I really REALLY enjoyed Metroid: Zero Mission. Not really a GBA expert, but I'd recommend that one very highly if you like the Metroid formula.

+10,542 to this

I really enjoyed the two Fire Emblem games that were released for GBA. The two Metroids and 3 Castlevanias were also great.
Avoid Final fantasy tactics advance, unless you love dull grind.

The Megaman Zero series. You really must play it.

Super Mario Bros Deluxe (GBC) (don't buy the NES classics one, this includes the japanese SMB2)

Super Mario Advance 1-4

Pokemon Gold/Silver/Crystal (still the best)

Super Mario Land 2: 6 Golden Coins

The Legend of Zelda Links Awakening (GBC)

The Minish Cap

Castlevania - Circle of the Moon
Castlevania - Harmony of Dissonance
Castlevania - Aria of Sorrow
The Legend of Zelda - Oracle of Ages
The Legend of Zelda - Oracle of Seasons
The Legend of Zelda - The Minish Cap
Fire Emblem
Advance Wars
Advance Wars 2
Golden Sun
Golden Sun - The Lost Age
Tactics Ogre - The Knight of Lodis
Metroid Fusion
Metriod Zero Mission
Final Fantasy Tactics
Shining Soul
Shining Soul 2
Shining Force

My favourites
Metrioid Fusion
Metroid Zero mission
F-Zero Gp legends
Minish cap


There are many great SNES ports for GBA and almost everyone of them is awesome, but take this advice... Avoid R-Type III, that´s the worst port in console history

Never had a GBA but played a few games on my DS Lite. From my limited experience I'd say the Castlevania games are really great. Circle of the Moon wasn't very good, technology was holding it back, but by the time they got to Harmony of Dissonance and Aria of Sorrow they could squeeze the most out of the system and they were as good as anywhere else.

Had a friend who said the Golden Sun games were some of his favorites of all time. Never got around to them but you could check them out.

-Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow (one of my absolute favorites)
-Dragon Ball Advanced Adventure
-Donkey Kong Country
-Sonic Battle
-Astro Boy: Omega Factor
-Boktai: The Sun Is in Your Hand
-Boktai 2: Solar Boy Django
-Iridion 3D
-Iridion II
-Kingdom Hearts: Chain of Memories (only play this if you've played KH1 at least)
-Kirby & the Amazing Mirror
-Kirby: Nightmare in Dreamland
-Klonoa 2: Dream Champ Tournament
-(The entire "Megaman Battle Network" series!)
-Metal Slug Advance
-Metroid: Zero Mission
-Sonic Advance 1 & 2
-Star Wars: Episode III: Revenge of the Sith
-Megaman and Bass (super hard game!)
-Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones

Zone of the Enders: Fist of Mars. I enjoy it more than the Super Robot Wars series, especially since SRW seems about min-maxing to an insane degree and the storyline is the most convoluted nonsensical clusterfuck ever (like seriously, the plot of the OG games is basically "everything that happened in every previous game happens again at the same time")

ehhhh it's kind of a mixed bag. While you have stuff like the challenge mode, there's also that thing where the screen is smaller than the gameplay area. And the "for super players" levels isn't the exact same thing as Lost Levels/SMB2j. It's only worlds 1-8, and lacking worlds A-D and 9. Think there's some other small changes as well.

Being a rabid fan of 'tactical' games on GBA and other consoles, I find all the ogre battle and FF tactics one of the best kind of games .... and I'm fairly surpised (if I read through this topic with enough care) that nobody listed 'Rebelstar : Tactical Command'.

For those of you which enjoyed FF tactics on GBA or DS ... you HAVE TO try this one. The only excuse you could have of not knowing this one is because it was one of the last game published on GBA I think.

[url=http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebelstar:_Tactical_Command]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rebelstar:_Tactical_Command[/url]

edit (typo + additionnal info) :
this game has lasers, destructible environnement, 2D-iso, lines of sight AND it is turn based, sci-fi and .... Gollop.

I know a few people have mentioned it already, but it warrants mentioning at least one more time: Final Fantasy Tactics Advance.

Really, if you have this game, what else do you need? I've easily put 100+ hours into this title on a single save...and I've played it more than once.

Scourge: The Hive is a good,yet overlooked, game. Heavily influenced by Metroid (Female bounty hunter, lots of exploration and item collecting).

However this is an Isometric game with cartoony but detailed graphics.

Also reminiscent of Metroid: Fusion the main character gets infected by a manufactured virus that was unleashed in the facility, however unlike Fusion this will kill you if your body gets fully infected, you can temporarily cleanse your system at aid stations located in the facility. This gives a little more tension in some areas as you balance exploration with your infection level.

There is a version on the DS as well and honestly I would recommend that one more as it uses the lower screen for the maps and weapons selection which is much more fluid then going into the menus.

* Metroid Zero Mission and Metroid Fusion are both excellent games.
* All of the GBA Castlevanias are pretty good.
* Zelda: A Link To The Past is pretty good if you don't have the SNES version.
* Megaman And Bass is another good game to play if you don't have the SNES version (GBA version is the only way to legally play it in non-Japanese languages).
* The Golden Suns are both really great RPGs.
* Mario And Luigi: Superstar Saga, while not complex in any way, shape, or form, is a really fun RPG.
* The Advance Wars games are really good SRPGs, as well.
* Wario Land 4 was easily the best platformer on the system when it came out, and still holds up as one of the best games on the system. EDIT: Now that I'm looking through the topic, I'm actually really surprised nobody mentioned this one.
* Drill Dozer is an astoundingly fun platformer, as well. One that most people missed.
* River City Ransom EX and Double Dragon Advance; Remakes of two of the best NES beat 'em ups in arguably their best form.
* If you like schmups, try the Iridion games, especially the second.
* Boktai: The Sun is in Your Hand is a really good action game with a neat gimmick in that you actually need real sunlight in real life to vanquish the vampires in the game.
* Sigma Star Saga was kind of a weird shooter, schmup, RPG hybrid you may want to check out. Most people missed out on it.

Other consideration:
* Megaman Battle Network 1 & 2; both of these are pretty good action RPGs.
* Megaman Zero series; Speaking as a Megaman fan, I'm actually not a big fan of these. I find the level design subpar, the story kind of screwed up the Megaman continuity (not a fan of some of the choices), and I'm not a huge fan of the artstyle. A lot of people seem to really like these, though, so you may want to give them a shot.
* Dragon Ball: Advanced Adventure is a surprisingly good action game, even if you don't like Dragon Ball.
* The GBA Klonoa games, while kind of mediocre sequels to the series, aren't really that bad. They're more puzzle platformers than the originals were, though.
* Car Battler Joe; I really like this game, but a lot of people don't. Seems to be more of a cult favorite. It's a racing, car battling, driving game with RPG elements.
* Scourge: The Hive - Pretty much an isometric Metroid game. I have trouble recommending the GBA version, though, as a DS version exists that's, well, honestly a better choice overall.

For fighting games:
Tekken Advance - a very honest and accurate Tekken port.
King of Fighters EX2 Howling Blood - One of the best handheld KOF games ever.
Super Street Fighter 2X Grand Master's Challenge - Nice throw back to a classic.
Dragon Ball Z: Supersonic Warriors - Fast frenetic DBZ fighting action with dozens of What If stories.