Games of Summer 2004: Game Boy Advance

The Game Boy Advance market does tend to slow down during the summer months, but even with the virtual gaming drought there's plenty of great titles to choose from on the handheld. And talk about variety -- the Game Boy Advance has you covered in all fields of gaming, from quick action to extensive RPG, and with the addition of a link cable or the Wireless Adapter scheduled for release this September, it's easy to hook up for some multiplayer gaming as well.

This portion of the Hot Games of Summer covers some of the coolest games for the Game Boy Advance released during the summer months of June, July, August and September. We've sifted through the best that publishers have to offer this season: these games are can't miss choices, so don't forget to add them to your wishlist if you want to learn more about them as they get closer to their release.

What to Expect: Believe it or not, as cute, adorable, and sickeningly sweet those rodents with oversized noggins are, Nintendo tends to give them decent videogames on the Game Boy Advance. The hamster troop has had a series of satisfying adventure games on the handheld systems, but for the next outing Nintendo's created a series of, what else, summer sports...coincidentally happening around the time of the olympic games. Hit the field in games including hammer toss, swimming, tennis, hurdles, and much, much more. It may be tailored for the younger crowd, but leave your masculinity at the door if you want to enjoy the latest game from Alphadream, the talented developers responsible for the incredible Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga..

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What to Expect: For the past three years, Electronic Arts has put the Genesis and Super NES versions of its football series on the Game Boy Advance, tweaking the games slightly to update them for the current player and team rosters. Get your wallet out this time, folks: a new development team's been put to the task of creating a brand new football experience on the handheld system. True, the power (or lack thereof) of the GBA hardware means the portable football experience won't be quite as realistic as what console gamers will be getting, but the GBA game will be all new...with way more features than what EA Sports gave us for the 2002, 2003, and 2004 seasons.

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What to Expect: One of the biggest names in game development during the days of the Super NES and Genesis was Treasure, a team spun out of Konami's Contra and Castlevania teams that created some of the coolest, most "out there" action games on the console systems. The team's latest creation is Astro Boy: Omega Factor, a fantastically intense brawler that really shows off the team's old-school influence in its graphics and gameplay. Even if you're not a fan of the Astro Boy television show, if you love balls-out action, definitely play with this boy when he hits shelves in August.

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What to Expect: This one's a no-brainer, folks. Pokemon RPG titles are still the system's true top-selling games, and Fire Red and Leaf Green will offer a much different experience than what Ruby and Sapphire did last year. Fire Red and Leaf Green are, if you haven't been following them, remakes of the original games that started the franchise on the original, black and white Game Boy system. With one major addition: wireless connectivity. Included with each copy of the game is an adapter that plugs into the link port of the GBA system. With this device, players will be able to battle, trade, and chat with other owners in a local area network...and the adapter will be compatible with other games. Including the next game in our list of Summer Games.

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So with school out of the way and nothing but time on your hands, summer is definitely the best season of the year to get in some serious gaming. And with the beauty of portable gaming in, literally, the palm of your hands, you don't have to be restricted to the boring, air-conditioned indoors to get in your fix. Hit the beaches, bowling alleys, mini-golf courses, even the ballgame without worry of missing out on the next few levels. Stuck at Filene's Basement with Mom during the Back to School Sales? No problem. It's all about being on-the-go with the Game Boy Advance, so be sure to keep a system on your person wherever you go.

The Game Boy Advance market does tend to slow down during the summer months, but even with the virtual gaming drought there's plenty of great titles to choose from on the handheld. And talk about variety -- the Game Boy Advance has you covered in all fields of gaming, from quick action to extensive RPG, and with the addition of a link cable or the Wireless Adapter scheduled for release this September, it's easy to hook up for some multiplayer gaming as well.

This portion of the Hot Games of Summer covers some of the coolest games for the Game Boy Advance released during the summer months of June, July, August and September. We've sifted through the best that publishers have to offer this season: these games are can't miss choices, so don't forget to add them to your wishlist if you want to learn more about them as they get closer to their release.

Already Available:

What to Expect: Camelot has already made a huge splash on the Game Boy Advance with its Golden Sun RPG series. But the team's also known for its golf experience on videogame systems, starting with the Hot Shots series on the PlayStation. When Nintendo scooped up the team for its own purposes, Camelot produced some of the best golfing fun with Mario Golf on both the Nintendo 64 and the original Game Boy Color system. They've outdone themselves with the Game Boy Advance sequel, offering up a TON of fun golfing options as well as great connectivity features with the GameCube title released last year. And it supports wireless multiplayer, which means you can use the adapter that comes with Pokemon: Fire Red and Leaf Green.

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What to Expect: Nintendo's going to make a mint out of its Classic NES series on the Game Boy Advance. But even though these games are simply reprints of existing NES games, some titles are worth the deja vu. Case in point: Super Mario Bros., a truly timeless game design that still puts up a challenge to this day. The game on the Game Boy Advance is exactly as it was 20 years ago on the Nintendo Entertainment System, apart from a little bit of "squished" appearance to the graphics that's, honestly, no big deal. If you're going to pick up only one game in the Classic NES series, let this one be it. Or maybe this next one...

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What to Expect: This is the game that started the phenomenon. Though the Zelda series has moved forward with new features, quests, creatures, and challenges, it's great to experience the original game that kicked off Link's adventuring career on the Nintendo systems. Much of what makes a Zelda game today was created nearly 20 years ago on the NES system, and for 20 bucks you'll be able to experience the fun as-is, but this time on the go.

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What to Expect: Leave the deck of cards at home. Instead, pick this game up and you'll be able to play a ton of amazingly fun single and multiplayer card games, either with friends on other GBA systems, or against very capable computer opponents. Telegames and Cosmigo have put together a truly complete package of challenges that makes a perfect game to keep with your system at all times.

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