Kotaku reader Justin wants to bring the Game Boy back. So he’s designed a brand new one. It’s not as rugged as its predecessors, but it sure is glassy.
Taking as many cues from modern phone design as portable games hardware, Justin’s design has a 5.3=-inch 1080p screen, two cameras, 16GB of flash memory, 4G connectivity, a quad-core processor and 2GB RAM. He thinks that would cost $US199 – hey, he’s dreaming here, remember – and serve as much as a mini-tablet as a games device.
That sounds like the anti-Nintendo device in some ways. And I’m not sold on the fold-out controls. But then, once they’re out, that slimline d-pad actually looks neat.
Comments
14 responses to “Designing A Brand New Game Boy”
Doesnt look uncomfortable enough.
My thumb would get a cramp from trying to press those buttons.
exactly the point. Ideally, your fingers should dislocate in the process.
Too powerful! Needs more plastic and less pixels.
Needs to be gimped in some way. Remove the left analogue nub or half the buttons or something.
On a serious note. . . It looks beautiful.
But needs more fingerprints.
Those buttons look awful. A true Gameboy successor should have buttons as a central part of the design, not a fold out afterthought.
This!
Its a nice looking device. But clearly not made for kids. Which is fine, but I guess if you’re designing for a kids device — which is what handhelds are mainly geared towards — then it has to be built solid so when they drop it/throw it/mistreat it (as kids do) then it will be able to withstand the punishment.
Not to say all handhelds are for kids (Vita?) but Nintendo usually go that way.
But then again, I swear companies design devices now so that they ARE easy to break in order to get repairs so… whatever. Cool design.
The choice of font for “Evolution” and the details is just utterly, utterly useless. This idea also has no grounding what-so-ever in reality when it comes to Nintendo’s aesthetic or approach… might as well call it a XperiVita. Would be much closer to the mark.
This reminds me of how companies keep trying to resurrect the C64 as a sleek and overpriced gaming PC. In the words of the Humungus from Mad Max 2: “…Just walk away.”
“Again you have made me unleash my dogs of war.
Look at what remains of your gallant scouts.
Why? Because you’re selfish!”
I love that movie, so very much 😀
That looks like it’d get pretty hot being that thin and using the processor to run console quality graphics … I can’t see any vents or cooling.
The real question is can I get it in atomic purple?
Looks like his first assignment for 3d class. The render is pretty gross.
Looks like a new ipad to me. NT
its a good design but i think its more based on a teenage audience but i think it would really work, i suggest the button size increases as it would be a pain to use it as its current size. It doesn’t really scream Nintendo but I think that it would defiantly become a good selling product with some tweaks. A* on the design!