Ragol.co.uk isn't the only place where 1st birthdays happen!

[Lee-yoshi]

The GameBoy Advance SP celebrates its 1st birthday this week!

Aparently over 15 Million GBA SP's have been sold across the globe since its release this time last year, and makes the current GameBoy sales figures stand at well over 160 Million!!! Truely an amazing figure in its own right!

From Nintendo.co.uk
Game Boy Advance SP this week celebrates its 1st Birthday, and what a year it's been!

More than 15 million Game Boy Advance SP's have been shipped globally, with 4 million of these in Europe alone, making the total global shipment figure for the Game Boy family a staggering 160 million.

The ultimate handheld console has seen off many competitors who have attempted to enter the market over the last year, but none came close to stealing the limelight from the Game Boy Advance SP.

An icon of pop culture, the Game Boy Advance SP has also been a favourite in celebrity circles, with the likes of Kate Moss, Claudia Schiffer, Justin Timberlake, Ronan Keating and Christina Aguilera all getting in on the fun. Even designers Mulberry and Kimchi have vied for a piece of the action in the first year, both designing unique bespoke cases for the stylish console.

Industry experts are united in their belief that the Game Boy Advance SP has been the biggest success story in the video game industry over the last year.

"The GBA SP has built on the success of its predecessor; the addition of a backlit screen and in-built rechargable battery provides the usability and flexibility that some critics felt was missing from the original GBA. In addition, strong marketing campaigns have made the handheld even more appealing to young adults - a key demographic with regard to gaming devices. With the handheld sector set to become increasingly competitive over the next 12 months, the GBA SP retains a dominant position in what remains a highly lucrative market", said Adrian Drozd of Datamonitor.

The momentum behind Game Boy Advance SP looks set to continue this year with the launch of an additional 100 games including Metroid Zero Mission and Donkey Kong Country 2 from Nintendo, Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell Pandora Tomorrow by Ubisoft, Sonic Advance 3 from SEGA and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban from EA. Nintendo will also introduce a limited edition Game Boy Advance SP later in the year, a unique GBA SP with an original new look. Watch this space!

David Gosen, Managing Director, Nintendo of Europe looks to the future of the Game Boy Advance SP with high hopes: "Game Boy Advance SP has exceeded all our expectations in its first year and this success looks set to continue in 2004. With the fantastic range of software titles such as Fire Emblem, F-Zero GP Legend and Pokémon Fire Red and Pokémon Leaf Green coming out this year, gamers can't go wrong with the Game Boy Advance SP. Over 400 Game Boy Advance games in total will be available by the end of the year, demonstrating the huge support from third party publishers. This is an incredible achievement."

The Game Boy Advance SP is on sale at selected retailers across Europe for around 129 - 139 Euros.

Full Article? CLICK HERE!

[Ton]

holy crap. thats a lot. happy birthday sp and ragol.

[Vulcan]

Wow i wonder how that candle comes out?

*mashes GBASP buttons*

..damn i dont appear to have that feature.

Happy birthday GBA SP! (...and Ragol.co.uk)

[Lee-yoshi]

lol, i think that hidden feature got removed when they test celebrated their 1st birthday, and little kids either ate the candle, or burnt their hands on it!


It was a sad day...

[Ton]

over 15 million burned hands. lol.