My review of the Chromatic by ModRetro: a premium handheld for Game Boy and Game Boy Color cartridges, featuring a custom display and magnesium alloy shell. But at $200, is it worth it, or are there better & cheaper options?
Here are five lesser-known Game Boy Color (GBC) games that are often considered hidden gems by retro gaming enthusiasts:
1. Shantae
Developer/Publisher: WayForward
Year: 2002
Why it’s a gem: Released late in the GBC’s lifespan, Shantae is a colorful action-platformer with Metroidvania elements. Its vibrant graphics, catchy music, and unique gameplay (Shantae transforms into animals to solve puzzles) make it a standout title.
Fun Fact: Due to its low print run, physical copies are rare and highly sought after.
Why it’s a gem: Often overshadowed by Pokémon, this monster-raising RPG offers deep gameplay, a robust breeding system, and expansive worlds to explore. The level of customization in building your team is immense.
Fun Fact: It allows players to breed unique monsters with specific abilities, making each playthrough different.
3. Wendy: Every Witch Way
Developer/Publisher: WayForward
Year: 2001
Why it’s a gem: This gravity-defying platformer is simple but highly polished. Players control Wendy, the Good Little Witch, using her powers to flip gravity and solve clever puzzles.
Fun Fact: It’s one of the earliest games by WayForward, who would later become famous for Shantae.
4. Survival Kids
Developer/Publisher: Konami
Year: 1999
Why it’s a gem: A survival adventure game where players must navigate a deserted island, gather resources, and find a way to escape. It features multiple endings and a focus on crafting and exploration.
Fun Fact: This game is considered the precursor to the Lost in Blue series on the Nintendo DS.
5. Bionic Commando: Elite Forces
Developer/Publisher: Nintendo
Year: 2000
Why it’s a gem: A unique spin-off of the Bionic Commando series, this game combines action-platforming with a grappling hook mechanic for puzzle-solving. It’s challenging and offers satisfying gameplay.
Fun Fact: The grappling mechanic remains a defining feature of the Bionic Commando series.
These games showcase the GBC’s impressive library beyond its most famous titles. Have you tried any of these, or are you looking for something similar?
The sixth generation of gaming consoles, ah! The early 2000s—a glorious era when tech was just powerful enough to bring our gaming dreams to life, yet clunky enough to make us yell at our TV screens. Picture this:
PlayStation 2 – Sony decided to make a console that doubled as a DVD player. No one cared much for DVDs until the PS2 arrived, and then suddenly, everyone’s mom had a reason to let this console into the living room. It had a library of games longer than the Lord of the Rings series, and you could never resist buying more, even if the backlog was a mile deep. But let’s be honest; we all spent more time replaying Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas and running over NPCs.
Xbox – Microsoft’s first foray into the console world, and it showed. This thing was about as subtle as a bulldozer, weighing in heavier than a small child and looking like an oversized VCR on steroids. But it came with Halo, which made it the coolest kid on the block. Multiplayer mayhem on Halo turned living rooms into battlegrounds, and “frag” and “teabag” became part of our vocabularies for the next decade.
Nintendo GameCube – The adorable purple lunchbox that could. Nintendo went for a square design as if they were trolling the competition. Everyone laughed until Super Smash Bros. Melee dropped, and then suddenly no one was laughing because they were all too busy smashing controllers and friendships. It even had a handle, so you could bring it over to a friend’s house—a good thing since you’d need it for Mario Kart Double Dash parties.
Sega Dreamcast – Sega’s final hurrah in the console wars, the Dreamcast was the hip, misunderstood sibling of the generation. It introduced online gaming before any of the others, even though most of us had dial-up Internet slower than a sleepy snail. The Dreamcast had games with more originality than half the consoles since, but its fate was doomed by Sega’s previous console misadventures. It’s like that artist friend you wish had made it big but ended up selling pottery on Etsy.
This generation brought us memory cards, clunky graphics that we thought were “realistic,” and the timeless habit of yelling at your sibling for screen-peeking. If gaming consoles were people, the sixth-gen would be that quirky friend who’s super talented but hasn’t quite figured out how not to make a mess.
The OneXPlayer 2 is an upcoming handheld that is very powerful, but not perfect. Oh yeah, and it’s very expensive! Here is our review of the OneXPlayer 2.
Gamester81 In this video I review and take a close look at the new Odin gaming handheld. I show you what it includes, what it can do, and demo some games on it as well.
The Evercade is a new retro handheld that has its own cartridges with licensed games, protective cases and full color manuals. Will game collectors think this is madness…or perhaps genius?!
Kelsey is a Bandai Wonderswan collector and she shares her buying tips, covering the three different handhelds, crazy accessories (a robot and programming kit!?) and some of her favorite Non-Japanese games.
Games shown:
GunPey Ex
Clock Tower
Final Fantasy 1 & 2
Puzzle Bobble
Puyo Puyo Tsu
Ganso JaJaMaru-kun (remake of Ninja JaJaMaru-kun)
Tane-o-Maku Tori (Birds Sow the Seeds)
Buffers Evolution
Rhyme Rider Kerorikan
Rockman EXE WS
Beat Mania
Kaze no Klonoa – Moonlight Museum
One Piece – Grand Battle Swan Colloseum
The Sony Playstation Portable (PSP) rocked my world in 2005 with it’s amazing power, beautiful 3D graphics and fun games. Here are some PSP Hidden Gems from my collection.
