The Boy is six, almost seven, and has asked for a “GameBoy” for Christmas. This is his only request. I am totally ignorant of videogames and videogame system. He plays lots of stuff on line, mostly little games at the Cartoon Network site. He also plays Warcraft III about as much as I’ll let him, which is pretty much the only “grown up” game we own (we also have some educational stuff like Reader Rabbit).
What I’m looking for is a handheld unit (not a system that needs a TV as the monitor). I assume that there is more than one manufacturer of these things, Gameboy being one brand. Any and all advice welcome.
Are there other options, by companies other than Nintendo? Is that the best option? Are there variations - I think I saw a red “Flame GameBoy” in an advert this weekend - on the Gameboy theme? If so, what’s the difference.
Any sort of external difference, so far as I know, is entirely cosmetic but there’re tons of accessories for them that can be bought seperately.
And, again, so far as I know, the Gameboy’s pretty much the undisputed king of handheld electronic gaming. The only real competitor I ever remember it having was a handheld Genesis system about ten years ago but it was quickly overrun.
So, I checked out the Nintendo website, and there’s also something called Nintendo DS. It seems that might be another alternative. Also, from my computer experience it’s best to find the software (games) that are best and then find the appropriate platform. Does this hold true for games? I’d prefer stuff he can play by himself for now, otherwise I’ll get hounded to spend hours playing videogames.
Another important consideration is being able to play with friends, both wired together and sharing games. Any recent Gameboy ought to do, until they upgrade.
I’ve heard horrible things about the Nokia N-Gage.
I’d say get him the Gameboy Advance. (There’s a couple different models. The one that Aesiron linked to is a good one.) It’s the system that would probably be correctly categorized as a “Gameboy,” and if he wanted a different system, he’d know the name of that one to tell you. It’s also a solid and tested platform with lots of good games.
Get him a Nintendo DS. It just came out a few weeks ago. The early reviews have been great, and he’ll be able to play all the games made for the Advance and the GB Color (the model before the Advance) as well as newer games made just for the DS.
Sony (makers of Playstation) is putting out a handheld sometime in the next few years which I think will outperform the Gameboy (never been much of a Nintendo person), but it’s not coming out by Xmas. I’d steer clear of the N-Gage; it’s a phone combined with a game system, and the phone resources take up a lot of space in the machine so the graphics and sound are kind of crappy.
Get the DS. He’ll be one of the first on his block to have one, except for other kids who got one for Xmas too.
The Nintendo DS is really the newest Gameboy. It only came out, what, a month ago? So the price will probably drop after a while. It will play GBA games (though no mention of GBC and GB games). I hear that it can be uncomfortable to hold though, and it doesn’t look that comfortable to me. The original GBA (not the SP) was really well formed and is very comfortable to hold. As far as games go, the Gameboy has always had a good selection and plenty of variety, although we’re starting to see a lot more games aimed at kids, particularly show-based ones, and fewer for more mature players, but since he’s seven that won’t matter much. Some of the old NES games are being rereleased on the GBA though. Yay for Mario and Zelda!
As far as other systems, I don’t think Nintendo has had any real competition since the Sega GameGear.
Don’t get him the Gameboy SP. Go the extra bucks and get him the Nintendo DS - the new dual-screen Gameboy. There are many advantages:
[ol]
[li]The battery life is incredibly long, especially when playing a Gameboy Advance game that only uses the top screen. I’ve been able to go about six hours on a full charge, and even right out of the box, the charge from the factory was good for at least three hours (that was as long as I dared play with mine out of the box before finally plugging it in.)[/li][li]The DS will play both Gameboy Advance games and the new Nintendo DS games. You can keep one of each type in the separate slots in the game, and boot to either one.[/li][li]The built-in Pictochat game is like a Nintendo DS-only chat system, with four available rooms. You can send chat messages as text or drawings. It’s a hell of a lot of fun. I’ve booted up Pictochat in the local mall, just to see if anyone around was playing with their DS, and gone into chats. The range is terriffic, and the system recognizes both a proprietary Nintendo comm protocol, and 802.11. Future games for the system will be taking advantage of this so players can go into multiplayer mode wirelessly.[/li][/ol]
The DS will not play older Gameboy or Gameboy Color games, only Gameboy Advance games. Since your kid doesn’t have a handheld unit already (and therefore no legacy games to worry about) this shouldn’t be an issue for you.
Also, I can vouch for the system being comfortable to hold. The only thing that took a bit of time to get used to was using my thumb to control stuff on the bottom touch screen while I was moving around with the D-controller and firing with my index finger. Awkward at first, but *not * uncomfortable.
I bought one for myself and one for my daughter on the day they were released. We’re both having a hell of a lot of fun with them (hers was an early Christmas gift, mine was just because I’ve been a gamer for 20 years and I wanted one, too!)
In the world of handheld gaming systems, Nintendo is pretty much the only game in town (for now). Over a decade ago, they introduced the GameBoy. Sega, Atari and others put out competing systems which failed to succeed with the gaming pubic. Nintendo then added color to the GameBoy ( the GameBoy Color). A few years back, they came out with a new machine called GameBoy Advance, which was spiffier all over, played a new generation of games, and was still compatible with the older GameBoy and GameBoy Color games. The GameBoy Advance SP was this same device in a new wrapper (a compact clamshell). Now, they have introduced the DS (dropping the GameBoy name at long last). It is compatable with GameBoy Advance games, but not with earlier GameBoy or GameBoy Color titles.
I just wanted to say, for the sake of variety, that there is the Sony Playstation Portable that was just released in Japan yesterday. You can buy one online on Ebay for approximately $400-500 (or wait until they come out in America in March for about $160-180). It is basically a Playstation 2 in handheld form, and it has its own media disk that it uses. It can play movies, MP3s, and games of course, as well as having the wireless capabilities. But for a child that age, I think that the Gameboy SP or Nintendo DS would be a much better gift.
First off, I’ve got a Gameboy DS which I think is awesomely cool.
But I’d hesitate getting one for a 7 year old. The DS is $150 and in very short supply. Most of the ones I’ve seen available are for package deals with games which ups the price to the $250 range.
I also personally find it somewhat uncomfortable to play but I think that’s just with Mario64. I can’t stand using the thumb control on the touch screen.
Also there are only a handful of DS specific games out right now.
If you think he won’t trash it and you don’t mind paying what they cost and you can find one, sure get a DS.
The Gameboy Advance SP however is about $80 and might fit his junior sized hands better. It’s got a folding clamshell design and has a built-in rechargeable battery. The screen is lighted so you can play in the dark.
Whatever you do, DON’T get a plain old Gameboy Advance. Those are about $70 but they lack the lighted screen and the built-in battery. They’re impossible to see unless the light is just right.
I think it really boils down to how responsible the 7-year-old is. I bought my daughter her first Gameboy when she was about that age, and we’ve upgraded right along. The DS is a rugged little unit, even with the clamshell flipped open. My nephew is getting a DS for Christmas; he’s eight.
If you do decide to go with the Gameboy Advance, though, I will second zippyh’s advice to go with the backlit SP and NOT the original GBA. That damn GBA screen has to be held at exactly the right angle with just the right lighting or you can’t see a thing.
Father of three boys aged 9, 11 & 13 with multiple games systems checking in. There are a few things you want to consider before you make your choice. They are in order, do you:
A) Intend for him to leave the house with his game.
This is the most important as combined my boys have lost four GameBoys and two Gameboy Advanceds ($600 give or take $50).
B) What do his friends own?
One of the things that make these systems great is the ability to trade games for short periods.
C) What you want to spend?
An Advanced is pretty cheap compared to an DS.
Now I’m going to make a a suggestion against the grain and against what you’ve proposed. Seeing as you don’t know much about gaming systems, I assume he doesn’t have a console. Before you get him a handheld, which in addition to being easlily lost, have some other inherent flaws (i.e can be easily dropped, drowned etc.) I would really recommend buying a home based game first. Say a Game Cube (GC because they have more games aimed at the younger set). A game Cube will run you $99, or cheaper used, and if TV space is a problem, you can get a 13" color TV for $50, or less used. Now you’ve spent equivalent money for something that can’t be lost. Then try a handheld for a B-Day or something later.
I’d recommend the Nintendo DS as well. If it’s within your price range, and you manage to find one (they’re in high demand and short supply), it’s the best handheld game machine you can get for a child that age. As already mentioned, it’s backwards compatible with GameBoy Color and GameBoy Advance games, so there’s a ton of games available for it. Plus, having one will give him street cred with all the cool kids. (This kid can’t wait to get one.)
It is kind of pricey at $150, but Nintendo makes their stuff relatively durable.
If that’s out of your price range, then go with the GameBoy Advance SP. It’s rechargeable, has a backlight, and is a good size.
The Sony PSP that was mentioned earlier looks really, really cool, but it’s a lot more expensive, will have to be imported, and is intended for an older age bracket.
Ok, you’re all giving me a much better understanding of the different possibilities with gaming systems. Thanks, everyone!
Now, how about recommending some games? I’m going to check our local libraries later and see if they have any of these to borrow. We do that for a lot of the movies we watch, so if we can borrow compatible games then that’s a huge bonus. I’m pretty sure they rent the things from Blockbuster and the like, although that’s probably not too cost effective (other than to try them) and I’m not sure if they rent games for the handhelds. Remember, he’s eight, so I’d prefer to keep the violence and gratuitous sex to a minimum, preferrably, cartoonish violence is okay.
Not sure what the games available for the DS are, but with backwards compatibility to at least the GBA, you get quite a selection. There are several of the older Mario Bros./Super Mario Bros. games out there. There are the new, upgraded Pokemon games (a fun and easy RPG.) There are a lot of licensed properties (games made from movies and TV shows), most of which are historically bad, but check the reviews on Amazon and online. Donkey Kong Country is a fun platformer. (Wow, I didn’t know FFI and FFII were on the GBA.) There’s always Tetris.
Basically, there a lot of ports from the NES and SNES, plus lots of new games. Basically any NES/SNES port will be safe, though some games (like RPGs) may be too long and involved for a kid that age.