Game Boy Advance Controls: Complete Button & Port Layout Reference

Face Buttons

• D-Pad (↑↓←→): Movement, menu navigation.
• A (Red): Primary action — confirm, jump, attack, interact.
• B (Purple): Secondary action — cancel, dash, special move, back.
• START: Pause, start game, confirm in menus.
• SELECT: Sub-menu, map, mode toggle, secondary confirm.

Shoulder Buttons

• L (Left Shoulder): Camera control, strafing, item cycling, L-trigger actions.
• R (Right Shoulder): Camera control, strafing, item cycling, R-trigger actions.

System Controls

• POWER (Slide Switch, Top Right): On / Off.
• VOLUME (Wheel, Left Side): Speaker/headphone volume.
• GAME PAK SLOT (Top Center): Accepts GBA, Game Boy, and Game Boy Color cartridges.
• HEADPHONE JACK (3.5mm, Bottom Left): Stereo output (mutes internal speaker when plugged in).
• EXT / LINK PORT (Bottom Right, 11-pin): Game Link Cable, Wireless Adapter, e-Reader, Mobile Adapter GB.

Model-Specific Features

• Microphone: Not on original GBA/SP. Added on Game Boy Micro (top face) for specific games (Karaoke Revolution, WarioWare: Twisted! mic minigame).
• Front Light (SP AGS-001): Toggle via button above screen. Washed-out quality.
• Backlight (SP AGS-101 / Micro): Toggle via button (SP) or automatic (Micro). Vastly superior contrast and visibility.