With rumors that Game Boy and Game Boy Color games are coming to Nintendo’s online service, we thought it would be wise, if so, to browse through the list of over 1,000 Game Boy games and determine. serve.
We immediately removed Pokemon, Tetris and licensed games from the list. While Pokemon games are on the 3DS Virtual Console, they are paid versions and in our opinion will not be offered for free. Tetris is basically a licensed game, and there’s already an excellent Tetris 99 on the service. Licensed games are a minefield of companies willing to pay and ask for nothing but trouble, and so far nothing on NSO in the licensed NES and SNES libraries.
Here’s what we found.
The Legend of Zelda Link’s Awakening / DX, Oracle of Ages / Oracle of Seasons
While Ocarina of Time and Majora’s Mask caught the attention of the lions in the early 2000s, three portable Zelda games were above the weight. Link’s Awakening, we all know, even got a remake on the Switch in 2019 – and you might be better off playing this one.
However, Oracle of Ages and Seasons developed by Capcom is excellent and contains some of Zelda’s most creative puzzles. Oracle of Ages takes you on a journey through two time periods, influencing the past to change the future. Seasons make you manipulate the time of year to move forward where the weather is more coincidental,
These two games are also interconnected. If you complete one, you can get the password to start another and make it a semi-sequel to the game you just finished. You can also get a password to get everything back to the original game. This and its Game Link cable feature could be easier to do in 2021.
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kong donkey
Donkey Kong may have the most annoying name, but you’ve probably heard of Donkey Kong ’94. This game is absolutely stunning, and while its first appearance may seem like a port of Donkey Kong on the Game Boy, it’s much more than that.
DK94 is almost a sequel to the original arcade game Donkey Kong. While the first four levels are just this game, the rest are played very differently. You still control Mario and you still need to get Pauline from Donkey Kong, but the levels are deeper; There are objects to hold onto and traps to overcome. Mario can also take punches, fall further, climb ropes, and even swim. DK94 brings the best of Donkey Kong, Donkey Kong Jr, and other Mario platform games. If we get this one, do yourself a favor and see. This is Donkey Kong (the characters, not this game, I’m not that old yet).
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Donkey Kong Land / National Series
Donkey Kong’s arcade-style offerings are great, but the Rare’s Donkey Kong Country series is where the great ape’s popularity has really risen. The first three Donkey Kong Country games are already on the NSO service under the SNES app, but did you know that not only does the first game have an excellent Game Boy Color port, but each of the three also has a Game Boy sequel? ?
Enter the Donkey Kong Land series, three games for the Game Boy that honestly don’t get the love and attention they deserve. Each game has its own unique enemies and all new levels and layouts which, while reminiscent of their SNES counterparts, are optimized for handheld screens and are a lot of fun to play.
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Super Mario Land / Wario Land series
Okay, so why are all Mario Land and Wario Land games on this list? It’s a little hard to explain; what started out as a weird but wildly different Mario game slowly morphed through Mario Land, Mario Land 2, then Wario Land – which of course was Mario Land 3. From there, the games were entirely Wario titles and took their place of identity. alone. The original Mario Land felt bad, and while Super Mario Land 2: The Six Golden Coins was fantastic – it also felt a bit odd as a Mario title. So it makes sense that this time it’s not Mario at all, but Wario. From there, the Wario Land game became theirs through two more games.
All of the games above are worth checking out, but the weird feeling that Mario games have on the Game Boy is way more suited to Wario.
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Game & Watch Gallery
When I was a kid, the Game & Watch Gallery game was my window into Nintendo’s past, “oh, old Nintendo games,” I said. Now that there are too many Game Boy games, the fact that many would view Game Boy games as “oh old Nintendo games” even hurts me to think about it. But that’s good news because even though these are old Nintendo games with old Nintendo games, they still stick around. If you least like them as they are.
All Game & Watch collections offer Game & Watch games as on the original hardware or upgraded with modern graphics, sound and gameplay changes. Game Game & Watch Gallery isn’t the first example of a remake or redesign, but it’s sure to inspire a lot of people.
Seri Kirby’s Dream Land / Kirby Tilt ‘n’ Tumble
Kirby’s adventures begin on Game Boy, with the release of the beautiful Kirby’s Dream Land. This iteration of Kirby is very much in its infancy – no copying capabilities here – but many of the series’ key features, aesthetics, and enemies come to life in this first Game Boy release.
Kirby will have a few other games in Game Boy and Game Boy Color, such as Kirby’s Dream Land 2 and Kirby’s Block Ball, but probably none as unique and exciting as Kirby Tilt ‘n’ Tumble. Here you control a very spinning Kirby using the accelerometer in the Game Boy Color basket, which could certainly be an interesting mechanic to emulate on the Switch – especially since it was never published to virtual consoles on any platform.
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Mario Tennis / Mario Golf
There’s a reason Mario Golf and Tennis games are always being compared to the original Game Boy games – it’s because they’re so good. While they lack the flash and incredible acrobatics we see in newer games, the tight mechanics and immersive storytelling are Camelot.
You see, before they were removed or tutorials glorified, the story modes in these games had a heart, had a purpose – and lots of dialogue. Okay, so maybe that last thing wasn’t so good. These games also have a multiplayer mode, which is not present in the 3DS Virtual Console version. Maybe we can see this happen on the Switch.
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Mario Picross
Tetris is perhaps the most famous Game Boy game, which also makes it the most famous puzzle. The console has several other puzzles, some of which made their debut on the Game Boy.
While the Switch now has hundreds of Picross games and the puzzle genre is very popular, that wasn’t always the case. When Nintendo released Mario’s Picross, there hadn’t been a sequel in the West before the Nintendo DS. When it’s released on the 3DS Virtual Console, it’s time for Picross Mario to shine on the bigger screen.
mole maniac
Produced by little-known game developer Shigeru Miyamoto, Mole Mania is another puzzle game that is often forgotten on Game Boy. So why haven’t you heard of Mole Mania? Because it came out right after another game called Pokemon in Japan. In the west, the Game Boy is on the verge of getting a survival shot because Pokémon hasn’t taken off yet. Game Boy is having a certain hiatus.
Mole Mania got a version on the 3DS Virtual Console, so it’s been available since its original release, but it’s worth mentioning again. It’s a fun puzzler with a great soundtrack, and perhaps one of the few times Miyamoto-led games have bombed.
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Kid Icarus: Myths and Monsters
Kid Icarus: Of Myths and Monsters is the sequel to the original NES. While this game had very difficult difficulty and some glitches back then, but now some old gameplay issues, Game Boy sequel fixes many of them. While it could be a little easier, Kid Icarus here on Game Boy is still a challenge and something that the Switch emulator’s rewind feature might even fix a bit. This one soundtrack also pushes the Game Boy’s tiny sound chip to its fullest.
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Wildcard: Super RC Pro-Am
While the Nintendo Switch Online service may not have all the games that everyone wants, the amount of cuts in the service is quite astonishing. It’s a game many don’t remember, left in the past with no official way to play it in modern times.
One of those games is Super RC Pro-Am, while the NES version has seen another revival in Rare Replay on Xbox – this Game Boy version has never been re-released. Even in the virtual console. So while he may be caught up in all of Microsoft’s rarities, these millions of sellers may see the light once again. Plus, if we get one, who knows what other Era of Rareware games will come.
This game is not listed here? Just because we hate it or don’t think it will – there are so many great Game Boy games out there and we can literally do 10 items like this. If we forgot your favorite, let everyone know in the comments.
Oliver Brandt and Daniel Vuckovic contributed to this article.
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