10 Game Boy Deep Cuts That Aren’t On Nintendo Switch Online

Another HAL outing that pre-dates Kirby, Trax is a top-down shooter that puts the player in control of a cute tank that can be steered freely in all eight directions, but with a turret that rotates clockwise. That constraint adds a layer of strategy while dodging, manoeuvring, and lining up shots. Despite its brevity and low difficulty, the title boasts fluid controls and is brimming with character owing to its unique boss sprites and fights. Trax pushes the Game Boy to its technical limits and is a great little title to fire up to sate a handheld shump fix.

Originally envisioned as ‘Bound High’, a Virtual Boy-exclusive set in stereoscopic 3D that was cancelled when Nintendo pulled the plug on the doomed headset, developers Japan System Supply adapted the title’s robot protagonist, Chalvo, and its bounce-focused gameplay for an outing on the Game Boy, albeit as a 2D side-scrolling puzzle platformer. Though obscure and released only in Japan in 1997, Chalvo 55 creatively leverages block-pushing, exploration, and the unique traversal mechanic of curling into a perpetually bouncing ball to great effect.

Given its sheer quality, it’s a shame that Mercenary Force is as overlooked as it is. Released in 1990 by Meldac and steeped in the folklore of Edo Japan, this fast-paced horizontal auto-scrolling shooter puts you in control of a band of mercenaries, each with unique abilities. Attack formations can be changed dynamically to gain strategic advantage, with each warrior boasting a unique kamikaze move that can be unleashed prior to falling in battle. This is a true cult classic that will test your shump mettle while pushing the hardware to its limits.

Though it never left Japan, Konami’s 1991 title Cave Noire is historically significant for being one of the earliest examples of a roguelike game on a handheld console, and it holds up respectably today. You take on bite-sized quests in four procedurally dungeons, each with a unique goal such as slaying monsters, collecting gold, or freeing fairies. Inventory management and grasping the game’s turn-based movement are key to overcoming later quests’ high difficulty. A fan translation has been available online for some time for those eager to dabble in this curio.

1990’s Bubble Ghost was based on an earlier Atari ST game, though it’s the Game Boy version that garnered notoriety for its charming sprite design and more precise controls. It revolves around momentum-based puzzling, with players controlling a friendly spectral entity who must delicately guide a bubble through rooms to an exit by blowing on it, all while avoiding obstacles like barbed wire, spikes, candles, and fans. Though patience and dexterity are a must, there’s a good reason why Bubble Ghost makes it onto many ‘hidden gems’ lists.

Saving what may be the best for last, Namco’s 1992 role-playing game Great Greed is a treasure. It boasts a self-aware, eccentric sense of humour that EarthBound fans will find joy in, and a fluid ‘hand-to-hand combat’ battle system that pegs attack and dodge to ‘A’ and ‘B’ respectively and casts spells assigned to each of the four directional buttons. This ingeniously fixes the pacing issues that can come with random turn-based battles, all with bizarre plot points, food-themed kingdoms and enemies, rockin’ music, and a radical anti-pollution message.