The GameBoy
By Ed Soper


The Nintendo GameBoy is an 8-bit, monochrome portable videogame system which
was released by Nintendo in April of 1989. When it was first released, it
revolutionized the industry. Never before had there been a self-contained,
completely programmable video game system that would fit in the palm of one’s 
hand. The idea of a person being able to take Super Mario Bros. or Tetris
with them on a trip or to school was an idea whose time had come.


It soon spawned a host of competitors (the NEC TurboExpress in 1990, the
Atari Lynx in 1990, the Sega Game Gear in 1991, etc.). But, despite their
technical superiority, these competitors were no match for the marketing
muscle and overall quality of the GameBoy, and all eventually faded from
view.  A few new competitors came into play in the mid-late 1990's, most
notably the Sega Nomad, in 1995; Nintendo’s own Virtual Boy, in 1995; and
Tiger’s game.com, in 1997. With few exceptions, these systems also faded
into obscurity (except for the Tiger game.com, which is still in production
and is in the process of being redesigned, despite being outsold 9 to 1 by
the GameBoy.) So why is GameBoy still so successful after all these years?


It could be the price, its original price of $109.99 being lowered to $69.99
by 1993, and to $49.99 when the GameBoy Pocket was introduced in 1996 (w/o
Tetris game, headphones, or link cable.). It could be the durability, the
original GameBoy being legendary for being able to withstand being dropped
down the stairs while turned on and suffering no ill effects.  It could be
Nintendo’s marketing, each new version of the GameBoy coming just as the old
one wanes in popularity, thus ensuring  an upswing in sales. It could be the
size, with the newest version clocking in at under five ounces and measuring
3" x 5" x 1" (roughly the same as a 100 pack of 3" x 5" cards). It could be
the convenience, with being able to take a copy of your favorite videogame
along anywhere, at anytime. More likely it is for each of these reasons,
along with one other: game quality.  None of these other systems had any
games that would rival Final Fantasy Adventure, the Legend Of Zelda: Link’s
Awakening, or any of the several other RPGs/Adventures published on the
GameBoy. GameBoy didn’t get an 85% market share and 5 million systems/25
million games sold worldwide in 1997 just for taking advantage of other
companies’ mistakes. It took dedication, a commitment to quality, and just
plain stubbornness for a system based on 15 year-old technology to continue
to be successful in an age of Pentium II processors, 35" monitors, and the
Internet. But, for whatever reason, the GameBoy is still an extremely popular
and profitable device for Nintendo. Last year, it sold roughly 5 million
systems and 30 million games worldwide, and it is expected to exceed that
number this year, with Nintendo expecting a 60% increase in sales when the
GameBoy Color comes out in November.

The "little green-screen machine" has come a long way from 1989, becoming the
best-selling video game system (67 million sold worldwide since 1989), and
Nintendo has even greater hopes for its future, which will hopefully be
another ten years.