10/06 Update: Since we no longer write for the Edmond Sun, this section is temporarily housing our podcast links for our iTunes feed. All of the columns are in the archives menu if you feel like exploring.

These columns (as well as the 'releases') come from weekly content that we write for the Edmond Sun, out of Edmond, OK (though we live in Chicago). This page contains the archives for said column, many of which are in their pre-published, unedited state. Some titles and editing by Brendan Sinclair.

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GB Micro
Wednesday, September 14, 2005

Game Boy Micro
Release Date: September 19th MSRP: $99.99

Just when you thought you'd finally caught up to all of the desirable gadgets in your life, along comes the GB Micro, a teeny, tiny yet fairly functional reworking of the Game Boy Advance, compatible with all of the GBA games (though no original GB or GBC games) and sporting a very bright, viewable screen for it's size. It's four inches wide, two inches long, less than an inch thick, and will certainly make a veritable stocking stuffer this holiday season. So do we really need another Game Boy right now? Well, if you have the money, it's size really does make it truly portable. You can hang if from your keychain and play a few Advance Wars turns at a red light, jump on a few goombas during a bathroom break at work, and quite possibly even fit it in the legendary unused fifth pocket of your jeans.

It's very sturdy, with removable faceplates to protect the surface and screen, and while it's a bit overpriced in my opinion (I was hoping for $50, which would sell like hotcakes even more so) it's not so valuable as to have to constantly worry about it's well-being. The two-inch, backlit screen is very pretty, beating out all other models for clarity and depth per square inch, and makes reading tiny text more feasible than you'd think. It obviously lends itself better to slower-paced, less frenetic games, but for the most part they're all very playable.

So the big question is, how does it feel? Well, that's kind of tricky. For something so small, so light (less than three ounces), and considering what it can do, it's relatively comfortable. Even in my mammoth monkey hands I was able to control what was on-screen effortlessly, with only a slight repositioning of my grip once in a while. With that said, it is nowhere close to the comfort of the original GBA, and not that much better than the cramped SP (the DS ranking somewhere in-between them). The face buttons are nice and big, but the shoulder buttons and start and select (which are on the bottom of the unit) and not much fun to deal with if you have to use them consistently. And while it's light enough where you can just hold it in the air while you play, having your hands resting on a comfortable surface makes the experience noticeably better. So while you could fit four of them in your mouth, don't expect any sort of ultra-luxurious level of comfort, as with any device of that size.

So here's the thing: If you're just getting into the Game Boy market, and don't like the idea of the DS (though I recommend it highly), you are still probably better off going with the GBA SP. It's twenty bucks cheaper, has a much larger screen and surface area to hold, and it can still fit in your pocket if necessary. If you already have a GBA or a DS, and have an extra Benjamin lying around, this is a very nice companion for even more portability and dare I say, discretion (say, for the back of a classroom or lecture). It's not an evolution of the system in any regard, but I believe that there's a market for it; and anyone who doesn't own a Game Boy already (whom will soon become a minority in the world, it would seem) now has yet another tasty choice on their platter.

- Nick