The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Seasons

Developer: Nintendo

Publisher: Nintendo

Release Date: May 14, 2001

System: Game Boy Color

ESRB Rating: E

Official Web site

In a nutshell: Zelda is Zelda, no matter the season.

0:00 I picked this up months ago at a ridiculous 75% off clearance of all Game Boy and Game Boy Color games at my local Gamestop. Total cost: $1.25 plus tax. As one of the few Zelda games I haven't played, I'm interested to see if it holds up to more recent entries in the series.

0:01 Man, I had forgotten how puny the backlight on the Game Boy Advance SP was. Compared to the DS Lite, it seems unlit.

0:02 Slow fade in. A familiar green clad figure rides in on a horse. Close up on Link riding as the chip tune music swells. Link looks exceedingly young. The camera jumps back as the horse rears up on a cliff edge over a white castle. Cut to the series' familiar overhead view, showing Link walk into a temple with three triforce pieces. They hover and encircle him in orange light. Everything goes all wavy. Cut to a shot of a large tree and a blue, partly cloudy sky. The title comes up with a catchy remix of the familiar Zelda theme.

0:04 All three files on this used copy are taken by "LANCE." They all have five hearts and 064 deaths. Hmmm... guess Lance didn't stick it out.

***-->CONTINUE READING AT<--***

***-->JOYSTICK DIVISION<-***

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Metal Gear Solid (GBC)

Developer: Konami
Publisher: Konami
Release Date: May 5, 2000
System: Game Boy Color
ESRB Rating: E

In a nutshell: Tiny Gear Solid? Metal Gear Tiny? Metal Tiny Tiny?

0:00 I distinctly remember this game getting a glowing review in Next Generation magazine, which rarely reviewed Game Boy Color games at all. Eight years later, it's less than five bucks at a GameStop clearance sale. How could I resist?

0:01 A silhouette of a plane flies by with a low-pitched whine. Close-up on Snake in the dark. Man, I really forgot how blocky Game Boy Color graphics were back in the day. Colonel Campbell pays Snake a visit: "It's been a long time, Snake." "Didn't expect to see you again," replies the retired mercenary. They share some scotch, which surprises me given the game's E rating. Snake built the house himself. "Didn't know you were a carpenter," Campbell says. Didn't you know? Snake is Jesus!

0:02 It's been three years since Snake left for Alaska and the world is on the brink of nuclear destruction. Yes, again! Campbell is droning on about some guys who stole some nukes in South America: "It was Metal Gear." Cure the dramatic, yet incredibly tinny, music at the mere mention of these bipedal nuke-launchers. This whole thing seems a bit melodramatic and silly without the quality voice acting that carried the PlayStation original.

0:03 The U.S. government continued Metal Gear development even after Snake destroyed it seven years ago. Man, how many times does he have to destroy this thing? It's now in "Gindra," a small country in central Africa that's in the middle of a civil war. The armed separatists have Metal Gear, an armed, charismatic leader and a virtually impenetrable fortress. That's not a good combination. "So they plan to win their independence by threatening nuclear strikes with Metal Gear." Way to state the obvious, Political Science Snake.

Read the full review at Crispy Gamer