If you're into the Shaman King anime or manga, this GBA card battler is a surprisingly deep little time-waster. At first glance, it looks like another generic tie-in game, but the mechanics actually have some teeth—you're not just slapping down random spirit cards, you're juggling positioning, elemental affinities, and timing your big attacks when the opponent's guard is down.

The pixel art holds up nicely, especially when you pull off a flashy Over Soul combo. Some of the rarer cards take forever to unlock (I spent way too long grinding for Amidamaru), but the AI opponents keep you on your toes even early on. Just don't expect much story—it's mostly quick text scenes between duels.

It's one of those games that feels simple until you get wrecked by someone who actually knows how to chain their spirits properly.