10 Game Boy Games We Want To See Come To Nintendo Switch Online
Kids of the '90s and early aughts are rejoicing in the revitalization of their favorite childhood gaming console with Game Boy titles finally coming to Nintendo Switch Online, according to the February 2023 Nintendo Direct announcement on YouTube. Nine total games are included in the launch, according to Nintendo, including favorites like the original Kirby game "Kirby's Dream Land," "Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins," and "The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX."
We are certainly looking forward to gaming like the good old days — especially with the Game Boy Color, Game Boy Pocket, and Game Boy original color filters to really crank up the nostalgia — and eagerly await the next batch of Game Boy games to be added to NSO. Nintendo teased several more upcoming releases — including two more installments from "The Legends of Zelda", another Kirby game, and the first Pokémon title — but there are lots more that would really make all of our Game Boy 2.0 dreams come true.
More Pokémon games
We'd be really pleased to see any of the Game Boy Pokémon titles added to the Nintendo Switch Online. Nintendo suggested that "Pokémon Trading Card Game" should be expected in the near future, but hopefully the Pokémon collection will expand beyond that to possibly include "Red, Blue, and Yellow," "Gold and Silver," "Crystal," "Ruby and Sapphire" ... at least one would be great, but the more the merrier.
"Red and Blue" would be a great choice, since it's the first Pokémon game to ever be released on the handheld console, although releasing "Yellow" would be comparable if not better. That's because "Yellow" is mostly just a second international release of "Red and Blue," but with some early bugs and design aspects cleaned up. "Ruby and Sapphire" was the first Game Boy Advance title, but "Crystal" was definitely our favorite Game Boy Pokémon release overall.
'Golden Sun'
Playing "Golden Sun" on Nintendo Switch Online would certainly take us back to our childhoods. Originally a Game Boy Advance title in the early 2000s, "Golden Sun" also made an appearance on the Nintendo Wii U Virtual Console in 2014. It's an RPG full of classic fantasy elements and a map that was always memorable for its oceans spilling over the edge of the map into the abyss. We would happily be traipsing about Weyard on Nintendo Switch Online, gathering djinn and fighting to save our friends and family, should Nintendo choose to revitalize the "Golden Sun" series again.
Hopefully, the series' two titles — the original and the sequel, "Golden Sun: The Lost Age," — would be a package deal on NSO, since the first game's campaign is, somewhat frustratingly, left on a massive "to be continued" cliffhanger into the second game. If not, we suppose we'll have to dust off the old Advance.
'Fire Emblem'
Gamers from the '90s and '00s are definitely familiar with the "Fire Emblem" series. The earlier installments were released mostly in Japan, and developmentally were a bit touch and go — with developers reportedly either forgetting to or not having time to put a soundtrack to the entire first half of the second game, according to The Gamer — the series eventually matured and grew into its strengths by the time it released its American debut, "The Blazing Blade," on Game Boy Advance in 2003. (If this title doesn't sound familiar, that's because it was actually just referred to as "Fire Emblem" in the American release).
Replaying "The Blazing Blade" on the Nintendo Switch would be a treat for Game Boy Advance fans, who could refresh their memories on the saga's earlier storyline, explore the complex maps, and enjoy some less demanding gameplay than what's in "Fire Emblem's" more infamously difficult games.
'Mario Kart: Super Circuit'
Childhood friendships have been getting put to the test by "Mario Kart" games for decades. "Mario Kart: Super Circuit" was, in our opinion, one of the best Game Boy Advance games. It was the first "Mario Kart" game developed for handheld play, and you could unlock all of the tracks from older "Mario Kart" games played on the Nintendo console. That's in addition to the 20 new tracks that came out on "Super Circuit," which we played so much that we could probably drive them in real life with our eyes closed even all these years later. Some of the iconic tracks introduced in "Super Circuit" include Shy Guy Beach, a new design to the Bowser Castle courses, and none other than the ultimate rage-quit track, Rainbow Road.
We didn't love every single thing about "Super Circuit" — we especially remember being bummed at how many hazards had been removed from the OG SNES tracks for the Game Boy Advance game, effectively rendering the tracks "pretty lame" in the mind of a 12-year-old, but would still be happy to see it make a comeback.
'Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga'
This game was unexpectedly added to Nintendo Switch Online on the day of the Direct launch for anyone with the Expansion Pack subscription. "Mario and Luigi: Superstar Saga" is another Marioverse game that brought loads of fun to Game Boy Advance players. The first Mario RPG on a handheld device and the third in the franchise overall (behind "Super Mario RPG" and "Paper Mario"), "Superstar Saga" is a classic packed with action and humor. Sure, in that era Mario and Luigi weren't more than a red and green smudge on that tiny screen, but something about that would make it all the more of a blast to play on the Switch.
As Game Rant points out, seeing the GBA version of "Superstar Saga" on the Switch is expected to make more Mario fans even happier than the 2017 3DS "Superstar Saga" remaster had, for its reference to the OG RPG Mario game on the Nintendo console.
More 'The Legend of Zelda' games
As long as Nintendo keeps the retro "The Legend of Zelda" games coming, we'll be happy. The Nintendo Switch Online launch already included "The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening DX," "The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons," "The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages," and "The Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap." There is one more game, specifically from the Game Boy era that we hope to someday see on NSO: "The Legend of Zelda: Four Swords," which is the predecessor to "The Minish Cup" in Zelda's Unified Timeline. All of the Gameboy games in the Fallen Hero Timeline — that's the two Oracle games and "Links Awakening" — are already included on NSO.
A reinvigoration of the Classic NES Series Zelda games on NSO would be great, too. That includes "The Legend of Zelda" and "Zelda II: The Adventure of Link," which were remastered from the NES for the Game Boy Advance in 2004.
The 'Final Fantasy' Game Boy titles
The "Final Fantasy" franchise was major on Game Boy Advance. In fact, some say that the remakes of the series for the GBA were better than the console versions — notably because of "tweaks to the magic system and battle mechanics [that made] it much more enjoyable and smooth," according to Retro Game Man. It's a lively game packed with action and combat, and we just know that would translate well to the Switch.
Hopefully, at least one game from this series or its spin-offs makes it to Nintendo Switch Online sometime soon. Old-school combat games can be uber entertaining to revisit, especially when you want a break from the more intense games developed under modern standards. However, since the OG trilogy is already available in the Nintendo E-shop, the likelihood of "Final Fantasy" I, II, or III hitting the NSO service is low. In that case, we'd leverage our hopes against "Final Fantasy Tactics Advance," a popular spinoff of the series.
'Kirby and the Amazing Mirror'
We already see the return of that lovable pink sphere in "Kirby's Dream Land" on Nintendo Switch Online, but how great would it be to play "Kirby and the Amazing Mirror" on the Switch, too? According to Game Rant, this title will in fact be on the books for an upcoming Nintendo Switch Online Game Boy Advance library expansion.
"The Amazing Mirror" is a particularly memorable Kirby installment for its unique-to-the-franchise metroidvania-esque layout — whereas every preceding game historically was a simple 2D sidescroller. It's a fun storyline (Kirby chases the Dark Meta knight into the Mirror World and fragments into four different Kirbys, if you need a refresher) that we can't wait to revisit. We're super excited to play this classic on a modern handheld, especially to see how Nintendo revamps the experience with a more accessible multiplayer mode, which "the Amazing Mirror" is perfectly poised to utilize with its pink, red, yellow, and green Kirbys.
'Donkey Kong 94'
"Donkey Kong" really seemed to be a "you love it or you hate it" title in our schoolyard Game Boy days — a household game title, sure, but it never quite seemed to climb to the same height in the console/handheld gaming space as other games under the Mario umbrella, and before long the "Pokémon" universe had come along to sweep Game Boy players away entirely. Perhaps a spot in the Nintendo Switch Online Game Boy library would finally give "Donkey Kong" its rightful chance.
The first Game Boy "Donkey Kong" from 1994 would be a great contender for NSO, in our opinion. It's an easygoing retro arcade game that we wouldn't mind revisiting again. It wouldn't be one of our favorites — even Nintendo's own magazine only rated it 89th on its list of the 100 best Nintendo games ever back in 2009 — but that doesn't make it undeserving of a moment in the spotlight.
'Pokémon Pinball Ruby and Sapphire'
This is our official plea to Nintendo to please bring "Pokémon Pinball Ruby and Sapphire" into the Nintendo Switch Online Game Boy Advance family. The game was fabulously fun with tons of Pokémon (over 200 from the main series game of the same name), zippy music, and interesting levels plus bonus stages. The story narrative is pretty rudimentary, but it's still a far better game in terms of development over the other old "Pokémon Pinball games" — like the Game Boy Color version.
This was such a different and refreshing way to play Pokémon, combining the arcade action of pinball with the familiar collecting of adorable Pokémon monsters, that we're strong advocates for its eventual return. There are a ton of Pokémon titles that could make their way into the NSO library, as we've already covered, but hopefully, this Pinball game will be one of them.