Yep, here’s one more Game Boy 20th Anniversary article from yours truly, this time on Ars Technica. It covers six strong reasons why the Game Boy was so successful during its long run. Judging by your RSOTW discussion answers yesterday, many of you already agree with me, so odds are that you might enjoy reading the piece.
But don’t worry, folks. The torrent of Game Boy coverage will soon be over.
“Just pop it in your pocket and pull it out any time.”
Twenty years ago tomorrow, the Game Boy went on sale for the first time in Japan. It retailed for ¥12,500 (about $94 US at 1989 rates), and Nintendo offered four games at Game Boy’s initial launch: Super Mario Land, Baseball, Alleyway, and Yakuman (a Mahjong game). Four months later, Game Boy reached American shores with a retail price of $89.99 and a powerful pack-in game — Tetris.
Nintendo’s inclusion of Tetris as the US pack-in was a stroke of absolute genius. The handheld version of Alexey Pajitnov’s addictive puzzler made such waves in US that its release will long be remembered not just as a defining moment in video game history, but as a major cultural event for an entire generation.
As we now know, Game Boy’s long and successful run created an immense legacy, far beyond just Tetris. Overall, publishers released 1246 licensed games for the Game Boy in Japan and 952 in the US. To date, Nintendo has sold 118.69 million units of the original Game Boy line (including Game Boy Color) worldwide.
Above, we see an original Toys ‘R’ Us newspaper advertisement announcing the arrival of the Game Boy and its launch games in the United States. (Gotta love that line art.) It really brings back memories of my excitement regarding Nintendo’s first handheld system.
In your opinion, what factors made the Game Boy so successful?
On the other hand, what mistakes, if any, did Nintendo make with the Game Boy over its twenty year run?
If you use this week’s image, please support “Retro Scan of the Week” by giving us obvious credit for the original scan. Thanks.
Just up is a new slide show I put together for Technologzier that showcases Game Boy oddities. It’s like a freak show for Nintendo’s venerable handheld, which turns twenty next week. Ever seen a Game Boy peripheral that dispenses laughing gas? How about one that demands tributes of child blood? If not, then mosey on over to Technologizer and take a look.
In honor of the Game Boy’s 20th anniversary this month, I recently dissected an original 1989 model of Nintendo’s famous handheld for PC World. Of course, I took pictures of the process.
This is the sixth entry in my “workbench series” of technology tear-downs for PC World. Here are the others: Nintendo Famicom, Apple IIc, Commodore 64, IBM Model M Keyboard, and TRS-80 Model 100.
I hope you enjoy it.
![[ VC&G Forum ]](http://www.vintagecomputing.com/wp-content/themes/vintage-square/images/vcg_forum_button_welcome.png)
