Nintendo Game Boy
Hacker ApprovedRanked 8 of 18 handheld game consoles by recommenders
Fun, polished games on a fuzzy, lo-fi screen with a CRT-like glow; the main caveat is ghosting and slow pixel response.
Fun, polished games on a fuzzy, lo-fi screen with a CRT-like glow; the main caveat is ghosting and slow pixel response.
16 people gave an opinion
- recommend it
- 12
- criticize it
- 4
- approval share
- 75%
Recommended in 6 of 13 months
- November 2025: not recommended
- December 2025: not recommended
- January 2026: recommended
- February 2026: recommended
- March 2026: not recommended
- April 2026: not recommended
- May 2026: recommended
- June 2026: recommended
- July 2026: not recommended
- August 2026: not recommended
- September 2026: recommended
- October 2026: recommended
- November 2026: not recommended (month in progress)
Why it carries the badge
- 12 people recommend itNeeds 10 or more, met.
- 3 recommenders for every criticNeeds 2 to 1 or better, met.
- Recommended in 6 of 13 monthsNeeds 4 or more, met.
The same three rules apply to every product, and the badge can’t be bought. How the badge works
What people say about it
The reasons people give, with the number of comments that give each one. Open a reason to read what they said.
Why people recommend it
Each mark is one comment
Lo-fi CRT-like screen glow
“It still gives you, especially when factoring in the condition of the STN screen, a "fuzzy" picture and with its own lo-fi glow, analogous to a CRT setup.”
Comment from 21 Sep 2026 in “The Effect of CRTs on Pixel Art (2024)” “its STN LCD screen was fuzzy (e. g. ghosting) yet also had this distinct, subdued lo-fi glow”
Comment from 21 Sep 2026 in “The Effect of CRTs on Pixel Art (2024)” Fun, polished, widely popular games
“the game boy was a revelation, smooth fun polished games”
Comment from 28 Feb 2026 in “Ghosts'n Goblins – "Worse danger is ahead"” “The Game Boy was insanely popular”
Comment from 21 Sep 2026 in “The Effect of CRTs on Pixel Art (2024)”
Other handheld game consoles people recommend
The four most recommended other handheld game consoles, with the same counts for each, so you can compare like for like. The tick on each bar marks the 2 to 1 line the badge needs.
| Product | Recommend | Criticize | Approval | Months | Owned | Badge |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nintendo Switch | 143 | 103 | 58% | 12 | 8 yrs12 owners | — |
| Playdate handheld console | 43 | 15 | 74% | 11 | — | Approved |
| Sony PlayStation Portable | 24 | 4 | 86% | 5 | 21 yrs3 owners | Approved |
| Nintendo 3DS | 21 | 6 | 78% | 8 | — | Approved |
| Nintendo Game BoyThis page | 12 | 4 | 75% | 6 | — | Approved |
What people said
11 of the 17 comments that mention it, newest first. Each links to the original comment.
“It still gives you, especially when factoring in the condition of the STN screen, a "fuzzy" picture and with its own lo-fi glow, analogous to a CRT setup.”
“its STN LCD screen was fuzzy (e. g. ghosting) yet also had this distinct, subdued lo-fi glow”
“The Game Boy was insanely popular”
“everyone gushed over it for no serious technical merits”
“pixel response time was so bad it really made it feel way slower”
“Played Gameboy while I should be sleeping.”
“really cool and works great on mobile”
“Game Boy could run nearly 50 hours on AA batteries”
“the game boy was a revelation, smooth fun polished games”
“So now I have a Game Boy that requires alcohol to work.”
“Have you considered buying them an old-school gameboy?”
Counts come from 1,795,640 Hacker News comments, November 2025 to November 2026. How we count. Report a mistake.