Dark Arena

 Game Boy Advance
Metascore
65

Mixed or average reviews - based on 17 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 4 out of 17
  2. Mixed: 11 out of 17
  3. Negative: 2 out of 17
Buy Now
Buy on
  1. IGN
    80
    It's a lot of fun to play, but there's not a whole lot of "oomph" that action games require for that necessary adrenaline rush.
  2. GameZone
    80
    The plot may be a little worn (as in borrowed), but the environments are well done, there is a nice variety of weaponry to be collected, and you really don’t have to think about what to shoot – you just kill anything that moves because you are the only human survivor.
  3. Nintendophiles
    75
    The graphics engine developed for Dark Arena is something I never expected to see on the GBA. It seems that the more developers that dig into the hardware, the more impressive it gets.
  5. Hot Games
    80
    Dark Arena runs smoothly and plays quickly, which means you'll stay in the Arena a little longer than you thought.

Awards & Rankings

71
#71 Best Game Boy Advance Game of 2002
89
#89 Most Discussed Game Boy Advance Game of 2002
36
#36 Most Shared Game Boy Advance Game of 2002

User Reviews

All reviews »
User Score
7.8

Generally favorable reviews- based on 4 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2 out of 4
  2. Mixed: 2 out of 4
  3. Negative: 0 out of 4
  1. SeriousDuke(GBAFPSexpert)
    Jul 7, 2004
    6
    Dark Arena is the ninth best FPS for the GBA, the first announced, but the fourth released for the system. Dark Arena is pretty much a Doom Dark Arena is the ninth best FPS for the GBA, the first announced, but the fourth released for the system. Dark Arena is pretty much a Doom clone. What's the difference between the two? Well, hmmm . . . Doom is a better game. Dark Arena features enemies with zero intelligence which make them a breeze to kill even on the hardest skill level. The graphics in Dark Arena seem a little more bright and sharper than Doom but Doom looks better all around and is simply more fun to play. Dark Arena does offer a good variety of weapons, some neat looking enemies, and some fun levels but all of this is sub-par to the Doom games. Dark Arena is definitly a fun and welcome entry in the growing library of GBA games under the FPS genre but definitly one of the weakest.… Full Review »
See all user reviews »