Best RPGs on the GBA

RPGs are one of the things the Game Boy Advance is genuinely for. The ones worth playing start with Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire, Fire Emblem, Golden Sun.

The GBA and RPGs

A portable SNES with a better colour palette, and the last great 2D library before handhelds went 3D.

This is one of its strengths. 2D action, strategy RPGs and metroidvanias. Advance Wars, Fire Emblem and the Castlevania trilogy are all here, and all near the top of their genres.

Filtering to RPG means you want progression — a character to build or a party to grow — layered on top of whatever else you liked.

The RPGs Worth Playing

  1. 1. Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  2. 2. Fire Emblem

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  3. 3. Golden Sun

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  4. 4. Mario and Luigi Superstar Saga

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  5. 5. Final Fantasy Tactics Advance

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  6. 6. Pokemon FireRed and LeafGreen

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  7. 7. Mother 3

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  8. 8. Advance Wars 2 Black Hole Rising

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  9. 9. Fire Emblem The Sacred Stones

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

  10. 10. Pokemon Emerald

    Follow the link for hand-written recommendations if you want more like it.

What Makes a Good RPG Game

A reason to keep going after the novelty wears off. RPGs are the genre that reliably converts hours into feeling more capable.

Immediacy. Almost every RPG asks for a slow first few hours, and the systems that make hour forty good are the same ones that make hour one a menu.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the best rpg game on the GBA?

Pokemon Ruby and Sapphire is the usual first answer, and there are 10 in the library we cover.

Was the GBA good at rpg games?

Yes — it is one of the things the machine is known for, and there are 10 in the library we cover.

What is the difference between an RPG and an action game with stats?

Whether the stats are the point. In an RPG the build decides what you can do; in an action game with stats the build only decides how fast you do it.

Do I need to like turn-based combat?

No. The picks below span turn-based, real-time and action RPGs, and each one says which it is.

How is this list put together?

From the games this site covers on the Game Boy Advance, matched against hand-mapped gameplay categories rather than a storefront's genre tag. A page only exists where there are at least four, which is why some console and genre combinations have no page at all.

RPGs on Other Consoles

More From the GBA

Or browse the whole Game Boy Advance library.