playing an original Game Boy in 2022

[gbpxl]

With all of the iterations of the Game Boy that have come out in the last 30 years and with dozens of different ways ti emulate (legal or otherwise) the system, there really is nothing like playing on the gray brick first made in 1989. I won't necessarily say that it is my favorite way to play a Game Boy cartridge but I have found a workaround that makes it pretty tolerable.

What I do is wear a Milwaukee LED headlamp in low-light or pitch dark environment and find a spot that is comfortable and where I can't see the reflection of the LED lights. It illuminates the entire screen as well as the entire system so if need be, you can glance at where your thumbs and buttons are. It is nice to be able to see the actual aesthetics of the handheld and admire the textured grat surface and familiar color pattern as you are playing.

The second best option I have seen is to use the third party light attachments. I picked one up recently but the lense is somewhat scratched, which can be distracting. So going back to the headlamp solution, that eliminates the possibility of the magnifier having issues.

I still prefer the look of the green color palette versus the black and white grayscale of the GB Pocket as well as the color palettes in the GBC and GBA. The ghosting is still horrendous though and I can't wait to be able to play an Analogue Pocket with original color palette and pixelated screen with the squares sans ghosting

How are you playing GB/GBC/GBA in 2022?

[JSoup]

By and large the most coinvent way is VBAdvance or similar. This is how I do it most of the time, run through RetroArch. I haven't brought out any of my physical units in a long while, but I always preferred the Pocket. Slim, sleek, crystal clear screen and decent battery life. Mine also came in the oversized jewel case from Costco, so it doubles as a display box.

Been thinking about getting one of those backlight mods for years, though. There are newer versions that include wifi adaptors so outside apps can be used for online multiplayer or perhaps connecting to RetroAchievements.

[Greg2600]

What I do is wear a Milwaukee LED headlamp in low-light or pitch dark environment and find a spot that is comfortable and where I can't see the reflection of the LED lights. It illuminates the entire screen as well as the entire system so if need be, you can glance at where your thumbs and buttons are. It is nice to be able to see the actual aesthetics of the handheld and admire the textured grat surface and familiar color pattern as you are playing.



Pics or it didn't happen!!!


I personally use a GBA or GBC, both of which I now have modded with the solderless TFT LCD's.

[Gamevet]

I only have 2 Gameboy Games. Bust A Move for the GBC and Numbunga’s Ambition for the old brick. I barely kept my old GBC for 6 months, before getting rid of it. I have played Bust A Move on my GBA SP, which works fine. I also have a Super Gameboy for the SNES.

I’d only want the original brick as a show piece. I have no desire to play games on one.

[calthaer]

My original now has a blank line of pixels on it, running vertically on the right-hand side. A bit of a shame. I'm more likely to play it on one of the four GBAs I have (one regular, three SPs).

Sold a GBC with the infrared port a few years back, along with the Pikachu 2 GS that used it. Can't see myself going back and playing Gold / Silver / Crystal, to be honest.