In a few words, the folks over at Nintendorks don't think the GBA will be released in the US in 2000. Because of the GBA? You betcha! A quick little lesson in business! Check it....

More light shed on GBA launch

Gameboy Advance seems to be the talk of the town the past few weeks, especially as many Nintendo enthusiasts become more and more disgruntled over the lack of promised Dolphin insight. Nintendo has clearly stated that their next-gen portable system will arrive in Japan this August while appearing three months afterwards elsewhere including the U.S. But is another "Nintendo" being pulled when it comes to GBA's launch? Speculation aside, identity-protected developers give us the real story.

The Facts

"I think the fact that NOA and NOE are screaming at NCL not to release this machine [GBA] this year as they are having so much success with Gameboy Color is slowing everything down." That's what the co-founder and manager at a highly acclaimed UK developer had to tell us. He later when on to say word for word, "Latest we have heard is that the GBA will be delayed until next year, even in Japan." Ask anyone, and they'll say that those words are very convincing; at least we would say so. But the fun does not stop there.

Another developer, this one headquartered in Japan, has told us that they will have three GBA titles ready to ship this year, one of which scheduled for the Japanese launch in August. They've had the Yoshi demo we reported on last week for some time now, and feel very confident in Nintendo's hardware. "We are prepared for a 2000 release," said a spokesperson, "but acknowledge that a postponement may occur." With even Japanese developers weary of a GBA delay along with companies in Europe, the Y2K debut may seem like a whole big sham. Hold the phone, we're not done yet.

Gameboy Color is thriving in the American market. NOA is soaking up Poké-profits alongside sales figures from over one million hardware units already sold. This GBC trend has yet to sour, and Nintendo of America surely isn't ready to give up on GBC. Companies such as Crave, 3DO and Saffire are very interested in working with GBA. Do they have any sort of dev kit? You'll find your answer and reason right here: NOA. We'll have more, either officially or unofficially, on GBA's launch in the very near future. For those that are looking for a little interpretation of the facts above, we've compiled our speculation below. To view, hold down that mouse button of yours and drag.

The Speculation

Everyone already realizes GBC is still on the up-and-up in America; that's no big surprise. So why is NOA announcing a new, more powerful machine?

Don't think Redmond, Washington is full of N-idiots -- nor is NCL. However, the mothership in Japan needs to get back into the game. With Sony dominating and Sega in second, NCL has made sure Gameboy Advance is on track for late summer so some of the pie is still left for them. NOA and NOE are doing whatever they can to convince Nintendo in Japan to hold off until next year, but the ultimate decision lies in NCL's hands. GBA software development is already wide-spread in third-party companies throughout Japan. Many of the companies are chugging right along, on target for August. Certainly, an extra six to eight months of development time could not hurt the first GBA titles, but NCL hasn't been known to pass up the "If it's done cooking, lets eat" strategy.

All right, so NCL is teetering right now, and both options are still relatively open. Lets hop overseas. For something a little different, start with the answer: No. The question: If NCL does go ahead and release Gameboy Advance in August as planned, will NOA stand by their November date? Between the complete deficit in GBA game development stateside, and GBC's ongoing, pocket filling success, it would seem November is to Gameboy Advance as last December was to Perfect Dark.