Nintendo Game Boy
Release: July 1989
Re-Released as Game Boy Pocket: 1996
Nintendo decided to make a handheld, cartridge-based system. They came up with the Game Boy: a small portable system with a monochrome screen, stereo headphone jack, small speaker, and controls very similar to those of the NES. The Game Boy was released with Tetris, a puzzle game that has been cloned and immitated for years.
Also every game-boy has a port on its side which a Game-Link cable can be attatched to play multiplayer games. The other player must also have a game boy and the same game.
The GameBoy lacks a back light. It's often difficult to get the right lighting to play on a Game Boy, Perhipherals with external lights have been released. Still, the lack of a back light helped conserve battery power, which is part of why the Game Boy was so successful. It wasn't until battery technology improved and the Game Boy Advance SP was released that Nintendo put a backlight into its portable systems.
Upgrades & Accessories
Game Boy Pocket
Introduced in 1996, the Game Boy Pocket is a re-packaging of the orignal hardware. Slimmer, smaller and sleeker, it keeps the same screen while reducing the size, weight and battery consumption.
Battery Pack
Even though the Nintendo Game Boy is very energy efficient, a battery pack was released to prolong the gametime before changing.
Handy Boy
The Joyplus Handy Boy is a slide on attatchment with a joystick, bigger buttons, a magnifing glass, side lighting and stereo speakers. It's useful, though quite bulky. It can either take power from an AC adaptor (which powers both your Game Boy and Handy Boy) or it can use a small attatchment which derives power from your Game Boy's batteries.
The Game Boy was later upgraded to the Game Boy Color before moving to completely new hardware, the Game Boy Advance.
Top Games
- Tetris
- The Legend Of Zelda: Link's Awakening
- Final Fantasy Legend Series
- Final Fantasy Adventure
- Super Mario Land
- James Bond 007
- Kirby's Dream Land
- Pac-Man