Is GBA dying?

[Anonymous]

I think GBA will soon meet its death, because of Nintendo DS. Nintendo intends for GBA and DS to co-exist, so why did they make DS compatible with GBA games? Because of that, instead of buying a DS and GBA, people will only buy a DS because it can play GBA games too. Plus, GBA is a little behind its time, it's only capable of 32-bit graphics, while systems such as DS and PSP are capable of full 3D graphics, it also dosen't have good sound or many buttons compared to the other systems. So what do you guys think?

[sank90]

I think GBA is already dead.. When I went to get my DS I sold my GBA to Gamestop and they only gave me 9.99 for it.

[benwayshouse]

It's going to lose steam; I think this is the point where Nintendo drops software support for GBA. It's all in 3rd Parties' hands now. I think the last GBA games I'll buy are:

Sigma Star Saga
Rayman Advance
Rayman: Hoodlum's Revenge
Scurge: Hive

[Anonymous]

Nintendo still has a some GBA games to release. Not sure what they'll have after that, maybe we'll find out at the E3.

[benwayshouse]

ANONYMOUS said:

Nintendo still has a some GBA games to release. Not sure what they'll have after that, maybe we'll find out at the E3.

Well, maybe they'll quit after those. GBA was a great platform; loads of gotta-see games.

[Jason-RN]

I doubt the GBA will die soon. Yes, it does not have as many new games as in the past. But, it's still managing to outsell the DS and it has a much bigger fan base than the DS.

[Anonymous]

Jason-RN said:

I doubt the GBA will die soon. Yes, it does not have as many new games as in the past. But, it's still managing to outsell the DS and it has a much bigger fan base than the DS.

Where did you hear that? I thought DS was selling more than GBA.

[Kirbster4]

ANONYMOUS said:

Where did you hear that? I thought DS was selling more than GBA.

Yeah. DS, I think is better than GBA well duh!

[Jason-RN]

ANONYMOUS said:

Where did you hear that? I thought DS was selling more than GBA.

The GBA still has very strong sales. I looked into the article I remember reading and while it doesn't directly say that the SP outsold the DS, I remember reading somewhere that it did. I could be wrong, though. Here's what I found over at GameSpot:

TOKYO--According to Reuters and Mainichi Interactive, Nintendo has announced that it is raising its sales forecast for the DS to five million units for the current fiscal year ending March 31, 2005. The company has not changed its outlook for the handheld's software sales, which is holding steady at 15 million copies.

This will be the second time that Nintendo has raised its sales estimates for the DS. Earlier this month, Nintendo increased its forecast for the DS from 3.5 to 4 million units. The handheld has been in massive demand in Japan where preorders have reached 2 million units, double the company's initial expectations. The handheld had a successful launch in America last week, and it will be released in Japan this Thursday.

In Tokyo, Nintendo is currently holding last minute promotions in the streets of the city's commercial districts, giving passers-by a chance to try out the handheld.

Nintendo also raised its sales estimate for the Game Boy Advance from 14 million to 16 million units, of which 15 million units are the GBA SP model.

Likewise, the forecast for GBA software sales has also been raised from 70 million to 77 million units. In addition, the company revealed that its Famicom Mini series shipped a total of 4.23 units in Japan; and its latest Pokemon title, Pokemon Emerald, has sold over 1 million units.

With sales of GBA games going smoothly and the DS handheld units expected to remain in high demand throughout the next few months, Nintendo has raised its net profit estimate for FY2005 from 84 billion yen ($817 million) to 90 billion yen ($875 million), nearly triple the profit from last year. The fiscal year ends March 31, 2005.

Source: GameSpot

So, as you can see, it doesn't directly say the GBA outsold the DS and I was probably wrong about that. But, the GBA is still selling extremely well.

[Anonymous]

I'm sure people will start to get bored of it soon, maybe by next year.

[Jason-RN]

ANONYMOUS said:

I'm sure people will start to get bored of it soon, maybe by next year.

Yeah, I also expect the GBA to slowly lose support over the next few years. But, for the time being, GBA is still very successful.

[Kirbster4]

Jason-RN said:

Yeah, I also expect the GBA to slowly lose support over the next few years. But, for the time being, GBA is still very successful.

Oh I am sure. But yeah GBA is cool but I am still waiting to get a DS.

[SoulKalibur]

nooo..i think the gba is still a bit popular.i mean ya i still play with mine even though i have a ds.

[Jehuty]

I actually think GBA is doing pretty well...well.. better than the DS at this point in time. It's still got some great games coming out, when DS is still slowly rolling out the gate.

But that is probably due to the base already established by the few years the GBA has been out.

[totalnonsense]

i play with my SP even more than my DS even though it has worse graphics i use it for the better battery