Yes folks you heard it right – the world famous Nintendo Game Boy has been elected to enter into the National Toy Hall of Fame. The Strong Museum of National Play, which has now been around for over a decade and is located in Rochester, NY, annually inducts toys and playthings into their Hall of Fame. With the 2009 class, the Game Boy has been inducted along with the Ball and Big Wheel. It was obvious that way back when, nothing competed with the Game Boy in the 1990s. The traditional Game Boy was the item to have – essentially every little boy (to teenagers) and even girls alike had one. Nothing else provided “on the go” entertainment even close to the Game Boy. Ah yes, we remember the monochrome screen that we once thought was nothing but outstanding. Today it has been replaced with 3-D High Definition graphics and surround sound to say the least.

Following the enormous success of their NES home console, Nintendo launched Game Boy in 1989 and the system became an instant hit. The secret to Game Boy’s success was not driven by advanced graphics or processing power, but rather by simple and efficient design, head-to-head connectivity, and scores of intriguing games. Game Boy’s Game Link cable allowed simultaneous multiplayer gaming—a first for a portable system. The classic puzzle game Tetris came bundled with Game Boy and it appealed to a diverse audience, ranging from children to grandparents. Additional launch titles included Super Mario Land, which featured Nintendo’s already-iconic character Mario. The hit titles kept coming as the system evolved.

Current day, we have new predecessors which include the Nintendo DS and the Sony PSP which offer a huge abundance in portable entertainment. From enormous game selections, to cool new interactivity features, and the addition of Wi-Fi and online play, portable gaming has truly come a long way since its’ inception. In respect to the Game Boy itself, it definetly evolved throughout the past decade. We remember the original (and clunky) white and grey Game Boy, which soon advanced into a Game Boy Advance which was lighter, faster, and available in a nice array of colors. Yes better, faster, more colors, I think we see a trend here.