What is GBA and how it was better than others?
Nintendo’s Gameboy Advance (GBA) was perhaps the best portable video game consoles ever manufactured. An improvement over Gameboy Colour, GBA was launched in 2001 with its successor the Gameboy Advance SP in 2003. Next in line was Gameboy Dual Screen or DS, released in 2004 which features two screens in a laptop like foldable console and was the last in Nintendo’s handheld gaming consoles.
Surprisingly, if any gaming console ever came close to giving Gameboy competition, it was Sony’s PlayStation Portable launched in 2005 but it did not feature dual-screen even though the technology was invented in 2004. Sony’s PSP did feature better quality graphics and the console was multitasking which provided many features apart from just playing games like reading eBooks, watching movies, listening to music and even acted as an image viewer. It could be compared to today’s smartphones with the exception of a sim card slot. However, in its lifetime it sold 80 million units less than Nintendo’s Gameboy Advance, which proves that GBA was truly the best handheld console ever.
Best GBA Games Ever!
All Gameboy Advance games were great, and it is difficult to mention the best. However, I have listed the five best ones ever that I could play all day long and restart again without any second thought.
- Super Mario Series.
- Pokémon Series.
- Final Fantasy 6.
- Astro Boy.
- Harvest Moon.
Simulator vs Emulator
Smartphones are on a mission to replace all other devices and so is true in the world of gaming. Although you can find countless games on Google Play Store for Android mobiles, but the fun in playing Nintendo games was unrivaled. The good news is that you can now play all Gameboy Advance games on Android with a Gameboy Emulator for Android app. Just download the Emulator app along with some game ROMs and you can have the same fun as if you have a classic Gameboy Advance in your hands.
Before you search for a Gameboy Advance Emulator for Android, it is important to know the difference between a Simulator and Emulator. A Simulator tries to copy an environment and recreate the model in a different place, type or size. Once the Simulation process is successful, it will emulate the task and blend it well inside the newly created simulated environment. However, an Emulator tries to run the same process in different environments. If we wish to play the classic Gameboy advance games on Android, we do not need to create a new environment or device, but the solution would be to design an app that can play those games on our Android smartphone without changing anything.
Where Can I find GBA Emulator Android Games?
Once you have a Gameboy Advance Emulator for Android installed on your smartphone, the next step is to obtain Game ROMs. The best part is that you can find almost all the Game ROMS for free on the internet. I have listed a couple of websites that I use often to download GBA Emulator for Android Game ROMs.
Remember to download the correct ROMS for GBA Emulator for Android. If you download games for the wrong console, then they will not work. Some of the games which I have downloaded are:
- Bomber man Max 4
- Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2
- Top Gear Rally
- David Beckham Soccer
- Final Fight One.
Best GBA Emulator for Android
There are many Gameboy Advance Emulator Android available on Google Play Store which can let you have the fun of playing your favorite games on your Android Phone. Some of them are free while others are paid at reasonable prices. Most of them are found on the Google Play Store but there are a few which are not or have been removed due to noncompliance of Google’s policies. Personally, I do not prefer to download any app from third-party resources as I trust Google on that. What’s not good enough for the Google Play Store is also not good enough for me. I have listed the ones that are free yet provide the best of the options out there.
1. John GBA Lite
It is probably one of the best GBA Emulator for Android available on Google Play Store. It is a simple app that provides built-in cheats, various options to improve the graphics render quality and a feature to save your game on cloud storage. This can also help you continue your game from another device if required. It also supports external Bluetooth controller support.
2. RetroArch
RetroArch is not just a Gameboy Emulator for Android but is an open-source complete emulation solution for all types of games including Atari, PSP and many more. It has its own mini-programs or cores which can be downloaded free of cost. It has multi-lingual support and allows users to take screenshots, save your progress and the ability to enter cheats and remap controls.
3. Classic Boy
Another one of the best GBA Emulator for Android is undoubtedly, Classic Boy. It supports eight different gaming consoles including Gameboy Advance. It has great and easy to use interface and features support for virtual on-screen controls and external controls for all systems. It also has an advanced premium version with special features, but the free version is well equipped to play GBA games.
4. Emubox
EmuBox is a Gameboy Advance Emulator for Android smartphones which is a new product as compared to the others in the market. It not only lets you play GBA games but also Nintendo DS, PSX, GBC and NES games as well. It has fascinating material design and allows users to take a screenshot anytime they want. You can attach your gamepad with Bluetooth and use 20 save slots for each game.
5. My OldBoy!
One of the finest Gameboy Emulators for Android is My OldBoy! which truly is a super-fast emulator to run all Gameboy games on all Android devices. It includes special features like link cable, rumble and tilt sensor emulation using Android’s own motion sensors. It does not consume much of battery power and supports fast- forward with speeds up to 50X.
6. Nostalgia.GBA
Another Gameboy Advance Emulator for Android is Nostalgia.GBA has a unique feature of saving and sharing your game states via mail, skype and other ways directly from the app. It also features hardware keyboard support, compressed ZIP support and hardware-accelerated graphics utilizing OpenGL ES. It also allows the users to rewind the gameplay and continue from the previous moment. There are many apps created by Nostalgia for various types of consoles and it does not support the all-in-one solution. This way it focuses on one console and provides a seamless experience to gamers and falls in the list of best GBA Emulator for Android. It does have ads but not while the game is running.
7. Pizza Boy GBA Free
Pizza Boy GBA Free is a comparatively newer Gameboy Emulator for Android which boasts of 60 frames per second pf gameplay and allows the user to use fast-forwarding and slow motion. At present, it does not feature any ads and allows the users to customize the button sizes and positions. Pizza Boy does not consume much battery power and saves screenshots in JPG format.
8. GBA Emulator by Deimos Applications
GBA Emulator by Deimos Applications made it to this list of Gameboy Advance Emulator for Android because this free and simple app can be installed in any Android device with no issues. It offers 100% speed emulation on all devices and features a customizable control layout. Like other Gameboy Emulator for Android, it supports fast forward, compressed file support and allows you to connect a gamepad for playing GBA games.
9. MegaGBA
MegaGBA is a fast, smooth, multi-threaded Gameboy Advance Emulator for Android which has a unique feature of auto-saving the game when you exit from the app. It is very easy to use and allows users to save and load from multiple slots. Gamers can benefit from Speeding gameplay and from the use of cheat codes.
10. GBA Emulator by ITakeApps
The last Emulator app to make the list of best GBA Emulators for Android is GBA Emulator by ITakeApps. With a 4.6 rating On Google Play Store, this free Gameboy Emulator for Android allows the user to play all types of games like action, adventure, racing, etc. without any lag or disturbances. The app is supported by ads, but you will not face any during gameplay. It has over a million installs and a small-sized installation file.
Bonus Emulator: My Boy! GBA emulator
All the 10 Gameboy Advance Emulators for Android are free of cost and can be downloaded from the Google Play Store. There is one, however, which is not free but is the most popular GBA Emulator for Android across the globe. It consists of all the features available in all the Emulators and gives you total control of your game with being able to customize everything related to the game. I recommend you to first try out the free emulators and if you can really play the GBA games on your Android smartphone and enjoy them then you must let go $4 for My Boy! GBA Emulator.
Your thoughts on the best GBA Emulator for Android.
Nintendo’s Gameboy Advance did bring a revolutionize the portable gaming industry and created a name for itself. If you owned one of the Gameboys and want to relive that experience, then these emulator apps are just for you. However, if you’ve never had one, then it is the time to visit another realm of gaming introduced by Nintendo. Do share your thoughts on Gameboy Advance and the Emulators for Android. If you know of any others, then drop a comment and where can we install them.