Rating: ****
The size is the only small thing about Nintendo's new Game Boy Advance.
Since its Game Boy and Game Boy Color systems first bowed on store shelves in 1989, Nintendo's 90% share has dominated the portable gaming market. Its new grown up system, which launches this month, should only bolster the company's strong stance.
GBA's big selling point is its graphics. Its 32-bit processor enables developers to create games on a par with some PlayStation console titles, displaying 511 simultaneous colors in character mode, for example, compared to Game Boy Color's 56 color display.
GBA is primarily a 2D gaming system. It will debut with 17 games and Nintendo expects an additional 43 GBA titles from every major software developer, including Sega, on store shelves by Christmas. The line-up looks better than many of Nintendo's 16-bit Super NES console games.
Standouts include Activision's "Tony Hawk Pro Skater 2," which should battle for first place in GBA software sales. Ubi Soft's 2D side-scrolling adventure game, "Rayman Advance," is one of the most beautiful GBA games that looks like its PlayStation counterpart. Atlus' "Super Dodge Ball Advance" offers the most all-around fun, especially with its two-player gameplay. THQ's "GT Advance Championship Racing" takes the checkered flag as the system's best racing game.
Sound has never been one of Nintendo's strong points, especially on portable systems, but GBA changes that with both stereo and Dolby Surround Sound through the headphone jack.
With no foreseeable competition, Nintendo should continue to dominate portable gaming. The expected release of a GBA "Pokemon" game alone will propel sales of the new system. "Pokemon" is what made the original Game Boy a blockbuster hit. Third party companies are using the platform to launch day-and-date movie licenses, including Electronic Arts' "Harry Potter" and Konami's trio of "Jurassic Park III."
GBA retails for $99.95 and comes in a variety of colors. Games will cost upwards of $39.95. System also plays Game Boy and GBC games.
Although approximately the same size as the older GBC, GBA boasts a 2.9" reflective color LCD screen that's 50% larger than that of GBC. GBA also consumes less power, getting 15 hours of gaming out of two AA batteries, compared to GBC's 10 hours.
The system's communication cable port allows a single cable to link four GBAs for four-player gaming via one cartridge. Port also allows GBA to work as a controller for Nintendo's next-generation console GameCube, which launches in November.
Expect Nintendo to push its new portable system with a hefty $75 million marketing campaign this year. Nintendo forecasts worldwide sales of 24 million units in year one and 100 million by year four. Eight million GBAs will be shipped in the U.S. this year alone.
These numbers are impressive, considering the original Game Boy and GBC have sold over 110 million units since entering the market and competing with rivals Sega (Game Gear, Nomad), Atari (Lynx) and SNK (Neo Geo Pocket Color).
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