Remember Shantae? WayForward certainly does -- the Contra 4 developer spent two years producing the delightful Game Boy Color platformer, only to see it die a death at retail, its chances cruelly crushed by the increasing obsolescence of its host platform, as well as the rise of the newly released Game Boy Advance. Boasting an engrossing mix of Metroid-style puzzles and neat visual tricks, the game was an unsung gem that emphatically failed to register on the gaming public's radar.

A sequel was planned for the Advance, only for the project to be inexplicably shelved with the game 50% complete, but WayForward hasn't forgotten about the series entirely. With the all-conquering Contra 4 now out on store shelves and begging to be bought, the developer has posted a poll on its site, asking whether or not we'd be interested in purchasing a Shantae follow-up, and what platform we'd like it to appear on.

Hence, we implore all of you to hit the link below and get your vote on. If you're still wavering about giving thirty seconds of your time to one of the best DS-related causes we've heard of in ages, go past the break for footage of the canned GBA title.

Then go and get your vote on.

A new glucose monitor targeted at children with Juvenile Diabetes hopes to entice its young users by doubling as a video game. The GlucoBoy tests small amounts of blood for glucose levels, just like a normal glucose self-diagnosis device. Upon plugging it into a Game Boy Advance or DS, however, GlucoBoy rewards players for routine glucose checks or having correct blood sugar levels by giving them points, which can be used to unlock mini-games on the cartridge.

Interestingly, we originally reported about GlucoBoy way back in 2005, with Engadget having reported on it first in 2004. Due to the device's small market, its inventor Paul Wessel has spent three years trying to get approval from Nintendo to produce the device. GlucoBoy launched in Australia on World Diabetes Day, with plans to bring the glucose-testing device to more regions soon.

[Via Next-Gen]

The drive to catch all 493 beasts in Pokémon Diamond and Pearl is causing a surge in demand for old Pokémon games. JJGames' used video games price tracker shows the average price for used, classic Pokémon games rising over 20 percent since early Feburary. Used game prices in general went down nearly 20 percent during the same period.

As the above graph shows, the Pokémon prices largely track with the market through the end of February, when they surged ahead of the DS games' April 22 release. The prices take a downward turn for the month after Diamond and Pearl's release, then shoot up again after Memorial Day, the traditional start of summer.

While this meteoric rise might encourage you to invest all your savings into used Pokémon games, we encourage caution. A well-diversified portfolio of used games is the only way to avoid fiascos like this one.

We'll admit we haven't been in Target for awhile, so this news comes as kind of a surprise to us. Sure, we like to use our DS Lite to play GBA games (even if they stick out some), but sometimes you just can't beat the feeling of pulling a GBA SP out of your pocket, flipping it open and playing some Omega Factor. Apparently, the GBA SP's time on this Earth is limited.

Of course, we can understand why Nintendo would discontinue the handheld, but it doesn't mean we're not a tad bit hurt to see the handheld leave our life so quickly.

If you're near a Best Buy store, gather up your $2 bills and get going, because they're in the midst of an epic videogame clearance, and you'll want to get there before the unscrupulous speculator types grab all the stuff to sacrifice to the ravenous eBay. You've got to be wily to get to the goods before the FatWalleters and the CAGs!

We've got a list of all the DS and GBA software on sale after the jump. Don't expect to find all of it-- most of it has been out of stock for months or years at most stores, and the price changed to clear out remaining copies. But we hope you do find what you're looking for in abundance. We wish we could go tomorrow and check it out ourselves. By the time we get there, there won't be anything but cobwebs and tumbleweeds, and those will probably be regular price.

[Thanks, ali emamdjomeh!]

Siliconera notes that upcoming GBA port Final Fantasy VI Advance is sorta like a director's cut. When the game appeared some years ago on Super NES, as Final Fantasy III, localization efforts toned down some of the stronger language. Thus, "death" became "doom," "pub" became "cafe," and "holy" became "pearl" (huh?). Even instances of minor nudity, pixelated as they were, got covered up.

Pictured above, "Doomgaze" (SNES version name) has been properly restored to "Deathgaze" in FFVI Advance. Could the final release retain all of the original Japanese creation's edginess? Will "Terra" -- *gasp* -- be rightfully named "Tina"?

Update: corrected Terra/Tina mix-up.

It's no secret that the PSP (as with any system) gets ports of games from other consoles. Most of the ports to PSP logically come from the PlayStation 2. But all that is starting to change. With the PS3 on the rise and the PS2 on the decline, PSP is starting to get ports from some unexpected places.

The DS has many a game that it's shared with the GBA, but recently it seems like more and more GBA games are jumping over to Sony's portable. The most obvious of these are all of the recently announced Final Fantasy projects. From Final Fantasy Tactics to just plain ol' Final Fantasy, these GBA remakes are being remade again for the PSP. But it doesn't just end there, the PSP will also see a port of the GBA RPG title Riviera (which is great for me, since I never played that game).

Of course, while it seems like quite a few PSP games are from GBA land, that isn't the only system sending off titles to PSP's library. Xbox games like Xyanide and Painkiller: Hell Wars are reported to have versions coming out this year for PSP and the DS racer Asphalt Urban GT 2 will be out shortly. Even the PC isn't exempt as fantastic physics platformer Gish has a release date for our system of choice.

The future though seems to be the Wii and PSP connection. While Alien Syndrome is one of the only Wii/PSP games announced so far, the fact that Wii games have to be developed independently from the rest of the home consoles means many developers may be looking to PSP versions as another source of profit. Of course as with any business move, these ports will have to make money if this is to become a serious trend.

It looks like EGM's Rumor Mill is starting to develop into truth. "Square Enix is whipping up a wild lineup for PSP this year ... These guys are serious too! I'm talking new games, remakes of old classics, and an all-new, unexpected Final Fantasy spinoff that will make the fanboys flip."

Well, we can check off "remakes of old classics" off the list: Square Enix just announced their "20th Anniversary Series," which will be heading to PSP. First two games on the table? Final Fantasy Anniversary Edition and Final Fantasy II Anniversary Edition. Both games will feature the enhancements of the Nintendo-published Final Fantasy I & II Advance: Dawn of Souls, and also include new CG movies and "further enhancements."

While these aren't the games we've been clamoring for, I guess it's a step in the right direction. Any support from Square Enix is better than none, right? As it stands now, I'd much rather wait for Crisis Core than these remakes of remakes. Hopefully, we'll see the rest of the "wild lineup" that EGM hinted at.

[Thanks, zaki! Via The Magic Box]

[Update 1: Scans are available at Jeux-France.]

While Nintendo is quick to tout the Wii's extensive backward-compatibility with all GameCube software, the sleek white system is a pretty bad fit for the Cube's Game Boy Player hardware add-on. Rather than leaving that clunky old Cube out in the entertainment center, Wii News recommends the Datel Advance Game Port, a sleek-looking accessory that plugs into the GameCube/Wii memory card slot and lets you play Game Boy Advance games on the big screen.

What Wii News doesn't tell you is that the Datel Advance Game Port is a buggy mess. In our reviews of the discontinued hardware, games ran with inconsistent slowdown, laggy controls and audio problems. What's more, the port only plays Game Boy Advance games, unlike the official Game Boy Player, which works with games dating all the way back to the black-and-white classic portable.

If you're really desperate for Game Boy games on your TV, spring for the Nintendo-approved solution and not this third-party knock-off. Or just sit around and wait for the oft-rumored addition of Game Boy support for the Virtual Console.

In using a special cartridge that allows a video signal to be sent to the GBA, You Tube user jackal27 rocks his Wii on the portable's tiny screen. Obviously, the practical use of such a feature is almost nonexistent, but it makes for a fun little You Tube video. Check out the video, which has been embedded past the post break.

Update: me am not so English good (I omitted a word or two in the post).

When we conducted our daily perusal of poppa site Joystiq, we were intrigued by the above image. A DS cartridge case that allows one to hold up to 4 DS game cartridges and one GBA game cartridge. The case is Shogakukan's Hyper Carrying Case, available to Japanese consumers for a cool ¥480 (or roughly $4 USD). Do not be fooled by the wonderful graphic on the front of the case though. Inside there are no Mega Man games.

[Via Joystiq]

Nintendo of Europe has offered its condolences to the family of Connor O'Keefe, the seven-year-old UK boy who was electrocuted and tragically killed last Saturday when unplugging his Game Boy power supply. Connor was vacationing with his family in Thailand when the fatal accident occurred. The UK (230V/50Hz) and Thailand (220V/50Hz) use similar voltage standards.

Nintendo did not issue any further comments, claiming that details of the incident were still unclear. Police have declared the tragedy an accident. "No blame has been attached," said Lt. Colonel Sopol Borirok.

Sabarasa Entertainment has eyes for the DS apparently, as they already have begun work on a sequel to Mazes of Fate, a GBA title that released just this past week. We cannot find any reviews for the game online, having navigated the many tubes it is comprised of in search of just one score. Regardless, a sequel is coming, says Sabarasa Entertainment CEO Javier Otaegui:

"We are definitely thinking of the DS, but not for porting exactly this game. We have already started pre-production work for Mazes of Fate 2 for DS."

What ever happened to the ol' lump of coal punishment? A South Carolina woman decided her son was so out of line when he stole the Game Boy Advance she had purchased as his Christmas present that she had the 12 year-old arrested. He was charged, as a juvenile, with petty larceny.

The GBA theft follows an alleged string of offenses carried out by the boy, including shoplifting, stealing from mom's wallet, and punching a cop. At his court appearance, the mother will seek to turn her son over to the state Department of Juvenile Justice.

Even with the DS selling with the consistency of those hotcakes people seem to love, Nintendo thinks the Game Boy has at least one holiday left in it. In speaking with Reuters, Nintendo head honcho Reggie Fils-Aime lays it all on the table, revealing that the GBA is still selling well and is a great first handheld system for young gamers.

"We think that Game Boy Advance certainly has at least one more holiday season left in it. For us, it continues to be a great stepping stone for five-, six-, seven-year-old consumers to have their first great handheld gaming experience and then transition right into DS. For as great a Black Friday weekend that we had on DS, we had just as good a selling season so far on Game Boy Advance."

This is all confusing, making us wonder just how long of a life the handheld really has left. Reggie isn't willing to divulge anything on its future or a successor to its throne, obviously, instead leaving us to jump to our own conclusions. Considering the wild popularity of the DS, is there even a future for a new Game Boy?