A great game in every aspect.
GAME PLAY
Best I've played on the GBA period. The way the controls flow, the natural movement, and the progression as you learn new moves, very good. The fighting is top notch for a 2D Zelda game, but what is improved upon is the cities and interactions. Most people in the game have these kinstone things, and they basically unlock mini quests for mysterious shells (used for figures), rupees (money), and heart peices (more health). Be warned, some opportunities go away after so long, so if you want 100%, you must start matching as early as possible, as some characters may be killed, leave, etc.
You can also be small, but your really useless at that point, and when you get someplace important it zooms in and plays the same anyway. Its another puzzle element, allowing you to get to places you usually couldn't fit in, plus enemies are still regular size, which leads to some interesting situations.
Why I like the combat though, is that you have special moves you can unlock that can be used in combinations with weapons. In a word, bad ass. I can finally do the down pound with the sword from Super Smash Brothers in an actual Zelda game, I wish Wind Waker would have taken a cue from this and added an ability to learn more sword moves like MC, though that is impossible considering MC came out after WW (I believe so at least). I could go on and on, but you get the point, game play is very good if not perfect.
GRAPHICS
Capcom outdid themselves on the GBC Zelda games, and once again they impress me with the GBA graphics. With lighting and shadow (albeit pre-done) effects in the game, it brings some of the houses to life. shadows and stuff never change, but it definitely brings a flare that Lttp did not have in some places. The style is Wind Waker in 2D. Some people may dislike this childish style (People that are too insecure to look past the initial childish style will completely miss the beauty and sophistication of the style. I know, I was once like that). Some of the special effects for weapons and spells are pretty good, nothing overly eye catching though, but they are certainly up to snuff for the GBA.
SOUND
If you didn't think giving Link a voice in the Lttp remake on the GBA was a good idea, you may be right, but it fits perfectly in MC. The same voices appeared completely out of place in the Lttp remake, but here they are at home and add to the experience. Sword sounds, and typical weapon and running sounds are all here, and sound good, nothing bad of the bunch. In fact, the characters have all been giving one word voice snippets that can sometimes get you a little more into the game.
Music in Minish Cap ranges from good, to outstanding... to "I can't believe they did that" in a good way. People that played older Zelda games will be in for a treat, as some old favorites were remixed for Minish Cap. And my favorite GBA song ever is one of these. The final levels theme is just plain brilliant, and I never could get it out of my head. People who didn't play the older games will know its a good song, but for gamers who played Lttp, its a fans dream come true... especially if they liked the song it was based off of to begin with. You will be hard pressed to find better music in a game on the GBA, especially one with more sedimental value to Zelda fans.
VALUE
Minish Cap has a short main quest, 136 figurines to collect, heart pieces... bla bla. The main story is too predictable and too short. Though to counter this the dungeons and the puzzles are utterly amazing, but unfortunately there are not enough of them. Luckily, the optional quests in this game will bring an extra 10 or 20 hours, because you'll likely need to replay to the game to get some that you missed and cannot get because the character is gone at the end of the game. Really, the figurines are a favorite, because they give an incite into the people in the game, and its quite nice to read about them. I forgot to mention the sword moves you can learn, they rock. Some are optional, some aren't. The optional ones are not really useful except in situations, but they are so cool, you'll likely use them even if a regular swipe would have done the job. You'll get a lot of mileage out of the game if you play close to 80%, going for a 100% is a daunting task considering a certain kinstone bug, use a walk through for 100%, trust me, its more rewarding than finding the bug the hard way.
TILT
I'm pretty sure its not the inner fan boy talking (I kept him repressed during the review) when I say Minish Cap is one of the most engaging hand held games I've ever played. I'm a fan of the series for a reason, and Minish Cap though not ground breaking in many ways, is amazing in every way.
Can't wait for Phantom Hourglass, though I'm not thrilled about touch screen controls.
OVERALL
Awesome game... Not much else can describe A Legend of Zelda: The Minish Cap. Buy it if you even have a passing interest in this kind of game.