Gameboy Advance (2001)
The Game Boy Advance was not as revolutionary as the Game Boy Color but it proved very profitable, selling a whopping 81.51 million units worldwide. The handheld featured a 32-bit RISC processor and a sharp, colorful, reflective LCD screen. In other words, we’re talking about a portable system that performs at roughly the same level as a Super Nintendo. With hardware comparable to the home console, the Game Boy Advance helped further advanced sprite-based technology. In terms of battery life, GBA did fairly well. You could play 14.5 hours using only two AA batteries. In addition, the GBA was designed for maximum comfort and was released with a dozen accessories including a wireless Adapter, a link cable, an e-Reader, a cleaning cartridge and so much more.
The major downside was the lack of original games. Being able to play your favourite SNES games on-the-go was a major selling point, but when it came to original content, there wasn’t much to be found. Instead, the GBA’s library is comprised mostly of remakes and rereleases, many of which were sub-par to the original games. In fact, the GBA is the only major Nintendo console to not have its own original Super Mario title. That’s not to say it wasn’t worth the $70 – two great 2D Metroid titles and the first Fire Emblem game to hit stateside was reason enough to own one. Along with a fresh, updated Castlevania, a few critically acclaimed entries in the Mario Kart and Zelda series and backward compatibility; the Game Boy Advanced was a worthy successor to the original Game Boy. (Ricky D)
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