The Game Boy Advance launched on June 11, 2001, in North America and officially ended production at the end of 2009. In that time, 1538 licensed games were released on the console. A handful of those were some really great RPGS.

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Best GBA Games From Each Year Of The Console's Life

Some great video games were released for the Game Boy Advance between 2001 and 2008. Here is the best one from each year.

The Game Boy Advance is remembered for two RPG franchises in particular: Pokemon (obviously) and Final Fantasy. But it was actually home to quite a few more. Despite being limited by the console's hardware, some of the best RPGs of the early 2000s were released on the humble little Game Boy Advance. Barely a year went by during which the GBA didn't see at least one or two major releases.

7 2001 - Golden Sun

Metacritic: 91

Of course, Nintendo stuffed the GBA's launch year with big-name franchises like Super Mario, Mega Man, and Castlevania. However, that year also saw the release of Golden Sun, one of the best games ever released on the console.

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Golden Sun was a brand new JRPG franchise heavily influenced by the likes of Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest. Not just a carbon copy; it had its own unique personality, was full of great characters, and featured an engaging story. It also had its own unique gameplay mechanics, like the Psynergy system, which allowed players to use spells outside of battle to solve environmental puzzles. The game was a surprise hit and was so successful that a sequel was rushed out the following year.

6 2002 - Breath Of Fire 2

Metacritic: 81

Gamers complain a lot today that every other release is a remake or a remaster, but that's not a new trend. The GBA did it twenty years ago, and fans loved it. Breath of Fire 2 was first released on the SNES in 1995, but a remake for the GBA was released in 2002. It received mostly positive reviews.

As remakes go, this was a pretty direct port. It didn't receive the kind of upgrades the early Final Fantasy ports did on the system, but it did at least get a new, more modern save system. Capcom took an "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" approach, and it worked. Breath of Fire 2 on the GBA had the same great gameplay, lovable characters, and dramatic storytelling as the original. Most critics' only real gripe was that it wasn't exactly the most visually stunning game on the GBA, since Capcom had barely touched the graphics.

5 2003 - Mario & Luigi Super Star Saga

Metacritic: 90

2003 was a ridiculously good year for RPGs on the Game Boy Advance. That year saw the release of the critically acclaimed Final Fantasy Tactics (one of the best GBA Strategy Games), Pokemon Ruby and Saphire, Fire Emblem, and the supremely weird Boktai. There could only be one winner, however, and according to Metacritic, it was Mario & Luigi: Superstar Saga.

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Of all the Mario RPG spinoffs, this is one of the most beloved. It featured a unique gameplay mechanic where players control both brothers at the same time using the A and B buttons, including during the turn-based battles. The RPG elements were surprisingly deep for a game seemingly aimed at kids, the graphics were cute, and the game had a nice slapstick sense of humor (some of the attack animations are still hilarious). It remains a fan favorite entry to this day.

4 2004 - Pokemon FireRed And LeafGreen

Metacritic: 81

By 2004, the remake trend on the Game Boy Advance was in full swing, and that year saw the first "enhanced remakes" of the early Pokemon games as well as GBA versions of Final Fantasy 1 and 2. On the bright side, FireRed and LeafGreen genuinely felt like massive upgrades.

The originals were genre-defining but always felt held back by the original Game Boy's humble hardware. The power of the GBA really let these classics shine with gorgeous, full-color graphics and revamped music. On top of that, they added extra legendaries and included second and third-gen Pokemon in the mix. Despite being remakes, Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen are widely considered to be two of the best Pokemon games on the GBA.

3 2005 - Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones

Metacritic: 85

Nintendo has two big-name RPG franchises under its belt: Pokemon and Fire Emblem. It's shocking then that, despite first releasing in 1990, it took Fire Emblem so long to escape Japan and see a release in the West. That release was the first Fire Emblem for the GBA, a great outing that did an excellent job introducing westerners to the series.

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It's sequel, Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones, is better by pretty much every metric, though. The main improvements were made to the already excellent battle system, while the animations and graphics are as nice to look at as ever. The biggest additions were a world map, overhauled unit promotions, and the fact that each lead character got their own chapter. People might often associate Game Boy games with kids, but these Fire Emblem games on the GBA were some of the console's hardest RPGs.

2 2006 - Final Fantasy 5 Advance

Metacritic: 83

With the Nintendo DS having been released at the end of 2004, by 2006, the Game Boy Advance was beginning to struggle. That being said, it wasn't a bad year for RPGs on the system, with Pokemon Mystery Dungeon, Final Fantasy 5, and Mother 3 all being released. Mother 3 has become something of a cult classic, but few people outside of Asia have ever gotten to play it.

Final Fantasy 5, however, was a commercial and critical success. It took the 1992 original and gave it a new coat of paint. It also added extra content like a unique dungeon and an extra boss fight not in the Famicom version. Most importantly, for life on a handheld, it included a quick save feature.

1 2007 - Final Fantasy 6 Advance

Metacritic: 92

The Game Boy Advance may have limped on until 2009, but 2007 was the last year it saw any major releases. One of the most exciting of these was Final Fantasy 6 Advance, a port of arguably the highest-ranked Final Fantasy game. Who wouldn't want to carry Terra, Celes, and Locke around in their pocket?

Much like the other Final Fantasy Advance games, this wasn't just a simple port. This version gave the aging classic a new lick of paint, using remade pixel art that was true to the original but absolutely beautiful. Likewise, it added extra content with the Cave of Trials and Lunar Ruins sections, giving old fans a good reason to rebuy the game. The biggest improvement, though, was to the game's script. Final Fantasy 6 has an amazing story, and this revised script did a much better job of getting it across to those of us who can't speak Japanese and hate wonky translations. All-in-all, Final Fantasy 6 Advance is an excellent example of how a port/remaster should be done and was a great game for the Game Boy Advance to go out on.

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