Background
The Wii U eShop will only be open for a limited time so it is worth looking at the games there while there is still time to buy them. In the past few months we looked at all the available eShop games, but we omitted the Virtual Console releases, until now! Nintendo introduced the Virtual Console (VC) with Wii as a way to sell games from previous systems a la carte. That same service continued with Wii U and 3DS before being replaced with a Netflix style service bundled with the Nintendo Switch's Online membership.
The Game Boy Advance Virtual Console
The Game Boy Advance (GBA) sold about 81.5 million units and had quite a few exclusive games from well known franchises. However there have not been many attempts to re-release those games. There was no GBA virtual console for Wii; With the 3DS it was limited to the ten titles included with the Ambassador Program (Link to NWR article (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/forums/index.php?topic=35189.msg688201#msg688201)). There are a few games that managed to get re-released on other systems, but by and large most seem locked on either the original hardware or the Wii U eShop. The Wii U eShop has 74 titles ranging in cost from $6.99 to $7.99 (USD) and we will deal with them in three parts, sorted alphabetically.
In this second third we see the following 23 titles with information in the following order
Game Title (Release year, developer/publisher, current cartridge cost*, @ indicates part of the 3DS Ambassador Program)
* Loose cartridge only, USD, source: https://www.pricecharting.com/ (https://www.pricecharting.com/)
- Konami Krazy Racers (2001, Konami, $8.5)
- Kuru Kuru Kururin (2016, Eighting/Nintendo, N/A)
- Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga (2003, Alpha Dream/Nintendo, $17)
- Mario Golf: Advance Tour (2004, Camelot/Nintendo, $19)
- Mario Kart: Super Circuit (2001, Nintendo, $11, @)
- Mario Party Advance (2005, Nintendo, $10)
- Mario Pinball Land (2004, Nintendo, $11)
- Mario Tennis: Power Tour (2005, Camelot/Nintendo, $17)
- Mario vs. Donkey Kong (2004, Nintendo, $13, @)
- Medabots: Metabee/Rokusho (2002, Natsume, $50/$38)
- Medabots AX: Metabee/Rokusho (2002, Natsume, $9/$9)
- Mega Man & Bass (2003, Capcom, $19)
- Mega Man Battle Chip Challenge (2004, Inti Creates/Capcom, $18)
- Mega Man Battle Network (2001, Capcom, $57)
- Mega Man Battle Network 2 (2002, Capcom, $45)
- Mega Man Battle Network 3: Blue/White (2003, Capcom, $23/$23)
- Mega Man Battle Network 4: Blue Moon/Red Sun (2004, Capcom, $20/$22)
- Mega Man Battle Network 5: Team Colonel/Team Protoman (2005, Capcom, $19/$25)
- Mega Man Battle Network 6: Cybeast Falzar/Cybeast Gregar (2006, Capcom, $44/$37)
- Mega Man Zero (2002, Inti Creates/Capcom, $29)
- Mega Man Zero 2 (2003, Inti Creates/Capcom, $16)
- Mega Man Zero 3 (2004, Inti Creates/Capcom, $15)
- Mega Man Zero 4 (2005, Inti Creates/Capcom, $19)
The Highlights
There are only two Ambassador games this week - Mario Kart: Super Circuit and Mario vs. Donkey Kong.
(https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/media/38111/1/14.jpg)
The loose carts are a little more affordable in this lot but they are all still above the Wii U eShop costs. Collectors should be on the lookout for the first game in the Mega Man Battle Network series as it currently sells for around $60!
(https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/media/38022/1/4.jpg)
Mega Man was very prolific on the GBA with 12 games released in six years. While the four Mega Man Zero titles are available in a DS collection and the more recent Mega Man Zero Legacy Collection, the Battle Network games were not released as a collection, yet. It is also worth noting that in 2002 we see the Inti Creates team start making Mega Man Games for Capcom.
The only other re-releases that I am aware of is Konami Karzy Racers getting ported to phones and the 3DS remake of Superstar Saga. While the GBA original represents Alpha Dream in their prime, the 3DS re-release signaled the beginning of their end.
(https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/media/36558/1/14.jpg)
As we have seen before, there can be games getting their first North American release in the Virtual Console. For the Game Boy Advance, that honor goes to Kuru Kuru Kururin. This Nintendo Published puzzler was released on the GBA everywhere but America and gained a bit of a cult following at NWR. In 2016, the Wii U VC release made the game officially available in the US, but did it live up to its legendary reputation? (Link to NWR article (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/feature/41957/kuru-kuru-kururin-review-revisit))
(https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/media/38076/1/9.jpg)
Comments
I welcome any corrections to the information I found when compiling the list. The price information here is for the US so let me know about differences in other regions. Not sure what to comment, consider questions like:
- Which GBA games would you want included if Nintendo released a GBA classic?
- Will Capcom release a Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection?
- Does the new Mario Golf game for Switch make you nostalgic for Mario Golf: Advance Tour?
- Were Natsume and Capcom successful with their attempts to pull off a Pokemon style dual version release?
Next Round
Join me next week as we wrap up the GBA VC in our unabridged survey of the Wii U Virtual Console.
Here are the Metacritic ratings and select NWR Reviews for the games in this set.
Game Title (Metacritic Rating, NWR review)
- Konami Krazy Racers (78, 9 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/3786)
- Kuru Kuru Kururin (N/A, 9 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/3795))
- Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga (90, 8.5 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/reviewmini/37070))
- Mario Golf: Advance Tour (84, 7.5 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/4242))
- Mario Kart: Super Circuit (93, 9.5 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/3792))
- Mario Party Advance (54, 4 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/39351))
- Mario Pinball Land (62, 7.5 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/4272))
- Mario Tennis: Power Tour (81, 6 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/38109), 10 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/4464))
- Mario vs. Donkey Kong (81, 8 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/4234))
- Medabots: Metabee/Rokusho (60)
- Medabots AX: Metabee/Rokusho(NA)
- Mega Man & Bass (79)
- Mega Man Battle Chip Challenge (54, 5 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/4211))
- Mega Man Battle Network (79)
- Mega Man Battle Network 2 (81, 8 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/3923))
- Mega Man Battle Network 3: Blue/White (77, 8.5 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/4099))
- Mega Man Battle Network 4: Blue Moon/Red Sun (67/68, 8 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/4256))
- Mega Man Battle Network 5: Team Colonel/Team Protoman (66/67, 5.5 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/4428))
- Mega Man Battle Network 6: Cybeast Falzar/Cybeast Gregar (63/62, 5.5 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/11892))
- Mega Man Zero (82, 9 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/3955))
- Mega Man Zero 2 (81, 8.5 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/4146))
- Mega Man Zero 3 (77, 8.5 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/4277))
- Mega Man Zero 4 (77, 9.5 from NWR (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/4425))
The Highlights
There average review scores here are certainly lower than last week with a couple of games getting less than a 6. There are still plenty of 9's from NWR but only two games hit 90 or higher on Metacritic. Arguably, the best reviewed game of this bunch is Mario Kart Super Circuit, which received a 10 as well as a 9 and 9.5 from NWR when released. It was not formally re-reviewed for the Wii U VC, but was "Recommended" when put on the 3DS ambassador program.
(https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/media/39019/1/14.jpg)
The other well received game in the group is Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga. With a 90 on Metacritic and a 9.5 from Dr. Metts in 2003 (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/review/4154/mario-namp-luigi-superstar-saga-game-boy-advance), this appears to be a great game. The 2014 re-review from Daan Koopman (linked above) suggests that it has aged a little since then.
(https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/media/36558/1/12.png)
The lowest reviewed game is probably Mario Party Advance which has a 54 on metacritic and a 4 from NWR. Could this be why Hudson Soft does not help make Mario Party games anymore? (https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/media/39278/1/7.jpg)
For those trying to sort through the deluge of Mega Man games it appears that you can skip Battle Chip Challenge. If want platforming action then the four Mega Man Zero games seem to fair well so maybe pick up that collection on Switch. If however you want some Battle Network strategy then that side series peaked with the second and third titles.
(https://www.nintendoworldreport.com/media/51517/1/3.jpg)