I just got a Gameboy Advance SP

[St. Gabe 0]

Or to recommend for that matter, I have madden 06, which kinda blows, but its ok. Let me know please.

 

Thanks

[Kapoutman 0]

Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga is a must own. The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap is shorter than ALTTP, but it is a very satisfying game.

 

If you're a nostalgic, just get the ALTTP re-release and some of the Super Mario Advance series.

 

Finally, you can't go wrong with Gunstar Heroes, WarioWare: Twisted and Tales of Phantasia.

[Guest The Spike]

I agree that the Wario games are good.

 

Some other games:

Castlevania Double Pack

Astro boy: Omega Factor (I think you can find it for a cheap price)

Mega Man Zero series

[AndrewTS 0]

Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga is a must own. The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap is shorter than ALTTP, but it is a very satisfying game.

 

If you're a nostalgic, just get the ALTTP re-release and some of the Super Mario Advance series.

 

Finally, you can't go wrong with Gunstar Heroes, WarioWare: Twisted and Tales of Phantasia.

 

 

Good choices all. The kinstone-fusing involved in Minish Cap gets annoying, but the dungeons are great. They get very large and complex, but there's well-placed warps to different sections, and lots of new/modified gadgets.

 

The cape > roc's feather

Gust jar is awesome too, and I hope mole mitts return.

 

Anything Warioware is a fine choice.

 

I thought Gunstar Super was kind of weak, though. It is basically a 1P-only version of a game that played much better on 16-bit.

 

 

Castlevania Double Pack

Astro boy: Omega Factor (I think you can find it for a cheap price)

Mega Man Zero series

 

CvDP--Aria is excellent, Harmony is...not so great. Circle of the Moon is better IMO if you got a backlit system like the SP.

 

Astro Boy doesn't last long, but it's a blast while it does.

 

MMZ games are fraggin' hard.

 

Some general guidelines for buying GBA games.

 

- The number of quality original (i.e. not a sequel, retrofit, or port) titles on GBA are slim. Those rare few would be:

Racing Gears Advance

Sigma Star Saga

Rebelstar Tactics

Wade Hixton's Counter Punch

Ninja Five-O

Konami Krazy Racers (Mario Kart clone, although somewhat pointless with MKDS out)

..and maybe a few here and there I haven't played.

(Scourge: Hive is espected to be in this list as well, but it's not been released yet)

 

- If they're a port of an SNES game, look at the screenshots. If it looks like your character's sprite is too large for the game to be playable, it probably isn't good (see: Disney's Magical Quest 3 Starring Mickey and Donald, Megaman and Bass, and in a rare example of a 32bit game, Rayman Advance).

 

- Be wary of a licensed game. Twice as wary if it is based on a movie. If it is a license for something that is a really friggin' old IP, like Tiny Toons/Animaniacs, 3x as wary.

 

- If it's Sega and doesn't say Puyo or Astroboy on the box, stay the hell away. (Also, if is a port/namesake of a genesis game like Revenge of Shinobi, the Smash Pack, etc. it probably really really sucks)

 

- If it looks 8-bit with no graphic detail and apparently had a budget about 20 bucks, pass on it.

 

- If you see this names on the box, avoid:

Majesco (yes, even EWJ)

Kemco

Namco (aside from Tekken)

THQ

Bandai

Vivendi Universal AKA VU games.

 

- If it is a fighter, it probably sucks. It will look and sound worse, often is lacking in buttons, may have spotty/bad collision detection from a slip-shod port, and was done cheaply to cash in on the name. On top of that, it's much harder to get a human to play against you. Tekken DR on PSP may be the exception here, though.

[Hoff 0]

I have Super Street Fighter II Turbo Revival and it plays great. The difficulty seems jacked up, to me, but it plays very well. On top of what Andrew said, I'd recommend Metriod: Fusion. Just an amazing platform shooter with classic Metroid gameplay, some new innovations, and a great story. Highly HIGHLY recommend. You can find it in some stores yet, if you're lucky.

[Golgo 13 0]

Advance Wars.

Fire Pro.

[AndrewTS 0]

Fusion is much better than Zero Mission, IMO.

 

Turbo Revival is okay (I liked the new art and new bgs), although it still hurts that the game was made for a 6-button system.

[Anya 0]

Namco (aside from Tekken)

 

 

No, avoid that too. It sucks.

 

 

What makes you think you'll be able to play against humans in DR for PSP? I really doubt anyone is going to care, unless it's online.

 

 

I HIGHLY recommend Mortal Kombat Advance. It's like UMK3 but.....not. TRY IT!

[AndrewTS 0]

I heard lots of good review for Tekken Advance, although I guess it hasn't aged well at all.

 

And I meant more for DR's overall playability due to having enough buttons to accomodate the game. Naturally, versus play against humans will vary, but the GBA is seen more as a "toy" while I see older gamers lug around their PSPs a lot, and wireless play is less cumbersome than using a link cable.

 

MK Advance is total garbage. Even if you adore UMK it's a terrible port of it, graphically, sound-wise, control-wise, ai-wise, etc. I assume she was joking since it is so infamously bad.

[St. Gabe 0]

I know Madden sucks, but what about other sports games? Also, are the mario series games worth my time? I basically just use it when I am bored at work, that is why I bought it. I'm still pissed about Madden 06 though...2 thumbs down. I will try the Old Zelda games too. Are there any other classic Nintendo 8 bit games released for it? Lemme know. Thanks for the recommendations so far.

[Anya 0]

I heard lots of good review for Tekken Advance, although I guess it hasn't aged well at all.

 

And I meant more for DR's overall playability due to having enough buttons to accomodate the game. Naturally, versus play against humans will vary, but the GBA is seen more as a "toy" while I see older gamers lug around their PSPs a lot, and wireless play is less cumbersome than using a link cable.

 

MK Advance is total garbage. Even if you adore UMK it's a terrible port of it, graphically, sound-wise, control-wise, ai-wise, etc. I assume she was joking since it is so infamously bad.

 

 

 

Tekken Advance was bad from day 1. As much as I like Tekken and have a high tolerance for crap I still didn't like it. I am guessing the only reason it got good reviews was that it has really good graphics(especially when not moving) and that it's portable Tekken. The gameplay is so choppy and sluggish it's unplayable. No portable fighter is great, but at least some like Revival and Alpha 3 are "good for a portable". TA is just BAD. I'd rather imagine about playing DR than play TA.

 

 

I doubt anyone is going to care about DR multiplayer. Who randomly carries around a PSP and just happens to run into someone? "hey lets meet up for some DR"? I doubt it. DR on PSP is such a WASTE. Most disappointing gaming news of the year so far. Namco....LILI ON CONSOLE PLEASE! Don't make me buy a DR cabinet.

 

 

MK Advance is seriously incredible. Have you played it? Don't mock it till you try it. It's like UMK3...but ADVANCED.

 

A cast of 30 or so characters! 15 are palatte swap ninjas!

 

Challenging AI! The computer is so good it can do special moves with no recovery over and over again!

 

New gameplay tweaks and features! Be amazed at the new "random parry" system where projectile and other moves mysteriously go through the opponent seemingly at random.

 

Updated and improved Fatalities! Classics take on a whole new meaning with new animation! Marvel at Kabal's head being missing during his scream fatality. Look on in awe at Sindel's skin tear scream fatality causing the opponent to burst into flame for no apparent reason.

[AndrewTS 0]

I know Madden sucks, but what about other sports games?

 

I'm not much of a sports gamer, but there's literally one basketball game on the entire system: NBA Jam 2002. And it sucks.

 

Super Dodge Ball and Fire Pro are good, though.

 

 

Also, are the mario series games worth my time?

 

Super Mario Bros. is just the NES game in portable form, plus the ability to save after each world.

 

Super Mario Advance (Super Mario Bros. 2) is a somewhat improved game, but it's a title I played to death on Mario All Stars, so I'd pass on it.

 

Super Mario Advance 2: Super Mario World has some minor changes/enhancements (GameFAQs has a section detailing them all), but like SMB, nearly everyone has played this game.

 

Super Mario Advance 3: Super Mario World 2 Yoshi's Island: If you've never played the original, you missed out on a great game. It's easier to find this than it is the original SNES game, IMO, so pick it up if you missed it. It's just a fantastic game and shouldn't be passed up.

 

Super Mario Advance 4: Super Mario Bros. 3: I think it's one of one of the best games ever, so if you don't own it, get it. I was annoyed that it incorporated e-reader features, but it doesn't take away from the original game at all.

 

Also, all of the "Advance" Super Mario titles (so not the NES Classics one, but the others) feature the original Mario Bros. arcade game. If you have a friend with any of those titles, you can play it with him/her. Not really exciting, but it's a bonus so what the heck.

 

I will try the Old Zelda games too. Are there any other classic Nintendo 8 bit games released for it? Lemme know. Thanks for the recommendations so far.

 

Yeah, there's plenty of other classic titles, but BE WARY, because not all of them are worth your money.

 

Bomberman -- Good, but there's better, newer versions available.

 

Castlevania -- Worth 10 bucks, since it's a bonafide classic and has a save feature, which makes it much easier to enjoy. You can only pick up where you left off if you save after a boss fight, though, but still a sweet feature.

 

Donkey Kong -- Get the Game Boy version, which has all of the original levels (NES version was missing the arcade cement factory), plus after those initial stages there's like 90+ original platformer stages that are way fun. Mario vs Donkey Kong is a sequel of sorts to this version of DK (and is also a darn fine GBA game but one I haven't seen in a while).

 

Excitebike -- good game, but wasn't really my bag.

 

Ice Climber -- didn't like it personally.

 

Metroid -- Another true classic, however, not only is Zero Mission a pretty good remake of the game, but Metroid Zero Mission has the original Metroid available as an unlockable. If you buy this game used it's a pretty good bet you'll even have the game unlocked already, too. So the NES Classic version is redundant unless you gotta have the retro box/instructions.

 

Pac-Man -- Pac Man Collection has more and better versions of the classic game.

 

Super Mario Bros. -- Good port overall, but only if you have to have it portable. Super Mario Bros. Deluxe actually has way more features, but the sprites are much larger so the original screen ratio in that title isn't true to the original like the GBA version.

 

Dr. Mario -- Unnecessary, since it was inferior to Tetris, and Dr. Wario (Wario's OMGBOOTLEGVERSION) is available as an unlockable in the original Warioware, and is the same game minus multiplayer. So if you must play Dr. Mario linked up with another player, here's your game.

 

The Legend of Zelda -- Good port, although it's also on the Collector's Edition bonus disc. But makes for a great portable title provided you're not going to need to shut it off frequently. Once you're in a dungeon you can save and it will pick you up from the dungeon entrance, however save on the overworld and you start out outside Old Man's cave. However, somebody needs a kick in the nuts for a black and white manual and a pathetic *grey* cartridge. There's not even a decent map in the manual. Some of the in-game Engrish is fixed up a bit.

 

Xevious -- rather fun shooter, but I'm not a shooter nut so it's nothing I'd play extensively.

 

Zelda II -- A spot-on port of the original love-it-or-leave-it side-scrolling action RPG. I'll probably be buying it just to try to complete it before TP ships.

 

There's more of them that were Japan-only (Famicom Mini line), but only those titles made it to the US.

[St. Gabe 0]

great stuff, thanks man!

[Hoff 0]

Fusion is much better than Zero Mission, IMO.

Oh, God yes. It's not even close, and ZM is a pretty good game. Everything in Fusion rocks. I'm still a little afraid to play it in the dark due to the awesomely eerie music and the basic concept of being the only one alive on the station. Then again, I have a seriously overactive imagination.

 

Oh, hey, Gabe. The Golden Sun games are pretty solid RPG titles, especially (IMHO) the first one. Hard to find, but worth it if you're an RPG guy. My apologies if someone already mentioned them and I missed it.

[AndrewTS 0]

Fusion is much better than Zero Mission, IMO.

Oh, God yes. It's not even close, and ZM is a pretty good game. Everything in Fusion rocks. I'm still a little afraid to play it in the dark due to the awesomely eerie music and the basic concept of being the only one alive on the station. Then again, I have a seriously overactive imagination.

 

I disliked Fusion at first, mainly because of the linearity/computer direction, but back-to-back play with SM, and playing ZM helped me put it all into perspective well. The graphics, gameplay, music, story--it all comes together so extremely well that I don't care if it's different or a bit more structured towards a narrative.

 

However, opinions differ, and I've seen plenty of folks online still swear by ZM and often don't bring up Fusion. Ah well.

 

"great stuff, thanks man!"

 

You're welcome. There was a lot of info there, but I wanted to at least emphasize that some of those classics are free unlockables, so they're often a better value to get something like the Pac collection or Wario Ware.

[claydude14 0]

As far as Sports games go, I can't vouch for Mario Tennis but Mario Golf is a great portable game to pick up and play. As far as other games, I'd recommend a Pokemon title.

[razazteca 0]

All you need to know is Mario = fun. There is no such thing as a bad Mario game.

[Hoff 0]

Mario Golf is okay. I could never get into the storyline, but every now and then a quick game is fun.

[AndrewTS 0]

All you need to know is Mario = fun. There is no such thing as a bad Mario game.

 

Mario's Time Machine, Mario is Missing, and Hotel Mario say hello.

[BUTT 0]

Well, those games don't count. They weren't made by Nintendo.

 

I always wondered why Nintendo allowed those companies to make those games. I mean, I understand Hotel Mario because I know about the deal they had with Phillips. However, I don't get the educational games. Does the Software Toolworks really have that much money that they could convince Nintendo to whore out their biggest franchise character? It took years for the Mario movie to get into development because Nintendo was so adamant about making sure that their property was handled correctly (although it didn't turn out too well for them) and then some no-name company comes along and suddenly Nintendo gives them the license? Strange.

[MillenniumMan831 0]

I picked up NHL 2002 used a week ago and have no complaints other than how fast the players zip across the ice but the controls and animations are plenty good.

 

Fire Pro Wrestling 2 is absolutely tremendous.

 

In case you're interested, I have an extra cartridge of Double Dragon III for the original Gameboy (but playable on the GBA).

[AndrewTS 0]

Nintendo, Sega and Panasonic had brief affairs with educational software, IMO because it made them look good PR-wise.

 

Remember Pico? Those blue-stripe Genesis games like Ecco Jr. (ugh) and GameFAQs long-running joke Barney's Hide and Seek?

 

Or that load of educational software Panasonic plugged while simultaneous dishing out gory fighters?

 

Mario Teaches Typing I can't comment on, since I've never even seen it. However, it probably doesn't have the rush of the greatest typing game of all time, Typing of the Dead.

 

Speaking of which (and back on topic), Pinball of the Dead was really fun, although I didn't make much progress on it.

 

Anyone play Mario Pinball?

[Hoff 0]

I haven't, but in a similar vein, I'm wondering if Metroid Pinball is worth my money. It comes with that Rumble Pak deal, and I'm an accesory whore.

 

I just got done playing a little Final Fantasy IV. Not an original game, but a great port, and a must-have for RPG fans.

 

Anyone know of any good baseball games for the little handheld?

[claydude14 0]

I heard that Mario Pinball was absolutely dreadfull, but that Metroid Prime Pinball is supposed to be pretty good, like the Pokemon Pinball series.

[razazteca 0]

All you need to know is Mario = fun. There is no such thing as a bad Mario game.

 

Mario's Time Machine, Mario is Missing, and Hotel Mario say hello.

This generation, this platform I never heard of Hotel Mario.

 

I heard that Mario Pinball was absolutely dreadfull

Its a fun adventure pinball game if you will with mini bosses and coin collection missions its similar in play to Pokemon Ruby/Sapphire Pinball. The only pinball game to avoid like the plague would be the Pac-Man one. I would probably rank the GBA pinball games:

 

Sonic Spinball

Mario Pinball

Pokemon Pinball

Pinball of the Dead

Sonic Pinball Party

Bomberman Jetters: Game Collection (J)

Hardcore Pinball

Pac-Man Pinball

[AndrewTS 0]

There was a GBA Sonic Spinball? Surely you don't mean that piece of garbage on the smash pack, do you?

 

Actually, the original Sonic Spinball was kind of crap on Genesis too, IMO.

[Guest InuYasha]

See if you can get your hands on Breath of Fire II. It's damn near impossible to find, but well worth the effort if you're an RPG fan.

[AndrewTS 0]

Funny you mention that. I found it at a pawn shop for 10 bucks today.

[Guest InuYasha]

Funny you mention that. I found it at a pawn shop for 10 bucks today.

I snapped it up at Best Buy when it came out about 3 years ago. Even though it is just a re-release, and you can find it on almost any ROM site, the new 32-bit stills and improved control style more than make-up for it.

[razazteca 0]

There was a GBA Sonic Spinball? Surely you don't mean that piece of garbage on the smash pack, do you?

 

Actually, the original Sonic Spinball was kind of crap on Genesis too, IMO.

But its portable so it instantly gets bonus points