Does anyone else play their GameBoys with the volume off?

alpha5099 · Post by **alpha5099** » Tue Apr 26, 2005 10:18 pm

I was poking through the Original vs. GBA thread (looking for info on Final Fight One, River City Ransom EX, and Double Dragon Advance), and I noticed a lot of complaints about sound issues in GBA ports.

Maybe it's just me, but I've always played my GameBoy with the volume turned off. I started when I first took it on an airplane, and the person in front of me complained about the sound. I felt silly wearing headphones attached to the GameBoy, so I just played without sound. Now, my volume is almost never on. It's just never been a concern for me.

I guess it is sort of odd. I would never play any other games muted, why should the GBA be any different?

SFKhoa · Post by **SFKhoa** » Tue Apr 26, 2005 10:38 pm

School

BrianC · Post by **BrianC** » Tue Apr 26, 2005 10:49 pm

IMO, many games on GBA have good sound, even if it doesn't sound as good as the SNES. If you don't expect FFVI quality sound, the GBA's sound is acceptable. It seems like the sound is being judged more on the basis of "it's not as good as the SNES" than by the quality of the actual tunes in the game.

mannerbot · Post by **mannerbot** » Tue Apr 26, 2005 11:37 pm

I usually play with it off. Exception being, in eighth grade I was so into Pokemon I learned to play it in pitch dark with just the sound to guide me. Good times.

GaijinPunch · Post by **GaijinPunch** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 12:44 am

When I'm playing it on the can at work, yes.

alpha5099 · Post by **alpha5099** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 1:08 am

mannerbot wrote:I usually play with it off. Exception being, in eighth grade I was so into Pokemon I learned to play it in pitch dark with just the sound to guide me. Good times.

DAMN! And I thought I was obsessed with Pokemon.

Skyline · Post by **Skyline** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 5:10 am

Since my GBA gaming would usually be..well..on the go, I'd play with no sound.

The rare exception being Golden Sun. For that I'd bring my headphones, the BGM on that game was suprisingly good.

The only thing that sucked is that I had those big ol' studio-style headphones. So I looked a little goofy.

OmegaFlareX · Post by **OmegaFlareX** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 1:29 pm

I keep a pair of street-style headphones in my GBA case for trips to the laundromat. That's really the only time I play it away from home. Now that spring is here, I like to sit on our little patio in the sun and play it. Don't need headphones out there, I live in a relatively quiet part of town.

captain ahar · Post by **captain ahar** » Wed Apr 27, 2005 7:58 pm

i have a DS and the only time sound is on is during Feel the Magic, CotM, Mario DS (if for some strange reason I decide to play it), and Aria of Sorrow (sadly, i can't find this cart

i loved it so.)

in a broader sense though, in my 10+ years of gameboy use, sound is almost always off.

Post by **Ghegs** » Thu Apr 28, 2005 9:51 am

I've been playing Tetris DX lately and the sound is always off, mostly because the musics aren't that good (the original GB Tetris has far better ones) and it's easier to concentrate without them.

pablo · Post by **pablo** » Sat Apr 30, 2005 7:12 pm

Totally. No sound whatever I'm playing. Except for Double Dragon 2, that music rocks.

judesalmon · Post by **judesalmon** » Sat Apr 30, 2005 8:19 pm

When I play my DS and PSP at work I play with maximum volume to annoy the most people possible.

Dylan1CC · Post by **Dylan1CC** » Sun May 01, 2005 2:03 am

Not if I'm playing Metroid Zero Mission, 8-bit Metroid, Advance Wars or Mario Kart SS. It takes a lot of playtime before I want to turn off my GBA's volume. I usually only turn it off when I want to listen to MP3s.

CecilMcW00t · Post by **CecilMcW00t** » Sun May 01, 2005 8:59 am

Ghegs wrote:I've been playing Tetris DX lately and the sound is always off, mostly because the musics aren't that good (the original GB Tetris has far better ones) and it's easier to concentrate without them.

LOL I know exactly what you mean about Tetris DX music. Some of the instruments sound like someone farting and distorting it. XD

Turrican · Post by **Turrican** » Mon May 02, 2005 11:04 pm

The original Game Boy has some incredible music scores. And I mean it.

Believe it or not, I actually own the original soundtracks for some Gameboy games, namely Dracula Densetsu I & II and Seiken Densetsu/FFAdventure/Mystic Quest.

But a lot of other games, like GB Bionic Commando, Nemesis and of course Link's Awakening do have a memorable soundtrack.

By comparison, the GBA produced more forgettable music. So it's not quite the hardware specs, but the musician's efforts.