| Introduction
Scrabble Advance follows the GBC version which was
released this time last year to much public and critical
acclaim. Board games are always difficult though as
it's always struck me that the whole point of playing
them is to gather around a table with a few friends
for a session and a bit of a laugh. A handheld version
just doesn't sound as sociable or, more importantly,
as much fun but I could be wrong.
GamePlay
On offer here are three different modes of gameplay
and while Conundrum and Anagram are more like workout
sessions, Scrabble is where most players will head first.
The first thing you'll notice is the wealth of options
available so the games really can be tailored to all
your needs. You can opt to choose your tiles automatically
or manually, set a time limit for each turn and even
change the appearance of the board. There's also the
ability to challenge the computer, usually impossible
in a game of this nature, with 10 levels of difficulty
making this option viable to everyone.
Conundrum is an excellent one player game although
you can challenge other players if you wish. Set over
15 rounds the player is presented with seven random
letters and is challenged to construct the highest scoring
word possible. It's important to also consider where
you're placing the tiles as a letter 'Z' on the right
color premium square could give you a triple letter
score and although using all your letters is almost
impossible it is worth an extra 50 points for your troubles.
It should be pointed out that invalid words here will
leave you with no points so simply guessing is never
an option.
For anyone who's ever seen those TV based word games
Anagram will be very familiar. You must decipher a word
using all the letters presented. Over 12 rounds you
must find three five, four six and five seven-letter
words. People who indulge in this type of game can usually
see the words quite quickly but for many it's the most
difficult option here.
Finally everything is battery saved so high scoring
games and words are on display for all to see which
makes it almost impossible to resist one more go, just
to beat it.
Controls
As you'd expect with a board game the interface is
as important as the control system and both of these
have been well designed. There are an incredible amount
of menus and options but you can access almost anything
within three moves which keeps the 'setup' frustration
down to a minimum. The gameplay control has also been
kept simple and the GBA acts very much like a PC with
select, move and de-select achieved with the directional
pad and the 'A' and 'B' buttons.
Graphics
Obviously with a game of this nature clarity is the
most important aspect and the GBA's screen and enhanced
visual capabilities allow for a very pleasing game.
Throughout this title you'll get graphics which are
generally perfectly sized so that the letters and scores
are legible while the board is not so small that scrolling
is required to view everything. There are some short
animations at the front end but these are simply the
publishers and developers logos and can be skipped anyway.
Nice touch though.
Sound & Music
As with all board games a soundtrack of any type
could be seen as more of an annoyance than an asset,
so outside of the odd beep to confirm you've selected
a piece, there's very little to mention in the audio
department. There is, however, a nice classical piece
that plays during the menus which no doubt is there
to calm you before you enter battle with no vowels to
play and after boasting just how good you are at this
game.
Final Comments
Scrabble for the GBA takes a classic games and makes
it even better. Gone are the frustrations of players
accidently knocking all the pieces off the board and
more importantly, the arguments over valid words. In
short, Scrabble freaks everywhere would be wise to purchase
this game now, while those who considered it a tired
and boring game should really take a second look. A
word of warning to kids everywhere though - this is
another title where your parents will suddenly become
very interested in your GameBoy.
|
Hardware
Reviews 
Game
Title
