Play Dragon Drive (J)(Cezar) Online

Dragon Drive (J)(Cezar) is one of those GBA games that slipped under the radar, which is a shame because it’s basically Pokémon but with dragons that actually throw down in real-time battles. You start by picking your first dragon—I went with the fire-breathing one because, well, obvious choice—and then it’s straight into arena fights where timing and quick thinking matter just as much as stats.

The cool part? Your dragons evolve based on how you use them. My first one started looking seriously gnarly after a few upgrades, like it went from "cute lizard" to "I will end you" in a couple battles. The combat’s fast, a little chaotic, and weirdly satisfying when you pull off a perfectly timed special move.

It’s all in Japanese, but the menus aren’t too hard to figure out if you’ve played any monster-collecting games before. Definitely a hidden gem if you’re into GBA RPGs with a bit more bite to the fights.