Evan Amos, Wikimedia
- Originally released in 1989, the Nintendo Game Boy is now 30 years old.
- The Game Boy helped create a market for portable video games; Nintendo has sold more than 100 million Game Boy and Game Boy Color consoles worldwide.
- The Game Boy has an impressive library built from more than a decade’s worth of games and dozens of classic remakes.
- Nintendo continues to dominate the portable gaming market with innovative handheld consoles like the Switch and the 3DS.
- Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.
Nintendo recently celebrated the 30th anniversary of the Game Boy, the handheld console that helped Nintendo cement its legacy as a video game innovator.
The battery-operated Game Boy was a game changer when it was released in 1989. While the original Nintendo Entertainment System made Nintendo a household name by bring video games into homes across the world, the Game Boy made it possible to play games just about anywhere. Many of the early Game Boy games were adapted from popular arcade games, and through the years Nintendo steadily built the Game Boy’s library by re-releasing scaled-down versions of dozens of successful games from the Nintendo Entertainment System.
As developers discovered the advantages of the Game Boy, they began creating exclusive games for the console. Portability let players spend more time with their games, which encouraged developers to create complex roleplaying games like "Pokémon" for Game Boy. Companies publishing blockbuster PlayStation games like "Metal Gear Solid" would also create portable spin-offs with an entirely new style of graphics and gameplay to capitalize on the massive audience of Game Boy owners.
With a vast catalogue of classic games that were ported from other systems, and even more games designed with portability in mind, the Game Boy has one of the most impressive game libraries of any console. As an added bonus, nearly every game released on the Game Boy Color is backwards compatible, so the original Game Boy released in 1989 can play games that were released more than a decade later.
Below we’ve collected 30 of the most important games released on Game Boy and Game Boy Color, in honor of the console’s 30th anniversary. We’ve included their original descriptions as provided by Nintendo, or their original box art, with a few exceptions.
"Tetris" (1989)
"Tetris"/Nintendo
"Tetris" and the Game Boy have an intertwined legacy. Nintendo included the Russian puzzle game with every Game Boy at launch, which helped it skyrocket in popularity. While "Tetris" had seen success in the arcades, it took years to produce a properly licensed home version.
The fast, addictive gameplay and portability of the Game Boy version made the game a massive hit, and the partnership at launch helped "Tetris" become one of the best-selling games of all-time.
"Pokémon Red, Blue and Yellow" (1996)
Nintendo
"Set out on your adventure together with your friend Pikachu, complete with monochromatic pixel art, 4-bit background music and, for the first time in the series, enhanced color elements. You’ll take on the role of a Pokémon Trainer and travel across the land searching for Pokémon with Pikachu. Catch, battle, and trade as you work to become the best Pokémon Trainer!"
"Pokémon Gold, Silver and Crystal" (1999)
"Pokémon Silver"/Nintendo
"When initially launched on the Game Boy Color system, the Pokémon Silver Version game continued to expand the Pokémon universe, adding 100 Pokémon, held items, Pokémon eggs, and real-time events thanks to an internal game clock.
"Dozens of Pokémon join the action, including the legendary Pokémon trio Raikou, Entei, and Suicune. At the start of your expedition, you choose one of three starting Pokémon: Chikorita, Cyndaquil, or Totodile. Then, prepare to battle your rival and countless other Pokémon trainers as the two of you make your way across the Johto region."
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Source: Business Insider – kwebb@businessinsider.com (Kevin Webb)