Long, long ago, in the time before Smartphones, before Apps, and before Tablet computing, Nintendo created the Gameboy and the handheld gaming system market was born. How does the original Nintendo Gameboy stack up today? To answer that question, I bought a vintage Nintendo Gameboy, a couple of game cartridges, and a case at a North Florida thrift store. The Gameboy I purchased turned out not to work so I bought a functioning unit off of ebay.
When it arrived, I got a chance to examine this now ancient twentieth century technology. The Nintendo Gameboy itself is a very basic contraption. The unit itself is 5 and 3/4 inches tall by 3 and 1/2 inches wide. It’s also about an inch and a quarter thick. A small 1 and 7/8 inch (48 millimeter) by 1 and 3/4 inch (43 millimeter) monochrome LCD screen is centered in the top half of the unit. The bottom half of the unit has rudimentary controls that include a directional pad, A and B buttons, a Select button, and a Start button. The power button is a slider on the top of the unit. Wheels on the left and right control screen contrast and volume. Game cartridges slide into a slot on the top back part of the unit. It was just the way I remembered it when I received one as a gift in the early nineties.
The games I purchased included Tetris, Centipede, and a fishing game called Black Bass. In testing the three games, I found that the classics Tetris and Centipede came back to me like old friends, while the bass game was difficult to figure out. After years of using cell phones with wonderfully clear screens, I found it a little difficult to get the contrast set appropriately. Games like Tetris and Centipede remain addictive, but it is a big step back into the monochrome world of the Gameboy. I do like the simple controls of a this dedicated portable gaming device and the system plays game music and sound effects beautifully. I do like having the GameBoy Portable Carry-All by ASCII. It keeps my system safe in a hard plastic shell and can hold about four games in their cases. It also has room for earplugs and extra batteries.
Overall, I am still a little undecided about the original GameBoy. It’s a trip back in time and it’s cool to have a vintage game system in a very portable self-contained package. It’s also nice to have a game system that isn’t dependent on the internet, a social networking site, or a cell phone service provider. Since it occupies a significant spot in the history of electronic gaming, the Gameboy is very definitely a real collectible. But, even now twenty years after first owning a Nintendo GameBoy, I am faced with the same essential question: Should I sell it and get an Atari Lynx?
Sources:
Personal Experience
Other articles by this contributor:
Retro Game System Review: Super Nintendo Entertainment System
Saving Money by Living a Retro Lifestyle
Tiny Netbook Computer Review: Augen GenBook 74
Reference:
- www.retrogamingrevolution.com/
- flatbrokeblog.blogspot.com/
- www.thethriftshopper.com/forums/shopper/index.php
