What year did Nintendo release the original Game Boy?

For millennials, it was a childhood defined by hunching over a tiny green screen. The brick-shaped device turned every car ride, waiting room, and bedtime into a gaming opportunity. Nintendo's Game Boy made gaming truly personal - a revolution in your pocket. So when did this handheld phenomenon begin?

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The answer is: 1989

For a device that defined 90s gaming, the Game Boy sneaked in its launch at the tail end of the 80s - 1989 to be exact. Gaming engineer Gunpei Yokoi, already successful with Nintendo's Game & Watch line, had a simple vision for their next handheld: use cheap, proven components that prioritized battery life over visual flair.

The competition thought he was wrong. Atari's Lynx and Sega's Game Gear boasted backlit color screens that made the Game Boy's green-tinted display look prehistoric. But their gorgeous screens came with a fatal flaw: an appetite for batteries that would bankrupt a Duracell factory.

The Game Boy hit stores at $89.99 - practically spare change compared to Lynx's $179.99 price tag. While the competition died after a few hours, the Game Boy ran for 30 hours on four AAs. Parents' wallets made the choice clear, even if their kids' eyes were drawn to the colorful competition.

Then came Tetris. Bundling this Soviet puzzler with every Game Boy was like packaging lightning in a bottle. The simple graphics were perfect for the limited display, and the "just one more line" gameplay loop created a generation of kids who saw falling blocks every time they closed their eyes. The Game Boy and Tetris would go on to sell over 35 million units.

The Game Boy's library grew into a monster, with over 1,000 games spanning every genre imaginable. Pokemon turned trading into a playground religion. Super Mario Land proved platformers could work on a screen smaller than your palm. Even Kirby got his start here, a character literally designed to be visible on that humble display.

The hardware itself became legendary for its durability. Controllers came and went, consoles died of old age, but Game Boys survived everything short of a nuclear blast. Some units endured washing machines, cars, and even bombing raids - there's a Gulf War veteran unit still running Tetris in Nintendo's NYC store, its case burnt and warped but its spirit unbroken.

While its flashier rivals now rust in landfills, Nintendo's humble green-screened warrior spawned a family of handhelds that would sell over 200 million units worldwide. In basements and trading posts, at retro gaming conventions and in careful collections, thousands of original Game Boys still power up - living proof that Yokoi had won the handheld war before it even began.