JET SET RADIO

JET SET RADIO, at least the GBA version, is a wild little experiment that somehow works. It's not the big Dreamcast game obviously, but for a tiny cartridge, they packed a fair amount of that game's soul. You play as Beat or the other GGs, skating through Tokyo-to to spray your graffiti everywhere before the cops shut you down, similar to Subway Surfers lol. The whole vibe is about style and speed, and they actually got that feeling across even on the Game Boy Advance.

The biggest change is the perspective. Instead of a 3D world, you're looking at everything from an isometric angle, kinda like those Tony Hawk GBA games, which makes sense because it's the same developers. Grinding on rails and hopping between buildings is still the main way to get around, and when you get a smooth chain going, it feels absolutely fantastic. The goal in each stage is to hunt down all the tag spots before time runs out. Some graffiti is just a button press, but the bigger pieces make you input a quick sequence on the D-pad, which is a neat way to keep you involved. You can even design your own tags in an editor, which is a cool touch.

Visually, they did a decent job. The characters and levels are all bright cartoony sprites that do a solid job mimicking the original's celshaded look. If you know the Dreamcast stages, you'll recognize them here, even if they're remixed a bit to fit the new view. The soundtrack is where you really feel the hardware squeeze tho. Instead of the full funky tracks, you get these short looping samples of a few songs. They sound okay at first but the repetition hits hard after a while, especially with the GBA soundchip.

Now, the isometric view is a double edged sword. It gives the game its own identity and allows for some clever level design, but it also makes judging jumps and distances a real pain sometimes. You'll miss rails you swore you were lined up for and some platforming sections require annoying trial and error memorization. The time limits in the later stages get seriously strict too. It becomes frustrating but beating a tough level feels like a real accomplishment. Once you finish the story mode for an area, you unlock extra challenges like races and trick attacks.

To unlock the freshest skills for your rig, your 3DS needs to be tuned into the pirate signal, meaning it should be homebrew enabled. Once your console is modded and ready to roll, locate the FBI app on your HOME Menu. Power it up and use its signal scanner to lock onto the frequency code (that's a QR code) provided right here. This will initiate a direct upload of the fresh data straight into your system. When the installation is complete, a new piece of graffiti will land on your HOME Menu. Select it, configure your moves and hit the streets!