The Game Boy Camera has gone on to inspire generations of artists and creators since it first launched back in 1998. Despite being limited to taking grainy, black & white photos, there's something that is still so incredibly appealing about the Nintendo device to this day, and how it empowers players to transform their beloved handhelds into a portable camera for documenting the world around them.
With that in mind, you may be interested to hear then about Poca!, a new illustrated photobook from Jonathan Traynor — a Glasgow-based illustrator and comic artist who has contributed illustrations to Lost in Cult's '[lock-on]' & A Handheld History — that is being described as "a love letter to the Game Boy Camera".
The 80+ page, full colour, A6-sized book is currently being crowdfunded on Kickstarter and combines a comic about a fictional handheld device called the Poca! with new photography to create a travel guide to the author's home city of Glasgow.
Here's a description from Traynor about the book:
"'POCA! Vol.01 - GLASGOW', begins the story of POCA as they explore the city of Glasgow, Scotland. Part-comic, part-photobook and part-travel guide, each chapter will feature some of my personal favourite locations within the city and its surrounding areas, including Kelvingrove Park, the Botanic Gardens, the Glasgow Subway, Conic Hill and many more.
"In the future, I hope that this complete story will be ultimately realised as a three book series, each one focused on a new location along POCA's adventure. In Vol.02, POCA will travel to Honolulu, Hawaii and in Vol.03 their journey will culminate in a visit to Japan, where they will uncover their origins.
"My aim with this series is to capture the feeling of wonder I myself have experienced, in travelling and exploring new places, while honouring the legacy of the Game Boy Camera."
If you want to back the project, you can currently select from three tiers, which include a digital edition for £5, a physical edition listed at £10, and a "legacy edition" (containing Traynor's previous comic Bug+) for £15. Here is the link.
According to Traynor, he is currently aiming to finish the book and get it ready for shipping in mid-November.