Gamebook – handling the history of the Game Boy

Back in April, we reported on GAMEBOOK, the new crowdfunding campaign that aimed to create a tome of Game Boy history. The 280-page book has now been released by Ninty Media and its founder Paul Murphy has kindly sent a copy for Fusion to review.

The book, titled GAMEBOOK: The Unofficial DMG Companion, takes a thorough journey from the early days of the Game Boy right through to the release of its successor, the Game Boy Color, in 1998. It’s not just a straight-up history either as there are personal stories scattered throughout and this feels more like an extended love letter to Nintendo’s mighty handheld at times.

That is no bad thing as hearing contributors’ personal stories is more engaging than a simple ‘this happened, that happened’ chronology. Before getting into the details, it’s important to point out that GAMEBOOK has had over 20 different writers involved and a similar amount of artists. It’s an impressive achievement and feels fresh with so many voices being heard.

Following some heartfelt introductions from Paul Murphy and magazine legend Steve Jarratt, the book starts with some technical information about the Game Boy, Game Paks, accessories and some of the different varieties released during its lifetime. This sets the tone for the level of detail seen throughout the book and cements the importance of Game Boy to the history of video games.

Following this barrage of interesting technical information comes the beating heart of GAMEBOOK. We are serenaded with personal retrospectives of some of the Game Boy’s most important titles. There is nothing groundbreaking about the selection here, it’s what you would expect. The love for Mario, Zelda, Metroid and Pokemon is portrayed through touching stories and beautiful, bespoke artwork.

Once the headline retrospectives are finished we move quickly into a curated list of some of the Game Boy’s other excellent titles. This 100-page section takes the form of two pages for each alphabetically listed entry. It must have been hard to choose only 50 standout games but there is a great mix of titles that covers the ten-year history the author set out to achieve.

Overall, GAMEBOOK: The Unofficial DMG Companion is a tremendous read filled with stories that will touch the heart as much as inform you about the Game Boy’s rich history. The illustrations are bright, bold and capture the imagination just like Nintendo’s plucky handheld did. The hardback cover is sturdy and will make a great addition to any video game book library. We can’t wait to see what comes next!