Gaming Best way to play GBA games today

[Cartmanuk]

GBA AGB-001​

WITH​

(AGS-101 Backlight Screen )​

 

[ker]

GCW Zero has great GBA emulation and is very portable. It's my current GBA platform

 

[Helpful Corn]

definitely the GB player backlit SP combo, player for when your already in front of a larger screen and the SP for pooping etc.

 

[Ulieq]

Love my GBA Sp2 Sexy screen, makes games look gorgeous.

 

[Randamin]

I get along pretty well with my original phat DS. Thinking of upgrading my GBA to a backlit screen but that will have to wait for another time.

 

[DanTheManMS]

Of the 4 hardware devices I own that play GBA games, my preference is:

1. GBA SP 101 with backlit screen
2. DS Phat
3. original GBA with official Afterburner frontlight mod with dimmer switch
4. original GBA from launch time, no mods

Back in the day I really really really wanted an Afterburner mod, mostly because I do enjoy the way the original GBA feels in my hand. Sadly it's just not enough now that I've experienced GBA games on a proper backlit screen. If I ever get my hands on one of those backlit-modded original GBAs that will probably top the list.

I'm not sure where PC emulation fits into that list. I've got an SNES-to-USB adapter that I use sometimes, and other times I turn my GBA into a USB joypad for playing an emulator. It's all mostly just what I'm in the mood for at any given time.

 

[Deleted-236924]

I'm voting for original GBA with back-lit screen, eff the GB Player and its input lag.

 

[romanaOne]

I've tried a few of the options and I think none is perfect, but I just can't decide which is best. I don't like PSP2000 but it is for the totally subjective reason that the software and hardware looks and feels kind of junky to me. Would be excellent for a knock-off, but I expect better from Sony.

Dingoo is the absolute worst handheld I've ever tried, but I think I got a fake Dingoo!

PSP2000--cheap but it's always broken!
PROS

• Lots of emulators
• Easily hacked to run home-brew; (see Wololo.net for easy instructions) no need for hardware mod
• nice screen
• really cheap: no expensive flash carts, just put stuff on the memory stick IN THE RIGHT FOLDERS and go!

CONS

• Lots of emulators: forget about a consistent user interface
• poor build quality for a name-brand device: it's a good thing parts are cheap and common b/c you're gonna need 'em, especially the analog stick.
• confusing, ugly user interface that is not easily customized.
• strange batteries: hard to find DECENT QUALITY REPLACEMENTS. I sawed the top off a 5$ Chinese battery b/c it wouldn't fit. No, it wasn't for a Phat but just poorly made.

DS-Lite w/ EZ-Flash 3in1 + R4DS running Wood 1.62--build quality could be better, good flash cart options, almost plug n' play
PROS

• No emulation flakiness!
• R4DS is cheap
• Nice, easy-to-customize UI: R4DS + EZ-flash 3in1 really work well together
• Very bright screen
• NDS game cheats all in one easily accessible database
• You can always buy an super card dstwo available if you want decent GBA/SNES emulation with RTS

CONS

• R4DS + 3in1 costs about 30-40 USD and you can't pick these up at WalMart
• cheap R4DS only supports up to 2GB micro SD
• Bright screen is not as big as the PSP2000 screen
• Stupid clamshell design: hinge will eventually break; even new it feels kinda loose. I doubt there will be NDS Lites still alive in 10 years.
• LiIon battery may become scarce.
• Can't save state in GBA games unless you get SC dstwo and use emulators. Not an issue if you're old school.
• DSTWO not cheap at 40 USD

GBA with AGS-101 screen--good sturdy device BUT hard to find screen, pain to install, stuck w/EZ-Flash
PROS

• Rugged as all hell: this thing was made for kids to beat on!
• EZ-Flash IV with removable storage gives enables some GB/GBC/Homebrew emulators
• AA batteries--no proprietary LiIon batteries!
• Decent battery life even with the AGS-101 screen
• Easy open to replace buttons and controls

CONS

• Kind of goofy looking: NDS might pass for a PDA, but whip one of these out and folks at the meeting will know you're not taking notes
• AGS-101 screen not cheap and hard to find; consider just buying GBA SP AGS-101 instead.
• AGS-101 screen installation is a little fiddly b/c you have to hack off bits of the case and fold up the adapter ribbon cable just right to make it fit in the case.
• EZ-Flash IV uses wacky, hard-to-find mini-SD cards
• Got to patch and EZ-Flash ROM patching app is flakey, unmaintained junk; forget mac and linux, you want to patch a ROM? Well, I guess there's hexedit!
• EZ-Flash build quality so-so, at best. Go easy on the mini-SD slot.
• EZ-Flash IV is the only flash cart you're likely to find and it's a dear 40 USD.

GBA SP AGS-101--pretty tough but a little too small, stuck with EZ-Flash
PROS

• Fairly rugged for a clamshell.
• Works with EZ-Flash IV; same EZ-Flash PROS as GBA above
• Small and light; really does fit in your pocket.
• Control pad, buttons feel nicer than the cheap, clicky ones on the NDS-Lite.

CONS

• LiIon battery: convenient now, a royal PITA later when they stop making them.
• Clamshell hinge will wear out/break
• Too small for many people with big hands
• same EZ-Flash IV CONS above
• there's nothing you can buy or download to have RTS in GBA games on this device.

Dingoo--insist on a genuine copy of a fake, LOL!
PROS

• Small but not too small- I liked the look and feel of this, the trouble started when I turned it on.
• loads of software
• lightweight
• decent screen

CONS

• still kind of expensive for an OLD knock off
• Battery requires tools and soldering to replace, assuming you ever find a new one.
• hardware version hell: there are extremely inferior knock offs of this knock off floating around.
• loads of software: good luck trying to figure out what works and what doesn't

 

[thaddius]

As a proud owner of a rather extensive GBA collection I prefer the Micro. Now if only I could find a GBA game case for more than 3 games...

I have a few SP2s but I really don't like the buttons on it as much as the Micro's. I know some people find the Micro to be too small a form factor, but I don't mind it.

I also really enjoy the K101 Revo hardware clone. The buttons are a tad mushy, but I like it just fine.

 

[blaisedinsd]

Lets face it, GBA > DS, 3DS, PSP, Vita. Ever since Nintendo put GBA games on the Wii U eShop I got infected by a GBA virus type of thing. I felt the urge to play some GBA greats again and I was thinking how to play them. I have several options but I'm not sure. What do you think is the best way to play GBA games today?

Crazy, I was just thinking of starting this exact same thread.

I am going to read it but here are my thoughts on what I have tried.

PC Emulation seems a great way to go except I don't like sitting at a computer to play games, especially these types of games.

I tried emulation on PSP, Supercard DStwo and these didn't seem to get the job done well enough for my taste. I think this works well on the Wii but I didn't try it enough to remember.

I don't have a GBA but I believe the screens are better on DS so I am thinking this might be the best way to go. I got a GBA flash cart and I like the buttons on my Phat a bit more but the DS lite just has better screens. I am playing Circle of the moon in this way currently.

The Wii U....well I have to GBA is pretty damn awesome. I got Metroid fusion which I had played and beaten on a DS lite about 5 years ago and the gamepad is great, playing on the TV is great, the save states are great, the customizable controls are great. I thought GBA would suck on the Wii U but its pretty damn awesome.

Now I just need to get me Wario Ware twisted since I hear it's great and I can't emulate it. It fits in the DS right?

 

[thaddius]

Now I just need to get me Wario Ware twisted since I hear it's great and I can't emulate it. It fits in the DS right?

You can emulate it with a patch that lets you use button inputs instead of tilt controls, but it sucks that way and makes some of the games needlessly easy and others punishingly hard. I would recommend using the real thing.

Also it does fit in a DS or DS Lite.

 

[Wisenheimer]

Lets face it, GBA > DS, 3DS, PSP, Vita. Ever since Nintendo put GBA games on the Wii U eShop I got infected by a GBA virus type of thing. I felt the urge to play some GBA greats again and I was thinking how to play them. I have several options but I'm not sure. What do you think is the best way to play GBA games today?

Hmm, I have to disagree that the GBA is better than the DS. While I never owned one, the DS not only had a bunch of great ports that the GBA did not (Chrono Trigger, Mario 64, Sonic The Hedgehog 1,2,3) but it could play all the GBA games out there.

I am really enjoying the 3DS because of all the DS games and all the GB and GBA games I missed that I can play from the eShop or an emulator, but I have to admit, the DS selection overall is the best of the handhelds, although the GBA comes in a not too distant second.

Stop hijacking my poll whoever did that. I didn't include the GB Player because it isn't portable and crap. PC emulators aren't portable either and don't count. If you want a bitch about it you should have included all the options there is, smartphones, dingo, pandora, nvidia shield etc.

Why are PC emulators not portable?

Spoiler

 

[Vipera]

Spoiler

I've never been so attracted by an oddware since the first KN Mobile phone and the Flybook. Name?

 

[Wisenheimer]

I've never been so attracted by an oddware since the first KN Mobile phone and the Flybook. Name?

That is an old (2009) umid mbook, but there are probably other, much newer equivalents. I have seen a few ultaportable PC's like that from around the time of the netbook era.

Given the power of modern smartphones and the move toward portable devices for consumption instead of creation, netbooks fell out of favor.

 

[Haymose]

I recently just got my hands on a GBA Micro and a EZ Flash IV to play some old games. Never owned a GBA but decided to go for the micro simply for the size. I wanted to be able to play Mario/Zelda/Pokemon at any odd moment and this setup accomplishes it pretty nicely. I don't play for more than an hour at a time so my hands don't cramp up or anything and the only real complaint I have with it is the placement of the speaker on the front near the a/b buttons. When I'm not using headphones I tend to rest my thumb over it sometimes muffling the sound.

 

[Nusdogg]

GBA with a AGS-101 screen all day. Now adays, you can buy a glass made front lens to replace the plastic easily scratch one for like $12.00 plus shipping from Rose Colored Gaming.

 

[blaisedinsd]

You can emulate it with a patch that lets you use button inputs instead of tilt controls, but it sucks that way and makes some of the games needlessly easy and others punishingly hard. I would recommend using the real thing.

Also it does fit in a DS or DS Lite.

So I ordered this game and tried it out and it's really weird..... I tried the game in 2 seperate Ds lites and it worked fine but when I put it in my phat Ds it freezes at a white screen. Usually the game boots and displays a white screen with health and safety warnings like on the wii, but the letter don't show up and it just freezes. Any ideas?

 

[thaddius]

Just tried my copy on my DS Lite and original DS and it worked fine on both. It's possible there's some kind of dust/corrosion/something in your DS that's preventing your DS from reading it. Personally I have a GBA/DS cleaning kit, but not everyone has that luxury.

 

[Psionic Roshambo]

I have so many ways to play them... Clear purple GBA, GBA SP, DS Lite, emulation. I gotta give it up for a good solid emulator on this one, all the options are nice but once you get a nice emulator set up and configured you gain so many advantages.

Right now I am using a JXD thing for all 5 of my GBA games ( I am exaggerating I own a few more than that, but compared to my other collections it's pretty low... Guessing less than 50 games. Not sure why but most of them are in boxes... I guess they are just small enough to be worth hanging on to?)

I love the much larger screen, even though it makes the pixels a little more pixely the enhanced resolution from the emu helps a bit. So still worth it.

So my vote goes to emulation.

 

[Foxi4]

Is the original GBA had a baby with a backlight, it would be the best thing on the planet for GBA games. I really don't like the GBA SP's form factor - it's simply too small for me to enjoy.