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Hands On: Game Boy Color

We take an in-depth look at Nintendo's latest revision to the Game Boy, with color.

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Nintendo's Game Boy Color lands stateside on Nov. 18, but the Japanese version has already hit shelves in the land of the rising sun (and with more color options). I was able to get my hands on one and spent an entire evening trying out my complete Game Boy collection on the new machine. Let's jump right in!

The SystemFirst off, the Game Boy Color (GBC) is a little bigger than the Game Boy Pocket (GBP), but the difference is negligible. My GBP carrying case was able to handle the GBC with no problems at all. My color of choice was red; however, a word to the wise: It's not really red like the N64 controllers or Pokemon cartridge. It's actually more of an '80s hot pink, even though the box does say red.

The screen is noticeably smaller than the Pocket's, but the clarity more than makes up for this. The power switch has been moved to the side, and at the top of the machine there is now an infrared comm link port. The drawback to that is you have to be within 5cm of another GB - and it has to be pointed at the other comm link. It is not meant for head-to-head play, but rather for exchanging save data or trading Pokemon if you don't have a link cable.

The sound is plenty loud and quite clear. The front of the system has the same configuration as the Pocket, although the A and B buttons now have letters embossed in the front. At the bottom of the system are the DC and headphone jacks. At the left side are the volume and EXT jacks (for the link or printer cables). The GBC has no contrast dial, which is perfectly fine - the screen looks great and doesn't need any changing.

The system itself is pumped up. At 2.10MHz, it's double the speed of the original GB. It also has four times the RAM (32k), twice as much video RAM (16k), and a much faster data transfer rate through the link cable (up to 512kb/sec from the original GB's 8kb/sec).

Games, Games, GamesI got two games with the system - Tetris DX and Wario Land 2. Both titles also work on the standard GB, GBP, and Super Game Boy (SGB). Wario Land, however, can only be used on one or the other at any one time. If you begin playing with the GBC, you can't switch to the regular system or SGB without erasing all of your saved data. Tetris DX used with the SGB has no more color than the original Tetris does. Nintendo will likely release a new SGB that has color support sometime in 1999, at least in Japan.

Games made for use with the GBC will come in a different color cartridge (in the Japanese version, it's black, which will likely also be the color in the US). Also, the packaging for the games in the US will be different in order to distinguish them from standard GB games. On the packaging, you'll find symbols pertaining to which systems the games can be played on. In the case of both Wario Land II and Tetris DX, they have a "color" icon and a standard GB icon, indicating that the games can be played on both. Some games will only be able to be played on the GBC.

Tetris DXTetris looks great in color. The game is the same, although with a few new play modes - marathon, ultra, 40 lines, and vs. com. Three players can input their names and save their high scores, and the fourth slot is used for guests. When you fire up the game for the first time, it'll ask you to enter your name. An interesting feature is if you pause the game and turn it off, when you turn the power back on it'll ask if you want to continue your original game (from when you paused). It saves high scores and will even tell you the percentage of times you get Tetrises or how many lines you usually clear.

Unfortunately, gone are the addictive Russian tunes from the original, replaced by new, slower music selections (three total or silence). Tetris DX does have ending animations of a space shuttle launch though, which get better as you get better at the game. The backgrounds in Tetris DX move in a checkerboard pattern, and the backdrop of the "pit" changes as you pass levels. However, play Tetris DX on a regular GB or SGB, and the moving backgrounds are gone, in fact it plays just like the original Tetris but with some new modes and music.

I found myself getting rehooked on Tetris and having to relearn some of my puzzle game mastery from the late '80s. When the GBC comes out in the US, Tetris DX is the killer app, and you have to get it.

Wario Land 2Wario Land 2 is basically the same game that was released in the US last spring. It was never released in Japan, so this is the first time players there played it. It's in full color and looks great on the GBP. As far as differences are concerned, I have no idea if there are any, other than Japanese text in this release.

If you're unfamiliar with Wario Land 2, it's a side-scrolling platformer starring Mario's nemesis, Wario. With side-scrolling titles on the GB, there's usually a lot of blur while moving, and enemies are harder to distinguish from background elements. With the GBC, there's no question where enemies are and where you can go. Everything is crystal clear.

A US release date on the color version of Wario Land 2 has yet to be determined.

Standard GB GamesI tested a number of standard Game Boy titles from my collection, and all of them look great on the GBC. Some of the titles I have ended up have preprogrammed color palettes inside the GBC, giving them color that they don't have even on the SGB. You can also choose form 12 different preprogrammed colors by pressing directional and button combinations. However, you can't choose to play games made for play in color in monochrome (why would you want to anyway?).

One such game is the original Kirby's Dream Land. I popped in the game, turned it on, and wow, Kirby's actually pink with red shoes! The enemies in the game are also colored, along with some of the background elements. Playing this game with zero blur is fantastic.

Another game that benefits from a preprogrammed color palette is Metroid II. This makes the game look and play very closely to the NES version of Metroid - and it looks great. No need to buy an additional color version.

Kirby's Star Stacker, which is a Super Game Boy game (and is in color) is not in color on the GBC. Donkey Kong, which is a color game on the SGB, is limited color on the GBC. Game & Watch Gallery 1 is in limited SGB-ish color on the GBC. Tamagotchi uses the standard SGB color palette. After doing a couple of trials on these, it's hard to determine if the GBC will play all SGB games in their SGB palettes. Pokemon plays in the same color palettes as the Super Game Boy.

Motocross Maniacs, perhaps my favorite GB title, plays wonderfully, although in black and white, on the GBC. Unfortunately, I lost my copy of Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, which was an ultra-blurry title on the original GB…. I would've liked to have seen how that turned out.

The Future of ColorThe future of Game Boy Color is looking great. Already, one third-party GBC title is available in Japan (Dragon Quest Monsters), with more on the way. Colorized versions of older Game Boy games will begin showing up shortly (Zelda's the first, aside from Wario). One thing Nintendo of America is pushing with colorized versions of games is that they have to be somehow "improved" over the standard noncolor version. Whether it's more levels, different characters, new bosses, etc., it has to be improved in some way beyond just being in color.

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