Shin Keiba Kizoku Pocket Jockey is one of those weirdly addictive Game Boy horse racing sims that shouldn’t work but totally does. You start off picking a horse—stats matter, but I swear some just have hidden luck—and then it’s all about timing your boosts during the race. The pixel art’s charmingly janky, with these little horses bouncing down the track like they’ve had too much caffeine.

What’s cool is how much strategy sneaks in. Do you push early and risk burning out, or hang back and hope for a late surge? The controls are simple (just button taps), but nailing the rhythm feels weirdly satisfying. And yeah, it’s in Japanese, but the menus are easy enough to figure out after a race or two.

Definitely a niche pick, but if you’ve ever wanted to micromanage a digital racehorse in under five minutes, this is your game.