History Platform / GameBoyColor

The Game Boy Color owes its existence to, of all things, the Platform/WonderSwan. When Nintendo CEO Hiroshi Yamauchi caught wind that Creator/{{Bandai}} was planning to release their own handheld gaming system, he feared it could be real competition. Bandai had exclusive licenses to a litany of Japan's biggest UsefulNotes/AnimeAndManga properties, and worst of all, they were partnering with Koto Laboratory, founded by Game Boy creator Creator/GunpeiYokoi and fair handful of the team that helped him.

* 32 KB main UsefulNotes/RandomAccessMemory and 16 KB MediaNotes/VideoRAM. This is triple the memory of the original Game Boy.

* ''VideoGame/{{Medabots}}'' (all except the ''Parts Collection'' games coming in Kabuto and Kuwagata versions):

[[caption-width-right:250:''"Get into it!"'']]

* 32 KB main UsefulNotes/RandomAccessMemory and 16 KB UsefulNotes/VideoRAM. This is triple the memory of the original Game Boy.

* ''VideoGame/BionicCommando: Elite Forces''

* ''VideoGame/KinnikuBanzukeGB''

* ''VideoGame/{{Medabots}}'' (all except the ''Parts Collection'' games coming in Kabuto and Kuwagata versions)

* [[/index]]''Franchise/PowerRangers''[[index]]

* ''VideoGame/{{Robopon}}''

The Game Boy Color owes its existence to, of all things, the Platform/WonderSwan. When Nintendo CEO Hiroshi Yamauchi caught wind that [[Creator/BandaiNamcoEntertainment Bandai]] was planning to release their own handheld gaming system, he feared it could be real competition. Bandai had exclusive licenses to a litany of Japan's biggest UsefulNotes/AnimeAndManga properties, and worst of all, they were partnering with Koto Laboratory, founded by Game Boy creator Creator/GunpeiYokoi and fair handful of the team that helped him.

One of the handheld's more interesting features was the IR port, which could allow for wireless data transfer between two systems. While more convenient than the Link Cable since it wasn't a separate peripheral, the port's functions were limited in comparison (i.e. no multiplayer) and it was utilized by ''very'' few games. As usual for the ''Franchise/{{Pokemon}}'' series, ''VideoGame/PokemonGoldAndSilver'' and ''Crystal'' were probably the most well-known users of this feature, allowing two players to "Mystery Gift" with each other once a day, basically creating random items for both players. The games could also communicate with a virtual pet, which could get the player a variety of items. Additionally, a ''Film/MissionImpossible'' game released for the Color had a function to turn the handheld into a universal remote by using the IR sensor, while ''VideoGame/BombermanMax'' used it for {{Mon}} battles and sharing version-exclusive stages.

** ''VideoGame/PokemonTradingCardGame''

In 1998, Creator/{{Nintendo}} basically enhanced the UsefulNotes/GameBoy parts to make a souped-up portable [[UsefulNotes/NintendoEntertainmentSystem NES]] and sent out the resulting '''Game Boy Color''' into the wild. This made sense, since the Game Boy was similar to the NES already. Learning from the mistakes of the UsefulNotes/Nintendo64, Nintendo made the Game Boy Color easy to develop for so that their handheld branch could retain their massive third-party support.

The Game Boy Color owes its existence to, of all things, the UsefulNotes/WonderSwan. When Nintendo CEO Hiroshi Yamauchi caught wind that [[Creator/BandaiNamcoEntertainment Bandai]] was planning to release their own handheld gaming system, he feared it could be real competition. Bandai had exclusive licenses to a litany of Japan's biggest UsefulNotes/AnimeAndManga properties, and worst of all, they were partnering with Koto Laboratory, founded by Game Boy creator Creator/GunpeiYokoi and fair handful of the team that helped him.

Yamauchi ordered Nintendo R&D1, Yokoi's original unit, to develop a color handheld in a record 10 months to beat the [=WonderSwan=] to market. R&D1 was well underway on Project Atlantis, a more powerful 32-bit handheld that eventually became the UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance, but the new mandate forced them to put the more advanced handheld's development on hold, and instead work on a much more modest upgrade of the original Game Boy with color capabilities.

The Color's biggest selling point was, naturally, its ability to display color. This made it closer to the idea of being a portable NES than the original Game Boy, though the Color's larger color palette meant it was capable of producing more detailed sprites and backgrounds than the NES ever could. The Color could also overlay a handful of 10-color palettes onto original Game Boy games to give them a hint of color, though it was unable to use the color palettes of UsefulNotes/SuperGameBoy–enhanced titles[[note]]A potential reason is because the Super Game Boy, naturally, had the SNES's color capabilities to work with, which are much richer and wider than the GBC's limited palette. The SGB also handled colorization with more than four colors fundamentally differently from how the GBC did[[/note]]. Games made specifically with the Game Boy Color in mind would include more specific and variable color palettes -- many games were released that were compatible with both the older Game Boys and GBC, but later-released games would require a GBC. Color games compatible with the original model were typically encased in cartridges in a color different from the grey used for the Game Boy (typically black), while GBC exclusive games used translucent cartridges.

The system lasted only a little over four years before retiring in 2003, as Nintendo had fully moved on to the UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance and were preparing for the imminent release of the UsefulNotes/NintendoDS in 2004. The Color is probably the most successful system ever to have such a short cycle thanks to its large library and high software sales.

* The system cannot use the predefined in-game color palettes on UsefulNotes/SuperGameBoy–enabled titles. Instead, it comes with 12 pre-programmed color palettes which can be selected at boot time when playing original Game Boy games, although it is programmed to automatically select particular palettes when specific cartridges are played. Some of these palettes are {{Game Breaker}}s in that they actually reveal hidden routes in some games (like in ''VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue'') if not outright introduce minor glitches to the graphics.

* An accessory unique to the Game Boy Color was the Mobile Game Boy Adapter. One end would connect to the Game Boy Color's extension port and the other end into a cellular phone to allow communication between a Game Boy Color and a cellular network to challenge other players or exchange data remotely. The adapter was forwards-compatible with the UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance which had its own games that utilized the adapter. Unfortunately, it was too ahead of its time, and for numerous reasons the Mobile Game Boy Adapter failed to take off. Only six games on the Game Boy Color used the Mobile Adapter, and sixteen games on the Game Boy Advance. The service to use the Mobile Adapter shut down in December 2002, not even two years after the Adapter's introduction. The Mobile Adapter [[NoExportForYou never left Japan]].

In short, the system can't exactly run rings around the [[UsefulNotes/NintendoEntertainmentSystem NES]], but it can handle graphics just as intense without slowdown or flicker and exceeds it in some areas.

** [[/index]]''[[WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaidIIReturnToTheSea The Little Mermaid II: Pinball Frenzy]]'' (a much girlier version of ''VideoGame/PokemonPinball'' but with characters from the film's sequel in place of Pokémon; this game, like ''[[VideoGame/PokemonGoldAndSilver Pokémon Crystal]]'', is incompatible with the original UsefulNotes/GameBoy)[[index]]

** ''VideoGame/DonkeyKongCountry1'' (handheld port of the original [[UsefulNotes/SuperNintendoEntertainmentSystem SNES]] game)

* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAuto2'' (a top-down ''[[VideoGame/TheLegendOfZeldaI Zelda]]''-esque version of the game with guns and cash; toned down to have the ESRB rating of T for Teen similar to its original release for the UsefulNotes/PlayStation)

* ''[[VideoGame/StarOceanTheSecondStory Star Ocean: Blue Sphere]]''

** ''VideoGame/{{Donkey Kong|Country}} Land III''

*** [[/index]]''Pokémon Crystal'' (incompatible on the original UsefulNotes/GameBoy or on a UsefulNotes/NintendoDS system)[[index]]

** [[/index]]''[[WesternAnimation/TheLittleMermaidIIReturnToTheSea The Little Mermaid II: Pinball Frenzy]]'' (a much girlier version of ''VideoGame/PokemonPinball'' but with characters from the film's sequel in place of Pokemon; this game, unlike ''[[VideoGame/PokemonGoldAndSilver Pokemon Crystal]]'', is also incompatible on the original UsefulNotes/GameBoy or on a UsefulNotes/NintendoDS system)[[index]]

* ''Creator/{{Nickelodeon}}'':
** ''VideoGame/NicktoonsRacing''
** ''VideoGame/SpongebobSquarepantsLegendOfTheLostSpatula''

The Game Boy Color owes its existence to, of all things, the UsefulNotes/WonderSwan. When Nintendo CEO Hiroshi Hiroshi Yamauchi caught wind that [[Creator/BandaiNamcoEntertainment Bandai]] was planning to release their own handheld gaming system, he feared it could be real competition for a few reasons; Bandai had exclusive licenses to a litany of Japan's biggest UsefulNotes/AnimeAndManga properties, and worst of all, they were partnering with Koto Laboratory, founded by Creator/GunpeiYokoi and fair handful of the team behind the Game Boy.

Yamauchi ordered Nintendo R&D1, Yokoi's original unit, to develop a color handheld in a record 10 months to beat the [=WonderSwan=] to market. R&D1 was well underway on Project Atlantis, a more powerful 32-bit handheld (that eventually became the UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance), but the new mandate forced them to put the more advanced handheld's development on hold, and instead work on a much more modest upgrade of the original Game Boy with color capabilities.

Yamauchi ordered Nintendo R&D1, Yokoi's original unit, to develop a color handheld in a record 10 months. R&D1 was well underway on Project Atlantis, a more powerful 32-bit handheld (that eventually became the UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance), but the new mandate forced them to put the more advanced handheld's development on hold, and instead work on a much more modest upgrade of the original Game Boy with color capabilities.

The Game Boy Color owes its existence to, of all things, the UsefulNotes/WonderSwan. When Nintendo CEO Hiroshi Hiroshi Yamauchi caught wind that [[Creator/BandaiNamcoEntertainment Bandai]] was planning to release their own handheld gaming system, he feared it could be real competition for a few reasons; Bandai had exclusive licenses to a litany of Japan's biggest UsefulNotes/AnimeAndManga properties, and worst of all, they were partnering with Koto Laboratory, founded Creator/GunpeiYokoi and fair handful of the team behind the Game Boy.

Yamauchi ordered Nintendo R&D1, Yokoi's original unit, to develop a color handheld in a record 10 months. R&D1 was well underway on Project Atlantis, a more powerful 32-bit handheld (that eventually became the UsefulNotes/GameBoyAdvance, but the new mandate forced them to put the more advanced handheld's development on hold, and instead work on a much more modest upgrade of the original Game Boy with color capabilities.

* ''VideoGame/PowerRangersLightspeedRescue''