Games | Nintendo Game Boy Advance: The first truly modern portable gaming system, the GBA was effectively a portable, souped-up Super NES. With crappy sound, admittedly, but we can't all be perfect. The original hardware was a disaster thanks to a screen that made seeing anything nearly impossible, but once the side-lit GBA SP arrived it was all good.
A Week with Boktai: Originally posted at 1UP but tragically lost to the mists of time. UNTIL NOW
Astro Boy: Omega Factor: How can you go wrong with a game about adorable robots beating each other up in the name of peace? Hint: you can't.
Castlevania: Circle of the Moon: It's so weird to think how much this game wowed the world when it was first release. Were our expectations for portable games really so low just a few years ago?
Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow: The first Castlevania game to live up to the expectations set by Symphony of the Night. Too bad it was so teeny-tiny.
Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance: Not a terrible game, but not especially great, either. But we were starved for quality portable content back in the day, so we made due.
Drill Dozer: A game about screws, studs, valves, bolts, and blocks -- and the drills that love them.
Elevator Action Old & New: The only truly great Elevator Action game is Elevator Action Returns. But this dumbed-down and cute-ified (and incredibly hard-to-find) semi-sequel for GBA can fill the void in your soul in a pinch.
Final Fantasy Tactics Advance: Decent tactical game or daring inversion of moral expectations? Brandon's findings may surprise you.
Final Fight One: I have spent quite a lot of money on Final Fight games over the years. This is because I am stupid.
Klonoa: Empire of Dreams: Good for its time, kinda.
Mario Kart Vs. Krazy Racers: Two portable racers enter, only one will leave. But both are crap compared to Mario Kart DS.
Mega Man Battle Network: Man, I used to actually like Battle Network. Crazy.
Rockman & Forte: Capcom passed over this once for U.S. release, and for good reason!
Metroid Fusion: It's a lot like Super Metroid, too, but apparently designed by people who hate freedom.
Rhythm Heaven: I couldn't shut up about WarioWare's brilliance back in 2003. And while Nintendo has pretty much squandered the series' creative capital in a most Katamari-like manner, its inventive freshness lives on in Rhythm Heaven. Which, of course, never came to America. You oughta know by now: who needs a house out in Hackensack Nintendo hates your yankee guts so hard.
Riviera: The Promised Land: Giving with one hand, taking with the other, Riviera is at once refreshingly original and maddeningly clichéd.
Super Robot Taisen Original Generation: Aw, those little robots are so cute. And full of repetitive dialog.
WarioWare: Micro Megagame$: This was the world's most pretentious review until that rat Tim Rogers came along :(
GBAwesome!: Five years of GBA = dozens of totally great games. Here are a few of them.