The Nintendo Game Boy proved so popular that it sold out upon its initial Japanese release, and the system experienced a similar popularity boom in 1996 with the release of Pokémon Red and Blue.
Here’s your daily dose of handheld gaming nostalgia: today marks the day that the Nintendo Game Boy was first released in Japan, some 31 years ago on April 21, 1989.
This 8-bit handheld video game console, which was powered by 4 AA batteries and which displayed games stored on ROM cartridges on a tiny monochrome LCD screen, may seem primitive compared to modern day gaming technology, but over the course of its life-span, the Nintendo Game Boy sold some 118.69 million units and 511.11 million software cartridges before being discontinued on March 23, 2003.