The legendary Game Boy, Nintendo's 8-bit handheld game console released on April 21, 1989, turned 30 years old on Easter Sunday this year.
Indeed, congratulations are in order for Nintendo. For that, here is a look back at Game Boy's remarkable milestone that spans three decades.
Game Boy Is Nintendo's Third Best-Selling Console
The Game & Watch first defined Nintendo as a video game firm. However, players on Game & Watch were limited to play video games tied to the system. Game Boy, on the contrary, is a portable system that is able to switch games. Gamers can connect their consoles to other Game Boys using a link cable to enable multiplayer.
Game Boy continues to be a big hit. To date, it remains as the third best-selling video game console of all time, selling more than 115 million units. In Nintendo's history, only the Nintendo DS has surpassed the unit sales of the Game Boy.
Since its birth, Game Boy has been an inspiration for the development of Nintendo's other portable systems that follow afterward, including the Nintendo Switch. It cements the Japanese publisher's trademark in the video game industry. In fact, the portable gaming market has been heavily influenced by how Nintendo took risks on the creation of Game Boy.
Although the 8-bit console's hardware is not on par with the quality of its competitors' gaming systems, it is a huge success still. Sources said the original Game Boy has redeeming qualities such as a 10 to 30 hours of battery life on four AA batteries. Nintendo made this feat of longevity in its first handheld gaming device possible by utilizing a non-backlit monochrome screen and a low-power 8-bit processor.
Seemingly, Game Boy's legacy would go on, with Nintendo proving a repeated success with its line of retro consoles. According to Screen Rant, this console comes as a "natural fit for a portable mini system."
Game Boy's Iconic Video Games
Notably, there are a couple of iconic video games associated with Game Boy's legacy. The first one is the Tetris, which was bundled with the console. This video game is a killer app of Game Boy for a long time, it became the best-selling video game of all time.
The second one is the Pokémon Red & Blue, the first video game in the Pokémon franchise on the Game Boy. The device's portability and link cable features have amazingly worked with the game. This explains why Pokémon became the highest-grossing media franchise of all time.
Other video games launched for the Game Boy Classic system also include Super Mario Land, and The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening.
