As this report consists of an innovation in technology, the invention that has been chosen for this paper is Nintendo Gameboy. The report would include a brief summary of the invention, the concept behind it, the need for that technological advancement, the possible hurdles that came in between the innovation process.
Nintendo is considered among the leaders in the videogame console makers. Generally known as Nintendo entertainment system (NES) it was introduced in the year of 1985 and ever since it has been given a stiff competition to its rivals like SEGA, Sony’s PlayStation and Microsoft’s Xbox. Nintendo has sold up to 1 billion games of various types including Nintendo 64 and Gameboy. Super Mario Bros is considered as Nintendo’s best selling game ever with an estimated 60 million units sold.
After the tremendous success of Nintendo’s handheld game the original game boy was launched in the late 1988. Game boy was the very first product in the market of portable games and it opened a new way for other companies to try their luck in portable games market. The various reasons of game boy’s success included its 160×144 pixel screen, stereo sound and game link feature (Console Information).
Apart from that its lighter weight, long lasting battery and cheap price were also points of success for game boy. Besides that there have been several technological advancements in game boy. Nintendo has made lots of variation in the original game boy this includes the Game boy pocket which is 30% smaller than the original game boy with equal size screen, the Game boy color it was a colored version of the Game boy and the Game boy advance.
As per research Nintendo has been the pioneer in the gaming industry with its various products. From the original big screen game boy to the most advance Nintendo DS, they have been settling with the market trends and have successfully adopted the technological changes in the industry (Steinberg, 2005).
If we compare the very first Gameboy with the Nintendo DS, the innovation that Nintendo has made throughout these years could be judged very well. They have made their presence felt in the market with the swift changes to their gaming machinery an example of that could be seen if we compare the original game boy and the Nintendo DS.
If we remember the Original game boy consist of a single screen which was large and without colors but with the passage of time some new features are added in the game boy such as the game boy advance and the game boy color which includes an improved resolution and color display but if compared to Nintendo DS it’s still far behind. The Nintendo DS is skilled to support the 3D graphics with a bottom touch screen which improves the synergy to play the game.
If we see Nintendo has been actively participative in the market by launching its products from time to time. The Recently launched Gameboy Advance SP has been equipped with much brighter screen and wide variety of colors. It’s easy to pocket and while travelling also the buttons are comfortable with the compatibility of linking it with other games. What has been observed from personal experience is that the new brighter screen consumes much more batteries but this was predictable with the improved performance. The older SP could play 10 hours in a regular battery while the new SP gives an 8 hour feedback time.
It has been observed that apart from the physical features technology has also affected the other side of the gaming that is the expenses. The original game boy consumed four AA batteries in a matter of time which proved out to be very expensive. Keeping in mind that after a few days the batteries would be fully consumed and new set of batteries would be required to play the game. The Nintendo DS has a built in rechargeable battery and an adapter which saves a good bit of money which is served in buying batteries (All experts).
The original game boy required a cable wire if one wants to connect it with another game boy. Plus both the players had to sit side by side in order to play with themselves (Piekarski). The Nintendo DS has this built in feature of Wi-Fi. This means that there is no need of cable wires to connect; one can easily connect their Nintendo from far away or even through the internet. This would give a broader path to the gaming where one can connect with their friends and to play games. The downloading option is also included which would result in other players trying you game without the need of the cartridge. Conversation between playing is also made possible by the Nintendo DS with a Pictochat system which is specially designed by Nintendo to enable chatting while playing games.
Another change that has been made in the Nintendo DS is that it has a built in microphone, advance games and improved battery life which makes life very easy for the user (Virtual game boy, 2009 ).
What I believe is that game boy has achieved its target as being trend setters. By this I mean that the main thought behind game boy was design a game that one can play without sitting in front of the TV. GBA SP has achieved this to some extent, as I personally believe that most of the gamers would like to play on the big screen at home.
The impact that the gaming machines have in our society is humongous. Most of the teenagers are indulged into this activity. Research has proved that with the advent of these gaming devices children’s physical activity has been affected very badly. The games provide a tremendous amount of pleasure to them and eventually over a period of time they become addicted to it.
On the other side before the advent of PS and DS the only thing that came into mind when it comes to portable gaming was Nintendo game boy. Ever since its launch the game boy has experienced significant success in the portable gaming industry. Several advancements have been made in its different versions like the game boy advance, game boy advance SP, etc. Nintendo has made significant innovations in the gaming industry but the most revolutionized concept that they have given is that of the handheld game boy (McFerran, 2009).
According to research the introduction of game boy gave the gaming world a new direction with its portability and amazing use of colors and graphics. Another very visible advancement that has been made is the design of the machine. The design of the game boy advance is similar in look as a small laptop; this feature not only makes the game handier but also gives it an extra bit of protection from scratches and damages (Game FAQ’s).
In a nutshell if one can analyze the technological innovations made by the Nintendo game boy it would be as follows:
- Smooth and efficient design
- Large collection of games
- State of an art graphics
- Concrete sound
Without a doubt one can say that game boy has become an icon in the gaming industry. Before game boy the video game consoles were only limited to television, game boy inspired the path for a completely different set of game play (Donahue). With its remarkable success it would require a huge catch up for its competitors to match its success.
References
All experts. (2009) Game Boy Advance SP [online] Web.
Console Information. (2008) Nintendo GameBoy/GameBoy Pocket [online] Web.
Donahue, A. (2009) Nintendo Gameboy Information [online] Web.
Game FAQ’s. (2006) Game Boy Advance [online] Web.
McFerran, D. (2009) Nintendo’s Portable History: Part 2, Game Boy [online] Web.
Piekarski, P. (2009) Nintendo DS Vs. Gameboy [online] Web.
Steinberg, S. (2005) Game Boy Micro Review. [online] Web.
Virtual game boy. (2009) Technical Information . [online] Web.