September 15, 2003 - Innovation. That's not a word I use a lot when reviewing Game Boy Advance games. Most of the time, developers aren't really trying to attempt new and exotic ideas for the handheld market, and much of the reason comes down to the Almighty Dollar; to many companies it's financially not worth the effort to be innovative on the Game Boy Advance. Boktai: The Sun is in Your Hand is the epitome of innovation on the Game Boy Advance. No game like Boktai has taken an original, out-there idea -- in this case, a sunlight sensor -- and incorporated almost the entire game design around it. The result is a very special and unique Game Boy Advance adventure with interesting and successful gameplay elements, and the only thing holding this game back is its time-restrictive gameplay and its use of unoriginal and redundant level challenges throughout the adventure.

Features

• More than seven different locations
• Sunlight sensor with varying sensitivity
• Cartridge save with two slots
• Link cable support for two player (trades and battles)

What makes Boktai so special is the little plastic-covered device built into every cartridge: a sunlight sensor. This sensor can detect varying amounts of sunlight directed onto it, which is visually represented by a meter in the corner of the screen. The stronger the sunlight hitting the sensor, the more powerful the sun is in the game. And it's this element that drives many of the gameplay ideas within Boktai. It's main purpose is to fuel the game's weapon: players wield a pistol that harnesses the energy from the sun, and as players blast away with this weapon, its ammo, sunlight energy, is depleted, and it can only be replenished with either direct sunlight or sunlight stored within batteries scattered around the levels. And players can't just harness the sunlight anywhere in the game to replenish their weapons; their character, Django, has to either be in outdoor locations, or find "skylights" represented by beams cast on the floors. Standing in the lighted areas will slowly fill the gun's battery, but it also can be more quickly replenished by standing in place and pressing the A button; but this is a bad thing to do when Django is surrounded by blood-thirsty enemies.

The strength of the sun is extremely important in Boktai, and the sunlight sensor is very sensitive to how much light it receives. Play the game in the morning sun at 8:30 could net your power meter three or four notches, compared to the seven or eight notches you'll get at one or two in the afternoon. The higher the notches in the meter, the more powerful the sun is in Boktai, and strong sunlight makes replenishing and accumulate sunlight energy a lot more rapid in the game. It also means that the windows and cracks in the wall also let in stronger energy, which can be used against enemies by leading them into these spots on the floor for an easy kill. Boss battles in particular use these patches of light quite well.

But the sun can also work against you. There are some enemies that "hide" from the light, so they'll appear invisible unless you cover the sensor from the light. But more importantly is Boktai's "safety" feature: if there's too much light hitting the sensor, your weapon will eventually overheat, rendering it useless. The only way to remedy this is to cast shade over the sensor to cool it down; and since the gameplay pretty much requires a constant stream of sunlight energy, this is the game's polite way of telling you that you've played enough. Not only does the cartridge have a sun sensor, it also has an internal clock, so it will remember just how long the game's been sitting in the shade, or turned off completely. It's presumably so that players don't get too much sun and damage their skin.