The fondly remembered grey brick redefined when and where we could enjoy video games, and was the birthplace of many gaming franchises which are still going strong to this day. Now seems like the perfect time to review its storied history, including its predecessors, competition, and some of its stand-out software titles.

 

In the late 1970s, simplistic LED, LCD, and VFD electronic handheld games appeared. Among them were Nintendo's own Game & Watch series (which featured basic but addictive game play that got progressively faster and more challenging before resetting every 100 points).