Game Boy
- Manufacturer
- Nintendo
- Production
- 1989–2003
- Generation
- Gen 4
- Type
- Handheld
- Launch price
- $89
- Media
- Cartridge
- Units sold
- 118.7M
About Game Boy
The Game Boy is a handheld game console developed and marketed by Nintendo. It was released in Japan on April 21, 1989, and in North America on July 31, 1989. Nintendo's first handheld to use ROM cartridges, it succeeded the Game & Watch line of handheld electronic games and competed with Sega's Game Gear, Atari's Lynx, and NEC's TurboExpress in the fourth generation of video game consoles.
Source: Wikipedia (text under CC BY-SA 4.0).
Lifetime sales
Official manufacturer-reported figures.
118.7Munits
501.1Mgames
4.2games / console
Worldwide; Nintendo combines Game Boy and Game Boy Color.
Source: Nintendo Co., Ltd. IR — Dedicated Video Game Sales Units, as of June 30, 2026.
Library & collector facts
1,057licensed games
- North America: 1,057
Lineage
Release timeline
- 🇯🇵 Japan
- April 21, 1989
- 🇺🇸 North America
- July 31, 1989
- 🇪🇺 Europe / PAL
- September 28, 1990
- Lifespan
- 14 years on market
Pricing
Launch price (1989)
- 🇺🇸 USD
- $89
- 🇯🇵 JPY
- ¥12,500
- 🇬🇧 GBP
- £70
Launch titles & exclusives
Tetris · Super Mario Land · Alleyway · Baseball · Yakuman (JP launch only) · Tennis
Tetris (NA / EU launch bundle) — credited as the system-seller
Tetris · Pokemon Red / Blue / Yellow · Super Mario Land 1 & 2 · The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening · Metroid II: Return of Samus · Kirby's Dream Land · Wario Land · Donkey Kong (1994, the puzzle remake)
Pokemon Yellow (1998, NA) was among the last major releases; some Japan-only titles released into 1999
Hello Kitty World (JP, very limited); Spud's Adventure (NA, low print run); sealed launch DMG-01 units
Variants of Game Boy
Hardware specs
- Cpu
- Sharp SM83
- Ram
- 8 KB RAM, 8 KB Video RAM
- Power
- Original: 4 × AA batteries (Up to 30 hours), Pocket: 2 × AAA batteries (Up to 10 hours), Light: 2 × AA batteries (Up to 12 hours w/ backlight on, 20 w/ backlight off)
- Weight
- 220 g
- Dimensions
- 90 × 148 × 32 mm
- Display Output
- Original: STN display, STN LCD, Pocket/Light: FSTN LCD, 160 × 144 px
Hardware revisions
- Original DMG-01(1989)
launch hardware, reflective monochrome LCD, 4 AA batteries, ~10–15h life
- Game Boy Pocket MGB-001(1996)
~half the size, true black-and-white screen (vs. green-tinted DMG), 2 AAA batteries
- Game Boy Light MGB-101(1998)
JP-only, EL backlight, the only original-line Game Boy with a lit screen
Launch colorways & special editions
- Play It Loud! line — Red, Yellow, Green, Blue, Black, Transparent (1995)
- Pokemon Yellow Pikachu Edition (1999)
- Game Boy Light (JP-only, electroluminescent backlight, 1998)
Modding scene
- Difficulty
- soft-mod
- Custom firmware
- N/A (no OS); flashcarts — EZ-Flash Junior, Everdrive GB X3 / X5 / X7
Reception & legacy
Skeptical reception inside Nintendo — staff feared the monochrome screen would lose against the color Atari Lynx and Sega Game Gear, but battery life proved decisive
Tetris licensing battle with Atari/Tengen (settled in Nintendo's favor); low-contrast screen a chronic user complaint pre-Pocket revision
Defined handheld gaming for a decade; Yokoi's 'lateral thinking with withered technology' (cheap, proven parts) ethos shaped every later Nintendo handheld through the DS era
References
More from Nintendo
No Game Boy listings yet. List yours or browse similar items.
Game Boy in the news
Recent coverage mentioning the Game Boy, gathered from 80+ gaming-news sources.
The GAME BOY Advance Just Got A New Accessory in 2026
🤝 Don't want to see ads? Become a premium member for $3 a month and support an independent publication today! This was a pleasant find this morning, seeing as I have collected many wierd and wacky GAME BOY Advance accessories in my time; heck, I even made a
Why A Game Originally Prototyped For Game Boy Color Is Going Head-To-Head With GTA 6
'If only we knew about the GTA 6 nudist colony'
EverTheme: GBA Everdrive Menu Editor
Seglectic Systems has just released a free, web-based tool that lets you customize the menu of Game Boy Advance Everdrive Pro or Mini’s. There’s a ton of customization options for the GBA Pro and themes can just be saved as .bgr files that are loaded via the GBA Pro’s menu. And while there aren’t...
Feature: 5 Things A Short Trip Taught Me About Nintendo's Smallest Game Boy
Micro but mighty? I recently took a trip with my family down to London, and, given that we were intentionally travelling super-light, I decided to take the smallest portable console in my arsenal: the Game Boy Micro. Released around the same time as the Nintendo DS, the Micro was billed as the...
Game Boy-Inspired Tactical RPG ‘The End of Allegoria’ Announced for Switch 2 and PC, Launching in 2027; Trailer Streaming Now
Button Factory Games and CobraTekku Games have announced The End of Allegoria, a tactical JRPG sequel to The Edge of Allegoria. The game is scheduled to launch for Nintendo Switch 2 and PC via Steam in 2027. The sequel takes place many years after the events of The Edge of Allegoria. Following...
Fall From Space Is A New Game Boy Game With Artwork By Mitsuhrio Arita
🤝 Don't want to see ads? Become a premium member for $3 a month and support an independent publication today! One of the best parts of my job is being able to both review new games for old consoles and have the chance to speak to the creators