Last weekend, the Game Boy celebrated its 35th birthday – a remarkable achievement.
This monochrome system will have been a vital entry point for millions of players; it offered home console-standard games in a highly portable form factor and gave us classics such as Super Mario Land 2, Castlevania II: Belmont's Revenge, Zelda: Link's Awakening and – of course – Pokémon.
While Nintendo would iterate on the concept with the Game Boy Pocket and Game Boy Light, we have to admit we have a soft spot for the bulky original.
That iconic colourway, reassuringly robust case design and infamous pea-soup screen trigger feelings of intense nostalgia that can't be replicated elsewhere; portable hardware, by its very nature, creates strong tactile memories that can last a lifetime, and there are plenty of amazing memories connected to Gunpei Yokoi's famous handheld.
How many of us can recall sitting beneath a lamp trying to get a few more minutes of Tetris in before bedtime or the thrill of link cable local multiplayer with like-minded friends?
The Game Boy forged an entire generation of portable players and, arguably for the first time, made gaming on the go feel just as viable as gaming in the home.
Despite its advanced years, it's amazing how well the Game Boy has stood the test of time. The example in these photos pays testament to that; while it's in very good condition, it hasn't been kept hidden away over the years – this is a unit that has seen some serious publishment, yet it still looks as fresh as it did when it came out of the box in the 1990s.
It's also a reminder of just how much paperwork came with game consoles back in the '90s – something we have to admit we miss.