Tech Choice: B/W Game Boy Games
This is a series of articles where I discuss which system to pick for playing games of a certain type. This week, let’s take a look at the original Game Boy series (leaving out the later Game Boy Color games, etc for a later discussion). I’m leaving playing Game Boy games on a console (i.e. hooked up to a TV) for a later discussion. I’m also leaving out 3rd party handhelds (for now) – though I will pick those up when we discuss Game Boy Color games later on.
There’s something fun and inviting about collecting the little Gray Nintendo carts with monochrome games. Besides the American releases, there are plenty of Japanese games that are great. There’s no region-locking on Game Boy (or any handheld cart up through Nintendo DS), so feel free to collect imports for them. But what system should you own to play these little gray carts on?
(The Game Boy series is great for collecting imports on)
The Original Game Boy (GB/DMG series)
This is the classic system created by Gunpei Yokoi – father of the Game and Watch series that preceded it. People with large hands will love the form factor – a rounded brick shape that actually fits very well in your hands. Later editions were increasingly smaller and thinner – which may be uncomfortable. The system has amazing sound (especially if you love chiptune music) and provides a headphone jack (for rocking those 8-bit tunes in private). The original screen requires an external light source (and there were many 3rd party gadgets for that back in the day), but has a decent reflective brownish-green material for using a lamp or outdoor play. The buttons and d-pad are basically the same as the original NES controller pad – though the pad is slightly rounded on the corners (so it’s easier on the thumb).
(The Game Boy can be hard to see indoors without modding, so there are accessories to provide light)
There is significant motion blur on the screen, but the games were designed to get around this for the most part. The Game Boy runs via either 4 AA batteries or a 5v power cable – so yes you can power your handheld via a USB cable with the right end on it (very convenient!). The Game Boy later came out in various colors as part of the ‘Play It Loud’ series. So if you’d like your handheld in a particular country, check them out.
Game Boy Pocket (GBP)
The Game Boy Pocket (GBP) line came out in 1996 and attempted to slim down the DMG to fit into a jeans pocket. This system takes two AAA batteries (which I find is kind of a pain since AA batteries are more common and better-priced). There’s no power LED on some of the early models – which only matters when you’re playing and need to save your game before the battery dies. The screen back is now gray (instead of greenish) and supposedly some or most of the motion-blur was fixed – though it remains somewhat apparent to me. Like the original, the Pocket line came out in many colors, so grab your favorite.
(Both the original and the Pocket series can be modded to be back-lit. This is accomplished by removing the reflective backing and putting in a LED-lit reflective plastic sheet. The backlights can be in various colors. I’d very much like to do an article about this at a later date, so this is the most I’ll discuss for now.)
Game Boy Light
In 1998 an improved Game Boy Pocket – the Game Boy Light – was released only in Japan. It basically has an Indiglo backlit LCD (remember?.. from the Timex watches?) – which is nifty and uses AA batteries (which made it a little thicker, but also made a nice place for the fingers to rest on the back). However, in my opinion, it’s rare and really way too expensive to be practical given the other options.
Game Boy Color (GBC)
That brings us to the Game Boy Color (GBC) – which many of us own for the Game Boy Color titles already. If you don’t own one, it’s relatively easy to acquire a GBC. As we’re discussing playing the monochrome titles, this might seem like overkill, but there are several improvements/features that make the GBC desirable for those games.
Though original games were actually four shades of gray, the GBC can apply a color palette (meaning a separate color to each shade) to these games via pressing A or B and holding a direction on the D-pad at startup.
Some of the later original GB games even had built-in color palettes that the GBC could utilize – such as Donkey Kong or Kirby’s Dream Land. The screen ghosting issue seems to be fixed with this model (finally) and it runs off of two AA batteries (which seems trivial unless you use it regularly). The screen is outstanding on the GBC – being highly reflective for outdoor play. The buttons are slightly bigger than the Pocket series and the form-factor seems right for adolescent up to adult hands (although not as comfortable as the DMG series).
(Pokemon Yellow and Worm Light used for playing the GBC in indoor areas)
Like with the Pocket line, the Color line offers several color variants (and if you look on ebay, people are now selling custom shells like transparent orange). Besides a backlit DMG, this would be my primary recommendation based on what it brings to the table (besides including an extended gaming library with the GBC titles) – and if you’re going to be gaming outside, I think it really wins out. Back-light mods aren’t really possible due to the way the screen works, but there are front-light mods available (although this washes out the screen). Other options are inside lighting, the sun, or an attachable worm light accessory (see example above).
Game Boy Advance (GBA) and Game Boy SP (GB-SP)
There are two more hand-held systems that can play GB carts: the Game Boy Advance (GBA) and the Game Boy SP (GB-SP or SP). The GBA has a nice form-factor and actually feels really nice in the hand. I find that the D-pad and buttons are a little too small for my hands, but they do their job fairly well. The screen is similar to the GBC in that it’s highly reflective and offers great contrast. One difference from previous models is the screen dimensions (with GBA being 240×144 and GB being 160×144). Fortunately, you can switch the aspect ratio on the fly via the L/R buttons.
The GBA is powered with two AA batteries (like with the GBC), so battery use is no problem. Like with previous generations, the GBA comes in a variety of colors. The GBA cannot be modded to be back-lit, but there’s a readily-available kit that replaces the entire LCD screen with a new backlit LCD. That makes this a great solution if you enjoy it’s wider hand-held form factor (and of course you can play Color and Advance titles).
The GB-SP is the most compact system that can play original GB carts (the Micro cannot play them). It came out with the original model (AGS-001) having a frontlight as well as a reflective backing – so that the light could be turned off and the unit played in direct light. That also means that the battery life is excellent. The later model (AGS-101) offers a true backlight with two brightness levels. This means that while the AGS-101 cannot be played with direct sunlight alone (and in fact is hard to see outside), it is excellent indoors and the bright setting is really a marvel to behold. And I love how the SP folds up in your pocket to avoid the screen getting scratched.
(There’s a big difference in brightness between the two models, but the brighter model doesn’t have the reflective backing needed for playing outdoors.)
The obvious drawback with both the GBA and SP models is that the cart sticks out. Besides being unsightly, you could possibly damage either the cart or the connector if you were to drop it while playing the game. There’s also the slim and scrunched up design on the SP – which makes it a pain for large adult hands to hold (though there’s an easy solution for this from third parties). And the buttons and d-pad are very thin – with the d-pad being somewhat clicky-feeling (although not micro-switched).
My Indoor Choice: Original Game Boy
So to me, in this contest, for indoor play the winner is the Original Game Boy (DMG-001) with a back-light mod applied. If I had smaller hands, I could totally see using a Game Boy Pocket – also with a back-light (though the AAA battery requirement bugs me). If you cannot get a back-lit version of either, just find a desk lamp to play it under. For those with smaller hands, consider the AGS-101 model Game Boy SP – as it has an awesome back-lit screen as well (though the screen-size is slightly smaller). I also considered the back-lit version of the GBA (also smaller with the original aspect ratio), but for monochrome games, I really just prefer the original DMG series with the backlight.
(This is a modded DMG-001 model with a biverted backlight)
My Outdoor Choice: Game Boy Advance
For outdoor play, I prefer a Game Boy Advance because of the form-factor and the reflective screen. A runner up would be the Game Boy Color, which looks excellent out in sunlight. And if you have smaller hands, the dimmer GB-SP is also a great choice – as the reflective screen is there for outdoor play.
Again, this article only covers the options for handhelds and for original Game Boy carts. So, given that criteria, what’s your favorite option?