The Game Boy is a Nintendo manufactured handheld released initially in 1989. It was the first dedicated 8-bit handheld system from the company with  that made use of interchangeable cartridges to play many different titles. It featured a 2.6" 4-shade LCD, stereo sound through headphones, and interchangeable cartridges. The button layout was based on that of the Nintendo Entertainment System controller. It used 4 AA batteries, but can also be used with an AC Adapter to power the system from a wall socket. While not the first handheld system to use ROM cartridges, it was certainly the most popular of its time.

 

Smart marketing and a trusted brand led the Game Boy to become the most successive handheld platform of its era despite being the least impressive when it came to technology compared to other platforms like the Sega Game Gear.

 

The Game Boy was affordable, its batteries lasted and it was bolstered by an impressive software library. Various video games such as Tetris, Super Mario Land, Kirby's Dream Land and Pokémon games led the system to a very long life. The original Game Boy was remade various times, though the most impressive was the Game Boy Color, which gave Game Boy games color graphics while the original Game Boy just had four shades of grey.

 

The Game Boy was developed by Nintendo R&D1 and was conceived by the brilliant mind of Gunpei Yokoi, who had previously created the Game & Watch series, Metroid and assisted Shigeru Miyamoto on creating Donkey Kong. The Game Boy was his most successful product of all time, selling 118.69 million units worldwide (including all variations). The Game Boy is considered the successor to the Game & Watch series of games.