You've likely seen the rumours by now that Game Boy / Game Boy Color games could arrive in Nintendo Switch Online relatively soon; if you haven't heard, where have you been? If accurate, it's certainly a logical next step to the service, opening up a fresh platform and library of games for Switch owners to enjoy. It's rather exciting, too, as many will likely experience some of these games for the very first time.
Plenty that browse these pages no doubt have Game Boy favourites that they'd like to revisit on Nintendo's latest system, and they won't necessarily be the obvious ones. Yes, Super Mario Land is an interesting portable debut for Mario, and Metroid II: Return of Samus is pretty neat, and there's some little franchise called Tetris that seems to continually draw in the big bucks. Yet our list has none of those, because it's a staff list. You can take it as read that we want those, but below you'll find some smaller, more personal picks (along with a few obvious favourites we just couldn't resist).
So, sit back and get an insight into quite a few childhoods as we share some of our team's hopes and dreams for Game Boy / Color on Nintendo Switch Online.
Staff key: Gavin Lane (GL), Kate Gray (KG), PJ O'Reilly (PR), Alex Olney (AO), Ollie Reynolds (OR), Stuart Gipp (SG), Austin Voigt (AV)
Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 (GB)
I absolutely loved this game back in the day. A Super Mario Land entry with Wario as the main protagonist that switched things up from a gameplay perspective, adding cool hat abilities, more exploration, lots of variety in locations and some cool boss battles. It also took a bit of a leap in the graphical detail department. PR
Mole Mania (GB)
Mole Mania is one of those gems that seems way too obvious to be called ‘hidden’ if you were smart (or old) enough to play it when it released, but it’s undeniably one of Shigeru Miyamoto’s lesser-known joints, and even though it saw re-release via 3DS Virtual console, it would be fantastic to see the Switch audience given the opportunity to sample its delightful top-down 2D puzzling via NSO. I’ve only got the Japanese GB version (these days a NA or EU copy is a spicy meatball, price-wise), so I’d love the chance to play in English, too. GL
Tomb Raider (GBC)
Tomb Raider for the Game Boy Color was — and still is — a surprisingly fun spin-off to the main series. Its gameplay reminded me of the earlier Flashback (which I'd previously owned on the Mega Drive), with side-scrolling action mixed with light puzzle solving. The graphics hold up incredibly well, with reasonably realistic animation and detailed environments, and it'll last you a small handful of hours. Just don't expect to come across any memorable tunes, because there isn't any music at all during gameplay! OR
Solar Striker (GB)
Solar Striker is a first-party vertical scrolling shmup (a rare beast indeed) and probably my favourite game in the genre. Admittedly, there are members of Team NL that would laugh – if not scoff – at the idea of this simple little space shooter being my favourite shmup ever, but its simplicity is exactly what draws me to it. The pixel-perfect dexterity demanded by more complex examples of the genre are generally too stressful for my tastes. I prefer something a little more sedate, with some kick ass tunes to zone out to. Bullet hell? Nah, for me this is bullet heaven. GL
Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone (GBC)
My greatest wish (that I have previously written about) is for the Harry Potter games, Philosopher's Stone and Chamber of Secrets — EA had a great time in the GB era, didn't they? The HP games on Game Boy are Chrono Trigger-style RPGs that are surprisingly good for movie/book tie-ins. I don't know how licensing works for old games, but I know I'm not the only one that loved these hidden-ish gems. KG
The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening (GB)
The recent revamp may have all the fancy graphics and modern bells and whistles, but it can’t knock the original from its very special place in my heart. Link’s Awakening was an astounding adventure to 1993 me, a magical portable version of that same Zelda gameplay, style and depth that had blown us all away in A Link to the Past just a few year earlier. This one must have really been pushing the Game Boy to its limits. PR
Resident Evil Gaiden (GBC)
Resident Evil Gaiden is undoubtedly the black sheep of the family, meeting mediocre reception when it launched back in 2001 thanks to its deviation from the established formula. For me though, I was already knee deep in the franchise at this point, and the idea of playing a new entry on the go with Leon Kennedy and Barry Burton as its protagonists was just too tempting! The gameplay hasn't aged well, and the game is not considered 'canon' in the larger narrative, but if you're looking to experience all Resident Evil has to offer, then it's well worth a look. OR
Bill & Ted's Excellent Game Boy Adventure (GB)
It’s this writer’s view that Game Boy was at its best when titles opted to work with the system’s limitations rather than push them to their, well, limit. Bill & Ted joins the likes of the original Super Mario Land and Sunsoft’s Batman in presenting a pared-down but exceptionally playable game, this one being a take on the ZX Spectrum classic Manic Miner. Collect every item on the screen then leave through the phone booth. Slick, speedy movement and spot-on controls make this a treat. Most triumphant! Obviously. SG
Hamtaro: Ham-Hams Unite! (GBC)
Hear me out… this is the 7th best-selling GBC game in Japan, and it’s beloved because it was one of the first of its kind — a puzzle-based adventure game about language barriers, with some of the most charming sound effects and graphics of its time. Also… for anyone doubting its awesomeness, it was produced by none other than Miyamoto and Iwata themselves. Enough said. AV
Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru (GB)
I was recently introduced to a game I’d known very little about in the past by none other than our very own Jon Cartwright, and that game is Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru, or as Masahiro Sakurai called it, ‘The Frog for Whom the Bell Tolls’. It’s a sort of precursor to Link’s Awakening in many ways, and if you hadn’t guessed from the title, it never made its way outside of Japan. Fan translations exist, but I’ve been trying my hand at the original cartridge, and I must say I’ve been having a roaring time despite not knowing a thing that anyone’s said.
It would naturally require some translation efforts to release it to the English market, but it’s a very tasty little game that really deserves it. If it’s good enough to appear as an Assist Trophy in Smash, it’s good enough to be on NSO in my books. AO
Pokémon Crystal (GBC)
While many laud games like Pokémon Red, Yellow and Blue, I personally will always have a soft spot in my heart for generation II - Gold, Silver and Crystal. They had TWO WHOLE HECKIN’ REGIONS TO EXPLORE IN ONE GBC CARTRIDGE. Not to mention, they introduced night/day cycles, breeding, shiny Pokémon… But why Crystal? Aside from that wonderful sparkly blue cartridge, you can PLAY AS A FEMALE CHARACTER. As a young girl this was the first time I had seen myself in a game, and not just been forced to play as a boy. Amazing. AV
Monster Max (GB)
Isometric adventure overlords Jon Ritman and Bernie Drummond are best-known for microcomputer classic Head Over Heels, but they should really be lauded for this masterpiece, an enormous, expansive yet episodic exploration of action-puzzling in the classic style, but updated for then-modern palates. Never anything less than fascinating, Monster Max is a top-tier game from Rare that almost nobody talks about but has vastly more to offer than its nondescript title may suggest. SG
Mega Man V (GB)
Absolutely one of the very best Mega Man games of all time, this one features some really tight level design that does away with a lot of frustration that sometimes threatened to suck the life out of Mega Man games of this era. It also had cracking music and just an overall vibe that the team behind it were laser-focused on producing something really great! PR
There you have it, some interesting games from the ol' Game Boy. We'll likely add to this list as inspiration strikes in the future, but in the meantime share your most hoped-for GB(C) games in the comments!
More lovely Game Boy-based reading:
Comments (81)
Pokemon, just to say there are Pegi 18 games in NSO.
Love the shoutout for Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's/Philosopher's Stone; it and Chamber of Secrets are underrated GBC gems IMO, back from when before EA took over development and only handled publishing. All the Pokemon games from the first two generations are worthy, as well as Pokemon TCG. All of the Super Mario Land entries as well as the Wario Land titles too.
While it's technically covered in Collection of Mana, it would also be neat if Final Fantasy Adventure was an option from Square Enix.
I'd definitely like to check out Resident Evil Gaiden out of morbid curiosity.
Donkey Kong Land 2
Super Mario Land 2:Six Golden Coins
Survival Kids
Link's Awakening
Oracle of Ages
Oracle of Seasons
Wario Land
Most of my picks are pretty obvious, but Survival Kids is such a hidden gem.
Wario Land is the game I'm most eager to replay. I played through it several dozen times as a kid, but it's been quite a while. I love how some levels actually change when you go back to them later in the game.
I recently played a single character challenge of Final Fantasy Legend which is honestly pretty good. It’s already got a Switch port though!
Think my pick would go to the Harvest Moon GB and GBC games. Pretty good for the time.
With R/B/Y & G/S/C on the eShop already, let’s just get them on Switch already.
Solid list! But you forgot Metal Gear Solid! Buying that cart (and Mega Man V) will cost you a pretty (or ugly, depending on how you look at it) penny.
Dragon Warrior Monsters would be amazing.
Interesting list!
I´d like Mario´s Picross, Kirby's Block Ball and maybe Quest RPG: Brian's Journey.
Did you just make a list and not include the best Gameboy color game of all time Metal Gear Solid!? What!? Lol.
I would also rather have links awakening DX instead of the game boy version.
@ChromaticDracula Metal Gear Solid is an amazing game. Would be awesome if it come to switch thru GBC app.
If we're talking GBC, then upgrade Link's Awakening to the DX version and throw in Oracle of Ages and Seasons. Those three games are some of the only games that were portable versions of pre-existing series that didn't feel mangled to work on GB/C, to be honest.
It’s this writer’s view that Game Boy was at its best when titles opted to work with the system’s limitations rather than push them to their, well, limit.
This. 1000 times this…
All thise games that try to be snes games are less interesting than you think…
Things like bill and tedd.. bubble ghost and chicken mania.. that are true gameboy games!
Link's Awakening DX (GBC) is the best-looking version of Link's Awakening. All three versions play well, so the GBC version is the one to play.
Mario Tennis was excellent for its time. RPG and story elements
Any of the Dragon Warrior/Quest titles would be fantastic.
here's some games we won't see:
any licensed titles (which includes Harry Potter, thankfully), GB Mega Man, anything from Squaresoft/SquareEnix, anything from Konami, anything from Atlus, any special cartridge titles (rumble, motion control, etc), mainline Pokemon games... the list goes on.
So you're really doing this? Okay...
I’m with PJ on Link’s Awakening. I eventually came around to the remake but the gameboy version is my second most loved/replayed Zelda game after the very first.
I’d also be up for Qix.
The only games I NEED to play is Zelda Oracles of Seasons and Ages. I'm "curious" about Metroid II and Link's Awakening (although I finished both remakes). I'm not interested in anything else from GB/GBC
I just want GEX 😭😭😭😭💔
Croc was a better 2D platformer than a 3D one!
I want The Frog for Whom the Bell Tolls. The service would be worth it just for the official English translation. Give me Wario too!
Balloon kid yo!
Kirby's Dreamland
Nintendo World Cup
Dynablaster (Bomberman/Atomic Punk)
It’s great to see Bill & Ted getting some love, it sometimes feels like I’m the only one who remembers how great that little game was.
The rumour mill is really grinding away on this site.
If it even pans out to be true, there's gonna be some real disappointed people when the games aren't all the big ones people want. Forget most of the 3rd party (especially something with collection potential; re: Mega Man), anything licensed, anything that's has potential remake or re-release potential (Pokemon).
The NES and SNES Online are all but abandoned. Nintendo has all but outright said they don't care about it (they did in a runabout way when they said they weren't doing regular releases for it anymore), and once they get a few gems on them, they're mostly just garbage no one would ever pay for to begin with. So why does anyone think a Game Boy addition would be treated like some carefully curated tribute to the best of the best Game Boy had to offer? We'll get a couple good ones and a bunch of crap tossed in with them.
Surprise! You're getting the game boy port of spankeys quest
My 'hidden' gem would be Snoopy's Magic Show. It was the first game of it's type I ever played and I got pretty far on it, which I was pleased with being a wee 8yr old
You guys are really milking this rumor.
my picks would be Zelda Oracle of Ages and Seasons
I hope for classic Pokémon titles on Switch online and then Pokémon Home integration
Why wasn’t perfect dark mentioned??
Good picks everyone. I’ll throw in Sword of Hope 1 & 2. And the GBC version of Shadowgate. Obviously I’d like many more. BUT. Game Boy support is a rumor until we get slapped with that surprise Direct out of the blue.
You know that the first games we’re getting are Alleyway, Tennis and Baseball.
Honestly I think Nintendo is seriously wasting a good opportunity with the Online service. Most of the NES and SNES titles have been unheard of games are have been kind of meh, with a few exceptions.
Adding GB, GBA, N64, GC games would seriously ramp up the value. I seriously doubt there is any reason why they cant do this other than..they just cant be bothered.
I feel like I may be the outsider in this one, but I'm not really looking forward to this, at all. I'd rather wait and start getting those Gameboy Advance games rolling. ♡♡♡
Have to admit, Harry Potter and the Philosophercerer's stone would be pretty cool for the service
Though already part of the Castlevania Anniversary Collection, Castlevania II: Belmont’s Revenge. Also, maybe Revenge of the Gator.
@sketchturner I would LOVE to replay the oracle games
@Matroska
But the non DX Version has a Bikini!
I wanna see Kirby Tilt ‘n’ Tumble working with Joy-Cons.
In terms of first-party titles, I'm hoping for Radar Mission, Wave Race, the Mario/Wario Land games, and obviously Tetris.
Third party... I'll take what I can get, but my expectations are low.
I think the only thing blocking the Harry Potter games is that Warner Bros. has their own publishing house now, with Harry Potter being included under that. EA has blocked other license holders (Middle-Earth's games) from re-releasing and repackaging titles developed under them.
Pokemon TCG would be pretty good. Too bad they never bothered making more card game RPGs for the Pokemon series after the Gameboy.
@Dr_Lugae I'd actually see Pokemon TCG and Pokemon Pinball as more likely than the actual Pokemon RPGs for various reasons.
Honestly as well the people assuming that we'll never see top tier titles from Konami and Capcom might also be surprised. Capcom did nod Demons Crest (a sequel to Gargoles Quest, a prominent GB title) even though it's regarded highly and has a reputation as an expensive SNES game to buy. I tend to think that they'd have released the GB Mega Man games in a compilation already if they thought it would actually sell.
@earthinheritor I think cost is a factor. Since Nintendo will have to pay third parties and third parties would have to agree to the price.
I'd Imagine companies like Square will be a lot less willing to license big names like Final Fantasy. But stuff like Spanky's Quest or Claymates were never going to sell in 2021 so those companies are probably happy with whatever Nintendo is paying to host these games.
For the love of all that is holy PLEASE give me Skate or Die Tour De Thrash!!!!
I loved the GB version of Parodius and Donkey kong 94!
@Dr_Lugae SE I get because they have the pixel remasters on PC and mobile now. Some franchises like that wouldnt make sense.
but there are a lot of dead franchises.
To be honest, this is why I strongly dislike when Nintendo attacks the ROM sites. The majority of games are just impossible to play any other way now other than whats on the online service.
It doesn't hurt Nintendo financially one little bit. So its just being petty.
There's 1757 games with 717 in NA and Switch online has less than 50. So forcing ROM sites with NES and SNES games to close is just Nintendo being petty. It cost them more in legal documents to force them to shut down.
You added Monster Max!
I’ve been championing this game for a long, long time. My work here is done.
Yoshi's cookie
Marioland 2
Kung fu master
Tmnt
Navy seals
Pokemon Puzzle Challenge please!
alright a game by RARE, monster max. do not know if i played it before and that tomb raider game would be good. i suppose nearly any game from GB, GBC or GBA would be brilliant anyway . so i just hope the rumor is true. 🤞
impossible expectations that will never appear: Mega Man I-V, Castlevania Adventure 1-2, Ducktails 1-2, Link's Awakening, Pokemon, Final Fantasy Legend & Adventure, Tetris, TMNT 1-3, Tiny Toons, Killer Instinct, Star Trek The Next Generation
Reasonable Expectations that we still probably wont get: Mario Land 1-3, Wario Land II, Wario Blast, Kirby's Adventure 1-2, Kirby Pinball, Metroid II, Donkey Kong '94, Donkey Kong Land 1-3, Gargoyles Quest, Mario's Picross, Kid Icarus, Blaster Master Jr, Kid Dracula, Ninja Gaiden Shadow
What we will most likely get: Spankey's Quest, Golf, Tennis, baseball, game & watch gallery, Street Fighter II, Joe & Mac, 4-in-1 funpack 1-2, Alleyway, Balloon Kid, Bubsy II, Castlevania Legends, Chuck Rock, Double Dragon 1-3, Infogenius Organizer and Translator kits, Prehistorik Man, Solitaire Funpack, Yoshi
Fortress of Fear
Alleyway and Metal Gear Solid please!
@Hawksbill246 alleyway, good shout.
I’m going to say it straight resident evil Gaiden is a terrible game even at the time of release it was considered awful.
However to contribute towards this discussion in a more positive way I would love to see James Bond 007 on the switch, so underrated and one of my favourite GameBoy games ever.
I wanna see Conker's Pocket Tales, Battletoads GB and Perfect Dark GBC just to see this series on Nintendo Consoles again...
I would absolutely love to play Metroid II again. Extremely fond of that game back in the day. That’s all I need Nintendo thanks.
Maybe pick up a 3DS to play these games?
I’m so happy to see Monster Max here
lol these kinds of "articles" are so dumb. All they are are glorified "best of" lists...Like, is this list any different than a list for "the best gb games for 3ds"? lmao...
Wario Land! I'll happily play it again. I've played that game countless times and I never get tired of it.
For me, the one I hope for is Tetris.
It is a big reason I got the original Game Boy. (That and the fact I didn't have a TV at college, so nothing to hook up a console to.)
Our college had a Tetris arcade machine in the bar. Me and my friends had a lot of fun playing it.
When I got the Game Boy, it came with Tetris.
I'd bring it on trips we'd take . . . and everyone was fighting for their turn to play it on the long car rides. LOL.
But . . . I'm not holding my breath for Tetris on NSO. Probably not going to happen.
Mega Man V please. I don’t care about the other four. Super Mario land 2, Tetris 2, every Legend of Zelda, Balloon Kid and I really want to try The Frog for Whom the Bell Tolls.
Weird to see people ask for something you can get from Anbernic but not Nintendo 😄
I never played Oracle of Seasons or Ages, so I want them, and I very much want to replay DK ‘94.
Yoshi Cookie
Donkey Kong (not Country)
The King of Fighters
Fatal Fury
Yuyu Hakusho
Darkwing Duck
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (all for GameBoy)
Pokemon Trading Card
I must agree wholeheartedly with Austin, Hamtaro: Ham Ham's Unite is unabashedly my favorite GBC game of all time. Always wished Nintendo hadn't abandoned the series, those 3 games (Ham Ham's Unite and GBA follow-ups Ham Ham Heartbreak and especially Rainbow Rescue) were excellent adventure games full of interesting puzzles and zero combat. The last 2 games being mini-game collections and boring edutainment titles is really a sad end to one of my favorite handheld game series'.
I was hooked on the GB version of Battletoads. Also second the call for the Zelda Oracle series and MGS Ghost Babel. Love the inclusion of Bill & Ted on here too.
Let's be real, we'll get the games launched with the game boy along with the marios/zeldas and pokemons but Tomb Raider / Resident Evil aren't happening. Then they'll drip feed us the ***** Japanese games like they have done with SNES online.
My prediction is;
Alleyway
Tetris
Baseball
Super Mario Land
Tennis
Golf
Zelda - links Awakening
Pokemon Red / Blue
Metroid 2
Nintendo World Cup
Balloon Kid
SolarStrike
Gargoyles Quest
Honestly, they should use this opportunity to offer us Warlocked on Game Boy Color, it’s a really good strategy game and a forgotten footnote in Nintendo’s history sadly. Or even Metal Gear Solid : Ghost Babel also on GBC would be nice
W&W: Fortress of Fear would be awesome. Why is this game so underrated? The jumping and collision is bad but the soundtrack... love.
Donkey Kong 94.
Kid Icarus 2.
Kirby’s dream land 2.
Mario Land 2
And TMNT fall of the foot clan.
I find your lack of Ninja Gaiden Shadow, Final Fantasy Adventure, Castlevania II: Belmont's Revenge, and Gargoyle's Quest disturbing.
Solar Striker is a great game. It's always fun to play it for a few minutes. The Bill and Ted's game sounds interesting.
Oh, I'd like to have Warlocked on Switch. I've never played through it, but it is a fun strategy gameboy color game.
I’d love to see the two dragon warrior monsters games, the Pokémon trading card game, all of the traditional Pokémon entries and the Pokémon pinball game.
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