Hamtaro: Ham-ham Heartbreak - Game Boy Advance

The story is simple, but epic: Hamtaro and his friend Bijou must save love itself. An evil hamster named Spat is causing squabbles between hamsters, and it's up to Hamtaro and Bijou to mend broken relationships and find out why Spat is causing so much trouble.

The key to Ham-Ham Heartbreak is the effective use of Ham-Chat (the secret hamster language). Each Ham-Chat word represents an action. For example "stickie" enables you to whack a bush with a stick, and "putput" allows you to put something on something else. You'll need to learn certain words to solve different challenges in the game.

Gameplay is very similar to Ham-Hams Unite!, but the graphics and sound are definitely better. The game looks just like the cartoon show. There are now 24 Ham-Hams to meet instead of 12, and the world is bigger. Strangely, the Clubhouse is smaller.

Just like in the first game, there are all kinds of activities. You can buy different outfits and take up to 8 pictures. You can go to the dance room in the Clubhouse and compose a Ham-Jam, where you connect your Ham-Ham words into a dance (you can trade this dance with other people via a GBA link cable). A new feature to Ham-Ham Heartbreak is that you can collect rocks and get them polished. Who knows what secrets are inside the rocks you'll find?

Hamtaro: Ham-Ham Heartbreak is a cute game that is truly appropriate for all ages. Just don't let your boss catch you playing it.--Bryan Karsh

Pros: Beautiful graphics Challenging but not impossible puzzles Cute as all get out Funny for all ages Cons: Smaller Clubhouse