GameBoy Advance SP

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I want one. Am I childish? Are they any good? What are the best games on it (I used to love Super Mario World, Probotector, and GB Tennis on the first GB)? Is it a rip-off? Should I get one (Emma would probably go halves with me on it...)? Should I wait till they get cheap? If I get one, what colour to get? Gotta be silver, right, for that nifty retro-futurism look? Answers on an old copy of Zelda, to that nice little box down there...

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― Nick Southall (Nick Southall), Friday, 4 April 2003 09:09 (twenty-two years ago)

That was meant to be an arrow in the middle. It looked so cool as well when I first typed it.

― Nick Southall (Nick Southall), Friday, 4 April 2003 09:20 (twenty-two years ago)

I think it has to be silver. You could download a GBA emulator if you wanted to road test the games. My co-worker is playing Tony Hawks 3 at this very moment.

― Alfie (Alfie), Friday, 4 April 2003 09:22 (twenty-two years ago)

It looks nice, but it's like £90 at the mo, and you can get an original GBA for £50. Plus, the main problem with the GBA is the price of the games. But, all in all, I do think the GBA is good.

― jel -- (jel), Friday, 4 April 2003 09:31 (twenty-two years ago)

second hand original GBAs are going for £30 in sheffield.

― Ed (dali), Friday, 4 April 2003 09:35 (twenty-two years ago)

where do you get the emulator from - sounds cool - and im really bored and hungover at work so it could ease the pain a lil

― james (james), Friday, 4 April 2003 09:45 (twenty-two years ago)

the best game is LITTLE SOUND DJ!

― gabriel (gabe), Friday, 4 April 2003 11:03 (twenty-two years ago)

wait, maybe thats for regulr game boy

― gabriel (gabe), Friday, 4 April 2003 11:03 (twenty-two years ago)

dude don't bother, the games are mostly crap and if you have an old super nintendo you could just play them on that anyway. unless you use public transport all the time to get to places where you can bring your gba with you, and it's long journeys. But even then, I bought one when they first came out, the old ones, and it was a real waste of money, I traded it in when I was getting my PS2 and have never looked back.

― Ronan (Ronan), Friday, 4 April 2003 11:07 (twenty-two years ago)

Advance Wars is so much fun. i played it on the emulator for days and days. the tweest war game imaginable.

― phil-two (phil-two), Friday, 4 April 2003 11:09 (twenty-two years ago)

Yoshi's Island is amazing.

― Andrew (enneff), Friday, 4 April 2003 14:51 (twenty-two years ago)

Golden Sun was the one I liked.

― Ronan (Ronan), Friday, 4 April 2003 14:53 (twenty-two years ago)

The instinct in me says get it. But I would only really buy it for the games (Mario Kart, Probotector etc) so, to be honest you'd be better picking up a Gamecube and then waiting for the little Super GBA attachment which turns your GC into a GBA. But if portability is urgent and key and, as Ronan says, you're going to travel a lot just go for a normal GBA, they're cheaper. Oh but there is the backlighting issue. SP is a better machine but do you want to pay £60 for backlighting when you could get your solder out and backlight it youself with this swanky piece of kit that exists. Don't buy it, Nick, in short. Pro Ev 2 is all you need. It's all anybody needs.

― Cozen (Cozen), Friday, 4 April 2003 15:21 (twenty-two years ago)

You could get a game cube for eighty quid from Argos.

― jel -- (jel), Friday, 4 April 2003 15:29 (twenty-two years ago)

Oh I tell a lie, he's missed

― Peter Brackley (Ronan), Friday, 4 April 2003 16:20 (twenty-two years ago)

I had the turn the commentary off on FIFA 2003, Ally McCoist kept knocking my confidence.

― jel -- (jel), Friday, 4 April 2003 16:23 (twenty-two years ago)

Ronan have you heard the one where Trevor, for no reason, just goes "ooooorrarrggh", this kinda low sigh, that's weirdly sexual? That's second best to, "oh, I tell a lie, he's missed!"

(Next best: "Let's have a look at this incident... and what about this incident... on to the next incident... and what a marvellous... incident.")

― Cozen (Cozen), Friday, 4 April 2003 16:26 (twenty-two years ago)

What's this thing I hear about the GameBoy Advanced linking up with GameCube so that you can play your fairy from new Zelda?

― nabisco (nabisco), Friday, 4 April 2003 16:37 (twenty-two years ago)

Well, I dunno about that nits, but it sounds plausible. You can link the gba (plus metroid fusion gba cart) to your GC with Metroid Prime and if you've completed both you get NES Metroid. And there was talk about the GBA being used as a controller. I mean, assuming the fairy doesn't have many functions, the GBA would be perfect. (It'd be a shame though if you could only achieve this through the GBA which I suspect will be the case.)

― Cozen (Cozen), Friday, 4 April 2003 16:41 (twenty-two years ago)

it's true nabisco! But we don't get new Zelda 'til May 5th, unless I buy the import and this pal converting thingie.

― jel -- (jel), Friday, 4 April 2003 16:52 (twenty-two years ago)

Ha, I fucking bought one anyway before I saw all your answers... It's so small and silver and cool... And I do spend 40-60 minutes a day on a train... I bought Zelda for it, whch is gonna be an adventure, cos I've never ever played Zelda before - up until I got my PS1 two & a 1/2 years ago I'd never had a console apart from an original GB. Emma bought Sonic 2 so she can play it too (to be honest it's kind of for her anyway). Next question is, Metroid Fusion or Street Fighter or Doom or what?

― Nick Southall (Nick Southall), Friday, 4 April 2003 20:49 (twenty-two years ago)

You are a man of fine steed, Nick. Don't listen to the hataz/Ronan/me.

― Cozen (Cozen), Friday, 4 April 2003 21:00 (twenty-two years ago)

(Metroid Fusion!!!)

― Cozen (Cozen), Friday, 4 April 2003 21:01 (twenty-two years ago)

Best GBA games:
Golden Sun, Super Monkey Ball jr, Advanced Wars, and I like the version of FIFA Football.

― jel -- (jel), Saturday, 5 April 2003 09:13 (twenty-two years ago)

Golden Sun dude, it is super immersive.

Haha yes Cozen I am very familiar with Trev Brooking's sporadic "yeaaaaaaorrrrraaaaaaaaaaagh" in Pro Evo 2, I'm also quite a fan of the perpetual "is it a counter attack".

― Ronan (Ronan), Saturday, 5 April 2003 09:21 (twenty-two years ago)

What's Golden Sun? Some sorta RPG? Mario Kart Nick, c'mon.

― Cozen (Cozen), Saturday, 5 April 2003 09:24 (twenty-two years ago)

it's the ULTIMATE RPG experience, there is nothing better. I mean I almost completed it.

Mario Kart is good, but you'll not find it very easily.

― jel -- (jel), Saturday, 5 April 2003 09:28 (twenty-two years ago)

Terranigma is the ultimate RPG experiece, old skool that is. Zelda: Winds of Takuto is the nu-skool RPG of choice.

― Cozen (Cozen), Saturday, 5 April 2003 09:30 (twenty-two years ago)

it's only rpg if you have turn based battles, Zelda = adventure game :)

― jel -- (jel), Saturday, 5 April 2003 09:32 (twenty-two years ago)

Don't let the concept of 'genre' limit you, Jel!!!

― Cozen (Cozen), Saturday, 5 April 2003 10:38 (twenty-two years ago)

I've been a genre-ist my entire life, I can barely function now.

― jel -- (jel), Saturday, 5 April 2003 14:50 (twenty-two years ago)

Oooh, I'm really enjoying Zelda! I may buy Metroid Fusion tomorrow...

― Nick Southall (Nick Southall), Sunday, 6 April 2003 09:47 (twenty-two years ago)

I've claimed squatter's rights on the GBA that's been sitting in our front room for the last two months, and according the name in the memory on one game is true, it belongs to the guy who used to have my room - he's passed me in the corridor at university often enough to ask for it back, and given the amount of mess he left in my room, I figure I'm within my rights keeping it.

Anyway, the games in the case it's in are Super Mario World 2, International Superstar Socker, Broken Sword, and Final Fight One. Question is, are any of these games worht bothering with? There's no instructions and I'm too lazy to figure them out if they turn out to be rubbish.

― Graham (graham), Friday, 11 April 2003 13:31 (twenty-two years ago)

hmmm, I really didn't like Super Mario World 2, but it's probably quite easy to work out how to play. ISS is okay, depends if you like football games. Broken Sword is one of those role playing thingies, I think. And Final Fight One is a beat 'em up, and probably is quite simple too.

― jel -- (jel), Friday, 11 April 2003 16:05 (twenty-two years ago)

haha jel said ISS is 'okay'. Come on Mr E L. It is possibly the greatest game ever.

And Super Mario World 2, well I dunno for the GBA, but if it's similar to SNES SM2 then it has this really creepy faux-Western cabaret vibe going on, and you can pick up turnips - it's all very weird. Like if David Lynch was allowed to program Mario. Except fun. And doesn't make you twiddle your thumbs in boredom. Like his films.

― Cozen (Cozen), Friday, 11 April 2003 16:34 (twenty-two years ago)

I loved SMW2 -- I played that game to death on my original gameboy back in the day. Fun and simple with lots of cool little hidden level tricks, and a good sense of humor in the levels.

― Sterling Clover (s_clover), Friday, 11 April 2003 18:13 (twenty-two years ago)

you know, gameboy (the original baby) SMB2 might actually be the video game i've played most in my life. its not NEARLY as lynchian as the nes version (which, as discussed on another thread, was a rejiggered, mario-ized version of another game. and so we get pick-uppable turnips) if only i hadn't accidentally destroyed my gameboy.

― mitch lastnamewithheld (mitchlnw), Friday, 11 April 2003 18:18 (twenty-two years ago)

Yeah I'm thinking of the original gameboy one. I dunno of that one is any different.

It was such a comforting game -- you could always replay each level and work on really cleaning it out proper.

― Sterling Clover (s_clover), Friday, 11 April 2003 18:31 (twenty-two years ago)

Oh, yeah, the original GB M2 is amazing. A bona fide pre-cursor to SMW1 on the SNES, borrowing on the template of SM3 on the NES. A lot chunkier and bigger on the screen than M1 for the GB which is the game I've completed most in my life. It also featured the annoyingly hard space levels (the only time a space level has been in Mario? I mean except those weird abstract levels on Sunshine).

That's a great game.

― Cozen (Cozen), Friday, 11 April 2003 18:45 (twenty-two years ago)

three months pass...

It must be said that Wario Ware Minigames is the best game EVAH. It's fantastic for short attention spans and it includes a full version of Dr. Mario, which by itself is the best game ever SO...

(I treated myself to a shiny Game Boy SP a few weeks ago as a reward for working 40 hrs. a week in a crappy office job, and I wuv it. I think this thread encouraged my impulsive video game desires).

― Jordan (Jordan), Tuesday, 29 July 2003 15:19 (twenty-one years ago)

You know what else is awesome? Advance Wars, both of them. Unbelievably addictive and fun.

― s1utsky (slutsky), Tuesday, 29 July 2003 16:01 (twenty-one years ago)

Advance Wars 2 was the first game I got with mine. I love it, but I kinda stalled in the middle of it because it's kinda hard and I kinda suck. Definitely planning to get back to it on my next road trip though.

― Jordan (Jordan), Tuesday, 29 July 2003 16:41 (twenty-one years ago)

The first one is good too. Actually 2 is more like an expansion pack--the game is only slightly different & there are more enemies & one more unit. God this game is hard to put down.

― s1utsky (slutsky), Tuesday, 29 July 2003 16:44 (twenty-one years ago)

I'm right close to the end of AW 2! Just got to take care of this Sturm guy.

― Dan I. (Dan I.), Tuesday, 29 July 2003 22:44 (twenty-one years ago)

That level's actually easier than it looks.

― s1utsky (slutsky), Tuesday, 29 July 2003 22:46 (twenty-one years ago)

I think I got stuck on the missile silo level. :(

― Jordan (Jordan), Wednesday, 30 July 2003 13:01 (twenty-one years ago)

Is that the one with the island in the middle with all the missiles? You just gotta make sure you get a couple of guys down there right away.

― s1utsky (slutsky), Wednesday, 30 July 2003 15:59 (twenty-one years ago)

Advance Wars 2 is an evil, evil time leacher. Once you beat the normal campaign, there is the hard campaign. Right now I am working my way through the war rooms.

― fletrejet, Wednesday, 30 July 2003 20:30 (twenty-one years ago)

nine months pass...

Mario Kart and Metroid Fusion are/were urgent and key.

― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Wednesday, 19 May 2004 13:12 (twenty-one years ago)

two weeks pass...

OMG OMG OMG
http://www.ebgames.com/ebx_assets/product_images/242756.jpg

And a new RIVER CITY RANSOM game!!!! and the original LEGEND OF ZELDA RERELEASED + the Metroid Fusion thing + the FF Tactics type thing and SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT SHIT.

I am not going to buy it I am not I am not I am not.

― TOMBOT, Monday, 7 June 2004 12:52 (twenty-one years ago)

But TOMBOT, you deserve it...

― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Monday, 7 June 2004 12:54 (twenty-one years ago)

I don't have a PayPal account!!

― TOMBOT, Monday, 7 June 2004 13:03 (twenty-one years ago)

I would like one too please.

Thank you also for reminding me to visit gamefaqs so I can find out WHAT ON EARTH is going on in sodding Phantasy Star...

― Sarah (starry), Monday, 7 June 2004 13:05 (twenty-one years ago)

Gameboy has been around long enough to have a classic variant?

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 7 June 2004 14:25 (twenty-one years ago)

Ned, since 1989. But that "classic" look is trying to mimic the NES which dates to ~1984.

― HAMBURGER NEURON GROUP (ex machina), Monday, 7 June 2004 14:26 (twenty-one years ago)

Yeah NED how about some extra OLD on your OLD? You ready for some OLD? Got OLD? I like it a little more OLD myself.

― TOMBOT, Monday, 7 June 2004 14:29 (twenty-one years ago)

Yay old!

(I grew up with Atari, I mock your young ways.)

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Monday, 7 June 2004 14:33 (twenty-one years ago)

I really don't know what's worse, the fact that I'm part of a generation which is now already seeing the commoditization of its youth culture or that I'm such a complete and total sucker for this gimmick (I had never seriously considered a gameboy SP before this, even though I knew some of the games looked right up my alley).

― TOMBOT, Monday, 7 June 2004 14:36 (twenty-one years ago)

That GBNES looks like a mockup!

A mashup too.

― Crickets Dance On Tequila Booty (Barima), Monday, 7 June 2004 14:38 (twenty-one years ago)

http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0002CHYPU/qid=1086623476/sr=1-14/ref=sr_1_2_14/202-2664473-4119019

It's real! It does look like a silver one with a sticker on, though.

― Sick Mouthy (Nick Southall), Monday, 7 June 2004 14:51 (twenty-one years ago)

if it is made of non sticker material it is totally classic. else dud

― HAMBURGER NEURON GROUP (ex machina), Monday, 7 June 2004 14:52 (twenty-one years ago)

heh, i'm using my extended warranty at best buy to trade my boring silver/black GBA SP for this sexy retro one.

― fortunate hazel (f. hazel), Monday, 7 June 2004 15:36 (twenty-one years ago)

one year passes...

As always, I just got a GBA SP totally randomly (not to mention free). It came with Mario Kart Super Circuit (kinda fun, but I don't have the rulebook so I don't know what the cube icons are nor how to shoot turtle shells at my rivals as they do to me). It also came with some Casino game which is fair to middling in comparison.

Any good recommendations for someone into Katamari Damacy or baseball/skate/surfing games?

― gygax! (gygax!), Thursday, 30 June 2005 20:55 (nineteen years ago)

advance wars, gygax, advance wars!

actually, I dunno, AW fits w. the cute aesthetic of KD but I'm not sure how universal it is

phil-two likes it

I wd recommend AW2 but I haven't been able to track down a cheap enough copy yet

― c/n (Cozen), Thursday, 30 June 2005 21:02 (nineteen years ago)

Questions:

Is there an online set of rules for Mario Kart Super Circuit? Because I really want to find out what those irridescent cubes do everytime I drive through them.

Are the games for GBA and GBASP compatible?

― gygax! (gygax!), Thursday, 30 June 2005 21:27 (nineteen years ago)

look at gamefaqs.com for the instructions

yup

― c/n (Cozen), Thursday, 30 June 2005 21:42 (nineteen years ago)

Advance Wars seconded here - it will take over your life.

For instant gratification, Wario Ware is pretty impressive too; any game that features a dog weeping after you fail to shake its paw gets my vote.

― Bill A (Bill A), Friday, 1 July 2005 06:24 (nineteen years ago)

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