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I don't feel that the gameboy as a games console gets the recognition or respect that is deserves as a dedicated games platform. As someone who had a gameboy and gameboy color as their main games systems for many years, I think idea that it should be treated as a hardcore console is passed upon by many. I blame multiformat games magazines and websites the most, how many times have you read a perfectly good review only to read "now you'll never be bored on car journeys again!" or similar? The last time I witnessed this was at ignpocket where the reviewer of (zelda:) Oracle Of Seasons raves on about how the game rivals many other games on other systems "In fact, they are a couple of the most complete, enthralling games currently on any system" which I was pleased with, showing that the gameboy deserves as much recognition as any console. The reviewer (Chris Carle) was doing well until the the closing line when he proverbially shot himself in the foot "Never will a long plane trip be without Link again".
Why would I care about this though? Well far too many times the gameboy is not given the respect is deserves, it is a little brother to other "proper" consoles and people only play on their little gadet when they can't play on the hardcore systems. What sort of attitude is this? The GBC is comparable to the Nes, was that not a hardcore gamers system back in its era? The GBA is about equal (if not above) that of the Snes, so the Snes was not a proper console?
I don't think this will ever change, in ten years time we'll probably have a handhed more powerful than the GameCube or PS2 but it will still be treated as a hardcore gamers toy. There is something appealing in the image of the hardcore gamer that is so obssesed they can't go anywhere without a game, even Nintendo are pushing this representation. Look at the current 'Life Advanced' campaign and notice that the GBA is something you play when you are bored at church, stuck in a waiting room, or waiting in a queue. Now the idea of portability is an advantage not the main feature of the system. Is there any reason why your handheld wouldn't be played in the same way as your average cathode ray-tube equivalent? I don't think there is, and I think in general gamers are treatng the GBA as a fully fledged console, the old-school aspects of the GBA seem to be attracting many tired with epic big budget games and the 3d blandness that is arguably infecting the games industry at the moment.
Retro 2d gaming might be coming back into fashion, I just hope this improves the reputation of the GBA.
Why would I care about this though? Well far too many times the gameboy is not given the respect is deserves, it is a little brother to other "proper" consoles and people only play on their little gadet when they can't play on the hardcore systems. What sort of attitude is this? The GBC is comparable to the Nes, was that not a hardcore gamers system back in its era? The GBA is about equal (if not above) that of the Snes, so the Snes was not a proper console?
I don't think this will ever change, in ten years time we'll probably have a handhed more powerful than the GameCube or PS2 but it will still be treated as a hardcore gamers toy. There is something appealing in the image of the hardcore gamer that is so obssesed they can't go anywhere without a game, even Nintendo are pushing this representation. Look at the current 'Life Advanced' campaign and notice that the GBA is something you play when you are bored at church, stuck in a waiting room, or waiting in a queue. Now the idea of portability is an advantage not the main feature of the system. Is there any reason why your handheld wouldn't be played in the same way as your average cathode ray-tube equivalent? I don't think there is, and I think in general gamers are treatng the GBA as a fully fledged console, the old-school aspects of the GBA seem to be attracting many tired with epic big budget games and the 3d blandness that is arguably infecting the games industry at the moment.
Retro 2d gaming might be coming back into fashion, I just hope this improves the reputation of the GBA.
I reckon that in around ten or fifteen years, the Japanese will be playing only on handheld machines.
The Japanese like everything to be small but powerful! They have video technology mobile phones! They even have a craze of collectable accessories called 'Hello Kitty' which is huge in Japan!
However the Game Boy now should be just as popular as handhelds will most likely be in the future!
The original Game Boy lost a lot of credit when Nintendo released the better screen and smaller size Game Boy Pocket. People nicknamed the old Game Boy's as 'Brick' and some still do!
Back in the days when Nintendo's handheld box of tricks was very popular, Nintendo released the Game Girl and the Game Boy Light. The Game Girl was just a pink Game Boy and the Game Boy Light was a Game Boy with a lightbulb inside it.
Nintendo got a bit of credability back when Wario Land was advertised on TV. That was the earlier part of the mid-90's. Everyone who had a Game Boy had at least Super Mario Land and they played Super Mario Land 2 and wanted Wario Land. Wario Land was advertised a lot on TV and nearly everyone I knew had it! That was the climax of the original Game Boy's popularity.
The Game Boy Color saved the handheld market from collapse! This 8-bit box of wonder was exactly the same as the Game Boy Pocket but could display up to 56 colours simultaneously. More powerful games were released and Pokémon was invented to bring the Game Boy back to life! It worked. Everyopne who had the original Game Boy could play most of the new games, and those who were new to Nintendo's Game Boy wanted the Russian marvel Tetris.
Then came Spaceworld. The crowds went silent. Nintendo announces the Game Boy Advance and everyone holds their breath. 32-bit capabilities, carts half the size of the originals, 4 player games. This was all but a dream 3 or 4 years ago. But Nintendo had brought this dream to life and restored the worlds faith in Nintendo!
In Japan it sells almost ten times more units than the PS2 did and there's a shortage of link cables, in the US it's not long since it was released, and we've only got 5 days til a UK release! People have been so excited that shops have allowed customers to preorder!
The Game Boy Advance has got it's name down in the history books for being the most powerful handheld games console to date! It is so popular everyone wants one! Some people think it's just a portable SNES and don't want to buy one, however others want on because of it even though it's actually more powerful than the SNES!
The Game Boy Advance will restore the credit the original Game Boy should still have. The Advance carries the original name and still is Game Boy. June 22nd will prove that Nintendo are the best!
The Japanese like everything to be small but powerful! They have video technology mobile phones! They even have a craze of collectable accessories called 'Hello Kitty' which is huge in Japan!
However the Game Boy now should be just as popular as handhelds will most likely be in the future!
The original Game Boy lost a lot of credit when Nintendo released the better screen and smaller size Game Boy Pocket. People nicknamed the old Game Boy's as 'Brick' and some still do!
Back in the days when Nintendo's handheld box of tricks was very popular, Nintendo released the Game Girl and the Game Boy Light. The Game Girl was just a pink Game Boy and the Game Boy Light was a Game Boy with a lightbulb inside it.
Nintendo got a bit of credability back when Wario Land was advertised on TV. That was the earlier part of the mid-90's. Everyone who had a Game Boy had at least Super Mario Land and they played Super Mario Land 2 and wanted Wario Land. Wario Land was advertised a lot on TV and nearly everyone I knew had it! That was the climax of the original Game Boy's popularity.
The Game Boy Color saved the handheld market from collapse! This 8-bit box of wonder was exactly the same as the Game Boy Pocket but could display up to 56 colours simultaneously. More powerful games were released and Pokémon was invented to bring the Game Boy back to life! It worked. Everyopne who had the original Game Boy could play most of the new games, and those who were new to Nintendo's Game Boy wanted the Russian marvel Tetris.
Then came Spaceworld. The crowds went silent. Nintendo announces the Game Boy Advance and everyone holds their breath. 32-bit capabilities, carts half the size of the originals, 4 player games. This was all but a dream 3 or 4 years ago. But Nintendo had brought this dream to life and restored the worlds faith in Nintendo!
In Japan it sells almost ten times more units than the PS2 did and there's a shortage of link cables, in the US it's not long since it was released, and we've only got 5 days til a UK release! People have been so excited that shops have allowed customers to preorder!
The Game Boy Advance has got it's name down in the history books for being the most powerful handheld games console to date! It is so popular everyone wants one! Some people think it's just a portable SNES and don't want to buy one, however others want on because of it even though it's actually more powerful than the SNES!
The Game Boy Advance will restore the credit the original Game Boy should still have. The Advance carries the original name and still is Game Boy. June 22nd will prove that Nintendo are the best!
I didn't realise there was anything wrong with the reputation of GBA - it is going to be huge.
Ultimately, all handhelds are aimed at the portable market - kids at school, college & university students, and big kids (like me) for their work lunchtime.
I agree that there will always be those who will play it as an alternative to the housebound console. My kids always seem to play their GBCs in preference to the PSX, N64, PS2 or PC, but I think that is more to do with their ages (10 and 7) and their need for a quick gaming fix rather than anything in depth.
I don't think Nintendo seriously think that the GBA is a real alternative to the bigger consoles in the long term.
However, I think the timing of release is a brilliant Nintendo strategy. There is a huge market waiting for GC and X-Box before deciding between those and PS2. With PS2 prices having just been reduced, maybe they are tempting people away from settling for a cheaper PS2 with a well priced temporary alternative until GC arrives.
During that time I'm sure much will be made of the GBA compatability with GC as an added marketing tool.
Maybe Nintendo are getting things totally right following a relatively disappointing N64 campaign.
Maybe I'm just wrong.
Ultimately, all handhelds are aimed at the portable market - kids at school, college & university students, and big kids (like me) for their work lunchtime.
I agree that there will always be those who will play it as an alternative to the housebound console. My kids always seem to play their GBCs in preference to the PSX, N64, PS2 or PC, but I think that is more to do with their ages (10 and 7) and their need for a quick gaming fix rather than anything in depth.
I don't think Nintendo seriously think that the GBA is a real alternative to the bigger consoles in the long term.
However, I think the timing of release is a brilliant Nintendo strategy. There is a huge market waiting for GC and X-Box before deciding between those and PS2. With PS2 prices having just been reduced, maybe they are tempting people away from settling for a cheaper PS2 with a well priced temporary alternative until GC arrives.
During that time I'm sure much will be made of the GBA compatability with GC as an added marketing tool.
Maybe Nintendo are getting things totally right following a relatively disappointing N64 campaign.
Maybe I'm just wrong.
I don't feel that the gameboy as a games console gets the recognition or respect that is deserves as a dedicated games platform. As someone who had a gameboy and gameboy color as their main games systems for many years, I think idea that it should be treated as a hardcore console is passed upon by many. I blame multiformat games magazines and websites the most, how many times have you read a perfectly good review only to read "now you'll never be bored on car journeys again!" or similar? The last time I witnessed this was at ignpocket where the reviewer of (zelda:) Oracle Of Seasons raves on about how the game rivals many other games on other systems "In fact, they are a couple of the most complete, enthralling games currently on any system" which I was pleased with, showing that the gameboy deserves as much recognition as any console. The reviewer (Chris Carle) was doing well until the the closing line when he proverbially shot himself in the foot "Never will a long plane trip be without Link again".
Why would I care about this though? Well far too many times the gameboy is not given the respect is deserves, it is a little brother to other "proper" consoles and people only play on their little gadet when they can't play on the hardcore systems. What sort of attitude is this? The GBC is comparable to the Nes, was that not a hardcore gamers system back in its era? The GBA is about equal (if not above) that of the Snes, so the Snes was not a proper console?
I don't think this will ever change, in ten years time we'll probably have a handhed more powerful than the GameCube or PS2 but it will still be treated as a hardcore gamers toy. There is something appealing in the image of the hardcore gamer that is so obssesed they can't go anywhere without a game, even Nintendo are pushing this representation. Look at the current 'Life Advanced' campaign and notice that the GBA is something you play when you are bored at church, stuck in a waiting room, or waiting in a queue. Now the idea of portability is an advantage not the main feature of the system. Is there any reason why your handheld wouldn't be played in the same way as your average cathode ray-tube equivalent? I don't think there is, and I think in general gamers are treatng the GBA as a fully fledged console, the old-school aspects of the GBA seem to be attracting many tired with epic big budget games and the 3d blandness that is arguably infecting the games industry at the moment.
Retro 2d gaming might be coming back into fashion, I just hope this improves the reputation of the GBA.
Why would I care about this though? Well far too many times the gameboy is not given the respect is deserves, it is a little brother to other "proper" consoles and people only play on their little gadet when they can't play on the hardcore systems. What sort of attitude is this? The GBC is comparable to the Nes, was that not a hardcore gamers system back in its era? The GBA is about equal (if not above) that of the Snes, so the Snes was not a proper console?
I don't think this will ever change, in ten years time we'll probably have a handhed more powerful than the GameCube or PS2 but it will still be treated as a hardcore gamers toy. There is something appealing in the image of the hardcore gamer that is so obssesed they can't go anywhere without a game, even Nintendo are pushing this representation. Look at the current 'Life Advanced' campaign and notice that the GBA is something you play when you are bored at church, stuck in a waiting room, or waiting in a queue. Now the idea of portability is an advantage not the main feature of the system. Is there any reason why your handheld wouldn't be played in the same way as your average cathode ray-tube equivalent? I don't think there is, and I think in general gamers are treatng the GBA as a fully fledged console, the old-school aspects of the GBA seem to be attracting many tired with epic big budget games and the 3d blandness that is arguably infecting the games industry at the moment.
Retro 2d gaming might be coming back into fashion, I just hope this improves the reputation of the GBA.