The Best Handheld RPGs

In this turn-based Japanese RPG, young Crono must travel through time through a misfunctioning teleporter to rescue his misfortunate companion and take part in an intricate web of past and present perils. The adventure that ensues soon unveils an evil force set to destroy the world, triggering Crono's race against time to change the course of history and bring about a brighter future.

An evil witch has replaced Princess Peach's fair speech with explosives! Mario and Luigi must once again come to her rescue, but this time they employ the help of Bowser, their sworn enemy. Mario and Luigi must learn new moves and combine powers to fight off enemies and move closer to the witch's castle. Guide this unlikely bunch through an abundance of minigames such as Border Jump and Mystery Carts. Combine the powers of Mario and Luigi to pull off special tag-team moves. Immerse yourself in this bright, cartoonish, and humorous world, complete with hit music featured in previous Mario games.

Dragon Quest V uses basic role-playing video game mechanics seen in the rest of the series, which includes leveling up by gaining experience points through battle, first person turn-based battles, and equipping weapons and armor. Something new to the Dragon Quest series is the ability to tame monsters into the player's party. The monsters can be used in battle and level-up like the human characters. Monsters sometimes request to join the Hero after battles if the party is strong enough. There are a total of 71 monsters that are capable of joining the Hero's party

Travel to the past to save the present in this classic Dragon Quest adventure that has been completely remade from the ground up for Nintendo 3DS. The world has been rebuilt, the characters have new 3D models and the story has been completely re-localized. Even customize your party with over 30 classes and rank up in turn-based battles to learn new spells and abilities.

This is a portable version of the classic RPG, with added content and other 3DS enhancements.

In Dragon Quest IX: Sentinels of the Starry Skies, players begin their adventure as a city guardian who is sent to retrieve a sacred trees fruits, which have the power to grant wishes. Players travel the world, conquer fearsome monsters and unravel an epic storyline. During their journey, players will encounter mighty opponents in fast-paced battles, and also interact with a colorful cast of characters.

Dragon Quest Monsters is a turn-based RPG that involves recruiting monsters to fight for you in random encounters. Two recruited monsters can be fused together for a better one and extra monsters can be stored on a farm while not in your party. It was released in Japan for the Game Boy Color before the system was released.

As Monster Scouts, players can recruit wild monsters to build a team and battle against other players in this turn-based role-playing game. Each year, monster scouts from around the world gather to compete for the title of world's greatest scout. Players crash-land on a mysterious island after their airship is struck by lightning. They must rescue their missing passengers and crew members by fighting various enemies using their own monster parties. The only way off the island is to solve its many mysteries.

Based on the Magi Nation collectible trading card game. Magi Nation is a collectible card game developed and published by Interactive Imagination for the Gameboy Color. What would you do if you found yourself in a strange land, face-to-face with a mysterious presence and catapulted into an adventure to save an entire civilization? Well, find out! Explore a world of color and imagination that will challenge your every notion of reality. Experience the rush of dueling a Shadow Magi, with everything on the line. Find yourself going toe-to-toe with the awesome Timber Hyren, or the gargantuan Ormagon. Be the savior of an entire civilization. And find uses for jellybeans that you never thought possible.

A turn-based JRPG and sequel to EarthBound (1994) in which a tragedy surrounding a family in the primitive yet joyful village of Tazmily incites the coming-of-age story of Lucas, the family's younger son, who goes on perilous adventures along with his friends in order to find his missing brother and stop a group of masked men from bringing about the end of the world.

Pokémon Blue is the third core series Pokémon game released as a minor revision of Pokémon Red and Green, which were released earlier that year. It was thus the first solitary version in the core series of Pokémon games. Various fixes in the game include a graphics and sound upgrade, as well as the removal of several known glitches that had been found in the original pair. Outside of Japan, its graphics, game engine and script formed the basis of Pokémon Red and Blue, while the wild Pokémon and game-exclusive Pokémon lists were changed to match Red and Green.

Pokémon Crystal is a special edition of Pokémon Gold and Silver. It added the option to play as a female character, expanded upon the storyline and made slight aesthetic changes to the still-intact core experience of becoming a Pokémon Master.

Dragon Quest III: Soshite Densetsu e... is a remake of the third Dragon Quest for the Game Boy Color.

Pokémon Emerald Version is a sister game to Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire. Emerald Version provided the main storyline with more depth and length, as well as making small aesthetic changes to the world and adding unique animations for each Pokémon.

Pokémon LeafGreen Version and Pokémon FireRed Version are a pair of core series Generation III games that are set in the Kanto region. They were released in Japan on January 29, 2004, in North America on September 9, 2004, in Australia on September 23, 2004 and in Europe on October 1, 2004. As the first remakes in the Pokémon franchise, the games revisit the original pair of Pokémon games, Pokémon Red and Green Versions, and so feature all of the characters, plot elements, and challenges of them, but with several important upgrades to bring them up to speed with other Generation III games. The Game Boy Advance Wireless Adapter was initially included with the games when they were first released, eliminating the need for Game Link Cables when trading between the two games (and later Pokémon Emerald Version). In later copies, it was sold separately. FireRed and LeafGreen went on to become the second best-selling games of the Game Boy Advance, only behind Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire Versions. They also received Nintendo's Player's Choice awards.

Robopon are robotic creatures that inhabit the planet alongside humans. They can be captured and trained to battle other Robopon. You have just inherited Robopon Dispatching Company from your grandfather, but the business is failing. To start earning a profit, you must become the greatest Robopon master in the world. To do this, you must travel the globe, battling other Robopon masters and collecting the 150 species of Robopon. As Robopon battle, they gain experience and evolve into more powerful types. The cartridge also has an infrared sensor that will allow new attributes to be unlocked by shooting remote control beams into it. An internal clock is built in and will notify you of time-sensitive events. Try to catch them all in ROBOPON: Sun Version

In the game, Neku Sakuraba and his allies are forced to participate in a game that will determine their fate. The battle system uses many of the unique features of the Nintendo DS, including combat that takes place on both screens, and attacks performed by certain motions on the touchscreen or by shouting into the microphone. Elements of Japanese youth culture, such as fashion, food, and cell phones, are key aspects of the missions.

In the future, a young net-battler named Lan, boots his 'personal exploration terminal' (PET) and prepares to hack into the network to battle net crime. Lan's PET is no ordinary network navigator. It's Mega Man.EXE, the cyber-identity, which infiltrates the crime-ridden network to battle destructive computer viruses. Defeat viruses in real time and collect Battle Chips program data, containing valuable weapons data and critical system info. Collect over 175 Battle Chips to help Land and Mega Man.EXE restore peace and order to the network.

Enter the futuristic universe of Mega Man.EXE in this new adventure in the Battle Network series. Join him in his battle to fight cyber crimes in this mega role playing adventure. Now, there's a new net crime organization in town and its computer hacking has created a virus that's quickly gaining momentum. It's up to Mega Man.EXE, his pal Lan and friends to join the Net-Battlers and win this new cyber battle. Stop it before it spreads!

Join Mega Mega.EXE, his pal Lan and friends as they keep the net safe from cyber mayhem in the most expansive battle network adventure yet. Together with the White version, find all of Mega Man's battle style changes, "Giga Class" Chips, enemies and discover more surprises just for you!

This installment of the series takes place in the world of Fa'diel on the island of Illusia where, at the center of the island, stands the famous Tree of Mana. Several years ago, on the island of Illusia, an event known the "great disaster" took place at the base of the Mana Tree and many lives were lost. During this event, a brave young boy and girl used the Sword of Mana to save the world from disaster. Now, years later, a group of orphans sets out to investigate the details of the event that took so many loved ones away from them. The player must journey through the rest of Fa'diel's five continents of Jadd, Topple, Wendell, Ishe, and Lorimar to complete the game, traveling to the other continents by riding Flammie from place to place using the "Flammie Drum."

Squaresoft brings its popular Final Fantasy franchise to the Game Boy Advance in the form of strategic warfare. Final Fantasy Tactics Advance trails the story of a young boy named Marche who is magically transported from his sleepy modern-time home to a strange kingdom where magic and adventure reign supreme. Players control a set of troops who specialize in various fighting, healing, magic, and archery skills (or job classes). Strategically positioning characters on the battle map, and calculating offensive advances are the keys to success. Two players can battle and trade items with the aid of the GBA link cable.

In the Empire of Glaive, a gladiator-slave is forced to fight evil monsters controlled by the Dark Lord. But when his best friend is mortally wounded, he learns of a secret pendant which will give him great power. As the hero, you must battle your way out of the Dark Knight's castle and search through a dangerous world for the girl who has the pendant. But you discover she has been captured by the Dark Knight's men. To free her, you must find the legendary sword and fight off the Dark Knight's beasts and overlords through deserts, snowfields, lakes, forests, and caves. Are you ready for the adventure of your life?

Final Fantasy III is the sixth main installment in the Final Fantasy series, developed and published by Square. It was the final title in the series to feature two-dimensional graphics, and the first story that did not revolve around crystals. The game gives players up to fourteen playable characters, the largest cast in the series, and features the Active Time Battle pseudo-turn based menu command system. A party can consist of up to four characters, though some events require the player to assemble three different parties of up to four and switch between them. Each character has a unique command ability, such as Terra's Trance, Locke's Steal, Edgar's Tools or Sabin's Blitz, and can also learn Magic spells from earning AP from battles with magicite equipped. Each character's rare Desperation Attack will randomly activate after using the Attack command when at critical health.

Final Fantasy IV Advance is largely based on the WonderSwan Color version. Some changes include the addition of character portraits in text boxes, the ability to switch party members, increased difficulty, and new dungeons with new items and weapons along with new bosses. The script received a re-translation more faithful to the original material. The Quicksave, which allows the player to save the current position (regardless of where) in a file that is deleted upon loading, is featured.

Embark on a journey to explore the land, seas and skies of the Dragon Quest universe in this grand entry from the Zenithia Trilogy. Soon to follow are Dragon Quest V: Hand of the Heavenly Bride and Dragon Quest VI: Realms of Reverie. Indulge in the colorful Dragon Quest world created by Yuji Horii, combined with the charming characters and monsters designed by Akira Toriyama and memorable soundtrack from famed composer Koichi Sugiyama to create an unforgettable gaming experience. Experience the world of Dragon Quest through the perspectives of multiple characters with a unique, chapter-driven storyline while you journey through a beautifully rendered 3D world, with dynamic dual screen presentation and newly animated monsters. Enjoy an all-new English translation that incorporates 13 known dialects from around the globe, bringing the diverse world and characters of Dragon Quest to life. Unravel the ancient mystery behind a cursed kingdom by expanding your town via Chance Encounter mode, available through local wireless connection. The English version of Dragon Quest IV: Chapters of the Chosen does not include the Party Chat feature.

Dragon Quest VI did not receive an enhanced remake on a console until the Nintendo DS. The Dragon Quest VI enhanced remake for the Nintendo DS was announced in late 2007 by Square Enix and was developed by ArtePiazza. A handful of changes were made to the game, some remaining controversial among fans.

Dragon Warrior I & II is an enhanced remake of the first two Dragon Warrior games. It has a few modifications to gameplay, but the interface and graphics have been enhanced to be on a par with the 1998 Dragon Quest Monsters: Terry's Wonderland.