We are in the golden age of portable video games. Nintendo’s DS Lite keeps delivering innovative new software, attracting an audience that didn’t previously have much interest in games. Sony’s PlayStation Portable has stumbled, but it’s still a solid alternative for players who want handheld versions of their favorite console games. And sooner or later, Microsoft is bound to come out with a portable Xbox.
Add in all the games that are available for cell phones and personal digital assistants, and you never have an excuse to be bored while waiting in line at the DMV. And we haven’t even mentioned the granddaddy of handheld game devices: Nintendo’s Game Boy.
Seventeen years after its introduction, the Game Boy is still hanging in there. Sure, it’s been through a lot of changes, as the chunky, black-and-white original has slimmed down into the credit-card-sized, color Game Boy Micro. But it’s outlasted three generations of home consoles and helped keep Nintendo afloat even as the company’s GameCube struggled.