Game Boy was Nintendo's first handheld console in the Game Boy family, released in Japan in 1989.
Nintendo launched the Game Boy in Japan on April 21, 1989, followed by North America later that year and Europe in 1990. Gunpei Yokoi and Nintendo's Research & Development 1 team designed the system around portability, low power consumption, and relatively inexpensive hardware rather than cutting-edge color graphics.
The original package included Tetris in many markets, and that game became a major reason for the system's broad appeal. The Game Boy used a monochrome screen and interchangeable cartridges. Its long battery life and compact design helped it remain commercially successful despite its technical limitations.
Game Boy Color was not the original system; it launched in 1998 as a later, color-capable successor. Nintendo's Game & Watch line also predates Game Boy, but those devices generally contained one built-in game rather than serving as a cartridge-based handheld platform.