere today, so post your reviews of the system/accessories and launch games in here.

The system- 8.5/10

All that needs to be said is that the GBA is easily the best hand-held system ever. I was skeptical, but playing it in the store and reading the reviews of Castlevania changed my mind and had me scrambling to get one. I picked up my GBA at KB Toys on Monday and have been playing it ever since. The system is comfortable to hold (except for the shoulder buttons, the sound is decent (excellent with headphones), and the screen is surprisingly good, though it can be tough to see at times. I do have some gripes that lowered the score.

1. The shoulder buttons are very uncomfortable to use. They would have been much better if placed somewhere on the back, as that is where my index fingers go when I hold the system. I passed on getting F-Zero for the lone fact that it requires using the shoulder buttons a lot.

2. Many of the games are in stereo, yet they only put one speaker on the GBA. Why not put one on each side? The sound is great with external speakers or head phones, but it would have been nice to be able to enjoy good sound using only the GBA.

3. The screen, while much better than I expected, is still hard to see if you don't have decent light. It is better than GBC though. If you're in the sun, it is great. A good overhead light, i.e flourescent, is good as well if you are sitting under it or near it. A lamp works well to as long as you are next to it, which isn't a problem since most people have lamps next to their couches and recliners. I still would have loved to had a back light mode though. They could have given it an on/off switch so people could save batteries when they had enough light that they didn't need it. To solve the problem, there are several GBA lights available. I got the GBA Worm Light and it works pretty good. The reflection takes some getting used to though. I can only stand to use it if I absolutley have to.

The Games

Super Mario Advance- 9/10

Simply put, this is the best version of one of the best 2D platformers of all-time, Super Mario Bros 2. The graphics are even better than they were on the SNES's Super Mario All-Stars, and the sound is improved as well. They've added voices for the players and bosses. Many have found these to be annoying, but I actually like them. The game play is the same, even the location of the mushrooms in SubCon is the same, at least for the few that I actually remember the location of . There aren't really any major level additions, just some small new areas within the levels, some of the enemies are bigger, and there is a new robotic Birdo boss. If you've played SMB2 so much that you are sick of it, you may want to pass on this. I hadn't played it for years and I'm having a blast playing through it again.

SMA also includes another game, Mario Bros Classic. This is an updated version of the original Mario Bros arcade game. I haven't gotten a chance to try it multi-player, so I can't review that aspect. For those that never played the original Mario Bros. game, it is a game that is somewhat similar to Donkey Kong. You are in a square level that only scrolls up and down a little bit. There are horizontal platforms that you can jump onto, but not through. Enemies come out of pipes at the top, and the object is to hit the platform beneath them, and then jump up to that platform and kick them to get rid of them for good. It sounds simple, but there is some strategy involved in killing multiple enemies to get bonus points, and it quickly gets difficult when you have several enemies on screen coupled with fireballs and a guy that freezes the platforms causing you to slide. It is incredibly fun and addictive, and I've spent nearly as much time playing it as I have SMB2.

All in all SMA is an excellent port of two great games. It is a must-have for all Mario fans.

Castlevania-Circle of the Moon-10/10

Castlevania-COTM follows in the footsteps of one of my all time favorite games Castlevania-Symphony of the Night for the Playstation. Fortunately it does so perfectly. My main gripe with SOTN was that as you got more powerful the game got very easy. COTM seems to maintain the difficulty throughout, as you get more powerful, you encounter more powerful enemies. The only real gameplay addition is the new DSS Card system. You find two types of cards, and can equip one of each at a time. Different combinations of cards give you powers, like a flame whip, that use magic points when used.

For those who haven't played SOTN, these games are in the same vein as Metroid. You play in one continuous world, Dracula's castle, and as you progress you gain new abilities that allow you to enter areas that were previously unaccessable. There are also some role playing elements as you gain experience to build levels, gain more HP/MP, and find items to increase your attributes.

The graphics in COTM are very good, although they can be a little dark and hard to see at times. You can almost mistake it for a playstation sequel to SOTN. The sound is also great, easily better than most anything on the SNES. The game is simple perfect in every facet. This is THE launch game to get.

Rayman Advance (haven't played enough to give a score)

I'll only offer some impressions here as I haven't played this game very much yet. The thing that immediately jumps out at you are the graphics. The graphics are better than anything I ever expected to see on the GBA. Rayman is clear, well animated and very colorful. And this is just a launch game. I can't wait to see what the second and third generation games look like. The sound is great as well, and this appears to be a strength of the GBA as all the games I've played have great sound. This is a port of an old Jaguar game, so in otherwords, it should be new to most everyone. I had to get it as I love Rayman 2 for the Dreamcast. From what I've played Rayman Advance seems to have the same flavor and creative level design as Rayman 2, set in a 2D world. It appears to be a great choice for platform fans, and a good alternative to Super Mario Advance for those that have played SMB2 to death.




[Edited by joshhinkle on 06-13-01 at 10:01 AM]

Well, the old "you snooze you lose" adage appears to be true with yet another game system launch. I went out over lunch to pick up a GBA, and all of the department and electronic stores (both Wal-Marts, Target, both K-Marts, Circuit City, Best Buy, etc.) were all sold out of GBA's. In fact, they had been sold out for quite a while.

My question is this: is this going to be another PS2 shortage crisis? I don't know what the launch numbers or follow-up shipment numbers are for GBA, but I hope stores will be re-stocked soon. Right now, it looks like PS2 all over again, and I dearly hope that isn't the case.

Anyone have impressions of Namco Classics?

Toys R US had a whole bunch still left at lunch time...
That's not including the pre-sales which they had behind the register.

Did you check them out???

I went to Wal-Mart today to pick up three games (THPS2, F-Zero Advance and Rayman). They told me all they had was F-Zero and Mario. I can wait for Rayman but here's the thing. I saw THPS2 at Wal-Mart about a week ago, when I asked about it I was told that it shouldn't have been out and it is supposed to be sold starting on the 13th. I told the guy there today about this and he went in back to check to no avail. So someone must have sold them already when they weren't supposed to or they were stolen. Here's a "Screw You!" to Wally World. I'm buying my games elsewhere.

most of the GBA games r 40 a pops, that is pretty xpensive..i hope as more games come out, the older will get cheaper like 20 a pops. i have notice that only gba games made by nintendo that could link up using only one games to host for multi players, while superdodge ball and any other manfacturer of the gba games, each players need to have their own game in order for multi players.

GT Advance 5/10
It would get 9/10 from me if not for THQ removing the battery backup. Its only a 5/10 without it. Too much hassle writing down a 16 digit password with my terrible handwriting. I have ordered the import. Great handheld racing game otherwise. It takes a few races to get use to the small control pad. Tons of tracks and options. You can also unlock new cars and more by winning races. The closest thing to Gran Turismo we can get on a handheld.

Castlevania is a 10/10 from me as well, but it is a hard little game. It is set up like SOTN, but the graphics are classic NES Castlevania. Excellent gameplay and by far the must buy game for the system.



[Edited by darkside on 06-14-01 at 07:49 PM]

Final Fight - I haven't played this for years and years, but it's just as I remembered. Great graphics, I was seriously impressed! The sound effects are great as well. The music can get a little annoying after awhile of playing. The only bits of Japanese text in the game are the subtitles when they're advancing the story of the game and one selection on the menu. Everything else is in English. I don't know any Japanese and could easily figure out what to do. The game does get a little repetitive because all you do is go around and punch people. Still, it's fun for a quick round while you're taking a dump. I think if anyone was a fan of this game before it's definetly worth picking up the import version or waiting a few months for the US version.

[Edited by Chest Rockwell on 06-13-01 at 03:31 PM]

I just got my GBA package at CompUSA bundled with Mario and Tony Hawk 2. I was only going on the great reviews in this forum, and I am most definitely stoked by the quality of graphics and gameplay! I had no problems with it being sold out.
I have noticed that the screen is a bit difficult to see in lower light, but the worm light should fix that.

Fire Pro Wrestling 5/10
If you have ever imported this series from Japan you may like this game, however, after getting use to the gameplay in titles like Smackdown and No Mercy this game was a joke. The wrestlers are so tiny that its difficult to see what is going on. You have to have great timing to even pull off any of the moves. The game is loaded with wrestlers, matches, and options. However, the gameplay is seriously lacking. I can't recommend it to anyone, but Fire Pro fanatics. I am returning it to EB tomorrow.


[Edited by darkside on 06-14-01 at 07:47 PM]

Tony Hawk 2 9/10
Big warning. Even if you mastered the PSX version you will probably suck at this game until you adjust to the controls. Spend an hour or so just getting the controls down. I am amazed at how much of the PSX version they managed to pack into GBA version. The graphics are good and the skateboarding is great fun once you get the controls down. The levels seem to be just as large as on the Playstation. Its obvious that a lot of attention to detail went into making this game. This and Castlevania are the two shining stars of the launch.

Chu Chu Rocket. 8/10 Okay its basically the same as the Dreamcast version without the online mode. I personally love the puzzle mode and this is definitely a puzzle game that was meant to be on the GBA more than a console. A big plus is 4 players can play with one cart. If you like puzzle games this is one to own.

Before you turn it, just try turning the Computer Level down to 1. The default setting of 4 is actually quite hard. I remember with 6 Man Scramble, I was discouraged by the slaughter that ensued when I first started out against the Com Level 4 opponents. I actually didn't play the game for a month. Then someone on the NG off handedly mentioned to try turning the level down to 1. I did, and was able to get the timing of the grappling down. After that I was able to hang in there with the big boys on level 8.

Ohh yeah, and 9.5/10 (only marked down because of the lack of a Victory Road type setting [although Audience Matches seem to cover up that])

(I hope my post works this time, I've been having some kooky formatting problems)

Like most people, I too have found the screen to be dark. The backlight would be ideal with an on/off switch. I'm not sure if I like the horizontal design. I find that when I'm going nuts on the buttons my thumbs hit the screen sometimes and I smudge the screen a lot. A couple more buttons on the face below the AB (maybe the X Y) would have helped a lot.

Is Street Fighter coming for the GBA ? How about Mortal Kombat ?

Street Fighter is on the way and looks awesome. Not sure about Mortal Kombat. I'd love to see MKII as it was the only really good one IMO.

What have you guys paid for it. I went for it at Frys for $100 plus two free games but they were out the first day and no rain checks. I want one but crap 100 plus 30-40 and game is steap!

the games r really xpensive..i wish they sold the game @ 20..

I must be missing something but how do you save your progress on GBA pitfall. I keep having to start over on level 1. Thanks.