Nintendo has always touted the Game Boy as a fun experience for gamers of all ages, which is why it has more kid friendly titles than any other system on the market. As the next generation of consoles and handhelds are released with complicated features, a multitude of button controls and an enormous price tag, more parents are leaning towards the Game Boy Advance SP as the preferred system for their kids. For almost 20 years Game Boy has been a quality brand and a gaming system that's always had terrific content for kids, and parents know it, they grew up with Game Boy and have experienced it first hand. Even if you didn't have one when you were a kid, you're likely to have known someone who did!
Since Mom and Dad are the ones that buy most of the games their youngsters play, publishers tend to base most kid titles on popular cartoon and/or movie properties that both children and adults recognize, unfortunately they often rest on the laurels of the property and not on a quality gameplay experience. This year's crop at E3 follows the rule of basing games on popular 'toons, but I was pleasantly surprise to find that the titles demoed at the show all displayed a good variety of gameplay and creativity that most casual gamers will like.
Cartoons always make for good Game Boy fodder which is why Crave Entertainment targeted two games based on the Cartoon Network shows Camp Lazlo: Leaky Lake Games and Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends. Crave is also publishing a game inspired by the direct-to-DVD, religious based, VeggieTales - LarryBoy and the Bad Apple. In transitioning these series and films into handheld games Crave paid close attention to the personalities of each property to ensure that the gameplay would mirror the uniqueness of each program in both content and action.
Classic children's literature is the inspiration for two upcoming titles from SEGA and The Game Factory. SEGA has teamed up with Backbone Entertainment, the folks that created last year's PSP hit Death Jr., to deliver a GBA based on the novel and upcoming feature film Charlotte's Web; while The Game Factory, who got their start specializing in quality children's titles for the GBA have created Noddy: A Day In Toyland, following the adventures of a little wooden boy named Noddy who has been the star of children's books in the UK since the 1950s.