Game Boy Color

"I just wish the games that aren't remakes were better."

Nintendo has ruled handhelds for over 10 years now, and seems to have no shortage of ideas with the release of the GBA about a year ago. However, not long ago, in 1998, when the GB still ruled, being kept alive the slim and fancy Game Boy Pocket (with color casings no less) people began to tire of the 4 shades of gray color pallet and yearned for something more. Systems have become more mini, and the Game Boy Color, or GBC, was born. It is almost a exact replica of the Nintendo Entertainment System, except for the size, of course. It is about the size of the GBP, but has a bigger back due to instead of using 2 AAA batteries, you know must use 2 AA batteries. They last for about 16 hours, meaning you can play for over half a day without changing batteries. Not to shabby Nintendo! However, some problems can come out of my see-through purple casing. Mostly, the lack of more colors on screen and sound, which has plagued the GB’s like, well, a plague. Even though tings have come along, much better types of handheld systems (like the Sega Nomad, which plays Genesis games) and all have failed against the boy wonder. How? I will tell you. NINTENDO HIDES SUBLIMINAL MESSAGES INSIDE THEIR GAMES. Also that the games are very good, like Zelda, Metroid 2, and the SML series. With the GBC, they remaked Zelda, took SML4: Wario Land 2, and remakes of classic NES games, like Bionic Commando and the Dragon Warrior series.

Graphics: 7
These are as good as you could imagine for a handheld in 1998 (even though people have made better ones) with a color palette of 32,000, though only 56 could be shown on screen at one time (dwarfing the NES but can’t even compare to the Genesis.) They do not look better than NES quality though, you can do most of these games on the NES and it would still be the same. Some games really pushed it to the limit though like Dragon Warrior 3, and some didn’t, like any of the Pokemons. They could be the exact same thing without color on a Game Boy. If your expecting something as good as Genesis, don’t get your hopes up. If you want to play something like NES or SMS, then this is right up your alley. They could be better, Game Gear looked better than this. That was just almost a SMS. That was 8 years before this. Most people have forgotten that though, so this stuff was top of the line. One of the few good things was it was able to recreate some of your most fond memories of the childhood, like Contra or SMB, and let your play then again. You couldn’t keep an NES that long just for a few games.

Gameplay: 6
You can find all types of games on this system. RPGS, like Dragon Warrior and Pokemon. Action/Adventure, Zelda or Bionic Commando. Sports, like All Star Baseball and WWF stuff. Puzzle, like Tetris and Pokemon Trading Card Game. You can’t get any better than this with that selection. Remakes of NES and GB classics, all in one system? Great. There is also backwards compatibly, making you able to play Metroid 2 looking on a Super Game Boy. However, this is not about the game library, it is about how well the system performs. Which is not too well. The kind of stuff Nintendo could have done long ago is coming out really late. Not good for the Big N. One of the few things I liked is how long the battery lasts. One of the worst things I found is that the game is being squeezed into the slot, and it grinds against the casing, making it have little white spots on the games.

Sound: 4
UGH! This sound is horrible! You don’t want to hear this when you play a Zelda game! If you want to hear some good sound when playing any GB type, get a Discman. Though this, when given it’s limit, could make some quality sound, most developer have not tapped that, and possible never will because this system is almost dead. It is the new beep and boop machine everybody! Gather around and hear some beeps and boops. However, since this is a relatively old system, I will give it credit. For an 8-bit system, it can produce a lot more than the NES could, and seeing how small the cartridge is compared to the NES, that’s a good achievement.

Game Library: 10
I have never seen such a high collection of great games. Even though most of then are just remakes of great games, with a facelift. If you do not want to spend a bunch on old games that might be faulty, you could just get the GBC games, with newer graphics.

Fun Factor: 8
Just because of all the great games that are remakes, you will find a bunch to do with this system. However, if you want to go for some original games, don’t be surprised when they pale in comparison to the others. Watch out for those really bad games.

Buy it?
Since the GBA came out, I suggest not buying it. You could play all the games on a GBA, and it only a few dollars more than a GBC now.

Graphics: 7
Gameplay: 6
Sound: 4
Game Library: 10
Fun Factor: 8

Reviewer’s Score: 7/10

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 06/21/02, Updated 06/21/02