Play E.T. : The Extra-Terrestrial Online

I picked up E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial for the Game Boy Advance back in 2001, a release from NewKidCo that came out during a time when licensed games were everywhere on the handheld. It was one of those titles you'd see on a store shelf, hoping it might capture a bit of the film's charm without falling into the usual pitfalls of movie tie-ins.

You control E.T. himself, navigating screen by screen through suburban neighborhoods and forests, all while trying to gather the parts needed to build a communication device to phone home. The main objective is straightforward, but the mechanics are where it gets interesting; you explore areas methodically, often backtracking to find specific components, and avoid scientists and government agents who patrol the environment. The pacing can feel slow, and the controls have a certain clumsiness to them, making some sections more frustrating than challenging. Despite that, there's a strange, quiet appeal to guiding E.T. through his quest, and it manages to feel earnest even when the gameplay stumbles.