HARDWARE
The Gist: Japan's Game Boy rival and its six-legged sidekick
$89.99; $199.99
Nintendo's Game Boy has completely wiped out the competition in America, but in Japan, Bandai's WonderSwan Color is attracting an avid fan base - and it's catching on around the world. The WonderSwan's 16-bit processor is undeniably slower than the Game Boy Advance's, but don't let that stop you. The Final Fantasy ports are terrific - the graphics are greatly improved over the Nintendo Entertainment Systems originals, and SquareSoft's Wild Card is an interesting, if not revolutionary, role-playing game. The system is a real gem for anime fans as well:They can find Mobile Suit Gundam titles in a variety of genres, plus a strategy game based on the classic series Space Battleship Yamoto. Most games are fairly intuitive, but English translations for the more popular ones are available online (try www.gamefaqs.com/portable/wscolor or newsgroups like alt.fan.digimon). It's a bit awkward to consult a translation while playing, but you'll find yourself adapting in no time.
In addition to the games, WonderSwan has some wild add-on hardware - like the WonderWitch, a game development kit that hooks up to a PC. You need to know Japanese in order to program your own, but you can use it to download any of the freeware games. My favorite add-on is the WonderBorg, an oddball robotic insect that you control from the WonderSwan via infrared, using a special cartridge. With the GUI, you define how the thing should react in different situations, such as when it hits a wall, detects a light source, or feels threatened. I was able to program the Borg to make its way across a room, maneuver around objects in its path, and cry - yes, actually cry - if it gets stuck. Fun!
Although the WonderSwan has little chance of being released officially in the US, Tiger Toys is coming out with a PC version of the WonderBorg this fall. It's good, but the original is better. Much of the fun comes from being able to reprogram the insectoid wherever you want, using the WonderSwan, rather than from your computer. If you're looking for the full experience, visit any major game-import shop.
Available from Upstate Games: +1 (716) 442 6469, www.upstategames.com.
STREET CRED
The Play-Off: Microsoft vs. Nintendo
SSX Tricky
The Future of Ideas: The Fate of the Commons in a Connected World, by Lawrence Lessig
Ericsson T39
2002 GMC Sierra Denali
My Sculpture
ReadMe
Music
Major Damage
WonderSwan Color; WonderBorg
Trillian
Just Outta Beta
Eye-Trek FMD-200
Selling Ben Cheever: Back to Square One in a Service Economy, by Ben Cheever
Contributors
